Free Trust by Terry Towers

drop-off more than once.
    Switching my gaze back to the redhead I watched as she got up off the floor and raced up to the front of the cell, which was already closed and locked, called Tanner a fucking prick and spit in his face. My eyes widened in terror, waiting to see the repercussions of her insolence.
    Tanner grunted as he wiped his face with his bare hand. “That’s a free one, bitch.”
    “Fuck… you…” Her body vibrated with anger. Unlike me, she’d been stripped before being brought down here. “I’m going to fucking kill you! You hear me!”
    I glance d over at Jazz guarding the door with Connor and then back to Tanner, not even paying any mind to the fact that I was staring. I might get reprimanded for lifting my eyes, but the scene was too much to not watch, being this was the first time I’d seen a new arrival.
    Glancing back over at Becca, I noticed her eyes were now open, but she didn’t move from the cot. She’d been extremely subdued since they murdered the Asian woman, who I later found out from Becca was named Mia, the previous day. Apparently, before Mia lost her mind they’d been friends – or as much of friends as you could be in a place like this.
    I’d been avoiding looking at the spot where Mia was murdered. While there was no longer any blood, seeing that area brought the image back to my mind. Instead I’d been trying to focus on Lance and the feelings of reassurance that came with his embrace. It was the only light I had in this darkness and I knew I had to cling to it, whether it was mentally and emotionally healthy for me to do so or not.
    One of the girls in a corner cell to the left of me, at the end of the line on the opposite side , was extremely religious. She softly prayed constantly. She hadn’t lost it yet and I think it was due to the fact she had something to believe in. No matter how bad things got for her she was confident God would save her from the grasp of evil. In a fucked-up, twisted way, I think Lance was to me as God was to her – a small part of me felt he’d protect me.
    Was thinking Lance may be my knight in shining armour stupid ? Most likely. A necessity to get through the horrors of each day – definitely.  
    “Do you know who I am , motherfucker! My father is a detective with the LAPD. He’ll find me, tear off your balls and feed them to you. You… you FUCK!”
    I waited on bated breath to see Tanner’s response. To my surprise there was none, didn’t even give her the speech. Instead he spun on his heel and left, followed by Connor and Jazz , slamming the door behind them.
    I watched the redhead as she took a moment to explore her surroundings. Once done, she gave the bucket an angry kick. It slammed against the cell door and down to the floor with a clunk , water spilling out over the floor and creeping into my cell. Fuck! Feeling my eyes on her, she returned the stare as she plunked herself down on the cot.
    “Bastards,” the redhead grumbled, batting away her tears with the back of her hand. “Where are we?”
    I shrugged. “Some place in the woods. That’s all I know.”
    She nodded .
    “I’m Gwe n.” I jerked my thumb back at Becca. “That’s Becca.” I would have introduced her to the other girls, but I still hadn’t learned their names. I could have told you their slave numbers, though. From what I could tell, the longer girls were here, the less likely they were to continue using their real names. After time they became the numbers assigned to them.
    “Jenny ...” the girl mumbled. Her head cocked to the side and she eyed me carefully. Suddenly her eyes lit up with recognition, taking me by surprise. “Are you her? The cheerleader?”
    I crinkle d my nose up and I shrugged. “I… umm… I’m not sure. What are you talking about?”
    “ Ohmygod, it’s all in the news! Your face is plastered everywhere. Your dad’s a mayor, right?”
    “Yeah.” I tried not to let my mind go where it wanted to and think about my