by Mary Head
Despite her definite need to go, for a few brief moments her anxiety kept her from being able to urinate at first, and she knew she needed to relax; trying to run with a full bladder wouldn’t do her any good.
Finally, the pressure on her bladder had begun to ease, and her thoughts drifted to what she planned to do. She hated the thought of hurting Jackie to do it; he had been so kind to her, but she knew he would try to stop her, and she had to get out of this place. Eddie’s threat echoed constantly in her head, and just the idea of it terrified her. She didn’t want to hang around any longer to see if he would follow through on it.
Jackie turned towards her slightly, and she took her chance. Her elbow shot backward and slightly up, straight into his solar plexus, not hard enough to seriously hurt him, but enough to knock the wind out of him. He grunted, his hand slipping from her arm as he stumbled backward, and she darted down the hall, ignoring the pain in her foot and hips; it was unimportant, something she could deal with later. All that was important right now was getting to the door and getting outside. She had been eyeing the distance every time Jackie brought her up to go to the bathroom, noting the location of the furniture and mapping out the best route in her mind. She had figured it would be an easy sprint, but she had failed to account for the time of day and saw Eddie too late.
His arms circled her waist as he knocked her to the floor in front of the coffee table, landing on top of her with a loud grunt. She felt him push to his knees and she crawled forward when his arms left her waist, desperate to put distance between them, but then his hand found the back of her shirt and tugged, trying to pull her back.
“No!” she cried, tears of frustration rising in her eyes as she tried to resist him, pushing forward as he continued to pull, and a moment later she felt one strap give, snapping clean off the back of her tank top and dangling in front of her. She lurched forward as he fell back, and her heart leapt, thinking she might actually have a chance.
Without taking the time to think about it, she kicked backward and felt a wave of savage pleasure when she heard Eddie’s howl of pain. She didn’t know where she’d hit him, but it had been a good, hard kick, and would hopefully be enough to keep him down at least momentarily.
Continuing to ignore the pain in her body, she grabbed the couch to haul herself to her feet and rushed towards the front door. Her hands were shaking as she gripped the knob, and for one long, torturous moment she couldn’t turn the latch to unlock it.
Relief flooded her body when it finally gave, but just as she turned the knob, Eddie slammed into her from behind, forcing her against the door, which in turn pushed it shut again.
“No!” she shouted in despair, tears rising once more as she struggled against him. “Let go of me!”
Though his grip was tight, pinning her arms to her sides, she sensed weakness on his left side and twisted her body sharply, surprising him and forcing his arms down. Her elbow jerked back, straight into his left shoulder, and his yell of pain and rage told her she’d hit just the right spot.
“You fucking bitch!” he roared, grabbing her again and shoving her to the floor. She landed painfully, banging both knees and one elbow against the hard wood, and gritted her teeth to keep from crying out.
Before she could turn over, she felt his hands on her hips, and he flipped her roughly onto her back, dropping to his knees and straddling her body.
“Get off of me!” she shrieked, reaching up to push him away.
Even though it was obvious he was in a great deal of pain, he grabbed her hands, leaning forward as he pinned her arms over her head to hold her against the floor.
Still she tried to resist him, twisting her arms and bucking against him, trying to get her knee between his legs, anything to get him off of her. She was screaming, hoping someone would hear her, praying that someone was walking past outside and would be nosy enough to investigate the source of the noise.
“Shut up!” Eddie yelled, releasing one of her wrists to clamp his hand down over her mouth.
Without hesitation, she shifted her head and bit his hand as hard as she could, not caring if she drew blood. He snatched his hand away from her, his expression furious as he looked at his palm before bringing it down, slapping her hard enough to turn her head to the side.
The only thought in her mind was the realization that he had released one of her wrists, and her hand curled into a fist, swinging up from the side and connecting hard with his cheek. He fell to the side, and for a brief moment she thought he was going to move enough for her to wriggle free, but he came back, hitting her again before grabbing a handful of her hair and knocking her head against the floor.
Stars exploded behind her eyes as her screams faded, and she lay momentarily stunned, dimly aware of Eddie yelling for Jackie.
Her vision cleared as Jackie hurried into the room, and her eyes widened when she saw the syringe in his hand.
“No!” she cried, struggling anew as fear exploded within her. “No, no, please – just take me back down.”
“Right, so you can try to run again?” Eddie spat, his hands gripping her arms so tightly she was sure there would be more bruises later.
She shook her head quickly. “I won’t, I won’t, I promise.” She realized she had begun to cry, but didn’t care.
Eddie ignored her and turned towards his brother. “Jackie, give me the needle.”
“Jackie!” Hannah shouted desperately, turning her gaze towards him as well. “I know you don’t want to do this, please –”
Jackie hesitated, uncertainty clouding his features. “Eddie, maybe we shouldn’t –”
“Oh, for fuck’s sake,” Eddie snapped, shifting Hannah’s wrists until he was holding them with one hand. He maintained a firm grip, keeping her pinned to the floor, and then, with a grimace of pain, stretched his free arm to snatch the syringe from Jackie’s hand. He settled on Hannah once more, his knees still straddling her hips as he tugged the cap from the needle with his teeth. She squirmed beneath him, his earlier threat running through her mind like the scroll at the bottom of the news: You can’t fight back if you’re unconscious.
Shifting slightly, he slid down her legs a little before jabbing the needle into her thigh, releasing her arms as he pushed the plunger down. The sharp pain made her wince, tears still streaming down her face as a sense of hopelessness washed over her.
Eddie pulled the needle from her leg and tossed it aside as he leaned down, lowering one hand to her hip.
“Did you really think he was going to help you?” he asked quietly.
She didn’t answer, keeping her mouth tightly closed to stop the sob in her throat from slipping out, and his hand pressed against her hip before sliding across her stomach to linger over the button of her jeans. His fingertips dipped just under the waistband, and she lifted one hand to push his away, knowing there wasn’t much more she could do at this point.
Eddie sneered and pushed to his feet, wincing at the pain in his shoulder.
“Jesus Christ,” he hissed as he looked at his brother, “I think she dislocated it. Help me.”
Jackie hesitated briefly, glancing at Hannah, who stared back blankly, tears still on her cheeks, and Eddie’s eyes hardened.
“Now.”
Reluctantly, Jackie stepped over to pop Eddie’s shoulder back into place, something they’d both had to do several times for each other over the years. Eddie grunted loudly, face red and jaw clenched as he spun briefly away, cradling his hurt shoulder and thinking of the painkillers in his medicine cabinet.
After a couple of minutes, the worst of the pain passed, and he lowered his right hand to stare at his palm. There was a bright red bite mark on the fleshy part under his thumb; the bitch had bitten him hard enough to just break the skin, but there wasn’t any blood. It still hurt though, and would probably bruise, and he swore under his breath before turning to look at Jackie.
Eddie advanced towards his brother, pointing a stabbing finger at Hannah. “What the hell was
that about? Don’t tell me you actually care about that little bitch.”
“I was just – you didn’t need to drug her, Eddie.” Jackie glanced uneasily at Hannah again, noticing her eyes had closed, before looking back at Eddie. “She would’ve gone back downstairs –”
“Knock this sympathetic shit off right now,” Eddie said, his tone dangerous as he looked up at Jackie.
Jackie remained silent, and Eddie looked at him a moment longer before shaking his head and starting back to his bathroom, telling Jackie to take Hannah back down to the basement.
Jackie was grateful to oblige. After what he had seen in the basement the day before and watching Eddie’s wandering hand just now, he suddenly didn’t trust him to be alone with Hannah. Maybe Eddie would try something and maybe he wouldn’t, but it wasn’t at all worth the risk, and Jackie didn’t want her hurt worse than she already had been.
Sighing heavily, he moved towards her and knelt to gently lift her now unconscious body into his arms. Her head lolled against his chest, and he sighed again at the dark bruise on her cheek as he turned to walk to the basement door.
Chapter 26
Juliet let herself into David’s house later that night, striding through the empty living room into the kitchen. Eli was seated at the table, a plate of pasta in front of him, and he looked up at her when she entered the room.
“He’s outside,” he murmured thickly around a mouthful of noodles, jerking his head at the back door.
The corner of Juliet’s mouth lifted and she moved past the table to pull open the door. The kitchen light spilled out onto the deck, illuminating David’s figure sitting on the steps, and he twisted around to see who it was.
“Hey,” he said softly, a very brief smile curving his lips.
“Hey,” she replied, carefully pulling the door shut behind her.
The night darkened once more, the glow emanating from the windows and the light beside the door just enough to see.
“I got you the ravioli,” he murmured as she walked towards him. His hands were between his knees, loosely clutching a bottle of beer, and as she settled beside him he lifted it to his lips, tossing back a swallow.
She hummed in approval, adjusting her sweater. “Garlic rolls too?”
“Of course,” he replied, his lips twitching a little as he lowered the bottle.
Juliet smiled slightly as she looked at his shadowy profile, and then took a breath, her gaze falling to her hands.
“I’m sorry about earlier,” she murmured.
David glanced at her, confused.
“For snapping at you,” she clarified, “and sending you to the car. I just –”
David shook his head, a humorless smile curving his lips. “I should be the one apologizing to you. The way I behaved –” He broke off, shaking his head again.
“It’s okay, you were just –”
“Don’t do that, Jules. Don’t make excuses for me. I was an ass, and I had no right to treat you, any of you, like that. Harry was right to suspend me.” He paused and looked at her again. “I’m sorry.”
She smiled and shook her head, her shoulders rising in a shrug, and they fell silent.
A couple of minutes passed, and then Juliet sighed, pulling her sweater tighter around her and tugging the sleeves over her hands before she spoke.
“The prints they were able to lift from Han’s phone were all hers, except a couple that belonged to you.” She took a breath, and then continued softly, “The blood in the kitchen was a match to Hannah’s sample in CODIS. The blood on the phone was a match as well.” She paused, and then added quietly, “It’s hers.”
His hands shifted and she glanced at them, watching his fingers tighten around the neck of the beer bottle, though he didn’t speak. She frowned a little, remembering his three beers the night before, and wondering how much he’d already had to drink tonight.
“We spent the afternoon talking to the workers at the construction site, checking alibis and backgrounds,” she continued. “Some histories of domestic violence, a few assaults, but so far everyone has solid alibis. Obviously we’re not finished yet, so something could still turn up, but –”
“But you have nothing,” David finished, his voice low.
Juliet opened her mouth to speak, though she had no idea what she wanted to say.
David’s eyes were just visible in the soft lighting, and she watched his brow crease as his gaze flicked over the moonlit yard.
“I got this feeling earlier,” he said after a minute, “this pain, right here.” He lifted his hand to his chest, pressing his palm over his heart. “This sharp pain, and I swear, my heart actually stopped for just a second, and then there was this sudden feeling of fear.” He narrowed his eyes thoughtfully as he shook his head. “But it wasn’t my fear.” He turned to face Juliet, his gaze intense. “It was hers. I know it doesn’t make sense, but I felt her, and she’s terrified. She’s so scared, Jules, and I know he’s hurting her –” He broke off abruptly, a dark look flashing across his face, and she knew exactly what he was thinking.
“We’re going to get her back,” Juliet said, not letting him finish this particular line of thought. “We’re going to find her.”
David shook his head, a humorless smile twisting his mouth. “We have nothing, nothing, and he – he has everything.”
Juliet stared at him, feeling utterly helpless. Everything she could think of to say seemed useless and hollow, those same automatic reassurances they gave to every scared family. She wanted something more to say to him, because he was her friend, and all she wanted was to make him feel better. Instead, she shifted closer to him, placing one hand on his back and the other on his arm.
“He knew me, Jules,” he sighed. “He said my name, and he knows who I am. This is personal, and all I keep thinking is that she’s scared and hurt and alone somewhere because of something I did. Everything I’ve ever done to protect her, to keep her safe, and then this happens.”
“It’s not your fault, David,” Juliet whispered, her hand sweeping across his back as her fingers tightened on his arm.
“So why does it feel like it is?” he asked.
Juliet remained silent, unable to come up with any answer that might assuage his guilt, and a moment later she sighed, letting her head fall to his shoulder.
There was a beat, and then she felt his cheek settle against the top of her head. He leaned into her, seeking her support, and she leaned back, letting him know that he had it.
◊◊◊
Several hours and no small amount of beer later, David was in his bedroom, sitting on his bed with his laptop open in front of him.
Usually he only used his laptop in his office or the living room, because more often than not he was using it for something work related, and he preferred to keep work out of his bedroom as much as he could.
This time, however, he was aimlessly surfing the internet.
At first he had tried to read some national news, but the story of Hannah’s kidnapping had extended beyond D.C., and a few of the major east coast news outlets had picked it up as well. He imagined the articles were pretty light on information, as he had refused to do any interviews or participate in a press conference, knowing it was useless in a case like this, though it didn’t seem to stop the press from calling. Fortunately, the only number they could call was the FBI press office, and David had already told them he would not be speaking to the press. It was call screening on a grand scale.
After forgoing the news, he had bounced from site to site for a while, and had finally settled on Amazon. Even drunk, he wasn’t the type to mindlessly spend his money, so he was doing the online equivalent of window shopping.
Ostensibly he was looking at things for himself, but in the back of his mind, he knew he was searching for things to buy for Hannah’s birthday. He had her wish list bookmarked, but she hadn’t updated it in a couple of months, and he knew of some things she wanted that weren’t on it.
Books and movies we
ren’t what he really wanted to get her, though, and he finally clicked over to the laptops. He stared blankly at all the different kinds, eyes roaming over brands and sizes and a hundred other things that he didn’t understand, and then with a huff of frustration, he closed his browser completely, his head falling into his palm as he closed his eyes.
Juliet would have to help him pick out Hannah’s laptop, because there was no way he could know what she needed, and for a brief moment, he entertained the dark thought that there was no point in even looking. He quickly banished that thought before it could become more and opened his eyes with a quick shake of his head, rubbing his hands over his face.
“Just go to bed,” he muttered to himself, focusing on his computer again and mousing over to the start menu.
Before he could click it, though, he noticed the video file on his desktop, one that had been there almost a year.
fordad_lovehannah
Tears rose abruptly in his eyes, and he clicked on the file to open it, covering his mouth with his hand as Hannah’s face suddenly filled his screen.
“Hey, Dad. So you’ve been gone a while, and I miss you, and I thought maybe I’d make this for you as like. . . a little present or something.”
Her nose crinkled slightly, and he smiled, even as the ache in his chest began to intensify.
When she reached over, out of sight of the camera, and reappeared a moment later with a guitar was in her hand, David remembered being simultaneously amused and confused, because she didn’t know how to play the guitar.
And then her explanation followed as she settled the instrument in her lap. “I know I don’t really know how to play the guitar, but I got Chris to teach me the chords for this, and he loaned me his guitar so I could make this for you.” She tilted her head to the side, her eyebrows rising slightly. “He said he’d punish me if I didn’t have it back to him tomorrow, but I’d like to see him try.”
