Hey beautiful people, so I've been suffering a seemingly incurable bout of writer's block but on the train last night I think I was finally cured! Wrote a short story so read and comment please! It's partly inspired by Rihanna's "Russian Roulette".
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She could feel the sweat dripping down her face as she
slowly regained consciousness; small beads forming on her forehead and then
trickling down her face slowly, like lazy raindrops on the window, eyes
flitting open. “How did I get myself into this mess?” she wondered. Her head
was pounding where someone had struck her. Hard. “She’s waking up boss” she
heard a man say in a voice that was too high pitched to be respectable. She
wanted to laugh but her breath caught in her lungs. Her chest ached. Looking
down she realised had been bound hands and legs, and there was duct tape firmly
around her mouth. “What should I do with the haggard thing?” the voice said
again. Ashleigh tried to remember how she had gotten here in the first place,
the last thing she could remember was getting into a rich guys car. He drove a
Maserati and she felt lucky to be the one to service him that night
“Hey Mistuh, you need a lady friend for the night? I only
charge £1000 till the morning and I can do you nine ways from Sunday,” she cooed
in her southern drawl, shoving herself through the open window, cleavage first.
It was well after dusk and the streets were cold. Business was slow and she
would do anything to climb into this matte black car and be carried off into
his swanky apartment somewhere uptown, never mind what she might have to do for
the next few hours. “Really? All nine ways?” his voice was a rich deep alto and
she could feel the vibrations in her ear as he spoke. “Yessir, maybe even more”
she offered, snapping her gum and smiling flirtatiously, playing coy because
she knew what men like this wanted. It wasn’t that she liked doing this… ‘job’,
but sometimes there was simply no other way to pay the bills. She only worked
the streets when she needed to, when her three year old could no longer eat broth
consisting mainly of water and cried for some meat or bread, sadly this was
becoming more and more frequent, she even had a couple of regulars. “Well hop
in then, but I’m only giving you £300 no more.” He said with a smile “That’s
still higher than some f*ckers offer so I’m in.” she thought as she clambered
into the car, feeling the cold leather seats on her thighs.
Now the same alto voice was saying “Leave her for now, wake
them all up first.” For the first time Ashleigh realised there were other
people around her. Girls dressed almost exactly like her; scantily clad, some
stripped down to their underwear, obviously ladies of the night. She saw the
guy with the high-pitched voice, he was stout and dressed like an undertaker,
even including the hat. He went around the room brutally kicking and slapping
all the girls until they were all on their feet. There were about 8 of them,
all tied up with lips that had been sealed. “Now, now Caleb, don’t be so harsh,
they have enough punishment waiting for them.” The alto voice said,
reverberating through the room.
Ashleigh wondered where they were, all she could make out
was that it was unfinished and the concrete on the floor grazed her bare legs
constantly, there were also a few sparsely spaced windows. It must be a
warehouse of some sort. The voice sounded even closer than it was before as it
spoke. He was standing in front of one of the girls. “So tell me your name
sweetheart” the hooker stood shaking before him speechless. “Very well then,
let me explain the rules of my little game to you.” Emerging completely out of
the darkness to reveal his 6 foot 5 frame, with a wry grin he said. “It is my
job as a bearer of the light, to rid the world of all things sinful and all
things immoral and you my dear, all of you,” he says looking intently at each
one of them “are both sinful and immoral” Ashleigh watched as he ran a finger
carelessly down the hookers face and stopped right at the end of her
breastbone, in between her breasts. “Because of your undignified means of
living, I have chosen you to play this little game with me, oh don’t cry
darling, it might all be quite alright in the end.” He smiles slightly as he
watches the hooker shake with fear, then he jab her forcefully in the chest with
two fingers. The girl doubles over and falls, completely out of breath. “You
simply must choose between 2 options. Caleb, show them the games rooms.” With
that the lights went off again and there was an image cast on the wall directly
in front of them. From what she could make out, there was a table with a gun on
it. She could hear the baritone
voice explaining the rules of the game, and the game was Roulette. There was
only one cartridge in the gun. Anyone who managed to survive would be allowed
to leave and everyone else… could finally meet her maker. The only catch was a
pack of rabid dogs just through another door, waiting to devour anyone who took
more than two minutes to pull the trigger. Ashleigh felt sick to her stomach;
this job cannot be the reason for her being here right now.
She closed her eyes and began to remember all the decisions
that had brought her to this place. Dating Chris, the neighbourhood bad boy
even when her father told her not too. Falling out with her mother after she
failed to side with her. Isolating herself from all her siblings as she claimed
they had all never been in love before. Her decision to move out of her parents
house at the age of 17 and live with Chris instead. Loosing her inhibitions one
night and indulging fully in his pleasures. Staying with him even after he beat
her continuously. Getting pregnant and dropping out of school to have his baby.
Chris eventually kicking her and her baby out of the house no matter how she
pleaded. Meeting a woman who got her started in the ‘business’, getting her her
very first client. Wondering to a perfect world in her mind while different men
constantly filled her womanhood; old, young, poor, rarely rich. Nothing good
had come out of this and all Ashleigh could think of was her baby girl,
sleeping in the dingy apartment. She could only hope someone would save her.
All of a sudden there was a loud bang and then a thump on
the floor as the first girl’s body went down. She saw Caleb drag the lifeless
body out of the room “Feed her to the dogs” the alto voice said. “Yes boss”
answered Caleb. Shivering convulsively and crying at the sight she shut her
eyes tight again and thought of her perfect world. Another bang and another
thud. Dreams of bright summer days and white Christmases were interrupted by a
hand placed firmly on her shoulder. “You’re next” She looked at him with all
the light left in her soul and pleaded with her eyes for him to let her go. Her
deep brown eyes swam in tears waiting to fall at the bat of an eyelid, but all
she was met with were cold black eyes, devoid of any emotions. Caleb grabbed
her roughly and she wriggled and thrashed about trying desperately to be freed.
Four slaps in rapid succession met her cheek, life had dealt her a heavy blow.
Now locked in the room she stares at the revolver, her only escape. Picking up
the cold lifeless gun like the eyes she had just seen her hands begin to shake.
She stares into the barrel and realises they look exactly like the eyes she has
just seen. Her knees buckle and she sinks slowly to the ground. “Only 1 more
minute before my puppies come in to play.” says the voice through the speakers.
“There are some truly sick people in this world” she thought as she spins the
cylinder. “Better to take your chance with the gun than the dogs.”
“30 seconds”
Clicking the cylinder into place, she wills her hand and her
heart to be still.
“20 seconds”
She raises her eyes to heaven and says a silent prayer to
anyone who might be listening.
“10 seconds”
She lifts the gun slowly to her temple and feels it ice cold
on her skin.
“9... 8… 7… 6…”
Slowly and deliberately she squeezes the trigger.
