Jacob was awash with thoughts. He was driving home from the massage parlor and he found himself taking the long way. In fact he wasn't even headed towards his apartment at this point.
This was the first time he had really felt what the "control" device could really do. For a while there he was actually starting to enjoy the carnal pleasures of his current situation.
While he knew in his mind he was being controlled and ordered around, this was the first time he had really felt like he wasn't free. He had only asked a question and this person they called "The Boss" had activated the device. He had gotten so wrapped up in the amazing sex he was having he didn't even realize he still had to answer to this guy whenever he wanted.
He had to get out. That was all there was to it.
He was about to turn the car around and start heading home when his phone rang. It was Heather.
"Where are you going?" She asked.
Jacob looked at his phone and didn't say anything. He was shocked. It was as if these people were trying to make him realize the mistake he had made of going along with this situation for so long.
"I'm just driving around. Isn't that ok?"
"The boss liked it better when you were staying at your house and going to class. This is not normal behavior for you."
"So I can't go out for a drive?"
"Just don't do anything too out of the ordinary. It makes the boss nervous."
"Tell him to go fuck his nervousness!!" Jacob yelled into the phone.
"I don't think you want me to tell him that."
Heather said but Jacob wasn't listening. He was waiting to see if the device would begin to zap him. Seconds went by and nothing happened.
"Yeah." Jacob said. "Tell that slimy mother fucker to leave me the fuck alone!"
"Jacob you really need to watch what you are saying."
Jacob again waited to see if anything would happen. The device did not seem to be doing anything to him. Jacob hung up the phone in Heather's face. He searched through his contacts and came to Daniel's number. He had gotten it from him the day after the performance at the club with the actresses they called "The Four Misses".
"Hello?" Daniel said into the phone.
"How much are you dedicated to helping the boss?"
"I guess I would say I am indifferent. I take part in some of his performances and he pays me. I wouldn't say I have that much loyalty to him. How are you asking that kind of question without getting 'controlled'?"
"He isn't listening right now. I don't have much time left though. How did you get the device off of you?"
"I wish I could give you an easy answer. Sadly, I got it off because I served my time with it. I did what I was told for years and finally I met the boss face to face. He said I had done well for him and he had the devices removed. After that he offered me a part time gig taking part in his acts. If you used this one chance to call me I wish I could give you better answers. The fact is, the only thing that will get that device off of you is time."
Jacob could hear his call waiting beeping in his ear. He looked at his phone. It was Heather. He ignored it.
"What does the boss look like?" Jacob asked.
He waited for an answer but already his shoulder began to twitch. The tingling carried down his spine this time and intense pain began to flood the muscles of his lower back. He pulled the car over quickly and jumped out as soon as he could get it in park. His entire back was on fire by this point. He dropped to the ground and lay there hoping the pain would go away.
After what seemed like an eternity the pain subsided and Jacob was able to crawl back to his feet. He stood leaning against his car and looking at the sky. It was about 10:00pm and the stars were washed across the heavens. He could hear his phone ringing and he reached into the car and answered it without looking at the screen.
"What in the hell are you trying to do?" Heather practically screamed into the phone.
"Oh, I don't know, live like a normal person perhaps."
"Well I am afraid you have run into certain circumstances that prevent you from doing that. You are in this situation whether you like it or not and you will just have to deal with it."
Jacob thought for a moment. He had pushed his captors enough for one evening. He decided he would go ahead and comply for now. Already he was thinking about ways he could fight this without the people that were watching him knowing.
As he drove home he thought about what all had happened. This was the first time he had given serious thought to removing the devices. The one thought that seemed to keep jumping into his mind was that he needed an ally. He couldn't do this alone. But how could he possibly communicate with someone enough to get them to help him. Obviously the devices were tapping into his senses just like Heather said they would.
He pulled the car over. Looking down at his phone he thought about how he could send someone messages without using his senses. He looked at the key pad on his phone. An idea popped into his mind. If he typed a message to someone on a keyboard without looking at his screen then whoever was somehow looking through his eyes would not be able to tell what the message said. He would only have one shot at it though. He was certain mounting an all-out campaign for removing the devices would cause the boss to detonate them.
Jacob went straight to bed as soon as he made it home. He slept through all of his classes the next day. It was a good thing it was Friday.
Saturday morning he did all of his laundry. He couldn't stop thinking about what had happened outside of his car. How could he illicit someone's help? Who could he ask? If he asked the wrong person they could go immediately to the police and then an investigation might be started. Just as soon as the boss discovered he had the police involved it would be curtains for him that way as well.
He went out for an afternoon jog and Alex was stepping out of her apartment as he was turning to lock up his own place. A thought crossed his mind.
"Hey Alex. What did you say you were majoring in again?"
