He leaves my cell and walks out again, but before he disappears completely, he says, “I’ll see you down there.”
One final nod at him and I wait on my designated spot. He closes the door behind him and leaves me alone with the two girls again. The faster this is over, the better.
“You wanna know why he didn’t flee?” Syrena adds. “Graham is his father.”
Ella’s eyes widen, and the shock and desperation seep in like poison. I don’t know why I expected anything else. Yet it kills me to see her look at me like that. As if I just murdered the Cage that resided in her mind and replaced it with a monster.
Betrayal.
I know that look all too well.
But before I can say what I want to say, the floor underneath me begins to shake, and I know it’s time. The lever was pulled … and I slowly descend to the room below.
Accompanying Song: “The Devil And The Huntsman” by Sam Lee & Daniel Pemberton
Ella
“What happened? Where’d he go?” Syrena clutches the glass as if she’s trying to hear what’s going on. “What’s that noise?”
I rush to grab my lipstick and immediately begin tapping the letters on the glass as fast as I can.
Hatch.
When I’ve tapped the final letter, she opens her mouth. “Oh, God. Did Graham make him put on something? Gloves?”
I tap once for yes.
“I think I know what it is,” she mutters. “Shit!” She seems in a rush as she yells at me. “Grab the rug.”
I do what she says and pull it away … only to discover a thick, round glass insert. With my jaw dropped and my eyes wide open, I peer through the hole into the deep room below. A gigantic pit lies below with a stage in the middle defined by a ring of ropes. Surrounding them are rows and rows of seats. About fifty men sit behind the ring, all of them wearing expensive suits. Scantily clad women pour drinks for them and give them snacks, some even sitting on their laps.
I can barely breathe as I notice a buff figure walking into the ring. It’s Cage.
I gaze at Syrena who seems clustered to the glass, waiting for me to tell her what it is.
“Well? It’s him, isn’t it?” she asks.
I pick up the lipstick and tap once.
“Fuck, I knew it. I’ve been hearing so much noise coming from beneath that rug that I knew there must be some sort of window. I knew that motherfucker was providing more entertainment for his customers.” She sighs. “Jesus. I’m sure that’s the exact place where they made me dance. A stage of some sort is in the middle and used for whatever they think is fun to see. The ultimate fun pit for rich men who want to throw away their money to see people do their bidding. It’s sick.” She looks away, swallowing as if she has trouble holding the bile down. “I wasn’t the only one. There were more girls, boys. Anyone they could get their hands on. I heard some of them. They begged to be spared. Some of them I never heard from again.”
I bite my lip, clutching myself as I listen to her story and then watch as another man walks into the ring to face Cage.
“I never imagined he’d put Cage there, though. Probably to fight, right?” she says.
I tap again for yes.
“Figured. But why’d he do all this for his father? Why would he let himself get beat up just for other people’s amusement? He doesn’t get cash. He’s not even free. He’s stuck in the same glass prisons we are. Why would he do it?”
I don’t know. I don’t understand any of this.
All I know is that Cage is about to fight this other man … because they’re definitely taunting each other.
In the corner of the large room, Graham enters and greets all the male guests, sitting down with them while smoking a cigar. It’s as if he’s using his own damn son to entertain his guests.
Sickening.
“Can you see Graham?”
I tap again.
“He must be trying to sell them on something, but what? He’d never sell his own son, right?”
At this point, I don’t know anymore. The sick bastard seems willing to do anything to get his hands on more money.
I can’t believe this is happening. One man, running an elaborate underground market … selling people.
Hiding us in the attic makes it very unlikely that anyone will find us here. It’s the perfect way to avoid visits from the police. If they break in, he’ll just pretend he’s paying people for their service instead of locking them up in glass prisons for his personal use. And if they don’t believe him, he can just pay them off.
Just thinking about it makes me wanna puke.
“Are they fighting?” Syrena asks.