Lisa Ch. 02: Consequences

"Sean!" Angus practically grunted. "What is she doing there?" Jessica could hear a man's voice on the phone this time. "I don't ever want to speak to that bitch again! You have call display on your phone, use it!"

Jessica heard the man speak again and Angus seemed to be calming down.

"Yeah," Angus finally muttered. "maybe I should call back later about your car."

Angus listened for a few moments and then exhaled. "Okay. Yeah, I got some time. Sorry about that."

He turned away and went to pull the chair out from under his office desk. Straddling it, he sat facing Jessica. Jessica closed her eyes. He hadn't noticed her watching him. Thank God!

"So how's Scott?" Angus asked. "Yeah, I can believe it!" he said after having listened for a moment. "Tell him that he'll have his rightful chance at her. We've saved her for him ... he can take as long as he wants. Yeah ..."

Jessica's heart pounded so hard that it hurt. Scott was coming back, and he'd have his revenge. In this condition she wouldn't stand a chance at fighting back. Oh God! Jimmy was right. Things were going to get much, much, worse.

She'd forgotten about Angus momentarily but then she heard something so alien that she turned her head to look at him without thinking about the consequences. Pain shot through her, and Angus saw her move. He continued to laugh into the phone as he got up and moved toward her. It was true, he was laughing. Not a cruel, sneering laugh, but a real laugh and for a moment he almost looked like a normal human being.

"... this weekend?" he was saying into the phone as he stopped by the bed. Jessica shut her eyes hoping that he hadn't noticed that they'd been open. "I didn't know there was a rally this weekend. Mechanic? Really?" his voice faded as he moved away from the bed. Jessica couldn't breathe. She didn't believe for a moment that he was going to leave her alone until Scott got back. Maybe she'd be lucky and he'd stay on the phone for the whole night.

"Okay, sure I'm in." Angus was saying. "I'll meet you at 9?"

Angus hung up but didn't come back to the bed.

Jessica forced herself to relax. It hurt too much to be so tense. This was going to be a long night. She squeezed her eyes shut and hoped that she'd fall to sleep so the morning could come sooner. Fully aware that it was wishful thinking, she hoped Angus stayed away from her all night.

The next morning Jim waited with great trepidation for Angus to bring Jessica to the living room. He was afraid to see what state she was in. He had little confidence in Angus' ability to leave her alone. Especially given the fact that Riley told him how reluctant Angus had been to follow the plan.

But finally Angus emerged, carrying Jessica, and he laid her, onto the sofa.

"How'd it go?" Riley asked.

"Piece of cake. Especially after speaking with Sean and finding out how anxious Scott is to get his get a hold of her. I couldn't disappoint him, now could I?" Angus snickered as he moved away from the sofa and into the kitchen.

Jim moved closer and peered down at Jessica. Her cheeks seemed a little red but other than that he couldn't detect any damage.

"Oh, and I've taken her for her morning shit. It was real fun watching her try to squeeze that out."

Jessica squeezed her eyes closed tight and her cheeks flamed red.

Well that explained the blushing.

"Consider yourself lucky," Jimmy murmured to Jessica when Angus and Riley were out of hearing range, "he could have done a lot worse."

"Did you say something?" Josh asked.

"Yeah, just reminding Jessica that she was lucky that all she got from Angus was an embarrassing moment on the toilet."

"No kidding." Josh said and both moved away from the sofa.

Jessica exhaled. She really didn't need Jimmy to remind her of that.

She could barely believe that Angus had left her alone all night. But she knew why. She knew that when Scott got back, things would get much, much, worse. The best she could do, was hope that she would have enough strength back by then to at least try and defend herself.

And then of course once he was through with her, Angus would take over. And she'd be unable to defend against him. And then there were the others. But she worried less about them. None of them seemed to get as much pleasure from punishing her as Angus did. Despite the fear that overwhelmed her, Jessica drifted off to sleep.

She awoke to the sound of an electric drill. Opening her eyes she saw Josh and Riley working on something on the wall near the front door.

"Wakey, wakey ..." Angus said from behind her. Pain pulsed through her as she jumped in surprise. "See that ..." Angus continued in a low growl near her ear. His hot breath rolled across her cheek and his hand appeared before her to point at Riley and Josh. Just then the door opened and Jim came in carrying a rifle in each hand.

"That is your doing. No more hand guns on us so you can't be tempted to try and kill us again. But those rifles are right there, easy for us to get should we need them. And you're not to so much as look at them. 'Cause if you do ... you're mine. Got it?"

A shiver ran down Jessica's spine. She couldn't see Angus, but she could imagine his expression just from the tone of his voice.

"I said, 'Got it?' I expect an answer!" he growled.

"Hey, Angus!" Jim said moving forward when Angus looked like he was about to lose it. "She still can't move, remember?"

"Oh I don't know Jim ... I think she can handle a simple "yes" or "no" answer." Angus said, grasping Jessica by her hair and turning her face toward him. Angus was behind her so she could just catch a glimpse of him from the corner of her eye. "How 'bout it Princess? Do you understand that if you even blink in the direction of those guns I will become your worst nightmare? Worse than anything that's happened to you so far? Worse than anything that Scott is going to do to you when he gets home? Worse than anything the punishment that still awaits you from each and every one of us? Do ... you ... understand?"

Jim stood watching Jessica, same as Riley and Josh. He willed her to reply. Despite the fact that he wanted to nurture a truce with her ... this was important. The rifles were going to be right there. Locked up, but there. And it was vital that Jessica not entertain any ideas about using them. Especially if he was going to be able to enact the next part of his plan. Getting her off the harness. The thought came to him earlier that morning. He'd been successful in getting the men to go along with the plan to train Jessica. The next step was to get them to take her off the leash. He was positive that with that little act of kindness they could go miles toward making peace with Jessica. But in order for that to work, she had to prove that she could listen ... and be trusted to stay away from the rifles.

"God damn it, you're making it really hard for me to keep my promise to Scott. You give me a fucking answer right now or your face and my fist are going to get re-acquainted sooner than expected!"

"Yes," Jessica managed to whisper. But Angus didn't hear her. Pain shot through her as he pushed her into a sitting position.

"Wait!" Jim yelled and surprised even himself with the pleading tone in his voice. "I mean ... hold on a minute ..." he said glancing at Riley, Josh and then Angus' put out expressions. "She replied. Say it again Jessica."

"Yes," Jessica whispered. Thankful to Jim for interceding.

Angus scowled at Jim. "Yes what?" he demanded.

Jim groaned. Angus was going to find a way to inflict violence one way or another.

"She understands Angus!" Jim said in exasperation.

Anger flashed across Angus' face. Dropping Jessica back on to the sofa, Angus sprung to his feet and advanced on Jim.

"What the hell was that?" he demanded.

Jim took an involuntary step back.

"She answered you." He muttered. For a moment he wavered, fearful of the potential violence that Angus could inflict on him, but was immediately ashamed of himself. Jessica lived through that violence all the time. If she could do it, so could he.

"You little shit ..." Angus growled grabbing Jim's shirt collar and pulling him toward him. Jim's mind froze. He still clutched a rifle in each hand and was unable to determine how he could defend himself with his hands full.

"Angus!" Riley said, and stepped between Angus and Jim, forcing Angus to let go of Jim's shirt.

"Did you hear what he said?" Angus demanded. Jim moved back, surprised that things had come to this. He wasn't sure how it had happened, and he could see by the look on Josh's face that he was just as stunned. Riley turned from Angus to Jim and he looked pissed.

Jim raised his hands in surrender. "I'm sorry." He said. "I really didn't mean it the way it came out. Accept my apology ..." he said handing a rifle to Riley and then sticking his freed hand out to Angus.

Angus and Riley stared at his hand. Jim stared at Angus. He and Angus had their differences of opinion in the past, about stupid stuff. But it had never come to near blows like this. Jim didn't want any bad blood between him and Angus. Not just for his sake, but Jessica's also. If Jim planned to help her as he'd vowed, he'd need to keep on Angus' good side.

It seemed like forever before Angus took Jim's hand.

"Watch your tone ... " he grumbled as he clutched Jim's hand in a firm grip.

"Right, sorry." Jim replied.

Angus let his hand drop and turned back to the sofa. Riley took his place, moving his face within inches of Jim's. "What the hell was that?"

"She's answered Riley."

"I've got enough work refereeing your petty arguments with Angus, Jim ... don't start picking more serious fights. Got it?"

Jim nodded and had to bite his tongue as Angus pulled Jessica up by the scruff of her shirt.

"I can hardly wait until Scott gets back. Once he gives the go ahead, you and I are going to party little girl, and it won't be anything you'll forget too soon!" Angus shoved Jessica back onto the sofa and then stomped out the front door.

Christ, when Scott came home Angus was going to go on a rampage. There was only one thing Jim could do ... talk to Scott.

"Let's finish this up." Riley said, wishing Jim and Angus could just learn to get along.

"Hey, I've got some errands to run later." Jim said. "Do you need anything from town? I'll be stopping at Caleb's too."

"Yeah, I need a few things." Josh said.

"Riley?" Jim asked.

"No, I'm fine."

It was Riley's night with Jessica that night, Jim thought to himself. Josh's the next night, and his, the next. Hopefully that gave Jessica three nights of peace. He wasn't sure what he was going to say to Scott about Jessica. What could he, in good conscience, say to a man whom she'd almost killed? Well, he'd have to think of something or else Jessica was going to end up dead whether Angus did it intentionally or not.

Jim had been gone all day. And Jessica had spent the whole day sleeping on the sofa.

Now she lay, very awake, on Riley's bed, listening to him talking on the phone. Despite the constant pain her body was in, Jessica was restless. She'd rested as much as she could and now she felt incredibly alert. She felt adrenaline pumping as she worried more and more about Scott's return.

She realized now that for some unknown reason Scott had always been the unlucky victim of her escape attempts. The realization caught her off guard. How had that happened? How was it that every real opportunity she'd had to escape came with Scott?

He'd always punished her with a brutality that was mostly only ever borne out by Angus, but somehow he still ended up being in the position to make her feel like she could get away. Of the five men, Scott was the only one who Jessica had had two opportunities to kill. She was certain that there would be no future opportunities.

Jessica pushed the thought from her mind. Any thought of Scott made Jessica feel like she would hyperventilate. She desperately wanted a distraction. She had tuned Riley out, but she managed to catch a word that made Jessica focus on his conversation again.

Puppies. She was sure she'd heard Riley say, "puppies". She had to have been imagining it. What would a bully like Riley have to do with puppies. But then she'd heard it again causing her to involuntarily look over at Riley.

"... that's right ..." Riley said into the phone, pausing when he saw Jessica look over.

Jessica shifted her gaze back to the ceiling and worked hard at calming her heart. It thudded against her chest and for a moment she thought he wouldn't continue his conversation. But then she heard what sounded like a sigh, before he said, "there should be a litter around that time. I keep the bitches on a six to nine month cycle. No ... no it can't be earlier." Jessica's breath caught. It was that tone. The hardness of it, the coldness. Riley used that tone on her constantly and usually following closely behind that tone came pain. Pain from Riley, but also pain from the others. She knew now why he terrified her so much. He was the leader. He gave the orders. And when she angered him, she earned pain from all of the men.

" Listen," Riley continued, "if you're looking for a puppy mill you've come to the wrong place. The dogs need at least a six month break between puppies. If you can't wait, please feel free to go elsewhere ..."

Jessica thought over Riley's words. It struck her as odd that Riley had an ounce of humanity in him. But then, perhaps it wasn't that surprising. Regardless of the physical pain that Riley inflicted on her, he never touched her sexually. Unlike Angus and Josh. That had to count for something. But still he terrified her. Without thinking Jessica looked toward Riley again. Her heart caught in her throat. He no longer had the phone, he was just sitting, staring at her with an expression that Jessica didn't care to decipher. She snapped her eyes back to the ceiling. God she was a coward. Unless provoked into such anger that Jessica prayed that she could shoot daggers with her eyes, she couldn't bear to look any of them in the eye.

She wished that she could be even the least bit menacing. Scare them as much as they scared her. But she couldn't do it. She squeezed her eyes shut. The words, 'Please leave me alone .... Please leave me alone ..." repeated in her mind.

Riley watched Jessica squeeze her eyes shut. He didn't know why, but he managed to be surprised each time Jessica reacted to him with such disgust. Brainwashing, an interesting idea of Jim's. But he was fresh out of chatter with which to warm Jessica up to him and he felt like any further attention that he could pay to her would only end in the opposite effect. All he felt like doing was forcing her to be what he wanted. Forcing her to obey him. Forcing her to like him. And she was in no physical condition for that.

Instead, he'd have to content himself with looking at her and daydreaming. He didn't allow himself the luxury of it often, mostly because it seemed futile and a waste of energy, but he had nothing better to do now.

What would it be like if Jessica actually liked him? Maybe even loved him? Like his mother had loved his father? She would want to come to him. Want his attention. Want him to touch her ... want him to make love to her. That creepy, old pervert feeling came over him again. Despite being over eighteen she had the young innocent look and personality. He hoped to eventually see her as mate material.

Maybe, since they seemed unable to kill her, it could eventually happen. But, before any of that could happen, Scott would be home, and there would be punishment to mete out.

Riley looked down at his hands. He knew he'd have to do it. By shooting Scott, Jessica had guaranteed a beating from every one of them. Maybe she wouldn't survive that. But she had survived every other beating they'd given her. Riley balled his hands into fists. He wondered how Angus could stand to hit her with his hands ... fists. Riley used a belt. It somehow seemed less savage, less personal. Asses were meant to be whipped. Lord knew he'd had his whipped enough times by his father. But punching, slapping. He shook his head. None of the other men seemed to use their fists ... just Angus.

Riley opened and closed his hands. He felt his resolve falter. Now that he'd considered alternative scenarios with Jessica, other than the one he'd had in mind up until a few days ago, one that ended with a bullet in Jessica's brain, he had less of a desire to hurt her and more of a desire to control her.

And then he pictured Angus' angry face glaring down at Jessica. Riley realized that it would be easy to let Angus be the bad guy. Let Angus mete out the justice that Riley knew needed to be administered to Jessica.

"I'm an asshole," Riley muttered to himself. No, he couldn't, wouldn't take the easy way out. He'd be just as dedicated to punishing Jessica as the others.

And there was no way around it. Scott would demand retribution and based on principle alone, Riley had to pay it. But then afterwards. What could be done then?

Riley closed his eyes and tried to imagine what Jessica's smile would look like. He'd never seen her smile. He imagined that it would be beautiful. Well. If things ever got there. If she survived the next few days, and ever got to the point that there was a chance that she'd want them ... him, he knew what had to be done. He was an expert at dog training, and the key to dog training was repetition. And reward. If a dog repeated a behavior and was rewarded for it enough ... it would learn. If the opportunity ever presented itself, that's what they'd have to do. Train her.

Riley smiled as he imagined Jessica walking beside him, holding his hand. Moving into his embrace. Smiling, laughing, loving. And then he saw her move to Jim, then Josh, Scott, Angus. Kissing them, loving them.

And he felt relief when the jealousy that had begun to grow, disappeared. He was as happy for the other men as he was for himself. Would the others react the same way?

A gentle snoring brought Riley out of his thoughts. He looked over at Jessica. She'd fallen to sleep, her face tilting toward him. When she slept she looked like an angel.

Riley considered going to bed too, but knew it wouldn't be long before her nightmares began. Maybe if he got her through the first few bouts she'd settle down for the night. He settled back in the chair and went back to day dreaming.

The next morning Jessica was on the sofa, back leaning against the arm of the sofa. She was tired. Her nightmares caused extra fatigue in her current physical condition. She was so tired that she didn't bother with the usual stand-off about eating.

She accepted about five forkfuls of egg that Jim fed her before refusing to open her mouth again. Jim exhaled as if her not eating was actually hurting him somehow. Jessica almost laughed at that. She felt like telling him that if he really wanted to do her a favor, he'd give her five or six cups of coffee.

Jessica closed her eyes as she imagined the look on his face if she did request the coffee. She snickered at the thought and opened her eyes to find Jim watching her. His head cocked to the side, uncertainty in his expression. Jessica looked down. She had to be really tired to make such a stupid mistake. There was absolutely nothing funny here ... nothing.

"Did she just laugh?" Josh's voice asked from Jessica's right. Jessica's groaned. Darn it. Had they all seen it? Riley and Angus too? She was afraid to look around.

"I think so," Jim replied. Jessica waited for the tirade that was sure to come from Angus and/or Riley, but nothing came. Josh took Jessica's chin and turned her face toward him. Jessica felt relief rush over her as it appeared that neither Riley nor Angus were around.