C.J.Roberts - Captive in the dark

eBook Edition License Notes

This ebook is licensed for your personalenjoyment only. This ebook may not be resold or given away toothers unless a separate copy has been purchased. Thank you forrespecting the hard work of this author.

This book is a work of fiction. Names,characters, places and incidents are products of the authorsimagination or are used fictitiously and are not to be construed asreal. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, organizations, orpersons living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

Copyright 2011 CJRoberts, Neurotica Books

www.aboutcjroberts.com

All rights reserved. No part of this book maybe used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without writtenpermission, except in the case of brief quotations embodied incritical articles and reviews.

Photo credit: Kurt Paris

Cover design: Amanda Simpson

My mom, for loving me no matter what, evenwhen I followed you around the grocery store with a pack of adultdiapers until you bought me chips. I love you!

My husband, for believing in me more than Ibelieve in myself. Ive never laughed with someone so hard. We maynever agree on a thing, but theres no one I would rather spend mylife arguing with.

R. Robinson who has read this story in itsmany incarnations and continued to thirst for more. No doubt youre my number one fan. Thank you for always being so open andhonest and for never making apologies.

K. Ekvall and A. Mennie who ushered methrough the Dark (ahahahah) so that I might emerge on the otherside. Without your words of wisdom, critical observations, keenediting eyes, plethora of emails, and metaphorical kicks to the assI would never have gotten this done. Thank you for not letting megive up.

S. Davis for reading my work when it washorrible and still believing in my talent.

A. Simpson for her incredible design talent.QAF Forever. Team Justin.

My Girls (you know who you are), meet me onthe 13th floor with a bottle of wine; I have stories. Ilove U!

Table ofContents

Revenge, Caleb reminded himself. That wasthe purpose of all this. Revenge, twelve years in the planning andonly a few months away in its execution.

As a slave trainer, he had trained at leasta score of girls. Some were willing, offering themselves aspleasure slaves to escape destitution, sacrificing freedom forsecurity. Others came to him as the coerced daughters ofimpoverished farmers looking to off load their burden in exchangefor a dowry. Some were the fourth or fifth wives of sheikhs andbankers sent by their husbands to learn to satisfy their distinctappetites. But this particular slave, the one he eyed from acrossthe busy streetshe was different. She was neither willing, norcoerced, nor sent to him. She was pure conquest.

Caleb had tried to convince Rafiq he couldtrain any one of the other types of girls. That they would best beprepared for such a serious, potentially dangerous task, but Rafiqwould not be moved. He too had waited a long time to achieve hisrevenge, and he refused to leave anything to chance. The girl hadto be someone truly special. She had to be a gift so valuable sheand her trainer alike would be talked about by everyone.

After years of being the sole apprentice toMuhammad Rafiq, Calebs reputation had slowly built, establishinghim as a man both efficient and single-minded in whatever taskswere entrusted to him. Hed never failed. And now, all those yearshad been spent preparing for this moment. The time had come toprove his worth to a man he owed everything to as much as himself.There was only one obstacle remaining between him and vengeance.The last true test of his soullessnesswillfully stripping someoneof their freedom.

Hed trained so many he no longer rememberedtheir names. He could train this one too, for Rafiq.

The plan was a simple one. Caleb wouldreturn to America and seek out a candidate for the FlowerSale, what the Arabs called, the Zahra Bay'. The auctionwould take place in his adopted country of Pakistan in a littleover four months. It was sure to be littered with beauties from thetypical male-run countries, where acquiring such women was limitedonly by supply and demand. But a girl from a first world country that would be considered an accomplishment. Girls from Europe werehighly sought after, though American girls were the crown jewels ofthe pleasure trade. Such a slave would solidify Calebs standing asa true player in the pleasure trade and gain him access to the mostpowerful inner circle in the world.

His goal was to find someone similar to whathe was used to: someone exquisitely beautiful, poor, likelyinexperienced, and predisposed to submit. Once he made hisselection, Rafiq would send four men to assist Caleb in smugglingthe girl out of the country and into Mexico.

Rafiq had contacted an ally who wouldprovide safe haven in Madera during the first six weeks Caleb wouldneed to help his captive acclimate. Once she was reasonablycompliant, they would make the two-day trip to Tuxtepec and boardthe private plane. Eventually landing in Pakistan, where Rafiqwould assist Caleb in the final weeks of training prior to theZahra Bay'.

Too easy, Caleb thought. Though for amoment, it felt like anything but.

Caleb, from his vantage point diagonallyacross the street, glanced at the girl hed been observing for thelast thirty minutes. Her hair was pulled away from her face, and aheavy frown played across her mouth as she stared intently at theground before her feet. She fidgeted sometimes, alluding to a senseof restlessness she was unable to hide. He wondered why she seemedso anxious.

Caleb was both close enough to see andhidden away so the only thing noticeable was a dark vehicle,heavily tinted, but non-descript. He was almost as invisible as thegirl tried to be.

Could she sense her life as she knew ithanging precariously in the balance? Could she feel his eyes onher? Did she have a sixth sense for monsters? The thought of itmade him smile. Perversely, there was a part of him that hoped thegirl did possess a sixth sense for spotting monsters in broaddaylight. But hed been watching her for weeks; she was completelyoblivious to his presence. Caleb let out a sigh. He was the monsterno one thought to look for in the light of day. It was a commonmistake. People often believed they were safer in the light,thinking monsters only came out at night.

But safetylike lightwas a faade.Underneath, the whole world was drenched in darkness. Caleb knewthat. He also knew the only way to truly be safer was to accept thedark, to walk in it with eyes wide open, to be a part of it. Tokeep your enemies close. And so thats what Caleb did. He kept hisenemies close, very close, so he could no longer discern where theyended and he began. Because there was no safety; monsters lurkedeverywhere.

He looked down at his watch and back up tothe girl. The bus was late. Seemingly frustrated, the girl sat onthe dirt with her backpack on her knees. Had this been a regularbus stop, there would be others meandering behind her or sitting bya bench, but it wasnt. So every day Caleb could observe hersitting alone under the same tree near the busy street.

Her family was poor, the next most importantfactor after being beautiful. It was easier for poor people todisappear, even in America. Especially when the person missing wasold enough to have simply ran away. It was the typical excuse givenby authorities when they couldnt find someone. They must have ranaway.