***

The throbbing pain in Dave’s head was what woke him. Then, between the pulses of ache, he slowly became aware of the restraints on his legs and hands. His eyes adjusted to the brightness of the room. He could hear scraping, the drip of water, and the thump of boots. Then, before he could see it coming, he felt the rush of icy water wash over him.

Dave’s heart rate accelerated. He could feel the wetness covering his shirt. The water rolled off his face. He blinked repeatedly, trying to focus on the figure appearing in front of him. All he could see was a blur at first, but then an outline formed. The first thing he noticed was the wide brim of a cowboy hat.

“Time to wake up,” the cowboy said.

The frigid water made it feel like his skin was being poked with thousands of tiny needles. He could feel his body shivering, convulsing from the drastic change in temperature. Dave squinted his eyes shut hard, trying to push the pain aside.

“Smart with the trip wires. I didn’t see them,” Terry added.

Then the sting of a blow across Dave’s right cheek sent another stab of sharp ache rippling through him. He heard himself let out a cry, and a warming sensation started to replace the coldness in the cheek that was struck. When Dave opened his eyes, he could see the blood on the cowboy’s hand and the stain left on the ring he wore.

“Pain in my ass. You know how far I’ve traveled to get those two? Farther than I’ve ever had to go before. Fucking pricks,” Terry said.

Dave started to take in his surroundings. The shelves lining the walls, the speckled concrete floor, the light above, the empty ten-gallon bucket next to Terry’s legs. He was held captive in his own garage.

The cowboy grabbed the tuft of hair on Dave’s head and pulled hard, exposing Dave’s jugular. The steel of the blade pressed against his throat felt as cold as the ice water.

“Where’d they go?” the cowboy asked.

Dave swallowed hard. His Adam’s apple rose from the base of the blade’s edge, then sank back down. His eyes roamed the ceiling, trying to avoid the incandescent lighting from the bulbs above. The brightness only brought more pain.

“I don’t know,” Dave answered.

The cowboy let go of Dave’s hair and removed the blade from his neck. But the swift action was followed by a blow to the side of Dave’s head, knocking both him and the chair over. A loud crack of bone greeted him when he hit the floor.

“AAGH!”

Dave’s body trembled. The snap had felt like it was his collarbone. The pain was slowly replaced by numbness. He started to feel tired until the cowboy lifted him back up, causing the broken bone to shift underneath his skin.

The cowboy placed his finger on Dave’s broken bone and pushed. Pop and cracks sounded from the pressure as the break in Dave’s bone worsened.

“Think hard,” the cowboy said.

Dave’s answer was a shot of spit on the cowboy’s forehead. The pressure against Dave’s shoulder stopped. The cowboy wiped the saliva off his face. Dave gasped for breath. Even with the pressure gone, the pain remained.

The cowboy punched Dave in the nose. Another crunch accompanied by a spray of blood. His head flew backward. Another blow hit him. Then another. Each thump of pain caused the room to blur and spin until everything finally went black.