Chapter Eighteen
Ryder
I woke up to water being dumped on me. Cold water. I flinched. There was a rattling sound above my head and a pulling sensation on my wrists. I glanced up and saw my hands were bound by handcuffs. The chain between the cuffs was tied to a longer chain connected to a metal ring that was attached to the celling. The chain was tightened so I was forced to stand. I was trapped. My heart hammered in my chest.
A laugh brought me to the present. A man was standing in front of me. “Hello, hero. Were you here to save Layla? I heard she ran. Good thing she needed a new phone.” My eyes widened. It was the guy from the phone store. “You poor bastard. You picked the wrong girl to get involved with.”
“Where is she?” I growled. “She better be safe.”
“Safe? No one who works for Devin is safe. You must not have much experience with drug dealers, do you?”
“No, not particularly. But can’t be that much different than living with an alcoholic, I bet.”
The man sneered. “Alcoholics are kids compared to the stuff we handle.” He pulled a bit on the chain and I heard my shoulder blades pop. My body was lifted and my full weight sagged. My arms were on fire. I groaned in pain. The guy smirked and released the chain. My feet hit the floor. I’d never been so happy to be touching the ground. My shoulders throbbed.
I chuckled bitterly. “You’re both abusive assholes, I see.”
“Ah, so lemme guess. Your dad hit you when you were a kid.”
“And used a belt,” I said. “When he was drunk. Otherwise he was just a regular asshole. Now, answer my question. Is Layla safe?”
He sighed. “You don’t listen very well.” Grabbing the chain, he yanked it down quickly. I screamed. He smirked and held the chain for a minute before letting it go.
Tears of pain welled up in my eyes. I blinked them back.
The man smiled. “Good. Behave like a good boy and that won’t happen again. You don’t ask the questions. I ask the questions, got it?”
I didn’t answer. Instead, I looked down at the floor. Before long, the guy left me alone. I heard footsteps on invisible stairs. I was in a basement. Dammit, how was I going to save Layla now? Some hero I was.
Looking around the room, I saw Layla’s phone on the table. So those idiots were the ones who texted me. It wasn’t Layla. My heart fluttered. So, she didn’t hate me. Focus! That wasn’t going to help me get out of my situation.
Pulling myself up and grabbing the short bit of chain that I could reach, I swung back and forth like Rachel and I used to do at the lake on the rope swing when we were little. Man, these guys were dumbasses for leaving me unguarded but I was grateful for it. Grabbing the phone was going to be a lot harder than I thought. It was a slow process. Oh well, I had nothing but time.
I cringed as my foot plowed into the chair. The metal folding chair crashed into the wall. It wasn’t long before a small, frail-looking girl peered out from behind the wall.
“Hi,” I said awkwardly. “Um, please don’t kill me.”
“Do you know what time it is?” she asked, placing her hands on her hips.
“Um, no, what time is it?”
She blew out an annoyed breath. “Dammit, it’s three thirty in the morning, you idiot. Do you want to wake Devin up? He’s passed out drunk, but still.”
“Devin? That’s the guy the girl down by the bridge was talking about. Is this his place? Is a girl named Layla here?” I asked.
The girl’s blue eyes widened. “Layla? Brownish blonde hair? Brown eyes? About five five?”
“Yes, yes, that’s her! Is she here? Is she okay?”
She looked at the floor for a few seconds. My heart dropped to my toes. Whatever she knew, it wasn’t good. “Layla, she’s in bad shape. She OD’d. Kay was preforming CPR on her before I came to check on you. Devin just threw her into the room. When I left to check on the noise, she was turning blue…”
“She wha-No! How could she be…No…” The room spun. I suddenly felt like throwing up. “No, she…she was fine. She hasn’t done drugs in weeks! She quit!”
“Shhh! Do you want him to come down here?” She cupped her hand over my mouth and glared at me. “Layla ran away a few weeks ago. Are you the one she stayed with?”
I nodded. She didn’t take her hand away.
“Devin gave her some for her finger, he said. I don’t know how much. They were in the bedroom a while. She said the name ‘Ryder’ before she passed out. Is that you?”
I nodded again.
“Okay, really important question. If I take my hand away, do you promise to be quiet? I have a question to ask you and I would really appreciate it if you didn’t wake the boys up. If you do, you’re dead and I’m in a world of pain, okay?”
I nodded vigorously. She lifted her hand and smiled.
“No wonder she must like you. You are crazy cute, Ryder.”
“What’s your name?”
“Kristen,”
I chuckled. “Finally, I get to meet the real Kristen,”
“The real Kristen? Huh?”
“Layla said her name was Kristen when I first met her.”
Kristen giggled. “Really?”
“Can you go check on her? Please?” I begged. “I need to know she’s okay.”
“Sorry, if I go back up there, I have to stay. I have to go soon, anyway. Devin does a room check at four AM sharp.”
“No, please! I need to know she’s okay!” I strained against the chains as she started to walk away.
“I’m so sorry, Ryder. I’ll let you know, I promise. In the meantime, please do not say anything about talking to me, all right?”
She glided up the stairs quietly like a ghost. I yanked on the chains, feeling helpless. What if Layla died? What would I do? I couldn’t lose her. I couldn’t.