by Lexi Wilson
“Don’t apologize. Look, Jaxon, just be careful. Okay? You’re caught up in something here whether you like it or not. I know that I can’t convince you to get out of it. I know that if I was in your shoes I would do the same. But be careful. That’s all I ask. And call me if you need me. Okay?”
“Okay. Thanks, Styles. I appreciate it.”
I knew that Styles wouldn’t do anything about what I had said. No matter how much I pretended as if it wasn’t about me, he knew the truth. But he wouldn’t do anything. He knew that it was up to me and Kaylee to decide on coming forth with the truth. I left the room and headed down to the kitchen. I decided to make a sandwich and some coffee for Kaylee, and give her some more painkillers and water. While I made the food, I thought about what Styles had said and wondered what I was going to have to do. He was right, though, we couldn’t just leave this. We had to take a chance and see if we could take him down. Bill had a hold on her, and if we didn’t do something about it now, he would have a hold on her forever. I wasn’t prepared to lose her. Especially not to a man like that.
I needed to speak to Kaylee about it. I didn’t want to go to the cops without her consent. This wasn’t my life and it wasn’t my choice, but I had to at least try to convince her that it was the right thing to do. Bill now knew where we lived. The photos that he had left under the door proved that he was not about to give up. But perhaps we could prove that he had been harassing us. Kaylee’s face was still bruised and her ribs looked awful. We still had evidence showing what he had done to her. Maybe if we acted now it wouldn’t be as bad as she thought. And what about Allie? Maybe Allie was old enough to tell the truth. Kaylee said that Allie had been sheltered from it, but I was sure that she would’ve seen something. It wouldn’t be nice to ask her to dredge up these memories, but it might be the only way we could ensure her safety.
I finished making the food and headed upstairs. Kaylee probably wouldn’t want to eat, but I wanted her to get her strength back. The painkillers I gave her were also very strong, and she’d feel sick if she had them without food in her system. As I got to the bedroom I saw she wasn’t there. I put the food down and waited for her. I assumed she’d just gone to the bathroom, although I was surprised she had managed to get out of bed herself when she was struggling so much before.
When five minutes went by and she wasn’t back, I headed to the bathroom. The door was closed, so I knocked and called out to see if she was okay.
“Kaylee,” I said again. “Are you okay? Do you need help? I don’t mind helping if you need.”
Again, there was no reply. A strange thought came into my head. Kaylee wouldn’t have left, would she? Surely not. I opened the door, then gasped when I saw that it was empty. I ran back into her bedroom, then opened the adjacent door where Allie always slept, but that was empty too. Kaylee was nowhere to be seen. I ran through the house, checking everywhere, even the garden, and calling out for her, but she was definitely gone. I noticed that her bag was still there and the painkillers were on the bedside table. I thought it was strange that she had left such vital things behind. Then again, if Kaylee wanted to leave while I was on the phone to Styles, she would’ve done it in a hurry. She wouldn’t have had any time to think about her possessions. I could not believe what was going on. I couldn’t believe it. Kaylee had gone. She’d left me.
I rushed to get my phone, which I had left in the bedroom, and called my mother. If Allie was gone she would’ve surely come to take Allie.
“Mom, Mom, is Allie with you?” I asked.
“Allie is here.”
“What? She is?”
“What’s going on?” she asked.
“She left without Allie. She obviously thought it was the right thing to do. A way to keep Allie safe. Unless she’s on her way to you? No, you live too close. She would’ve been at your place by now.”
“What? You’re not making any sense,” my mother said. “Take a deep breath and start again.”
I inhaled deeply before continuing. “Kaylee is gone. She’s gone. I was on the phone to Styles in my room, and when I came out she had gone.”
“Gone? But why would she leave?” my mother asked.
“Her husband is after her. That’s why.”
“Her husband? She’s married?” my mother gasped.
“I can’t get into that right now. I need you to keep Allie safe. I need you to head over to the police station. I will meet you. Okay? I’m going to call Styles now and tell him that we’re coming over.”
“But…”
“Mom, I have no idea what I’m doing, but right now I just know that I have to find her, and I have to keep Allie safe. This man is out there, and she’s all alone.”
“Okay, I’ll meet you there. Be careful, darling.”
“I will, Mom.”
I grabbed my keys and headed out to the garage to get my car. It was only when I was there that I noticed that Kaylee’s car was still there. I frowned. If she had run away she would’ve taken her car. She wouldn’t have walked. Or was she in too much pain to drive? I climbed in the car and drove around the area, looking for any signs of her. It was a small town and she should be easy to find. If she was running away by foot, then it was only a matter of time before I found her. There was no way that she could be far. I hadn’t been on the phone for that long. She had to be near. But she was nowhere to be seen. I frowned. This was strange. Where on earth was she hiding? And then it hit me. What if she hadn’t run away at all? What if the fact that her bag and her painkillers were still there was a sign that she had never planned on leaving me? If that was the case it could only mean one thing. I phoned Styles.
“I’m coming in. I think Bill might have taken her,” I said.
“Kaylee? What do you mean?”
“She’s gone,” I said to him. There was no more point in talking in riddles. There was no more hypothetically speaking. It was time to get real. I needed my friend now more than ever. “Gone. When I was on the phone to you. I think Bill came in and took her. I need your help. I’m coming in. My mother and Allie are coming in too. Keep them safe.”
“Got it,” he said. “Don’t worry, Jaxon. We’ll find her.”
Chapter 30
Kaylee
How long had Bill been trying to find a way to get in? Or had he been inside all along? I couldn’t be sure. I had gotten up to go to the bathroom, and I noticed Jaxon was inside his room with the door closed. I hobbled over and heard him talking on the phone. I didn’t stay to listen. Instead, I made my way slowly down the stairs. He’d done so much for me. Once the shock from his declaration of love had worn off, I knew that I had to say it back to him. There wasn’t ever going to be a right time for it. I decided I’d make him a cup of coffee, just a little something small to say how grateful I was for all that he had done for me. I was about to start when something knocked me on the side of the head. I didn’t have time to scream because a hand was over my mouth, and I was being carried outside. Before I knew what was happening I had been pushed into a car, and was being driven away by Bill. I stared at him. I sometimes couldn’t believe that I had actually married this man. It was hard to imagine him as the man I had once met all that time ago. He hadn’t been nasty then. He’d been nice to me, and he’d been there for me when my parents had died. What had happened to that man? Had this side of him been lurking all along? I had often wondered about that. Had there been signs? The more I thought about it, the more I thought that there probably had been. I just hadn’t been able to see it. How could I have known it would’ve ended up this badly? I wanted to go back in time and erase him from my life. I wanted to say no when he asked me to marry him. But if I had said no, then I would never have slept with him. And if I hadn’t slept with him, I would never had given birth to the amazing daughter that I now had. It was why I was often so confused when I was around him. I hated him, but at the same time I was so grateful that he had given me Allie.
“Bill, don’t do this,” I croaked.
&n
bsp; “Aren’t you happy to see me? Wow, I really did a number on you, didn’t I?” he said. “Don’t worry. You’ll heal. I shouldn’t have hit you in the face. I was always so careful about that before. You have such a pretty face. You know, I used to think that you were the most innocent girl I had ever seen in my life. I know that’s not true, of course. You just look innocent but you aren’t really. Tell me something, Kaylee, did you sleep with that redheaded man?”
“Bill, take me back. You can’t do this to me. You can’t.”
“Or what? You’ll go to the cops? You’re my wife, Kaylee. You took my daughter away from me. Have you ever stopped to consider that? I thought you’d be happy to see me again. Do you have any idea what you have put me through? I came home to find out that my wife and child were gone. I was so worried. I was out of my mind with worry. How could you do that to me?”
“You weren’t worried,” I spat out. “You weren’t. I know you weren’t. You knew that I wanted to leave you. You knew that I was just waiting for my chance to do it. There is no way that you were worried about me. You were just worried about how it might make you look.”
“Don’t make me hit you again, Kaylee. I’ll do it. You know I will.”
“Oh, I know it,” I said.
He chuckled. “Oh, Kaylee. I have never seen this side to you. You were always so quiet and submissive when you were with me. You go away for a few months and you develop a backbone? Is that how it goes? I’m not sure what to make of this new you. It won’t last, of course. I can’t have you walking around with that mouth on you. You’ll get us into trouble if you do. Don’t worry, soon things are going to be back to normal. You’ll remember what it’s like to be a good wife again. I’m going to have to punish you, of course. But we’ll get to that later. Right now, I just want us to go home.”
I didn’t say anything. I was trembling from anger and fear. I was also in so much pain and I was scared that he would hit me again. I didn’t want to be the same woman that I was from before. But it had been easier when I was with Jaxon. Now that I was alone with Bill again I knew that there wasn’t much I could do against him. Bill was big and strong, and he would easily take control again. I would have to be smarter than him. That was the only way that I would be able to take over. I would have to be one step ahead of the game. I wanted to ask him about Allie, but I was too scared to bring it up. Right now, I was just glad that she wasn’t here. I missed her like crazy and I wanted nothing more than to scoop her up into my arms and hold her, but this would all be so much worse if she was with us. She was with Lisa now and she was safe. For that, I was grateful.
“Don’t worry, I’ll come back and get little Allie,” he said, almost as if he were reading my mind.
“Allie is fine. She can stay in this town. She’s happy here,” I said through gritted teeth. I desperately wanted him to stop thinking about Allie. If he thought about her he might want to go back and get her. Right now, I had to keep him distracted.
He laughed. “You want to leave your daughter behind? What kind of a mother are you?” he said. I was about to say something back when he roared with laughter again. “Oh, I see. You want some alone time with me. You’ve missed me, haven’t you?” he said.
“Yes,” I said. It was the hardest thing in the world to say. All I wanted to do was to scream at him and to tell him how disgusting he was. But I needed to remain calm. I didn’t want him to even think about Allie at the moment. I wanted her to stay safe. I tried not to cry as I pushed all thoughts of her away. I needed to stay strong. I had to make him believe that I had missed him so much that I couldn’t wait to be alone with him.
“Don’t worry, we’ll be home in no time,” he said. “We can stop off at a motel tonight on the way, and we can finally be together again. Maybe we can even take some more photos.” He laughed. “That was a clever touch, don’t you think? Oh, your poor redheaded friend must’ve gotten a fright when he saw those. Bet you he never knew you could be so feisty. Those photos are so delicious. I’m glad I took them. That was one of my favorite memories of you, by the way. Captured for all of eternity. You see, that’s what I like about you, Kaylee. You’re mine. Only I know what sort of a girl you really are. I like that. Now, let’s play some music,” he said as he turned on the radio.
I realized he was drunk. I hadn’t been sure before because I was too angry and scared to be sure, but as he leaned over to put on the radio I smelled his breath. Then, about an hour into the drive, he reached for a bottle which had been tucked in between the back seat and took a swig of whiskey. He handed it to me to take some, but I shook my head.
“Oh, go on. Don’t be a prude,” he said.
I took the bottle and pretended to take a big sip. “Delicious,” I said.
He laughed. “That’s my girl. Come on, let’s get drunk together. You see, isn’t this fun? You don’t have to run away from me. You just wanted me to come and find you, didn’t you? Well, I found you. You and I are meant to be, Kaylee. We’re husband and wife, and that is what we’ll always be.”
I didn’t say anything. I just let him do all the talking. The more he drove, the more he drank, and the more nonsensical he became. Sometimes he stopped talking to sing along with whatever was on the radio. We were still a long way from home, and I had no idea when he was planning on stopping. He was taking a very strange route back, and I was sure it was because he was worried about being followed. Every now and again he would stop the car and try to kiss me, and I’d do everything to get him to keep going. I’d tell him that I wanted to be alone with him in a bed rather than in a car. Sometimes he would believe me. In those moments he would laugh, clap his hands, and drive off delighted. Other times he wouldn’t believe me at all. He’d scream at me and call me a whore, then he’d slap me across the face. I never knew how he was going to react, and I was constantly on edge. I barely felt the pain anymore, though. My body was pumped with adrenaline, and I supposed I was also just used to it by now. It was amazing how much you could put your body through. I was scared, and I had no idea what was going to happen, but I was determined to get as far away from Allie as possible. I would have to find a way to phone Jaxon and warn him somehow.
Bill got out his whiskey and took another sip. I was surprised to see that the bottle was almost empty. How could have had so much to drink? He seemed to realize it himself, and he looked at the bottle in confusion.
“Wow, you drank a lot,” he said to me. He was slurring his words now, and when he looked at me I noticed that his eyes were glazed over. “Where’s Allie?” he said. I stiffened at the mention of her name. Why was he talking about her now?
“She’s fine. We said we wanted to spend some time just the two of us, remember? We wanted to make up for lost time.”
“Oh yes,” he said. “But, I miss that little girl. Now that’s innocence, right there. You can see it on her face. That’s what I like. I like girls that are innocent. You know, maybe I should go and get her. We can be a family again. Just you, and me, and little Allie. Together again, like old times. What do you say?”
And that’s when I lost it. I knew that Allie would not be better off with me if I was with Bill. She was better off with Jaxon and Lisa. They were her family now. I wanted to be with her more than anything in the world, but there was no way that I could let Bill go back and get her. If he took her back, then her life was over. I could not do that. I reached for the steering wheel and pulled hard. I had no idea what I was doing. I just knew that I had to do something. Anything. I had to stop this horrible man from ruining my daughter’s life.
The car skidded on gravel, then rolled. I screamed and screamed. Bill did not scream. He had knocked his head and was lying in his seat unconscious. I tried to take control of the car again but it was too late. The car kept rolling and then stopped. I hit my head and cried out. I couldn’t get out. I couldn’t move. I was stuck, and I was pretty sure there was nobody around to help me. I felt the tears rolling down my face. I closed my eyes and the world we
nt dark.
Chapter 31
Jaxon
When I arrived at the station, my mother came running up to me. She wrapped her arms around me and asked me if I was okay. I nodded.
“I’m fine. I’m…” I croaked. I was going to cry. I had to stay in control. I shook my head. “I’m fine. Mom, is Allie okay?”
“She’s confused and she’s scared. She knows something is up and she keeps asking for her mother. Mindy and I are keeping her safe though, and Styles is doing his best to help. Come on, she’ll want to see you.”
I followed her to the room. I wasn’t sure if seeing Allie right now would help or hinder her, but I knew that Kaylee would’ve wanted me to go in and see her. I saw Styles on the way, and signaled him over. He was on the phone and told me that he’d be right there. When I got into the room Allie ran up to me. I knelt down and wrapped my arms around her while she cried.
“Where’s Mommy? Where’s Mommy?” she cried over and over again.
“Don’t worry,” I said as I wiped away her tears. “We’re going to get her. Okay? She’s going to be fine. I’m here now.”
“I’m scared,” she said.
I nodded. “I know you are. But you don’t have to be. You’re going to stay here with Lisa and Mindy, okay? They’re going to look after you.”
“You must stay too,” she said. “Don’t leave me.”
“I’m going to go and find your mom, okay?”
“Can I come?” she asked.
I shook my head. “Oh Allie, you are much safer here. We need you to stay here. You have to be strong for your mommy and for me. Okay? Can you do that? Can you be strong?”
