LEFT FOR DEAD
Part Four
Wilson awoke several times during the night, mostly from nightmares. The barn was pitch black and he could still hear the rain pouring outside. He felt Marissa beside him, asleep and he sighed with a sense of happiness. He was at least glad they were together, despite their predicament. As long as she was there, Wilson felt like he could still protect her, somehow. That one comfort helped him fall back asleep.
Wilson awoke the next morning to the feeling of water dripping on his head. The barn had apparently sprung another leak and right above where he and Marissa had fallen asleep. Wilson was thankful for this. He was so sore that he didn't feel like moving and he was thirsty. He tilted his head back and opened his mouth, allowing the water to slightly moisten his dry mouth and tongue and quench his thirst.
Marissa stirred beside him. She looked around for a moment, trying to remember where she was. She seemed to relax when realization struck. She looked up at Wilson and smiled.
"James," His name was a concerned sigh and she sat up. She studied his face. A swath of wavy hair fell casually on his forehead and Marissa gently brushed it back with her fingers. She then delicately touched the puffy part of his left eye. He winced. "How do you feel?" she asked.
"Well, I've felt better." he replied, frankly. He managed to smile at her. "Have some water." He pointed to where the water was dripping above him. Marissa cupped her hands, collected some water in them and drank.
"How long has it been raining, anyway?" Wilson asked.
"Since they brought us here that night." Marissa replied.
"I wish I knew where "here" was." said Wilson. "And I wish I hadn't left my cell phone in my car. I wish… well, I wish for a lot of things."
"So do I, James," Marissa admitted. "You want to hear something funny? I was actually going to cancel our date that night. I had a long day at work and I was really tired. But I really wanted to see you, so I decided to suck it up." She laughed a little.
Wilson was surprised and he remembered how House had told him to cancel as well. He decided not to tell Marissa this, otherwise she would feel guilty. Besides, if Wilson hadn't shown-up, Marissa would've been left all alone with Glenn and Dave. He wouldn't be there now.
"I'm glad you didn't cancel, Marissa," he told her, sincerely. "I wouldn't want you to face this alone."
Marissa leaned against Wilson again and sighed.
"I'm glad you're here, James," Marissa declared. "I'm so scared. I don't know what to do. The barn door is locked and they might be gone. They might very well have just left us here to die." She buried her face in his arm and cried.
Wilson didn't know what to say to comfort her. Nobody knew where they were, so he couldn't even say someone would find them, eventually. And he was too weak to even try to kick the already fragile wood walls in.
Wilson almost hoped they had left them there. He didn't want to see those psychos ever again. Unfortunately, he did.
Glenn was the first one to stumble into the barn. He wore a mask again, but was wearing the same clothes he had on the day before, so Wilson knew it was him. He instinctively tightened his arm around Marissa and she huddled closer to him. As Glenn approached them, Wilson saw that his eyes were red and bloodshot. And with the way he was stumbling, he was either high or drunk or both.
"Kitten, there you are," said Glenn. "Did you and Dr. Wilson have a nice little roll in the hay last night? I could hear you moaning like a whore!"
"What the hell do you know anyway? You're crazy!" Marissa snapped, jumping up. "And you're high again, Glenn! Look at what you're doing to yourself!"
She didn't seem to care much that Glenn had called her a whore and Wilson guessed that he must of said it to her several times in her past. But that didn't excuse it and Wilson didn't like it one bit.
"She's not a whore!" Wilson shouted at Glenn. He stepped closer to Wilson and loomed over him, menacingly. At this point, Dave had walked in, slamming the barn door behind him to announce his presence.
"What did you say?' Glenn demanded.
Wilson finally looked him in the eye. "I said she's not a whore," Wilson repeated. "Don't call her that. You have no right to call her that."
"James-" Marissa began, but Glenn cut her off.
"I have more right than you have," he said. "Just because you're a doctor doesn't make you right all the time." He looked at Marissa and smirked. "Besides, I just call them like I see them." He kicked Wilson in the groin, hard. Wilson keeled over in utter agony. Glenn had kicked him so hard, that Wilson was actually crying and he thought for sure that he had been damaged permanently.
"Glenn, how could you!" Marissa gasped and turned to Wilson, who was holding himself as tears poured down his face. "You poor baby, are you all right?" She scowled at Glenn.
"Him?" Glenn exclaimed, shocked. "What about me? I hurt my foot kicking him like that!"
"You moron!" Marissa yelled, jumping up again. "You're wearing steel-toed boots! Do you realize what you could have done?"
"I've had just about enough of your lip," said Glenn and grabbed Marissa by both arms. He slammed her up against a wall an looked into her eyes. "You know what happens to girls who give me lip, don't you? I find a better use for those lips."
Wilson sat-up again, slowly, just in time to see Glenn kissing Marissa forcefully on the mouth. His hands reached under her dress to grope her, perversely. With all the strength he had left, Wilson lunged forward and grabbed Glenn's ankle with his one good hand. He kicked Wilson off and stepped on his good hand (his left) breaking several more of his fingers. Now Wilson had two completely limp and broken hands and couldn't grab onto anything. He cringed as his broken fingers throbbed.
"Dave, dammit, will you get him out of here!" Glenn ordered and Dave complied. He grabbed Wilson under his arms and started to drag him towards the barn doors.
"No, wait," Glenn called to him. "Leave him here. Hold his head up. He might like to watch."
This was about to be far worse than the initial torture Wilson had experienced. Dave forced Wilson to his knees and held his head up. Glenn threw Marissa onto the ground, only inches in front of Dave and Wilson. He tore of her dress, pulled down her underwear and did the unthinkable. Wilson was horrified at what Glenn was doing to Marissa, to her body and that he was being forced to watch every awful minute of it. Marissa kicked and screamed; writhed and squirmed beneath Glenn. She cried out for him to stop, to get off of her, but the more she fought, the rougher he became. Wilson was shouting at him as well, but the violation lasted a good half hour. To Wilson and Marissa, it was more like an eternity.
This was far worse than the leather strap against the soles of his feet, the kick in the groin, the burns, the cuts. Wilson had to watch Marissa get raped and was helpless to stop it. He struggled as hard as he could to get out of Dave's grip, but it was no use. Wilson felt like his heart had been ripped out of his chest, because he couldn't do a thing to help Marissa. He helped so many people, every day at the hospital, yet he couldn't do a thing at that very moment. Probably when it would've been the most important, the most crucial.
At last, Glenn stopped and released Marissa. Her wrists, legs and inner thighs were bruised from the brutality of the attack. Marissa curled herself into the fetal position and was sobbing uncontrollably. Again, Wilson struggled to get free. He wanted to hold her and tell her that he was there and that he would protect her, but he couldn't.
"Quit your wiggling, will you!" Dave told Wilson, grabbing him by the shoulders and then smacking him in the head.
"I'll take it from here," Glenn said and took over holding Wilson. Wilson still pulled and struggled and Glenn was getting annoyed. He pulled and twisted one of Wilson's arms as hard as he could until he broke it.
"Now if you don't stop your struggling, Doctor, I'll break the other one," Glenn threatened. "And then your legs." He forced Wilson to look up again.
Even more horrified than before, Wilson watched Dave perform the same heinous act on Marissa that Glenn had. He couldn't bare to watch Marissa go through the horror again, but he had no choice. As if that wasn't bad enough, it continued a lot longer. Glenn and Dave each took several turns with Marissa and by the time they had finally finished for good, Wilson had vomited many times and Marissa was laying motionless, on the ground.
Glenn and Dave each gave a laugh and left the barn. Wilson noticed that they had left the doors opened and unlocked. He could hardly believe that they would be so careless. But maybe they were done with them. Maybe they had accomplished what they had set out to do. Maybe they no longer cared. This was all good news.
Somehow, Wilson managed to make his way over to Marissa, walking on his knees. With his good arm, even with broken fingers, he picked up Marissa's torn dress and covered her with it. She didn't move. Her eyes were open and as big as saucers. She was in shock. Wilson knew he had to snap her out of it. They had a chance to escape and they had to take it now. But how could he expect her to get up and just walk away like nothing had happened? It wasn't that simple. After what she had been put through, it would be hard to ever trust anyone again, even Wilson.
He brushed the fallen hair off of her face and looked down at her. He couldn't speak. He wished that they had done it to him and not to her. She was so fragile. Wilson knew that she'd never be the same woman again. Wilson wept openly, his head falling to her chest.
Minutes later, Glenn and Dave returned. They snickered when Wilson looked up with a tear-stained face.
"Back for more?" Wilson demanded. "Well, you just stay away from her, you hear? You stay away from her." He threw the words at them like stones. Dave glared at Wilson and Glenn faked a yawn, not caring what Wilson said.
And then it came out. A gun. Straight out of Glenn's pocket. Glenn pointed it at Marissa and fired three shots directly into her chest, one piercing her heart and killing her almost instantaneously. It happened so fast, that Wilson didn't even have the chance to cover Marissa and take the bullets for her. He just sat there, splattered with her blood, his mouth hanging open in shock. He looked at his now dead girlfriend and gasped, putting a broken hand over his mouth. Her beauty, her perfect beauty was tainted with blood. The bullets had left deep holes in her chest. Wilson picked up her limp body and held her close.
"Oh, Marissa," he said, rocking her back and forth in his arms. "Oh God. What have they done to you? What have I done to you?" Wilson had no more tears left. He laid her down again and then screamed as loud as he could, at the top of his lungs. Glenn and Dave were laughing. Wilson fell to the floor, his strength at last, giving out.
"Okay, Doctor, your time is up!" said Glenn. Wilson didn't move. He knew it was his turn. He no longer cared. At least he would die next to Marissa. He waited for the sound of the gun going off, but it never came. Instead, he felt his hands and feet being bound with rope. He was then dragged out of the barn, stripped naked and thrown into the back of their van.
No, let me stay with Marissa. I want to die with her! Wilson thought. Glenn and Dave were far too cruel to even give him that privilege If they were going to kill him anyway, why did it matter so much where it happened? Wilson began to wonder how they planned to kill him. Drowning, burial alive, exfixiation… there were any number of ways they could do it that would explain why they had to drive so far out and for so many miles.
When the van stopped, Wilson became numb with fear. It was going to happen. They were going to kill him.
Glenn and Dave pulled Wilson out of the back of the van and tossed his practically lifeless body on the ground. He heard the sound of the gun being cocked and felt the bullet pierce though his right leg. He couldn't even cry out in pain.
"Aren't you going to finish the job?' Dave asked.
"He's as good as dead out here, anyway," Glenn said as they walked back to the van. "Nobody will ever find him. And even if someone does, it'll be too late."
They drove away and Wilson blacked out. He woke-up several hours later, unable to move and in total agony from his injuries. He started to remember everything that had happened to him. He felt death drawing nearer and nearer. As he closed his eyes one last time, he silently slipped away.
I must be dead, he thought. There was a bright light above him. So bright that he could barely focus. He reached towards it, wanting to go through it, to heaven. It had to be heaven. He knew he had died and now they had come for him. This is what patients who had near-death experiences always talked about: The Light.
Then, a dark shadow; the figure of a person, blocked part of the light.
"Heaven..." Wilson croaked, his voice barely audible.
"I'm flattered," said the figure, "that you would think of me as Heaven. I mean, I know I'm Godly and all."
It was House. The deep voice and dry humor was unmistakable.
"House..." Wilson's voice cracked. His mouth was dry, his lips were swollen and his tongue felt like leather.
"Relax." House ordered, using his pocket light to look into Wilson's eyes. Wilson grunted in protest. He had been held in a dark room for so long, that a direct light into his eyes was painful.
"Damn, you look like hell!" House exclaimed as he continued to examine his friend. He had been doing so for several days already, but now that Wilson was awake, it was a whole new ballgame.
"That bastard must've broken every bone in your body. It took them a good three hours to bandage you up like a mummy!" House told him.
Wilson had so many questions to ask, like had they found the kidnappers? Had they recovered Marissa's body? And how on earth had they found him in the middle of - what he had thought - was nowhere. And was he even partially alive at the time he was found? He had been certain that his time was up and that he would have died, frozen and naked in the pouring rain.
He tried to speak again, but nothing came out. He kept opening and closing his mouth. House sighed, shook his head and poured Wilson a glass of water. He put a straw in the glass and propped Wilson up on his pillows. Since both of Wilson's hands were bandaged, House held the glass for him. He sipped gratefully at the straw for several minutes , before looking up at House through blackened eyes.
"Keep drinking," House said. "You're dehydrated. Severely."
Wilson did as he was told, even though his lips were sore and swollen.
"You are a lucky son-of-a-bitch, do you know that?" House declared. "That bastard left you for dead." He refilled the glass. "What an idiot!" he exclaimed. "If he wanted you dead, why didn't he just finish the job properly? Damn sloppy criminals! Everything half-assed!"
Wilson smiled through his pain. It was just like House to say something like that. For the first time in perhaps, forever, House's sarcasm was sweet music to Wilson's ears.
END
Author's Note: You don't think that is really the end, do you? There are too many loose ends, mainly Glenn and Dave. Don't fret. I've already planned a sequel! Come on, you didn't think I'd actually kill Wilson, did you? No way. He's far too cute. LOL If you have any ideas, anything you'd like to see in the sequel, let me know!