Intricate Deceptions

“Let go of me! What do you want from me?” Gaia shrieked. She kicked and pushed as hard as she could at the strong chest holding her down. The hard stone and gravel beneath her scratched her back as she struggled to get free. The man, twice her size, pinned her hands to her sides and sat on her legs so she couldn’t move at all. “Give it to her now,” she heard him say. Fear and confusion gripped her body as adrenaline rushed through her veins, begging her to run, but she was helpless to get free. Her arm stung. A masked man pulled a long needle out of her. Her vision got hazy, she lost sensation of her extremities. Then, darkness. ………. Gaia woke to hysterical sobbing. She tried to sit up. The world spun out of control as bile rose to her throat. She lay back down, closed her eyes and took a deep breath. She almost choked on the pungent smell of urine and feces. She slowly opened her eyes and turned her head to the side. Her cheek pressed against a cold stone floor of what seemed to be a cell. In the corner, a tiny figure huddled into a ball, sobs shook her small frame. Gaia flipped onto her stomach, her muscles screaming in protest. The figure snapped her head up. The terror in her young blue eyes like nothing Gaia had ever seen. “Hey,” Gaia whispered as she crawled towards the child. “What’s your name?” “Emily.” The girl wiped her eyes and pushed curly blond hair out of her face. “How old are you?” “Twelve.” Emily sniffled. Twelve. Gaia swallowed the lump in her throat. “Where are we? Do you know why we’re here?” Gaia tried to keep her voice steady. “No, but there are other girls. In the rooms next to us. Sometimes I hear them scream. Then men come and make them quiet. The silence after is worse.” Tears filled Emily’s eyes. “I try to stay quiet. I try to hide in the shadows so they won’t take me.” “Take you where?” Gaia’s heart pounded. “I don’t know, but when they take one, they never come back.” Tears rolled down Emily’s cheeks. Gaia moved closer and cradled the scared child. Though only twenty-two, she felt a maternal responsibility. “Don’t cry. I’ll look out for you,” Gaia whispered. She wasn’t sure she could protect herself, but Emily was traumatized, and Gaia wasn’t going to leave her to fend for herself. Emily’s sobs quieted and her tears stopped as she fell asleep in Gaia’s arms. She looked so serene as she slept, her face the depiction of innocence. Gaia had to find out what was going on. Her throat felt like sand paper and waves of nausea kept hitting her over and over. She could barely breathe from the musty smells around her. There were no toilets. No mats or blankets. Just cold hard stone and dirt. Why were they being treated like animals and with such cruelty? How did she get here? How did she…? Panic rose in her chest. She couldn’t remember anything before fighting the men who put her in this cell. Who was she? Where did she come from? She could only remember her name. The more she tried to breathe, the shorter the breaths became. Her heart beat so fast, it was going to give out. Gaia looked down at Emily, sound asleep in her arms. The little girl had black circles under her eyes and bruises all over her arms and legs, but she looked like she’d found a moment of peace in a world of hell. Gaia pulled herself together. She had to find a way out. She had to focus on her future, no matter what her past had been. ………. Minutes turned into hours, or maybe days, Gaia wasn’t sure. She had no sense of time. There were no windows to tell her if it was day or night. At one point, a man passing by tossed a water bottle through the cell bars. He didn’t spare them a second look as he continued down the hall. Gaia crawled over to retrieve the bottle and made sure Emily drank enough to stay hydrated before she cautiously gulped several mouthfuls herself. She closed the half-empty bottle and propped it against the wall. As much as she wanted to down the entire contents, they had to save some for later. They urinated in the opposite corner from where they sat. There wasn’t much fluid to dispose of. Gaia studied the walls, the ground, and even the ceiling in search of an escape route. Weak from lack of food, she could only get up for a few minutes at a time before feeling too dizzy to stand. Emily stopped crying and stayed close to Gaia where she seemed to feel braver than before. “And your favorite color?” Gaia asked, continuing the game she’d come up with to keep Emily distracted. “Purple. Yours?” “Not sure I have one.” Gaia ran her hand down a crack in the wall, gauging its depth. Emily sat cross-legged on the floor behind her. “I like purple because my mom was wearing a purple dress the last time I saw her.” Gaia’s hand stilled. She turned her head to look at Emily. “The last time?” “I was five. My parents divorced a few years before that. I lived with Mom and saw Dad on the weekends. One day, Dad took me out for ice cream. We never went back home.” “Where did you go?” “We drove for hours. I had no idea what was going on, but we’d crossed into another country. I didn’t have any of my things.” “That must’ve looked suspicious.” “I guess so, but nobody stopped us. From that day on, I lived with Dad in the countryside.” “And you never heard from your mom?” “No.” Emily stared at the ground, a vacant look in her eyes. “I’m starting to forget what she looks like.” “Did you ever try talking to your dad about seeing her again?” Gaia rested her back on the wall and slid down to the floor. “Every time I mentioned her, he changed the subject. He brought other kids over to play and bought me a new toy every day. I was happy, but I missed her a lot.” Gaia laid a reassuring hand on Emily’s back. “Maybe I can help you find her.” Emily’s eyes flicked to the bars. “Do you think we’ll ever get out of here?” “Yes. I’ll get us out. One way or another.” She had to keep Emily optimistic, even though she was losing hope herself. “Emily, do you know how you got here?” Emily traced a line in the grimy floor. Her finger moved from one end to the other and back again. “I was walking home from school when a black van pulled up next to me. Two men grabbed me. One covered my mouth and the other lifted my legs. They threw me into the van and put a bag over my head. Then I woke up here.” She lifted her eyes to Gaia. “How about you? How did you get here?” “I…I don’t know,” Gaia said quietly, watching Emily’s hand move back and forth. “I can’t remember.” “It’s ok. I’m sure it’ll come back to you.” Emily fumbled with something on her wrist. “Give me your hand.” Gaia stuck her arm out. “I want you to have this.” Emily fastened a copper charm bracelet onto Gaia’s wrist. “That way you can remember me if we get separated.” Gaia’s eyes misted as she studied the chain. “The heart means love.” Emily pointed at each charm in turn. “The butterfly means beauty. The angel is protection. The bird on the swing symbolizes freedom. The purse and the shoe are there because I like to shop.” Gaia smiled as Emily giggled. “And the ruby and pearl were gifts from my father.” “I can’t take this Emily. It’s too personal.” “I want you to have it, for now. Just wear it until we get out of here, ok?” “Ok.” Gaia twisted the bracelet around her wrist. “I won’t take it off until I’m giving it back to you.” ………. Gaia was starting to think they’d been forgotten when jangling keys woke them from a nap. The girls had been sleeping next to each other near the back wall when their cell door opened. The first man to walk in used the cell door’s top bar as leverage. Gaia scrambled to her feet, trying to orient herself. Emily cowered behind her as another man, with a nautical star tattooed onto his forearm, followed the first. “Well look at that,” the first man sneered. “Looks like our crybaby made a friend. Too bad you’ll have to say goodbye.” The two men approached Emily who held onto Gaia for dear life. “Leave her alone,” Gaia screamed, trying to push them away. “She’s just a child.” One smack sent her crumpling to the floor. The larger of the two kicked her, while the other grabbed Emily by the hair and dragged her out. Adrenaline rushed through Gaia’s veins. She pushed herself up and lunged at the man who had a hold on Emily. She jumped onto his back, clawing at his face until he let go. Emily stared in horror as Gaia’s fingernails dug into his skin. “Run, Emily!” Gaia screamed. Emily sprinted out the cell as the larger man made a grab for her. The one Gaia clung onto rammed her into the wall, forcing her to release her grip and slide to the floor. She struggled to get up but a swift kick to her stomach kept her there. Emily’s screams filled the cell. The man hovering over Gaia felt the bloody scratches on his face before spitting on her and slamming the cell door on his way out. Emily. The screams echoed in Gaia’s head long after they stopped resonating down the halls. She couldn’t get up. Sobs racked her body. Emily… Even after the tears subsided, she still couldn’t get up. Gaia willed her mind to go numb. Her body followed. She started her descent into the welcoming darkness, when the cell door opened. Two pairs of arms pulled her up and half carried her out. As they walked down the corridor, Gaia glanced into the passing rooms. Young girls, no older than Emily were strewn across beds, half naked, dead eyes staring into space. Gaia was dragged up two floors then pushed into an office. A screen on the wall displayed a webpage with pictures of young girls posing for the camera. “So you’re the one he wants,” a voice behind her made her jump. Gaia turned around. A stout man, somewhere in his late forties, wore a suit and too much cologne. Gaia stepped back as he walked to a desk in the corner. “Who are you? What are you talking about?” Gaia asked. “My identity is of no concern to you. I just wanted to take a look before sending you off. Madam Lexi will be disappointed to lose such a gem, but I suppose she’ll live. Your buyer was adamant on having you indefinitely. Most of my clients buy for the night, but for some reason you’re a different case.” Gaia’s cheeks flushed with rage. “I am not a piece of meat to be sold. How dare you?” The man chuckled in reply. He motioned for Gaia to be taken away, dismissing her as if she were nothing more than a fly. “Wait. What about Emily? What did you do to her?” Gaia frantically asked as the man whose face she’d earlier mutilated approached her. The man in the suit looked up from his desk. “I don’t know an Emily,” he drawled. “If she was down below then she’s been taken to start work.” That statement confirmed Gaia’s suspicions. Her stomach dropped as the suited man went back to his paperwork. She was hauled out of the office and into another room. As the realization of where she was hit her, she didn’t notice the man who’d pulled her locking the door behind him, or the eager look on his face. “Aren’t you a pretty thing.” He dragged his leering gaze over her body and walked towards her, grinning wider with every step. Gaia backed up until she had nowhere else to go. “You f****d up my face. I’m going to make you wish you were never born.” He ripped her clothes off, tearing the remnants of the material covering her body. Gaia screamed and attempted to push him away. The man slapped her hard across the face, silencing her. Half her face burned as stars danced before her eyes. She stood dazed, exposed to the cold air. Dread, mixed with the man’s foul smell, made her want to vomit, but there was nothing in her stomach to retch. He threw her to the floor, and unzipped his pants. She couldn’t move. Was it fear? The drugs? The beatings? She lay immobilized as the foul man forced her legs apart and kneeled between them. “No, no, no…stop. Don’t! Please! Stop…” Gaia sobbed. He smacked her in response. Warm liquid trickled from the corner of her mouth. She brought her fingers to the source of the warmth and wiped oozing blood away. She stared at her stained fingers. Before the man had the chance to penetrate, a loud crash pulled her back to reality. The foul man was thrown off her and pushed out the room. Gaia looked up at the stranger who’d saved her. She noticed black eyes, then plunged into oblivion. ………. Raoul’s heart wrenched at the sight of the girl on the floor. “I’ll bring these bastards down, I swear it.” The scattered torn clothes were useless. He found a blanket on the floor, and covered her. He pushed her long golden hair out of her face and couldn’t help but notice her beauty underneath the marks and bruises. Her eyes fluttered open. “Hi,” Raoul said softly, “what’s your name?” “Gaia,” she whispered. “That’s a beautiful name. You can rest now, you’re safe with me. I’m going to get you out of here, ok?” She nodded and closed her eyes. Raoul took one last look around the room, then carried Gaia out. At the end of the hall, the suited man appeared, anxious and apologetic, blocking Raoul’s way out. “My sincerest apologies. I assure you, the goon has been taken care of. You know how they get randy around these pretty little things. Anyhow, it’s nothing to worry about since she’s already been sold. I’d rather you not have this one. How about I take you for a quick private tour? You can have your pick—” “This was the last straw, Barry,” Raoul interrupted. “I have no intention of discussing anything right now. But you’ll be hearing from me.” “You and I are both fully aware you cannot retaliate,” Barry spat, his tone changing drastically. “Move,” Raoul growled. Barry moved and Raoul walked out with Gaia in his arms. As soon as he exited the building, two men rushed towards him. Both seemed relieved he was out, but neither voiced their concern. All three walked towards an idling chopper. “Would you like me to carry the young lady, Sire?” the taller man asked. “It’s alright Alexis, I’ve got her. Just get us the hell out of here.” They strapped in and the helicopter lifted into the air. “So who is she?” the shorter of the two men asked. “The key to everything, John,” Raoul replied. “We need her more than she needs us.”