Okay.
Chapter 2: Thad’s FriendChad couldn’t believe this was happening to him. He was bound hand and foot to his own bed wearing only his boxer shorts, gagged, and his kid brother was sitting on his chest making a phone call!
“Hi, Kelly!†Thad said into the phone.
Chad heard a voice reply in the phone. Taking a chance, Chad began trying to shout for help… but the most he could manage was a barely audible “Mm-mmm-mmm!†Even Thad barely heard it, and he made no attempt to make Chad even quieter other than a stern glare of warning. Feeling overwhelmed with despair, Chad made no further attempts to attract attention from whoever Thad was calling.
“Yeah, it’s me, Thad!†Chad’s brother continued. “Could you come over to my house for a while? I have something to show you. What? Yeah, Chad’s home, but it’s all right. No, it’s a surprise… but you’ll really like it! You’ll be right over? Ten minutes? Great! Bye!â€
Thad clicked off his phone and put it back inside the front pocket of the blue jeans he was wearing. Then he reached for his shirt and proceeded to put it back on; totally ignoring Chad’s querying “Mm-mm-mmph!?â€
Chad couldn’t believe what he had just heard. Thad had just invited someone over to the house?! Presumably to show off how he’d tied up his own big brother! Chad thought that was pretty dumb! With any luck, whoever this Kelly person was would run away and call the cops once he saw him tied up like this!
Thad seemed pretty confident though. He resumed casually torturing his brother with some nose and ear flicks, gentle face slaps, and not-so-gentle nipple twists until, after what seemed like an eternity to the beleaguered Chad, the doorbell finally rang.
“That must be Kelly,†said Thad as he finally got off of Chad and proceeded to cover his bound brother with a bed-sheet. “I’m going to explain to him what’s going on, and then bring him up here to meet you! Don’t go away now!†Thad casually walked out of the room, closing the door behind him; leaving a bound, gagged, and sheet-covered Chad to his gloomy thoughts.
Naturally Chad began to struggle to get himself untied as soon as his kid brother was out of the room. After all, there was no telling what Thad would do to him next if he didn’t! But the ropes were too tight, and Chad couldn’t reach any of the knots that Thad had tied. Until then, Chad hadn’t had any idea that Thad could tie knots so well. Now he found out the hard way that his desperation to get free was no match for Thad’s tying skills.
Thad answered the front door, and there was Kelly just as he had expected. Kelly was a handsome, athletic African-American boy a year older than Thad, a few inches taller, and about fifteen pounds heavier. He wore a short-sleeved shirt, blue gym shorts, long white tube socks, and black Converse sneakers. He was Thad’s best friend in the whole world.
“Thanks for showing up so quickly, Kelly! I appreciate it!†Chad said warmly as he held open the door invitingly to let Kelly inside the house.
“No problem, Thad!†replied Kelly with a grin. “So what’s the big emergency you hinted at so mysteriously over the phone?â€
“First, whatever you think of what I’m about to tell you, you got to keep it a secret!†said Thad. “Okay? Promise me you won’t tell anyone at all!â€
“Okay, fine! I promise!†Kelly replied without hesitation but with a good-natured laugh. “Now what’s up? You made it sound like it has to do with your brother!â€
“It does!†replied Thad. “I’ve got him tied up in his bedroom!â€
“What?†Kelly replied with sheer disbelief. “You’re joking! You wouldn’t have the nerve to do something like that to your own brother!â€
“I did it though!†Thad replied; perhaps a trifle proudly despite the sadness he’d felt for the necessity of defending himself. Then he briefly explained how he and Chad had fought, Thad had knocked him out cold, and tied him up tight inside his own bedroom!
Kelly’s reaction was not at all what Chad had been hoping for. “Wow! That sounds so cool! Can I see?â€
“Of course!†replied Chad; relieved and amused at Kelly’s eager reaction to his news. “Why do you think I asked you here? But I want you to do more than just look at him! I want you to help me to keep him tied up and torment the shit out of him!â€
Kelly was a bit surprised at Thad’s vehemence. Granted that Chad had been a real dick-head ever since his and Thad’s parents and sister had died, but the last Kelly knew Thad still loved his older brother. Before he agreed to anything, he wanted to find out how serious Thad was about all this, and how carefully he’d planned things.
“You can’t be serious, Thad!†Kelly said with exaggerated skepticism as he took a seat on the sofa. “You want me to help you torture your own brother? What for?â€
“Because the way he’s treated me should be a crime!†replied Thad with an edge to his voice as he sat down beside his friend. “I want to pay him back for all the mean things he’s done to me since the others died!â€
Kelly thought carefully before answering. “Maybe what he’s done *should* be a crime, but as far as I know, it isn’t!â€
“He’s been drinking!†retorted Thad. “He’s till underage for that!â€
“That’s hardly a felony!†Kelly pointed out. “On the other hand, what you’re proposing we do *is* a felony! You’re talking about kidnapping, false imprisonment, torture… *Whew!* We’d be in a lot of trouble if anyone ever found out!â€
“Are you saying you won’t help me?†Thad asked in a small voice laced with sheer disappointment.
“Well, not yet anyway,†replied Kelly as he tucked up one leg and rested his arm on his knee. “I need to know a few things first! For one thing, how *long* do you plan to keep him tied up and… ahhh… incommunicado?â€
“Until he learns his lesson… which could take years!†replied Thad firmly.
“Well then, have you worked out the details of how you’ll keep him tied up indefinitely?†Kelly asked calmly, as if they were discussing how to repair a broken bicycle. “How will you take care of his needs so that he won’t *die* on you? How will you make sure he doesn’t escape? How will you keep anyone else from coming over to find out what happened to him? How will you pay the bills when you have no money? All that sort of thing! I’m not joining any scheme like this with you – fun as it sounds – until I’m sure you have the details worked out well enough so that we don’t get caught and get thrown into jail *forever*!â€
“Money won’t be a problem, at least,†replied Thad with more confidence than he felt after Kelly’s honest analysis of the situation. “Chad and I have a joint account in the trust fund the insurance company set up after our folks died. That’s what enabled us to keep going after Chad stopped working and started drinking. I can get all the money I need to pay bills and buy groceries and stuff. As for the other details, I know I need help! That’s why I’m asking for yours! I don’t know anyone else with as much ‘smarts’ to make my plan work!â€
“Well, before I decide, let’s go see your prisoner and make sure he’s still tied up first!†Kelly suggested.
The two boys got off the sofa and walked quickly upstairs to Chad’s room. Thad opened the door and walked in without a pause – certain that Chad was as helplessly tied as he’d left him.
He was right.
“Here he is, in all his pride and glory!†Thad said sardonically to his friend as he checked his brother’s bonds carefully. “Yep! He hasn’t managed to loosen a single knot.â€
“So I see,†replied Kelly as he walked up to stand beside the head of the bed beside Thad. “Could you remove his gag so I can talk with him?â€
“Sure,†replied Thad, who climbed up onto Chad’s bed and then Chad’s chest before doing so. Thad quickly untied the gag, but made no move to get off of his brother even when Chad began to berate him. And this was when Chad made one of the stupidest mistakes of his entire life.
“Blast you, Chad! Isn’t it bad enough you’ve tied me up and keep sitting on me? Why’d you have to bring this – this n****r kid over to watch you humiliate me? Or is this n****r going to sit on me too? He’d better not, or I’ll…â€
“Wait a minute!†snapped Kelly in outrage. “What did you call me?!â€
“I said you’re a f***ing black N****R!†Chad replied as nastily as he could. “And I do NOT want you SITTING on me!!!â€
“I’m sorry, Kelly,†Thad apologized; honestly surprised at his brother’s unusually harsh language. “I didn’t expect Chad to get *this* crude!†Thad made a motion to put the gag back on his brother, but Kelly stopped him.
“It’s all right, Thad. I find this fascinating!†Kelly replied. “Now Chad… what makes you so sure that I intended to sit on you in the first place?â€
Chad had been tied and tormented for hours and had a raging hangover to boot, but even all that doesn’t explain (or excuse) the incredibly stupid things he said next to the one person who might have been able to help him out of his dilemma. For a long time afterward, he was unable to explain why he even thought (let alone shouted out loud) the vile, racist things he said in response. It was a complete surprise even to him – let alone his shocked kid brother and his increasingly angered guest. Perhaps the kindest things he said in his foul diatribe was: “All you n****rs like nothing better than to take advantage of white people whenever you can! You must see this as a golden opportunity to degrade someone you know is better than you could *ever* be!â€
Stupider words under stupider circumstances were never spoken. And they sealed Chad’s doom!
“You were right, Thad!†Kelly said to his younger friend. “Your brother needs to learn some manners! Is it okay with you if I teach him some right now?â€
“Sure!†replied Thad agreeably. “Be my guest!â€
Thad slid back a foot or two to sit on Chad’s belly while Kelly stepped up onto the bed, swung a muscular leg over Chad’s prone body, and eased himself down onto Chad’s bare chest. “Hey! Wait a minute!†Chad protested feebly as he broke out into a sweat! “No! Thad! Please! Don’t let him…â€
That was as far as Chad got before Kelly started slapping him in the face – much harder and much faster than Thad had done before now. For the first time, Chad realized how much Thad had been holding back on the slaps, whereas Kelly was slapping him with revenge-fueled gusto! Chad’s cries for mercy went unheeded until Kelly’s arms began to get tired and he decided to take a rest break.
“Okay, Thad! Despite my hesitation before I guess I’m with you all the way now,†Kelly told his friend as the two continued to sit upon a bewildered and sobbing Chad. “What can I do to help?â€
“Well, guard him when I have to sleep to that he’s not going unwatched for any great length of time,†replied Thad after a moment to think. “I need you to help me wash him, take him to the bathroom… all that sort of thing. And of course torment him any way you please, anytime, as well…â€
“What do you mean, take him to the bathroom?†asked Kelly.
Thad looked at Kelly strangely. “Well, he’s got to go to the bathroom *some time*! If we keep him in bed all the time, it’ll be way too messy in here for us to stand being in the same room with him after a while, won’t it? But I can’t untie him to let him use the toilet if I’m alone! He’d overpower me or get away! But with *two* of us to escort him, we can keep him under control while he uses the toilet. Got it?â€
“I do now,†replied Kelly with a grin. “But in that case you need to make a few changes. It’d be a lot easier and quicker if you used handcuffs and leg irons instead of rope. Also, you’re going to have a real problem with his circulation if you keep him tied with rope for much longer!â€
“What do you mean?†asked Thad in some puzzlement.
Kelly pointed out Chad’s hands and feet, all of which were started to look rather reddish and a bit swollen, and Thad immediately got the idea; he couldn’t leave Chad like this indefinitely – not unless he wanted to kill him with gangrene! However much he wanted Chad to suffer for now, Thad certainly didn’t want Chad to die!
“What do I do?†Thad asked his older and wiser friend.
“Ride your bike to the hardware store while it’s still open,†Kelly told him. “Get two sets of handcuffs and two sets of leg restraints. One set for each limb! Once we have those, we can keep him bound indefinitely without killing him!â€
“Okay,†agreed Thad as he got off of his brother, while Kelly remained seated on Chad’s chest. “It’ll take me an hour or so for the round trip. Will you keep him entertained while I’m gone?â€
“You bet!†said Kelly with a chuckle that filled Chad with sudden terror. “We can use the time to get to know each other a bit better. Isn’t that right, Chad?â€
A nervous gulp was Chad’s only response initially, but when Thad began to leave the room he got more frantic – and vocal. “Thad! No! Don’t leave me here alone with him! Please!â€
“Don’t be so rude to our guest, Chad†Thad replied with a dismissive wave of his hand; not even looking back at his panic-stricken brother. “Bye, Kelly.â€
Kelly waited until he could hear Thad leave the house before he spoke again. “It’s just you and me now, Chad!†he said with a wicked smile.
Chad broke out in a very nervous smile and began to sweat bullets. “Ah, I hope you don’t hold those racist cracks against me!†he said in as humble a voice as he could, wishing he’d kept his big, stupid mouth shut earlier. What was he thinking?!? “I – I’m really sorry I insulted you like that!â€
“I’m sure you are… now!†replied Kelly with deceptive mildness as he shifted into a half kneeling position on top of Chad’s chest.
“Please forgive me, Kelly!†begged Chad desperately. “And please untie me. Don’t let Thad do this to me!â€
“Okay, I’ll forgive you!†replied Kelly simply.
“You… you will?†asked Chad in amazed relief.
“Sure!†replied Kelly with a wide, open smile. Then the smile abruptly turned into the most evil-looking grin imaginable. “In about a hundred years!â€
Kelly balled up his fists and began to chuckle like Yosemite Sam scheming to do away with Bugs Bunny. Chad just had time to gulp nervously and say “Uh oh!†to himself.
Thad could hear the sound of hard face slaps, cries of pain, and pleas for mercy until he was well down the driveway, but even Chad’s loud wails were inaudible by the time he reached the road. All the same, he made a cell phone call to Kelly to suggest that he gag Chad while Thad was away… just to make sure his brother’s cries remained unheard by anyone else. Kelly did so, even though he preferred to clearly hear Chad’s pleas for mercy.
Not that he planned to give Chad any…
TBC
Dare to be different... and make a difference.
To boldly go where no one in their right mind has gone before...