Becca could barely drive, she was crying so hard. She had been so relieved to hear from Rowan and to know he was mostly okay. She felt bad that she hadn’t asked more about his house and what had happened, but they’d have time to discuss that later. She hoped. His house wasn’t totally destroyed, was it? Had anyone been hurt? As long as he was okay enough to talk to her and say he was coming. Even if he weren’t coming. All that mattered was that he was okay. They didn’t have him and they wouldn’t get him if she was able to prevent it somehow. She’d do whatever she could to get Emma and keep Rowan out of it. No reason for more people to get involved in this mess.
She had to hang up on him, though. As badly as she wanted to keep hearing his voice, and she wanted to wait for him even more badly, she had no choice. The guy had been clear. No cops, no Rowan. She already worried that being near the cop when she got the call had somehow messed things up. What if they had someone watching and they had seen there was a cop there? Would they rush things and kill Emma faster? Or hurt her somehow?
The thought of her being hurt made her want to throw up. The emotional damage was done. There was nothing Becca could do about that now. They’d deal with it later. Maybe Emma would need some therapy or something. She might deal with anything from nightmares to shock. Who knew what they had done when they took her and how they were handling her now. Was it too much to hope that the person who was in charge of watching her was nice? Maybe he had kids, too? Maybe Emma thought it was all a game. Maybe, somehow, they’d told her Mommy was coming and it’d all be okay.
That made her cry even harder because she knew it was so far from the truth. And the truth was too much to imagine.
She tried to focus on driving. She was getting close to the farmhouse. Just a few more minutes. What should she do when she got there? Just walk in? Would someone be outside waiting for her? How soon would she see Emma?
Then she saw it. It was a big building. An old farm. The farmhouse was wooden and red and looked like it was in disrepair. It looked abandoned or haunted or both. It was probably full of spiders and critters. Not that anything like that should be her concern at this moment, but she hated spiders and mice. All she’d need was to be in there, trying to get Emma, and have a mouse run across her path and scatter her thoughts. How perfect would that be.
She pulled her car up beside the building. There was no one out front. No welcoming party ready to snatch her from her car. This was the right place, right? She could barely think straight, her mind raced, and her hands were sweaty from her panic. She had to take in many breaths to steady herself.
This was madness, what she was about to do. Walk into an empty building where her daughter was being held captive by some dangerous men. Who knew what they’d do to her. She wasn’t trained to fight or protect herself in any way. She had the knife in her car, but she wasn’t going to take it in with her. Why should she? She didn’t know how to use it properly. She’d likely end up hurting herself worse than she’d hurt anyone else. So, she really had nothing. No means to save Emma, no means to save herself.
Maybe she should wait for Rowan. How soon would he be there? She hadn’t told him the address. At the time, it was more important for her to be there without him, but now she regretted it. Maybe she should call back and tell him? But then he’d come for sure, and he might get himself hurt. No. Enough people were involved in this already. She didn’t need to drag him into it again. Just get in there and get Emma and do it alone.
She looked up and down the street, hopeful despite herself that someone would show up and come to her rescue. There were no cars, no motorcycles that she could see.
With a trembling hand, she opened her car door. She had her purse and figured there was no benefit in taking it in with her. What was the etiquette for going to rescue your child from kidnappers? She slid her phone into her pocket and tucked her purse under her seat. Her car keys were in her other pocket.
She stepped one foot out, hitting dirt and sending a small puff of dust into the air. She turned and stepped her other foot down. She could do this. Emma needed her. Emma was right there, just on the other side of this wooden wall. She might be crying for her mommy right now. Becca stood and closed the car door quietly. If she could somehow catch them off guard, that had to be to her benefit, right?
She walked slowly to the building. She listened hard, hoping to hear a motorcycle off in the distance, giving her a reason to wait. Something. Anything. A car? A truck? Someone happening to be passing by that she could call out to help her? As slowly as she walked, it wasn’t slow enough. No one came. She heard no one approaching.
The porch was low and looked like she would step right through it if she stomped or jumped on it. She stepped up carefully and slowly. When she got to the top and stood before the door, she turned and paused again. Nothing but stillness and a gentle breeze. It would be a nice, peaceful day if she weren’t about to walk into chaos.
Was she about to walk into her death? Or into some sort of kidnapping situation? This probably was a very stupid thing. She was an idiot for going in alone. Rowan would be mad. She should have told him where she was. At least then she could hope he was on his way. She could have rescue fantasies of him busting in, his eyes blazing, his muscles popping, and he’d fight off the bad guys one by one, then scoop her into his arms and kiss her hard before turning to shoot another guy who came out of nowhere to attack them.
But that was the movies and this was real life, and he wasn’t coming. He had no idea where she was. It gave her some comfort to know that if he did know where she was, he’d already be on his way. He would always come for her, always protect her. How could she ever have doubted him? Now all she wanted was to have him close and to keep him close forever. How could she have sent him away and treated him so coldly? How could she have thought he was anything like these men who’d taken her daughter? He wasn’t. He’d never do a thing like this. Not for money or for revenge. But for her, he’d do anything.
If only she got the chance to see him again, she’d kiss him and tell him she was sorry and she’d fall into his arms and be his forever. And then they’d make passionate love and she’d never have to be scared again. He’d always be there for them, to protect them and comfort them. To wrap his strong arms around her and keep her safe.
Tears came to her eyes picturing all this. She had to let the image go. She wouldn’t see him again. He couldn’t get to her; she’d made sure of that. He couldn’t protect her, no matter how badly he wanted to. She’d go in there alone and she probably wouldn’t come back out. At least she’d be with Emma. At least they’d die together.
With one last deep breath, she turned the knob and pushed open the door. She stepped inside a room. The bright light of the day blinded her and she squinted, trying to see anything in the room. The door slammed shut. She hadn’t touched it. Her heart leapt to her throat and she tried to swallow.
A hand clamped around her mouth and something hard pressed against her head. She knew this feeling. She’d just gone through this days ago. Someone was pressing a gun to her head.
“Do not scream,” a voice said.
Another man rose from a chair in the next room. “Hell, let her scream. Ain’t no one around to hear her. Might be kinda fun.”
The man holding her dropped his hand from her mouth. She didn’t scream, though. She blinked faster to see in the dim room.
The only piece of furniture was the chair the man had been sitting in. An old armchair covered in a large cloth and a layer of dirt. When he stood, a cloud of dust followed him. The rest of the place was one large series of rooms, with wide doorways connecting them. A staircase leading upstairs in front of her had several steps missing. The steps that were still there were warped and looked like they wouldn’t hold much weight. In the light coming in through the windows, she saw beams of dancing dust and layers of grime on every surface. It smelled musty and old, like the doors hadn’t been opened in years. Maybe they hadn’t been before this. It was cooler inside than it had been in the hot sun, but it was sticky and the air didn’t move. The dirt in the air already seemed to be clinging to her skin and clothing.
She looked left and right through the rooms. Where was Emma? The only people here besides her were the man holding her and the other man who had been sitting on the chair. Did they lie? Was she really somewhere else?
“Where is she?” she whispered.
“I’ll take you to her,” the man who now faced her said. “Oh, forgive me. I should introduce myself. I’m Abram. You may have heard of me.”
She wanted to spit on him. This was the man who’d hurt Rowan. Who’d tried to kill him. Who sent a man to attack her. Who’d ordered Emma to be taken. Who’d brought her here. He was the reason all of this was happening. If she had a knife, she would stab him and kill him. But she was still glad she hadn’t brought it in. She wouldn’t be able to reach it and she probably wouldn’t be able to stab him anyway. She wasn’t good enough to pull that off.
“Come on, doll, let’s go see your darling little princess, shall we?” Abram said.
She recognized his voice. He was the one who’d called her and told her to come here.
He grabbed her arm roughly and yanked her forward. The gun fell away from her head, but the gunman pushed her from behind. She stumbled and Abram caught her.
“Wait until I tell Rowan how you came willingly and fell right into my arms.”
“Rowan?”
He laughed. “Why do you think you’re here? I tried to kill him once already, but I guess you know how that went. So, I figured, why not make it a little more fun? Send him on a chase to get you. Let him walk right into my trap.”
“He’s not coming,” she said through clenched teeth. “You said not to bring him and I didn’t.”
Abram laughed again and shoved her toward a door. “He’s coming, don’t you worry, doll. He wouldn’t dream of letting you rot away here all alone. He loves you too much to let that happen.”
He said the words mockingly, but they made her heart jump. Of course, she hadn’t known him long enough for him to fall for her like that, but maybe one day he would. He could fall in love with her and she could fall in love with him, and they could live happily ever after. Was he really on his way? It frightened and excited her to think of him rushing in the house, gun aimed, ready to shoot.
She shook the fantasy away again. He pushed her through the door and into the kitchen. There, on the floor, handcuffed to a pipe under an old ceramic sink, was Emma.
Becca leapt forward to get to her, but Abram reached out and grabbed her.
Emma cried out. “Mommy!” She reached for her, the handcuffs holding her little arms back stopped her. Her bunny, Cuddles, was in her lap, dirty and damp, probably from her tears. Her little face had tear trails running from her eyes down her cheeks. She looked dirty and exhausted, like she’d been crying and struggling for hours.
Becca could burst right now. She lifted her leg and kicked at Abram, struggling to break free from him. He wrapped a leg around hers and forced her legs apart, into an uncomfortable wide straddle. She couldn’t move the way he held her. One arm wrapped around her throat, the other arm wove between her back and arms, his two legs twisted around hers. He released the arm at her throat and threaded it instead through her hair, pulling back hard so her head tilted up.
He licked her neck and whispered in her ear. “I can’t wait until Rowan gets here. I’m going to tie him up and make him watch. You know what I’m going to do then?” He made a groaning noise in her ear. He released her hair and reached around to grab her breast. He squeezed hard, until she cried out. “Oh, I like that. Do that again.”
She shook her head and felt the tears welling in her eyes. Not that. He wouldn’t. Would Rowan really let him do that to her? Would he be able to stop him?
“I’m going to fuck you so hard, right in front of Rowan and your little brat. Then, I’m going to kill you real slow. Then, I’m going to kill that asshole boyfriend of yours. Don’t worry, though. When I kill Emma, I’ll make it quick, I promise. Though I can’t promise I won’t let one of my guys have her first. Some of them are kind of perverted, I have to admit. Gross the things they do to little kids.” He shook his head as if he were disgusted.
He had to be just saying this to upset her. She couldn’t allow this possibility to exist. The whole world was turning red now. She clamped her mouth shut. Don’t respond, don’t respond. Don’t let him know he got to you. That’s what he wants. He wants to unravel you. And it’s working. Don’t let him see it.
“Let go of me,” she hissed. She made the words as harsh as she could. If she sounded mad, maybe she wouldn’t sound so distraught.
“Sure.” He laughed again. “Enjoy what little time you have left.”
He let go of her and she almost fell, but slid to her knees and grabbed Emma into her arms. She pulled her onto her lap, her little hands still reaching back because of the handcuffs.
Emma buried her face into her chest and cried. “Mommy, they just took me!”
“I know, baby, but it’s okay now.” She ran her fingers down her hair to comfort her. She picked up Cuddles and snuggled her against Emma’s chest. “See, Cuddles and Mommy are both here. It’s going to be okay.”
“Why did that man do that to you?”
Becca dropped her voice. “He’s a bad man, sweetie. It’ll be okay. Rowan and some good men are on their way and they’ll save us.”
Abram stood there, watching them with his arms crossed. He had a gun in his hand now and held it casually but threateningly.
“Can we go home?” Emma asked. “I don’t want to be here anymore.”
“Soon, baby. Soon. Just hang in there a little longer and it’ll be over.”
“I’m scared, Mommy. I want to go home right now.”
“Me too. Me too.”
“Aww, why don’t you just tell her the truth?” Abram asked. “Tell her you’re both going to die and these are your last minutes together.”
Emma pressed her face harder into Becca, rubbing dirt and tears all over her shirt.
Becca glared at Abram and stroked Emma’s head again. “It’s okay. Don’t listen to him,” she whispered.
They sat there for a while, rocking. Becca tried to calm her and comfort her in whatever way she could. She kept Emma’s face hidden so she didn’t have to see the gun pointed at her. If Rowan were really on his way, where was he already? She strained her ears to listen, hoping the sound of his bike would come to her.
She heard the front door slam and she jumped. Was it him? Was he here? She sat up straighter, listening and waiting.
“Abram, come here!”
She didn’t recognize the voice that called out to Abram. Maybe it was the man who’d grabbed her when she walked in.
Abram left the room.
“Shh,” she said to Emma. “Someone is here.”
“Who is it?” Emma asked.
“I don’t know. I’m trying to hear. Shhh.”
“Are they here to save us?”
“I don’t know. Shh.”
Becca hugged her tighter, hoping to keep her from making noise so she could hear. Someone was talking, but it was too muffled to be able to tell who it was. She didn’t hear any bikes. That didn’t mean anything necessarily, but she’d feel better if she had heard some. Then she’d know it was him.
Footsteps came toward the room. Someone was coming, but walking slowly. It was probably just Abram.
She looked up as he stepped into the room and her heart stopped.
“Well, well, well, if it isn’t my little wife and child.”
Nick glared down at her with a menacing smile. She couldn’t speak.
Emma whipped her head around at the sound of his voice. “Daddy?” she asked. She cringed and started to shake. Her fear of him was evident in the way she looked up at her mommy, as if asking to be taken away from him. Becca wrapped her arms around her tighter and pressed her face into her again.
How in the world was Nick here? How had he found them? What would happen now? Where was Rowan? Terror turned to liquid and rushed through her veins. She’d been afraid of the guns and afraid to die, but she was more afraid that, somehow, she’d have to go home with Nick. Be his wife again. Go back to living with him and doing as he said. Go back to that life where nothing was ever right and she was never good enough and every time she fell short of his idea of perfection, she was beaten for it. Where Emma, too, was hit for being a child. For being herself. She’d rather die than go back to that life. She would die if it came to that. She’d gladly give her life for Emma to be free that. She’d take Nick out and go to prison for the rest of her life if she had to. She would not go back. Not for a second. She would do anything to avoid that. Anything.
“Did you think you could just leave me and I would do nothing about it? You think I’d let you take my child from me like that?”
Becca looked up at him. She had nothing to say to that. How could she get out of this? Get away from him? Keep him from taking Emma? Keep him from dragging her back to that hell hole she’d tried to make a home?
“Oh, come on. Say something, Reebs. Didn’t you miss me?”
She hated when he called her that. Always had. And he did it all the time, on purpose, just to drive her nuts. She moved her hand to cover Emma’s ears. She didn’t need to hear any of this.
“No,” she said. “Why would I miss someone hitting me all the time?”
“Don’t act like it didn’t turn you on. I bet you’re so hot for me right now, you’re about to burst. Maybe we can find an empty room and have a little makeup sex. I hear that’s the best kind. I miss your sweet ass being wrapped tight around my dick.”
Her face flushed. Why was he always so crude? And in front of Emma? He really didn’t think at all. And he really didn’t care. How had she ever loved this man? Her heart ached for Rowan. Seeing Nick again brought the two of them into clear focus, highlighting the vast differences between them. Rowan was nothing like him and she’d been crazy to ever think he was.
“Lucky for me, when you left, it didn’t take long to find you. I’ve been watching you for months now. The Griffins have been a huge help keeping an eye on you.”
Her eyes narrowed slightly. Months? He’d been watching her that long? He’d known where she was almost the whole time, then. She hadn’t been careful enough. Or sneaky enough. She really had thought she’d outsmarted him. She’d never been so wrong in all her life. God, she was stupid. How could she be so stupid? Of course he’d found her. Of course she’d never be able to escape living with him. Never escape that horrible life. She deserved nothing better than to be pushed around by him.
“I have to admit, you kinda threw things off when you picked up Rowan on the side of the road. That was a strange coincidence. Who knew you were so compassionate? It was sweet, really. But then you had to go and keep him alive and fuck him. And I’m sorry, but no one fucks my wife. Unless I’m getting paid for it. Oh, and Rowan will pay, that’s for sure.” He punched his fist into his empty hand. “And you’ll pay for that, too, don’t worry. For being a little slut and opening your legs for the first guy who came along. I always knew you were a little whore, but I never expected this from you.” He shook his head. “You’ll need to be taught a lesson. Seems you forgot who you belong to. And that pussy is all mine and mine alone.”
She squeezed her eyes shut and pressed her hand harder over Emma’s ear. She hoped she wasn’t hearing any of this. Not that she hadn’t heard things like this a hundred times before. She didn’t need to hear it another time, though. Rowan would never talk this way. He’d be pissed if he heard Nick talking like that in front of Emma.
Where was he? She should have given him the address. She should have begged him to come and waited for him. She’d listen to him from now. She wouldn’t go off and try to be brave and strong and do things on her own. Obviously, she needed him. She couldn’t do this on her own. She only got herself into more trouble.
And now what? Even if she got out of this with Emma, what would they do? They’d have to leave again. They’d have to go on the run, change their names and their looks and hide forever. They’d have to always be watching their backs, afraid Nick would show up again at any time. And that was the way he wanted it, wasn’t it? Wanted to keep her afraid forever. It was just another way to control her.
Maybe Rowan would go somewhere with them. Could he leave his club, though? She didn’t care what he had to do for money if it meant they could leave and Nick would never find them. All the crime seemed necessary now. Convenient even. He was less trackable if he was dealing in all cash. If he didn’t have a job with a paper trail. Maybe she could start selling drugs, too. Something to earn fast cash so they could keep moving. Keep running from him. Or maybe she could just kill him.
A life in jail or a life on the run? At least if she went to jail, Emma could have peace. Could have a nice, settled life free of fear. And she’d get to see her sometimes. That was better, wasn’t it? It was better for Emma, for sure. Who cared if it was better for her or not? Prison couldn’t be that bad. Maybe she could somehow get a lesser sentence because of the abuse, and maybe her crime would be considered self-defense. No way would she be able to kill him and have him not hit her or choke her or something in the process. So, it would be self-defense, right? And that had to be a lesser sentence. Yes. That was her only way out for sure. Kill him.
“How many other men did you screw?” he barked. “Who else do I need to take out?”
She looked down at the ground. She wanted him to stop talking. She wished the ceiling would fall on him and take him out. Even being in the same room with him made her want to puke.
“Well, I guess it won’t matter much,” he said. “Abram will kill this Rowan guy and you’ll come home with me and I’ll fuck you until you forget all about those other guys. I’ll bleed them out of you. You really made it easy on the Screaming Griffins, you know. On all of us. They needed to get to Rowan. I needed to get to you. What better way than to take the kid, use her to get you, and use you to get him. Funny how life works. Seems fate is on my side.”
Fate. Where was fate when she needed it? Where was fate now? And if fate were going to do this, forget it. She didn’t need fate. She did need Rowan, though. Maybe he wasn’t coming after all. What if something had gone wrong? What if he didn’t know where to go? What if he never came? What would she do then? How would she get out of this?
“Come here, Reebs.” He held out his arms to her.
She shook her head. “Leave me alone.”
He laughed. “I don’t think so. You are my wife. Or did you forget the vow you made before God to love me forever?”
He stomped over to her and slapped her across the face. He yanked her arm, hard. Emma slipped from her lap and Becca fell on her side, crashing into the ground. He reached around her middle and pulled her to her feet. Then he crushed her to him.
Tears spilled down her cheeks. Her cheek burned and her hip ached where she’d hit the floor. Her stomach turned and her whole body revolted against his closeness. She tried to push him back, but he held her tighter.
“What a lovely little family reunion,” he said.
He grabbed her jaw and tilted her face toward him, then kissed her hard. His hands roamed all over her body, squeezing her butt and her breasts like he had so many times.
He’s probably going to rape me right here in front of Emma, she thought. Not like he hadn’t done that before. She stood still and didn’t kiss him back or touch him. Her arms hung at her side. The best thing was always just to let him do whatever he was going to do. Hopefully he’d be fast. Many times, he was. He’d come into the room where she was folding laundry and he’d yank down her pants, bend her over, and shove inside her dry and hard. In a few minutes, he’d be done and he’d leave her alone. She’d cry and go to the bathroom and try to relieve the burning pain, and then she’d go back to the laundry.
That was just how things were for. For years, that was how they were. And when Emma came along, he certainly didn’t stop to make sure she was occupied or wasn’t watching. Several times, Emma had come to her after, asking too many questions. Becca had gotten very good at having things ready to distract her, should Nick decide he was in the mood.
This time, though, there were several other men here. It was one thing when her husband raped her whenever he wanted, but it would be much worse if all the others did, too. And Nick might like that. Might like to watch her suffering and hurting like that. Would probably get a kick out of it.
Where was Rowan? She felt the tears running down her face. Why wasn’t he here?
Nick stuck his fingers in her hair and forced her to kiss him again. His slimy tongue found its way into her mouth. She wanted to bite it. She wanted to throw up. He made her feel so wretched. He disgusted her beyond disgust. He nearly choked her shoving his tongue in her mouth so far. She tried to back away, but he held her tight. She hoped Emma wasn’t watching. Hoped she was covering her eyes or clinging to Cuddles and not seeing what her daddy was doing to her mommy.
Finally, he dropped his arms and released his hold on her. “You hear that?” He smiled menacingly.
She listened and at first, heard nothing. Then. Then, there was a faint sound in the distance, growing louder. A motorcycle engine. No. Not one. Many. They grew louder quickly, then stopped abruptly.
“I think it’s show time,” he said. “That must be your little boy toy and his MC.” He rubbed his hands together and licked his lips. “Time for action.”
He grabbed her one more time and kissed her, slapped her again across the opposite cheek, then let her go. She fell to the ground and scooped Emma back up.
Nick turned and grabbed his crotch. “Soon, Reebs. Soon.”
She closed her eyes to listen better. He was here. Finally. Rowan had come to rescue her. Everything would be fine soon.