Post by theravenmattknox on Apr 2, 2021 3:18:46 GMT -5
Matthew Knox was a creature of habit. Hope had come to joke with him about how she could set her watch to his morning routine. Right down to the second cup of hazelnut coffee that was the cap to it, usually in the cup at 6:30 AM. He would pick a hotel before getting to a town, and that would be the only hotel he would ever populate.
So here now, driven by a force he couldn't quite name but was equally powerless to resist had driven him from the comfortable nest he had made in the deserts of Reno to a much seedier place that had a tab open on his Visa and was apparently charging hourly. He didn’t pay it any mind though. Drug dealers, Pimps, Degenerates...they weren’t foreign.
And they didn’t look twice when he brought the queen out of his car, out like a light..
He opened the door to room 264 and stepped inside the dimly lit, dungy room that was a far cry from the suites he usually splurged on. The nightstand was adorned in scattered pill bottles, some tipped on their side with the contents resting on the surface of a wooden dresser that hadn’t known a proper dusting since George Bush was president. Herbert Walker, not Dubya.
And seated in the middle of the mess and decay, bound to her throne was “Queen Machine” Jennifer Rivers. Matthew barely acknowledged her as he entered, heading to the pill bottles and snatching up a random pair and popping them like so many breath mints. Self medication was never the correct answer. But, there wasn’t much left about him that was correct.
His long, pale form seemed to glide back to the centerpiece of his new kingdom though, as he dropped to a knee to meet her gaze. Gently, he reached out to her face and peeled the duct tape off in one go, wincing as he did so.
“Sorry..” came the rasp of an apology “but..you do understand, don’t you?”
The eyes of the woman were cold as she stared at Knox, the only thing in her demeanour that betrayed her feelings. She looked at the man kneeling in front of her from top to bottom. “I do. But you don’t” her voice was a hoarse whisper. She had been bound and gagged for a considerable time, something that she was unaccustomed to. “You’re going through an awful lot of trouble for no effect Mr. Knox. He won’t care about anything that happens to me. Your fate was sealed the moment you stepped into that room in Reno. I wish I had been there”
He shushes her quietly, the same hand with the tape reaching out to push a bit of hair from her face. He leans to the shelf, grabbing and uncorking a bottle of water, holding her gaze as he takes a slow, deliberate drink.
“Of course he cares. I do what I plan...what I’m going to do? He’ll think i’m still playing his game. Probably tweet some perverse pseudo-cryptic bull.sHIT” he grimaced, turning from her a moment and furrowing his brow, as if listening to something. A smile cracks his features as he returns his gaze to her, offering the bottle up to her lips before speaking.
“It doesn’t matter, really...this is selfish. I said you carried his pail of water. . .I’m just giving you your share first.” a chuckle “Ladies first, right?”
She drank the water he had offered and lowered her head for a moment as if to process his words. His mannerisms hadn’t escaped her notice as she had seen something familiar there. Finally she raised her head and there was a small grin on her lips. “Oh well. Guess there’s no point in pretending then… puddin. I do wonder if you’re willing to go far enough. You don’t seem like the type to cross too many lines. Shame really.” a playful tone had entered her voice, seemingly turning her into a different woman.
“Not lately, no...no, not lately.” He dutifully held the bottle in place, gaze shifting to another part of the room, “Back then though? God...I should be rotting in the ground with him. Soon though...soon though i’ll send someone in my place..” he paused, taking in an inhale and clenching his eyes shut a moment.
“Sorry. .you may have heard, I got my head cracked and...dealing with it..” a chuckle “but you’re no stranger to crazy. You just like pretending you’re normal, don’t you?” and the bottle was withdrawn, set carelessly beside him on the stained carpet, he shifted his body to sit cross legged at Jennifer’s feet, staring up at her.
She chuckled and nodded. “Sometimes you gotta make sacrifices for the greater good puddin. I think that’s what makes him so unique. He doesn’t even try to pretend. But ol’ me? I’ve had to do it for a long time… For the good of everyone.” She flashes him a sultry smile. “You know puddin, I kinda like the new you. You remind me of him a bit. He didn’t start out like that. Maybe you two have more in common than you think.”
She struggled a bit against her binds and pouts. “You coulda warned me about your penchant for a bit of rope-play. I woulda come prepared”
“I’m nothing like him. There’s nothing like me. There shouldn’t be me.” He spat, narrowing his eyes a bit “And can the seduction. It’s not getting you anywhere but closer to getting the tape put back on that venomous mouth.”
He bows his head, shoulders slumping as he works through the rest of her words. The important ones. “What was he before? Some faceless baby-faced kid? I’m fighting...five of those on an Island soon. Well...four. That Horror kid has a meth face more than anything..” he swats the thoughts away from him, refocusing on her.
“What’s his name?”
Another chuckle from the bound woman. “Won’t tell. You speak that to him and I’m in trouble. Not unless there’s something there for ol’ Queenie” She winks and continues. “But you’re not wrong. Baby-faced kid he was. Kindest soul you can find. Outside the ring he wouldn’t hurt a fly. But he was naive. He got taken advantage of. Put through hell mentally and physically only because he wanted to be a wrestler. And when he got his face cut up he finally snapped.”
She fell silent for a moment. “It was just a matter of time to be honest with you. Gentle giants don’t survive. Don’t underestimate him puddin.”
“I think I heard that news report…” his gaze becomes steely, but his lip curls in a smirk “Family dog...most gentle giant you ever saw. Loved the kids...til his favorite chew toy got tossed out. Then we went rabid, ate the toddler and shit in the slippers...so he got put down..” a chuckle at his own absurdity, one that dies quickly.
“You’re so sure he doesn’t give a shit about what happens to you..but I need to ask..” He is on his knees now, eye level with her. He leans in, resting his hands on her knees “Would you mourn him?”
She chews on her lower lip thoughtfully and then shrugs, as much as she can with her arms bound. “Probably. It’s hard to find good muscle nowadays dontcha think? Though I don’t know what you can do to accomplish that. Outside of just shooting him in the head. And I don’t think Jackson would appreciate that. Or the Reno PD. But hey, if ya need my help to hide the body, just call me puddin!” While she is keeping up the playful banter, there is a clear hint of worry in her voice. A tint that betrays more than she lets on.
Matthew grins, nodding along and even chuckling at the absurdity. He lifts the tape and presses it against her cheek, leaving it to dangle. “Can’t imagine you need it...good chat. I’ll make sure you eat but for now..” and he snatched the tape, pressing it back over her mouth before standing up and unceremoniously tipping her seat over. He steps over the fallen queen and steps into the bathroom, closing the door behind him.
So here now, driven by a force he couldn't quite name but was equally powerless to resist had driven him from the comfortable nest he had made in the deserts of Reno to a much seedier place that had a tab open on his Visa and was apparently charging hourly. He didn’t pay it any mind though. Drug dealers, Pimps, Degenerates...they weren’t foreign.
And they didn’t look twice when he brought the queen out of his car, out like a light..
He opened the door to room 264 and stepped inside the dimly lit, dungy room that was a far cry from the suites he usually splurged on. The nightstand was adorned in scattered pill bottles, some tipped on their side with the contents resting on the surface of a wooden dresser that hadn’t known a proper dusting since George Bush was president. Herbert Walker, not Dubya.
And seated in the middle of the mess and decay, bound to her throne was “Queen Machine” Jennifer Rivers. Matthew barely acknowledged her as he entered, heading to the pill bottles and snatching up a random pair and popping them like so many breath mints. Self medication was never the correct answer. But, there wasn’t much left about him that was correct.
His long, pale form seemed to glide back to the centerpiece of his new kingdom though, as he dropped to a knee to meet her gaze. Gently, he reached out to her face and peeled the duct tape off in one go, wincing as he did so.
“Sorry..” came the rasp of an apology “but..you do understand, don’t you?”
The eyes of the woman were cold as she stared at Knox, the only thing in her demeanour that betrayed her feelings. She looked at the man kneeling in front of her from top to bottom. “I do. But you don’t” her voice was a hoarse whisper. She had been bound and gagged for a considerable time, something that she was unaccustomed to. “You’re going through an awful lot of trouble for no effect Mr. Knox. He won’t care about anything that happens to me. Your fate was sealed the moment you stepped into that room in Reno. I wish I had been there”
He shushes her quietly, the same hand with the tape reaching out to push a bit of hair from her face. He leans to the shelf, grabbing and uncorking a bottle of water, holding her gaze as he takes a slow, deliberate drink.
“Of course he cares. I do what I plan...what I’m going to do? He’ll think i’m still playing his game. Probably tweet some perverse pseudo-cryptic bull.sHIT” he grimaced, turning from her a moment and furrowing his brow, as if listening to something. A smile cracks his features as he returns his gaze to her, offering the bottle up to her lips before speaking.
“It doesn’t matter, really...this is selfish. I said you carried his pail of water. . .I’m just giving you your share first.” a chuckle “Ladies first, right?”
She drank the water he had offered and lowered her head for a moment as if to process his words. His mannerisms hadn’t escaped her notice as she had seen something familiar there. Finally she raised her head and there was a small grin on her lips. “Oh well. Guess there’s no point in pretending then… puddin. I do wonder if you’re willing to go far enough. You don’t seem like the type to cross too many lines. Shame really.” a playful tone had entered her voice, seemingly turning her into a different woman.
“Not lately, no...no, not lately.” He dutifully held the bottle in place, gaze shifting to another part of the room, “Back then though? God...I should be rotting in the ground with him. Soon though...soon though i’ll send someone in my place..” he paused, taking in an inhale and clenching his eyes shut a moment.
“Sorry. .you may have heard, I got my head cracked and...dealing with it..” a chuckle “but you’re no stranger to crazy. You just like pretending you’re normal, don’t you?” and the bottle was withdrawn, set carelessly beside him on the stained carpet, he shifted his body to sit cross legged at Jennifer’s feet, staring up at her.
She chuckled and nodded. “Sometimes you gotta make sacrifices for the greater good puddin. I think that’s what makes him so unique. He doesn’t even try to pretend. But ol’ me? I’ve had to do it for a long time… For the good of everyone.” She flashes him a sultry smile. “You know puddin, I kinda like the new you. You remind me of him a bit. He didn’t start out like that. Maybe you two have more in common than you think.”
She struggled a bit against her binds and pouts. “You coulda warned me about your penchant for a bit of rope-play. I woulda come prepared”
“I’m nothing like him. There’s nothing like me. There shouldn’t be me.” He spat, narrowing his eyes a bit “And can the seduction. It’s not getting you anywhere but closer to getting the tape put back on that venomous mouth.”
He bows his head, shoulders slumping as he works through the rest of her words. The important ones. “What was he before? Some faceless baby-faced kid? I’m fighting...five of those on an Island soon. Well...four. That Horror kid has a meth face more than anything..” he swats the thoughts away from him, refocusing on her.
“What’s his name?”
Another chuckle from the bound woman. “Won’t tell. You speak that to him and I’m in trouble. Not unless there’s something there for ol’ Queenie” She winks and continues. “But you’re not wrong. Baby-faced kid he was. Kindest soul you can find. Outside the ring he wouldn’t hurt a fly. But he was naive. He got taken advantage of. Put through hell mentally and physically only because he wanted to be a wrestler. And when he got his face cut up he finally snapped.”
She fell silent for a moment. “It was just a matter of time to be honest with you. Gentle giants don’t survive. Don’t underestimate him puddin.”
“I think I heard that news report…” his gaze becomes steely, but his lip curls in a smirk “Family dog...most gentle giant you ever saw. Loved the kids...til his favorite chew toy got tossed out. Then we went rabid, ate the toddler and shit in the slippers...so he got put down..” a chuckle at his own absurdity, one that dies quickly.
“You’re so sure he doesn’t give a shit about what happens to you..but I need to ask..” He is on his knees now, eye level with her. He leans in, resting his hands on her knees “Would you mourn him?”
She chews on her lower lip thoughtfully and then shrugs, as much as she can with her arms bound. “Probably. It’s hard to find good muscle nowadays dontcha think? Though I don’t know what you can do to accomplish that. Outside of just shooting him in the head. And I don’t think Jackson would appreciate that. Or the Reno PD. But hey, if ya need my help to hide the body, just call me puddin!” While she is keeping up the playful banter, there is a clear hint of worry in her voice. A tint that betrays more than she lets on.
Matthew grins, nodding along and even chuckling at the absurdity. He lifts the tape and presses it against her cheek, leaving it to dangle. “Can’t imagine you need it...good chat. I’ll make sure you eat but for now..” and he snatched the tape, pressing it back over her mouth before standing up and unceremoniously tipping her seat over. He steps over the fallen queen and steps into the bathroom, closing the door behind him.