Chapter 20

Chapter 20

Fool Me Twice

Nera

Unlike before, the bastards had us in some kind of warehouse. Except this time, they put us in very large animal cages. This was going to turn into a fucking mess soon, with no access to a bathroom. At least the house we stayed in before had a single toilet and sink we could use when we'd be trapped in that room for weeks on end.

I had tried to fight them putting me in here. I tried the brain sting but my mind was too clouded from the drugs. I could think somewhat clearly inside my head, but to make things happen with Latin and such, it just didn't work. A part of me just wished they'd sell me off to whoever they were holding me for so I could attempt to escape, but something told me I'd be the last to leave. Judging by the way the head vamp was lasciviously looking at me, I knew my time was fleeting. I was grateful that there didn't seem to be bedrooms here, just a single office I could see. That would mean the vamps would have to sleep on the floor in here during the day, or leave us alone. I prayed for the latter. Surely they wouldn't just fuck us out in the open for everyone to watch?

I shuddered again.

For now, the vamps were congregated in the office, talking. I could tell they were stressed. The cops were now onto them, and that was all because of me and Poppy. I hoped Shep and his men had figured out what happened to me and were looking for me, because being locked in this cage, I had no hope but to be rescued.

I sighed, hoping I didn't die in here. Maybe once they came to inject me again, I could try the brain sting. I might be strong enough by then. I thought back to that spell to block your mind from the effects of drugs. I wasn't sure if it was like, the marijuana kind, or the pharmaceutical kind. The book seemed old, so I got the feeling they meant the kind of mind-altering substances that grew from the ground.

Still, I had to try.

The spell was in Latin like all the rest. I wasn't sure if I could try it now, or if I had to wait for another injection.

Well, it wasn't like I was going anywhere or had anything else to do. I tried to conjure up the words in my mind—

"How are you back here again?"

Nobody had spoken this whole time. The bastards told us we'd be punished if we talked amongst ourselves, but even with their super hearing, they wouldn't hear our whispers from the office, where they stood behind the closed door.

I looked over to see Leticia staring at me. Her braids were ratty and her dark skin looked ashy. Her cheeks were hollowed in.

"They got ahold of Poppy's Facebook and found me on there. Messaged me to come get her. I fell for it."

I couldn't tell them I was a witch and was going to rely on my witchy power to get out me out of being captured again—which had obviously failed as well.

"Why didn't you call the fucking cops?" she asked, narrowing tired eyes at me.

She seemed angry, and when I put myself in her shoes, I didn't blame her. The real question was—why didn't I tell Psycho? But of course I could not tell them the real reason.

"They threatened to kill her if I brought anyone else."

She rolled her eyes. "Don't you watch movies? They always say that, but they always get caught in the end. I'm not a big fan of cops, but they do have plans for this type of shit."

"Yeah," Anna chimed in. I took in her greasy hair and defeated look. "You should have called the cops. Or someone. Not gone alone."

"You girls are right. But I'm not sorry that Poppy is safe, back with her family. I would have done it for any of you."

They had nothing to say to that. The other three girls, whom I didn't recognize, just stared at me.

"Surely you have a plan," Anna added.

"I do, but don't worry about it. I was staying with some badass men who are actually good people. They know I'm missing and they know who took me. Please keep the faith they're going to find us. In the meantime, just lay low."

"I can't handle what they do to us," Sarah said, and I'd just noticed she was curled up in the back of her cage, her blonde hair looking oily brown now.

I bit my lip to keep from crying. "I have faith you won't have to endure that again." I looked at each of the girls. "None of us."

Just then, the bastards emerged from the office and we all shrank back to the far end of our cages.

"You fucking whores be quiet while we're out," the head bastard said, his creepy eyes lingering on mine for a long while, as if in warning. I kept my face expressionless. I was going to cut off his dick, shove it down his throat, and then watch him burn in the sun… or lop his head off, if it was the last thing I did.

They left the warehouse and I wondered where they were going since it was daytime, but I couldn't see past the doors. Maybe they went to another building, but one of them stayed behind. I watched him sit in the office and stare at the computer screen. Occasionally he'd pick up the desk phone and talk on it.

I hadn't eaten since yesterday morning when Cutter made me ham and eggs, and my stomach growled. The one bite of the meatloaf sandwich didn't count.

"How often are they feeding us?" I asked.

"Once a day still," Leticia answered. "When the sun goes down."

"Well, we didn't get fed today. They carted us here early this morning," I muttered.

I looked toward the office where the vampire was on the computer. "Hey!" I screamed.

He looked up, then ignored me, going back to whatever he was looking at.

"Hey, asshole! We need food and water. And a fucking toilet!" I yelled.

I really didn't care if he got mad. I'd already deduced he couldn't bite us, so if he smacked me around, so be it.

He ignored me again and I rattled my cage, causing it to jump and move along the concrete floor. "Hey, you piece of shit! Food!"

He got up from the desk and used superspeed to reach me. He bent in front of my cage and narrowed his eyes. He purposely let the irises take over the eyeball, the whites disappearing. He knew what I was and that the other girls couldn't see.

"How about you shut the fuck up, witch?"

He didn't scare me. I was tempted to try a brain sting, but that wouldn't get me out of the cage. "How about you bring us some food and water? We weren't fed today. We are human beings. We still need to eat," I finished, digging at his vampirism.

"I ain't got no food here," he snapped.

"Not my problem. If you want us healthy for your ‘clients', maybe you should have thought about that," I sassed.

"Fuck," he snapped. "Fucking Deon," he muttered.

Deon? That was the first I'd heard a name. Was that the head vamp who kept assaulting me before?

"Uber Eats, Door Dash, fucking Dominos. Something, dude. And I'm sure there's a bathroom around here with a water tap you can bring us some water with. Think outside the box, dumbass." I tapped my temple, pushing this dickhead to open my cage door.

He didn't fall for it. Instead, he skulked off toward the office. I noticed he disappeared into the back of it. Maybe it had a bathroom.

"Wow," Anna said. "Bad ass! I'm shocked he didn't pull you out and slap you around."

I smirked. "I was hoping he would. I wanted to kick him in the balls."

The girls giggled, but then shut up when I saw the bastard pushing a yellow mop bucket with Wet Floor written on the side.

He slid it in front of my cage. "Here you go, you can lap it up like a dog. Fuck knows you certainly smell like one."

Living with werewolves 24/7 will do that to a person.

"Nah, you need to get us cups or something to drink out of." I looked around the warehouse, then to the office. "That office don't have no water cooler with cups? Come on now, asshole. I know you're not as dumb as you look!"

His face turned red and I swore that was the first time I'd seen a vampire get red in the face. Not that I'd had much interaction with them except these bastards.

"Also, I need to use the bathroom."

"Not my problem," he sneered.

I sneered. "Yeah? Well it'll be your problem when urine and feces stink up this entire place. You seem like the type to have a… sensitive nose."

He made a face. "You can fucking hold it until the others get back."

"Translation: I need to ask my boss what to do because I can't make decisions for myself because I'm a weak little boy who follows orders," I taunted in a childish voice.

His face got even redder. He used his vampire strength to rip open the cage door and send it flying across the warehouse where it went clattering to the cement floor.

I shrank back to the end of the cage, but he reached in and snatched me out. He lifted me up by my neck with one hand, showing his unnatural strength. I heard the girls gasp and cry out, but I couldn't care because he was cutting off my airway.

I kicked out toward his crotch but he backed up just enough where I missed.

"Dolor," I hissed, trying to give him a headache. He winced a little but it wasn't strong enough to make him lose his grip on me.

My hands grappled at his fingers around my throat. I had about twenty seconds before I passed out. I grasped for the spell in my mind I'd memorized from the book, closing my eyes and reciting it as best as I could.

"Angustos substansia." I repeated it over and over. Miraculously, my mind started to feel clearer. I didn't feel so drunk or high like before.

"Dolor!" I screamed, and this time, he winced hard with a yowl and threw me across the warehouse, where I went sliding on my back and landed by the warehouse doors.

I scrambled up to make a run for it as the main doors burst open.