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And then I'm gone.
Chapter Six
Jake
I had a lot of plans for when I got Casey on the private plane. I was going to try to feed him. Give him water. I was going to check his injuries and give him fresh bandages. I was going to try to talk to him, testing his mental state and maybe giving him a rule or two since Travis told me Casey might feel too unsettled without any structure. But all of those plans flew out the window when he had started shaking.
God, the boy was fucking terrified. It must have been painful to shake as hard as he was and it couldn’t possibly have been good for his health. I knew things were only going to get worse if I allowed the panic to continue.
Maybe I could have tried talking to him, tried calming him, but I doubt it would have done any good. In fact, it might have caused more damage, like it did last time we interacted. It was easier to drug him into a peaceful sleep. Easier for both of us, honestly.
Casey stays conked out for the entire flight home, curled up under the blankets on the bed in the private bedroom. I spend most of that time in the chair beside the bed, watching over him with my heart in my throat. I remember watching Travis do the same thing with Carter after buying him. I remember thinking I would give anything to never be in that situation. I remember worrying that he wouldn’t survive it.
I can’t believe I let myself end up here.
What the fuck was I thinking?
Casey startles awake the moment I scoop him up in my arms. One of his hands grips the front of my shirt for a brief moment as he tries to understand where he is and what’s happening. Then he quickly uncurls his fingers and moves his lips in a soundless apology.
“You’re okay,” I promise him, even though there’s nothing okay about this poor boy’s life right now. “I’ve got you. You’re okay.”
He stares up at me with wide blue eyes, too out of it to worry about eye contact apparently. Not that I plan on giving him that as a rule. Since I don’t plan on ever bringing him out of the bedroom to show him off, there’s no reason to give him rules like the other slaves have. The only rules I’ll give him are rules that will keep him well taken care of.
My mind is spinning with chaos and worry as I carry Casey to the compound. He’s too light, his bones sharp and brittle as they jut out, his skin pale and bruised and covered in goosebumps despite the blanket I’ve haphazardly draped over him. Was Carter this bad off when Travis bought him?
No, he definitely wasn’t. I know they had tortured him a little before selling him, but Casey nearly died. He went into mild sepsis. Clearly, this is worse.
He’ll survive though, right…?
He has to fucking survive.
“Close your eyes, little one,” I tell him as I realize he’s squinting in pain from the flood lights coming off the building. We’re going toward the back, where the private entrance is. The lights are dimmer back here, but there’s still no reason for him to have his eyes open and hurting.
The boy obeys the order, even turning his face to hide it against my shoulder. He seems to realize that’s inappropriate a moment later, quickly lifting his head, but I grab the back of his neck and guide him until he’s where he clearly wants to be. “You’re okay. You can find comfort in me, little one.”
He whimpers but doesn’t argue. I feel his cold nose against the skin of my throat. It feels incredibly intimate, somehow. Special. It makes something ping in my chest. A far away, made up something that I don’t allow myself to think about.
The door at the back of the compound acts as a private entrance, opening for the hand scan and code that only Travis and I have registered in the system. The entrance leads to a hall that has two doors - one to Travis’s room, and one to mine. The door is already open as I approach, Travis’s broad frame filling the open space.
He nods at me in a silent, somber greeting before stepping aside. I look past him, expecting Carter even though I practically begged him not to allow Carter to be here. I don’t see him. “Just us?”
“Just us,” Travis confirms.
I’m clearly in a bad mood because I decide to be a dick. “Didn’t think you had it in you.”
“I didn’t,” he grumbles. “His decision.”
“Huh.” I frown, not sure what to make of that. Why would Carter change his mind about seeing his friend? Did Travis actually tell him how bad things are? Are they starting to realize just how reckless and possibly deadly this entire side project is? I suppose it doesn’t matter. It’s good either way. Neither of the boys needed to see each other tonight. Not like this. I tell Travis as much before asking him to help me get Casey inside.
Casey whimpers as I carry him down the dimly lit hall, following behind Travis. I adjust him in my arms and gently hush him.
“You’re okay,” I promise. The boy shudders at the words. Probably because he doesn’t dare allow himself to believe them. I don’t mind. I’ll repeat myself every day until he believes me if that’s what it takes. “You’re going to be okay.”
Travis uses his code and handprint to open my door, leaving it open for me after he enters. I try to ignore the guilty look he shoots me before he pulls the blankets down to the foot of the bed, correctly assuming that’s where I want to put Casey.
“You’re alright, little one. I’ve got you.” Casey starts to softly cry the moment his body touches the mattress. I brush his dirty, tangled hair off his forehead and give him my best smile. “You’re okay. We aren’t going to hurt you.”
Casey sucks in a shaky breath, more tears falling down his bruised, sunken cheeks. His eyes are full of panic, yet heavy with exhaustion. He’s trembling hard enough for his teeth to chatter.
