Among the Echoes(2)

He pulls his lips tight, biting his bottom one and moving my way.

He walks over, assessing me. His disgusting eyes drag across my body. I know from the look on his face that this man is not here to help me. Just as I get up the nerve to speak to him, he reaches out and roughly twists my nipple. I cry out in pain, but the real tears flood my eyes as he drops his pants. If I had some silly notion of making it out of here unscathed, they vanish.

I made the wrong decision. Dying would be better than what I know is to come.

"You make her bleed, I make you bleed." I hear the voice of the man, Marcus, who brought me here. "Save some for the rest of us."

The rest of us.

A sob catches in my throat.

"I won the first f*ck." The new man drags a finger down my body as I squirm, unable to escape.

"Please let me go. I'll do anything you want if you let me go." I hysterically try to reason with him. I'm not lying. In this moment, I would give this disgusting man my body willingly if it meant that I’d live through this nightmare. Survival is the only reward that could come from this.

"Shut up." He slaps me across the face, forcing my pleas to go silent, but the tears still slide from my eyes and into my ears. "Marcus, I want her on her knees!" he yells, and the door opens again.

"Not happening. You go first, but I'm the only one who gets her ass. You so much as dip a finger in what's mine and I will rip your dick off and f*ck you with it myself." Marcus spits on the floor and cocks his head with a challenge. "That's the rules. Take it or get the f*ck out so I can take it."

I turn my head to face Marcus, praying he will take pity and release me, but his eyes only flash to me long enough to take in my freshly busted lip. He storms across the room and, without warning, punches my abuser maliciously in his mouth, knocking him to the floor.

He leans down into his face to drive home his point. "She's f*cking bleeding! I warned you, Johnny. I f*cking warned you!" he shouts just before kicking him in the stomach.

"She wouldn't shut up!" Johnny yells back, holding his stomach.

"Who the f*ck cares? Let her scream. The rule was don't make her bleed. Now I'm gonna get blood all over my cock while she's sucking it. Get out. You're done." The injured man stands with his nostrils flaring as he exits the room.

I breathe a sigh of relief, and Marcus swings his head to mine. His dark eyes should terrify me, but somewhere deep inside, I feel a sick safety with him—the man who is supposed to kill me.

It must show on my face because he gently shakes his head and calls out, "Lee, you're up!" before striding out of the room.





The hours that follow fade into a blur. I wish I could lose consciousness as man after man rapes me, stealing pieces of the woman I will never be able to find again. At first, I fight, screaming with every thrust, but as my voice begins to crack from hoarseness, I find a deep, dark place within myself—a place I never knew existed. I hide in the welcomed darkness.

"She's all yours," I hear the most recent man say as he leaves the room.

I steel myself for yet another round of filth, but as I open my lids, I meet the chocolate-brown eyes of Marcus. My body relaxes, but bile creeps into my throat when I remember what his turn means.

"Shut the f*cking door!" he shouts over his shoulder while unbuckling his pants.

I squeeze my eyes closed, preparing for the worst.

Surprisingly, my hands are immediately untied. I should run or at the very least fight, but I'm too weak. I haven't eaten since I was brought here, not even to mention that I'm a third of his size. I’m well aware that there is no sense in trying to fight him, but I have to give it at least one shot before giving in to the culminating darkness once and for all.

I barely even move my arms before he grabs them and flips me over. My legs are still tied and my ankles cross as he spins me to my stomach, pinning me against the bed.

"Scream," he whispers in my ear with a low rumble.

I shake my head, unwilling to give him what he wants. I might be powerless in every way, but my voice is my own. I won't give him that.

"Erica, scream or you get us both killed."

I'm startled by the use of my name. I turn my head over my shoulder to meet his gaze, and finally, I'm not the one pleading.

"I'm not the bad guy. I need you to scream and make it believable."

His eyes flick to the door, and I give it everything I have left. I let out the blood-curdling sound I have been holding in since I gave up on myself. But I only do it because, for the first time since he took me, I have hope. It may be a horrible sound to others, but to my ears, it's a rejoice.