A New Life Series - Starter Kit

by Samantha Jacobey

  Tori's hammock hung in a special place amongst the trees away from the others, in a more secluded location. It had been set lower to the ground, as she had been shorter when Henry put it up for her. When she curled into it, her rear end almost dragged the dirt, and she realized she must have been lighter the last time she lay in it, as well.

  Thinking back, she could not remember how long it had been since she had started sleeping in Henry's bunk with him. She guessed it must have been a couple of years, when the rest of the group had remained in the camp instead of heading back out.

  Lying in the hammock, slowly gliding back and forth, she drifted between awake and asleep, considering how things had changed in the last few days. Eddie had always claimed to be her father, but she had never really believed that. Deep down, she had once thought Henry was. Now she knew that neither man could be.

  Eddie isn't my father, she told herself with conviction. Fathers don't rape their little girls. She put her face into her hands as if to cry, but again, no tears would come. “Tears are for the weak” Eddie had said.

  Well, I’m not weak. The advice Tony had given her flowed through her mind, “Don't pick fights you can't win.” There had to be something wrong with that logic; she knew it in her gut.

  Turning on her side, she curled into a ball, rocking back and forth with the hammock almost dragging the earth below. So if there is no fight, there is no win or lose… You have to learn your job… This is your job.

  Continuing to sway, Tori finally fell asleep. When she awoke, the sun hung low in the sky. Realizing it was well past the 'reasonable' time she should have rejoined the group, she felt she should have been worried. She wasn't.

  Locating her brush in her small stash of personal items, the girl tended to her long black tresses. Giving her appearance a quick once over, she left her secluded spot and headed for the cabin, her hips swaying as she walked.

  Approaching the gathering, she could see from Eddie's posture he was pissed. Choosing to ignore him, she made her way around the outer ring, being sure to reach out and touch anyone and everyone who came close to her, her fingers sliding lightly down backs and across chests as she moved from man to man.

  Stopping in front of David, who languished in a chair across from the cabin door, she leaned over so that her rear end stuck out noticeably, placing her arm ever so carelessly on his shoulder and cooed, “So, hun; who actually won last night's game?” She could see him swallow as he looked down her shirt.

  For a moment, his eyes were an empty, lost stare. So, trying to be helpful, Tori shifted so that her rear end twitched, and indicated the size of a shot glass with her fingers, “You know, who had the tastiest drink?” she inquired using a soft little voice that dripped with honey.

  Paul, who stood nearby, jumped in practically shouting, “I won. You want some now?”

  Tori straightened, turning to place her hand on his chest, “Sure, Pauly; I'd like that,” she fussed over him. Immediately he scampered away to find his bottle of liquid sunshine.

  She turned to see Eddie and Henry standing next to each other about fifteen feet from her. Eddie's face like stone, his displeasure radiated from him, while Henry's mouth stood half open in awe. She may never have seen a woman in action, but Tori had read enough about them.

  I know what I can do to a man if I want to; at least she thought she did. Managing a coy smile, she blew Eddie a kiss. Paul returned with a container of rum, interrupting her thoughts. Unscrewing the cap, Tori turned the bottle up, surprising herself at how easily she could take a swig when knowing how awful it would taste. After three swallows, she returned the cap, purring to him while tapping the label, “You shouldn't get too far away with that.”

  The next few minutes became a flurry of activity, with dinner prepared, and the fire lit. Tori didn't help much that evening, as she usually did, spending most of the time swinging her hair around and looking for opportunities to lean against someone. Paul followed her around like a lost puppy, so she made sure to stroke his ego often.

  The meat ready, the group began to devour it. Tori managed to down a small plate as well, even though her stomach had turned to knots now that her plan was in action. Her palms had grown sweaty as she considered what she planned to do next. She surveyed the group, wanting to wait on starting the main event until everyone had finished their meal.

  Seeing Henry, he made a motion to her and she stepped over close enough to speak, but instead of letting him talk, she simply gave him a quiet warning, “You should take off, love. You're not gonna want to be here for this one, either.”

  Henry stared into her crystal blue eyes, turning her words for a moment. Then moving to obey, he slipped away into the night.

  Finding Paul, Tori drank another five or six swallows of the rum, but kept the bottle, thanking him with a peck on the cheek. It’s almost show time. Taking a few cleansing breaths, she could see Eddie sitting on the ground, leaning with his back square against the side of the cabin. It's now or never; Tori braced herself as she made a beeline for him.

  Walking straight up, she swung her leg over his so she could sit on his lap, straddling him face to face. When she plunked down, he sat up, grabbing both of her upper arms, “What the hell are you doing?”

  Tori cackled, opening the bottle for another swig, then teased, “I thought this is what you wanted . . .” He released her arms, leaning back in surprise, so she moved in closer and whispered loudly, “Can I take my clothes off now?”

  Eddie immediately shoved her off his lap and jumped to his feet. Not losing a beat, Tori sprang up beside him and stepped towards him. To her surprise, he backed away, and for a moment she appeared lost, completely confused what to do next. Then she began to laugh. Eddie only liked it when she put up a fight. But she had come too far to back down, so she swung around, looking at the rest of the group.

  “Well, does anyone else wanna fuck?” Luckily, there was no shortage of volunteers, and she began to pull off her boots first, then her jeans, remembering to fold each item as it came off and set it aside so it would be cleanish for her the next day.

  To Tell or Not to Tell

  Eli sat in stunned silence as Tori stopped speaking. Her face as expressionless as ever, he could not tell how she felt about what she had revealed, but he honestly hoped she was joking. “So, you just went ahead and had sex with all of them that night?” he asked anxiously.

  “Yeah,” Tori answered with a shrug, “Well, I don't really think all of them, I really don't know for sure. Some of them I guess. All I know is, I won that night, more or less. Of course, Eddie had gone stomping out into the jungle and didn't come back until the next day. And when he did, there was hell to pay, which I guess I will tell you about tomorrow.”

  “No,” Eli demanded, “You will tell me now.” Tori stared at him blankly, so he continued. “Look, I have listened patiently this whole time while you described how 'bad' your life was and now you're sitting here saying you just spread your legs for the whole crew like it was no big deal? I don't get it Tori, what the hell is wrong with you?”

  His words cut deep, and she gasped for air as if she had been kicked in the gut. Standing, she moved to the far corner, where the left and back walls met, and leaned against it, rocking slightly. “I don't know what’s wrong with me,” she finally stammered, “Maybe you should go now.”

  “Yeah well, maybe I should.” Eli left without another word, leaving the door open, and Tori standing in the corner, her whole body beginning to tremble.

  But I won that night; she thought to herself, over and over, until an orderly called through the doorway, “Hey, lights out in five.”

  Tori didn't give any indication she had heard him, so he stepped into the room, grasping her shoulder to get her attention. Blinded by rage, she reached with her left hand and captured the offending digits, swung around and began hitting him with her right fist. Hearing the commotion and the man’s cries for help, the patient across the hall looked in before running down the pa
ssage screaming for assistance.

  A second orderly ran to her room, stopping at the door completely frozen at the sight. Finally, a third pushed past him, and Tori felt the leads of the Taser pierce her skin, immediately followed by excruciating pain. Releasing her victim, she tried to comply with their demands.

  Eli climbed into his car, tossing his jacket into the passenger seat in disgust. He could already feel regret creeping up his spine. Tori had been nothing but honest and trusting of him, and he had no right to speak to her that way. He was growing impatient, waiting for her to get to the part that mattered to him and the investigation.

  Cursing his actions, he slammed his palms into the steering wheel and then propped his forehead against it. A few minutes later, his cell phone buzzed in his pocket. Fumbling to retrieve the device, he flipped it open and chirped a simple, “Hello?”

  “Did you come to visit Tori today?” an angry voice demanded.

  Recognizing Dr. Carlisle, “Yeah, sure, I just left, in fact,” he answered smoothly, trying not to sound excited, “Haven't even made it out of the parking lot yet.”

  “Well, if that's the case we need you back inside right now,” the doctor practically shouted and hung up before he could even respond.

  Trying to remain calm, Eli closed his flip phone and looked back at the front of the building. From his car, everything looked fine. For a moment, he considered starting the engine and heading home, then thought better of it and climbed out. Leaving his jacket in the front seat, he trotted back up to the building and through the front door while straightening his tie.

  Inside everything was chaos. Patients were scurrying around the hallways, chatter buzzing all over the place. To no avail, an orderly danced down the hall, trying to get patients back into their rooms, the sound of a screeching alarm, and the red lights blinking at intervals between the doorways only adding to the confusion.

  The sight sent Eli's heart pounding into overdrive, and he raced down the hall towards her room. When he arrived, he covered his mouth in shock, and he could feel the tears burn as they poured down his face. This is my fault, he admonished himself.

  On the floor lay an orderly, receiving medical attention, blood covering his face. Sidling into the room, he could see bits of blood splatter on the wall, the chair, the bed, everywhere he looked. Tori, however, was nowhere in sight.

  Shuffling back out into the hall, he could see Dr. Carlisle at the far end. Jogging towards him, Eli had to dodge patients who refused to comply with the numerous people still trying to get everyone back into their quarters. “Where is she?” he demanded as soon as he reached the doctor.

  “She’s over in the next wing. Let's go.” They walked as fast as they dared through the unruly halls, Dr. Carlisle's lip twitching in anger. As they left the minimum security level of the hospital, he slowed enough for Eli to catch up beside him, “What were you and Tori talking about before you left?”

  Not getting any type of reply, the doctor stopped, turning to face the other man squarely. “Look, this is really important. Yesterday, I thought I was making a serious break through with this girl. And then tonight she beats an orderly senseless, right after you left. You weren't having sex with her were you?”

  “Hell no!” Eli replied instantaneously, but the doctor’s expression said he didn’t buy it. Why would he even think that we were? Eli wondered incredulously.

  Pursing his lips tightly, Dr. Carlisle turned and continued walking towards the swinging doors at the end of the hallway. “You know, if you weren't a Federal Agent you wouldn't even be in this place, coming and going as you please. You better figure out what you have to tell us! At this moment, that girl's life could depend on it. Wait here!”

  Eli stopped as commanded, watching as the doctor disappeared into one of the rooms down the hall. He stood nervously squirming, shifting his weight from one foot to the other, his mind spinning.

  Oh, my God, this is out of control… I can't even tell when I’m pretending anymore…. This wasn't part of the plan…. Please, dear God, please let her be ok…. His thoughts began to run in circles as he waited. Finally, the doctor reappeared, looking calmer. “Can I see her?” Eli begged while trying to look like he were as calm as the doctor.

  “Maybe later,” the older man replied. “Right now, you and I need to go to my office and have a nice long chat.”

  As they walked, Eli felt as if he were going to be in real trouble once the doctor heard what he had to say, but he obediently followed in silence. Once there, Eli sat in one of the leather covered chairs on the patient side of the desk, while Dr. Carlisle took a seat in his oversized desk chair.

  Leaning back, the doctor sat for a moment holding his hands about chest high, palms facing each other, allowing his fingers to bounce off one another lightly. “You seem nervous,” the doctor stated flatly, “Tori is being examined as we speak. If there has been any misconduct on your part—”

  “Of course I’m nervous; something has just happened with someone I care for very much,” Eli interrupted the doctor, his voice raised with irritation while thinking, my God, is that the truth? Out loud he continued, “And I already told you, we weren't doing anything wrong. We were talking, period, that's it.” He pushed his hands away from his body to emphasize there being nothing inappropriate with anything that had passed between them.

  On the inside, he only wished that were so. Suddenly, Eli felt very guilty about lying to Tori and to the doctor, who genuinely seemed interested in helping her. This is like a sick joke we’re playing on her, kicking her when she’s down.

  “All right,” Dr. Carlisle pulled his chair up to his desk, grabbing a pen and his yellow tablet. “I want you to tell me every conversation you can remember for the last forty-eight hours. Everything she said, and everything you said.”

  Eli sat for a moment trying to decide if he were really going to go through with this. This whole set up was to get information from her, but so far I haven’t gotten anything useful. Maybe we should just make an excuse, pull the girl out and go another route before someone really gets hurt. Deep down Eli knew this could be Tori's only chance at a different life; a better life.

  Taking a deep breath, he started with finding Tori sitting at the fountain and continued from there. As he spoke, his tongue felt dry and swollen, and he prayed to God he was doing the right thing.

  Can't Fool Me

  Three days later, Tori sat in the same exact seat that Eli had occupied in Dr. Carlisle's office. The doctor patiently waited for her to begin explaining her story to him, as she had done for Eli. She felt angry at her friend for breaking her confidence and ashamed he had caught her, more or less, in a lie. Lastly, she was completely mortified that an innocent man could have been seriously injured or killed because of her.

  Tori shifted in her chair, trying to figure out exactly what to say, not knowing what the doctor even actually knew. Finally, she asked, “Is there any way the three of us could meet together? I really would like to speak to him before I try to go any further with this whole situation.”

  The doctor bit the tip of his pen for a moment, considering her request. “Let me call him, see if he can meet with us.” Lifting his phone, the doctor began to dial Eli's number with the end of the writing device.

  Tori sat playing with her fingers while she waited, considering the possible outcomes of the call. One, Eli could come and pronounce me a lying whore. Two, Eli could come and laugh in my face at my stupidity. Three . . . the doctor hung up the phone.

  “It will take him about half an hour to get here. Let's go have a quick lunch while we wait.” The doctor stood and waited for her to join him at the door. Reluctantly, Tori rose from her chair and together they walked down the hall. Fortunately, still before 11:00 am, the traffic in the cafeteria would be light. The doctor smiled and talked to the ladies behind the counter while they were gathering their items. Tori kept her head down, trying not to be noticed.

  Once they were seated, the two of them ate with
out conversation. The doctor made a mental note of the food the girl had chosen, noticing the meat, fruits and vegetables. No pasta and no bread. She also drank water, which he found somewhat odd. He allowed her to eat in peace, then, dumping their dirty trays, they headed back to his office. When they arrived, Eli waited outside the door.

  As soon as he saw them coming, the dark haired man jumped up from his chair. A wide smile burst across his features, and he could not contain himself as she drew close, reaching out and grabbing her for a hug, grateful she accepted his affectionate gesture.

  Eli had not been allowed to speak to or see her after his visit with the doctor. In fact, basically he had more or less been told, she’s fine, and go away. He had hardly slept since. Holding her at that moment, he didn't want to let go, so he stood rocking side to side, with her body pressed against his. Tori did not resist, but she did not return the hug either, so the doctor coughed loudly, indicating the need to go into his office and begin.

  Tori chose the chair on the far side of the pair, furthest from the door. Taking her seat, she felt completely unnerved. When everyone had settled in, the doctor indicated to the girl that she could begin, and allowed her to take the lead. She thought for a moment before she began in a shaky voice.

  “Well, I’m really not sure what I should say. I mean; I’m not even sure exactly what all Eli has told you.” She indicated the doctor with her right hand, “Or anything like that. So, basically that's what I need to know first. Where do we stand?”

  Eli smiled supportively, reassuring her the best he could. He explained that he had told the doctor everything that each of them had said, start to finish. He even made sure to apologize to her for the things he had said that had hurt her so deeply, pushing her over the edge.

  Tori's expression transformed into one of surprise. “No Eli, it wasn't what you said that made me . . .” her voice drifted away and she took a deep breath. “I did things I shouldn't have. And it's not your fault. It’s mine. While I told you my story, I tried to be honest, and suddenly, I just couldn't take it. I didn't want to tell you the truth. I didn't want it to be the truth. I'm sorry.” Staring at her hands, she sat waiting for one of them to comment, but neither of the men spoke, wanting her to continue.