Maggie couldn’t sit still while Seth was upstairs with John William. She worried about what they were doing to him. John William had only said, “They want him upstairs.” He smiled as he watched her anxiety mount.
Two hours later, John William untied the child and carried him downstairs. As he was removing the tight knots from the nylon cord, John William obsessed on the thought of being tied up and confined. This fear had prompted anxiety attacks in John William since he was a child. Being tied to the chair under the stairs was far worse than the frequent beatings he received from his mother. I’m in control now, he reminded himself.
As John William put Seth into his cell, all of the other kids listened to the sounds of his tiny chest heaving in bitter sorrow.
“John William, please let me talk to Seth,” Maggie begged from her cell.
“No. He’s fine. Mind your own fucking business and go the hell to sleep. There are people coming to see you tonight,” he told Maggie.
Maggie’s stomach flip-flopped. Her worry for Seth still remained, but doing what clients wanted always made her edgy. Who and what would she face that night?
Later, Maggie sat on the edge of the bed, waiting for another client. Finally, she heard voices coming toward the room. She was relieved when she recognized Sabrina’s laughter. Bernie entered the room first, followed by Sabrina.
“OK, let’s change things up a little tonight, shall we?” Bernie stated.
“Well, um, like what?” Sabrina asked nervously.
“I was thinking that our stunning toy over here would participate,” he said.
“Oh, Bernie, I don’t know about that. I don’t think I’m ready for Maggie to join us,” Sabrina responded, batting her long eyelashes at him.
“Nah, not tonight, hon. Tonight, I get what I want for a change.” Bernie turned to Maggie. “Take your clothes off.” Then he looked at Sabrina. “You too.”
Once Bernie had satisfied his deviant sexual desire, they all dressed. Sabrina slipped another note into Maggie’s underwear. Alone that night in her cell, Maggie read the message: Don’t tell the others about me.
Then, just like the first note had instructed, Maggie put the note in a small piece of newspaper and threw it into the toilet. For the first time in a little over a year, Maggie had a glimmer of hope that someone on the outside was going to rescue them.