Chapter 16 - The Price of Playing
On night one, Harry had been waiting outside Jurgen’s place, ready to jump the slender European cyclist the moment he got home.
But the cyclist never came home.
Harry scoped out Luke’s place. Nothing. Then later Carlo’s. Nothing. Then Nahum's. Also nothing. Then later Seth’s. Also, fucking nothing.
Where was everyone? Had everyone already been kidnapped by midnight of night one? Had the rapture happened?
Harry texted people but got radio silence. He scouted out the cheap hotel Jeremiah sometimes stayed at when he came to town. He went to Dasol's apartment and talked to his roommates just to hear he'd left around 2am.
What the fuck?
At this point he didn't care if he was captive or captor, Harry just wanted to play.
So he tried Luke again, and this time made a promise that was harder to refuse.
“I can promise you either an ally or a prisoner.”.
Luke and Selim arrived at the restaurant, where Harry was already waiting for them. They exchanged pleasantries, but by the time their food arrived, Harry gave them his offer.
“I’ve somehow missed out on the whole game,” he said, “I want in. Either as your ally or your prisoner.”
Selim and Luke smiled at each other.
“Well that certainly makes our job easier” Luke said, “we’ll happily accept you as our prisoner.”
“We were planning on taking you by force,” Selim said, “but this works great. A willing captive!”
Harry had hoped there would at least be some consideration of his offer to be their ally. Oh well, as long as he was part of something. Plus, he was quite the escape artist, who's to say he couldn't break out of whatever bonds he was put in and turn the tables on these guys.
As the guys ate, Luke felt his phone quietly buzz in his pocket. A minute later he stood up and headed to the bathroom.
“I got him,” the text said.
* * * * *
After hours of his back being burned, his whole body periodically doused with cold water, his skin attacked by mosquitoes, and his arms and legs stretched to quite torturous discomfort, Seth was elated to see Nahum approaching.
“Please sir,” he begged, “save me. I can't take this any longer.”
“Oh you definitely could,” the country roper said, “the human body is a resilient thing. I bet I could leave you out here all night.”
“Please, please,” Seth begged, “I promise I won't try to escape you guys again. I'll do everything you say.”
Nahum smiled.
He untied Seth and guided him to the storm shelter. Seth was fully unrestrained, but he didn't dare resist Nahum. He had finally resigned himself to be their prisoner, escape was now fully out of the question. Better to be rewarded for being a good sub then be punished for clinging to hope.
The space inside the storm shelter was small, but like everywhere else on Rolland's property it was absolutely stocked with bondage gear. Nahum, unsurprisingly, grabbed rope.
He ordered Seth to kneel, then tied Seth's forearms to his wrists in two separate chicken-wing ties. He pushed Seth to the floor on his back, then bent each of his legs and tied his ankles to his thighs in a similar position.
To finish off the bondage, Nahum locked a collar around Seth’s neck, and attached a chain that he held in his other hand.
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Nahum yanked the chain so Seth was forced to crawl up on his knees and elbows.
“Walk, boy!” Nahum kicked Seth's ass with his booted foot.
Seth began crawling around the concrete floor on his knees and elbows, as Nahum kept him on the tight leash. When Seth slowed down, Nahum would kick his ass or stomach, and occasionally yank his chain.
It was humiliating and quickly painful, as the hard floor did not feel good on his elbows and knees.
“I could get used to having a dog like you, boy.” Nahum said, “maybe I don't turn you in tomorrow. Maybe I bring you back to my place and keep you as a pet.”
Seth really didn't like that he was getting hard at this.
“Keep you in a dog cage at night, take you on walks, chain you up outside during the day.”
Nahum suddenly pulled the leash so Seth rose up so he was kneeling upright. His head was at the perfect height for his handler to grab Seth's hair in his big, calloused hand.
“What do you say boy?”
Seth thought. He was equal parts terrified, embarrassed, and turned on.
The turned on side won.
“I'm off next weekend, sir.” He meekly said, forced to look up at his big, hairy dominant.
“Then it's a date,” Nahum smiled, “and how perfect, I can turn you in tomorrow, AND keep you as a pet next weekend. My lucky day.”
Nahum unzipped his jeans and made his cock poke through the front of his white briefs. He held Seth's hair in his hands and made his sub suck him off.
Nahum came down Seth’s throat, then dropped the leash so his bound pet could crawl around the cold floor freely. Nahum opened the laptop to check the cameras.
Only to find he had no signal down in the storm shelter.
“Welp, shit,” he thought. He tried to use his phone as a mobile hotspot, only to find he had no service in the cellar either.
“Guess Luke ain't as smart as he thinks,” Nahum said, “didn't even think to test the signal down here.”
Seth looked up at Nahum from his humiliating position on the floor.
“Well boy,” Nahum said, “we gotta find a different spot to hunker down, can't keep watch from this ole storm shelter.”
Nahum grabbed Seth's leash in one hand, and the laptop in his other.
He stepped outside the shelter’s heavy door, only to find Vishal standing 10 feet away, tasar pointed right at him.
“Hands in the fucking air.”
* * * * *
The night before, as Luke’s whole body ached from hours of torture at the hands of his teammates, he realized a scary unavoidable truth.
Selim and Nahum could, and no doubt would, turn on him at the end of the game.
He didn't stand a chance against them, and once all the schemes and sneaky plays were finished - once they were in the final hour of the game - Nahum and Selim would have no reason not to take him down and turn him in for a little extra cash.
And last night they'd proven how easily they could.
Luke had to take them out now, he needed an ally he could either trust or make a deal with to not turn on eachother at the end of the game. Someone who was strong enough to take out Selim and Nahum.
Carlo was out of the question. He and Luke had become rivals in this game, there was no way Carlo would side with Luke now.
Luke reached out to Jeremiah and Vishal. He heard nothing from Jeremiah. Vishal responded.
Vishal expressed interest in an alliance, but wanted more details. Luke explained his situation, he had Seth imprisoned, and was working with Selim and Nahum, he was fully prepared to turn on both his allies. Perhaps his best asset was his location: Rolland’s old compound.
Vishal asked how he secured Rolland's compound if Rolland wasn't in the game.
Luke told Vishal the story of him, Selim, and Artis’ showdown with Rolland months ago. He explained how they'd taken Rolland down and we're now training him to be a better Dom.
Vishal was impressed, he'd avoided group games and gatherings for so long mostly because he hated Rolland, and thought the man was a bad, abusive person. The fact that Luke and co had done something about it made Vishal respect them more.
Vishal shared his position, he had Chet, Jeremiah, and Jurgen prisoner, but was hesitant to take any more guys since it could compromise the location of his house. He was willing to take Luke up on an alliance if it meant both of them using Rolland’s place to keep their guys. He asked what Luke knew about the other players.
Luke said he knew for a fact that every other player besides Harry was either Carlo’s prisoner or ally.
The math was simple, Luke needed an ally he could trust to make it to the end of the game, and Vishal needed a place to put his guys so he could take more down. Luke had a good position and was likely going to be drawing Carlo’s team towards him anyway, where they could be taken down.
Vishal agreed to side with Luke, if they'd split the winnings 70-30.
Luke agreed. He knew good and well that Vishal could turn on him, however the odds of betrayal were less than 100% which was the chance of his current allies turning on him. The fact that Vishal was negotiating a higher cut of the profits was a good sign too, as a traitor would have no reason to bargain for more.
Luke agreed to the lower payout in return for an ally he hoped he could trust.
They made a plan. Luke would get Nahum alone on Rolland’s property. The opportunity came when Harry reached out to both Luke and Vishal independently. Vishal ignored him some Luke could set up the meeting and get Selim away from the compound.
Luke and Artis had identified a place out of sight of the cameras last month as part of their exploration of Rolland's home-turned-prison, a storm shelter with no internet or cell service. Luke would have Nahum wait there, since Nahum didn't know it was a dark zone. When Nahum realized he couldn't see what was happening on the cameras or communicate with his team, he would either leave the shelter for a new spot, or hunker down. In either case, with no warning or camera feed, he would be easy for Vishal to surprise and take down.
Vishal loaded his own prisoners up in his van and drove towards Rolland's, parking a mile away and waiting for his signal. Luke and Selim left to meet Harry. When Luke got to the restraunt, he checked his phone and saw through the camera feed that Nahum was nowhere on any inside or outside camera. Additionally, Seth was no longer spread-eagle on the metal slab - a sign they must both be in the shelter dead zone. Luke messaged Vishal.
Vishal brought his guys into the house through a door Luke had left unlocked, and locked all three in the prison cells. He ran over to the shelter and waited.
15 or so minutes later, Nahum stepped out. He was immediately surprised at the sign of the ex-cop pointing a taser at him.
“Hands in the fucking air.”
Not wanting to have the laptop broken by the shock, and not wanting to be shocked himself, Nahum quickly calculated that he was fucked, and should probably just take the path of least resistance.
He carefully set the computer down, dropped Seth's leash, and put his hands in the air.
Vishal stepped forward, handcuffed the country bear, and led him and Seth towards the house
) wants Vishal taken down but I still stand by what I said previously. Vishal should just forget about the game. He's already won in his own way and his 3 captives seem to be liking/enjoying it!
