Kidnapped 3
By Diana
Author's Notes: For those of you who have asked me about Lance, you're about to find out... Sorry it took me so long to get this relatively short chapter done, but I've been a little distracted lately. Hope you enjoy it! As always, feedback is welcome!
"Something's wrong." JC muttered, voice thick with concern. He was sitting on his bed, running his hands through his hair.
"You're being paranoid." Chris replied as he rubbed the bridge of his nose. "You shouldn't have called the police."
JC shot to his feet in indignation. "Justin's been gone for HOURS! Nobody's heard from him, he never brought the car back, and I just... I have this bad feeling..." He resumed biting his nails.
"It's not like him to just disappear without calling first." Lance added. "Did you two have a fight last night?"
JC looked at his bandmate sourly. "We had sex."
For a moment, Lance's features contorted ever-so-slightly, as though he was struggling not to frown or grimace. Keeping his expression as neutral as possible, he nodded and quickly averted his gaze.
Before JC could confront his friend, the phone rang. JC grabbed it before the first ring ended.
"Hello?!" he cried into the mouthpiece. "Yeah, that's me..." His eyes widened. "What?! Oh my God... yeah... sure, okay. I'll be right there."
He dropped the reciever in place with trembling fingers.
"Who was it?" Joey asked.
"That was the police." JC answered, a strong quaver in his voice. "They found Justin's car on the highway. And his cellphone."
"And Justin?" Chris prompted.
JC shook his head.
"Gone." he whispered.
Justin pulled again. Pain shot through his wrist, but it only served to make the teen pull harder.
"You're gonna hurt yourself if you keep that up." Jack groused morbidly as he dropped a bag in Justin's lap. "Lunch. I'm gonna go for a walk."
Justin sagged back, moaning weakly. "Please Jack... please let me go. If you ever loved me..."
"If I ever... loved you?" Jack giggled like a schoolkid, pressing his hands to his head. Long locks of ebony coursed over his face, masking the maelstrom of emotions whipping through his features. "If I ever loved you." Jack grabbed Justin's shirt collar, pulling the blonde close so their faces were inches apart.
"Oh, I loved you alright." Jack snarled, eyes burning with anger and hatred. "I loved you more than everything. But you didn't love me back."
"That's not true..." Justin began, but Jack pressed a finger to his lips, silencing him.
"Yes it is. What we had didn't mean anything to you. I didn't mean anything to you. It's not your fault, though." the older man whispered. "It's HIS fault."
Justin rolled his eyes slightly. "Don't blame this on Josh. He didn't..."
"I was your second choice, Justin. Second best to someone who ignored you." His voice lowered. "That's why I hurt you. I was so angry, because I couldn't make you stop wanting him." He snickered softly. "It's ironic. You were going nuts because JC wouldn't love you back, and then you did the same thing to me."
A pang of sympathy softened Justin's resolve. Jack was suffering, he could see it. "It's not like that." he protested in a whisper, looking into his ex-boyfriend's eyes. "I loved you, Jack. When we were together, you were everything to me." He averted his gaze. "I'll always, ALWAYS love you, because you were my first. Not because I couldn't have JC, but because I wanted to be with you."
Tears were forming in Jack's eyes, and his lips trembled.
"I wanted to change you." Justin continued. "I thought that if I just let you hit me, if I just took it like a man, then you'd stop, and I wouldn't have to be afraid anymore." Their eyes met. "But you didn't stop. You got worse. You hurt me so badly that I couldn't take it anymore. So I went to JC."
Now jealousy was rearing its ugly head, and Jack's grip on Justin's collar tightened.
"I'm not afraid when I'm with him. He'd cut his hand off before hitting me. Maybe he can't love me like you can, maybe he can love me better, I don't know. But he's my husband, and I love him. That's all."
Jack released Justin and took a few steps away, eyes staring at nothing in particular. Justin could tell his former lover was fighting not to cry.
Then he suddenly straightened and turned back to Justin, grinning widely.
"You're good, baby." he said, approaching Justin again. "How long did it take you to think up that shit?" Before Justin could reply, Jack ducked forward, crushing his mouth to Justin's in a savage kiss. Justin cried out and angrily bit down on Jack's lower lip, prompting a loud scream of pain.
Jack stumbled off Justin, blood dripping from his lip. With a roar, he backhanded Justin in the face. The teen's whole body rocked with the blow, but despite the sudden pain, all he could do was laugh. He was right. Jack hadn't changed at all.
He would show no fear; that was what Jack wanted, that was what gave him his strength. But Justin wasn't afraid anymore. Now that he'd seen through the illusion, the doubts of his past had been lain to rest. Jack would never be a better man. The only thing he could offer was suffering.
The moment of mindless rage passed, and Jack stared down at his hands in a mixture of guilt and horror. "NO!" he wailed, slamming his fists on the table. "YOU TRICKED ME!" he howled, glaring at Justin.
Justin just laughed, unable to help himself. Maybe it was just hysteria, or maybe it was just that this situation was so absurd... or maybe because he couldn't believe he had held on to some romanticized image of this monster.
Jack whimpered for a moment, then turned tail and ran out the door like the hounds of hell were chasing him.
The officer was lean, tall and young-looking. He was attractive, what with wavy blond hair and blue eyes, but JC could care less if the Playgirl cover guys were to march in totally naked and demand he have his way with them.
He and his bandmates were congregated in JC and Justin's room. The officer had closed the door behind him, an ill omen.
"I think it's safe to say that we're dealing with a kidnapping." he announced, checking his notepad. "There were signs of a struggle, and a small piece of cloth was found by the car, soaked in chloroform."
JC swallowed hard. Lance's jaw dropped in shock. Chris just looked horrified. But Joey summed up all their thoughts as he ran a hand through his flaming red hair.
"Shit..."
"We've got our best detectives on the case." the officer continued. "But the first 24 hours are the most crucial. We need two of you to help with the investigation."
JC rose, but Lance immediately interjected himself between his friend and the officer. "Joey and Chris will help you." To JC, he whispered: "You have to stay here in case Justin shows up."
The choice between rushing to his husband's rescue and waiting patiently for his return was clearly tearing JC apart. At last, he dropped back down on the bed with a desolate thump.
Lance turned to his other two bandmates. "I'll stay with him." he volunteered solemnly.
The other two members of N'Sync exchanged a glance before facing the officer and nodding. Together, the three left the room.
For a long moment, Lance remained at the door, deep in thought. Then a muffled sob caught his attention and he turned around.
JC was sitting on the mattress, knees drawn up to his chin, rocking back and forth as he cried.
Tentatively, the younger blonde approached his friend and sat down next to him. "Hey..." he began awkwardly, not knowing exactly what to do or say.
JC made the first move, practically falling into Lance's embrace. The younger teen wrapped his arms around his friend after a moment, hugging him softly.
"It's gonna be okay, Josh." Lance murmured softly. JC looked up at him with questioning red-rimmed eyes, and Lance managed a weak smile.
"I know things are kinda wrong between us, but you're still my..." Lance paused. "You're still really important to me. I'm here for you."
They stared at each other for a timeless moment. Then JC lowered his head back to Lance's chest, arms tightening around his friend's form.
"Shh... you're going to okay, Josh. You're going to be fine..." Lance whispered.
After a few minutes, Lance felt JC sag slightly, sleep overtaking him. His smile becoming genuine, Lance lay his friend down on the mattress.
The content expression quickly transformed into one of determination. Rising, Lance grabbed his jacket and headed for the door. Without turning to look at JC, he left.
Finally, inexorably, something moved.
Justin wasn't sure at first. He'd been fighting for so long he couldn't even remember when he'd done anything else.
But a look down at his left hand was all he needed. His breath caught in his throat as he realized his wrist was slick with sweat, and was slowly slipping through the cable.
Taking a cautious glance up, Justin saw that Jack hadn't come back yet. This was his chance, probably his ONLY chance. Taking a deep breath, Justin pulled sharply...
And his hand slid through, free at last.
Eyes wide in disbelieving triumph, Justin quickly set to work, pulling off the other cables and unbucking the belt. Springing to his feet, Justin quickly broke into a run, dashing across the warehouse floor to the exit. To freedom. He was going to jump into JC's arms and never let go again... after he made sure Jack Matthews was locked up for the rest of his life...
Grabbing the door handle, Justin turned it, swinging the door open. But before he could take another step, he froze in shock.
Standing there on the opposite side of the doorway, eyes wide with surprise, was Lance Bass. His hand was suspended in mid-air, reaching for the door handle that wasn't there anymore. The two bandmates stared at each other, paralyzed by shock.
Lance reacted first, grabbing a handful of Justin's curly hair and ramming the teen's head against the doorjamb. Justin barely had time to cry out before stumbling backwards and collapsing on the floor, motionless.
The green-eyed teen stared at Justin's prone body for a moment, still unable to move. Then, slowly, his astonished expression melted away, replaced by a smirk of pure, cruel malice.
To be continued...