Love Bites & Bullet Holes

The Devil You Know...

"This...This is a mistake..." I laughed nervously, feeling hysteria tickle the back of my throat. "I.." my mouth opened and closed a few times in an attempt to spurt words that would explain to this man why I didn't belong in freaking Japan when I had just been in the States however many hours ago! He spared me one more glance before gesturing the other men forward. He rattled off something to them in Japanese and then they were grabbing me once more and guiding me towards a large warehouse. A feeling of absolute dread encased me and my breaths started coming out fast and uneven. "N-No..No! Please! I-I don't belong here!" I jerked, twisted and bucked, attempting to either break their hold or slow them, but my weight was nothing against their taller, stockier, builds. My eyes stung and I cursed myself for even thinking of crying right now. Frantically, I turned my head towards the sharply dressed man that was clearly in charge here. I caught his gaze and my eyes pleaded with him. "Please! Whoever you think I am, I'm not her! I'm no one!"

Amusement slowly lit his eyes and a tight-lipped smile stretched across his face. "Exactly. So you are, indeed, what I'm looking for," he answered with a hint of condescension. Confusion fanned across my mind like a cobweb, momentarily perplexing me into silence. A few more steps brought me to one of the warehouse doors and it was hastily yanked open so I could be swiftly hauled inside. A scream urgently sprinted up my throat, eager to launch itself past my lips and into the frigid warehouse air. But the sight that my eyes tripped over brought everything, down to the blood in my veins, to a lurching halt. My heart took two more sluggish beats and seemed to fall into line, stopping as well. What...the hell...was this? Oh god please...please tell me I'm hallucinating...please! A dazed whimper of protest burst out of me and I found myself shaking my head repeatedly, shrinking back from the scene. Women...no, girls, dozens of them, were in varying states of distress and panic.

There was no doubt what this was. No doubt in my mind what was going on here. Yet...my mind was terrified to actually breathe life into the words and voice them. Like an old engine rumbling back to life, everything around me jerked back into motion in small bursts. My blood pumping furiously through my heart and zipping through my veins...my breath expanding my lungs and wheezing out erratically...and goosebumps springing up and trailing along my skin. The cold air brushed against the now sensitive surface, making me shiver. "Hah...hah...hah.." My brows pulled together at the sudden sound filling my ears in an almost deafening cadence. W-What's that? What IS that?! I thought frantically, my eyes wide and wild as I looked around, only to slam them shut every time they glanced over a new horror that I didn't want to process. It took me a few seconds to come to the almost comical realization that it was my breathing, my panicked unsteady breathing that was bringing me closer and closer to the edge of hyperventilation.

The men dragging me through the warehouse didn't seem fazed by my antics in the slightest, but why would they? With the number of girls they were used to kidnapping, the sound of a mental break was probably their favorite melody. I gave a short snorted laugh at the manic thought and one of them shot me a look of surprise. Shocked? Yeah, you and me both buddy...While I did my best to keep my eyes off the rest of the girls around me, the groups of men with guns didn't go unnoticed. It made it clear that even if they had let me go, making a run for it would earn me freedom in a way I wouldn't like. In the form of a limp lifeless body and a nice unmarked grave. I was pulled out of my dark musings by Japanese being shouted at me and one of the men gesturing to the floor. A few other girls were huddled nearby but none of them so much as moved much less spared me a glance.

I wanted very much to deny the demand but didn't feel like testing my luck just yet. They let me go and forced to bare my weight without support, my ankle gave a sharp protest. I winced and hastily sat down. Needing the relief more than I needed to stay off their bad side. The men shot a few more words and scowls my way and then walked off, leaving me relatively alone. A trembled sigh pushed it's way out and I sagged forward a bit, trying to relieve a bit of the tension in my shoulders. I glanced at the girls by me and realized that they too, were still tied up like I was. It was obvious after a few minutes that they had no intention of acknowledging me, much less strike up a conversation. So I finally did the thing I was avoiding the most. I looked around me and fully took in all the details of the warehouse. A fresh shudder rocked my frame and I pressed my lips firmly together to stop the aggravated pants that wanted to escape.