*** Disclaimer ***
The following installment contains themes of hypnosis, mind control, non-consent, voyeurism, rough sex, gangbangs, cheating, and incest. You've been warned.
This is a work of fiction. All characters depicted are at least 18 years of age. Names, characters, businesses, places, events and incidents are either the products of the author's imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.
***
Hollow Pleasure chapter 12
***
THE OFFICE
"When did you last see them?" Captain Graver folded his arms across his broad chest and leaned against the edge of the conference table.
Galloway, Ethan, and Danni sat in a nervous trio. Their faces were that of three kids that had been sent to the principal. Their expressions were masks of humility, shame, and anxiety.
"Not since this morning," Galloway admitted. The sun was starting to go down, and Halley and her team still weren't back yet. The day had passed at a snail's pace. It had been torture waiting to hear anything back. And each hour that went by with no news, only made their fears that much worse. No news meant bad news.
Graver's face was neutral, eerily so. That threw her. His handsome face was normally very sincere. Especially his large blue eyes. Kind eyes. They say that the eyes are a window to the soul, and with him, Galloway finally understood what that meant. Her captain had a terrible poker face. She had always been able to see the gears turning in his head, or see what was on his mind just from a simple glance. If he was pissed, upset, happy, or disappointed, it was obvious to her and everyone around her. But the other thing that he was known for was becoming oddly calm when things were at their worst. That transparency in his face clouded over, and there was nothing but a wall of what Galloway would describe as "relaxed stoicism".
Graver had always been that way, even when they were young. A life and death incident where uncertainty would cause Galloway to freeze, Graver would trudge into it without a care in the world and a 'follow me, everything is going to be alright' approach. And that attitude always made Galloway feel better, always made her follow him. That was why she was glad he was now her boss.
Like her, Graver had been another casino survivor from years ago. Back then, he'd been a broken man, sincere to his core, but that place had done a number on him mentally. He'd been fortunate enough to quit a few days before... the incident. Galloway found herself gently rubbing the gunshot scar on her shoulder in remembrance of that ill-fated robbery attempt. But Graver had quit for different reasons that were no less traumatic. The wicked sickle-shaped scar beside his left eye was proof of how unpredictable that job could be.
Now that scar was crinkled ever-so-slightly as he pondered his next course of action. He didn't look angry. That bothered Galloway more than anything. God dammit, why couldn't he just get mad and yell at her? Four men were missing because of her! Including their boss (and Graver's fiancΓ©e). Halley wasn't reckless. Her lack of communication, answering her phone, or checking in meant that something had happened. This whole op had gone off the rails. Their effort to seize Rob's computer and put an end to his control over the minds of his neighbors had fallen completely silent. That could only mean one thing: Rob had gotten to them.
The implications ran deep. Galloway shivered to think that her friends and coworkers were now part of Rob's deviant harem, subjected to whatever perversion crossed his mind. The fact that Halley, who Galloway looked up to and respected, was probably somewhere right now, dressed like a street whore and behaving like a depraved slut. Halley was a cute woman. What kind of awful things was Rob making her do? How many filthy punks was she being forced to pleasure...?
Was Galloway actually getting turned on by that thought? She shook her head, ignoring the tingle between her legs.
Graver was probably wondering the same thing. They had told him everything about Rob and that apartment. And while Graver hadn't said anything to the contrary, Galloway wasn't sure how much he believed them.
"Alright," he said finally, his big arms still folded. "We need to find them, that's for damn sure. But I'm not going to risk any more men. So we're going to do this ourselves."
"You're not pissed off at me?" Galloway asked nervously. Part of her was sort of hoping for the tongue lashing. She was the cause of all of this, and she fully expected a punishment. "You're not going to go off on me?"
"How would that help?" He cocked his eyebrow.
She shrugged.
"It wouldn't." Graver said, then redirected them back to the issue at hand. "It sounds like you're already made. So I'm going to go in and find my own answers. Take what you need from the armory and I want you waiting off the property but close enough that you can come to assist. If this guy really can do the things that he can, I want you out of sight, out of mind. I want him to assume you're far far away and you aren't coming back. If you're in the building, he can work his magic and stop us. If you're a few blocks away on standby, you can back me up."
Galloway looked at Danni and Ethan, sitting nervously by. Danni was chewing the draw string of her hooded sweatshirt. Ethan flashed her an encouraging smile, though he looked just as afraid as she did. "If we're doing this alone, there's so many things that can go wrong, you know."
"It already went wrong," Graver replied. "I'll call you if I find anything, or subdue our suspect. If you don't hear from me in an hour, do whatever you feel is necessary. Bring in every unit we have, bring in the municipal police."
Captain Graver stood, casually stretched a kink from his neck, and started out of the room. His heavy boots thumping on the floor boards.
"This is a shitty idea," Ethan whispered nervously.
Before he stepped out, Graver paused and glanced back at them. He threw them a little smile and a wink. "Everything will be just fine," he said, then headed to the armory.
His expression was still stoic and unreadable. Clearly, he was still in damage control mode, and that scared Galloway.
***
THE CONNELLY APARTMENT