Chapter 6

All in all, life was great. That if he didn’t take into account that he wasn’t making any progress in finding dirt on Karl’s dad. He had asked around, as cautiously as he could, to see if anyone from that unit or related to it had connections with the big kahuna. Francesco was right about one thing. What he was doing right now, it was crazy and dangerous.

That meant that he needed to change his angle. So far, he had played nice, acting like some lame ass private eye in search of a rich lady’s lost poodle. What he needed was to start thinking like a criminal. Just as he thought that, his eyes fell on that goddamn Pike, who, somehow, had found his way back to the unit after his leave of absence. The captain had assured him that Pike wouldn’t give him any more trouble, but right now, Mouse was looking for it.

Without giving it a second thought, he sauntered toward Pike. “Sergeant,” he said loudly and saluted.

“If it isn’t the captain’s little pet,” Pike sneered and pushed himself away from the barrel against which he had been leaning before. There was a lot of work to do around, and this motherfucker still found ways to stay clear of all of it.

The nickname unsettled him for a bit. Did Pike know anything about how he had sucked off Reynolds, and not that far back?

“He thinks the bunch of you,” Pike continued and gestured around, “is better than animals. But you’re not. Nah, you need to be put to work, and worked to the bone, or else you’ll get ideas.” He knocked against his own temple. “He thinks a good beating is a bad way of dealing with you lot.”

“I disagree,” Mouse found himself saying. “I think a good beating is not bad at all to discipline signs of insubordination.”

Pike searched his face. The drill sergeant surely thought he was joking. “Don’t you have work? Fuck off before I find something for you to do.”

“Yes, sir,” Mouse said and saluted again. “But if you ever feel the need to discipline me--”

Pike stared hard at him. “I said, fuck off, soldier.”

Mouse turned on his heel. The seed was planted. Maybe that fucker didn’t care about getting his dick sucked or fucking a boy, but he sure loved to inflict pain. That was something to work with. Usually, from his experience, perverts like that hunted in packs.

He was slightly shaking as he walked away from Pike as fast as he could. His experience as a street whore told him that he would be sought by his drill sergeant and not too late. However, he couldn’t quite manage the sinking feeling in his gut for a moment or two.

“Are you thinking about your boyfriend?” Ryan questioned him as he sat on the bunk bed across from him.

“In a way,” Mouse admitted.

“We won’t be here forever. You’ll go back to him.”

“Yeah.”

“Something’s wrong,” Ryan said after several moments of silence. “You’re not yourself.”

“How’s that?” Mouse continued to stare at the ceiling, not that there was anything interesting to watch there.

“You know, cheery, not giving a fuck. You’re all tense. And you’re scared.”

“Jeez, Peewee, I didn’t know we had a shrink on site. I’d have hit you for some wonder pills.”

“Joke all you want. Something’s not right. You can tell me. I’m your friend.”

Mouse sighed. “You got nothing to worry about, Ryan. But thanks for offering to have my back. That’s huge.”

Ryan moved to sit on the bed by his side and forced him to scoot over. Mouse agreed, although he wasn’t in the mood for talking and sharing feelings. Jordan could say all he wanted that Ryan wasn’t a chick. In some ways, he was like one. Maybe he would make a good girlfriend for Jordan, but Mouse wasn’t going to run his mouth about that.

It looked like Ryan took that as an invitation to move even closer. He turned on one side and wrapped one arm around him. Mouse could feel his breath on his chest. “Peewee, if Jordan sees us all lovey-dovey like this, it’s going to be trouble,” he teased his friend.

“I don’t care,” Ryan replied and buried his face into Mouse’s armpit. “After he fucked me, I’m all invisible to him.”

“Because he left a little birdie out of the cage,” Mouse explained.

“He didn’t mean it,” Ryan argued. “Obviously.”

“Why are you two lazying about?” a voice boomed, startling both of them.

Mouse and Ryan scrambled to their feet at the same time and assumed the position, while Pike walked toward them. It shouldn’t have been a big surprise that the drill sergeant slapped both of them over the face, making them sway. At least, for Mouse it wasn’t, but Ryan gasped in what seemed both outrage and surprise.

“Spreading your fag ways around, Ahab?” Pike spat as if that name was poison in his mouth. “And you, Lowes? Are you a fag, too?”

Ryan remained silent, but Mouse could tell he was seething. Not a good idea.

“No, sir, he’s not,” he replied instead. “I asked Private Lowes to check an old wound of mine.”

Pike stopped in front of him and stared him in the eye. Mouse could tell the man was evil without looking twice. He was searching for a reason. Too bad, Ryan was about to get caught in the crossfire, and that Mouse couldn’t let it happen.

“A scheme of yours, no doubt,” Pike hissed at him and caught him by the throat.

“Sergeant, sir,” Ryan shouted at him.

“Lowes, get out!” Pike barked. “Don’t you dare go cry to the captain, or I’m going to beat your ass six ways into Sunday, got it?”

“Go, Ryan,” Mouse said, fighting to get each word out. He hoped to God Peewee wasn’t going to play the hero.

Pike just increased his squeeze. “Go, Lowes, unless you want me to deal some real damage here.”

Ryan ran out of the barracks. Pike let Mouse drop. He had to cough and rub his throat. He kept his head down all the time, waiting for another strike. “You’re looking to give me a reason, aren’t you, Ahab?” The drill sergeant took pleasure in calling him that, using a parody of how the captain spoke, to rub it in that he could do whatever he wanted. “To discipline you.”

“You’re right, sir,” Mouse admitted.

Pike kneed him in the stomach and laughed as Mouse went down. “We’ll see if you still have that mouth on you when I’m finished with you. Too bad I can’t straighten you up right now. Tonight, you’ll be on leave. Be out by nine. There are some friends of mine I want you to meet.”

Pike had to be fucking crazy and stupid. Ryan had witnessed the whole thing. If anything was to happen to him—

No, wait, Mouse thought. Things were working out, actually.

“If you want to be disciplined so much ... you will get what you need, son.” Pike put his boot on Mouse’s back to keep him down, although there was no need for that.

Pike was so pleased. Got the fucker where he wanted. If some douchebags like him wanted to fuck up a boy, the chances were that they wanted their chance to play with him over and over. Such an opportunity couldn’t be let to pass.

Unless Pike really hated his guts and didn’t mind organizing a one-way trip for him. Mouse remained on the ground while the drill sergeant walked away. That would be fucking bad, which meant that he needed to think.

Mouse felt the same nervous trepidation when he had to wait for a john that he knew was up to no good. He always had his own calculations and methods to get away if things went bad, but that life was supposed to have been left behind. Now, he didn’t know. He had taken his precautions, and it wasn’t like him to feel that kind of thing in the pit of the stomach, like something was about to go wrong.

Pike made him jump by grabbing him by one arm. “I hope you won’t play the stupid or the fool now.”

Mouse willed himself to relax. “I know what I need, sir.”

“And what’s that?” Pike’s acrid mouth breath stank the evening air.

Mouse had to fight not to gag. “Some proper punishment, sir.”

“That’s what you’re going to get, boy. We’ll pull all the stops to make sure that you get it.”

The ‘we’ was unsettling, but Pike had promised as much and Mouse was counting on it. With a little luck, he’d get an in to the circle of perverts that might know Karl’s dad. A guy who fucked his son-in-law on the down low and enjoyed seeing him gangbanged couldn’t be alone in his perversions.

He didn’t say a word as Pike dragged him like he was some rag doll and pushed him into the back of a truck. So, he would be transported like cattle. Good to know, and also good for him because he could keep his eyes on the road and transmit his position all the time. Pike should have thought to search him first. Maybe the asshole had gotten a bit too excited over the opportunity to beat the crap out of him. Maybe. Mouse wasn’t the kind of fool to let his guard down.

The truck was moving and Mouse had to grab the side to steady himself. He put his other hand in his pocket. The presence of the electronic device helped him breathe freely.

It could be just any other place in the desert, but it wasn’t. Mouse knew as much as his fingers sent the location quickly. He pretended to be bored when Pike got out and grabbed him. He didn’t say a word as he was pushed through the door of the seemingly abandoned building and forced him to make acquaintance with the floor.

“Ouch, have we started already?” he asked and pretended to be relaxed and without a worry about what would happen to him next.

“Not yet. There’s someone who’s going to share the show with you.”

Mouse pushed himself up and looked around. “What the fuck?” he asked. “I thought I would be the main dish or something.” Were they trying to pair him with someone? Not quite what he had expected. Maybe they liked to watch while someone with more stamina and strength would do the beating.

A door to the left opened and someone was pushed through. The light that came from the other room made the one he was in seem dark, and his eyes had some trouble adjusting. However, the muffled grunt that came out of the other guy as he was thrown at his feet made his heart jump in his throat.

“Ryan,” he let out. “What the fuck, Pike?” he bellowed.

He was kicked in the back hard and made to fall over his mate. Ryan had a gag in his mouth and he had his hands tied behind his back.

“Let’s see how you’re going to squeal, little piggies,” Pike said and roared with laughter.

“Let him go, why is he here?” Mouse asked.

“You don’t get to ask questions, you fucking cunt,” Pike hissed. “The captain giving me a hard time, sending me on fucking leave because of you? You’re going to pay for all that. And I’m sure you’re going to love what we’re going to do to you and your little girlfriend.”

Mouse threw himself over Ryan and ignored the kicks raining on his back. “You’re going to let him leave or I swear to God--”

The kick to the head made his neck snap to one side, and he swallowed his words. He was grabbed and pushed on his back. Pike towered over him and kicked him in the groin, making him see white behind his eyelids.

Men were moving around them. Mouse kicked and screamed, but they took him out of his clothes and kicked him at random while laughing. He hoped he was enough of a handful for the others to forget about Ryan. How the fuck did that shit happen? The rage he felt was good because it made him feel less of the punches and kicks raining on him. There was going to be a lot of bruising later. That if it was going to be a ‘later’. He should have never involved Ryan.

“I like this one,” someone commented. “You should sell him to me after tonight. Do you think you can make him disappear?”

“Sure thing I can,” Pike said and laughed. “Anyone wants this other bitch?”

“Nah, not interested. He doesn’t look like much. But this one,” the man said and grabbed Mouse by the throat while the others still had fun kicking him, “he looks like he can last a while.”

His blood was pulsing in his ears. Like hell he’d let them do whatever they wanted. Like hell he’d let them hurt Ryan.

He was pushed into a chair and his hands were forced back to be tied. The man who had talked earlier held his chin and pressed one hand against his forehead, immobilizing his head. “Look,” he said. “We’re going to have some real good fun with your girlfriend.”

“Touch him and I’ll fucking kill you,” Mouse said through his teeth.

Pike laughed and pulled Ryan to his feet. He used one hand to push the guy’s pants down and then grabbed his dick. “Not a fucking waste whatsoever,” he commented and pulled hard.

Ryan keened and struggled. Pike’s laugh was demented as he squeezed the tender flesh underneath and made Ryan howl despite his gag. Mouse saw red in front of his eyes. He forced himself up with the chair tied to him and moved round fast, managing to kick two or three men, who, taken by surprise, made room and stumbled backwards.

Mouse rammed forward, kicking both Ryan and Pike and making him stumble and fall. But he was still tied, and the others were superior in numbers, so his little stunt was soon rewarded with being pulled away and hit hard in the face.

They untied him and placed him on the floor. Then, the real beating started. Mouse guarded his face and tried to look around for Ryan, but he couldn’t see him, so he started to shout for him. He rolled around, tried to avoid the kicks, but they were toying with him, laughing and cheering.

At one point, he was forced on all fours and then Ryan was pushed under him, on his back, legs forward. This way, Mouse could stare directly at Ryan’s tortured crotch, as now he was completely naked.

Someone pushed his head into Ryan’s limp cock. “Come on, suck it. Suck your girlfriend’s limp dick.” They all laughed like it was some good joke.