What Lies Within

Chapter Eighteen

Angeal watched as the two Turks secured their apartment by using a series of codes on the door, as well as shutting down the power to the hydraulic metal door. Inside, the 1st Class SOLDIER was experiencing waves of guilt. Why had he left Zack alone in such a vulnerable state? When he had spotted the violent manner that the collar had been removed, he knew deep inside that only Genesis would be sadistic enough to do this. Every Sub that he had taken had gone missing, or had been discovered brutally murdered, he should have known that it had been the auburn haired General all along… At a soft distressed whimper from the lithe slave, Angeal locked eyes with the smaller teen and smiled gently.

“Where is your bathroom?” Angeal questioned as Rude turn around to face him.

“Behind you, down the hall, first doorway on the left, we’ll wait out here, but if we hear anything suspicious we will come to check on you.” The Turk sat down on the sofa and switched on the television, decreasing the volume drastically. Angeal nodded and then blinked when Reno came close, peering down at Zack before offering the teen a shaky smile.

“We won’t let anyone get at you again.” The red haired youth promised before looking up at Angeal and nodding.

“We’ll be out here watching the news if you need anything.” Reno told the taller man before plopping down on the soft next to Rude and curling up against the bald headed Turk. Angeal watched the couple with a slight smile before shifting his hold on Zack and walking down the hallway and into the bathroom. It was spacious enough for his broad frame to move about easily, even with Zack in his arms. The teen made a soft sound of protest when Angeal put him down next to the toilet, but kept still when he realized that the older man wasn’t going anywhere. Gloved fingers ran through the soft spikes a few times to reassure the 2nd Class that he wasn’t leaving and Angeal knelt down next to the tub, turning his midnight blue eyes to the task at hand. He carefully set the temperature of the water before plugging the tub so it could fill. Even though Zack couldn’t feel whether the water was too hot or too cold wasn’t an excuse to overlook the boy’s comfort. He leaned back against the wall, watching the water rise for a few moments before returning his steady gaze to the spiky haired teenager, who was watching him as intently as ever, holding onto the last sense he had like a lifeline.

“Zack…” Angeal whispered softly, wishing that the drug would wear off so he could hold a conversation with the other SOLDIER. He wanted to ask Zack if he really meant those words said desperately in the warehouse. He wanted to assure the teen that he wasn’t mad at him at all. He wanted to tell the youth that he was sorry…

“I promised you that you would never have to go through sensory deprivation again… I told you that I would protect you. I let you down, Zack…” Angeal muttered, frowning slightly. Zack made a soft noise and shifted delicately against the wall, unsure of his own limbs since he had no feeling in them. Angeal sighed heavily and smiled slightly, reaching out to the teen to loosen the leather coat wrapped around his lithe frame and then pulled the nude body up against him, running a hand through the wild spikes while keeping a close watch on the water level in the tub.

“Forgive me, Zack…” Angeal whispered, clutching the numb SOLDIER to his chest. They stayed like that for a few moments, until the long haired man had to pull away to shut the water off. The taller 1st Class picked Zack up easily and eased him slowly into the water, careful to stabilize his position against the back of the tub. The clear water was quickly tinged with copper and the SOLDIER frowned darkly before reaching for a dry cloth and dipping it into the water.

“Let’s get you cleaned up.” Angeal murmured, running the cloth against the teen’s face and then down to his bare neck. The missing collar made the taller man scowl lightly, but nothing could undo the true damage that had been done. Zack’s virginity had been ripped away without care and then his life had nearly been extinguished. Genesis would pay dearly; he would not get away with this… He immersed the cloth in the tinged water again and ran it over the teen’s chest gently, clearing off the dried blood there. The SOLDIER hesitated then, wondering how deep Zack’s trust of him ran. Would his slave shy away now from him if he tried to clean the blood caked on his thighs? Angeal had failed him in everyway a master could, so he wouldn’t be surprised. It was the rejection that made him pause, but the long haired 1st continued, slowly pressing the cloth to Zack’s inner thigh and beginning to rub the copper-colored stains off. Nothing… Not so much as the slightest flinch or shiver… Wide dark blue eyes looked into the teen’s face.

“You trust me that much…? You were just raped, puppy, how could you not even be afraid of me after that?” That amount of trust from any individual was astounding, and given these circumstances, Zack should be especially afraid and suspicious. Angeal smiled tenderly, continuing the soft massaging motion of the cloth.

“Puppy… If you are truly in love with me, then I am very lucky to have something so precious…” The long haired man whispered. It was a little unfair to Zack for saying things when he couldn’t hear them, but the taller man wasn’t intending on keeping this information away from the lithe youth when his hearing returned.

Angeal turned the water back on and rinsed the cloth off until it was white again and rubbed soap into it until it frothed with bubbles. He unplugged the tub and let the dirty water out only to stop the plug again and fill the bath up with new water. He gently ran the cloth over the youth’s skin, pausing to dip the cloth in the water to get the suds out and rinse the bubbles from teen’s skin. Once confident that all traces of the rape had been washed away and that Zack was clean, Angeal put the wet cloth aside and drained the tub again, refilling it with lukewarm water.

“I’m going to wash your hair now, Zack…” Angeal murmured, knowing that the teen couldn’t hear him, but wanting to explain aloud anyway. The taller man took the youth gently by the shoulders and eased him slowly backwards into the water, never letting the water rise above the nose and mouth. When Angeal pulled him back up, the rebellious spikes had been tamed down, but definitely had not been concurred. Some errant ones were already beginning to stand back up when the older man began to rub shampoo into the wet ebony hair.

“So stubborn…” Angeal mused out loud, smiling a bit as he massaged the sweet smelling liquid into the spikes. Those pale blue eyes closed finally so the bubbles wouldn’t get into them, out of instinct more than necessity. The 1st Class SOLDIER’s smile grew bittersweet as he carefully submerged the teen with one arm, leaving one hand free to rub through the youth’s wet hair. Angeal continued to comb his fingers through the hair until all traces of shampoo ebbed away. He sat the boy against the back of the tub carefully and then unplugged the stopper for the last time. Angeal paused, tensing when someone knocked at the door.

“Hey, it’s Reno. I’m leaving a pair of sweatpants outside the door. Zack and I are nearly the same size so it shouldn’t be too much of a hassle.” Angeal nodded even though the Turk couldn’t see him.

“Thank you. We’re almost finished in here.” He informed, wrapping his arms around Zack and lifting him free of the tub.

“Okay, good. Rude ordered some takeout and he nearly grilled the guy into the ground when he arrived. So, we have some food out here. I can’t give any guarantees that that dude will deliver here in the future though…” The joke made the SOLDIER smile and he knew Zack would’ve appreciated it if he could hear Reno’s voice. His enhanced hearing picked up the stealthy footsteps of the red haired Turk leaving and Angeal sat the teen down against the wall, carefully toweling the lithe form off.

“It will be alright, Zack. I won’t leave you now. Not ever.” Angeal vowed quietly and he stood back, grabbing the sweatpants and carefully dressing the youth in them. The road to recovery might be shorter since the 2nd Class SOLDIER trusted him so deeply, but it would still be tough. Angeal never back down from a challenge, especially one that involved his puppy…

To be continued...