What felt like barely an hour later, Brad came back. I stayed seated against the wall when the lights came on, still struggling to breathe, and listened to his footsteps. He entered with a cheerful grin, like he hadn’t just cracked my ribs, and set a tray of food down next to me. I watched him warily, tense and shaking, hoping he’d turn around and leave again, but he didn’t. Instead, he plopped down on the floor across from me with his legs crossed, smiling that creepy smile.
I chanced looking away from him and glanced down at the tray. There was a single slice of bread and a small cup of water, but that’s not what had me going still. Set in a little cup in the corner of the tray was another one of those blue pills.
I looked back and him and scowled. Through gritted teeth I whispered, “I’m not taking that.”
His face fell a little, like he was taken aback at my denial. “Are you sure? Tracy makes them especially for you and the rest of my collection. She told me it would make you feel what you’re supposed to feel for me. You’d be more compliant and… needy. Do you feel needy for me, Lydia?” he cooed, scooting closer as he again reached out to touch my hair.
I knocked his hand away and gaped at him, suddenly understanding everything. They did this to me. That pill was why my senses were off, why I’d started having those episodes. It was the cause of my sudden, uncontrollable libido. It was made to make me ready. For him.
Nausea hit me so hard my mouth watered, and I gagged, sending sharp pain through my middle. I refused to regret being with Pierce, Mason, and Emmett but knowing that the insistent need I felt was meant for Brad made me sick.
I could not take that pill. No matter what he did to me. I was already at a severe disadvantage being so small and, now, injured. If I was out of my mind with lust or freaking out with an episode, I wouldn’t stand a chance.
He watched the emotions flicker over my face with rapt attention. I think he was waiting for me to give in because when I narrowed my eyes and clenched my teeth, telling him without words that I wouldn’t submit, his expression twisted into anger so intense it was terrifying.
“Why won’t you just be a good girl?” he screamed, spittle flying from his mouth.
I reared away from him and scrambled to get to my feet, cradling my stomach and using the wall to support me as I backed up.
“There’s no escape, Lydia. You’re mine! You can’t get away from me,” Brad taunted.
He slowly got to his feet and followed me, stalking me.
Terror struck me as he lunged. I spun and tried to bolt, but I hadn’t made it more than a step when I felt his hand clutch the back of my sweatshirt. He jerked me to a halt then pushed me so hard I went flying. I hit the floor with a smack and screamed in agony when he leapt on top of me, his weight forcing my ribs to press painfully against the cold, wet floor.
I could barely breathe with his hands pinning my shoulder blades and his ass resting on the back of my thighs. When I felt the hardness of him push against my backside, I whimpered in utter disgust and horror and tried to wiggle out from under him, but it only made the pain worse. I opened my mouth to scream but all that came out was a wheeze.
“I told you, Lydia, you either bend, or I’ll have to break you. You think I would’ve spent all that time wooing you, being nice to you, to not take my time playing with you?” he hissed, settling more of his weight on me to stop my struggles.
I felt his breath against the back of my head as he bent closer.
“I wanted you from the first time I saw you, but Tracy said no. I’d already picked Sarah, and she said I couldn’t have two girls so close together.” His voice was petulant, like a child being denied a treat. “But then you started asking questions. She said you were sticking your nose where it didn’t belong. She said that was proof that you’re a bad girl. But I knew. You wanted me, too. You knew the only way to get her to say yes was to make her suspicious.”
“You’re sick,” I rasped.
He made a garbled sound of fury then roared in my ear, “Don’t deny it!”
I whimpered, tears pooling on the floor against my face, adding to the wetness already slicking the concrete, but I didn’t take it back.
“I’ll show you. I’ll show you how much you want me,” he muttered.
I felt him remove one of his hands from my shoulder and fidget for something. I thought for sure he was going to rape me and renewed my struggles. The pain from my thrashing was so intense I thought I’d black out from it, but I didn’t let that stop me. Better to be unconscious than aware as he violated me.
I choked out a weak scream when I felt something cold and metal slip beneath the hem of my hoodie and shirt. I knew instantly it was a knife. He drew it up along my back, lightly scraping my skin. I felt the cold air wash over me as he used it to pull my clothes up. He snickered right before I felt a tug and heard the sound of fabric ripping. He pressed the blade between my shoulders, hard, making me cry out when I felt my skin give way beneath the sharp edge.
“Whoops! Clumsy me, I’ve cut you a little. Oh, well. It’s not too bad.”
I flinched and cried harder when he slid his fingers through the warm blood dripping down my sides. He was playing in it. I squeezed my eyes shut when I felt him lean down. He groaned and blew a puff of air over my exposed back but the crackle of a radio made him go still.
“Come in, Brad.”
I jumped when his fist came down on the floor barely an inch from my face. He muttered angrily behind me, but his weight lifted off of me. I took the opportunity to scramble away from him. I crawled as fast as I could to the far wall, my only thought to get as far away as possible.
“I have to go,” he announced through gritted teeth.
I watched him pull a cloth from his pocket and wipe his fingers, then adjust himself and smooth out his white scrub shirt, checking the material to make sure he hadn’t gotten any of my blood on him. He looked back at me and sighed disappointedly.
“I’ll let you eat and collect yourself, but don’t worry. I won’t leave you all alone down here for long. I’ll be back as soon as I can. Enjoy your meal, sweet Lydia. And take your medicine like a good girl.”
With that, he left, leaving me shivering in the darkness.
I didn’t move again until long after I heard the door close and the lights went out. When I did, I had to hold my hoodie against me so it wouldn’t fall off. Through the pain, I did my best to grab the scraps of my cut shirt and tie it off again around my ribs. It wasn’t nearly as tight as last time and my body was breaking out in goosebumps. I huddled in a ball, rocking for a long while before I forced myself to get up. I paced until I felt slightly warmer and my teeth no longer chattered, but nothing could stop the insidious whispers telling me I wouldn’t be so lucky next time. I didn’t know what he would do when he came back, and that not knowing kept me on edge. I couldn’t count on him being called away again. I had to come up with a plan.
* * *
Over the course of the day, Brad came back several times. I tried to time him, but his visits seemed random, probably whenever he had a spare minute in his orderly duties.
Each time he came back, he checked to see if I’d taken the blue pill and every time he saw that I hadn’t, he’d hurt me in some way. Surprisingly, he never tried to force me to swallow it. I figured he wanted me to take it willingly, as some kind of sick admission that I liked him. I didn’t give in, but I knew his patience wouldn’t last. And I knew I couldn’t take much more of the beatings. I was dangerously weak and getting weaker.
* * *
I was at the wall by Sarah’s body, using every bit of strength I could muster to break the pipe free. I was so close. One more kick or yank would probably do it.
But I didn’t get the chance to try.
I gasped when the lights flicked on. I hadn’t heard the creak of the knob. Panic spread through me when he appeared at the end of the stairs. I wanted to move away from the pipe so he didn’t notice it but the look on his face made me freeze. He wasn’t smiling anymore. His pale, freckled cheeks were red with anger, and his fists were clenched at his sides.
He glanced at the tray where the blue pill was still sitting in its cup then glared at me. He was done playing.
“You don’t want to bend, Lydia,” he sneered in a cold tone, taking slow, steady steps closer. “I’m tired of you not bending. So, now, I think I’ll break you.”
I barely had time to blink before he flew at me. His body slammed into mine, sending me crashing back into the metal box behind me. Pain exploded inside me like fireworks, but I fought with everything I had. I curled my fingers into claws and swung out, aiming for his eyes.
“I don’t think so, you little bitch!” he growled before grabbing my arm and flinging it backwards.
My hand smacked against the wall of pipes with a bang. I screamed when I felt a sickening crack and knew at least one finger was broken. Tears ran down my face as he began to tear at my clothes, ripping my sweater and shirt away from my body. He ignored my blows as I tried to fight him off. My stomach rolled with bile when he spun me around and forced me to bend over the metal box, pinning me in place with a punishingly tight grip on the back of my neck. He licked a cold trail up my back and bit my shoulder so hard I was shocked he didn’t break the skin.
I couldn’t breathe. I couldn’t suck in any air past his weight and the pressure on my ribs. This was my vision. I was going to die.
Darkness crowded at the edges of my eyes. My struggles got weaker. But, just before I gave in and embraced the dark to save me from him, a light bloomed in the recesses of my mind.
I sucked in a short gasp, just enough to hold off the encroaching black, and opened my eyes. Right in front of me, not a foot away, I saw the pipe resting against the box I was pinned against. My hand hitting it had broken it free. I reached out, ignoring Brad’s cold fingers roughly pulling at my pants, and gripped it.
Gritting my teeth, knowing I only had one shot at this, I wrenched it as hard as I could. I used the momentum to blindly swing it around behind me. I heard the thwack as it landed and felt the blow vibrate down my arm.
Brad yelped and stumbled away from me. Quickly pushing myself up, I twirled around, swinging the length of metal with me. I saw his hazel eyes widen just before the pipe cracked him on the temple. He collapsed bonelessly to the concrete floor, but I couldn’t stop. I hit him again and again, screaming through my sobs.
“Fuck you, Brad!”
Only when I felt like I was going to pass out did I cease. I stood over his body, trembling so hard my teeth chattered but poised to hit him again if he so much as twitched. I counted to twenty, but he stayed unnaturally still. I wasn’t even sure he was breathing, and I’d turned his face into a bloody, unrecognizable pulp.
I swallowed convulsively and dropped to my knees. Keeping a tight grip on my weapon with my right hand, I patted him down with my left, thankful it had gone numb, preventing me from feeling the pain of my broken finger. I dug through his pockets until I found his keys then pulled them free. Staggering to my feet, I held my stomach and limped to the stairs, climbing them as fast as I could.
My hand was shaking so badly it took me three tries to unlock the door. When I got it open and stumbled through, I found myself in an industrial laundry room. I knew immediately where I was. I remembered passing this room countless times on the way to arts and crafts therapy. I grabbed the first scrap of material to cover my naked and broken torso as I ran through the room.
I’m almost free. Just a little farther. I can do this.
I was quickly losing what little strength I had left. Everything was getting hazy and my body felt drained—frail and sluggish. I threw the last burst of energy I had into sprinting through the room, but when I crashed through the door, I was immediately wrapped up in a set of arms. I screamed, thinking somehow Brad had woken up and slipped past me. I tried to swing the pipe, but it was so heavy.
“Miss Bloom! Easy now, I’ve got you! You’re safe! Medic! We need a medic!”
My eyes focused on the man who held me. He was wearing a police officer’s uniform and was staring down at me with worried but kind brown eyes. I didn’t feel anything threatening coming from him. I exhaled a shuddering breath and went limp, slumping in his arms. The last thing I saw were two EMTs rushing toward me and Dr. Fletcher standing down the hall, staring at me with a horrified look on her tear-streaked face.
I made it. I’m free.