Welcome to Monday

8401.00

The Southern California jungle outside of Los Angeles County. Spring.

Livina sat beside the fire watching her pair-mate, Dart clean his hunting knife. She smiled as she tossed a small rock at him to get his attention. Dart looked up, and grinned back at her. "I'II attend to you in a minute my dear."

Livina stood up, and went inside the small cabin they lived in together. They had met almost a year before on the outskirts of New L.A. and, upon discovering a mutual interest in each other, fled the city for the safety of the jungle.

After the third great war had ended, what humanity remained for the most part was a young, wicked, and twisted breed. It was this particular breed that had taken over the once great city of Angels, and turned it into a capital of sleaze, robbery, and murder. Very few lived there permanently, most of the residents were made up of nomadic gangs, and slave traders visiting the city to trade anything from drugs, to human captives.

After the holocaust, pretty, and sane members of both sexes were rare and very valuable, and brought very high prices from those that wished to obtain them. The satanic cults based in the North payed especially well for sacrifices for their alters.

Dart continued to finish cleaning his knife, and looked up quickly when he heard a noise come out from the darkness of the jungle. Slowly he moved into a crouch position, and drew a second knife from the belt around his waist. He circled slowly staring out into the darkness, but could see nothing.

A moment later, a figure emerged out of the darkness. He was tall, at least six feet tall, and clothed entirely in black. Long, black, shaggily cut hair that stood spiked on top, hung down far past his shoulders, and covered most of his face. Long gold, and silver chain earrings hung down from both ears, and a multitude of chains, spiked, and studded leather adorned his entire body, down to the soft soled boots he was wearing. Leather armbands also heavily studded covered his arms, and a multitude of scarves and scraps of material hung down from belts around his waist. Black patches of make-up on his face and blood red lipstick completed the image, and reminded Dart of a musical way of life from years long past.

He glanced at the stranger again, and wondered how he could have gotten this close without having heard him sooner. But, unknown to Dart, the stranger, who's name was Phaeton, had been in a terrible explosion that had damaged his eyesight, but had given him the ability to smell blood and track down living beings like a bloodhound from miles away. He was a master tracker.

The stranger pulled a large chain out from around his waist and began to swing it menacingly as he slowly moved towards Dart. Dart pointed to the meal he and Livina had finished not long before.

"Food? Is that what you want? There' s plenty here if you want some."

The stranger grinned and moved closer. "If you don't want food, I have nothing else to offer you."

"Oh yes you do, my friend... " He said in a low voice, and casting a glance toward the cabin. "You have something very valuable in that cabin of yours, and I intend on having it."

A cold sweat broke out along Dart' s back as he realized the stranger's intentions. He wondered where the stranger's accomplice was, since slavers rarely worked alone. Just as the thought occurred to him to check behind him, he was hit from behind and went down as a knife found it's mark in his back.

He broke the grip of the unseen assailant and roiled over, knives at the ready. Another male similarly dressed like the first except with long white - blonde hair stared down at him. As Dart went to sit up, the other attacker' s chain was quickly wound around his neck from behind, and held him down on his back. He dropped one of the knives and grabbed at the chain that was choking him.

The blonde knelt down, one knee pressing down on Dart's groin. He slowly pressed down harder as he moved his own knife close to Dart's throat. "Doncha know, women will getcha into trouble every time?"

All three suddenly looked toward the cabin as Livina' s voice called out Dart's name. "Come on Dart honey, hurry up! I'm tired of wait ... ing ... " She stopped talking as she came to the entrance of the cabin and saw the two men holding Dart.

"Run Livina! Run! Get away from here, fast!" Dart yelled.

The blonde turned back toward Dart and drove his knife in to the hilt into Dart' s chest. Livina screamed and ran across the tiny clearing toward the forest. She stopped abruptly when two more men appeared out of the forest, blocking her escape. Before she had a chance to run in another direction, they each grabbed one of her arms, and dragged her screaming into the forest.

The blonde retrieved his knife from Dart's lifeless body and wiped the blood off on Dart' s vest. He smiled up at his companion who was removing his chain from around Dart's neck.

"I'm surprised you finished him off that fast Slykk, usually you play with 'em a bit longer first."

"Well, you know how much I hate natural blondes Phaet." Slykk said running his hands through his long shagged hair, and pouting his lips sensuously at Phaeton. He added Dart's two knives to his own belt, then stood up and looked off in the direction where the other two had disappeared with the girl.

"We had better go and claim our prize before our cohorts devour her entirely."

Phaeton smiled sadistically as he wound his chain back around his waist. " Let' s do it!"

They stood up and headed off in the direction taken by their partners. A moment later they heard a scream followed by male voices cursing loudly. Slykk glanced over at Phaeton.

"If those assholes have hunt her in any way, I'll kill them!"

They ran into the forest in the direction that the voices had come from. Moments later they found the other half of their band on the ground, looking very sheepish. Phaeton grabbed the shorter of the two men, lifted him to his feet, and slammed him up against a tree. "You fuck-up! Where's the girl?! Where is she you asshole?!"

Mondoni groaned and rubbed his hand across his groin. "Fuckin' bitch man, she kneed both Boner and me, then split off into the woods. I'll kill her the next time I see her!"

Phaeton's face was so twisted with rage he could barely talk." Well, you fuckers had better get your shit together real quick and help us find that girl." he hissed. Phaeton shoved him back to the ground and turned back to Slykk, "Let's get going before she gets any farther away. You and I will head out this way, and you two assholes check out the cabin then head out the other way. Do you think you can handle that on your own? Whoever finds her first send up a flare and keep her ass nailed to a tree 'til the rest of us get there. You got that?"

Boner slowly stood up, and helped Mondoni to his feet. He looked over at Phaeton with a less than friendly look. "Yeah we got it, and we'll find her too. No problem."

"There'd better not be." Slykk sneered. "If we lose this one, it's gonna cost you. Both of you." He finished.

Phaeton and Slykk turned and disappeared into the darkness. Once they were gone, Mondoni turned to Boner and looked up at him. "Notice how we're always the fuck -ups? God, I wis h I were as fuckin' perfect as they are! Don' t you Bone?"

Boner laughed and put his arm around Mondoni's shoulder. "Perfection is avery lonely place to be my friend. Let's get going."

The mismatched pair then left in the direction of the cabin. Boner was a very tall young man, a product of generations of Greek breeding, with his long wavy black hair, dark eyes and olive skin. Mondoni was only a few inches over five feet tall, very pale with deep set eyes, long straight black hair, and had all of the charisma of a bridge troll.

Livina hid behind a large dump of bushes, trying to catch her breath as quietly as possible. Tears began to flow down her cheeks as the realization of Dart' s death struck her. She wasn't sure if what they had was love, but now that he was gone she felt very empty, alone, and afraid. She felt a shiver of terror run up her spine as she heard a noise in the brush ahead of her. She stopped breathing and waited. After about five minutes, she didn't hear any more sounds or voices and she cautiously raised her head up to look around.

As fast as lightening, a leather thong was wound around her throat, cutting off her attempted scream, and breathing. Her hands went instinctively to her throat to try and break free. She felt the stranglehold being lifted upward, forcing her to stand up, then heard a low gravelly voice in her ear. "Unless you want me to cut your fuckin' heart out right now, put your hands behind your back, slowly, one at a time, and I might even let you breathe a little."

Livina took a little too long in deciding whether to obey or not, and the thong around her neck was quickly jerked backwards, causing her to choke. Quickly she decided that she could accomplish more alive than dead, and put her hands behind her back as she had been told to do, and felt cold hard handcuffs being put on her while the tight grip on her neck never loosened. The stranger whispered in her ear again.

"Now I'm gonna take this from around your pretty little neck ... " His hand gently brushed the side of her face and neck, and made her shiver. "...and you' re not going to make a single sound or move a solitary muscle or you're gonna have four of us to deal with instead of one. So, it's up to you love, are you gonna behave for me?"

Livina slowly nodded her head, and stood quietly as the thong was removed from around her neck, and replaced by a chain collar, that after being clasped around her neck, ran down her back and connected to her handcuffs. Then she felt him connect a chain from his belt to her handcuffs.

"Ya know, sweetheart, I"m gonna do something real special for you. I"m gonna let you wear one of my headbands. I'll let you thank me, but, you must be very quiet or we'll have to deal with the others ... do you understand?"

She felt him slip a cloth headband over her forehead and adjust it. As she opened her mouth to speak, he pulled it quickly down into her mouth and retied it tightly. Tears again began to flow as the vulnerability of her situation became frighteningly apparent. She flinched as he placed his hands on her waist and slowly turned her around to face him. She starred helplessly at the garish figure that stood before her, as he gently brushed her tears away with a strip of material hanging from his waist. He grinned at her as he pulled her close to him and put one arm behind her neck, while keeping the other tight around her waist. He moved his mouth close to her ear again and kissed her on the side of the neck as he started to slide the hand around her waist up the back of her shirt.

"You're lucky I found ya first sweetheart, cuz I'm the best there is ... " He leered at her, and another shiver ran up her spine as he moved his mouth toward hers.

Later, Phaeton was just finishing fastening the clasp on his last belt when Slykk appeared out of the brush, and wandered over to the small fire Phaeton had built only a moment before. Slykk looked over at Phaeton sitting next to Livina with his arm around her shoulder. Slykk walked over in front of Livina and looked her up and down before turning to smile at Phaeton.

"Looks like we got us a real prize this time. Are we gonna try and take her up North to sell her?"

Phaeton grinned at Slykk and gave Livina a quick hug. "Yeah, but not right away. She's kinda skinny and needs some of your purtyin' up Slykk. Then we' II go up North."

Slykk stroked the side of her face, and then slowly turned her face one way then the other. After that, he fingered her long blonde hair, and gently touched her lips with his fingertips. He smiled wickedly at her, as she stared into his eyes looking at the elaborate facial make-up he was wearing. "Yeah, she's a cute one, a lot of natural beauty, it won't take much to flash her out. But we've got to do something with that hair. It' s too long, needs to be cut and shaped into something."

Slykk sat down next to Livina, and slid and arm around her waist. Livina shivered and moved away from him, closer to Phaeton. He emitted an evil aura that she didn't like. "Aw Phaet, she ' s cold. We better get going and get her inside and warm. Are we going to go back to the cave tonight?"

"Naw, I figured that we could stay back at her cabin tonight, and head back tomorrow morning. I'm in no hurry, and I don't feel safe tramping around in these woods at night. We'll head back there now, and get set up, then if Mondoni, and Boner haven't shown up by then, we'll send up a flare."

Slykk looked into Livina' s eyes and stroked the side of her face again. "Why bother? Why don't the three of us have a little party back at the cabin. tonight? All alone ... "

Livina felt a strange feeling of numbness coming over her as she stared into Slykk' s eyes. She quickly turned away, and broke the hypnotic trance. Phaeton stood up and pulled Livina up to her feet. After making sure she was still securely chained to his belt, he and Slykk put out the fire and headed back to the cabin.

On there way back to the cabin, they met up with Mondoni and Boner then continued on together toward the cabin. When they arrived there, immediately they noticed that something was wrong. Dart's body was missing, and there was no clue as to what or who might have taken it, or where.

Slykk drew a gun out of his belt, and slowly moved toward the door of the cabin. Phaeton drew out his own gun and kept him covered. Carefully Slykk worked his way to the side of the door, then after nodding to Phaeton, swung around quickly into the open doorway. A moment later he replaced his gun in his belt, and signaled the others to come inside. Once they were all inside, Boner closed the door and bolted it shut, while Mondoni started looking through the cupboards. Slykk and Phaeton chained Livina to a ring embedded in the stone near the fireplace, and moved the cuffs around to her front. Phaeton had used one of his own custom unpick-able, unbreakable locks to which only he had the keys. After doing that, he went over to Dart and Livina' s queen sized bed, and stretched out on it.

"God this feels good! I'm gonna crash here tonight, you guys can have the floor all to yourselves. "

This caused immediate protests from everyone else. Livina ignored all of this and stared into the flames of the fire. Another tear ran down her face as she thought of the horrors to come. Most of what she knew about the slave trading business she had heard from Dart, and his stories were enough to occasionally to give her nightmares. She decided that as soon as the opportunity presented itself, she would take her own life. Only in that way, could she be reunited wit her beloved Dart.

She was startled out of her daydream when she felt someone placing a blanket over her shoulders. She quickly turned around to see the the kind, but creepy face of Mondoni looking down at her. It was then she noticed that he hadn't been over arguing with the others. He sat down on the floor next to her and carefully put an arm around her shoulder, then spoke softly in her ear.

"I'm not going to hurt you, or anything. But I'm sure a gets pretty cold in here at night, so I think that two somebody's on the floor would be a lot warmer than one." Livina squinted at him him, and gave him the meanest look she could.

"Good, I knew you'd like the idea." Mondoni pulled the rest of the blanket around his own shoulders, and then took off his boots before stretching out in front of the fire behind Livina. She reluctantly leaned back against him as he wrapped his right arm around her middle. It was then that the argument took a new direction.

"What the fuck do you think you're doing Mondoni?! Get the fuck away from her!" Phaeton yelled over Slykk and Boner's complaining.

Mondoni casually looked over in Phaeton' s direction. "Hey, if you get the fuckin bed, I'm gonna sleep here by the fire, and princess here doesn't have any objections to sharing a blanket with me."

"Yeah, I'm sure she put up a big argument with a fuckin' gag in her mouth! That's the only way Mondoni can get broads and fuck 'em! If they're already tied up and helpless." Slykk taunted before walking over toward them. Livina shrunk back against Mondoni as Slykk leaned over her and took her face in his hand. "You' re much too pretty to be havin' to fuck freaks sweetheart. Why don't you let me keep you warm tonight? I' II show ya a real good time!" he chuckled.

Livina shook her head "no". This made Slykk furious. "You little whore! I'll knock your fuckin' head in for that!" Slykk raised his hand to strike her, but before he had the chance, another hand caught hold of his and held him back. Slykk spun around to confront Phaeton holding his arm.

"Don't cause any damage you'll have to repair my friend. Let Mondoni have her for tonight, and she'll be all yours tomorrow night I promise." he suggested to the other. Slykk grinned wickedly down at Livina as Phaeton let go of his arm.

"Fine, I can wait. I don't have any of my stuff here any way. I' II just go crash over there on the floor next to Boner."

"Good." Phaeton said, crawling back onto the bed and laying down. "Now let's all just shut the fuck up and get some sleep. We're leaving real early tomorrow, and we're going all the way back home."

Slykk and Boner found the rest of the spare blankets and bedded down across the room. After much coaxing, Mondoni persuaded Livina to lay down beside him. It took several more minutes for her to get comfortable with all of the chains and handcuffs she had on, but once she was, she sighed deeply and closed her eyes .

A moment or two later, Mondoni slowly slid his hand up along her front, up to the gag in her mouth. He tugged on it gently, and Livina opened her eyes.

"Are you going to be quiet So I can take this off of you for a while. If you make any loud noises, we're both gonna get busted. Do you hear what I'm saying " He whispered to her.

Livina slowly nodded and Mondoni pulled the gag down around her neck. She smiled wanly at him and mouthed the words "thank you". Mondoni smiled back and stared into her eyes, and saw something that he had never noticed in their previous captives. Gently he placed his right hand on the side of her face and concentrated on reading her mind.

During the bombings of L.A. Mondoni had received a severe concussion that had left him unconscious for over a week. Upon waking, he discovered that he had acquired the ability to read minds. Immediately he found fear and deep despair, but a slight trust in him. This made him smile at her. Then he uncovered a most disturbing thought. She was wondering where he kept his knife so she could kill not him or the others, but herself when the opportunity arose.

Mondoni looked at her calm face which conveyed none of this, and at her small thin smile. Slowly he reached around to the back off his belt and took out the nine inch double bladed commando knife out of it's sheath. Then he quickly brought it up under her throat and watched her eyes widen in terror. He smiled wickedly at her, then quick as a flash threw the knife across the room where it stuck in the wall about a foot above Slykk's head. Mondoni watched Boner sit up and smile at him before laying back down.

Mondoni turned back to Livina and moved his face close to hers. "Live as long as you can little love, because where there's life, there's always hope. And where there's hope, there's love. " Mondoni lifted her face to his for a gentle kiss, as he put his arms around her and pulled her beneath him. Mondoni was older and kinder than the others were, but pretty female company was a rare treat that was never to be wasted.

The next morning before anyone else was awake, Mondoni retied the gag on Livina and grinned to himself when he saw the chew mark he had left on the side of her neck. Let Slykk try and cover that one up with make-up.

"Fuckin' A man! What's this knife doing here by my head?"

Everyone else slowly rolled over to look at Slykk and the knife in the wall. Slykk pulled it out, and looked at the initials carved in the handle. "Hey! Mondo! What the fuck is this doing over here?!"

"I put it there." Mondoni answered calmly, as he sat up.

"What' s the matter Mondoni, you afraid to take me on in a fair fight? Is that why you've gotta throw this at me last night while I was asleep?"

"If I had been aiming at your empty peroxided head, I wouldn't have missed, and we would have all heard it go pop. I chucked the knife over there last night so she wouldn't get a hold of it and slit her throat or mine."

"Oh, what a loss that would have been." Slykk said tossing the knife back toward Mondoni.

Mondoni unstuck the knife from the floor and put it back into his belt, then he stood up and laid the blanket back over Livina before putting his boots back on. After he had them on, he gently tapped Livina on the butt with the toe of his boot. She rolled over and looked up at him.

"Where' s the can around here?"

She pointed toward the door and smirked.

"That' s what I thought." Mondoni walked over to the door, unbolted it and went outside. When he returned, Phaeton was busy reattaching her chain to his belt. He left her hands in front to make it easier for her to travel through the forest. Mondoni gave her a weak smile before returning back outside. A moment later as he stared out into the foggy forest morning, he felt a hand on his shoulder. He turned around to see the Hobgoblinish grin of Boner staring him in the face. He made a look of repulsion and turned away.

"God Bone! Not so early in the morning! I'll be sick all day now."

"Yeah right Valentino. I see you've got yourself a girlie-friend."

"Aw fuck you Bone! I don't give a shit about anyone but me!"

"Yeah, sure ya don't. Well, if I was you, I'd just try to forget about her. A couple of weeks from now she'll be on someone's alter or dinner table."

Mondoni winced, and felt a sick feeling rising in his stomach. He tried to put those horrible images from his mind, and turned back to Boner smiling. "Yeah, you're right. I guess she's no different form the rest."

######

Two weeks later, Slykk was finishing putting the final touches on his make-up as he glanced over at Livina sitting on the couch across the room. He had been left alone to guard her while Phaeton, Mondoni, and Boner went to bargain for food, and make arrangements for their trip up north. Slykk had quickly grown bored of staying in the hideout with Livina, and having nothing for entertainment except her body, since she refused to talk to him like she did with the others. The whiskey bottles had all run dry several hours ago, so he decided to take her into town wit him while he acquired some more bootleg liquor.

Fifteen minutes later, he was finally ready to go. After checking her make-up and costuming a final time, he attached a chain from his belt to her handcuffs and they left for the city. Due to his drunken stupor, Slykk had become considerably more mellow, and twice tried to put his arm around Livina's waist and start a casual conversation. Both times he was met with a cold shoulder.

Upon reaching the city limits, Slykk acquired entry past the gate guards, and headed for his favorite bar, The Love Pit. When Livina followed Slykk into the dark and hazy interior, she began to cough and choke on the foul air. Slykk moved through the crowd and made his way to the bar. Livina squinted at the loud driving band that was on stage. Trying to see them through all Of the hazel She could make out a four piece band of males with long dark hair, and their logo banner hanging above the stage and that was about it. The banner read, "Wicked Lust."

Slykk, was meanwhile digging through a leather pouch that hung at his side. After a moment or two, he produced two small glass vials of penicillin and carefully set them down on the bar. He was careful to keep his hand cupped around the precious white fluid that was worth more that it' s weight in gold. Eventually, the bartender spotted Slykk, and came over to him.

"Hey Slykk, how's it goin'? Haven't seen you in here in awhile."

"Business has kept me busy. " He said glancing quickly at Livina. Slykk revealed the two bottles and looked up at his friend. "How much' II ya need to get me fully tanked tonight?"

The bartender picked up one of the bottles and held it up to the light to check it' s condition, then he read the dates on the bottles. "Hmmm, fresh stuff here, real fresh. Mind telling me who your supplier is?"

"Yes, I do." Slykk said firmly. "We get ours from a local source let us say ... "

"It seems that the only good stuff you can get these days is local stuff still, no one knows exactly who makes it or where."

"In that case, I think one will do ... "

"Uh, I dunno Slykk ... "

"Well , the guy over at The Dead Whore said he'd settle for one, but I thought that I would bring my business over here first ... "

The bartender squinted at Slykk. "Bullshit. You're bluffing. Your stuff is good, but not that good, and besides, that slime Bandor never gives anyone a deal."

"O.K. I'll tell him you said that. See ya around." Slykk slid off of his barstool and started to leave.

"OK! All right, all right for cryin' out loud. Sit back down, and quit your bitchin'."

Slykk sat back down as he was poured a tall dark brown drink. He paid for it with one on the bottles of the precious drug and motioned for Livina to sit on his lap. She shook her head "no" and turned away from him. Slykk shrugged it off and turned his attention back to his drink. Livina looked about the dark room, and at it's inhabitants. The city had become everything Dart had told her. In one corner of the bar, near Livina, a group of men were discussing the sale of some drugs, in another corner, through the haze, she could make out a murder in progress. Even though the club was packed with people, no one would remember the incident. Then over in another far corner, 3 men were dragging a girl outside into an alley. She probably would never be seen or heard from again. A shiver went up Livina' s spine, and she backed up closer to Slykk. He turned around towards her. "We' re a bit more friendly now than before eh? Here, have a sit." He said pulling her onto his lap.

The bartender returned to refill Slykk' s drink. "Eh, she's a real pretty one you have there Slykk, Does she want anything?” Slykk glanced at her, then back to the bartender. "Yeah, give her something, but make it kinda mild though."

The bartender left, then returned a moment later with a glass filled with a pale blue liquid. Livina took a small sip. It was sweet, but had a slight alcoholic bite to it. She sat there on Slykk' s lap, and endured his wandering hands while he finished four more drinks. He had just started his sixth when a man came up behind him and tapped him on the shoulder. He was fairly good looking by modern standards, and quite muscular.

"Hey man, I've got some business I'd like to talk over with you."

Slykk looked up at him through bleary eyes. "Yeah? What about?"

The stranger reached a hand out toward Livina' s face. She leaned back away from him. "Your lovely lady here, I take it she' s for sale?"

Livina ' s eyes widened with terror, and she pressed herself closer to Slykk. He acknowledged this with a great amount of pleasure , and gave her a wink and a gentle bite on the cheek.

"You take it wrong my friend, this here's my little girl. She stays here with me."

"Oh, I can see that, but even true love has it's price. Now say you were gonna take her up North somewhere, the most you' s get would be, oh about, 170 tops."

Slykk thought for a mInute.

"But, I' II give you much more than that right now, in cash."

"How much?" Slykk asked, very interested.

"Oh no Slykk honey! I want to stay here with you. Don't make me go! We have sooo much fun together. I couldn't' stand to be without you." LivIna said to him in a cutsie voIce as she slid her hand down the center of his chest, and down Into his pants.

He stared at her lustfully, put both hands around her waist and pulled her closer against him. "Well, I didn't' t know that you felt that way love. I thought that old Mondoni was your favorite ... "

"Oh, you have a partner? No wonder you weren't Interested. Not enough money, what would you consIder a fair price?"

Slykk wasn't listening, he was busy tongue kissing Livina.

"I could gIve you a fIne price for her, and a bonus for yourself ... " Slykk had begun to undo the elaborate lacing on the front of her bodice, when the stranger whispered In his ear.

"What say you to $200,000 and an extra $2000 for yourself, for being such an excellent busInessman? I can give you some time to think about it if you like. I will be around here all night."

Slykk slid off of the stool and started to drag Livina off toward the side hallway near the back of the club. He lead her up a flight of stairs then down another hallway lined on both sides with about a dozen doors each. He knocked on one and received a complaint from the occupants InsIde. The second one he tried, he found empty, opened the door, and pushed Livina In ahead of him. He stepped inside, and locked the door. Then he turned around to face Livina who was leaning against the back wall of the mirrored cubIcle, which wasn't much bIgger than a closet with a small bench along one wall.

"Now, prove it to me baby. How much do you want to stay with me?"

"Oh, very much sweetie. I don't ever want to lose you."

"And what about Mondoni?" He asked as he opened up the front of her dress, then began to undo his pants and pull them down.

"He's nothing to me. You've always been the one I wanted."

"Oh, yeah? Well my sweet love ... " He said placing his hands gently on her shoulders, then pushing her down
to her knees. " ... Prove it to me!"

Phaeton, Mondoni, and Boner arrived back at the cave about 1:30 AM to find it empty of inhabitants.

"Dammit Slykk! You couldn't wait 'til I got back." Phaeton yelled throwing one of the empty bottles against the wall. "Well, come on. We gotta go find that asshole before he does something stupid. " Phaeton said, turning back to Mondoni and Boner.

"Oh, yes! Heaven forbid that our wonderful Slykk should spoil his perfect record!" Mondoni remarked.

All Phaeton could do in reply was throw a hard look back as they left the cave. He knew that Mondoni was justified in his remark about Slykk. When liquor and lust were added to the equation, what little sense Slykk had went right out the window.

Slykk sat on the bench looking up at Livina standing in front of him. He smiled at her and motioned for her to come closer to him. "Why don't you have a seat here my darlin' and tell me nice things I might want to hear."

Livina did as she was told, and Slykk positioned her straddled on his lap. He started to kiss her again as he began to move his hips beneath her in time to the booming music coming from the club below. Quick recovery had never been a problem for him.

He broke the kiss a moment later, and stared at her. "So, tell me. Tell me all those wonderful things you feel for me. How good I am at fuckin' you like you want it. How fine I am and how you want to be mine all mine forever."

Livina smiled at him as nicely as she could, and ran her hands along the sides of his face, and through his hair. "Well, Slykk sweetie, you know how I feel about you now. You're just the kind of man I want. Strong, sexy, the best lover there is. I just want to stay with you forever, and make you happy. Don't make me go away Slykk. Let me stay with you and I' II never touch anyone but you, I' ll make you so very very happy too ... "

"I'm sure that you will." He resumed kissing her between intermittent streams of flattery. This continued for about another ten minutes until he reached a climax. He kissed her a while longer before getting redressed.

When they had both finished dressing. He didn't reconnect her chain to his belt before leaving the room. He looked over at her. "I can trust you can't I?"

"Oh yes." Livina replied, wrapping her arms around his waist. "I'II be very good."

"Great. Let's get going home then." Slykk took her by the hand, and led her back down to the main part of the club. Instead of going out the main entrance, he led her out through the side alley exit. They were about halfway down the alley when the man from inside the club, stepped out of the darkness. Livina shrank back against Slykk.

"Well, have you decided yet? Does my price suit you?"

Slykk nodded slowly, and put his arms tight around Livina to keep her from running off. "Yes, I found a quite suitable, especially the bonus ... "

"Good, I can see you have your hands full at the moment, so I will put the money in your pouch there, and then you can release her to me."

Slykk nodded in agreement as he watched the stranger count out the large amount of money before placing it in his belt pouch. When he was done he connected his own chain to Livina. Slykk released his grip on her, and stepped aside. Livina spun around to confront him.

"You slime! You lied to me!" She shouted.

"Well, I'm sure you did too sweetheart, so that makes us both even. I'll be sure to tell poor old Mondoni goodbye for you." he sneered.

While Livina' s attention was drawn to Slykk, the stranger produced a hypodermic needle, and jabbed it into her backside. He pulled it back out, and almost immediately she dropped to the ground unconscious.

"It's easier to carry 'em when they're asleep." He smiled coldly.

Slykk walked over to her, and removed all of the chains and hand cuffs that belonged to him and Phaeton. The stranger replaced them with his own, and then picked her up and slung her over one shoulder.

"Thank you very much my friend, may you enjoy your new wealth in the best of health."

"Don't worry, I shall." Slykk shook his hand. Then turned and walked down the alley in the opposite direction that Livina and her owner had gone. It had turned out very well for him. He'd gotten laid, got to see the look of betrayal in that bitch's eyes, and he'd saved them a trip up North. There was no way Phaeton wouldn't be happy with this turn of luck.

Slykk paused under a weak light on the side of a building to light a cigarette. He was so focused on it, he didn't hear the approaching foot steps that might have warned him. There was a dull "thud" and he fell silently to the ground and landed in a puddle of muddy water, out cold.