by Nicola Jane
Neve wondered if he meant sex or literally just a film of her begging to be saved. She couldn’t put anything past Finn in his current state of mind and she wasn’t willing to wait around to find out. She felt around in her clutch until her hand fell on the knife. “You want me to fight?” she asked, keeping her voice steady.
Finn laughed, “We can start now if that’s what you want princess.” He gripped the hem of her dress and tugged it hard. The material began to rip, and Neve kicked out at him, catching his arm. “Fuck, you are stronger now you’ve eaten.” Finn gripped her thighs and tried to tug them apart, using his knee to keep one of them in place. Neve gripped the handle of the knife tight and then pulled it from her bag and slashed out in front of her, not caring where she hit as long as she hit. She lunged forward and Finn began yelling, frantically trying to get a grip of her arms. He eventually pinned her hands to her side, kneeling on the hand holding the knife and pushing pressure there until she dropped the blade. Neve smiled manically up at Finn, his shirt turning crimson. She wasn’t sure where she’d hit him, but she was glad she had, even if she had hoped to kill him.
“You asked for a fight,” she smirked. Finn hit her hard across the face, but he was losing strength fast. “Please die,” she hissed, “That will be the only fucking begging I will be doing tonight!”
The car came to a stop and the back door opened. The driver looked stunned for a second before gripping Neve by the wrists and pulled her from the vehicle. She landed on her knees, realising that they were at the house Neve felt a sudden fear. The driver didn’t give her chance to stand, instead he dragged her towards the house, her knees scraping across the gravel driveway. As they approached the front door it opened, “Go get the boos, he’s hurt,” growled the driver.
The driver opened the cellar door and threw her down the stairs. She rolled, hitting each one hard and when she landed at the bottom, she threw up the contents of her stomach. The door slammed hard making her jump in fright and then Malia was by her side uttering words that made no sense to Neve. When she was finally able to move, she crawled towards her bed, each time her knee hit the ground she winced but there was no way she could stand and risk falling over, she felt dizzy and sick from her bump to the head. As she lay on her side, she noticed the other bed was now occupied. The girl was sleeping, and Malia was now by the girl’s side stroking her hair just like Neve had once done for her.
CHAPTER TWELVE
It was early, or late depending on how you wanted to look at it. Ryder groaned and rolled onto his side, suddenly sitting up and rolling from the bed in surprise. He landed with a thump to the ground which woke the sleeping beauty beside him. She stretched out and smiled, “Morning,” she yawned sitting up. Ryder was relieved to see that she was fully clothed.
“Sassy, what the hell are you doing here?” he muttered. His head throbbed from the after effects of too much alcohol last night. He couldn’t remember a damn thing.
“You asked me to stay with you, can’t you remember?” she asked. Ryder shook his head, irritated by her stupid question, if he remembered he wouldn’t be asking her. “I was waiting at the club when you came back last night. You were stressed out and I was worried so thought I’d drop by and check on you.”
“That makes no sense, how the hell do you know how stressed I’ve been?”
“I was out with the girls in town and I bumped into Bear’s old lady. She mentioned that things were tough at the minute. The amount you drank kind of gave it away too.”
“And I asked you to stay in my bed?” he queried, it didn’t sound like something he’d usually do. He liked his own space especially when he was drunk. Even at his most drunk he’d never invite a woman back to his room because he knew he forgot things easily and he hated to put himself in a position where he could get accused of shit. On top of all of that, he had Neve, he was certain he wouldn’t have put Neve from his mind and invite Sassy here.
“Yeah but nothing happened. You got upset a little and I stayed to make sure you were okay.”
“I got upset?” he repeated, disgust in his tone, now it really didn’t sound like him.
“Don’t be embarrassed, we all crack at some time or another. Besides, it’s just me, we don’t have to hide stuff from each other.”
Ryder grunted, he couldn’t think of what else to say and so he took himself off to the bathroom hoping she’d take the hint and leave.
No such luck because he returned after his shower, to find her still laying in his bed and looking through her cell phone. “You’re still here,” he grumbled, and she smiled brightly.
“I was thinking that we could go and collect Alfie and then spend the day together?”
“I have shit to do Sass, maybe another time. I’d love to see Alfie though, how would you feel about me collecting him at a set time each weekend and having him for a couple of hours?” He’d been pondering the idea and it felt right. Sassy didn’t look impressed with the idea though.
“He doesn’t know you Ryder, I think we should do visits together for a while to let him get used to you. If he sees us as a family unit it will make sure your relationship gets off to a good start.”
“But we aren’t a family unit Sass, he needs to see us getting along I agree, but not together or he’ll get confused.”
“I’ve got a better idea. Why don’t I collect him and bring him back here later this afternoon? You can spend some time with him, and I’ll just be around?”
Ryder didn’t really want Sassy around but what choice did he have, she was the kids’ mother after all and he had to play by her rules, after all he felt lucky, she was even giving him another chance. He nodded and she smiled widely, throwing the blankets off her and standing. “Great, I’ll just grab a shower and then I’ll be on my way.”
When she returned a few minutes later wrapped in a towel, her hair dripping, Ryder felt uncomfortable. If someone walked in now it would look suspicious and the last thing, he needed was the gossip wheels turning. Neve would never forgive him. He grabbed his keys and mobile. “I’ll leave you to it,” he said. Sassy unwrapped the towel from her body and began to rub her hair with it. “Don’t tell me you’re shy Ryder. God, you used to order me to walk around you naked and now you can’t even look at me. I’m the mother of your child for goodness sake.”
Ryder glued his eyes to the ground. She was right, there was a time when he’d have her walk around the place naked whenever they were alone. He loved to be able to have access to her whenever he felt like it and she never seemed to mind. He risked a quick glance up and she was still rubbing at her hair. Her curves at changed since he last saw her like this. Her breasts were fuller and her thighs thicker, it gave her a sexy edge. Squeezing his keys hard in his palm he raced for the door. The sound of Sassy giggling as he left rang out. She meant no harm, but he couldn’t let that happen again. He liked Neve too much to fuck it all up.
“Pres, where the hell have you been. I’ve been calling you.” Griff looked pissed as he marched towards Ryder.
“Sorry, slept in, bad hangover.”
“Tell me about it. You were wasted last night.”
“Am I not allowed to drink in my own damn club?” growled Ryder and Griff held his hands up in surrender.
“Sorry. Benedetto’s been in touch. He couldn’t get hold of Finn last night and then he saw some photo’s on the Chief of Police’s social media account, he sent them to me,” said Griff pulling out his mobile. Ryder raised his brow and Griff laughed, “I know tell me about it, the Chief having a social media account. Apparently, it’s to ensure good relations with the public.” Griff pushed his cell under Ryders nose, it showed a photograph. In the picture was Finn with the Chief, the caption read “Working together with the local business owners.”
“So,” shrugged Ryder. Griff grinned and then zoomed in to the picture. It showed a reflection in the glass window, Ryder could just make out the image of Neve. Griff patted him on the back. “He has her still and she’s alive. T
hat’s the confirmation you needed.”
“But they’re out together. With the chief. Is she there by choice?” Suddenly doubts flooded his mind. What if she’d gone back to Finn of her own free will and the whole abduction thing was a disguise so that Ryder didn’t follow her.
“Brother you’re over thinking. They wouldn’t go to all that trouble. He’s holding her somewhere and this was a stage for him to cover his ass. I called the chief, told him that I’d been having an affair with the girl in that picture and so I needed to know who she was to Finn. Finn told him that they were making a go of their marriage, but the Chief said she was quiet and withdrawn. She had faded bruises and she looked unwell, like she hadn’t eaten in days. He asked if that shit was my fault or Finn’s, cheeky fucker.”
“Shit, we really need to find his hiding place. Did you tell the chief she was taken?”
Griff shook his head, “We all know he’s a bent mother fucker, we’ll be in his debt and who knows what shit he’ll have us doing. Let’s leave him as a last resort. My guy got in touch, he’s at another warehouse tonight but this time he’s inside. He’s one hundred percent sure that they are auctioning women off so tonight he’ll be able to confirm it because he’ll have front row seats.”
“Great, let’s hope he doesn’t decide to auction off Neve!”
“And risk the chief asking questions, it wouldn’t happen.”
***
The new girl was also foreign, but her English was so much better than Malia’s. Adelina was weak, so much weaker than herself and Malia and she seemed to think she’d been here for a few weeks. We sat crossed legged on her bed while she recounted leaving her parents in Syria for a better life. When she was offered the opportunity to come over to England and clean houses for rich people she jumped at the chance, hoping it was a way to send good money back for her parents to live a better life.
“A man met me, he took me to hotel. Two men there waiting, it felt not right,” she said, her English broken in places. “I scared. I try to run but I get caught and beaten then I bring here!” Neve sits patiently while the new girls exchange conversation in their mother tongue. Neve felt sick to her stomach knowing at the head of these girl’s suffering was her husband, a man that she bore a child for. She knew when she met Finn in his expensive suit and his over the top gold watch that he wasn’t just a good business man. People had feared him, it was in their eyes and wherever he went he seemed to demand things and get them without question, but not once did she ever expect this.
“We escape, Malia have plan,” smiled Adelina. Neve shook her head, a sad smile on her lips.
“We can’t, there are too many guards out there with big dogs and guns. They’ll kill us.” Adelina recounted that to Malia who also looked sad.
“We think of other plan?” Neve nodded in agreement. They couldn’t just sit around waiting for whatever was coming for them, but she didn’t see a way out. But the girls needed hope, so she squeezed their hands tight and smiled reassuringly.
The door opened and the girls broke apart, watching as a man descended the steps. He was large with a protruding stomach popping over his belted trousers. His cheeks were ruddy and red, and he seemed short of breath by the time he reached the bottom step. Two men followed holding guns by their sides and wearing an ear piece. For a second Neve got her hopes up that these were police officers, she got to her feet, but her hopes were dashed when the man sneered at her. “Just three, is Finnegan trying to make me look stupid?”
One of the men that stood by the steps pulled out his cell phone. Neve watched the larger man as he circled her and then reached for Malia and pulled her to her feet harshly. She focussed back on the cell phone conversation. The man was talking to Finn about there being just three women. He spoke with a foreign accent that Neve couldn’t place. “Get here now!” he ordered.
Malia made a squeaking sound and Neve spun around to where the large man was stroking a finger down her face, “Is he coming?”
“On his way sir.”
“This one is too skinny,” he grumbled, turning away from Malia and reaching for Adelina. “But this one, umm, I like this one. Name?”
“Adelina,” she whispered and the large man grinned.
“I like that name, pity you won’t get to keep it.” He gripped her shirt between his pudgy hands and then tugged hard until it tore down the middle. Adelina flinched, folding her arms to cover herself.
“Hey,” yelled Neve, “Don’t do that, leave her alone.” She marched over and placed herself between the man and Adelina.
“You’re English,” smirked the man. “Interesting.”
“Fuck you,” spat Neve. The man slapped her hard across the face and she stumbled, falling hard onto the ground.
“Maybe this one would be more entertaining,” he smirked, and the two other men laughed.
Finn came running down the steps, he looked harassed. His eyes darted between the man and Neve who’d remained on the ground. “Mr Sharp, I wasn’t expecting you until this evening.”
“Clearly, three girls Finnegan, three?” The man moved towards Finn, “How can I put on a show with just three women?”
“Erm, actually two. She’s not a part of this,” said Finn, nodding his head towards Neve.
“Oh, she is, unless you can get me at least three more then she is very much a part of this. You have…” the man looked at his large gold watch and then smiled, “Three hours.”
***
Ryder should have been feeling happy, he was sat with his son watching television yet all he could think about was Neve. Alfie snuggled closer, “I think he’s getting sleepy,” sighed Sassy.
“Oh right, do you need a ride home?” asked Ryder.
“Actually, why don’t I…” she was interrupted by Griff storming into the room.
“Pres, we need to talk now.” Ryder stood, extracting his arm from around Alfie carefully. He followed Griffin towards the office. “We don’t have time to call church. My guy just rang, he’s been given the location in advance. That never happens but apparently somethings spooked Finn and he’s acting all crazy. Word got around that his wife stabbed him! He’s spent some time in hospital.”
“Shit. I hope he didn’t hurt her,” muttered Ryder. “I feel so fucking useless just waiting around like this. We need to make a move, it’s taking too long.”
“You said you wanted to make sure you got them out together,” Griff reminded him.
“I know I did but if there’s a chance that Neve could be there tonight then we need to go to wherever that location is.”
“The docks, he’s been asked to be at Perfleet Docks at Ten O’ Clock.” Ryder checked is watch, it was nine now. He’d need to get a move on and contact some of the guys. “Already on it,” grinned Griff, reading his brothers mind. “You go and kiss that kid of yours and then meet me out front.”
Ryder found Sassy sat where he’d left Alfie. She smiled, “Hey, I put him to bed. It was way past his bedtime. Can we talk?” She stood when she saw a flicker of resistance in Ryder, he glanced towards the door where he knew Griff would be waiting.
“Actually, Sass I need to go. We’ve got a lead and Griff’s waiting.”
“A lead about Neve?” she muttered, and Ryder nodded. “Well then I really need to say this before you go. I miss you Ryder. I didn’t realise how much until you came back. When I saw you with Alfie, I knew we had to give us another go, for his sake. Before all that business with Alice we were great,” she said, rushing her words out quickly.
Ryder swallowed hard. Hearing those words was all he could dream about years ago when he’d been sentenced to prison. He’d lay awake many nights thinking of Sassy and his boy and could have easily slit his own throat for the way he’d treated her.
“Say something Ethan,” she whispered, placing a hand on his hard chest. “We could have the perfect life, just us and Alfie. Don’t we deserve that happiness?” Before he could answer her, she pressed her lips against his. Her sweet-smelli
ng perfume filled his nostrils, her soft lips parting just enough to swipe her tongue against his mouth, forcing entry and taking full advantage of his stunned silence. Her arms trailed around his neck and she pressed herself against him, moaning softly into his mouth.
“What the fuck Ryder!” Griff’s voice was enough to bring him back to his senses and he pulled away from Sassy. “You’re like the black fucking widow Sassy waiting to pounce. You made your choice when you banned me seeing my own damn nephew. You told me you were too good for this MC and you’d rather die than be back here and yet here you are trying to lure my brother back to you.”
“I was upset, I caught my sister with my man. That’s in the past. I want a family for Alfie, I love you Ryder, I always have.”
Ryder rubbed at the back of his neck, this didn’t feel right, not like it did when Neve kissed him. “I have to go,” he mumbled, heading for the door. He needed to get Neve back, he couldn’t think straight when she wasn’t around him.
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
“Wash,” ordered Finn angrily. He dropped a bar of soap on the bed where Neve lay. He’d had two buckets of warm water brought down to the cellar and the other two girls had eagerly washed, happy to feel clean again.
“No,” Neve muttered, turning her back to him and curling her knees up so she was in a ball. She was still wearing the tatters of the silver dress that he’d had her wear on their dinner to meet the Chief of police.
“Fine,” he muttered, moving away. She gasped when cool water poured over her, wetting her bed. “We’ll do it my way.”
She screamed out and then spun on to her back, ready to yell at him. Two security men were stood by her bed, one at her feet and one at her head. They each grabbed her limbs and held her down. “Get off of me!” she screamed trying hard to pull free.
“You always have to be fucking stubborn,” snapped Finn, picking up the bar of soap and rubbing it onto a sponge, “I asked you nicely.” She screamed over and over until her voice became croaky. Finn continued to run the sponge over her body paying special attention to her more private areas. When he’d finished and was satisfied that she was clean enough he grabbed the second bucket and swilled her with water again. The men released her, laughing as they walked away. “Now princess, get these clothes on or I’ll be back to do that too and trust me, I might not be able to control my urges a second time.”
