by Bella Jewel
“If you run, Raven, I’ll shoot you,” he growls, pulling his jacket aside to show me the gun he’s holding behind it. Pointed right at me.
I still let my eyes dart around, like I’m contemplating running.
“I’ll do it. You know I’ll do it. Now stand up.”
“No,” I whisper. “No. How did you get to me? No.”
He shakes his head, grinning. “Stand.”
“No, please, just let me go.”
“Now.”
“Please, just leave me alone,” I screech.
I stand, and then pivot, acting like I’m about to run. His hand lashes out, catching hold of me, and he hauls me against his body. He presses the gun to my ribs, causing me to freeze. I know Slater will be watching right now, and I know he’ll be angry. So damned angry. He’ll want to come in here, and inflict all kinds of pain, but he can’t, and that will kill him.
I scream, but he raises the gun and smashes it against the back of my head.
My mouth opens in a silent scream, and my knees give way.
Then there is something over my mouth, which has an awful taste, and my entire world goes black.
And once again, I become the slave to a monster.
Only this time, I’m praying, just praying, I get away.
Please.
~20~
NOW – ELLIE
I come to and I’m in a cabin, of all places.
I expected a warehouse. The back of a van. Anything. But not a cabin. I blink a few times, and glance around, studying as much as I can before he notices I’m awake. I’m cuffed, and my ankles are bound together. I’m on my back on the sofa, staring up at the ceiling. I turn my head to the side, and take in my surroundings. It’s a nice cabin, big and roomy, with lush furniture.
I can’t see much in this position.
I look to the other side, and jerk when I meet the eyes of my captor.
He’s staring down at me, leaning over the couch. “You’re awake.”
He says that almost casually, like we’re two lovers who have spent a romantic evening away.
“Where am I?” I say, letting my voice sound frantic.
It isn’t hard. I spent years with this man.
I know how I acted.
I know what works, and what doesn’t.
“In a safe place until we can return home. I’ve been waiting for you, Raven, and my patience was wearing thin. And then, you so stupidly ran out on your little boyfriend. Have you learned nothing?”
I stare at him. “Let me go. Don’t you think you’ve had me long enough?”
He chuckles, shaking his head. “Sweetheart, I own you. I paid for you. That means, you’re mine for the rest of your breathing days.”
I bare my teeth at him. “They’ll find you this time, and they’ll kill you.”
He laughs. “I see you found some fire while you’ve been gone. Fair enough, I’ll let you have it, for a time. But you will bow to me again, Raven.”
“My name is Ellie!” I yell.
His eyes flare, and his hand comes down, curling around my shirt and hauling me up so our faces are only inches apart. “Speak to me like that again, and I’ll remind you of what I do when you disrespect me. Or have you forgotten already?”
I clench my jaw, and glare at him, but I don’t say anything.
My heart is racing.
I’m terrified.
Because, of course I remember. I see this man every single time I close my eyes.
“I escaped you once,” I breathe, angrily. “I’ll escape you again.”
He laughs, bitterly. Then he drops me back down. “You escaped me, because Riley helped you. That won’t be happening again. Riley is dead.”
My chest clenches, and I stare at him, so stunned by this revelation that I have no words.
“That’s right,” he snarls, then grins, “you think I didn’t know it was him? You think I wasn’t going to find him, and make him suffer for betraying me? Riley paid the price for his actions, and now you’ll pay the price for yours.”
“How could you?” I cry. “How could you!”
He shrugs. “Quite easily, actually. He was a thorn in my side. A waste of precious air.”
Monster.
Cold hearted monster.
And my heart breaks for Riley. It tears in two. Because he is the only reason I escaped this monster. He is the only reason I even have a chance at freedom again. It took so long for him to come around to me, and when he did, he gave me everything. He made sure I got free. For that, I’ll owe him my gratitude for the rest of my days. He didn’t deserve to die for me.
My heart tears in two.
But I keep it together.
Even though the thought of yet another life turned upside down because of me, makes me want to scream.
“You’re a horrible man, and one day, you’ll pay the price for your actions,” I say, my voice wavering.
He leans down close. “Maybe I will, but not until I’ve made you live with me for the rest of my days. After that, I don’t really care what happens, now do I?”
“What have I ever done to you? Why can’t you just let me go?”
He grins. “Because, you’re mine. And when I own something, I own it. I simply do not let it go. If I were to let you go, I’d sell you, Raven. I’d sell you and get my money back. I don’t wish to do that, no, I wish you to be mine for as long as I’m breathing on this earth. It’s what I paid for, after all.”
“I won’t be,” I mutter.
He smirks at me. “Oh, but my sweet Raven, you will be. I promise you that.”
I don’t like the way he says that.
I don’t like anything about his confidence.
I look away, and stare at a window.
I hope they don’t leave me here too much longer.
I don’t even know how long I’ve been out.
All I know is that I want to end this. Once and for all.
I need this monster out of my life.
“Don’t look away from me, dear Raven,” he murmurs, coming around to the other side of the sofa.
The way his voice sounds, the low purr, has my head whipping towards him. He has never spoken to me like that before, in such a sultry tone. My insides instantly clench, and panic grips me from all angles. Why is he looking at me like that? Why is talking to me like that?
I want to vomit.
I don’t like it.
Something inside of me screams it’s time to go.
Now.
“Leave me alone,” I say, my voice trembling.
Real fear.
The one that you feel right down to your bones.
He sits beside me, and his hand runs up my leg.
I jerk, but I have nowhere to go. Suddenly, I’m very alone, and so incredibly frightened.
He wouldn’t…would he?
He had me for ten years, he never touched me sexually.
Why would he now?
What has changed?
I assured Malakai that he wouldn’t. That he wasn’t like that.
Was I so very wrong?
“You had no problem letting Slater touch you, now did you?” he murmurs, running his hand up my thigh.
I feel sick.
I’m going to be sick.
I’m helpless.
I can’t escape him.
I can’t get away.
“Don’t. Please.”
“I always saw you as innocent. Mine. I knew you weren’t, of course, but in my mind…you were. Now, you’re different. You’re louder, more sassy, and your body has changed in the short time we’ve been apart. I can’t help but wonder…how would it feel?”
No.
God.
Please.
Someone. Help.
Help me.
“Please, don’t touch me,” I say, my voice shaking.
“I wouldn’t usually, but my desire with the new you, is strong. There is an urge in me. I need to know what you’d feel like, my captive. I need to kno
w, and I need to know now.”
No.
“Please,” I screech, thrashing as his hand climbs higher and he strokes my inner thigh.
I twist and turn and thrash as much as I possibly can.
This only seems to make him want it more.
A low moan leaves his throat, and he groans as he leans down, sniffing my hair.
I lurch my head forward, smashing into him. He hisses and reels backwards, and I cry out as stars dance in my vision. This earns me a hard punch to the cheek, one that nearly knocks me out. I cry out, trying to jerk my arms up, but I can’t. I’m stuck. I try to thrash my body off the sofa, anything to get away from him, but he’s having none of it.
“Sit still, or I will make you sit still,” he warns, pressing his forearm against my chest and holding me down with his body weight.
“Don’t. Please. I’ll do anything. Be anything. But please don’t do that.”
He grins at me, and I can see the harsh red mark on his forehead where I hit him. “But Raven, I own you. Which means, I can do whatever I like. That’s what I paid for.”
No.
Vomit rises in my throat, and I twist my head, trying to bite him, trying to do something.
His hand curls around my throat, pressing me into the sofa. My heart starts racing immediately as my oxygen is cut short. I see stars as my vision begins to fade, and everything in the room starts to spin. My body goes into overdrive, and panic sets in. I squirm and thrash, but with each passing second, I’m getting closer to being taken into darkness.
He leans over me, his hand travelling off to discover my body.
And I can’t stop him.
I’m helpless.
Please.
Someone.
Help me.
Slater.
Please.
~*~*~*~
NOW – SLATER
“We have to go in, now!” I roar, lunging out of the truck and going around to the back seat to get my rifle.
“Slater, calm down,” Malakai orders, his voice hard, but worried.
“Calm down?” I bark. “He has his fuckin’ hands on her. He’s goin’ to take the final piece of her, and I will not fuckin’ let that happen. I will not let him hurt her like that.”
“Fuckin’ know that, brother, but if you screw this up, and he knows we’re around…she’s dead.”
“What do you want me to do?” I pant, gripping the rifle. “Sit back and watch her get raped?”
The word makes my throat get tighter. We’ve been watching her, through a window that has no curtains. We’re far enough away he won’t know we’re here, but close enough that we can see with a set of binoculars. For a while, they were just talking, and everything seemed to be going well. And then everything turned. He was on her, touching her, hitting her, choking her.
That’s when I moved.
And now Malakai wants to tell me that I can’t do anything about it.
Like fuck.
I let her get away from me once, and live ten years of pain.
I will not fuckin’ do it again.
“You fuckin’ know I won’t let her be raped, Slater. But you gotta know we have to be smart.”
“One fuckin’ shot, and he’s dead,” I growl.
“Two fuckin’ shots,” Malakai barks. “Because there is a window, and you’re not that good. The chances of you hitting him through it, in one shot, are so fuckin’ slim. Which means it’s two shots. Two. Shots. If he moves and you miss, she’s dead. Do you understand me? We go down there, bust in, that’s the best option.”
“For who?” I bellow. “By the time we get down there, he has done enough damage to completely ruin her. I can see the fear in her eyes, I can see it as clearly as I can see you. She’s fuckin’ terrified. And he’s goin’ to have his hands in places his hands shouldn’t be, in a matter of minutes. We don’t have fuckin’ time to get close and bust in. I can do this. Because I am fuckin’ good enough. Two shots. Fine. I’ll have him on the ground in minutes.”
“Slater…” Malakai warns. “You are risking her life.”
“You do not get to control this one, Malakai. I trusted you this far. I let you have your way. But if you think I’m goin’ to sit back and watch my girl get hurt, you’re fuckin’ sadly mistaken.”
“Ten minutes,” he growls. “And we can get her out safely.”
“One fuckin’ minute, and his brains are scattered all over that cabin.”
“Slater…”
“I think Slater has the right idea,” Koda says, stepping out of the truck. “Let him go, Malakai. He can make the shot.”
Malakai turns to say something to Koda, and I move, quick as lightning. I disappear off into the darkness, nothing but my rifle in hand. I don’t fuckin’ need anything else. I’m a good shot with a gun, and this fucker is the best of its kind. Long range. He won’t see it coming. It’ll go straight through that window, and by the time he realizes what’s happening, I’ll have fired the other shot, straight into his head.
I will not let him hurt her.
“Fuck. Where the fuck did he go?” Malakai roars into the darkness. “Slater!”
I use my flashlight to find a spot high enough up that I can look down. I get down on my stomach, and set the rifle up, using the scope to zone in. I have the best night vision on the market. I can see him clear as day. What I see makes my stomach turn. It is a sight I never want to experience again in my life. His body on hers, hand on her throat. She’s thrashing, still trying to get him off. He’s laughing. The sick fuck is laughing.
I wanted this to go so many other ways.
I wanted to take him, and torture him slowly for what he did to her.
I wanted to make him suffer.
I wanted him to endure every type of pain there is to endure.
But…her…she comes first. She’s always come first.
She is my life, and fucked if I will let her down again.
I take a deep breath, aim the rifle so the red dot is right on his head, and then I murmur, “I hope you fuckin’ rot in hell, you bastard. This is for Ellie.”
I pull the trigger.
It takes almost a moment for me to see the result I want. It’s like everything is in slow motion. The sound of the rifle echoes through the night, and then I watch as the window smashes as the bullet breezes through. It doesn’t hit him, but I knew it wouldn’t. Wind, glass, and other factors affect where the bullet goes, and I knew it wouldn’t go directly where I needed once it hit the glass.
But it is enough for him to jerk, his head whipping up.
I have a split second before he moves, and I miss him.
I have the shot lined up. I haven’t moved a single muscle.
I knew he wouldn’t get time to leap off her, that he’d simply lift his head, and I was right. Which means, my next shot will go exactly where I need it to go.
His eyes look out into the darkness, almost directly at me.
As if he knows I’m watching him.
As if he knows his life is about to end.
And I pull the trigger.
And my aim is spectacular. The bullet hits him right between the eyes, and a splash of red can be seen as slowly, his body topples backwards.
He hits the ground. Lifeless.
And just like that…it’s over.
Just like that, I slayed a monster.
Just like that, I gave Ellie her freedom back.
Just like that, I made it all go away.
Just. Like. That.
~21~
NOW – ELLIE
I’ll never forget the moment life was wiped from him.
I’ll never forget it for as long as I live.
The way that bullet ripped through the window.
The way the second one hit him right between the eyes.
The way his body fell off mine. Dead.
The way I felt, the moment I realized he was gone.
Gone. Forever. Gone.
I’ll never forget laying there, c
rying, out of relief and fear, or a buildup of emotion from ten years. Or all of them combined.
I’ll never forget Slater busting into the cabin, hauling me into his arms, and hanging onto me so tightly I couldn’t breathe.
I’ll never forget the day he became my hero.
He saved my life.
He took it all away.
It’s like he reached in, and just scooped up all the bad, and disposed of it.
Now here we are, at his house, me bundled up in a warm blanket, Erin by my side.
It still hasn’t fully clicked that it’s all over.
But deep down, I know it is.
They did it. Just like they said they would.
Slater saved me. Just like he promised. He made it all go away.
“Are you okay?” Erin asks, her arm still firmly around my shoulders, like she’s too afraid to let me go.
“He’s gone,” I whisper.
“He’s gone, honey. And you’re safe.”
I’m safe.
Oh my. I’m safe.
“I’m safe,” I murmur.
“I couldn’t breathe. Every single second you were gone. I couldn’t breathe. I was so afraid of something happening to you.”
“Never goin’ to let that happen, Erin,” Slater says, walking into the room with a cup of tea in his hand.
He’s followed by Lincoln, Damon, Finn and Malakai. Everyone else went home after making sure we were okay here.
“Thank you,” Erin says to him, and she means it. “All of you. Thank you.”
Malakai nods, and looks to Slater. He’s angry at him. I can see it written all over his face. Slater told me he took the shot against Malakai’s orders. I know why Malakai is angry, but I’m not going to be on his side for this. Slater taking that shot saved my life, and my sanity.
Because if that monster had continued his path…I wouldn’t be sitting here so calmly.
Slater made sure he didn’t give me anymore horror.
Slater made sure no more of my mind was damaged.
I owe him everything for that.
“I’m headin’ off,” Malakai murmurs. “Hope you’re feelin’ okay, Ellie.”
“Thank you,” I tell him. “With all my heart, Malakai. Thank you.”
He smiles, but he looks exhausted. “We die for family, darlin’. You know that.”
