Love of a Captive

When Malachi regained consciousness, it was to find himself underneath a different comforter. Gazing around with a sort of vague interest, he realized that he wasn’t in the same room he had been in when he had passed out. There were two windows in the room, but they were covered by large, thick blinds that didn’t let in the sunlight. The bedding, too, was dark, though he couldn’t tell if it was black or navy blue in the darkness of the room.

“Malachi? Are you awake?” the whispered inquiry drew Malachi’s attention, and he startled, crying out as the sudden jerk made all of his various aches and pains pull and tear at him. “Please, Malachi, I won’t hurt you. Nobody will hurt you in here,” the voice soothed. “So just relax. It took a bit of work to get you cleaned up and bandaged, and I don’t want you to hurt yourself further.”

The voice seemed so familiar, and Malachi frowned into the darkness above his head. “Adrian?” he rasped, and winced as the syllables dragged across his throat. In response to his question, there was a shift on his right, and Adrian stepped up into the semi-light, so that Malachi could see him. Turning his head away and closing his eyes, Malachi sighed out, “Go away, please.” He was too tired and in too much pain to make it an order.

“I can’t go away,” Adrian murmured. “I was afraid that I’d lost you, that he’d done too much damage to you, and that you wouldn’t survive it. You didn’t even recognize me when I came to clean you up,” he continued, his voice filled with both grief and a bitter sort of anger.

Malachi sighed. “That’s because you weren’t the Adrian I knew…thought I knew,” he corrected. “The soldier that walked into that room was just another monster, come to devour me. It wasn’t Adrian. It still isn’t,” he murmured. “Now go away, please. I’ll be better soon, and the rest of them can have their shot at me.” He didn’t want to think about what lay in wait for him, probably just down the hall.

“They won’t touch you,” Adrian promised. “I won’t let them, no matter what I have to do,” he hissed. Malachi just shook his head, not believing the false promises that were being uttered to him. Adrian sat on the bed, and Malachi whimpered as the weight forced his body to roll closer to the other man.

Reaching out, Adrian ignored Malachi’s violent flinch and stroked gentle fingers through his hair. “I mean it, you know,” he murmured. “There are other ways to entertain those old men.”

Malachi just smiled bitterly, anger and accusation lacing his words, though he tried to hold the emotions back. “And just how many other ways have you entertained them so far? I mean, surely you’ve managed to find enough toys for them that they always have at least one plaything when they arrive. And you’re such a courteous, generous host, too.”

“Tell me, Adrian,” he bit out, his voice vicious despite the feeling that glass was slashing across his throat, “were any of them girls? So that two of them, or maybe more, could play at the same time? And how many times did you do the same? Fuck the new playthings? Did you tell them that you’d keep them safe, too? Tell them you’d keep them alive, and wouldn’t let them be lost?”

He watched with a cruel sort of satisfaction as Adrian flinched, as if he’d been slapped with the words that Malachi was throwing back in his face. “If you think that I’ll believe, even for a moment, that you’ll keep me safe against your commanding officers, you’d better think again. None of you bastards can be trusted. Nazis, Aryan nation. Just another word for murdering scumbags. None of you are worth the dirt you grind under your feet. I hate you all.” And he meant it, too.

Adrian’s eyes narrowed, and his face flushed with anger, his fists clenching. Malachi smiled genuinely and turned his face up towards the other man. “Go ahead, hit me. Perhaps you can do me a favor and kill me while you’re at it. It’s probably the only good deed you’ll ever do,” he taunted viciously.

Taking a deep breath, Adrian relaxed his body and opened his eyes to stare calmly back at Malachi. “Don’t think that you can get me riled up enough to kill you, Malachi,” he answered, his voice calm again and his eyes gentle. “In that condition, I don’t think you could even handle a slap. And, as a matter of fact, I can certainly provide them with other forms of entertainment. Although they’ll probably be mad at me for letting you die,” he mused, and Malachi stared at him in confusion.

Adrian smiled at him, and quick flash of that bright smile that had charmed Malachi in the truck, though he had refused to acknowledge the attraction at the time. “I have reported that you died of your injuries, since your body is weak and was abused far beyond its capability for endurance. Our guests are most…put out, but there is nothing that they can do about it. They are here for another three days, unless they are called to the battlefield sooner, and once they have left, I will see that you are safe. I will pay for your trip out of the country myself.”

Malachi stared up at him. Three more days, and then he’d be free? The commanders all thought he was dead? And he’d be leaving the country? Without Adrian? “You’ll stay here?” he asked, and Adrian frowned down at him.

“Of course I’ll be staying here,” he replied. “After all, I am a soldier. I follow orders, and do what I am told. Of course, after this, if anybody ever finds out that I helped a Jewish prisoner to escape, I’ll probably be executed for treason, or thrown in prison at the very least. I know I don’t have the right to ask anything of you, Malachi, but please, once you earn your freedom, don’t give me away. Even if you do hate me.”

Malachi scowled, the anger easy to find and bring forward now. “I won’t keep silent,” he threatened. “Not if you’re planning on staying behind.” When Adrian stared at him in disbelief, he continued, “If you keep your promise, then you will be a traitor to your country, regardless of whether or not your actions ever come to light. You will not be able to hide it from yourself and the Nazi party forever, and I have a bad feeling. I’ve been hearing rumors that the Nazis have been encroaching on other countries, trying to take them over as well.”

Adrian’s face gave away the answer, and Malachi swore. “Those nations may have stood by while you killed your own people, but they won’t stand by while you kill theirs. When I leave, you come with me. If you try to come back without me, I will come back to Germany and track you down. Failing that, I will kill myself. I will not live with this shame on my own.”

Adrian frowned at him, obviously unhappy. “I cannot do that, Malachi. You will leave, or you will die. There is no other option. I must stay here, with my people and my soldiers. I can’t just abandon them. Not even for you.”

Malachi scowled back at him. “Very well, then. I suppose I will die here, then,” he murmured, struggling to sit up. If he was going to die, he might as well die trying to escape on his own. Pain surged up his spine, and he drew in a sharp hiss, trying to hold in the whimpers that wanted to escape. Biting his lip so hard that he drew blood, Malachi nonetheless tried to slip out of the bed.

Strong arms shoved him back down, holding him, and Malachi glared up at Adrian. “I told you, didn’t I? If you won’t escape with me, then I will escape on my own, or die trying,” he snarled. “I will not have your death on my conscience when I leave here.”

“And here I thought you hated me, that I’m nothing but a murdering scumbag,” Adrian mocked, throwing his words back at him. Malachi didn’t flinch at the cold words, letting Adrian see in his gaze that he had meant every word. Sitting back, surprised, Adrian demanded, “If you hate me so much, then why should you care if I get caught or not?”

“Because when I leave here, it will be with a clear conscience!” Malachi tried one more time to explain. “If you help me escape, that makes you an accomplice and a traitor. If you die because you were helping me, then it’s just as good as if I had killed you myself! If you won’t come with me, then I would rather just die here, knowing that I tried my best to escape. All you have to do is leave now, and I’ll escape on my own. Even if it fails, I’ll still be free.”

Adrian closed his eyes and slumped forward. “You don’t leave me much choice, then, do you?” he asked. Malachi didn’t answer, watching the struggle on Adrian’s face. He so badly wanted to ask if Adrian actually wanted the sort of life he had now. These might be his people in appearance, but they weren’t his by heart.

Perhaps, though, at one time, they had been, he realized. The commander’s words came back to haunt him. The other toys were already broken when we got to them. Adrian, too, had been like those commanders, had taken and broken those that were considered to be not good enough, not blonde or strong enough, to be worthy of survival within the Aryan Nation. But, for some reason, he was different now than he had been, but Malachi didn’t know why.

“Very well. You’ve won, damn you,” Adrian hissed, and Malachi blinked. He hadn’t really expected it to be that easy. Adrian was glaring at him, and Malachi could see just how much the concession had cost him; agreeing to leave the country with Malachi, leaving behind everything he knew, knowing that Malachi hated him now.

Malachi did the only thing he could think of, with Adrian looking so angry and lost. Reaching out carefully, he slipped his arms behind Adrian’s neck and pulled him into a hug. “Thank you,” he whispered.

Sitting back, Adrian just shook his head. “I don’t understand you at all, Malachi,” he murmured, and then rose. “In the meantime, I can’t stay here any longer. My superiors are waiting for me, and I must go out among the soldiers as well. Try and get some sleep. I’ll be back later, with a light supper for you.” Malachi nodded his understanding, and watched as Adrian walked out the door, leaving him in darkness once more.

Settling back down, Malachi finally let his exhaustion take him and slipped off to sleep, trusting that Adrian would keep him safe for the next three days.