Chapter 1
A Sarrah and a Gabriel walked into a bar. They happened to walk in at the same time but since neither of them knew each-other they sat on opposite sides and enjoyed a nice and uneventful evening by themselves for a while.
As the night grew late and as people filtered out their eyes began to meet. At first they were fleeting glances, then they turned into stares. Sarrah couldn’t help but blush because she found him attractive, and to be honest, he didn’t know how to approach her without embarrassing himself!
He moved over to her side of the bar and said to her, “I didn’t know the difference between mascara and genuine blushing until I met you tonight. What’s your name?”
She looked away to hide her smile, contemplated for a little while, and shouted “bartender! Why don’t you tell him my name?”
The bartender strides over, a beam in his smile and a face that radiated joy. He said, “your lucky! She usually doesn’t like the guys who approach her but she seems to like you! In fact, you seem alright to me – so let’s give you her name.
A moment goes by. Everybody’s silent with anticipation, wondering when the bartender will speak. You could hear a pin drop a mile away.
“Her name, is Sa-“
Suddenly the doors swing wide open, and everybody’s head immediately turned to face the entrance to the bar. Five armed SWAT members stormed the building and one of them shouted into the radio, “suspect identified! Red hair, red cheeks… And Harry Potter spectacles. She’s the 10/10 we’ve been looking for! Take her in, boys!”
Gabriel only had time to grab her arm before she was taken away by the team. He shouted, “what is this?! You will not take her away! She has done nothing wrong!”
The leader looked him right in the eyes and said, “sir, there’s no need to interfere. Nobody can be a 10/10 in this country without breaking the law, being too beautiful is illegal. And, unfortunately, your girlfriend here falls under that category, I hope you can understand.”
She gave him the “but we just met” look. Gabriel also expressed the “we just met but if you wanna call her my girlfriend I won’t say anything” look. He didn’t notice – they stormed out and took her to only God knows where.
Gabriel’s face turned red with rage. His hands curled into fists as a fiery passion overtook him, he pounded the bar and shouted “that’s not right!” in as loud a voice as he could muster. “Why do they do this?! Why is it illegal to be too beautiful in this country?! I’m over this! This isn’t going to happen if I have anything to say about it!”
He stormed out of the bar and drove to his house where he would spend long days and nights to form his plan to find her… And rescue her!
Chapter 2
“…and that should do it.”
It was almost two weeks since she was taken away, and he spent every moment he possibly could planning his rebellion against the law. His rage was boiling up inside him for years… The constant tyranny of the police force on the town of Rangaville brought him close to the edge to begin with… And then this happens. She gets taken away. And for what? Perhaps an even scarier question, what do they plan to do to her? He knew the stories very well, and the thought had crossed his mind that they were being acted out on her right now, in this very moment.
“Fuck!” His hand hits the table and his papers go flying everywhere.
“…You alright bro?”
Aaron wasn’t supposed to be there for another 30 minutes but here he was anyway. But, he was the kind of person who really cared about his friends and showed up early if they were upset.
“You know damn well I’m not alright” he huffed in a resentful tone, his head still facing down towards the papers. “This oppression has been going on for too long and I simply cannot stand it.”
He slowly walked towards his friend with a skeptical look on his face. “Dude, you just met her. I get that you’re angry at the law but is that why you’re going after her? Do you want to save her, or just spite the law?”
Gabriel looked up from the table and slowly turned to face his friend. Aaron immediately noticed the heaviness in his eyes, a kind of determination that he rarely saw him – something that he’ll never forget.
“I saw it in her eyes. I saw everything. I don’t know if you believe in love at first sight, but… It was there with her and I. Of course I want the law to pay but at the same time I’m going to get her back if it’s the last thing I do. I’m going to have my chance to he with her, and I’m not going to blow it.”
Aaron’s smile grew on his face and he said, “you mean like the other 256 times you tried to ask a woman out and she rejected you?”
Gabriel sighed. “Any other day I’d be in the mood to joke around. I just want to get going!”
“Do you have a plan already?”
“I sure do! Thankfully my research shows that their security is very slim this time of the year. It’s almost Thanksgiving, after all – most of their presence is out there making sure no 10s are setting up any public parties or anything. I think we can breach the west wing if we take our time and do it properly.”
“Well, let’s head out then! I’d like to be back by dinner if we can manage it.”
Gabriel cracked a small smile. “It’s always about food with you, isn’t it?”
“Oh come oooon you already know that about me! I’m ready when you are.”
Meanwhile
She sat in her cell, cold, wishing she had never gone out. She knew about the risk of getting caught but most of the time she was ignored… Why did they go after her now? Why did they storm in specifically looking for her? Wait, that never crossed her mind before – why did they look specifically for her? She did nothing wrong and even though she was a 10 they turned the other cheek. Hmm…
She looked around her and took note of what she saw. 5 cells that hold two people with a large, empty room in the middle. The security guard’s office was on the opposite side of her cell, so the 5 cells were in a U shape from where she was, the cell in the back of the room. A warden often walked in circles around the room in an effort to patrol the area… A pointless activity from her perspective.
“Lights out! Don’t forget that tomorrow’s shower day ladies! You’re going to be in here for a looooong time.”
The warden happened to step by Sarrah’s cell. As she looked in and admired her true beauty a devilish smile slowly formed across her face as she spoke the words, “especially you. We’re going to have lots of fun with you.”
She walked away and the lights went out. What did she mean? Were the stories true, did they really do those things to beautiful women? She was nervous at the thought! She lay in her bed with a glimmer of hope – maybe, just maybe she saw what she thought she saw in Gabriel’s eyes. Maybe he’d do something, maybe he’d at least try to rescue her… After all, love at first sight existed that night, she just hoped that he was willing to act on it.
Chapter 3
It began to snow outside. Gabriel looked at Aaron as they were driving down the road in the direction of the prison, but he was looking out of the window. Buildings were passing by. Children were enthusiastically rushing inside to get their coats and gloves. Men were looking up with a grumpy look on their face, shaking their head. Women were helping the children find the coats they misplaced at one time or another. And the sound of the cold wind as the truck rushed it’s way down the road… It was soothing in a way.
They passed the observatory, which was the halfway point from Gabriel’s apartment to the prison where Sarrah was being held. The observatory had sat empty for many years since the government cut funding for the entire town – probably to fund more law enforcement somewhere else. Gabriel made a bitter face as the thought popped into his head, but of course, it was that particular moment when Aaron looked away from the window and right at his friend.
“What? You still angry at what happened?”
Gabriel relaxed his face since he didn’t want Aaron to think he was angry at him. He responded with, “If I wasn’t angry I wouldn’t be doing this.”
“Huh?”
“I mean, I wouldn’t have any energy or motivation to do this. Anger gives me energy, almost as if I gave myself a shot of adrenaline.”
“…You do realize that anger is mostly adrenaline, right?”
Gabriel thought about it for a minute and said, “oh yeahhh you’re right, I forgot about that.”
“And besides, how do you know what an adrenaline shot feels like anyway? You didn’t tell me anything about that.”
“Yeah I did! I had to take one when I got lost on that gigantic mountain behind your house!”
“Cuz you forgot which way was homebound and which way led further into the woods?
“Well I DID figure it out, but by the time I found the right path I ran out of supplies. I knew I couldn’t spend the night there because I would freeze… So I just took an adrenaline shot and booked it back.”
“I love how you brought an adrenaline shot because you “knew” that you’d forget the right path. Why didn’t you just sharpen your ability to remember things before you left?”
“Because I forgot about doing it. I should really do that after we’re done with our mission here.”
Aaron shook his head… “Just don’t forget anything about the plan…”
Gabriel didn’t respond as he refocused on the road. The prison wasn’t too big, the staff were underpaid, and he knew of a weakness on the west side that would allow him access under the right conditions. After they got in they would put on a security uniform, find the cell and the keys to the cell, let her out, and sneak back out the way they came. His plan was simple but it could go very, very wrong if they messed up. He just hoped they could find her in time before “it” happened.
—*—
“Rise and shine ladies! We’re waking you up early this morning!”
Sarrah opened her eyes as the scream of the warden filled her ears. She had a crappy Thanksgiving since all they fed her was chicken and juice for dinner… They didn’t even have the decency to give her a slab of turkey? And why were they waking her up at a godforsaken hour again? Something was wrong with these people.
“Alright, here’s the deal. All y’all are super pretty and that’s why you’re here, we get that. But we can’t just let you stay here for free and eat our meals without some kind of payment. So, we’re going to be playing a little game today, a game that you won’t enjoy but I will. Come on out everybody!”
The cell doors opened in unison and everyone began filtering behind the warden – except Sarrah. She stayed behind because she really didn’t like the attitude the warden was putting off. What were they going to do if she disobeyed, put her in jail?
The warden quickly caught on and swiftly walked into her cell.
“Cherry-Robison. Is it Cherry, or Robison? I don’t feel like saying both names every time I want to address you.”
“You know what, warden? Fuck you. I’m not going with you to wherever you want to go.”
A devilish grin began forming on the warden’s face, just like before. “Oh, you WILL come with us whether you like it or not. I especially want to see how well you play the game.”
“Nope. I’m staying put. What are you gonna do, throw me in jail?”
Her smile slowly transformed into a face of pure rage as she reached out to grab her arm. But Sarrah felt the adrenaline rush through her as she deflected her arm and slapped her right on the cheekbone! The warden froze as Sarrah cracked a smile, then became even angrier than before… Somehow.
“That’s quite enough Ms. Hoftelling” the owner of the prison frankly stated as he strode into the cell and put his hand on her shoulder. “You do well with most of the prisoners but take who you have and I’ll have a talk with this one.”
Sarrah felt her stomach drop as she looked at him. She didn’t know who he was but he was dressed in fancy clothing, maybe he was the owner of the jail? But then why did he want to talk to her?
“It’s time she figures out just how real the stories are.”
Her eyes widened, and she tried to prepare herself for what was about to come.
Chapter 4
“I suppose this is it.”
Aaron and Gabriel parked a ways from the prison so they wouldn’t be spotted. They were at the bottom of a hill, but they saw the prison on the other side. They also saw armed guards patrolling the grounds for suspicious activity, and Gabriel was ready to become exactly what they were looking for.
“Yeah… So how do you want to get over there?”
Gabriel had already planned everything but he was definately willing to improvise if he needed to. He already saw a flaw in his plan; the weakest part of the prison was the east side, not the west side. If that was wrong then… What else could be? He began to feel nervous.
“Check it out” Gabriel said as he pointed it out to Aaron. He nodded and they began sneaking up the hill. Since the prison was down in a hole they could crawl up to the edge and see a lot without being spotted.
“Time to do a mental check… 5 guards total, 2 of them have keys. They seem paranoid and skittish. Inside I see 6, 7, 8… 11 more. But once we get their outfits everything should be fine. It’s time to throw the gun down!”
Aaron nodded in approval once again as Gabriel took out his special gun. It was a technical gun because it could project a voice, fire all by itself if the timer was activated, and double as a flash grenade. It was his own creation, and he was very proud of it.
He set the timer to 15 seconds, threw it down near one of the entrances to the giant pit, and quickly hid behind the hill. Just the sound of the gun hitting the grass was enough to draw their attention, and when they came closer the gun’s garbled voice shouted “boo!” It was quickly followed by a flash that blinded everyone and attracted the attention of everybody inside. Most of them came rushing out with their guns pointed every which way, and the dynamic duo knew they would shoot to kill.
“Great, time for phase two” he grumbled as he pulled out an electric shortener. He made this specifically for the prison guard’s weapons because he knew
they were beefier than regular rifles – nevertheless, he knew the grenade would jam them up and render them useless. He pulled the pin and threw it down, inwardly rejoicing at the yelps of pain he heard from the officers below. Every single guard was out of the facility now, and this is exactly what he wanted.
“Phase three…” The two of them grabbed their tranquilizer guns and shot the guards who just exited the building. Then they shot the rest of the guards who were already suffering from the previous two phases. They gave each-other a fist bump and used a rope to lower themselves to the ground.
They each put on a guard’s uniform and entered the wide open door, looking for anything that could be of use to them. They quickly found the survalience room and began scanning over the monitors on an effort to find her cell.
“You know, this is a terrible time to say this, but my uniform doesn’t fit me right.”
“Yeahhhh I feel you on that one. It’s too tight. I should have picked the beefier guy to steal from!”
Gabriel snickered, and then he saw her face… He found her. He finally found her!
“Okay there she is!” He jumped with joy as he ran from the survalience room straight to her cell. They saw each-other through the glass and her eyes absolutely lit up in expectation and excitement. He opened the door and they embraced, tears began to fall down her face and he whispered in her ear “I’m here now, it’s okay.” She nodded her head in-between her happy sobs.
They parted and her expression turned to horror as she heard footsteps coming from down the hallway. Gabriel straightened his back and began to look and act like a guard again as he turned around to face… Someone who was dressed in fancy clothing? Interesting. His eyes were also bloodshot which suggested he had been smoking cannibus. Perhaps he was the owner, he noted.
“Sir” he said as he slightly bowed his head.
“Whoa, you’re right on it! I was just about to tell you lead her to the area with me! C’mon, let’s go!”
His enthusiasm really rubbed Gabriel the wrong way but he acted accordingly. She looked at him with a frightened look in her eyes and he gave her a reassuring wink. They followed the owner to the place he wanted to take them… Maybe they were going to find out if the stories were really true after all.
“3497… Aaaand boop! Here we are!”
A wall opened behind the chair of the madman’s office. He was really starting to make Gabriel sick, how could he be so childish and be the owner of this God-forsaken jail at the same time?
He turned on the lights and they started walking down a long corridor. It was small, just wide enough to accommodate the three, and the oder was definately very musty. They kept looking into each-other’s eyes as Gabriel’s mind was trying to think of a way out of there.
Another door was in sight, and as they approached it they could hear… Fans cheering? That didn’t make any sense, why would there be…
He opened the door to reveal a large pit with an audience surrounding it in every side! There were stalls on the north side of the pit with amazingly beautiful women in them, the prettiest of the prettiest. Most of them were crying while some of them were trying to prepare themselves for what was about to come.
“Take her to stall 7” he barked as his enthusiasm quickly faded away. He walked to a far-off part of auditorium to talk with his buddies and… Get higher, apparently. Gabriel totally called it.
Gabriel gave her a look of understanding as they headed towards the other “contestants.” All of them had weapons such as baseball bats, crowbars, water pipes – he suspected that they were being forced to de-face each-other’s beauty since that’s why they were there in the first place. Some of them were crying while others were trying to mentally prepare themselves. It was such a difficult sight to see and it was all he could do to keep himself from attacking the owner of the prison for his heinous crimes.
A light went off in his head!
“Hey, pretend to attack me” he whispered in her ear. “Yell really loudly, and when I pretend to hit you fall to the ground.”
She gave him a confused look. “Trust me,” he said.
Right before they reached stall 7 she “turned” on him. She yelled and screamed, and she really struggled more than he thought she would. He pretended to hit her, she fell, to the ground, and Gabriel backed away and pointed his gun at her “fained” body.
The owner heard the commotion and turned around to see the sight. He walked over and Gabriel explained, “she tried to take my life, so I defended myself. I do not think she’s dead, but she’s definately feisty.”
The owner rolled his eyes and shook his head. “Damn it, I really wanted to see her fight! But, I had the same impression as you did – take her back to her cell and put her on the cot. She’ll have an even worse punishment when she wakes up… I can guarentee it.”
“Yes sir” he said as he picked her up and carried her out of the room. When they reached the hallway he told her to keep her eyes closed, but that they were so, so close to freedom!
They made their way out of the prison, out of the pit, and back to his car where Aaron was waiting. He lay her down and told her to stand.
She immediately through her arms around him and started sobbing uncontrollably. She held him so tight that he thought he was going to explode! They bombarded each-other with kisses and in between her sobs she managed to say “thank you… oh my god thank you…”
“You’re welcome, dear” he whispered as he pulled her closer to him. “We aren’t quite done yet, we have to leave the city. Do you want to be truly free?”
She nodded and went into his car with him. He dropped Aaron off at his place and arrived at her house. Now that he thought about it, he didn’t even know her name yet – the bartender tried to say it and he got cut off.
“How much time do we have?” she asked while he was helping her pack.
“To be honest, I’m not sure” he said. “My best guess is that we have at least a few more hours.”
“Well, if we have a few more hours I really want to express my gratitude… I really want you to know how much I appreciate what you just did for me…”
Sweet one, I truly appreciate it but we should probably wait until we get to the next… The… Uh… Next… Town…
He turned around to find her completely ready! Not ready to leave, of course, ready in a different way 😉
They finished their packing while panting and sweating after something that was… intense, and pleasurable. They followed each-other in a three-car-convoy and picked a hotel in the next town to stay the night at. When they bought their rooms Gabriel followed her into hers to ask her the question that was on his mind.
“You know… I don’t even know your name yet.”
She gasped! “Actually, I don’t know yours either! I’m so sorry, let’s fix that right now! I’m Sarrah.”
“Gabriel!”
“Well, Gabriel, nice to meet you. Now go back to your room!”
“But I don’t wanna” he said with a smirk on his face.
She gave him an exacerbated sigh. “But we just had fun, don’t you remember?”
“How could I forget? But I was stressed then, I wasn’t in the moment. Now I’m here since their law enforcement has no jurisdiction here.”
“Well… I have something you can have jurisdiction over…”
He chuckled as they embraced once again. The day and night were never to be forgotten by either of them, and they stayed with each-other for many years to come!