by Sara Schoen
“The Sparks family, James Sparks and Jessi Sparks,” I said, since Damien didn’t seem to know their names.
“Exactly,” he said astonished. “Well, anyway, with a young girl, the plan had to change. It didn’t go exactly how they wanted it. Jessi had accidentally told Steve that Anna and Garrett were in love, and sneaking behind his back. Steve flew into a rage, and what he refers to as “the chase” started. Anna and Jessi ran from the house with only a backpack, and the warning that Garrett had given them, that the cops were in on it.”
Damien looked at me before continuing to make sure I was still listening to this. “When they got to Charleston, Anna realized that Garrett had been right about the police. They were working with Steve in order to keep their families safe from him, but overlooking it when it came to others’ families. The police gave up Anna’s location and Steve found her. She traveled for a few more days through the same woods we're in, and eventually made it back home to Harrisonburg, where Steve was arrested by the police.”
“I never knew. How do you know some of that stuff? Steve wouldn’t have known what Jessi and my mom left with.”
“I read your mom’s book. She’s a good writer, and she should continue to write stories, but I think she only wrote it to get the questions out of the way. It was a page-turner, and enjoyable to a point. It’s nice to know that she and Garrett stayed together after all of that.”
“My mom says if he didn’t stay with her through it all no one else would have come near her,” I said with a smile.
“She might be right. It would have been hard for people to be around her. It would have been hard for me to be around my sister if she had gotten back. Everyone would be stepping on eggshells, afraid to say the wrong thing,” Damien said with a sullen tone.
“What happened to her?”
“I don’t really know. One day she was going to go meet some friends at the mall, and never came back. You see she was a lot older than me, she was taken when she was eighteen and I was about four, but I can remember my parents searching for her for months. They died before Steve Bennett was captured and they found part of my sister's body.”
“And you want the whole body, why?”
“So she can be buried with my parents in a cemetery, not somewhere in the woods. She deserves to come home and be with her family.”
“Do you think Steve is just going to tell you where she is?”
“I might if he turns you over to me, Audrey,” a dark voice said from behind us. I turned to see Steve Bennett, drenched from the rain, standing in the doorway with a murderous look on his face. “Or maybe he can simply join his sister in death,” Steve stated with a laugh as he leapt toward us.
Chapter 16
"Move!" Damien yelled, as he shoved me out of the way just as Steve collided with him. I landed inelegantly onto the floor and could only sit and watch as Damien fought with Steve. “Audrey, get out of here!” Damien yelled, as Steve’s fist collided with his face.
I started to get up as Damien and Steve took their fight to the floor. They were grappling with each other, hand-to-hand, while rolling on the floor. Steve ended up on top and landed a few blows to Damien’s face until Damien hit Steve as hard as he could. Steve fell back long enough for Damien to get off the floor and land a few hits himself.
“Why are you still here?” Damien asked when he caught a glimpse of me.
Before I could answer, Steve punched Damien in the stomach. It looked as if Damien was going to hit the ground from the excruciating expression on his face. Just before he did, Damien kicked out his leg and hit Steve in the face with his boot and crashed to the ground to start another wrestling match. This time I ran out of the room. If I was distracting him in a fight, he would easily lose, and then I’d be running from Steve alone. I don’t know how my mom had managed that, because the mere thought of Steve chasing me through the woods was enough to make me wish I was dead.
I ran into the kitchen and started to rummage through drawers. There were no utensils or anything I could use as a weapon anywhere. I ran to the closet as footsteps started to come down the stairs. The only thing in the closet was an umbrella.
“That’s not helpful,” I muttered to myself.
“My thoughts on apprentices,” Steve stated from behind me.
I quickly turned around with the umbrella in my hands pointed at him. He was bloody from the fight with Damien. But where was Damien?
“They can’t get a simple job of getting rid of a girl done. You aren’t even supposed to be alive. I should have known you’d have your mother’s charm; men are weak to it.”
“Stay away from me!” I yelled.
“Feisty. We’ll see how long that lasts,” Steve threatened, as he ripped the umbrella out of my hands and tossed it aside.
I took a few steps back and suddenly made contact with a wall. I glanced around the room, but there was no way out. I was in a dead end room with one way out, which Steve Bennett was blocking. As he stepped closer, I had to swallow the scream that was threatening to rip through my throat. Out of instinct, I tried to run, but failed.
“You look so much like your mother. I can’t wait to have you and her all to myself,” He grabbed me and threw me against the wall again. The scream I had been holding in erupted from my throat as Steve’s lips met mine. I struggled as his hands went to my jeans, pulling them off despite my protests, but every time I struggled he hit me. The last one went to the stomach.
I felt all the air leave my lungs as I collapsed onto the ground and curled up into a ball. Tears slowly trickled out of my eyes and I tried to regain my breath. Before I could even have a chance to recover Steve was on top of me. He moved my body so my back was on the ground and my legs were spread open.
“You will never get my mother back. My father won’t let it happen,” I stated weakly as I tried to fight against Steve’s hold on me.
“She confessed who she was, she came out of hiding, for you. She’ll trade herself to protect her daughter, and as for Garrett, he’s as good as dead if I ever see him again, and he knows it.”
I needed to get him off me, but he was sitting on my legs and holding me down. I couldn’t move and Steve knew it. He took his time tormenting me; I watched in horror as he slid his hands under my shirt and slowly maneuvered around me.
“Just relax and enjoy,” Steve said as he leaned over me. I tried not to struggle too much, in case he decided to do something worse than feel me. “You’re just like your mother, which means this will be amazing all over again. She saved herself for me.” At that moment I couldn’t help but laugh. I was afraid, but I couldn’t stop. “What’s so funny?” Steve demanded. I must have hurt his ego by laughing, but I couldn’t stop.
“I’m not a virgin!” I laughed, my chest heaving in laughter. “Damien and I got together before he knew who I was, and I’ve been with another guy for about three years!”
“You little slut!” Steve screamed. I could tell he was about to beat me out of anger when a loud clank echoed through the room. I forced my eyes open to see Damien standing over Steve with a bat. Steve had fallen off of me and Damien offered his hand to me.
“Can you move?”
“Yeah, I’m fine.”
“We have to get out of here,” Damien said urgently as he lifted me from the ground and then picked up my jeans. He grabbed my hand and raced out of the house before Steve could recover.
“Where are we going?” I asked as he pulled me outside and toward the car.
He opened the passenger side door, and shoved me inside. I could see the worry and fear in his eyes the whole time he walked with me and put me in the car. He didn’t say anything, until he started the car.
“We are getting away from here,” he said as we pulled out of the driveway. I was both relieved and exhausted, so exhausted that I fell asleep in the car and didn’t wake up until Damien shook me lightly.
“Audrey, get up,” he whispered.
“What’s up?” I said with a yawn.
“We need to get food and there’s a gas station about a mile away. Put your jeans back on,” he said, as he pointed to them on the floor of the car.
I didn’t say anything; I was too embarrassed. I only nodded and started to put my pants back on. I could see that bruises had formed on my legs from Steve’s assault. I lifted my shirt slightly to see the bruises on my stomach and chest; I was a mess. I pulled on my jeans just as Damien pulled into the gas station.
“I’ll get gas and you get food,” he said as he handed me money. “Do you think you can move that much?” he asked with a gleam of worry in his eyes.
“I can,” I said as I stumbled to get out of the car. Damien was immediately at my side, even though I didn’t want his help. I had to do this on my own; it was for my pride. “I’m fine.” I walked away from him and into the convenience store at the gas station.
I was browsing the food aisles when I came across a payphone in the back of the store. I looked at the money Damien had given me, I had enough for one phone call only. I could only hope someone answered. I dialed my home phone number and waited. There were so many rings I thought for sure that it was going to go to the message machine, but just as I was about to hang up, my dad answered the phone.
“Hello?”
“Dad, it’s Audrey,” I said as tears sprang into my eyes. It was so good to hear his voice again, I never thought I’d be able to talk to him again.
“Audrey, are you okay?”
“No, I’m being chased by Steve Bennett. He’s after Damien and me,” I explained, as I turned back to see Damien still filling up the car.
“Who’s Damien?”
“He’s the one that took me. He’s on the news, he’s been labeled as a kidnapper.”
“Because he is one, Audrey. He took you from us,” my father cried, not understanding what I was trying to say.
“He was doing it to find his sister, but he’s not working with Steve anymore. Damien got me out of the burning house, Steve’s old house, your old house, Dad.” I conveniently skipped over the part where I would have told him that I came willingly with Damien, I was sure my father didn’t want to hear that part of the story.
“How do you know about that?” he asked curiously.
“Damien read mom’s book, he told me, and I found your journal. I have it with me; it’s in a bag that Damien gave me when he let me go.”
“He let you go?” he asked in disbelief.
“Yes, just before that news story came out. I spent a night in the woods, and that’s when Steve found me. Without Damien I would have been taken by Steve.”
“The police are using Steve to get you back home, sweetheart,” he said in a frustrated tone. “I don’t like it, but I don’t trust this Damien person.”
“Dad, you said yourself that the police are in on it. Do you think that purge really got rid of all of his supporters? I can tell you that whatever Steve is doing, it’s not to get me home. He’s after mom and me. If he captures me he is going to trade me for mom. If that doesn’t happen, he’s just going to keep me,” I said, as tears ran down my face.
“He went after you already didn’t he, Audrey?” he asked. I noticed that he purposefully went around the word rape, but I ignored it.
“He tried. Damien knocked him out before he could start. We’re on the run now, but I don’t know the plan. We can’t go back home because then Steve will have mom and me in one spot, and know where we live.”
“I knew the police were still rotten,” he growled. “Audrey, I don’t like this. It’s too risky, but please stay with Damien. If he has truly turned over, I’d rather you be with him than alone with Steve after you. If you get any hint that Damien isn’t there for you, you run, and run straight home. We’ll deal with Steve Bennett, do you understand?”
“Yes, Dad...”
“Don’t cry. Be brave. We will figure this out. Where are you?”
“Damien gave me a map when he let me go. I’m somewhere in Virginia. I was close to Charleston, I think we’re heading to Harrisonburg now,” I turned to see Damien coming into the store. “Dad, I have to go.”
“Please be safe, Audrey. We’ll find a way out of this.”
“I will, and Dad, I’m sorry about what I said.”
“I know you are, sweetheart. We’ll see you again. I’ll try to get word out so that everyone knows this Damien fellow is a friend.”
“Thank you. Bye, Dad. Tell Mom I love her.”
“I will,” he promised, just before I hung up the phone and walked down a random food aisle and sat down crying. Damien found me like that a few seconds later.
“Is it your wounds?” he asked quietly.
“Yes. I’m sorry. I tried.”
“I know you did. Just wait here and I will get the food for us,” he said as he lifted my chin and looked me in the eyes. I could see the worry and fear in his eyes, but I could also see the compassion and love he had for me. I could see conflict in his eyes before he spoke again, “I love you, Audrey.”
“I love you too, Damien,” I answered, shocked that he had said it. His lips lightly kissed mine for a few seconds before he pulled away
“I’ll be right back. Don’t move, okay?” I nodded, and he turned to get food.
I had fallen for my kidnapper, escaped a mass murderer, and now I was worried about how I was going to keep Damien after all this was over. I was one messed up person.
Chapter 17
Damien had handed me a snack bar as we walked to the car. He had to support me as I walked; I was suddenly too weak to move on my own. I was emotionally and physically exhausted; I had never had to live through anything like this before, and I didn’t have time to take it all in. I devoured the snack bar before I even had time to read the label. Damien took the trash from my hand and opened the car door for me.
“Take a rest please, Audrey,” he said as he buckled me in and then closed the door behind him.
When the car started moving again, I fell asleep. I was shaking as I relived the fight with Steve. If Damien hadn’t come in when he did, I would have been another girl that Steve stole. I shivered at the thought as I drifted into an uneasy sleep.
I was sitting at a dining table with Damien. There was a tension in the air, Damien was staring behind me, fear in his eyes, and all of a sudden I turned to see Steve. He grabbed me and dragged me to the bedroom that I had found Damien in when we were leaving the house.
"Stop screaming!" Steve yelled over my screams.
The only answer I could produce was a scream that tore at the lining of my throat. Tears poured over my eyelashes as I tried to kick him—I somehow managed to shove him off of me, but he trapped me again. He shut the door behind him and tossed me onto the bed.
He climbed on top of me, and soon pain was searing every inch of my body while I tried ineffectively to fight him off. I heard him talk to me, trying to soothe me, but once the pain took over I couldn’t hear anything over my screams. I let out a terrified scream as I sat up so quickly that my seatbelt snapped back and pushed me back into the seat. There was sweat dripping down my face and down my neck. My chest was heaving along with my ragged breath. I turned to see fear in Damien’s eyes.
“I’m sorry,” I huffed out as I leaned back in my chair and curled up under the blanket. I didn’t know where the blanket had come from, but I could assume that Damien had given it to me.
“Is there something we need to talk about?”
“I’m finally understanding why my mom kept her past a secret.”
“What do you mean?” Damien asked as he rubbed his hand up and down my back to calm me down.
“I feel like I know what she went through, and I wish I had been nicer to her growing up and when I got the news of who she was.”
“You have technically. You lived in the same house she did and are running from the same man, just think of me as your Garrett,” he said with a calming smile.
“Yes, and that just means I should be terrified if Steve ever ca
tches us.”
“Don’t worry, I won’t let him catch you. We have a few more hours before we get down to the next house. Why don’t you try sleeping again?” Damien suggested, as his hand left my back, leaving a cold spot where it had once been.
“Okay,” I muttered as I wrapped the blanket tighter around me. There were tears that I hadn’t noticed until now running down my face. My mom’s life had been so difficult, no wonder all she tried to do was protect me. Those laws, while ineffective, made people feel better, like there was hope, but the real way to prevent these problems was to educate. If I had understood my mom’s time in Steve Bennett’s hold, then I would have been more cooperative with the rules, instead of breaking them.
I forced my eyes shut and sent myself into another dream. This time I wasn’t in the house; I didn’t see Steve, and most importantly I didn’t hear him. Instead I was walking through the forest, on a trail.
“Audrey, wait up!” a voice called from behind me. I turned around expecting to see my father, even Mark, but instead I turned to see Damien running toward me.
I couldn’t stop myself from saying it, “I was wondering when you’d catch up.” A smile formed on my lips as I wrapped my arms around him and hugged him close.
“You took off without me,” he laughed.
“I did not! You were taking too long,” I laughed.
“You still left without me,” Damien said as he hugged me back.
“I’m sorry,” I said sweetly as he leaned down to kiss my cheek.
“Don’t worry about it.”
“I would worry about it,” a chilling voice said from behind us. We turned to see Steve standing behind us. I felt Damien’s hands tighten on me. “Audrey, I need you to run. Run and don’t stop running until you find some place safe.”
