Volume I

Chapter 10

Dilemma

It was another sunny, but brisk morning as Jacob finished packing up the rest of his belongings at the food wagon he owned. All of the cooking equipment, pots and pans, non-perishable foods and other items were stacked in boxes just outside and on the pavement. It had taken a few hours to get everything in order, and a sales sign was posted on the wagon for a decent buck.

Feeling rather cold, as Jacob only wore a t-shirt, he walked over to his car parked on the street and pulled out his sweater. After putting it on, he heard the familiar steps of a particular woman approaching him from behind. Sensing he knew it was, he turned around with a smile as he finished adjusting his sweater over his shirt.

“Well you’re a sight for sore eyes,” Jacob flirted, as a gushing Blaire walked up to him wearing her typical attractive style.

“I know we had a date for lunch, but is it weird I couldn’t wait to see you?” Blaire gave him a hug, as the two began walking towards his food wagon.

“Honestly, I’m happy you came early,” Jacob insisted. “The fact of the matter is, the food wagon is no more. I’m actually packing up the last of the boxes and have a moving truck stopping by soon to drop it off at a donation center. I’m waiting for a buyer to arrive shortly who is interested in the food wagon.”

This news was a surprise for Blaire, as she gave him a look of concern. “Oh? What about your job, and what about that cook who works for you, Liz right?”

“I already have a new job lined up,” Jacob assured. “You’re looking at Polar Automotive Industry’s newest security consultant, actually. And it pays a hell of a lot more than serving food.”

“No kidding!?” Blaire was impressed, she had no idea that Jacob even had such qualifications. “That must be so exciting! Are you going to be moving, then?”

“Nah,” Jacob chuckled, “you’re stuck with me. They have a new facility being built north of Valdez, but it’s all hush, hush. This particular facility will be handling their major operations and security, and they don’t want competitors knowing the location. Technically I’ll be signing a non-disclosure agreement and won’t be allowed to even speak about having the job. However, I’ll never keep any secrets from you, Blaire.”

They approached the food wagon, and Jacob began stacking the last of the boxes that hadn’t been addressed yet as Blaire sat down on the steps of the door.

“Well that’s nice of you, but I would hate to get you in trouble!” Blaire smiled innocently. “I’m really happy for you Jacob, this must be a huge change for you. I just hope you won’t be too busy to see me…”

“Not a chance,” Jacob scoffed. “You say run, and I’ll be there. Besides, we’ve been on a handful of dates now, you know…”

“Oh yeah?” Blaire blushed, having an idea as to where Jacob was leading with this conversation.

“Yeah,” Jacob responded playfully. After stacking the last box, he paused and turned to face Blaire. There was a moment of silence as they stared into each other’s eyes, before Jacob finally spoke.

“I know we just met less than a week ago, but to be honest I never imagined I’d meet someone as interesting as personable as you, Blaire. I won’t add any labels to whatever this is, I’ll let you decide on your own, but I hope I’m not the only one feeling this way.”

“You aren’t,” Blaire responded hastily, averting her gaze but keeping the smile on her lips that she found uncontainable. “I like you a lot Jacob, you’ve given me more of a reason to be here, in Valdez. I may not have a fancy job, or much to offer otherwise, but I hope we can keep dating despite the changes in your life.”

“Great, then we agree,” Jacob winked at her. “Well, all I have to do now is wait for the movers and the prospective buyer. All of the equipment is packed, so I can’t cook us anything. You alright to just hang out for a little bit?”

“Definitely!”  Blaire answered, as Jacob took a seat at one of the nearby tables and rolled his sleeves up. Blaire sat down across from him, putting her purse at her side and messing with her hair.

“It’s going to get colder pretty soon. I heard the heavy snowfall may come two weeks early this year,” Jacob mentioned, thinking of a topic to discuss and keep them occupied.

“I don’t mind it, I like snow anyway.” Blaire finally relented with her hair, folding her hands on the table while smiling at Jacob.

“You’ll think this is ironic, but I’ve always liked the warmer weather,” Jacob admitted.

“That is ironic, considering this is Alaska!

“What can I say, I’m a mystery,” Jacob teased.

“So tell me more about this security gig,” Blaire asked. “What exactly will your new job entail? If it’s alright to ask.”

“Basic stuff,” Jacob lied. “Managing security personnel, testing security operations and procedures, that’s pretty much the bulk of it. As to what exactly the security is for, that I can’t tell you, sorry.”

“I understand, but that’s really cool! I didn’t realize it was a skill set you even had. Did you go to college for it?”

“Uh,” Jacob smiled nervously. “Not exactly, it’s more related to previous working experience. The food wagon was just an in-between, until the new facility was built. They finish it soon, or so I’m told.”

“What about the owner?” Blaire asked.

Jacob stared blankly at her, confused for a moment. The silence became awkward, until he realized his mistake and struggled to think of an excuse.

“Oh, yeah, my boss,” Jacob couldn’t believe he had forgotten that pertinent detail. “She moved to another state, runs a couple restaurants across the nation and all that. Haven’t heard from her since she dumped the wagon. It’s been a hassle.”

“Oh, alright.” Blaire could sense that Jacob was nervous about her question. Unable to think of a reason why, she quickly forgot about it.

“Well nothing lasts forever. As long as you're happy with everything, then so am I! What will your new work schedule look like? Will it be as flexible?”

“Very,” Jacob answered. “Aside from my oversight, most of the grunt work will be assigned to employees. As the consultant, I’ll be paid a weekly bonus for my services.”

“Wow! That’s cool! There is so much more to you than I ever would have thought, Jacob. I’m really happy for you!”

“I appreciate that, really.” Jacob smiled, content that he had managed to get the conversation back on course. The minor error of forgetting his lie regarding the owner of the wagon had almost outed him as distrusting, which was something he couldn’t allow.

While in his thoughts, Jacob caught a peculiar figure in his vision. At first he disregarded the man, but as this stranger walked closer and closer to their table, it became abundantly obvious he was approaching them. As Blaire was talking about something random, Jacob ignored her and turned to see this man approach the table. He wore a long coat, and had round glasses.

“May I help you?” Jacob asked, growing anxious. It was odd for someone of this stature to approach him randomly, especially in Valdez. He grew worried as a result.

“This young woman certainly can,” the man answered. “My name is Charles Whittier. I’m a private investigator hired by a particularly worried family.” He turned to face Blaire with a stern expression. “Blaire, is it?”

“I… What? Who are you?” Blaire was also nervous now, her heart beginning to race. She wanted to think this was a dream, but she knew it wasn’t.

“Your family has been searching for you, Blaire,” Charles informed. “Do you realize they feared the worst? Yet here I found you, finally, and you seem to be doing just fine.”

“I am fine…” Blaire responded. “But I won’t be going home… You won't tell them you found me here will you?”

“They paid me a lot of money to find you,” Charles answered. “You used cash transactions to conceal your trail, but it wasn’t hard to get the camera footage at the SeaTac airport and find out which flight you flew on. I’d be more sympathetic, honestly, if not for the loads of cash you stole from your own parents.”

Blaire couldn’t speak, her vision growing blurry as she felt sick to her stomach. It had been a sure thought in her mind that she came to Alaska with no way to trace her, but admittedly she never considered the lengths that her family would go in order to find her.

“Come with me, we’ll fly you back home. No harm, no foul. I’ll even try and defend your actions, if you come willingly. Otherwise I’ll notify your parents tonight and they can decide what to do from there.”

“Please… I… I can’t…” Blaire was about to have a panic attack, horrific reminders of her family’s brutal nature began to plague her mind.

Seeing the distress in Blaire’s eyes, Jacob scowled. Growing irritated and annoyed with this man, he decided to get involved. He knew it would be a poor idea, but something inside of him fought his better nature.

“You heard the lady,” Jacob spat. “So fuck off already, can’t you see she doesn’t want to go with you?”

“You have no business here,” Charles argued. “I don’t want to get the authorities involved, but I’ll have you both arrested for felony theft of personal finances and fleeing the state to evade criminal charges. I can easily get you both behind bars, assuming Blaire’s family decides to press charges for her egregious actions.”

Jacob stood to his feet and got in the man's face.

“I don’t think you heard me,” Jacob hissed. “Fuck. Off. Now.”

Charles smirked, but held up his hands to surrender. Shaking his head, he took a few steps back to distance himself from the young man. After all, his job was complete. There was no point in stirring the pot, not when the cards were in his hands.

“No matter, I’ve already located her. I’m staying at the motel in town, you have the night to rethink your stance on this matter. After that, I’ll notify the family and the local authorities and the legal system can deal with the rest. My job’s done already, so no point in arguing with you two.”

Charles turned and began to walk away, turning around every so often to smile at the two as Blaire buried her face into her palms. Jacob watched the man intently, sweat trickling down his forehead. If Deita were to learn of this, she would surely get involved. Now that it was obvious that Blaire meant something to Jacob, it could look very bad very soon if the police began making a fuss.

“I can’t believe this is happening!” Blaire began to sob, unable to stop her emotions as she realized her family had ultimately found her.

“Don’t worry,” Jacob assured her. “Like he said, your family doesn’t know for sure you’re here. And we have the night to think it over.”

“What difference does it make?” Blaire cried. “Oh Jacob, you don’t need to get involved! The last thing I could stand is for you to be arrested because of what I did… I should have been more honest with you, this is all my fault!”

“I don’t care what you did,” Jacob responded, his gaze still set on Charles as the man walked away in the distance. “Screw your rich family, and screw their money, you deserve it I’m sure. The audacity that man has to approach you here, in front of me… I’ll handle this, alright?”

Blaire wiped away the tears, looking rather confused as she looked up at Jacob. “Handle it how? What could you possibly do?”

“I have connections with the Valdez Sheriff’s office,” Jacob lied. “I’ll explain the situation and see what can be done. Are you certain of any proof that you stole the cash?”

“Not that I can recall,” Blaire admitted, though she was surprised that Jacob wasn’t angry at her for being deceitful of her past. In fact, it seemed strange. A man like him, with such a bright future ahead of him and good head on his shoulders, why would he be so willing to help her after being caught red-handed.

“It doesn’t matter, just don’t worry about it, alright?” Jacob reached out and took her hands, looking into her eyes with his usual charm.

“I don’t know what to say, I lied to you…” Blaire sniffled, but ultimately she was calm now.

“Technically you withheld details,” Jacob corrected. “But Blaire, honestly, I can see it in your eyes. I may not know the full extent of your history with your family, but I imagine it was terrible. I can relate to that, at the very least. As far as the cash goes, how much did you take, exactly?”

Blaire didn’t answer right away, her face flushed red as she looked at him with a guilty expression.

“A few hundred… Thousand…” Blaire answered.

“And how rich are they exactly?” Jacob asked.

“Beyond…” Blaire said.

“Then who cares? As far as I can tell, you had far more room to be greedy than you were. Besides, for all we know, they only know you might be here. Let me talk with the sheriff, and then maybe I’ll go and talk to Charles myself and see if I can’t change his mind somehow.”

“I just don’t see how that will change anything,” Blaire said honestly, not quite sure how Jacob could possibly fix this dilemma.

“Do you trust me?” Jacob asked.

“Of course I do… But…”

“Then think of it no more,” Jacob interrupted. “You know what? Screw the wagon, and the boxes, I’ll handle it later. Let’s go get some food, alright?”

“Okay…” Blaire nodded as Jacob stood up and took her hand.

They began to walk off, as Blaire became paralyzed with uncertainty. It hadn’t been very long since she’d settled in Valdez, and just when her life seemed to be going in a wonderful direction, once again her family seemed to lurk from the shadows to sap away her happiness all over again. It seemed they might never let her go, would she have to hide for the rest of her life? Blaire had no idea.

Jacob was seething on the inside. A rage had burst, one that he fought harshly to contain in Blaire’s presence. As he spoke to soothe her worries, and led her to the diner so they could get some food, all Jacob could do was simmer and brew all of the different ideas in his head.

One way or another, Charles Whittier had officially become Jacob’s top priority, one that needed to be handled immediately.

The sound of cars echoed throughout the terminal, the overpass in the distance as the Alaskan air breezed across the curb. The tapping of a heel echoed down the road, which was rather empty as the airport in Valdez wasn’t too busy often. Incessantly tapping her heel, Deita lifted a cigarette to her mouth and took a puff. Inhaling the toxic smoke, and relaxing her nerves, she exhaled as she heard the automatic doors open from behind.

The sound of luggage being wheeled grew louder, as Jinshin walked up to Deita and stood beside her silently. She collapsed the handle into the luggage, before leaving her hands at her side and staring off into the distance. For a few brief moments they didn’t speak a word to each other, but eventually the nagging silence got the better of Deita’s loudmouth.

“How was the flight?” Deita asked rhetorically, taking another drag of her cigarette.

“Deita…” Jinshin sighed, “you don’t have to be this way…”

“What way?”

“This way… Pretending, like you always do…”

“I have no idea what you’re talking about,” Deita spoke sarcastically, taking yet another drag of her cig.

“Are we doing this? Seriously? I already apologized,” Jinshin scoffed.

“Apology not accepted,” Deita retorted.

“Deita… Please…” Jinshin couldn’t bear for their relationship to continue this way.

“Don’t ‘please’ me! You’re the one who betrayed me! I can’t believe you told Avaramix about my intentions with the tiny woman, unbelievable!”

“You knew that I was obligated to inform him of direct disobedience…”

“Disobedience!?” Deita finally turned to look at Jinshin, flicking her cigarette onto the curb and stomping it out with her heel. “I think of you as a sister, you ass! I’m not some lackey to be ratted on! I only told you my intentions because I thought I could trust you! But fuck me I guess! I forgot Jinshin is a fucking fangirl for the ‘master’! God forbid I tell her anything in confidence whatsoever!”

“Is that really how you feel?” Jinshin was surprised, it had never occurred to her that Deita would feel so betrayed by something she assumed was common sense.

“Of course it is!” Deita hissed. “Look, I get it. Your past, I don’t envy it! It’s why I admire you, honestly. You are the strongest spirited individual I have ever had the honor of thinking of as a sister. But it’s always business with you, no pleasure! For once I want to be able to gossip and talk about perversions, but noooooo you have to be a buzzkill and tattle on me the first chance you get? Fuck you!”

“Deita…” Jinshin sighed, “I really am sorry. I never thought about it from your perspective, I thought I did the right thing, but I think you’ve shown me I was wrong. Please, forgive me…”

Deita glared at her for a moment longer, before rolling her eyes and sighing heavily. Crossing her arms and stamping her foot for good measure, Deita finally relented and shook her head.

“Alright, fine,” Deita spat. “Apology is accepted after all. Don’t think I’ll trust you with my private affairs again any time soon, though…”

“That’s your prerogative,” Jinshin responded, smiling at her friend.

“You and your fancy words, ugh!” Deita rolled her eyes again. “Let’s change the subject. How’s that little bitch of yours? Benjamin, right? So where’d you stash him for the flight?”

“He’s safe,” Jinshin answered.

“Safe?” Deita chuckled. “Mine sure is safe, safe up against my asshole! You got me so worked up earlier I decided to take my anger out on her. Little small, but still fits nicely in some places.”

“Deita, I really don’t need to know these things,” Jinshin said annoyedly.

“Don’t care, it’s the least you could do to listen to me after what you did.”

“Whatever,” Jinshin responded.

“So tell me, where did you stash the little fella? I wanna meet him.”

Jinshin shook her head. “Absolutely not.”

“Please! Come on!” Deita held her hands together, fake pleading with a giant grin on her face.

“No! He’s mine, not yours.”

“So you promise you aren’t dating him? Because you seem kind of overprotective of a less than human sex toy.”

“He’s not a sex toy, he was a gift,” Jinshin snapped.

“A sex toy can be a gift, can’t it?” Deita pushed Jinshin by the shoulder. “For fucks sake, I’ll keep nagging you to death until you tell me! Tell me. Tell me. Tell me. Tell me. Tell me. Tell me!”

“Alright! Just stop, for the love of God!” Jinshin rolled her eyes, lifting her hand to the zipper of her jacket and pulling it down. In a few seconds, her tight breasts were exposed in her bra, and Deita’s eyes gleamed as she saw Ben’s upper half sticking out.

“You aren’t wearing a shirt!? No fucking way!” Deita couldn’t believe it.

“Will you keep quiet? You’re drawing attention to us…” Jinshin looked around, but nobody was present. “The shirt was too hot for him, so I just wore the jacket.”

“Oh I bet it was,” Deita bit her lip. “I bet he’s getting nice and hard for you!”

“Deita,” Jinshin glared at her.

“I’m just playing, calm down.” Deita leaned in, as Ben looked up at her nervously.

“The name is Deita, nice to meet you.”

“Benjamin… But you can just call me Ben…”

“He’s hot!” Deita smiled up at Jinshin. “And you haven’t done anything with him? Aside from treating him as a pet?”

“Don’t make me regret this,” Jinshin pleaded.

“Yeah, yeah…” Deita turned her attention back to Benjamin, a toothy grin on her face. “Do you know there’s another like you, very nearby?”

“T-there is?” Ben seemed confused, but also curious at the idea of meeting another victim such as himself. It could prove to be a good opportunity for him.

“Sure is, you know where she’s at right now?”

“Where?”

Deita responded by turning her backside to him, slapping her ass cheeks prominently and giggling like a young girl.

“Right up against my puckered asshole! So consider yourself lucky, because I wanted to do the same to you but Jinshin here defended you!”

Ben’s eyes opened wide in horror, looking down at Deita’s large and shapely ass. It was so direct, so blunt. She didn’t even try to hold back the details, and Ben suddenly felt sick to his stomach at the thought of switching places with whatever poor soul was being humiliated and tortured by this sadistic woman. Was he truly lucky? What if he had been gifted to Deita, rather than Jinshin? Oh how different his situation could have been. Suddenly he realized that perhaps life hadn’t dealt him a terrible hand after all, not completely.

“Enough, Deita. I get it, and it won’t work.” Jinshin crossed her arms, making sure to keep them beneath her boobs so she didn’t squish Ben between them.

“I know, but a girl can dream!” Deita chuckled some more. “When is this damn taxi going to arrive? It’s taking forever! Ugh.”

“What’s her name?” Benjamin asked abruptly, as Deita turned back to face him. Jinshin also looked down.

“Who?” Deita asked.

“You know… Her…” Ben gestured with his eyes towards Deita rear.

“Oh, Liz? I’ve given her a hell of a beating, that’s for sure! I’m surprised she’s still alive, honestly. She can’t talk, mute and all, so watching her expressions makes it even more fun!”

A taxi finally pulled up to the curb, as Deita grabbed her luggage.

“She’s getting a bit worn though. Not fighting as much, I think I might have broken her.” Deita chuckled as she headed towards the taxi.

“I’ve heard some of our customers have gotten a bit spicy with the product we’ve sold thus far! A few have even… Devoured their subjects! They’re calling it, what is it…? Vore? Yeah, that’s right! Vore! Never would have thought of something like that, but hey! I’m willing to try anything once, and what better way to expend Liz’ usefulness than literally devouring her? Anyways, Jinshin, I’ll see you at the facility.”

Deita entered her taxi, and it pulled away before Ben could even process what he had just heard. In the short time he had met with this evil woman, he had more than enough to make him sick to his stomach. She was not only erratic, it seemed, but despicable by nature. While he hadn’t met this Liz person before, he could only assume she had been a victim just like himself. Unable to imagine whatever fate she had succumbed this far, the idea of her being devoured alive was beyond horrific.

“Sorry about her,” Jinshin spoke up, breaking Benjamin’s train of thought. “She’s a bit much, but I promise I won’t let her harm you.”

“Jinshin…” Benjamin interrupted. “How much do I mean to you, exactly?”

“What?” Jinshin was confused. “You were a gift-”

“Enough with that shit!” Ben snapped. “Tell me! How much do I mean to you!?”

“I don’t understand what you are asking me,” Jinshin responded.

“I want you to save that girl…” Ben pleaded. “You can’t let that woman eat her… That’s just fucking wrong! Do you hear me? That’s sick and demented! And you call her your sister!?”

“Be careful… You don’t mean that much to me, watch your tone when speaking about Deita.” Jinshin grew callous, her tone dark and emotionless.

Suddenly it dawned on Benjamin, Jinshin didn’t care at all about him, not really. Any sentiment that he thought had developed was a fallacy, it had to be. Were he not gifted to her, he would be as indispensable as any other tiny victim. He thought there might be a chance, an inkling of a future yet to come that fated freedom. However, Benjamin began to realize he might have fooled himself.

“I want to die,” Ben murmured.

“What?” Jinshin looked down at him, as her taxi now pulled up to the curb.

“You said you would kill me if I wanted you to,” Benjamin reminded her. “Well, I’m asking you now. I want you to kill me, Jinshin.”