His Desire

It was difficult to work out how many days she had been locked in the room. Her guess would be six days, with it being well over ten hours since she had last seen her captor. She was grateful for the respite as each time he paid her a visit, a new bruise littered her skin. She had also obtain another broken finger but this time it was on her other hand, making it so that she had three broken fingers and neither hand was completely functioning. As if it would make it better, her captor had also bandaged the three of them up, along with both wrists having cream applied to them each time he re-bandaged them. His actions made her skin crawl each time.

If there was one thing Tina knew, it was that captors could not be trusted. At all. She had seen enough crime shows to know that most victims didn't make it out alive, and the ones that did always had tales of how their captors would taunt them with promises of freedom that were never fulfilled. Most of those victims were also kept in barns or dank places whereas she was in a bedroom that had boarded up windows. It was hard to believe that this was her reality, as bleak as it was.

She was fingering the boards on the window when she heard the lock turn. Her skin prickled as the door opened and in walked her captor, a box under one arm and a folded chair in the other. She watched as he placed the box on the bed, unfolded the chair and positioned it adjacent to the other chair that remained in the room. He then left only to return a moment later with a folded table which he set up between the two chairs before placing the box on it. Her heart lurched into her throat when he sat down and looked at her.

"I realise I haven't been fair to you," he said, looking back at the box as he began to unpack it. A board and a drawstring bag was taken out and she held her breath. "So I thought for a while and came up with the perfect solution."

He was baiting her, she could tell by the way he looked at her when had finished speaking. The bruise on her cheek reminded her that she had to take the bait. Swallowing thickly, she asked, "What solution was that?" Her voice cracked midway through and she could barely hear her own words.

It was enough for him, however, and he focused his attention back on the items in front of him. "I'm glad you asked. It actually came to me as I was contemplating whether I should just cut my loses." Her breath hitched at his words and she felt her heartbeat quicken in fear. "It's very simple really. We play a game of chess. If you win, well, I'll set you free. Of course there would have to be an agreement between us if that happened because you would have to promise not to speak a word of what's happened to anyone, and if I ever suspected you did then I would have to find you again and this time kill you."

Tina could barely believe her ears. He would release her if she won a game of chess? Was she honestly that close to freedom, or was it a trick? She wasn't sure, but as he continued all she was fixated on was her freedom. "I wouldn't tell anyone, I swear!" she blurted out.

"Don't interrupt me again," he warned, giving her a hard look before going back to setting up the remaining pieces. "However, if I win then you stay here with me and the only way you will leave is in a body bag. Oh, and I get to punish you." She opened her mouth but he raised a hand to stop her. "Why do you get punished? If you play this game with me, if I win I punish you for wanting to leave me. If you don't play this game then I'll punish you for refusing my invite to play." He finished placing the last piece on the board and looked up at her, gesturing for her to take the seat opposite him.

The idea was terrifying and she couldn't think of any positive outcome from playing. She didn't think he meant what he said, but even if he did what was the likelihood of her actually winning? She vaguely knew the rules of chess but had never actually played. But if she did lose, she faced punishment and there was no telling what kind he would inflict on her. The thought itself made her want to sink to the floor and hide from the world, but she couldn't because he was waiting for her to sit down and she didn't want to make him angry.

She slowly moved towards the chair and gingerly perched on the edge, uneasy about being in such close proximity to the man. He still had no name but she figured that was because a name would make him more identifiable if she were to escape. It seemed unlikely but she couldn't give up that hope.

He sat forward and studied the board for a moment before moving his first piece. He looked so nonchalant, as if he was playing with an old friend, and it made her feel sick. When he looked at her and gestured for her go, she felt worse. With a shaking hand, she moved one of her pawns and hoped that she was doing the right thing.

After a few goes, his voice broke the silence and made Tina jump. "What were you doing at the window?"

Her mouth felt dry and her hand stilled, hovering over one of her pieces. She couldn't tell the truth because she knew that it would probably anger him and she didn't want more bruises or broken fingers. "Nothing," she replied.

"Don't lie to me."

"I'm not." She realised too late that she hadn't said what he had wanted. His jaw clenched and before she could move, he reached across the table and grabbed her by the hair, twisting the locks around his hand and pulled. Her hands flew up and clawed at his, the pain of her roots being pulled making her cry out.

He leaned closer and she felt his hot breath near her ear. "Don't ever lie to me, Tina. I hate liars," he murmured, tilting her head forcefully. "Now tell me, what were you doing at the window when I walked in?"

"I just – I wanted to see what time it was," she cried. "I'm sorry, please don't be mad."

His fingers tightened a bit more before he released her, sitting back in his chair and allowing her to slowly straighten up. "Why would I be mad at that? I suppose a clock might be of better use for you."

Tina sat there for a moment, leaning as far away from him as she could. Why did this have to happen to her? Was this her punishment for loving the same gender? Her own mother had said that she deserved to go to hell for going against nature, so was this her own personal hell? It sure felt like it. Being homeless and starving in the rain seemed ideal compared to the situation she found herself trapped in.

She flinched when he lifted his hand and gestured towards the game, reminding her that she hadn't taken her go. It wasn't as if she knew what she was doing, though. The only thing she did know was that she had to keep her king safe and protecting her queen was the best chance. She didn't know why or what any of the other pieces did other than the pawns, and she was certain that it was evident in her moves. Her main strategy was trying to keep as many pieces surrounding her king as possible. Keeping her king gave her a chance of not losing, and that gave her a chance at winning back her freedom, if he stuck to his word. She had only dreamed about escaping her captor and the constant fear that kept her suffocated, but now there was a chance - albeit slim - that she could obtain that dream.

"Pay attention." His voice made her jump, and she looked back at the board. It didn't look good. There were only six of her pieces left, two of them being her king and queen. She didn't want to continue with this game, she didn't want to face the consequence of losing, and she didn't want to be here.

Her hand hovered over her last pawn as she hesitantly glanced at him. "I promise I'll be good," she said.

He raised an eyebrow. "I know you will be."

"Please, I–"

Without warning he reached forward and grabbed her wrist, squeezing tightly. "Take your turn," he instructed, giving an extra squeeze for emphasis before releasing her.

All she could feel was complete terror when she moved her last pawn only for him to take it with his knight. His pieces were in touching distance to her king and she knew it was only a matter of time until he was about to take it. Tears formed in her eyes and began to run down her cheeks at the thought of losing. She had been offered her freedom and yet she was on the brink of losing. Was that his intention? To make her believe that he meant it only to have her hopes crushed brutally when the truth was revealed?

He watched her for a moment before reaching forward, making her flinch away in case he went to hit her. Instead, he softly wiped the wetness beneath her left eye with his thumb. "I love it when you cry," he murmured, running his thumb down her cheek and over her lips. "It's so precious to see you like this."

Tina couldn't watch as he took her queen, a happy "check" tumbling from his lips. A lump rose in her throat and she tried to keep her breathing normal but it was no use. She had lost. She had actually lost. Her fear had increased tenfold and she hugged her torso, staring at the board and at how close his piece was to her king. How could that have happened? She had tried her hardest to make sure her king was always protected but apparently that wasn't good enough. That didn't matter now.

Before she could think about it rationally, she shoved the table into the man as hard as she could and ran over to the door, flinging the door open and finally leaving the room. She didn't get far down the hallway before she was tackled to the ground, landing heavily and groaning at the man's weight on top of her. "No! Let me go. Please don't do this," she pleaded, trying to wiggle out from his grasp.

Her words were ignored and she was pulled to her feet as the man stood. She fought against his grip as he dragged her back into the room, and before she could plead again he threw her into the table, making it collapse into a heap on the floor along with her. She let out a gasp at the throbbing of pain in her head and side, watching as the man locked the door. She scrambled to her feet and backed up against the wall as he walked past her and headed into the bathroom, closing the door behind him.

The sound of running water came from the bathroom. Tina didn't know what he was doing in there and truthfully, she didn't want to. What she wanted to do was escape from the room without having him catch her before she made it five steps. She crept over to the door, making sure to keep glancing at the bathroom door, and tried the handle. It was definitely locked. She bent down and inspected the lock, trying to figure out whether she could somehow turn it without needing the key. She had heard hair grips were able to pick a lock but she had never witnessed it happen herself, nor did she have any grips with her. Sticking her finger in the lock, she wiggled it around in hope that it might work but as she expected, it didn't.

Glancing over at the bathroom door, she got up and headed over to the window, inspecting the boards like she had been doing before he had entered the room. Each was secured with several nails on both ends, presumable to ensure extra strength. It would take time but she was determined to remove at least one of the boards so that she had a weapon. She knew that he would notice as soon as she did that so it was important that whenever she managed to loosen it enough, she would have to be prepared to use it before she removed it completely.

A noise from the bathroom made her back away into the corner, her breath catching in her throat when the door opened and the man appeared. "Come here, Tina," he commanded.

She stared at him wordlessly, fingers digging into the wall behind her. What had he been doing in there? Was he going to kill her? Why was this happening to her? Her lack of movement made him fold his arms across his chest and give her a hard look, one that made her want to shrink into the wall. "Don't make me come and get you."

The threat was clear and was all she needed to force herself to make the painful steps towards him. Her tears were wet on her face and she kept her arms wrapped around her torso, as if they would keep her safe. "I'm sorry," she said, stopping a few steps in front of him.

"I don't think you are. I think you're only sorry because I stopped you," he snapped, making her take a step backwards. "Now, in the bathroom."

She was trembling as she stepped into the small room, jumping when he shut the door behind them and grabbed her by her arm. It was then that she noticed the black box was now filled with water. Before she could begin to think of why it was, she was forced onto her knees in front of it. She felt him kneel behind him and before she could attempt to apologise again, he grabbed her by the neck and plunged her head under the water, his grip tightening as she began to thrash around. She desperately tried to push against his grip in an attempt to get some air but he was too strong. Terror engulfed her as it became harder to breathe, and just as she felt as if her lungs were going to burst, her head was pulled out of the water and she collided with the air, drawing in hasty gasps of air at her respite.

It was short-lived, however, as he plunged her head back into the water almost as soon as she'd taken a breath, this time her mouth was open. Water began to seep into it and her struggling became frantic. She could feel her throat burning and was on the verge of unconsciousness when she was suddenly yanked up into the air, making her draw in deep gasps of air. She felt as he pulled her against his body and his hot breath tickled against her ear. "Don't you ever run from me again," he whispered, "because if you do, I'll make you wish that you had never been born."

She was still breathing heavily and gulping in as much air as she could. "I'm sorry," she wheezed out.

"I know you are," he said, bringing his other hand up and caressing her wet cheek.

It felt as if all her energy had been sucked out from her body and she didn't even have the strength to lift her head up. Instead she rested against his chest as she mumbled "I'm sorry" over and over.