by Vi Carter
“I think we have a tail.” The voice of the brown-eyed man spoke.
“Make a quick left and see.” The other man instructed. I tried to send a signal to my fingers, but nothing happened and panic started to flood me again. I hoped Emmett or his friends had seen what happened. Could they be behind us?
“You are a moron. See, no one followed us. I don’t know why Frankie sent you," the sneery voice made me focus. My heart sank. No one was coming.
“Fuck you, Nig.” The vehicle swerved under me and then settled back down into its normal rhythm.
“Ouch! What was that for?”
“For being a moron,” Nig said as the SUV came to a stop.
“Do we just leave her here?"
“No, we don’t, Simon. I swear I don’t understand why Frankie sent you.” They got out but continued to talk, their voices muffled. Then suddenly the door opened, and fresh air brushed the crown of my head. They lifted me out, their hands heavy on my skin.
“She’s pretty,” Simon spoke. My skin crawled. Would they rape me? Was that how I was going to die? I wish I couldn’t feel or hear. Whatever they gave me wasn’t working. I couldn’t even die peacefully. I couldn’t even panic or cry
The ground that they placed me on was cold. Small stones dug into my back painfully. I wanted to protest and scream, but still my body would not cooperate with my mind.
“What now?” The man named Simon asked.
“Now we wait.” A foot kicked my leg, pain registering clearly with me. “She’s out of it,” Nig added.
“She’s really pretty.” Simon spoke again. Please, God. Don’t let him touch me. I beg you.
“You’re fucking sick.” Yeah you tell him, Nig. Please don’t let him touch me.
“I like them still. It’s not sick. It’s a preference,” I felt bile in my throat as Simon the sick bastard tried to defend himself.
“You like them cold, too, I heard. That makes you one sick fuck, Simon.” Silence, my stomach twisted and turned. What kind of monster was I in the hands of?
“She’s not cold,” Psycho Simon said after a moment. Then there was movement as someone brushed my face. In my mind, I was shuddering, moving my head away, trying to use my hands, but nothing. They could do anything they wanted, and I was helpless. “I’d still fuck her.” His breath brushed my face and its stench reached my nose, making my stomach churn even more violently.
“Let’s see what Frankie says."
“About me fucking her?” His breath was no longer on my face, it was as if he turned his head away from me.
There was a frustrated sigh. “No, you moron. About whether to kill her or not? What, did your mother drop you when you were born?”
The insult had Simon moving away from me, his footsteps growing distant. “You call me a moron one more time and you will regret it,” Simon’s voice had lowered, the threat real. I didn’t want him to hurt Nig, then it would be just me and him and Nig was the lesser of two evils.
“Fine man. Just chill.” The sound of a lighter and the smell of smoke filled my senses. They didn’t speak again. Someone paced. I wasn’t sure which one.
“I’m going to check the area. You stay here.” Nig’s voice sounded. No, no, no. Don’t leave me with him. Footsteps moved away before the voice spoke again. “And don’t do any weird shit to her,” the sound of disgust in Nig’s voice only heightened my fear.
“Fine,” one word and Nig’s steps moved further away. I listened intently as Simon moved towards me. Please, please, please come back! I wanted to scream at the top of my lungs as his hand touched my face. “So pretty, so still,” he purred the words as he continued to stroke my face. His hand moved down my neck and groped my left breast. He let out a groan, and I screamed, but no sound came out. I wanted to be sick. I wanted out; I didn’t want to be here. But my mind wasn’t obeying me. It stayed still and obedient as he continued to grope me, his breathing getting heavy. Then to my horror and disgust, his slimy tongue found its way inside my ear. My stomach heaved again as his panting was now breathing hot, rancid air into my face. The need to push him away and dry the inside of my ear consumed me.
“You dirty bastard!” Simon’s tongue left my ear. I could have cried in relief as Nig came back.
“You were licking her ear?” he asked. “Don’t answer that.” he added. Simon tried to get his breathing under control. The terror in me hadn’t faded. “Frankie rang. We have to take her back to him.” I felt a moment of relief before more fear replaced it. Was this just prolonging the inevitable? Who was Frankie? What did he want me for? I wasn’t sure if it was Nig or Simon who grabbed my arms, ready to lift me up. I prayed with all of my soul that it was Nig.
“Step away from the girl,” Matthew’s rough and steady voice sounded like heaven. I wanted to cry. They found me. I was safe. I was going to be okay. Fear gripped me as I was lowered to the ground.
“Lower your weapon,” another voice ordered. It was one I didn’t recognize. I wondered whether Emmett was here too. I really hoped he was. He was the only thing that made me feel safe. He was the only one that I trusted. It was the here and now that made me realize this.
“We’re on the same side,” Nig spoke to Matthew. Trepidation at Nig’s words had my mind halting. It was like it short circuited for a second.
“No, we're not.” Matthew growled as the sound of two shots rang out. My relief at being rescued were short-lived as I prayed, unable to move as shots rang out. Sound returned, and the man who was with Matthew spoke. “We didn’t have to kill them."
“Yeah, we did, son."
“What about her?”
“Kill her.” My blood ran cold with disbelief. What? What was going on? I thought Matthew was here to save me. Noise from what sounded like upstairs made the two men go silent. “Stay here.” Matthew spoke quietly and left the room. I lay waiting for a bullet. Would he shoot me as Matthew had commanded?
“Matthew?” The boy sounded confused, and a shot was fired. If my eyes weren’t already closed, I would have closed them as I almost expected the sound to sear through my body. But then the loud thud of a body hitting the ground near me rang out. I was confused, what had just happened? The inability to see was infuriating.
“Down here. I found her.” Matthew shouted as he leaned over me, acting as if none of the previous events had ever happened. The next voice would have had me crying if I could have, but Matthew’s sudden change was more frightening than anything else.
“Is she alive?” Emmett’s voice sounded stiff with fear.
Matthew touched my neck, feeling for my pulse. “She’s alive,” he spoke. “Just sedated.” I thought I could detect a hint of annoyance. What was going on?
Now I knew for sure that Matthew wanted me dead. But why? The smell that now invaded my nostrils had my mind skittering away from the fear of Matthew and towards Emmett. I felt his strong arms wrap around me as he lifted me off the ground. He pulled me into his chest. I was safe.
CHAPTER TWELVE
EMMETT
“MATTHEW THANK YOU.” Matthew looked at me in the rear-view mirror, his eyes going to Amber, who I pulled tighter into me.
“It’s just a pity about Danny. He was a good kid…” Matthew swallowed “…they shot him without warning.” His eyes moved back to the road.
“They were part of the Black Bloods. We’ve never had trouble with them. Why now?” I couldn’t understand why a gang who we’ve never crossed paths with would do this.
“I don’t know, but we need to retaliate. They killed Danny. Tried to kill Amber," Matthew looked at Amber again, and I found myself pulling her even closer.
Once we returned to the compound, I carried Amber to my room. She hadn’t stirred at all, so I had Mandy check her over.
“Her heartbeat is regular. She’s just heavily sedated. There isn’t much I can do until she wakes up.” I had sent Matthew to tell everyone what had happened while I stayed with Amber. Mandy brushed Amber’s hair off her forehead. “She doesn't seem
like she was harmed. There are no marks on her.”
“We don’t know that. Just because there are no physical marks, does not mean there aren’t any emotional ones,” I responded snappishly before sitting down across from the bed. I knew a person didn’t have to have bruises in order to say that someone had hurt them.
Her eyes widening, Mandy shook her head. “God, you are right. I hope for her sake that there are not any of those either.”
My heart jumped as one of Amber’s fingers moved, then her hand moved. A groan left her mouth.
“Get me water,” I barked at Mandy as I made my way to Amber.
AMBER
My head pounded. Pins and needles zinged all over my body painfully, and I cried out.
“Emmett, you need to move so I can check her,” Mandy’s voice spoke. I felt Emmett’s hand slip out of mine and I wanted to scream to have it back there. It took a moment before one of her cool hands touched my neck, her other hand she placed in mine. “Amber, if you can hear me squeeze my hand.”
I did and moaned again. I didn’t want anyone to leave me alone ever again.
“Good girl. Can you open your eyes?”
I tried a few times, it was hard. It felt as though something was fighting to keep them closed, but finally, with one last effort I did, and Mandy smiled at me. I felt relief at finally being able to see again, no longer trapped in terrifying darkness.
“Can you sit up?” she asked. I opened my mouth. The dryness in my throat hurt, it was as if cotton wool had been stuffed in my mouth.
“Water,” I croaked. Mandy held the glass to my lips and I drank greedily. She left to get me more water and Emmett took her place.
“Did they hurt you?” He didn’t move a muscle or blink as he sat, blank-faced, and waited for me to answer.
His bedside manner could use some work, but deep down I knew him just being here meant that he cared. “No.”
My answer didn’t seem to satisfy him. “Did they touch you?”
Heat rose in my cheeks when I thought about Simon, and I shivered. “Yes.”
He still hadn’t moved a muscle. “Tell me.”
Embarrassment and shame had me looking away from Emmett and when Mandy arrived back I focused on her.
“Leave.” I jumped at Emmett’s bark and Mandy stalled.
“What about her water?”
Emmett turned away from me to Mandy. “Leave,” he spoke quieter, but the anger still entered his words. Mandy left and closed the door, Emmett’s focus returned to me. “Tell me,” he said again.
“No.” I looked away from him, but his hand cupped my cheek making me look at him. His touch was gentle but strong and I had no option but to look at him.
“Please.” That one word, from him, was undoing me. I could feel the whole situation starting to crumble around me. The fear. The humiliation. My eyes burned, and my vision blurred.
“Simon...he…” A tear fell, clearing my vision. I wasn’t sure which was worse, not seeing or seeing Emmett. For the first time, I could read his face, and it scared me. His eyes held a murderous glare, and I was glad Simon was dead because I had no doubt at this moment that Emmett would track him down and kill him.
“…he just touched me, he didn’t...“ I shrugged, mortified and unable to tell him about the tongue. Emmett’s stiff nod told me he understood. He stared at me, the way he often did, the stare I could never hold, and I looked away, until his hand found the back of my neck and he pulled me towards him. My heart pounded. He rested his forehead against mine, still looking at me, I held my breath, my heart pounding.
“I’m sorry,” he said before closing his eyes, his forehead still resting against mine. After a few seconds, I slowly let out a breath along with some tears and closed my eyes, too. The warmth of Emmett’s breath against my face had my stomach doing funny stuff. It was also a relief to know he wasn’t angry. When I opened my eyes, Emmett looked at me, murder still visible in his eyes as he leaned away, taking my safety net with him. I folded my arms across my chest.
“I need to shower,” I said, and Emmett didn’t speak but left the bed and entered a room off his bedroom. I took a moment to look around me, taking in the sterile yet masculine room. The dark-wooded chest of drawers would have looked antique, except for the metal handles that also decorated the wardrobe and acted as tie-backs for the long, grey curtains. The sound of the shower running had my attention back to the door that Emmett walked through.
“I’ll give you some space,” he said, and a lump formed in my throat. I couldn’t speak so I just nodded, and he left. I tried not to think as I entered the huge en-suite. I didn’t think as I stripped down my clothes and got into Emmett’s shower. I tried not to think as the water washed Simon’s breath and touch off my body. I tried not to think about Matthew’s order. My silent tears shook me as I clung to the tiles to keep myself standing. It had come so close to being so much worse.
I stayed in the shower for a while before I pulled myself together. I needed to tell Emmett about Matthew. Would he believe me? We’d find out soon. I wrapped a towel around me and walked back into the bedroom. Clothes sat in a neat pile on the bed. I hadn’t heard anyone come in. Now I wondered if anyone had heard me cry? But a more disturbing notion formed in my mind, which was that someone had been in the room. I tightened the towel around me, gazing around the room. I shivered and started to get dressed in the jeans and blue jumper. I pulled on the brown ankle boots before towel-drying my hair. I left it down, getting ready to leave just as the door opened. I stood still as Emmett looked at me from head to toe before giving a slight nod. “I sent Mandy in with your clothes.” His way of telling me it wasn’t him.
“Thanks.” I looked away from his uncomfortable stare.
“Emmett, it’s Kirk,” Mandy said urgently, as she came running to the door. She looked panicked, and the noise coming from the downstairs rose. The voices all mingled together, making it impossible to hear what was being said.
“Stay here,” Emmett told me before leaving with Mandy. I counted to twenty and followed. I moved down the stairs slowly and cautiously and watched as Emmett entered a large sitting room. The sound of Emmett walking across the solid oak floor was the only sound. The room was filled with people, most I had seen in passing here, some I had never seen before. The large fireplace dominated the room, the red brick coating one wall. My eyes travelled across to room and to Kirk, who now spoke.
He turned to Emmett, pleading his case. He held a sparkly phone in his hand and raised it so Emmett could see it. “I found this in Matthews’s drawer,” he shook it, his knuckles white. “It’s Mandy’s phone. The night my brother was dying, we rang her but couldn’t get through. He took her phone and hid it.” He pointed at Matthew who didn’t flinch, and my heart started to pound. Maybe Emmett will believe more than one person. I moved closer to the crowd. “He let my brother die, on purpose, Emmett.” Emmett still hadn’t spoken; his silence had Kirk clenching his fists. “Mandy, tell him.”
Mandy looked alarmed at being called out. “Yeah, I lost my phone that night.”
“Could you have left it at the gym?” Emmett questioned calmly.
Kirk threw his hands in the air. “Emmett, you need to listen to me, he’s a snake! He KILLED my brother!” I knew I needed to step in and back Kirk up. Matthew noticed me and his calm wavered, his eyes flickering over to Emmett and then back to me.
“Matthew is a good man, and like a father to me.” Emmett sounded so sure with his words, which I hated to hear.
Kirk moved closer, the hurt on his face at Emmett’s words clearly showing through. “Emmett,” he pleaded, a wave of Emmett’s hand had Kirk falling silent, the fight leaving his eyes as his shoulders slumped. I stopped in my tracks as I saw Emmett’s expression.
“One more accusation like that, Kirk...” The sentence hung in the air. Would he kill him? I shivered and, when I looked up, Matthew stared at me, satisfaction clear in his eyes. BASTARD. He knew that he had won. Emmett didn’t trust one o
f his men, what hope did I have that he would trust me?
As Kirk passed me with fury radiating from him, I wanted to reach out and stop him, but nothing was getting in his way.
“I told you to wait upstairs.” Emmett’s sharp words pissed me off with everyone watching us. But, as I looked at Emmett’s furious face, I didn’t exactly know what Emmett was capable of, so I left the room and climbed the stairs, looking like a good little girl in front of the crowd. When the chat started up again and I was forgotten, I turned around and left the house. I glanced at the sitting room door. No one noticed me; all eyes were still on Emmett as he spoke of betrayals, family, and loyalty. I must have circled the premises three times before I found Kirk in a small orchard his back against a tree, the phone in his hand.
“Are you okay?” I spoke softly. He didn’t even flinch at my voice, just stared blankly.
“Not now, Amber.” He sounded exhausted.
“I believe you,” I told him, and he finally looked up at me with suspicion in his eyes.
“Did he send you out?” He stood now, all six foot of him. I wanted to step back, but I didn’t want to show fear.
“No. I don’t trust Matthew either.” I was being careful with my words. Would I end up dead if I told the truth? Was Kirk someone I could help and trust?
Right now, he just looked at me with distrust. “We all know you're sleeping with him.”
I laughed with a vicious bite to my tone. “Wow, you don’t know shit. But I’m so not sleeping with Emmett. That thought is kind of disturbing.”
He studied me suspiciously, but then Kirk relaxed, and he smiled slightly. “So why do you believe me?” he asked, sitting back down.
I joined him, sitting cross-legged on the ground. “Because I know your brother hadn’t just ripped his stitches, someone had stabbed him again. It was made to look like his stitches were torn.” I barely had it out of my mouth before Kirk pulled me off the ground roughly and started dragging me towards the house. I panicked. I didn’t want to face Emmett. “What are you doing?” I pulled his hand that gripped my arm like a vice, not making any impact.
