Black Market Bidder Ch. 01

A/N: Hello fellow Literotica readers and writers! This is my very first attempt at writing and sharing a story to the public. The first 3 chapters will be up in quick succession so please read, enjoy and let me know if this is the type of story that you wish to read more of. Admittedly, the first few chapters are more of a build up and don't contain many sexy moments. Please be patient with that as I work up to those juicy scenes! I hope you enjoy and please leave any constructive criticism and/or suggestions. I'd love to hear from you!

Much love,

PK

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Prologue

Most people are aware of the Black Market and those who do know about it realize that no matter what, it probably won't be going anywhere anytime soon. The unfortunate reality of greed, making a lot of money at once, very quickly isn't something these shady people would give up without a fight. This truth rings inside the minds of every person to travel in chains through this dark place, to watch what others deemed them worth trade through one greedy palm after the other and have no power to stop it. Fantasies of rescue would quickly be washed away as the faces of government officials, law enforcement officers, judges and even special agents belonging to every acronym out there passed through their line of sight. Hope was quickly lost and all fighting spirit died down as these lost souls resigned themselves to their fate. No one was going to help them. If one wanted out, they'd have to fight and claw their way out themselves.

Chapter One

AJ sighed as she walked up to the computer, swiping her card to gain access to the system and clock out. Cashing out the last table of the night always lifted a huge weight off her shoulders and AJ was just completely ready to get out of there and into her bed. First though, a bubble bath was in order. She typed in her ID number, pressed clock out, swiped her card again then immediately untied her apron from around her waist. As she was pulling her long, thick auburn hair out of its ponytail, her manager, Nancy came through the swinging kitchen door.

"You out of here, sweetie?" Nancy asked and AJ smiled with a nod. Nancy was in her late forties but still had the spunk of a girl AJ's age. Over twenty years her junior, AJ still felt close to Nancy and enjoyed working for her. She was like a sweet aunt. Being a server wasn't glamorous but it paid for food and worked with her college schedule easily.

"Yup. Hot, sudsy bubbles are calling my name." AJ replied, making Nancy giggle as she untied her own apron.

"Alright well, get home safe. I'll see you tomorrow before school." Nancy said, giving the girl a hug before AJ made her way out the side exit. As she breathed in the cool night air, she ran her fingers through her hair and shook her head to try and stop the tension headache she felt coming on. She was definitely due for some relaxation away from needy customers and cranky professors. AJ speed walked to her car, unlocked it, slid into the driver's seat and wasted no time in pulling out and speeding home.

AJ lived in an apartment complex close to her college campus that was filled with other students and a few other people in their later twenties who worked full time rather than go to school. She pulled into her spot in front of her corner apartment on the first floor and climbed out of her car before she all but dragged herself inside. AJ didn't have any roommates but she preferred it that way. The less people she had to answer to, the better. She hated taking orders as it was with work and school, she didn't need anyone else telling her how to live.

Once inside, she dropped her purse on the table by the door before closing her door and locking it. Bath time. Bath time was all she thought about as she walked to the bathroom, stripping as she went down the hall. By the time she was turning on the hot water, she was naked and more than eager to get in and soak in the hot water. She could feel the tension rising out of her body as it was surrounded by the warmth and she let out a long, relaxed sigh. After laying there for a good hour, the water began to feel lukewarm and gross. She pulled the plug and raised herself out of the tub to pat herself good and dry before standing in front of the mirror to brush her hair out.

As AJ ran the brush through her tangled hair, she glanced at herself in the mirror absentmindedly. She always thought of herself as tall, standing at 5'6" but maybe that wasn't as tall as she thought it was. Her hair was long, reaching her lower back and was a deep auburn that looked more brown in the colder months. Her light blue eyes were always bright, though. AJ loved her eyes. Sometimes they even looked gray which reminded her of choppy water and storm clouds. Her skin was naturally fair as she was almost incapable of tanning. The most color her skin saw was the smattering of freckles across the bridge of her nose and upper cheeks, right under her eyes. Her breasts were a good size, she thought, firm at a 38C with half dollar coin sized pink areolas that were topped with the tiny sensitive nubs that seemed to get hard with every stiff wind. Her waist was small only for her hips to pop out in a nice hour glass shaped figure. Although AJ had a hard time finding perfect fitting jeans, she liked her shape.

With her hair all smoothed out, AJ then brushed her teeth before going into her bedroom to find her true, long lost love: Her bed. Quickly fishing out a white tank top and a pair of purple, boy short styled panties from her drawer, she dressed and immediately tucked herself in. Right before she fell asleep, her phone lit up and she checked to see a message from her best friend who lived a few doors down from her, Jamie. Jamie had sent AJ a selfie of herself and a few other friends at a house party with the message, "Wish you were here!" AJ smiled to herself and put her phone down. Even on Sunday night, Jamie knew how to party. As soon as AJ's head hit the pillow, she fell asleep within seconds.

What felt like mere few moments later, AJ's eyes snapped open and her whole body felt on alert. Something was terribly, terribly wrong. She picked up her phone and saw that it was just after two in the morning so she sat up and looked around her room. Nothing but black and the dark outlines of the furniture and other miscellaneous objects around the space. There didn't seem to be anything outwardly wrong but AJ couldn't shake this feeling of dread. Even though she couldn't see it, something was off.

AJ was about to get out of bed when what she thought was a laundry basket full of clothes near her closet door suddenly moved and elongated, turning into a dark silhouette of a person as they stood up from a crouching position. Her eyes widened as she watched in disbelief as this stranger started to approach her, shocked into petrified silence for a few seconds. However, her fight or flight instincts kicked in and she immediately made to get off the bed and run. With impossible speed, this person was on her. He pushed her back into her bed, holding her upper body down with one hand and covering her mouth with the other. AJ immediately began to squirm, kick and attempt to push him off of her, using every bit of strength she could muster. Her fear was palpable but she couldn't let it paralyze her.

"Zane, Jax, get in here!" The stranger yelled, sounding frustrated. Suddenly, two other dark figures ran into her room. She couldn't make out any features of course, but it didn't matter. They were a threat and she started to panic more, making the man on top of her sigh in annoyance as he pressed her back against the bed. One of the figures chuckled and leaned against her doorway as if this were a completely normal situation.

"Got yourself a squirmer eh, Troy?" He said, making the third man laugh too. The man on top of her, Troy she now knew, growled in frustration.

"The bitch woke up before I got to her. Get over here before she causes a real scene." Troy replied. The other two men shook off their humor and walked over to help. AJ panicked as his back up approached and began to wiggle desperately to try and get away. "Jax, hold her chest down and her mouth closed while I let go to get the rag. Zane, hold her legs down." Troy waited until Jax had a grip on her before letting go but before Zane got to her legs, she brought her knee up and drove it into the side of his face. She heard a loud grunt as he stumbled back.

"Fuck! This bitch just kneed me in the face!" He yelled and AJ immediately felt a little bit of satisfaction swell in her chest. It just as immediately went away as she saw him quickly approaching her, anger radiating off of him.

"Don't!" She heard Troy yell, pulling Zane back. "If you mark her up, it'll be all of our asses. Back off." His voice was stern and left little to argue with. Zane grumbled and quickly made his way to her legs, holding her down a little more aggressively than he really needed to. AJ was terrified and she didn't stop trying to squirm away despite being pathetically outmatched but now she was also just confused. Were these men working for someone? Before she could contemplate further, Jax took his hand away only for it to be replaced with a foul smelling and even worse tasting piece of cloth. She squealed in fear and shock, struggling with renewed vigor but it only lasted a few seconds before her eyes closed and the darkness of her room was replaced by the darkness of unconsciousness.

When her body stilled, all three men relaxed and slowly removed their hands from her. Almost in unison, they all pulled down their hoods and removed the ball caps they were wearing.

"Zane, help me zip tie her. Jax, go wait by the door and make sure it's clear." Troy ordered, reaching into his backpack for the ties. He and Zane tied her hands behind her back and her ankles together.

"This is going to leave a gnarly bruise," Zane said, wincing as he gingerly touched his left cheek. Troy just rolled his eyes as he lifted the unconscious AJ and hoisted her over his shoulder.

"Quit your bitching and stay alert next time instead of cracking jokes," Troy replied earning himself the middle finger from Zane.

"All clear," Jax's harsh whisper came from the front of the apartment. Zane grabbed their bags and followed Troy out of AJ's room and through the front door. Before stepping out, Zane grabbed AJ's purse. They approached a black van with tinted windows and Jax opened the back doors for Troy to let him lay her down in the back. Jax crawled in afterwards and closed the doors while Troy and Zane walked to the front. Troy got into the driver seat and wasted no time in pulling out of the complex. Once they turned onto the highway, all tension seemed to disappear from the van and Troy smiled knowingly.

"Mission accomplished, boys." He said with mock intensity, earning a few happy chuckles from his partners.

AJ slowly came back into the waking world with a throbbing headache that made her feel like her head was about to explode. Before even opening her eyes, she squeezed them shut even tighter as she tried to will the horrendous pain away. She felt cold on top of a stiff surface and she couldn't move her arms or her legs. After a moment, she forced herself to open her eyes only to discover that she was not in her bed nor in her home. She was laying on the floor in the back of a van. After a moment, her eyes fell on the figure sitting cross-legged in front of her. He was already looking at her and gave her a smile that made her want to jump in a tub of bleach.

He seemed young, maybe her age or just a few years younger. His hair was shaggy and covered his ears and he was dressed all in black. He was admittedly cute but his expression was creepified. Once she saw him, the memories of what had happened in her apartment came flooding back and she immediately began to squirm against her binds. Against her every instinct, a terrified whimper escaped her lips as she thrashed around helplessly. The man in front of her lurched forwards and turned her from her side to her back, holding her down.

"Whoa there, sweetie. Quit that or you'll hurt yourself. Zane is already pissed at you so being calm may be the best course of action." He said, smiling like a predator as she looked up at him. It was true, AJ was scared. Petrified even, but now in the deep crevices of her gut, she was beginning to feel a twinge of anger. This guy was talking to her like she was a stray dog they had just picked up or like she was a child throwing a tantrum and it only made her thrash around even more.

"Fuck you!" She suddenly yelled, breaking the quiet in the small space. She saw the driver flinch and even felt the van jerk to the side a bit.

"Jax, what the hell?" The passenger yelled as he turned to watch as Jax struggled to hold her down.

"Let go of me, let me out of here right now!" AJ demanded, wiggling like a worm and kicking her bound legs with defiance. Every time she felt Jax's hands on her, she bucked and squirmed away from his grip.

"She's like a crazy person!" Jax said, gripping her shoulders and holding her down. The driver sighed and pulled over. He got out and suddenly the back doors swung open, showing AJ that the sun had just risen over the horizon and that they were still on the highway. She momentarily stopped squirming as the driver caught her attention. He was tall with short, spiky brown hair. There was a light shadow of facial hair on his chin and cheeks and his broad shoulders blocked out the sun as he stood in front of her. After staring at her for a brief moment, he crawled into the van and grabbed one of the backpacks before rummaging through it. AJ was watching with silent curiosity as he suddenly pulled out what she recognized as a ball gag. He held it up in front of her and gave her a very serious look. He wasn't messing around. At the sight of the gag, AJ tensed and immediately began to squirm in angry protest.

"Don't you da-," She began but was immediately interrupted.

"I won't," He declared, still holding the gag. "Unless you give me reason to." He finished and AJ dared to glare at him. "We are just over twenty miles away from our destination and you thrashing and screaming back here will do nothing but draw attention. If you do not lay back here quietly, I can promise you that this gag will be the least of your worries." He said, fixing his gaze on her eyes, drawing her in. AJ felt the shudders travel from her head to her toes. The seriousness in his voice and his intense gaze made her feel like he had just slapped her. She would've almost preferred if he did.

"This is a mistake," AJ said. "I have family and friends who will be looking for me. I'm supposed to be in school right now!" She declared and all Troy did was smile at her.

"Sweetie, the entire National Guard could be looking for you and it wouldn't matter. No one will find you where we're going." He said and AJ suddenly felt a tightness in her chest. She honestly did not think he was kidding. "Now, are you going to be good and quiet?" He asked, his smile now gone and replaced with another all-serious gaze. All she could do was nod.

Pick your battles, AJ. She told herself.

Three men against one tied up woman was not good odds for her. If she waited, she knew an opportunity to escape would present itself. It had to. She couldn't let what this man just told her make her feel helpless. The right opportunity was all she had to wait for. "Good choice," Troy said as he replaced the gag in the backpack. He gave her one last warning look before he crawled back out of the van, closed the doors and returned to the driver's seat.

"So fierce," Zane whispered teasingly, earning himself a side glare.

"She needs to start learning. Being feisty won't do her any favors." Troy whispered back and Zane just shrugged before looking out the window as Troy pulled back onto the highway.

"I don't know why you care so much," Zane said, almost accusatory. A few strands of his long, black hair hung over his face as the rest was tied into a short, loose ponytail. His clean shaven, pale face offered a handsome yet very apparent contrast in his features.

"I don't," Troy responded defensively. "I'm just not a violent guy," He added and Zane raised an eyebrow at his friend.

"You abduct girls for a living, dude." He said.

"I don't beat them." Troy countered, checking his mirror before merging over to pass a minivan.

"That won't save you from any judgment. If that's the mantra that helps you sleep at night, you might want to look for a better one," Zane said firmly.

"What helps you sleep at night then?" Troy asked and Zane chuckled.

"Money," Was his only response and Troy dropped the conversation. He knew, all three of them knew, that once they reached the warehouse there would be big manila envelopes waiting for them. Ten grand a head, that was the deal with the Devil they all made. Some days Troy loved his job, the control and power it gave him to literally take someone's life and turn it upside down and inside out. Other days, like today, seeing a fight a woman could possess made him wish he could release her to see how she would fight back and reclaim her life. Today was not that day though and AJ had already lost. She just didn't know it yet.