Page 54 of Tess, Property of Blaze

“Syphilis!” we hear Tracker yell, at the same time Snake says from somewhere out of shot, “Let’s give the boy some privacy, looks like he’s got stage fright.”

Viper looks down at what I assume is Tracker’s cock. “Did you say syphilis? You have a fuckin’ STD?”

Tracker answers quickly, “Yes! I mean, no!” and Snake moves into view behind Viper. He shoots Tracker a confused look. “I mean no, I don’t have syphilis, but she could,” he says, pointing down to where I’m assuming Nicky is still kneeling.

“She doesn’t have a fuckin’ STD, she’s a damn virgin. Why the hell would you—”

“The sores… around her mouth. I, uh… got something once, from a whore. She had these sores… and I didn’t know any better, and yeah… she gave me, like, syphilis. And so I’m paranoid now, that stuff is nasty.”

“Tracker, you’re fuckin’ brilliant,” I murmur, and Quill and Hawke agreed from either side of me.

“She’s pure as the driven snow, man, I promise you. Nothing a bit of good food and some stuff from the pharmacy won’t clear up. Go at her, you’ll get nothing but a good time.” Viper’s stare hardens, almost challenging Tracker to decline, and my stomach clenches. Tracker’s done well so far, but how much further can he push it.

“Yeah, okay. If you say she’s okay…. Can I, uh, have some privacy? Like Snake suggested? Never really liked an audience, and even though you said she’s good, her… yeah, they’re kind of distracting. Might need to work it a bit, get over the fact—”

“Yeah, yeah, all right, let’s do that. Jesus fuckin’ Christ.” Viper rolls his eyes, then looks behind him to Snake. “I’ve got Teresa waiting for me anyway, I’m not done with her lying ass.”

I grind my jaw so tight my teeth hurt, and slam my fist down hard on the desk in front of me, the laptop lifting a few inches with the force and clattering back down with a bang. “That’s it, man, I’m going in there!”

Quill’s hand stills me this time. I shake him off, then he grabs me tighter around my bicep. “I know this is killing you, brother, but just give Tracker a chance to find her. It seems like he’s got some kind of plan, and if we go storming in there, we could put them both in danger, and the girl.”

Tears springs to my eyes. What Quill is saying makes sense, but fuck! “If he’s hurt her, I’ll kill him.”

“If he’s hurt her, we’re all going in to kill him,” Hawke says, squeezing my shoulder.

Snake’s voice comes through the laptop speakers. “Come party with us first, Prez. Let’s make use of that coke, then Teresa is all yours tonight.” Is Snake looking out for Tess? It kind of seems like he could be. I wonder what his deal is.

The door shuts behind Viper and Snake as they leave the room, then Tracker straightaway bends down and lifts up his pants, zipping them.

“What’s wrong, baby, don’t I please you?” Nicky asks as she slowly gets to her feet. She stumbles a couple of times, and Tracker gently grabs her arm to steady her.

“Shush, we need to get you out of here. What’s your name again, sweetheart?”

She looks up at Tracker, fear flashing across her face before she cries out, “If you don’t let me take care of you, he will punish me. I must do as he says.”

“Fuck, you hearin’ this? I gotta get her out of here,” Tracker hisses into the transmitter for us to hear. “Tell me your name, darlin’? How long have you been in here?”

“It can be whatever you want it to be,” she says laughing.

“Shush, keep it down, I’m going to get you out of here.”

Her body stops swaying, then she says, “It’s Nicky, but I can make it good for you, I promise. Just tell me what you want me to do.”

“Fuck!” Tracker grunts, taking a step back from Nicky.

“Just get her the fuck out of there!” I yell at the screen, forgetting for a moment that it’s only a one-way communication. Having Tracker wear an earpiece was a risk we weren’t willing to take. These guys might seem like barbaric cavemen, but they didn’t survive as a club for so long by being stupid.

“Stay here, Nicky, I’m going to come back for you, I promise.”

She just smiles while Tracker walks her back to the mattress. He picks up a shirt from the floor and hands it to her, and she clumsily pulls it over her head and arms. It fits perfectly, so it’s most likely her own.

“Stay here, Nicky. I’ll be right back. Boys, I’m going to stake out the place. Give me a sec, and I’ll call it when it’s time.”

We can’t reply to Tracker, all we can do is listen in and follow along with his plan—whatever it is. We have to trust him to know what he’s doing.

He walks to the door and opens it a crack. We all wait in anticipation for what he might find, and hope to God he doesn’t get caught.

Tracker steps out into the hallway and shuts the door behind him. He walks up the hallway a bit and stops at another door. He tries to open it, but it’s locked. We watch as he knocks. “Hello, is anyone in there?” Our visual is only of a wooden door, and even though I strain my ears, I can’t hear anything. But Tracker doesn’t give up and walk away, so there must be something in there, and there’s also the fact it’s locked. What are they hiding?

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