Oh my god, that description... it indeed felt like a real kidnapping. Great job!
I think this has been my favourite chapter so far! I wonder whose house is Aiden in, and how long are Riverbend going to keep him bound and gagged.
Thanks once again! Aiden will have to stay bound for the entire 24 hours, that is, if he doesn't escape.
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13. Captive
Aiden lay bound, gagged, and blindfolded in an unknown place. Two people had come up and removed the sheets around him, to leave shortly after. Aiden believed they had also photographed him to prove to the game board they got him. The 24 hours started after sending the picture. Now it was silent again, and Aiden guessed he was alone.
“Tap, tap, tap,” Aiden heard after ten minutes as if someone enthusiastically made their way up to the attic. His captor, he thought. The closing door, turning lock, and giggling captor made Aiden anxious. Locks should never hinder an escape, so the key had to stay inside the door. Tape, rope, scarves, and the like had to keep a captive captured. Thus, Aiden deduced, his captor wanted to hold someone out of the room. That was odd.
Even odder was the giggle. It sounded feminine. Traditionally, girls stayed with girls and boys with boys when taken. Parents preferred it this way. Never before a girl had held Aiden, and he couldn’t recall Lilian staying with a boy. Still, Aiden was sure only one pair of feet had ascended the stairs.
Usually, Aiden thought, his captor would remove the blindfold and gag now. Then they discussed what he needed from home and how he wanted to spend his time here. Now, the muteness lasted.
Aiden’s captor interrupted his thoughts by dragging a couple yards for him over the fluffy carpet, breaking the usual routine. She removed his shoes and socks, turned him on his stomach, and bound his ankles to a wooden beam two feet above the ground. His knees dangled in the air, pressing his weight on his arms that were still pinned to his chest.
Aiden felt more vulnerable and scared than he had been in years when something cold touched his soles. A finger. It left and returned with nine others. They attacked his feet, and Aiden was helpless, unsure whether he was still part of the game. Always he had trusted those tying him up, even when he didn’t know them as they were from Arkalay. Now, he was less confident.
“NO!” Aiden screamed while squirming on the floor, but the gag crushed his voice. His captor chuckled. This girl was merciless, Aiden thought, as she started tickling him for half a minute. This left him drained, confused and horrified when she granted him a break.
Aiden panted while the girl removed the rope holding his legs up and rolled him on his back. She sat down next to him and loosened the knot behind his head. She giggled while keeping the fabric over his face. Then, she jerked it away, revealing twinkling icy blue eyes above a warm, infectious smile.
“Hi, Aiden,” Jenna said. “Sorry, that was uncool, but I doubt I get such an opportunity again any time soon. Forgive me.” She grabbed her phone and removed the bandanna keeping Aiden’s gag in place. Two drenched bandannas fell out, and Aiden stretched his jaws. He saw they were alone in a dimly lit bedroom before shifting his gaze back to Jenna. She wore black leggings, a black skirt, and a blue blocked blouse bottomed up, she hadn’t worn earlier today.
“Good, now that’s out of the way, we’ve to discuss your wish list,” she said before Aiden could respond. “What do you need? You’re my first captive, so I’m not very familiar with the typical details of this procedure.”
“First, you’re supposed to treat me well. So no torture,” Aiden replied irritated.
A cloud passed Jenna’s face, and Aiden knew he had made a mistake.
“I forgive you, but that wasn’t kind,” Aiden added, forcing a grin. “I need my overnight bag and history book. My red sweater and the book on my night desk would also be nice. Pass that through. Lilian knows what I mean. Oh, and everything in my backpack, but I don’t know where it is at the moment.”
“Noted and sent,” Jenna responded after typing out the message. She lay her phone on the edge of her desk while Aiden calmed down and inspected her bedroom. It had light blue wallpaper, a sloping, white ceiling with posters of pop stars, and a dull gray carpet. There were two white wardrobes, a desk piled with paper and books, two blue office chairs, and a steep ladder leading to a six-foot-high loft bed. The sloping ceiling transformed it into a little room to sleep. Jenna had bound his ankles to one of the supporting beams of the bed. A couple of colorful beanbags with blue throw pillows lay behind it, creating a sitting area.
“So, what should we do now?” Jenna asked when Aiden had finished investigating her room. “I heard most captives watch TV, read, or do homework. Ask me if you want anything.”
“Freeing me would be nice, Jenna,” Aiden said sarcastically. “If you can’t do that, a glass of water and helping me on a chair would be fine.”
With Jenna’s help, Aiden stood up and shuffled to one of her office chairs on which he sat down. She ran down to get drinks, leaving him alone. Here lay her phone, and with all his energy, he tried ripping the tape around his fingers. To his disbelief, he wiggled his left thumb free, grabbed her phone, and clamped it against his chest. The screen flashed up, and Aiden saw it had a password. He sighed while Jenna stepped through the door. This time, she had walked up quieter.
“Aiden! What are you doing!” she shouted while racing toward him, spilling a little. She put the glasses on the table and seized her phone back. When she Aiden hadn’t unlocked it, she breathed a sigh of relief. The phone entered the breast pocket of her blouse.
“You know I have to escape or show Northwood where I am, don’t you?” Aiden laughed. “Did you think I wouldn’t try, or where you naive?”
“Yes. No. I don’t know.” Jenna exclaimed before sitting down. “Yeah, I was naive. Hadn’t I told you this was my first time?”
“Yeah, you did. So what? You expect a warning before I start escaping?”
“Aiden, please, stop this. Or don’t you realize why Riverbend brought you here?” Jenna said in return. Annoyance had replaced her panic. Aiden hadn’t thought of this, and it took a couple of seconds before it clicked. After speaking to Jenna and Hannah on Wednesday, they arranged this. Staying with someone he knew would be more pleasant.
“Sorry, Jenna. I’m stupid. We’ve scheduled a meeting with the game board,” Aiden said. “No need to go easy on me. Keep me bound. I couldn’t care less.”
“You said you disliked the game.”
“Yeah, with the game and dares. Being bossed around, unable to talk with anyone I fancy, and leaving my house when I want,” Aiden returned. “This is okay, and you don’t have to worry about me. I’ve spent bound longer and tighter. Your tickling was rude, but nothing I can’t handle.”
This shocked Jenna, and she took a sip of water to digest this.
“Good. Fine by me. I don’t mind tying you up,” Jenna said with a smile. “Dinner is in ten minutes, so allow me to redo your bonds. A lovely way to introduce you to my family.”
“That’s always a lovely moment,” Aiden said. “Super awkward, but that’s part of the fun.”
“Let me help to get your hands behind your back,” Jenna said without responding to Aiden. “Don’t try to escape or attack me. I know the rules and changing your bounds means no escaping.”
Aiden thought about mentioning the torture but decided against it. Jenna ripped the tape off his fingers and arm, untied the rope around his wrists, and asked him to stand up.
“A little reminder: My mom and dad do not grab the joy of the tie-ups,” Jenna said while rebinding his wrists behind his back.
“Great,” Aiden replied. “I will keep any sarcastic comment to myself then.”
“That would be wonderful,” Jenna responded with a smile. “It would be a shame if I get grounded for keeping an abducted classmate bound in our house against his will.” Both laughed. The jargon of the game was not something they could use outside Arkalay. Apparently, kids discussing kidnapping their classmates and binding them, shocked outsiders.
After Jenna had loosened the ropes around Aiden’s legs, she cuffed him with one foot slack.
“Follow me,” Jenna said before rushing out of her attic. Aiden needed more time, and she waited impatiently near the stairwell.
“There you are,” Jenna laughed while jumping down a couple of steps. Aiden had more trouble. The rope between his ankles was barely long enough to step down. A few minutes later, they reached the dining room with a large, oaken dining table. Here, Jenna ran into her dad, still in suit and with his hair slicked backward. He stared Aiden in the eyes. His were the same as Jenna’s.
“Sorry, dad,” Jenna blurted while leading Aiden to the head of the table. Her dad was puzzled by the bound boy, so Aiden produced a smile before breaking eye-contact.
Jenna’s little twin brothers sat on the couch with wide-open mouths. To Aiden, they looked identical. Both had their family’s ice-blue eyes and white-blond hair announcing summer was coming. Their expression reminded him of Jenna at the start of a dare.
“Sit down there,” Jenna said, pointing to the head of the table.
Aiden did so. He hung his bound arms behind the back of the chair and exchanged nods with Jenna’s mom, who peeked around the corner leading to the kitchen. Meanwhile, Jenna tied his ankles and hips to the dark wood. The two Blue Lacies, Jenna had mentioned, approached him and sniffed Aiden’s pants. He wanted to pet them, but his bounds made this impossible.
“I’m fetching for our glasses. Stay here, Aiden,” Jenna said before running off. Aiden stared at the flowers in the middle of the table to avoid meeting eyes with Jenna’s family. He knew they all gazed at him.
“Hey, are you okay?” Jenna’s mom said, startling Aiden. He hadn’t noticed she had walked toward him.
“Yeah, I’m fine,” Aiden replied.
“You sure? You’re all tied up with red strains over your arms.”
“Those are gone in a couple of hours. It doesn’t hurt or anything.”
“I heard Jenna has to keep you like this for the entire day. Is that right?”
“Yeah, except if I escape or someone from Northwood finds out I’m here.”
“I can ask Jenna to release you, and then you tell them you were bound,” Jenna’s mom added after a moment of thinking.
“That won’t be necessary,” Aiden replied. “This is part of the game, and it isn’t bothering me at all. I appreciate your concern, but no need to worry about me. Jenna knows what she is doing and treats me well.” During his last sentence, a blushing Jenna appeared from the hallway.
“Mind setting the table, Jenna? It’s soup and salad,” Jenna’s mom said, breaking off the conversation.
Five minutes later, all six sat around the table. Aiden had Jenna to his right and one of her little brothers to his left. Lily and Jane, the two dogs, had nestled themselves under the table, hoping to catch any dropped food.
“How do you expect me to eat?” Aiden asked Jenna while her mom filled Aiden’s bowl with chicken soup.
“Oops,” Jenna said while her brothers laughed. She released Aiden’s right arm and bound the other to the back of the chair. “One should be sufficient,” she said before shoving his chair against the table and getting a concerned gaze from her mother.
Aiden picked up his spoon and began eating to show it didn’t bother him.
“How were you kidnapped?” the boy to his left asked after a few minutes of uncomfortable silence.
“Long story,” Aiden replied. He emptied his spoon before explaining how Riverbend had captured, bound, and transported him. To spare Jenna, he left out the part of her tickling him. The eyes of the two boys revealed they loved it, especially his descriptions of his ties and gag. Meanwhile, Jenna’s mother seemed less content. Aiden was unsure what to do: assure her he hadn’t disliked it and look like a fetish freak or fear she would assume he was here involuntarily. At long last, he drew a more nuanced picture: It was part of the game, and he had to accept the consequences. Still, missing a weekend day was not great.
“Aiden, you want to try the salad?” Jenna’s mom asked. All had finished their bowl long ago while Aiden spoke. He received his salad and explained what happened that morning as a bonus.
“Can we tie you up too?” one the boys asked Aiden at the end of the meal, causing Aiden to flush. It would be fun, but only Jenna could restrain him as he was her captive.
“You should ask if you can tie your sister up. I will give directions to help a little,” Aiden answered after explaining he couldn’t meet their request.
“That seems fair,” Jenna said with glowing cheeks. “As long as it isn’t too tight or for too long.” She understood she wasn’t in the position to chicken out.
“Let’s tie her legs to her hands. She will never escape,” the other twin said with a mischievous smile.
“You always hogtie everyone, don’t you?” Aiden laughed. “There are also other ways to tie someone such that they can’t escape. If you listen to me, she won’t be able to leave.”
The twins nodded, settling the deal. While the rest did the dishes, Jenna freed him from the chair. With his wrists cuffed behind him and hands taped into fists, she helped him onto the sofa in the living room. She tied his legs together and fastened them, so he couldn’t hop away. The dogs were free to roam in the living room, so a hairy, dirty blanket protected the leather. Aiden didn’t mind.
Jenna withdrew to her room to exchange her blouse for a black-white striped, long-sleeved t-shirt. To Aiden’s delight, she still wore her leggings and skirt. A pile of white rope and bandannas lay in her hands.
“You ready?” Aiden asked her. The boys were energetic and couldn’t wait anymore; it was Christmas morning for them. The two adults had retired to the study as they hoped Aiden and Jenna could handle the situation.
“Yeah, I am. You have a plan?”
“I got an idea,” Aiden said. “Lie down on the rug and listen to me. I promise it won’t be a hogtie.”