Love in Chains - 18. Chapter 18

How long had it been? How long had he been lying here, every muscle in his body trembling, cramped and complaining? Well, alright not every muscle; his heart was a muscle right? And that was okay, except that it hurt. It hurt a lot, a huge crushing pain in his chest that barely rose as the effort of breathing was just too much. But it was still beating, so that was okay right?

Actually, he didn’t care. Something had happened and now it was over. He didn’t understand it, couldn’t process it so he dismissed it. He felt... blank. It was as if someone had reached inside his head and wiped a cloth over his thoughts and feelings. Most of them were gone or buried deep and those that were left were indistinct and confused.

A voice was speaking close to his ear but he was so disconnected it didn’t occur to him that it was speaking to him so he ignored it.

Something touched his hair, smoothing it, lingering to stroke his temples. It felt good and he sighed.

“Nye, are you awake?”

The stroking stopped and he wanted more so he opened his eyes to see what was going on – except that he couldn’t see. No, that was not entirely true. His eyes were working fine but his brain seemed to have lost the ability to interpret the information they provided as all he could see were a nightmarish jumble of shapes and colours that made his head hurt so much he closed his eyes again with a groan.

With agonising slowness his battered brain began to make some connections and the sounds he was hearing resolved themselves into words and then the words began to have meaning.

“I didn’t mean for this to happen. I didn’t know. Well, yes I did know but I didn’t think... I didn’t believe... Fuck! This is all fucked up. Nye... I’m so sorry. I am going to get you out of here I swear.”

Nye sighed, not because he had made any sense of what Adam had said to him, but because the tremors in his body had faded to be replaced by an intense tingling which was not exactly painful if he lay perfectly still. Nevertheless it felt strange.

“Can you hear me Nye? Can you move?”

Nye understood what was being said by now but had neither the energy nor the inclination to respond.

He felt Adam’s hands move over his body, tugging, twisting, moving. Wherever he touched the tingling increased in intensity until it was almost a scream and made him bite hard on the gag in his mouth and hiss. However, by the time he was done it was starting to fade, leaving a body that felt as though it were made of damp putty.

The last thing Adam did was take the gag out of his mouth. He groaned loudly as his teeth snapped together and his jaw cracked. The pain took all his concentration and he missed Adam speaking to him again. He felt Adam lift his hand, the pins and needles almost gone leaving muscles which trembled a little but otherwise just felt heavy and dull.

“Nye... can you hear me babe? Try and squeeze my hand. Show me you can hear me... that you’re there.”

Nye had no idea what he meant by squeezing his hand but his body seemed to because the muscles in his arm contracted and Adam grunted in pain, releasing his hand.

“Oh thank God... thank God. Nye... Nye open your eyes. Speak to me.”

Reluctantly Nye opened his eyes and, again his head was stabbed by a lance of pain as the light bit into his eyes. At least this time he could make out shapes and movement.

“Nye?”

Like the tingling sensations, the intense pain in his chest was easing and it was getting easier to breathe. Nye suddenly found that he was incredibly tired. With a deep sigh he closed his eyes and began to sink into the warm comfortable darkness. Somewhere in there was something he badly wanted, something that was waiting for him if only he could...

“Nye! Wake up. You have to wake up. If you are still here when Lian gets back he will hurt you again. It’s his way of getting back at me for what has happened. I can take it Nye but I am getting to realise that you can’t. I have been a fool, a fucking selfish fool and I never realised it until today. Fuck... I never though that I would ever let anyone get this close to me and when it happened I couldn’t handle it.

“God this is screwed. I have to get you out of here. I can’t let Lian hurt you any more. He might kill you... I thought he was going to ... I thought he had. Come on babe... you can do it... wake up... come on.”

Adam slapped his face, gently but persistently until he was drawn slowly back from the edge of darkness and forced to acknowledge the light. He moaned and tried to turn his head away.

“Come on babe, please.”

Finally giving up all hope of being allowed to go back to sleep Nye opened his eyes and blinked to clear them. He saw a man standing beside him, leaning over him. He was confused. There was a part of him that said he should know this man and a part of him that said he really didn’t want to do that; a part of him felt that he loved him and a part that felt only hatred and anger... but it was all jumbled and muted and he couldn’t make sense of any of it.

The voice was still urging him and slowly both his mind and body were coming back to life and beginning to make connections, make sense of what was being said to him.

“Nye, you have to get up. We have to get out of here. Can you do that baby? Can you sit up? Nye, sit up.”

There was note of command in the voice but Nye no longer felt any compulsion to comply. Instead he studied the face. It was a very beautiful face, especially the eyes... the eyes were large and blue and... He felt that he should know the face, that it should mean something to him, should make him feel something, however if he had felt anything at all it would have been confusion. A name floated into his mind and slipped out through his lips.

“A...dam.”

“Yes, yes it’s Adam, Nye. It’s Adam and I am going to take care of you. Now will you please sit up?”

“Sit... up.”

“Yes... come on... come ON Nye. We have to get out of here.”

“Get... out.”

Adam shivered, chilled by the blank eyes and flat voice. Nye was simply repeating everything he said with no understanding at all. Well, at least he knew who he was, that was good... right.

Carefully he slid his arm under Nye’s shoulders, unresisting Nye shifted to let him. Pressing him tight against his chest he lifted him up into a sitting position. Nye allowed himself to be raised closing his eyes against the sudden disorientation and dizziness.

“Are you alright now? Can you sit up on your own?”

This time Nye didn’t answer because he was immersed in the sensations that was going on inside his body. They were vaguely unpleasant but he was too disassociated to comprehend what they meant. The sensations intensified and he opened his mouth to say something and was taken completely by surprise when his body convulsed and liquid gushed from his mouth and nose.

Adam, resisting the temptation to pull back held Nye tightly while he vomited repeatedly, retching even after there was nothing else to come up. When he was done his head lolled weakly against Adam’s shoulder while he panted and swallowed, trying to speak.

“Sssh. It’s alright Nye. It’s okay. Don’t worry. You’re going to be alright. Just take deep breaths and relax. You’ll feel better soon.”

“Better...” Nye’s voice was distant and Adam became alarmed that he might be about to pass out again. Carefully supporting Nye he drew away and brushed the hair out of his face. Remarkably most of it had escaped the onslaught of vomit and was still fine and silky. For a second Adam got lost in the beauty under his hands and in front of his face. He cupped Nye’s cheek gently and looked into the fading eyes.

“Nye, you have to focus baby. You have to do this on your own. I can’t carry you. Please... please baby. You have to do this. You have to or... No... you just have to. Come on.”

Adam’s voice hardened as he swung Nye’s legs over the side of the table and lifted him onto his feet. Nye’s eyes went wide at the sensations it evoked. He was not able to bear his weight and sagged in Adam’s arms, his eyelids fluttering and rolling.

“Nye... Nye, you can’t do this. You have to stay with me. Nye...”

Nye closed his eyes and things seemed to settle a bit although he was still very confused about what was expected of him. Gradually he got the sense of his feet under him and the idea that he had to put weight on them. It took a few false starts but eventually he was able to stand unaided.

Adam breathed a sigh of relief and put his hands on Nye’s shoulders, looking into his eyes, which were still blank and distant.

“Nye. I know you’re not feeling yourself. I know you must feel awful but please... we are in a lot of trouble babe. We are in danger. Do you understand that?”

“Danger.”

“Oh God... Nye please try... try to understand. Can you...? Can you just...? No... I suppose you can’t... and it’s my fault. I’m sorry Nye... I am so sorry.”

Nye frowned. There was something about this man... Adam. He should be feeling something... something... He shook his head. He couldn’t remember... but he was remembering other things... like that his body was hurting and his head was filled with confusion.

He swallowed and looked around, pulling away from Adam.

“Where am I?”

“Nye? Oh... thank God. Can you walk?”

Nye looked at him and frowned again, his eyes more... present but still filled with confusion.

“I... Who...? I feel...”

“I know. I will explain everything to you later. Right now, we have to get out of here. We’re in danger Nye, do you understand that?”

“Danger?”

“Yes... I will explain but please... please, we have to get out of here and it has to be now.”

Somewhere deep in the body of the house there was a boom, like an explosion and a fine dusting of chalk drifted down from the ceiling.

“What the fuck was that?” Adam looked up and around. Nye barely even registered it, he was watching Adam with that same frown on his face. “Never mind. Come on.”

Taking his hand Adam led Nye across the room to the door. Although the deeply confused frown never left his face Nye followed, stumbling but reasonably steady.

At the door Adam paused and motioned to Nye to wait while he opened it carefully and peered out into the corridor outside. As he did so another explosion rocked the house and more dust fell coating their shoulders and powdering Nye’s hair making it even paler than ever. Smoke began to billow down the corridor from the direction of the stairs.

“Damn... what the hell is going on. Come on Nye... we have to get out of here.”

Obediently Nye followed when Adam took his hand and drew him out into the corridor. The floor was gritty, littered with debris shaken loose from the ceiling above and shards of glass from the lights which lined the walls of the corridor and which had shattered.

Nye barely registered the pain in his feet until they were more than half way along the corridor and then he paused and stopped, his frown deepening.

“Nye, come on... what’s wrong? Why have you stopped?”

“I... My... I hurt.”

“I know baby... I know you hurt but we really have to get out of here now. It’s not safe. Whatever is going on up there makes it even less safe. We have to get out. Do you understand? We have to get out.”

“Yes... get out but...”

“Come on Nye, please...”

Nye stumbled on a few more paces and then stopped again. There were tears streaming down his face.

“What is it? What hurts?”

“I... I...” He looked down and Adam followed his glance and blanched. Nye was standing in a pool of blood and for most of their journey along the corridor his footsteps were clearly seen, puddles of bright red amongst the dust and the rubble.

“Oh fuck!!! I didn’t think... Hell Nye. I’m sorry.”

Kneeling carefully on the ground he lifted one of Nye’s feet. Shards of glass and rubble were embedded in the soft flesh and the skin was torn to ribbons. Nye shuddered as Adam picked out the glass but he did not make a sound.

When he was convinced that the foot was as clean as he could make it he slipped off his shirt and tore it into shreds. He appreciated that this was not the best thing to bind an injured foot with as it was fouled by Nye’s vomit but it was the only thing he had at hand and so he bandaged the foot as carefully as he could and then turned his attention to the other one.

When he was done he lifted Nye into his arms and his heart fluttered when Nye put his arms around his neck and snuggled his face into his hair with a sigh.

“Thank you Adam.”

Adam had to pause and swallow hard before he could respond

“It’s nothing babe. I told you I was going to take care of you from now on and I meant it. As soon as we get out of here I am going to take you somewhere safe and I am going to call your friend Kane. He’ll look after you a lot better than I can.”

“Kane...”

The dull tone lifted slightly and there was a question in his voice.

“Don’t worry Nye. You’ll be with him soon. You’ll remember then. You’ll be alright. I swear you are going to be alright now.”

At the end of the corridor there were steps leading upwards to the ground floor of the house. The door at the top was closed and smoke was seeping through, under and around it. Coughing Adam carried Nye to the top and then set him down. He winced when his feet hit the floor but did not complain.

Cautiously Adam opened the door and smoke billowed through, enveloping them in a lung burning, eye watering cloud. Coughing Adam felt his way forwards and his foot struck something, lying on the floor. Bending down he felt carefully along the object to find that it was a man, one of Lian’s assistants by the feel of it.

Following the body up the torso, along the outflung arm and beyond his questing fingers touched something cold and metallic. With a smile of triumph he straightened and tucked it into his waistband.

Taking Nye’s hand he led him across the cavernous hall, which was filled with billowing smoke towards the front door. He was confused. Where was all this smoke coming from? What was going on? Was there a fire? Had there been an explosion? What the hell what happening up here?

They were half way across the hall and the smoke was thinning, having been sucked down into the basement when the door had opened. Suddenly Nye’s hand was wrenched out of Adam’s grip and he spun round at the soft cry that had escaped Nye’s lips.

“Going somewhere Adam?”

Lian was standing behind Nye, one arm wrapped around his neck and the other pressing a knife against his ribs.

“Lian. What the hell is going on? I heard an explosion and half the ceiling caved in. What was I supposed to do? Wait down there to be buried alive?”

Lian’s eyes narrowed. “You got the boy out of his restraints and on his feet pretty damned quick.”

“Alright... I had done that already. I just couldn’t bear...”

“Spare me Adam. I have more pressing matters on my mind right now.”

“Like...”

“Like the fact I have the Met’s best at my door with their guns aimed at the house and smoke grenades taking out all the windows. It’s only a matter of time before they rush the house and when they do I want to have something between me and them.”

“The Met? What? Why?”

“Seems like your pretty boy here has friends with influence. Or maybe more of your ‘obedient’ boys have been talking to the wrong people. I warned you Adam... You’ve been nothing but trouble to me lately and it’s all because of this... boy.” He tightened his grip on Nye’s throat, which wasn't easy because Nye was so much taller than him.

If Nye had been himself he would have been able to fight his way out of the hold in no time but he was not himself and both Lian and Adam knew it. He remained quiescent as Lian began to choke him and the knife at his ribs drew blood.

“What are you going to do?”

“I am going to take your little pet here out the back door with me. I have my boys engaged in a running battle at the front so hopefully they will draw the heat of the back. If we meet any resistance he’ll make a nice shield. No one is going to shoot poor innocent little Nye are they?”

“You can’t do that Lian. He’ll get hurt.”

“Very likely... but that’s the point isn’t it? One of two things will happen. Either I will get the chance to talk to them... to tell them that if they let me out I’ll let him go... or they shoot first and I can claim I was trying to rescue him. Either way he’s useful. The way I see it, I am not going to get out of this without serious consequences and he can shield me from a lot of them... so move very slowly towards the back of the house... you can be the advance party. If you are good at it you can save your boy by convincing the police they should let us pass.”

“No. I won’t do that. I won’t put Nye in danger, not this time.”

“I don’t know if you have noticed it Adam, but your boy is already in a parcel of danger. He’s in no condition to fight me and I could just as easily snap his neck as put this knife between his ribs.”

“I don’t think so.”

Calmly Adam drew the gun from his belt, cocked it and aimed it at Lian’s head.

“Oh please Adam. You know and I know that you would never pull that trigger. There’s too much of a chance you’ll hit the kid. No... you won’t shoot me.”

“Let him go.”

“Or what? We’ve already established that you won’t shoot me. So what?”

“We haven’t established anything. Let him go.”

Lian smiled a cold, hard smile and tossed the knife onto the ground. “Happy?”

“Now let go of him. Let him come to me.”

“Oh I don’t think so. I am getting far too much pleasure from having him right here in my arms. You know I never blamed you for falling for him. He’s about as damned perfect as anyone I have ever had my hands on. His body is almost as sweet at his personality although I don’t usually have a sweet tooth.” As he spoke he ran his hand over Nye’s chest and stomach. Adam saw Nye shudder and tense.

“Stop it Lian. Let him go.”

“Not a chance Adam. He’s my insurance policy. And like I said... I’m enjoying him.”

He slid his hand down further and began to caress Nye’s cock. Nye sighed and let his head fall back against Lian’s shoulder. Lian purred. “That’s right baby. You like that don’t you? You like my touch.”

Nye didn’t respond but moaned softly as Lian massaged his balls.

“Yes baby... you know you like it. Do you want more? Do you want to feel me inside you baby.”

Nye shuddered and moaned and Adam’s finger tightened on the trigger. “Stop it Lian. I’m not joking. I swear to god if you don’t let him go I’ll shoot you.”

“I don’t think so Adam. If you were going to shoot me you would have done so by now. Relax, have fun... your boy is, aren’t you Nye?” He turned his head, keeping his eyes fixed on Adam and kissed Nye’s hair. Nye turned his head, his lips parted to speak and Lian took possession of them. The arm which had been choking him lowered and gripped his chest, pulling him hard against Lian’s body while his other hand snaked around Nye’s hips and between his buttocks.

Nye stiffened and grunted his hips automatically tilting backwards as Lian’s fingers entered him. He was a maelstrom of confusion, his battered senses assailed by the overwhelming sensations, especially when Lian gripped his nipple firmly between his finger and thumb and twisted savagely.

“Lian! Stop it! Stop it or I’ll...”

“You’ll what? We have already established that you are not going to shoot me so why don’t you get over here and join in the fun.”

“Fun? You have half the Metropolitan police force camped at your door and it’s only a matter of time before they break through the pathetic defence being raised by your ... boys. You are insane. We have to get out of here.”

“All in good time. Before you go I am going to teach you a lesson you will never forget.”

Moving his arm down to hold Nye tight around the waist Lian removed his fingers and unzipped his pants.

“Lian don’t...”

Nye gasped and shuddered, his cock twitching despite himself. He didn’t really know what was happening to him, except that, even in his dazed and disassociated condition the things that were going on down below felt good, very good. He moaned and rolled his head on Lian’s shoulder as the rock strong arm around his waist pulled him in against the thrusts of the lean hips, burying Lian’s shaft deep in his body.

“You’re fucking insane. I always suspected it but... fuck Lian... what the hell do you think you’re doing?”

Lian slid a hand into his pocket and lifted it, holding it carefully between his finger and thumb. It looked like a glass bead.

“What the...?”

“What do I think I’m doing? What I’m doing is sending your boy out with a bang. And you’re loving it aren’t you baby?” He turned his head again and kissed Nye’s hair, not missing a stroke.

“What...?”

“This is a sweet poison Adam... another one of the rare toxins I found on my travels. Only this time there is no antidote. One drop of this touches his lips and it’s game over in twenty minutes.”

“Oh fuck! You wouldn’t.... you couldn’t... Not even you.”

“You think?”

Still holding the glass pill between his finger and thumb he stroked Nye’s hair, increasing the speed of his thrusts. Nye was fully erect now, his legs trembling under the onslaught and Adam’s finger trembled as perspiration ran down his face.

“I’m warning you Lian... don’t do this.”

“Why not? He’ll still be able to fulfil his role. I can haul his arse with me wherever I need to go... and he’ll walk... in some fashion... for the next fifteen minutes which will be plenty of time to get to the car.”

“You’re insane. Let him go.”

“Not a chance.”

Turning Nye’s face towards his neck Lian brushed the hair out of the way so that Adam could see what he was doing. He pressed a finger against Nye’s lips and they parted at the touch. Lian touched the glass ball against Nye’s lip and looked at Adam.

“One small squeeze and it shatters, then it’s all over. Hush now baby, be still. Don’t close your mouth or you’ll break the glass too soon. I want you to enjoy your last good fuck before the lights go out.”

Nye moaned and tried to turn his head. He was trembling all over and Adam was terrified that he would bite down on the glass ball and break it, or that Lian would crush it before he could do anything.

“Stop this Lian... please... please stop. I’ll do anything. I swear I’ll do anything. Just let him go.”

“You’re going to do what I want anyway Adam. You have no choice. Either you come with me or you stay here and let the boys in blue take you away. You won’t last a day in prison. So just be a good boy and drop the gun, then get over here and start working on your boy. Who knows... if you do a good enough job maybe I will change my mind and take him with us after all.”

Hope flared in Adam until he saw the look in Lian’s eyes, then he knew. It seemed as if time slowed to a stop and everything kaleidoscoped into the one moment. Adam thought of Nye, his soft voice, his sweet nature, his gentle touch. He thought of all the things that had been done to him, and guilt squirmed in his gut. For the first time ever he looked at what he had done and bitterly regretted it... and none more so that he had delivered this sweet person into the hands of a monster.

He thought of Lian... all their history together, the evil twisted things he had done and made Adam do. He thought of what he was doing right now.

Nye was lost in the throes of pleasure... so why was the look on his face one of pain. His body was responding but only because it was an automatic reaction. His eyes were wide and staring and the look in them was... compared to the look in Lian’s eyes which was...

Anger coalesced into a cold certainty, settling into Adam’s stomach like a lump of ice. Narrowing his eyes he gave Lian a cold smile, raised the gun and pulled the trigger.

In almost the same instant the front door burst open and the room was sprayed with bullets. Adam felt something slam into his back sending him sprawling onto the floor, the gun spinning from his hand. Gritting his teeth he crawled across the floor, inch by inch towards the two bodies that lay so still. Lian had taken Nye down with him when he fell and Adam didn’t know if Nye had been hit by one of the flying bullets or whether he had just been winded by the fall... he was so still... and what about the poison pill?

Time speeded up again and came crashing down on him. There were hands on him, turning him over, a dark shape outlined in light.

“Nye... please... please let me... Nye...”

“Just lie still sir. The paramedics will be with you in a moment.”

“Please... Nye... just tell me... Is he... is he alright?”

Adam struggled to sit up and the man let him. There were people kneeling around Lian and Nye... they seemed so far away... so very far away. He couldn’t hear what they were saying, he couldn’t make sense of what was happening. The numbness he was feeling was spreading and there was darkness at the edges of his vision.

Unable to remain upright he let himself fall back, tears falling from his eyes. Another dark figure knelt at his side and he forced his eyes open.

“Please...Nye... please.”

“Are you Adam?”

“Yes... I... Please...”

“Your friend is alright. He’s very confused and disoriented, I assume he’s been drugged, but he’s not hurt.”

“The.., poison... did he... did Lian...?”

“What poison?”

Suddenly it was hard to speak. The darkness was gathering and his body was urging him to let go. His heart was beating very loudly in his chest and in his ears and he knew that it was slowing, fading. But he had to hold on... he had to know.

“Lian... he... he had a... a glass... poison... please...”

The figure put a reassuring hand on his shoulder and disappeared. It seemed like forever before he came back.

“Adam? Can you hear me Adam?”

Not realising that he had closed his eyes Adam opened them. There was a heavy weight on his chest and his ears were filled with the sound of something wheezing and bubbling. He was too far gone to realise that it was his own breathing from lungs that were slowly filling with blood.

“I’m sorry Adam, I can’t help you. We didn’t find anything. There was no bottle or phial. It could have smashed when Lian fell. If it was small...”

“He... he was holding it... holding it by Nye’s mouth. It was... small... small...glass... I couldn’t... I had to... I couldn’t let him... I... shot... him...”

“You did well Adam. You saved him. You saved Nye.”

“But... the poison... no... ant...dote. Please...”

“Alright... take it easy. I’ll check again.”

This time when the man came back Adam had sunk so far he was unaware of him crouching, unaware of anything until a hand gently tapped his face. When he opened his eyes all he could see was shadows. He took a breath to ask a question but he couldn’t and it started him coughing. Blood spurted from his mouth and his body shuddered and twisted with the effort to fill lungs that were awash.

“Take it easy Adam. It’s alright. Everthing’s okay. Nye is going to be just fine.”

“You... you found...?”

“Yes. I found the glass. Lian didn’t give Nye the poison.”

Adam tried to thank him, tried to speak but the effort was just too much and he closed his eyes and let go with a sigh.

The police officer who had been talking to him got to his feet and was stopped by his colleague who had a puzzled expression on his face.

“Why did you lie to him?”

“The guy was taking his last breath. He was a complete shit but he really seemed to care about the kid.”

“Still...”

“He was dying Jake. A little bit of charity to a dying man to send him on his way in peace is not a bad thing.”

“He didn’t deserve it.”

“Maybe not... but I would have been a lesser man if I hadn’t.”

“Can’t argue with that Mick.”