I watched as Winston licked his lips once more. This looked so bad for me, and I couldn’t even do anything! He pulled his shirt off and started unzipping his pants slowly, like he was trying to be seductive, when, in reality, he was scaring the crap out of me.
Suddenly the door opened, and his head snapped to it. Another pair of footsteps approached us, and I stared into the dark, waiting for the person to appear in the light. A familiar face came into view.
“Elliot?” I gaped at him, confused. What was he doing here?
He motioned for Winston to leave.
My stomach flipped, and not in a good way. Why did he know Winston?
“Elliot, what are you doing here?” I asked cautiously.
He smirked. “What do you think?”
I narrowed my eyes. He didn’t sound anything like the Elliot I knew. He almost sounded sinister.
“You’re the one who was in charge of kidnapping me,” I stated gravely.
I didn’t even ask, I knew it.
Elliot just guffawed, like kidnapping someone was normal for him. “Heather, Heather, Heather. What can I say? I wanted you from the moment I saw you in the hospital. You were like a ray of sunshine in my dark world. I wanted you so badly, but that bastard husband of yours got in the way of my plans. At Jackson’s party, I realized that any chances of getting you were slim. I knew I had to forcefully bring you, and I did. You are officially mine.”
“I am not yours!” I snapped.
“Oh really? Who has you in chains? Who made you helpless? Who treats you better? Me. You belong to me.” He poked his chest with his finger. His logic was so messed up.
“That doesn’t even make sense! You just brought me here against my will. How is that—”
I didn’t get a chance to speak any further because Elliot’s face had hardened, and his jaw was clenched. His fingers curled into a fist, and he punched the wall, hard. I swallowed and watched as he faced me with dark, angry eyes.
“If I can’t have you, then you die,” he growled menacingly.
He started toward me and took a butcher knife from his overcoat. What was it with people using butcher knives these days? Couldn’t they use something more creative?
Hand it to my brain to criticize the weapons when I was about to be killed! My thoughts were interrupted as pain shot through me. Elliot had cut my calf. I squeezed my eyes shut from the pain and bit my lip hard to keep from crying out.
This is the end, I thought.
Goodbye, everyone! Goodbye, penguins! As my leg went numb, I opened my eyes. Elliot was scraping the knife around my skin, probably figuring out where to impale me next.
Before he could do anything else, there was a sudden shout. Both of our heads snapped to the door.
“For Narnia!”
I smiled weakly.
There was only one person who used that war cry.
Alex.
It was our sort of secret safety call.
William suddenly slammed the door open and entered with a murderous look on his face.
Elliot snarled at the sight of William. “That’s it! Say goodbye, Heather!”
He stabbed me near my hipbone, and I shrieked in pain…though I was wondering why he didn’t stab me in the chest if he was so desperate to kill me.
Not that I was complaining. But fuck, that hurt.
As I slowly faded into darkness, the last thing I saw were the guys beating Elliot and some other men up, and William racing toward me frantically.
“You’ll be okay, Heather. I promise,” he whispered, holding me in his arms and removing me from the chains. He sat down and laid me on his lap, removing his shirt and pressing it against the wounds in an attempt to stop the bleeding.
“William,” I croaked.
He looked at me with tears in his eyes. As one fell down his cheek, I wiped it away. He stared at me, wide-eyed, as more tears fell from his eyes. I mustered up as much strength as I could and kissed his cheek softly.
Then I surrendered to the darkness.
***
William
“Heather? Heather!” I yelled. I gently shook her limp body in my arms, trying to wake her up.
“Come on, sweetheart. You’ve gotta stay awake,” I whispered frantically.
She moaned in pain, and I winced as tears rapidly traveled down her cheeks.
Elliot was going to regret laying his dirty fingers on her.
“William,” Nathan said lowly.
I looked up at Nathan, who was staring at Heather worriedly. “The police and ambulances are here, we’ve got to get her to the hospital.”
I nodded and started to carry her out of the warehouse, praying she would be all right.
She had to be okay.