Chapter 29
He guessed it would have been different. Should've known better.
Frank had seen some shit in his days- caught enough rapists with their pants around their ankles before ending their miserable lives, to at least think he knew what it was gonna be like.
But he should have known better.
She’s different.
Should've known this time would be different- different when it was Karen.
She wouldn't let Billy win.
Not his Karen.
She was strong.
NO-
She is strong.
Strong on the inside and out.
He wasn't so sure he was strong.
Not on the outside. Not on the inside.
Here he was, stuck in this chair- unable to do anything to stop it…
He wasn't strong enough to break free.
Here he was, stuck in this chair- bawling his eyes dry, crying out for Karen.
He wasn't strong enough to hold himself together for her.
He could hear it- but it was him who was breaking down.
Not his Karen.
She was stuck in there with that monster.
And she was sticking it to him- to Bill.
That's what was getting him- Frank thought he would hear her screams, her cries, her tears. But instead she was silent.
And the silence scared him.
Only the occasional whimper could be heard over the speakers.
And him.
Billy Fucking Russo.
He could hear him- his grunts.
The terrifying sound of skin slapping skin.
His groans.
Jesus…..
“Karen!!!” Frank cried out for her.
“Billy! You bastard- I'll kill ya! You're done, ya hear me….. Karen! C’mon…”
More grunts. A whimper. More groans.
Shit yeah…… Ugh- That was good-
Thank god it was over- the only shred of sanity he could hold onto… At least it was over.
Sorry it was so short, sweetheart. It's been a while…
That bastard! He’s talking to her like this was some normal thing- like he hadn't just kidnapped and raped her.
What you're not gonna say anything? Nah we had a deal Karen Page- I keep little Sophie from having to know what's happening and you… You play nice.
He knew he was listening- that's the only reason Billy was doing this… To play with him.
Th- thank you.
My god- she sounded awful, her voice hoarse and filled with pain. It tore his heart out.
There she is…. I gotta say talk after sex is almost the best part- the only thing that separates us from the animals.
You're the animal. Frank burned from the inside out- wanting to know how Karen was, but knowing if he saw her right now he would probably have an aneurysm.
So true….
He hated hearing her like this- but that sad voice was the only thing that let him know that despite everything she'd been through, she was still breathing.
Ah ah ah ah- now that didn't sound very genuine Karen. If you'd rather me go out there and shoot the little tyke, that can be arranged.
NO!
No! I'm sorry…
God, don't apologize after everything he's done.
Don't worry, sweetheart. I'll stay in here with you- besides i'm almost ready for round two….
Round two?
Don't look so surprised, you didn't think that quickie was gonna be it, did you? What about you Frank? You ready for round two yet?
She whimpered, but the question was rhetorical for both Frank and Karen.
“Ahhhhhhh- BILL! GET YOUR ASS OUT HERE!”
Frank wasn't sure if Billy could hear him, but he must have at least slightly because all he heard was a chuckle from the man before the sound of Billy groaning could be heard- which could only mean the start of round two.
Grunts.
Whimper.
Groans.
That's pretty, what is it?
What the hell is he talking about?
A gift.
A gift? What gift?
Yeah? Ungg…. From who?
The Fuckhead! The talking was killing him- it was one thing to hear it happening, another to hear him chat her up like they were at brunch.
Fr- It's from Frank….
A gift? He gave her a gift, what gift?
Now ain't that sweet- oh yeah…..
The necklace! She had the necklace on? God he could only hope she remembered how to activate the panic button.
Grunt.
Whimpers.
Groan.
The sound of something breaking.
What? You gonna take it off?
Take it off? Take what off?
Yeah- i'm taking it off.
Karen was taking something off? Not the necklace right? At this point it was the only thing that could save them.
Can I ask why? Shit that's good…..
Don't take it off.
Because….
God dammit!
Grunts.
Bastard.
Groans.
I'm gonna-
Fucking BASTARD!!
Because….
Please Karen!
I'm coming…..
“KAREN!!”
Because he can't save me from you-
Jesus…..
_________________________________
David had been sitting on the couch watching early morning cartoons with the family when his phone buzzed, and a notification popped up that he thought he might never see. A notification that he had assured Frank would never be necessary, when Frank came in the house with the two simple pieces of jewelry he planned on gifting Sophie and Karen- he thought it ridiculous what Frank wanted him to do.
He had asked David to place tracking devices in both, but a special panic button on Karen’s necklace- just like the cameras it took a while before David gave in. But eventually he did- if this is what it took to keep his friend sane and as close to happy as possible, then he would do it.
David stood up and headed towards his office, leaving in the middle of a conversation.
“David? Where are you going?” Sarah interrupted him, and tried to grab his arm.
But he had to keep going, had to find out if this was real- “Dad?”
He had to know if this was just a panic button that meant Karen lost Sophie and needed him to find her, or if something had really gone wrong. After all his assurances to Frank, he owed it to him to follow the plan.
Walking through the door to his office, he started on the basics- tracking their current location. Call Frank. Then move on to the cameras in their apartment- after that try to find as many cameras near their location and try to find those responsible, if that applies. Call Frank again- if he doesn't answer, things would get sticky.
So he did what he was supposed to do- he called Frank….
Once.
He didn't answer.
“It's me- the button from the special package has been activated. If you don't call me back- I will find them, find red.” David prayed his friend would call him back- but he couldn't just wait for that to happen.
He had a responsibility, after everything Frank had done for David's family- he owed it to Frank to get to the bottom of this.
“David?” The door of his office made the type of sound you only hear in the horror movies- a scrape of wood on wood that set his nerves on edge.
“Not now Sarah, I have to do something…”
Sarah obviously didn't like when David got like this- cold, concentrated, didn't like when he turned into Micro. “No, you don't get to just brush me off- you just walked out on the kids and I with no explanation, now what's going on?”
David thought of the precious time being wasted with this conversation, but knew in the long run dealing with this now would stop her from pushing and pushing if he didn't tell her, so his fingers stopped typing and he swiveled his chair towards her.
“Somethings wrong- with Frank and the girls. I owe it to Frank to fix this and I will explain everything once I know what I'm doing but this is life and death, okay Sarah? Can I get back to it now?” David didn't wait for her to respond and turned back to the computers that were calling him back.
“Wrong? With Karen and Soph? And Frank….”
The cameras in Karen's apartment turned on and he saw the mess there, saw the little bit of blood on the floor near the smashed lamp. Saw what looked like a struggle- he was about to rewind when he felt Sarah’s gaze on the screen.
“You should go- I have a lot to do and I'm not sure you'll want to see this,” David hadn't turned to look at her this time just kept working.
“Fuck you if you think I'm not strong enough to handle this- that's bullshit and you know it!” Sarah fumed at his back.
“It has nothing to do with whether I think you can handle it or not- this is obviously serious and I don't have time to deal answering your questions and figuring this out- I work better alone, okay?” David looked over his shoulder at his angry wife who took a minute but eventually nodded her head and closed the door behind her- and he immediately rewinded back to when the girls got home.
What he saw was disturbing- and he thanked god Frank didn't have access to see this, or he would have had a heart attack seeing what could only be Billy Russo smashing the lamp over his lady’s head.
So he called again, and accessed cameras across the street from the apartment building and watched him put both girls in a van. Franks voicemail came through as he followed the van back to the location the two tracking devices were homing from. The only consolation being they were still in the same place Billy originally brought them.
“I'm gonna find red, I promise.” He wasn't sure if Frank would get the messages- if he even knew Karen was taken, but David would fix this.
He ran downstairs grabbed his coat and his keys, when Sarah stopped him.
“Where are you going?” David looked at her for what felt like an eternity, but was most likely only a minute- hoping he could explain without words what this meant to him.
“After everything Frank did for us, I have to do this. I have to….”
Her eyes closed and she nodded moving out of his way, a silent ‘okay’ that he was thankful she gave, “But- be safe, okay?”
David leaned in and kissed her forehead, promising he would- then left the house. To find the former Devil of Hell's Kitchen- the one everybody thought was dead. He activated the app on his phone and started driving, knowing this might be a hard sell.
He remembered his conversation with Frank;
“How will I get him to come with me?”
Frank looked over at him on the couch before answering, “If it's a real emergency he’ll know- you can't lie to him, he always knows. And I'm not sure he’ll come for me, but he will for her. Red will come for Karen, if you tell him shes in trouble. I hope to god that never happened- but he will come.”
Thinking back on how he laughed at how crazy it seemed to be prepared for this, left a terrible taste in his mouth- and made him wonder if he should come up with some sort of doomsday protocol as well.
David was thirty minutes outside of Brooklyn, he parked his car outside this seedy looking bar- and had serious doubts this would be the place he would find Matthew Murdoch. But this is where it said he would be- all their research said this gross bar at nine in the morning would be the place he was at. Which was funny considering what he had googled about the man Frank called, ‘Alter Boy’- but drinking this early in the morning or more likely still drunk from the night before- screamed someone who had problems.
He knew exactly which man he was looking for once he stepped into the place- instead of being the drunk he assumed the man to be- there he was. A blind bartender, who was in the middle of cleaning glasses when David walked in, but stopped when he felt David's stare on his back.
“Can I help you?” Matt asked the man who stood at the front of the bar, before rushing over towards Matt that had him almost leaping backwards. “Matt? Matt Murdoch right?”
The name sent a small flicker of fear through his spine, before he whipped his head back and forth in denial- “No. I'm sorry you must be mistaken- you've got the wrong man.”
“I don't think I do- Somethings wrong….” David pleaded this Matt character would understand and come with him.
“I don't do that anymore. You should leave-” Matt was about to send him on his way, willing or not- when David cut him off.
“It's Karen! She’s been taken by some psycho, and normally I'd say Frank could fix this- but I think he's been taken too.” Matt stared at him in an unnerving way- David knew he was unable to physically see him, but he did know from Frank that he could see through him. And he prayed that whatever he could see would be enough to save Frank and the girls.
Time was ticking by as this Matt character looked through his very soul- before walking away and coming back with what looked like a small batton.
“Lets go.”
________________________________________________________
Grunts.
Bastard.
Groans.
I'm gonna-
Fucking BASTARD!!
Because….
Please Karen!
I'm coming…..
“KAREN!!”
Because he can't save me from you-
Jesus…..
She was right- he couldn't save her, she should hate him. This was his fault.
Unggghhh yeah that was amazing….
He hated himself, she should hate him- Frank couldn't blame her.
Only I can do that….
What?
What's that sound? A soft gurgle- a sound he couldn't describe happening, once… twice…. three times over- then silence. Silence that went on for a long time- an eternity.
“Karen?”
Silence met his ears and all he could see and feel were the memories of his family dying- and here he was again. In yet another situation where it was his fault.
Silent.
“Karen!!”
Frank couldn't hear anything besides the soft breathing of the little girl beside him, and it scared him. He was afraid.
“KAREN!!”
Nothing still.
How could he go on- what was he gonna do? What would happen to Soph? He couldn't legally take her, but he wouldn't leave her behind. That is if Billy doesn't kill Sophie before he goes. Frank knew in some crazy way that Billy wouldn't kill him- in some fucked up way, he thought him and Frank had some sort of destiny together. If both him and Soph survived this he would take her far away- live in some cabin in the middle of nowhere and protect her till his dying breath. Like he couldn't do with Karen.
He didn't know how long it had been since he was put in this chair- there were no windows in this Studio, but he knew it had to have been long. At least fifteen hours at the least.
“Karen!”
His eyes were getting heavy- his body was growing tired.
“Karen….”
His voice was hoarse, he needed water.
“Kare-”
He was done.
The shock of the door busting open was what woke him, what scared him awake. At first his blurry eyes only processed Billy, but then he realized this man was shorter- different.
Red.
He had never been so happy to see the pajama wearing fool.
“Karen…. Get Kare-” The man in front of him nodded before moving around the room, looking for her- when he found the door. She was behind there.
“Kare….” Frank needed water, he was afraid he might pass out soon.
That's when he heard it- everything wrong with him was forgotten when he heard the door open. When he heard the sound of Red’s voice dripping in horror.
“Oh my god…” Frank watched as the man made the sign of the cross before walking into the room, and it was in that moment Frank thought he had never been so desperate. He needed to know what happened.
“Karen!!!”
It was the last thing he said before passing out- the last thought he had before the black took over and all he saw were the hauntingly beautiful blue eyes from his dreams before there was nothing.