“It would have gone differently because Ron wouldn't have been obligated to anyone,” Niegel growled as if that was easy enough to imagine. Ron would have chosen him and they would have figured things out. Ron hadn't really wanted kids and he obviously liked men. That had been Niegel's belief even if Ron had never directly said anything like that. It was the indirect things that had Niegel convinced.<br/><br/>Niegel had stripped him, asking curious questions as if he wasn't dehumanizing the young man. Chrys stumbled for an answer in his current situation, trying to push away from the tub. He hadn't enlisted because he'd seen what it had done to his family.<br/><br/>“No, Chrys. Ron was away so much because he wanted to get away from his civilian life. There were so many nights he called in some excuse and he stayed with us, his real family. He could be what he wanted with me. It was just the guys, and we were discreet. Even with the others he was always discreet. If your father had chosen a different career, it would have been the same thing, I promise. Him making excuses, his dick plunged into some younger guy in a hotel somewhere under the guise of a business trip. That's just how Ron is. I understood that.” He'd accepted that and would have taken the man exactly as he was. His wife would never do that for him.<br/><br/>“Maybe people have started looking for you now, maybe they haven't.” Niegel shrugged. He hadn't had Chrys that long so it was a toss up. He was young, but he was an adult. Ron would be complacent, at least initially. He was never a man to jump straight to conclusions, but what about Chrys' mother? How long would it take for her to be inconsolable? How long before Ron started to worry himself? Deep in his heart he felt that Ron would be the one to find them once he put things together. He knew him best. Is that what he wanted? Niegel wasn't sure.<br/><br/>When he gave Chrys an example of what he could earn for his non-compliance he saw the fear vibrant in the young man's eyes. He'd gone still and Niegel took the opportunity to scoop him up dumb him into the tub unceremoniously. Chrys seem stunned and quiet when Niegel climbed in with him. The larger man hadn't anticipated anything from him, thinking he'd gotten him adequately frightened but fear caused a whole manner of reaction in different people. Hard to tell exactly what they might do when frozen up like that, but when Chrys lashed out he hadn't been expecting it. He thought he had the boy cowed but it seemed Ron had taught his son<i>something</i>useful. Niegel toppled in the slippery conditions in a tangle of limbs, hitting his head against the edge of the tub.<br/><br/>When he woke he was in the tub, water still spraying him. It had grown cold but he knew his hot water tank heater wasn't that large. That wasn't an indicator that too much time had gone by. He was disoriented and being in such a state triggered his survival instinct. He shifted into a different mode, letting his fury and adrenaline fuel him as he righted himself and climbed out of the tub. He was bleeding right above his temple but nothing serious. Head wounds liked to bleed and it would clot eventually once he got out of the wet. He turned the shower off and listened, assessing the situation. He didn't hear anything and toweled off enough to put his pants back on. His shirt was missing and so were Chrys' pants.<br/><br/>When he moved into the living area quietly, expected maybe Chrys had tried to find a weapon he saw the window had been busted. Bloody evidence made it apparent the young man had gone through it. He was lucky he was slender. Niegel doubted someone much bigger would have had such luck with the camper windows.<br/><br/>Niegel would save time by not having to go through the window. He knew where the key was to open the lock bolted over the front door. He pulled out a drawer beside the bed to slip into a shirt and then a jacket before heading outside. It was a remote location, thank god. Niegel had picked this place because he knew initially before he made accommodations to his camper, there was some risk of something going wrong. He didn't think it would go so far as Chrys getting away from him like this but finding a bleeding kid in the woods shouldn't be too difficult. It would get cold and he knew the young man had been hasty and was most definitely bleeding.<br/><br/>The terrain was rocky and unforgiving and Niegel hoped any park rangers had gone on home. He picked one of the farthest campsites, saying he'd wanted to get as close to the real experience as he could. There weren't other campers set up for miles but Niegel also knew how much ground someone could cover if they were thinking clearly. Niegel hoped Chrys wasn't.