by A. K. Evans
I moved my head and opened my eyes.
“That’s it, Emily. He needs to see you awake. He needs to see how much you’re going to enjoy this.”
I tried to search the room, but I couldn’t see anything other than the outline of Seth standing immediately in front of me. His hand came up and he touched my cheek. I flinched.
“Cunningham isn’t here. He’s watching you, though. I’m going to walk over there and turn on a light,” he said pointing directly behind himself. “Then, the fun begins.”
Seth turned on a light, if you could even call it that. It lit up a small square of space on the far side of the basement. My eyes struggled to adjust. Seth came back to stand in front of me. He pointed across the room. “See that, Emily?” he asked. “That’s a camera that’s sending a live feed to Cunningham. He can see you right now. In fact, now he’s going to get a little show.”
My body began trembling and my heart began racing.
“You see, Emily, I had to sit and watch as he put his hands and his mouth on you. Then, I had to watch while he fucked you. Now, he is going to see exactly how that feels.”
Zane
I was going to lose my fucking mind. I was standing here watching as my girl was shackled in what was a dark and seemingly cold room. Miller stood in front of her and used his hands to push her hair back from her face. He told her I was watching. She opened her eyes and searched the room for me. He put his hands on her again, touching her cheek. She recoiled.
He moved away from her and turned on a light. It didn’t do much to light up the room, but I was able to see her better. He showed her the camera and told her I could see her.
My jaw was clenched, my hands balled into fists. She was right in front of me and I couldn’t get to her. I promised her I’d always get to her. She was so scared and the look on her face broke my fucking heart.
Then, the fucking bastard continued to torture my sweet girl. “You see, Emily, I had to sit and watch as he put his hands and his mouth on you. Then, I had to watch while he fucked you. Now, he is going to see exactly how that feels.”
Levi, without a trace of patience in his voice, said, “Michaels, where are we at?”
“Getting close man.”
I kept my eyes on my girl. Miller walked behind her and held up a knife. I stopped breathing. He put his hand to the shoulder strap of her dress and lifted it. He used the knife and sliced through the fabric. Emme’s breathing grew shallow. She was fucking terrified and I was doing nothing. He moved to the other shoulder strap and did the same thing. After, he dropped the knife and moved his hands to the zipper at the back of her dress. He opened the zipper and pulled the dress down her body. And there was my girl, now shackled in a bra and a pair of panties in front of her psycho ex-boyfriend who had raped her for a year and beaten her for much longer than that.
The tears were spilling down her cheeks.
“Sweetheart,” I whispered. “Where are you?”
He came and stood alongside of her. “Damn, Emily. It’s been too long.”
His hands came up and squeezed her breasts and his mouth went to her neck. She pulled back, but couldn’t go anywhere. One hand traveled down her abdomen and into her panties.
“Fuck,” Tyson murmured.
I saw fucking red.
Then, she spoke and I froze.
“Zane,” she began, through her tears. “Baby, it’s so dark.”
“FUCK!!” I yelled, picking up the chair closest to me and throwing it across the room out into the hall. “Levi, we have to find her now!”
“You don’t fucking say his name,” Miller yelled at her.
My eyes were back on the screen.
“I need you, Zane. Bring me back into the light,” she yelled out.
My stomach was in knots already and then he cracked her in the jaw before he punched her in the stomach.
“Motherfucker!” De Luca yelled.
She screamed out in pain as his fist connected with her left eye. I was losing my patience.
“I’ve got it. He’s got her at an abandon house in Firebend,” Trent called out.
“That’s more than an hour away,” I said looking to Levi. “She’s never going to make it.”
Levi’s phone rang.
“Cruz,” he answered walking to the door. Before he walked out, “Text me that address, Michaels. Lock up and move out boys. Someone call Dominick and Hayes and get them the address. They’ve got to be close to that area by now.”
“You’re finished?” Levi asked into the phone. Silence. “Michaels located Emme. She’s at an abandoned house in Firebend.” Silence again as we walked outside to Levi’s truck. “I’ll get the exact address over to you.”
We got into the truck and Levi switched to the bluetooth. Trent had already sent us the address to where my girl was. Levi forwarded it to Cruz.
“Just sent you the address, Cruz. You get to her first, she’s going to be in bad shape. We had a live feed. She was shackled; looks like the basement. And then she was assaulted. Motherfucker cut her dress off of her, put his hands and mouth on her. She knew there was a camera in there giving us a live feed. She started talking to Zane. Miller got pissed and started beating her.”
“That son of a bitch is dead,” Cruz said, his voice lethal. “Got the address, I’m five minutes out.”
“Dom and Hayes will likely be next on the scene, Cruz. They took off to that area a while back when we got a lock on the van at a gas station not far from there.”
“Roger that.”
“Cruz?” I called out.
“Yeah, Zane?”
“You get to her, get her safe, and then handle her with care. She was…” I trailed off.
“I got it covered, Zane. I’ll let you know when I have her safe.”
Disconnect.
I felt like I was crawling out of my skin. My girl needed me and I was so far from her.
“Cruz is going to get her, man. We’re going to get you to your girl.”
“Levi, I don’t know what to do. I’m not sure I know how to take care of her after this. How did I let this happen to her?”
“You’ll figure it out, Zane. And it’s not your fault. The guy is an asshat who’s about to get what’s coming to him. Emme will be ok. We’ll get her all the help she needs, but I’m certain you are the only thing she’s going to want.”
“I fucking hope you’re right.”
Cruz
I pulled up outside the abandoned house at the address Levi sent to me. Wanting the element of surprise, I moved quietly but swiftly through the grass and up the front steps. I picked the lock and pushed open the door. As soon as I walked in I heard Emme’s cries. My adrenaline kicked up a notch and as stealthily as I could I moved through the dilapidated house trying to locate the door to the basement. It wasn’t difficult since the stupid motherfucker left it open. I heard Emme begging, “Please stop.”
I moved down the steps and saw her shackled, just as Levi said she would be. Miller was in front of her, his back to me, with one hand on one of her naked breasts the other stroking his own fucking dick. Her panties were pushed more than halfway down her legs. Her face was swollen and bloody, her abdomen already bruised, and she was trembling and crying hysterically.
He moved in front of her, put his hands behind her thighs, and said, “It’s time, Emily. I’m making you mine again now. Spread your legs.”
It took me three strides to make it across the basement floor to where they were. I grabbed the fucker by the neck of his shirt and threw him across the room where he landed in the corner on the floor.
“It’s ok. It’s Cruz. You’re safe, beautiful,” I said, as I pulled her panties back up her legs and over her hips. “Going to get you down in a second, but I need to take care of him. Look the other way, Em.”
She nodded and looked away.
I turned around and moved to him. Then, I beat the shit out of him. What a fucking pussy. He had no problem beating up women, but when it came to a
man he couldn’t even land one fucking punch and he cried like a bitch. I neutralized him and cuffed him to a beam in the corner of the room. Emme wouldn’t be able to see him.
I moved back to her and she was still trembling uncontrollably. “I’ve got you,” I said, wrapping my arm around her waist. “Not going to leave you down here alone with him to go find a key. You ok with me shooting this to get you down?”
She nodded, but said nothing.
I supported her weight in one arm and held the other up ready to shoot when I heard footsteps above us. Dom and Gunner.
“Basement,” I yelled out.
Their footsteps came faster.
“Jesus Christ,” Dom yelled out when he reached the bottom of the stairs.
“Hayes, can you go find the key so we can get her down without the need for gunfire? He’s a stupid motherfucker, so I’m guessing it’s out in plain sight.”
Hayes took off up the steps and came back seconds later with the key. He and Dom worked quickly to free Emme’s wrists.
“Going to release your arms, Emme. It’s going to hurt,” Hayes said to her gently. “You ready?”
She nodded. Hayes released her wrists from the shackles. Her arms fell around my shoulders and she yelled out in pain.
“I know, beautiful. We’ll get you taken care of. We’ve got to get your ankles free.”
I kept one arm wrapped tightly around her waist while I brought the other up to massage one of her arms. While Hayes worked to free her ankles, Dom bent toward her ear and quietly said, “Cruz is working the muscles in one arm for you. I’m going to get the other. You ok with that, honey?”
She nodded.
Dom massaged the opposite arm as we waited for her ankles to be released. I looked to Dom and said, “He’s cuffed to the support over in the corner. I get her out of here, you do whatever the fuck you want with him.”
He nodded.
At that moment, Hayes freed her ankles. I bent down, picked her up, and carried her up the steps. I found a worn-out couch in the living room and sat down, keeping her settled in my lap. With one arm wrapped around her back I reached my other hand behind my neck and pulled off my shirt. I pulled the shirt over her head, covered her, and pulled her tight to my body. I began massaging her arms again.
She groaned in pain.
“I know, Em. It’s ok. Zane’s on his way, but we’re about an hour from home. They’re coming as fast as they can.”
“It hurts everywhere and I’m so tired,” her delicate voice murmured.
“Sleep, Em. You’re safe. He’s never going to touch you again. Until Zane gets here we’ve got you covered, beautiful. Just close your eyes and sleep. I promise you’re safe.”
“Thank you, Cruz,” she said, her voice barely a whisper.
Before I had the chance to respond to her she was asleep.
I pulled out my phone and called Levi. It rang once.
“You have her?” Levi asked.
“I’ve got her. She’s safe. Boys are downstairs in the basement with Miller.”
“We’re still about twenty-five minutes out.”
“No worries. I’ve got her. See you when you get here.”
I disconnected the call and put my phone back in my pocket.
Dom and Hayes joined me in the living room twenty minutes later.
“What did you do with him?” I asked.
Dom gave me a devilish grin and said, “He’s getting a little taste of his own medicine. Fucker is hanging around until Levi and Zane show up. Figure we’ll let them decide what to do with him.”
I nodded.
“How is she?” Hayes asked.
“Exhausted, sore, and violated.”
“Do you know how bad it was?” Dom asked.
It was then the front door was pushed open. Zane and Levi walked in. Zane looked like shit. He walked into the living room and looked down at Emme. When his tortured eyes came to mine he asked, “Did he…?”
“Unless it happened before I got here I’m guessing I stopped it just before he was about to do it.”
Zane let out a breath and dropped his head.
“It wasn’t good, bro. I walked down the stairs and he never knew I was there. He stood there next to her jacking off while fondling her naked breasts with her underwear pulled down around her knees. She was crying hysterically and trembling uncontrollably she was so fucking scared. He told her he was going to make her his again, wrapped his hands around the backs of her thighs, and told her to spread her legs. I picked him up by the neck and threw him across the room. Beat the shit out of him, cuffed him to a beam, and went to her. Hayes and Dom arrived and helped me get her out of the shackles. The way she screamed when we freed her wrists — fuck, man, she had been hanging there a long time. Her body is beyond exhausted.”
“Where’s Miller now?” Levi asked.
“He’s in the basement,” Hayes answered. “Dom went a little crazy and decided to put him in the shackles. Thought you guys might want your shot at him.”
Just then, Locke, Reynolds, De Luca, Tyson, and Trent all walked in.
Zane looked to them and back to us. “I’m taking my girl out of here. Give him a little something from me, will you?”
Dom’s devilish grin went back into place and he said, “Absolutely.”
Dom was a crazy motherfucker and sometimes I think he relished in doling out punishment to someone in a situation like this.
With that, I stood and put Emme in Zane’s arms. She melted into his body, but didn’t wake up.
Zane looked from Emme to the rest of the guys who just walked in. “Thank you for finding her before it was too late.”
“Don’t worry about it, Zane,” Tyson said. “Get your girl out of here and get her home.”
The guys all nodded their agreement. Zane held their eyes a moment and turned back to face me.
“Thank you for being here for her, Cruz. I owe you, bro.”
“You want to repay me, Zane? Take care of her. And then, when you think she’s ready for it, give me a sister-in-law.”
“I already fucking planned on that,” he declared as he turned and walked out of the house with his girl in his arms.
Chapter 31
Zane
I strode out of the house with my girl in my arms and walked up to Levi’s truck. He followed behind me and opened the back door so I could climb in without jostling her too much. After he closed the door he came around to the front, turned on the truck, and blasted the heat.
“Need five minutes inside with the guys. I’ll be quick so we can get her back home,” Levi said.
I nodded and offered, “I’m good if you take ten minutes and use the extra five to fuck Miller up for what he did to her.”
He smirked at me and closed the door.
In all honesty, I didn’t give a shit if he spent five hours in that house giving the bastard what he deserved. All I cared about was the fact that I had my girl sleeping peacefully in my arms. Truth be told, I wasn’t sure if I’d ever want to let her go, fearing that something else would come along and try to take her away from me. I knew in that moment I would spend the rest of my life doing whatever I had to do to keep her safe. I spent the next several minutes just staring at her, watching her sleep.
“Please stop,” she murmured, her voice filled with anguish. Her eyes were closed.
Fuck.
“Sweetheart,” I said gently, trying to wake her.
I heard the front door to the truck open and glanced up to see Levi hopping in. He must have realized by the look on my face that something wasn’t right.
“What’s wrong?” he asked.
“She’s having a nightmare.”
“No,” she called out. “Please stop.”
“Emme, you’ve got to get up.”
Her body went from relaxed to tense. I heard a pained groan come from her.
“Zane,” she breathed. “Baby, please help me.”
“I’m right here, Em. Come back to me, sweethe
art.”
“Christ. She has these regularly?” Levi asked.
I nodded. “This isn’t bad yet.”
“Fuck,” he said.
Emme groaned again and started trembling. Then, she began crying.
“Come on, Em.”
“Please don’t….No,” she begged.
“You’re safe, Emme. I’ve got you.”
“Zane?” she called out.
“I’m here, Em.”
“No. NO, DON’T TOUCH ME,” she screamed as she woke up and struggled to pull out of my arms.
“Emme, sweetheart. It was a nightmare. You’re safe. I’m here. I’ve got you. Nobody is going to hurt you ever again.”
“Zane?” she called out in disbelief. Her head turned toward the sound of my voice and the second her eyes made contact with mine she lost it.
“Oh my God,” she said as she pulled at my shirt, trying to get closer. I swear if she could have climbed inside my body she would have done just that. She was sobbing uncontrollably and I just held her through it.
“It’s ok, sweetheart. You’re safe. He’s never going to touch you again. I promise you, Em. You are safe,” I whispered in her ear.
When I looked up at Levi I saw he was struggling to remain calm. I’m certain that’s what I looked like after the first time I witnessed one of her nightmares.
“Let’s move,” I mouthed to him.
He nodded.
The moment the truck began moving Emme tensed again and then began squirming. “NO,” she screamed.
Levi stopped the truck immediately.
“Where are we? Where are we going?” she asked, panic filling her voice.
“We’re in Levi’s truck, Em. He’s driving. We’re going to take you to the hospital and get you checked out.”
She looked to the front and saw Levi looking back at her. His face softened when she looked at him. When she looked back to me she shook her head. “No. No hospital.”
“We’ve got to make sure you’re ok, Emme.”
Her lip trembled and she pleaded with me, “Please. No.”
Fuck.
I looked to Levi.
“Mom?” he asked.
I looked back to my girl. “Ok, sweetheart. I’ll take you home.”
She visibly relaxed.
