Broken (Reapers Reign, #1)

by Maree, Aleisha

  We both nod and I begin pushing my way through people who are stumbling all over; the music is blaring through some intense speakers. I can hardly hear my own thoughts. My mind is racing. My hands are sweating. My heart is damn near beating out of my chest. What state will I find her in? How am I going to get her out of here? I know how I’ll get her out of here, I’ll just throw her over my shoulder and walk on out of here. Good luck to anyone who tries to stop me. What the hell is this guy’s game? She has never shown this guy any interest, the opposite in fact, from what I have noticed.. I have to watch out for this girl. I have to find her and take her far away from this shit!

  Walking around the side of the house, I head out towards the back. I can see some trees on my left and a small outside light hanging from the back door. I’ll search through the trees first and make my way around them to the back door. I haven’t even stepped far into the trees when I hear fast steps and breathing. Turning to see where it’s coming from, I’m hit just like that, Boom, right into my chest like a fucking semi smacking into a deer. There she is, running full force into me. Shock, panic lacing her eyes. Even in the dark, you can see the fear in them. The whites shining like a full moon; she blinks back and just like that falls fast and hard. I thrust my hands out to grab her; I wasn’t quick enough though. The tips of my fingers just grazing her top as she falls. Her head smacks hard onto the dirt first, followed by the crash of her body. She has hit the ground so fucking fast that her head snapped back up again, before resting there, her hair fanned out behind her. What the hell?

  I reach down to her; her top is ripped open, there are red welts forming on the front and side of her taunt stomach, her clothes and hands marked with dirt. There is a red angry hand mark over her cheek, a graze on her lip, which is split, and bleeding. What looks like purple finger prints are forming around her sweet neck, an angry red-blue ring around her eye, blood trickling from her nose and tear stains down her face. I stare, shocked and angry, at her for a moment. What the fuck did he do?

  I take her hand in mine and lower myself down to see if she is breathing. Placing my two fingers into her neck waiting, praying for the tiny beats that will signal a pulse. Boom, boom, boom. It’s faint but it’s there, fast too. Thank God. I’m relieved. Looking up, my fucking blood boils as he comes toward me. I fucking knew it, felt it I should never have let her leave with them. I’m going to rip him to shreds! He sees me then and comes to a stop real fucking fast. The look in his eyes turning from anger to shock, laced with fear. Good, he should be scared. I’ll kill the muppet.

  Looking right at him, not even blinking, as my breathing deepens and my fists clench. I see that he has marks on his own face, dirt on the knees of his pants and all over his face. She fought. He didn’t like that so he’s attacked her, beaten her tiny frame while trying to RAPE her. Oh, fuck NO! I see red. That sends me over the edge of any normal rational thinking or actions. I feel hate boiling over. My pulse is pumping, my fists are on the ready, while my eyes are on the fucking piece of shit that has just touched the most beautiful soul. My beautiful soul. The woman who lives in my dreams, the woman I want to love and protect. Bending down, I kiss her soft, bleeding lip.

  “I got you babe. Be right back,” licking my lip, I can taste the sweetness of her blood. That fuels me, and I give in to raw, dark anger.

  As I jump up, he starts to run. A laugh escapes me, an evil laugh as I yell after him, “run! You can’t hide!” I close in the steps between him and myself fast. I grab the back of his shirt and spin him around. “What the FUCK have you done to her?” I spit at him as my fist land in his guts. Bouncing back, I hit him again and again until he slumps down in my grasp, choking and spluttering. Looking up at me with water in his eyes he wipes the back of his hand over his mouth.

  “Wouldn’t you like to know?” he says laughing weakly. “The bitch was begging for it!”

  Seething, I pull my mouth down to his ear and, with a forceful yet quiet and calm voice, I say, “Oh, yeah? That’s how you’re going to play it? Well mother fucker, you just met your worst nightmare! I’m going to make you wish you were dead! The marks on her, and you for that matter, sure don’t look like she fucking wanted whatever it was you were trying to give to her!” Stepping back, I look into the pricks eyes. “Any last words before I rip ya heart out through ya fucking throat?”

  He spits in my face and screams, “GET FUCKED! I’ll do whatever I want, to whomever I want and you, or anyone else, will not stop me. You see, I’m at the top of the food chain and you, well, what can I say? You’re at the bottom! You’re of no class, fighter boy. I come from money!” He leers up at me.

  “You smug piece of shit!” I snap as I crack him square in the jaw. He stumbles back a couple of feet as I let go of his shirt. Closing in the space between us as he spits blood from his mouth; he swings at me. I see it coming so I duck, coming back up, I pivot on the ball of my foot, cracking the side of his jaw with a left hook as I reach out my right hand, grabbing his top, pulling him back into me, cracking him again and again. He falls back. His legs go to jelly and it is like I see the life leaving his eyes. I punch him again, hard; so hard his head snaps back flicking back at me. I lay a haymaker on him, breaking his already broken looking nose. I throw the worthless piece of shit down to the ground and jump on him. I hit him again, really giving in to the blind rage burning inside of me. His jaw cracks under my fist. Again, I punch him square in the face, more blood gushes from his nose and his mouth, flowing down his face and neck, splattering back over my hands and top. I feel the sweet spots hit my face, sticky and warm, fuelling me.

  I raise my arm up to punch his fucking lifeless excuse for a body again, feeling arms around me, pulling me back. Spinning around, fists up and at the ready, I see it’s just Kash. “What the fuck man?” I snap.

  “Enough Knox, he’s done, he’s out; can’t you see that?”

  I’m livid and shaking with rage. It’s taking all I have to not kill this guy! “Look,” I snarl. “Look over there,” pointing to a lifeless, broken and bleeding Sarah-Jane. “You see that? Can you see what he has done to her?” I can hear the hushed voices and movements – a crowd has formed. People are milling around the limp bloodied form that is Dan and Kash and I. Looking back to where she lays, I see people then moving into her space. Pushing Kash off me “Let me go!”

  His arms loosen a little, “You ain’t going to touch him again are ya?” he questions me.

  Taking in a deep breath, I shook my head, “NO!” I jump up as his arms fall to his side, wiping the back of my hand over my mouth, briefly aware that I’m smearing his blood as I go. I stalk back over to her, pushing them all away. I don’t want any of them anywhere near her, or looking at her this way.

  “Back the fuck up!” I yell. Falling down beside her, I try to pull her top back together, just enough to cover her naked chest, pulling her blazer together to try and keep some warmth on her cool, clammy skin.

  Kash comes over and pushes them all off and I hear him say, “All good, nothing more here to see people. Back it up.”

  Not even looking up at him, speaking in a voice I don’t even recognize, I say, “Kash, where the fuck is Jamie?” just as I hear the familiar voice of my best friend, my brother.

  “Here, I’m here.”

  I close my eyes. Breathing in and out slowly, I open them, looking at him.

  “What the fuck!” he says as he looks down onto a limp Sarah-Jane, a bloody me and I watch as his eyes travel over to Dan.

  “I don’t know what he’s done bro, but this is how I found her. Well, she ran into me and appears to have knocked herself out. I saw Dan running towards her screaming; so, I punched the mother fucker maybe just a few times. I think I may have broken the little cunt’s face! If you don’t mind, can you clean this shit up? I’m going to pick her up and take her far away from here!” He stands there rubbing his hands through his hair, shaking his head, he’s speechless. Leaning down to pick up the still unconscious Sarah-Jane, I hear y
elling. Looking up, I see Clarke is running towards us.

  “You’re going to fucking pay for what you’ve just done!” he seethes out in our direction I place her down gently, standing up, Fresh anger boiling up inside me.

  “Huh? Boy I’m going to what pay did you say?” pure fucking annoyance lacing my fully pissed off voice.

  “You think I’m joking?” he says coming at me. Not one to back down, I take a step forward fists at the ready.

  “Oh, yeah and how will you make me pay? You dickless little prick, you and him both! Go lick your little buddy’s wounds. You sick ass mother fuckers will pay for what you have done here tonight. I’ll deal with you and Dan another time. Mark my fucking words.”

  I’m about to turn from this punk when he so foolishly opens his mouth, “I’m here and we will deal with it right fucking now.”

  Laughing I turn back to face him just as he steps forward to me, his punk ass fists flying. Jamie runs forward and grabs the cunt by his throat lifting him up so he’s on tippy toes. I can’t help but laugh.

  “I wouldn’t do that if I was you, little man.” Jamie says as he throws him backwards towards the gasps of the crowd.

  Looking over to Kash, I mouth to him to go find Tammy. “You and Jamie take her away from here, back to Nan.” I look around to where Jamie is standing. He’s now kicking the shit out of a quivering Clarke, ‘Good job Jamie,’ I think.

  “You wanna play with the big boys? Then you’re going to get hurt... fucking up Miss Sarah-Jane the way your dipshit mate did, you’re lucky my brother left your mate still able to breathe.” I hear him spit out in between boots.

  Kash is walking towards the front of the house, I stop him. “Kash, grab him and both of you go get Tammy,” I say as I gently scoop up my sleeping Angel and walk back through the people, the bottles, and mess. Walking to the car, I lean up against it thinking what to do and where to take her. Opening the door, I place her down on the backseat of Pa’s old school matte black 1969 Cadillac Sedan de Ville. Pulling my head out, I look around, running my fingers through my hair. I see Kash and Jamie then. Jamie has Tammy in his arms. “She ok?” I yell out to them.

  “Yeah, just comatose I think. I’ll get Nan to look her over and she can sleep it off there.” Placing her in the back of someone's van that he seems to have acquired, I smile. He’s full of surprises. He flicks his chin up at me as he walks round to the driver’s door of the van.

  “Sweet, little brother, thanks. I’ll take Sarah-Jane and I’ll see you back at home later.” I call out after him. He raises his hand up in acknowledgement.

  Leaning into the car I try to rouse her. “Wake up, sweet girl,” I say softly. “I need you to open your eyes. I need to know that you are ok. I got you. I won’t let anyone hurt you.” Stepping out for a split second, I shrug out of my jacket so I can place it over her exposed chest to try to keep the chill of the night off her bare skin. I smooth down her soft, honey blonde hair and find myself just staring at her. This woman is pure heaven; so, delicate and beautiful. I feel a tightness in my chest; a pool of anger forming in the base of my spine at the thought of the damage that wanker has done to her perfect soul. I find myself wiping the dirt off her face, thinking if I had just gotten here earlier then I could have stopped all this; stopped that freak and his friend doing this to these girls, hurting her.

  While I’m lost in my dark thoughts of what ifs, she stirs and opens those beautiful eyes. Instantly, she jolts up and stiffens gasping out in pain and her eyes laced with fear. I leap forward, “Shh, it’s just me, Knox. It’s ok, you’re safe. I’ve got you.” I breathe out quietly not wanting her to go all ninja on my ass.

  She looks at me, stunned and lost, holding her breath, her shoulders hunched. Her body is quivering. She looks up from under her lashes, clumped together with dirt and mascara. She releases the breath she had been holding. “You came,” she says. “You came.” Her voice is so weak and shaky. “ It’s you like really you.” Confusion washes over my face as she crunches her eyebrows together She takes my breath away, even battered and dirty, she is still exquisite. “Of course I came babe.” Her big eyes bore into mine “I was so scared Knox like really I should have just came with you. He was going to rape me, he drugged me and god Tammy, where is Tammy.” Her voice high and full of panic and laced deep with fear.

  “Come here, baby girl,” I whisper as I wrap her up in my arms. I feel her flinch at the touch, not sure if it’s from pain or me, “I’ll never leave you again. I’m going to keep you safe. They won’t hurt you ever again, no one will! Let’s get you out of here, cleaned up and home safe.” I feel this undying need to never leave her. She’s mine now even if she doesn’t know it or want it. I’ll always be there – in the shadows if I have to be – watching. A shrill voice pulls me from my thoughts.

  “NO! Please, please don’t take me home. My parents will flip. I can’t deal with that right now. I promised Daddy I wouldn’t drink or do drugs and I’m sure that I’ve had more than liquor tonight.” Running my hands through my hair, I look down at her trembling, petrified body. Shit my mind races with so much right now like her beaten and scared needing me but me being me and like I have never brought a girl home let alone showed interested. This is happening so fucking fast and my alpha cave man instinct sets in take her, keep her safe and kill the dick that hurt her. Running my hands through my hair letting out a ragged breath. My mind stumbles through the thoughts of shit can I actually do this? Can I love something other than MMA? Do I have room for anything but my sport? My mind jumps to protecting though and like loving her and all the feelings and shit that come with that, letting her in and showing her, I am not like that douche Dan, showing my grandparents that they did in fact raise me right. So that’s it then mind made up fear for the unknown ripples through me as my hand finds the side of her bruised face I allow for the first time in my life to not let my mind make a calculated decision but my heart to feel and just go with it.

  “Sure, thing babes, I’ll take you back to my place and get my Nan to check you over and clean you up.”

  She looks up at me, her beautiful eyes wet with tears and wide with shock. “Could we just go somewhere else for a bit? I can’t bear to face anyone or anything right now. I really need to think.”

  “Of course, I’ll take you up to the one place I go when the world’s a bit too much to chill for a bit. But then I’m taking you to my Nan.” I say to her with my I’m not joking voice.

  She nods and softly murmurs, “Ok.” Reaching over I pull my jacket from her front to her back, zipping it up over her chest. She looks down. I see her face redden and shame wash over her features. Taking her hand, I gently pull her out of the car to me.

  “Hey none of that. You have nothing to be embarrassed or shamed of.” I say sincerely as I look into her eyes, seeing the pain that the movement is causing her in them, the breath she holds as she wraps her free hand around her ribs. She nods her head, tense and wild. I place a tiny kiss on her forehead and guide her to the front seat, “Hey, just breathe, ok? I know it hurts to but you need to breathe.” I take one last look at her stunning beauty as we drive away from this nightmare. I hope we can leave it there, but somehow, I don’t think those boys are going to let it go so easily, not after their beating in front of half the school. Shit’s going to hit the fan, we will have the whole jock squad coming to seek revenge, oh yeah boy I can’t fucking wait. I love nothing more than a good rumble.

  Chapter Five

  Sarah-Jane

  I’m swirling in darkness. I can hear voices and feel movements around me; the cool air of the night on my skin. I can sense the hostile sparks shooting around everywhere. Why can’t I open my eyes? Why can’t I move. I’m so deep in the darkness, I can barely breathe.

  It feels like forever since I came up for air; forever since I fell into this deep dark place where everything is foggy and unclear. I’m sure I ran headfirst into Knox; I seen his eyes the stunning orbs starring into my own panicked and afraid ones
and when I went down it was those eyes that floated down into the dark with me. I was so dizzy, running in a panic; thinking this would be the end if he got his dirty hands on me again. The dirty memories of tonight and the actions of two men who wanted nothing but to drug and rape me and my friend assault my mind and the fear of knowing that I wouldn’t have come out the other side as the same person I was when the night began. I was so sure of myself and what I had wanted to happen tonight. How could this have happened; how could it have gone so wrong? Why did he do that to me; did he hate me so much he wants to inflict pain onto me? I’m so lost, confused, consumed by hurt and darkness. My head is so sore; my body is heavy and aching. I feel as though I’m floating. I hope I’m not floating away; I want to stay. I’ve got plans. Why did I drink? I should have known better the minute I felt funny. I should have listened to my instincts. That should have been the sign to stop, then and there. No though Sarah-Jane you didn’t, you were so consumed with showing all the haters that you’re not the prissy uptight Senators daughter. This is what you do you ignore the neon lights that blink around you when danger is near.

  Trying hard to pull myself from this stupor, I can hear thuds and whacks in the distance as twigs snap and leaves rustle with intense movements. Voices calling out, shouting sounding, so far away from me. Then just like that there is noise close to me, movements. I hear the rumble and growl of a voice I’ve heard before, then another. Silence falls then I feel as though I’m in the air. A pain shoots out over my torso, causing tears to pool behind what feels like glued-shut eyelids. A cool breeze falls upon me as I feel my body pushed up against something hard and strong. There is a warmth vibrating off it and into me. It’s nice, comforting, it feels gentle and safe.

  I try to pull myself up from this dark pool, up to the top. I can hear that voice again. Is it talking to me? “Wake up sweet girl. I need you to open your eyes.”