Jeremy's head was spinning. Darkness surrounded him and it was quiet. He licked his dry lips and tried to think back to what had last happened. It took a moment or two to work through the fog in his mind. He remembered leaving home, telling Elena he needed some time away, listening around the corner as Elena convinced Jenna to let him go. This felt like a bad trip, the only problem was that Jeremy didn't remember taking anything. He wouldn't have, would he? Yes everything was truly messed up, but it had been for the longest time, the longest that he could remember. He'd gotten better at dealing with it. At least he thought he had. Maybe not, maybe he'd gotten nostalgic for some brightly colored pills. He was too tired to think anymore. He laid his head back down and closed his eyes again. It was easier this way.

It only lasted for so long. Eventually he woke back up. It was still the same, dark and quiet. It was only the smallest bit easier to think now. After a moment he worked to stand, finding himself in a cramped space. He felt his eyebrows knit together in slow confusion. Standing and taking two steps forward he found himself at a wall. Three steps back yielded the same result. Either side was no different. The confusion continued tightly, swirling around in a spiral. He tried again to remember. Driving, hours of driving, he remembered wanting to get to the coast. Escape had been the need driving him. It drove him further and further, on less and less sleep. Still, what was the last thing he remembered? Did it even matter?

It only occurred to him then to panic. The air caught in his chest painfully as it set in. After a second a choked gasp came out, his eyelids fluttered. Where was he? What had happened? Even a bad trip didn't end you up here, of that he was reasonably sure. The first thought was vampires, but they were usually more obvious than this. His mind immediately went to Katherine as his hand drifted up to his neck. The white bandage still clung there. It was only part of the reason he'd wanted to go. No, this didn't seem like vampires. It was something else. Another heavy question landed square on his chest, what was he going to do?

Eventually he settled in one of the back corners, wrapping his arms around his knees in an effort to make the tight space seem bigger. There was a slight whooshing sound and light invaded through a rectangle in the door. Against his better judgment, he crawled forward. A small translucent cup was set on the ledge of the door. Jeremy could see the pills silhouetted there. With one finger he pushed it back through the slot. Like he was going to willingly take pills. Biting his lips he shook his head. The light disappeared as the slot closed. He only counted it a victory for a moment. The door swung open and two men descended. One pushed him down and straddled his chest, holding him there. Jeremy might as well not even have struggled for all the good it did him. The other man crouched, yanking his jaw open and dropping the pills in. He pulled a water bottle out as Jeremy watched, slamming his lips shut. The man only chuckled before forcing his jaw open again and dumping water in. He then slapped a hand over Jeremy's mouth. He had no choice, swallowing to avoid choking.

The men left and closed the door. Something, shock perhaps, kept Jeremy unmoving. It wasn't long at all before the pills set in. Any other time he might have appreciated the high.

When Jeremy woke again the light was dim, his hands were chained to the wall. Both his vervain bracelet and his father's ring were gone. It also appeared that he'd been stripped of ninety percent of his clothes. Nothing better than coming down half naked, completely helpless. Jeremy swallowed tightly, fighting the emotion clinging to his throat. Maybe he hadn't gotten so good at dealing with this stuff after all.

Unsurprisingly Jeremy had yet to figure out what exactly was going on. Rather obviously, he'd been kidnapped, drugged, and was being held against his will. One of the remaining questions was why. Even with all the possibilities in his rather odd life, no theory that he could invent seemed remotely plausible. For a moment he wondered how long he'd been gone. He wondered when they, Elena and the others, would suspect something was wrong. Jenna, he assumed and hoped, would remain oblivious.

Two men came with drugs and Jeremy took the cup offered without a fight and tipped the contents past his lips before spitting them at the man closest. For his efforts he was punched, kicked a few times, and forced to take more pills again. As he slipped back under he thought with a slight smile that maybe it was worth it.

: : :

Tyler was torn. Torn between disbelief and the thought that he should have seen this coming. Hadn't he learned the hard way that anything to do with his father was something he did not want to be a part of? He took a moment to shake his head and lock his jaw. Still, the desire to get out of town had already been there; maybe he'd just been looking for an excuse. The tangled web that had become his life drew tighter and tighter until there was nothing but confusion and lies.

His mother's indifference that was really the best outcome, Mason's continued and now unexplained absence, and Caroline. He shook his head again. She was still in love with Matt, and Tyler knew that. Matt was his best friend and Tyler knew that too. Still, he couldn't deny that he'd begun to feel…attached to her. No one else had been there. It wasn't possible for anyone else to be there. He didn't even know why he was complaining anyway. Maybe he deserved this, he probably did in fact. He was a monster, a killer, and all around dick to top it off. Yeah, he probably deserved it.

Deserved or not, what he was currently looking at was quite beyond description. At least I'm not one of them. A quiet voice whispered in his mind. He couldn't deal with this. In another moment he'd explain to the well dressed man leading him up and down aisles that he'd changed his mind, and should really be on the way home. In just another moment. Tyler's stomach rolled as he went over it again in his mind.

Nothing about the square of engraved ivory paper had indicated this. Not to mention, there were certain facts about his father he never needed to know. His sexual deviances? Definitely included. The thought led him back to his mother, did she know? Jesus. This had to be the worst possible time to be thinking about his mother. Strangely he could picture his father here, without much effort. He did not imagine any further than that.
"As you can see," the guide continued, "we have a very wide variety." As if he was speaking of cattle. Tyler's stomach rolled again. The chains weren't helping. He really needed to get out of here. Again he mentally berated himself. A free two week cruise? If it sounds too good to be true…

They reached the end of the aisle and Tyler raised a hand, preparing to speak. It really was a wonder that the guide hadn't realized something was wrong.
"I'm sorry, but I-" he cut off suddenly, his eyes falling as the words died on his lips. He took a moment to regain himself, clearing his throat. "I'm going to have to cut this short," he paused, refusing to think, "I'll take this one." The guide smiled a predatory smile as his eyes followed Tyler's outstretched finger.
"Oh," he murmured quietly, "this one's a fighter." Tyler couldn't stop his snort.
"I'm counting on it." The guide snapped his fingers and two men came forward.

"I must say Mr. Lockwood, I am surprised that your tastes are so…er-exotic." Tyler just shrugged, keeping his temper in check. It was clearly the wrong reaction to have, but he was just happy to see a familiar face. Even here. And leaving wasn't an option now. He'd just have to play along for a while. A slight smirk curved his lips as the guide handed him a room key and patted his shoulder. This may just turn out to be fun after all. Of course, this entire thing was illegal and he'd have to report it to the police, but they had taken his cell phone and the boat was due to leave port any minute. Figuratively, his hands were tied.

: : :