"Jeffery, what brings you here." The voice murmured.

"Look, you fuckin' owe me. Shall I humbly remind you, or will you let us in, Jack?" patience was not one of his virtues, and he didn't have time for unnecessary chit-chat; Silence hung in the icy air, and tension grew thick as the cold became more intolerable by the second.

The man stepped towards the two, almost gliding across the floor as he did so. When he emerged further from the darkness and grew closer, Y/N could make out a strange cobalt-blue mask obscuring his face. Two bottomless holes sat where his eyes would be, and dripping down them was a mysterious black liquid.It was odd that someone would wear a mask alone in their own home or even wear such a frightening visard like that so casually, but if you were acquainted with Jeff, you were bound to be strange.

"The girl, is she for me? Some peace offering, perhaps Jeffery?" Jack inquired, inching nearer.

Jeff stood Y/N up and gripped her waist. "No dickhead she's mine; I own her."

Jack pondered for a moment and laughed, "you've never had a pet before, Jeffery. I'm shocked she's lasted more than five minutes in your care." Jack's masked face looked her up and down before continuing, "if care is the right word for it." He stated.

"It's fuckin' freezing out here; move," Jeff grunted, pushing the man aside.

Only a few taper candles and an unassuming box television admitted any light inside while complete blackness consumed the rest of the house. Squinting, Y/N attempted to discern anything else but could only pick out blobs of furniture and a dark, menacing hallway. Her vision was still blurry and dizzy, so even without the swallowing night, making out anything would've been difficult. Her eyes darted around the black abyss as she desperately tried to spot something else, but the world started to spin, and her skewed vision seemed to tunnel; sweat dripped down her face, and she attempted to cling to Jeff for support as she could feel the sense of control leave her; nothing seemed to work, and her body was now tumbling towards the ground.

///////////

"What the fuck is wrong with you?!" He slapped her with all his might.

Holding a hand against her stinging cheek, she stared at the linoleum beneath her feet, studying every intricate detail and design, anything to distract from the threatening man in front of her. She did not dare to look him in the eye. Doing that would be the same as enticing a bull; She hated every foster home she was ever placed in, but this time, she loathed this family more than anything.

Distant voices stirred Y/N from her slumber. White was all that could be seen as she scanned her surroundings: tiled walls and floor, white fluorescent lights that shot pain into her sensitive eyes, and a white blanket atop her body. No windows were inside the boxed room, no door to leave either. The only sign of exit was a slim staircase extending past her field of view. Taking everything in, It looked like she was in some back alley surgical theatre. A sense of confusion and fear filled her while staring at bloodied huck towels and surgical tools beside her operating table.

Slowly inching up, she winced and looked down to see gauze on her chest. Nothing hurt worse than fresh stitches, especially seeing how this grotesque wound had been sewn up just a few days before; Pain invaded every inch of her body, feeling like an almost indescribable agony. The throbbing carving topped everything else. It was unbearable. In all her years, no memory of raw pain came close to how she felt in the present moment.

Footsteps echoed and thumped against the stairs. Jeff's eyes crazed and locked on her as he took the last step.

"Wondered when you would finally fuckin' wake up." Snaking an arm around her waist, he sat beside the frightened woman.

"Got nothin' to say, huh? I fucked you up real good, didn't I." The tone that left his mouth was pure admiration; he was proud of his handiwork. Y/N hoped that his seemingly good mood would give her a short period of relative peace.

"Where am I?" Blurted from her mouth.

"Jack's freaky fuckin' surgery room, where he does all his little science projects." Cackling, he drew a cigarette to his deformed lips.

"What do you mean science projects?" Morbid curiosity always got the better of her, even in the worst situations.

"If you think I'm so horrible, be grateful I didn't give you to him. Jack likes experimenting on his girls, opening them up when they're awake and shifting their organs around." Jeff puffed his dart before continuing, "keeps them alive for weeks, months, sometimes while he does shit like that. Then when he's had his fill, he eats them alive—one organ at a time." Such enthusiasm was in Jeff's voice as he spoke.

Y/N's stomach sank. "Why did you take me here."

"You scared, whore? Well, suck it up! You didn't give me much of a fuckin' choice when you decided to trash the car and get yourself all banged up." His calloused hand gripped her jaw, forcing her to face him. "If you disobey me again, I will give you to him, and I can promise almost anything is better than being one of his lab rats," Jeff growled.

"Please, Jeff, I'm sorry! I'll be good."

Violently pushing her face away, Jeff began to pull her along, uncaring about whatever pain she was in—walking trumped the pain itching inside her chest, as every step taken felt like daggers tearing muscle and bone apart. Not one complaint was heard, though, as she knew not to test Jeff, especially not after everything that had happened. She hated being so submissive, so frozen with fear but was it worth facing Jeff's wrath to stand up for herself and save her dignity? Emotionally the humiliation of acting like some pet was soul-crushing, but fighting against him only caused more physical pain and torture. For now, biting her tongue was the best course of action and distracted her from the pain enough; It was a stupid decision to flip the car. Either way, there would've been no situation where that would've worked in her favour, but it was done. Nothing could change what had happened.

Once they exited the basement, It seemed to be mid-day as beams of soft light shone through paned windows, illuminating the house; the decor was bleak and bare, a small rickety dining room table with a few chairs, an opening to what looked to be closer to a kitchenette than an actual kitchen and to the left of them was that once ominous hallway, now harmless with three doors scattered along the walls. The right side was the front door, slightly concealed by another room. Going from the sophisticated set-up in the basement to what looked like a cheap house on the wrong side of the tracks gave her whiplash.

Jack wasn't immediately seen or heard, which relieved Y/N. Hearing just a snippet of what kind of man he was, she hoped he would stay away from her. Unfortunately, though, he would most likely be creeping around here somewhere, as the chattering voice's heard before were most likely from them, so she didn't feel too calm; of course, when someone owes a favour to a deranged serial killer like Jeff learning that their also an insane killer shouldn't come as a surprise. No rational person would willingly associate themself with him, and she knew that. Still, she felt shocked to hear about that sick torture, and now Y/N's imagination wouldn't stop conjuring up vivid images of the horrific acts Jeff so joyfully described.

He led the way to one of the doors down the hall; as they entered, she caught a glimpse of Jack leaving the room closest to the front door. He was still wearing that creepy blue mask, unmoving as he stared, watching her hobble inside the bedroom. Goosebumps burst through her skin, even at the tiniest sight of him.

"Did he stitch me up?" Y/N asked.

Jeff slightly turned his head towards her. "Are you fucking stupid? Who else would've?"

Shutting the door, he flopped down on the bed. Paying the woman no mind, she awkwardly stood there, fiddling with her thumbs.

"Now, don't fuckin' go anywhere in here without me. I don't care if you have to piss or anything. He would cut you up in a heartbeat the second your alone." He paused for a moment. "I'm the only one who can torture you because I own you. You're my plaything, and I ain't done playing yet." Jeff taunted.

Defeated, Y/N replied. "Ok."

Even without Jeff laying down the rules, no way Y/N would go anywhere in this house without him, not while Jack was in the vicinity, at least. The idea of escape wasn't even a fleeting thought in her mind either, as her injuries would make any strenuous task such as that almost impossible, and with snow at play, she wouldn't last two seconds in the woods alone. Feeling safe around Jeff would never happen, but right now, he seemed like the better of two evils in this situation, If only slightly.

Sitting on the bed, strategically in a spot furthest from Jeff, she watched the calm snow trickle down outside, wishing she could be anywhere but here, in this room, in this house; she never thought she would miss that the shitty old hotel room with no heating and a musty smell as much as she did. Even the prostitution she missed, in a way. Subconsciously it was probably just freedom she yearned for; any liberty, even the suffocating life of selling herself, would be a warm welcome from any of this. Life was starting to feel completely hopeless.