Savage Cinderella

by PJ Sharon

  But she had other plans. She had led him to her cabin so he could see how she had lived after he'd buried her in a shallow grave and left her to die. She had survived his torment and she wanted him to witness her victory before he met his end, whatever it might be.

  Brinn looked down at the man from up high on the stand of rocks just below her cabin, a mere thirty feet from her torturer, and smiled unpleasantly. "Welcome to my world, Mr. Stockman." She called out, her voice echoing through the trees and off the rocks. The man's eyes narrowed and then widened. Her heart leapt at the sight of fear on his face.

  She had never thought about revenge, but justice was something else. She nimbly jumped from the rocks, turned, and headed toward her cabin, hearing the unexpected metallic click a second too late. A loud crack split the air and searing pain pierced her shoulder. Brinn tumbled to the ground. The hollow sound of laughter and a dark cloud shadowed the perfect September day.

  Chapter 36

  Determined Rescuers

  Tired, muddy and frustrated, Justin and Cody blazed a trail up the mountainside. The terrain was rugged and steep, factors worsened by the darkness and rain. Forced to stop and rest, they waited for the heaviest showers to pass, and then redoubled their efforts when they heard gunfire split the night. Hours of terror believing that Brinn was dead or wounded spurred them on through the darkness. They made their way painstakingly up the treacherous trail one foot at a time. The rain had washed away any signs of life along the way, but Justin was determined to stay the course. They used their flashlights to cut through the blackness and scaled the hillside, tree by tree and rock by rock.

  When dawn came, Cody finally stopped, demanding they rest and regroup. "It won't do her any good if we’re walking in circles or heading in the wrong direction, Justin." He oriented the soggy map and reset the GPS coordinates accordingly.

  Justin removed his rain gear and plunked down on the nearest log. He rummaged through his pack for the power bars Abby had insisted on and slugged down water only out of necessity. He handed a bottle to his friend, and surveyed the steep slope ahead. "Do you hear that?"

  Cody looked up from the handheld device, listening attentively. "It sounds like a waterfall."

  "When Brinn and I first met, I remember her telling me about how the forest took care of her. She said that waterfalls not only provided fresh drinking water, they offered protection. The mist off the water carries the scent of the hunters and covers any noise she might make when she tracks them."

  "Why would she want to track hunters?"

  "Where do you think she got that buck knife? She would track the hunters to see where they placed all of their traps so she could steal whatever game they snared when they weren't around. Out of necessity, she became quite the thief."

  Cody laughed, "My kind of girl."

  Justin gave his friend a weary glance and his grin faded. “It’s my fault, Cody.”

  “What are you talking about?” Cody sat on the log beside him.

  “If anything happens to her, I’ll never forgive myself. I should have protected her. If I hadn’t...”

  “Knock it off, Dude. Blaming yourself is not going to help her now. We’ll find her.” Cody nudged Justin in the ribs. “She’ll be okay. She’s tough. Besides, she owes me a rematch.”

  Before Justin could respond with a "hands-off" comment, a gunshot exploded not far off. The two men jumped, shared a silent moment of understanding, grabbed their packs, and marched up the slope. If Stockman had hit his target or run out of bullets, there would be no more gunfire. But hearing the shot meant that Brinn was still in terrible danger. As they ascended the mountain and the sun rose higher in the sky, Cody pointed out signs of foot traffic along the trail. He spotted broken branches, muddy footprints and a few shell casings along the way.

  The two men were approaching the top of a ridge when Cody stopped abruptly and knelt to the ground. "I hate to say this, but it looks like a blood trail starts here." He dipped his fingers into a darkened pool of drying blood in the dirt, first rubbing it between his fingers and then smelling it.

  Justin stood behind his friend, his heart pounding. He took note of every sensation as if the moment was frozen in time. Sweat trickled down his temple. His pulse thudded in his ears. Every muscle ached with fatigue and his mind filled with the picture of Brinn laughing her head off, standing in the doorway of her tiny cabin, watching him wrestle a bear.

  Finding a spark of hope in the memory, he stepped in front of Cody and took the lead. "Brinn is alive; I know she is. The forest will protect her." His voice far off but filled with determination, he added, “We haven’t come this far to lose each other now.” He walked a few more steps and stopped. Far up the trail was a rocky ledge marked by a lone, large birch tree. "This place looks familiar. We aren't far from her cabin." He turned back to Cody. "If you see a big black bear, it's probably a good sign."

  Cody raised a brow. "Right, if you say so."

  Chapter 37

  Never Alone

  Brinn snapped her eyes abruptly open as she pulled away from the grubby hand that slapped her face. In comparison to the burning ache that throbbed in her shoulder, the slaps didn’t hurt. But the fear that came with the contact brought her to full awareness.

  "Ahh, good, you’re awake. I wouldn't want you to sleep through our reunion." Roy Stockman sat back in the wooden chair he'd dragged close to the bed. He lit a cigarette and drew in a deep breath. He stared down his nose at her as he released a cloud into her face.

  Brinn shuddered and choked in visceral response. Her throat was parched. Pain and shock ripped through her body like a tidal wave of daggers but her body registered the smoke in vivid recall. Her eyes darted around the room trying to make sense of the scene and get her bearings. Even small movements sent sharp shooting pains down her arm. It was then that she noticed her wrists and ankles were tied to the metal posts of the same bed frame that she'd tied Justin to months before.

  It was clear that any amount of struggle would do more harm than good. Her knife was no longer strapped to her side and the complete vulnerability that swept through her brought another shudder. Brinn closed her eyes and forced the breath into her lungs, desperately calling on the Angel of the Forest for help. She had survived here—lived here. She would not die here. It took every ounce of her strength to keep her panic at bay.

  "Still stubborn and willful, I see." Stockman watched her guardedly, a look of disdain in his eyes, his thin lips drawn up in a sardonic smirk as he released another curl of smoke.

  Brinn returned the glare, imagining that her eyes had the power to burn holes in his flesh. With her anger pushing her fear into submission, Brinn scowled at the hollow-cheeked man. His features had grown harder than she remembered, as if the coldness in his heart were turning his outsides to ice or stone. "Why are you doing this? Haven't you taken enough from me? Why can’t you just let me go and leave me alone?” she cried.

  Dark eyes pierced her heart. A menacing smile rose on the man’s face. “You know the rules. Til death do us part, Darlin’.”

  “You beat me and then left me to die!" Tears stung her cheeks. The pain in her shoulder and ache in her heart made her dizzy and nauseous. Consciousness drifted away. She hated him for what he’d done to her, but shame flooded her soul when she realized how much it hurt that he’d just thrown her away. He’d broken her, beaten her, and discarded her like she was nothing more than trash.

  For better or worse, he had provided for her as a child. She’d been completely dependent on him for food, clothes, shelter and even the books that had saved her sanity. Only half aware of his presence, she shuddered at the mix of raw disgust, anger and pain that coursed through her. How could he have done what he did? She shook her head to clear the hazy confusion. It hadn’t been about her. He had taken her away from everyone who loved her and manipulated her for his own purpose—treated her like an animal—a pet. The venom in his voice drew her back to full awareness.

  "But you di
dn't die, did you? You were supposed to die. Instead, you ran away." His voice took on the familiar chill of the soulless man who had abducted her as a child. Terrifying memories and painful emotions crashed in on her all at once. Brinn choked back the urge to vomit. Overwhelmed by the rush of fear and grief that filled her, and the smoke that clung in the air, she turned her mind inward and tried to disappear.

  He snickered and continued. "I told you that if you ran, I would find you." He leaned in close to Brinn's face, releasing a trail of smoke that brought the bile up to her throat again. She recoiled in disgust and groaned with the pain of the movement as she coughed and choked. “You should have stayed hidden. I told you that when I found you, I would punish you."

  He recited the words as she'd heard them hundreds of times before. The echoes of the past reverberated through her head. He caressed her cheek with dry, hard knuckles. Repulsive memories surged to the surface. Holding the glowing end of his cigarette close to her face, he chuckled at her silent terror.

  Brinn blinked tightly and tried to shut down as she'd done all those years ago. Cody’s words played in her mind. Don’t panic. Breathe. Think. React. Struggling away an inch further, she turned her head abruptly from Stockman’s smug glare. Darkness folded in around her. She reached for something to keep her from falling into the blackness.

  A small voice in her head spoke clear and strong, “You’re not alone.” She thought of her mother and father. They were alive. When she was a child, she'd had no hope—nothing to hold onto. Her mind flashed to Abby, Mr. Hoffman, and to Cody, and finally, a crystal clear picture of Justin captured her mind and held fast. Any confusion she had about her feelings for him and his feelings for her, faded. Whatever problems they had didn’t matter now. She had people she loved and who loved her. She had a life beyond her fears and insecurities. She had reasons to fight. If she had the chance, she would fight for Justin.

  Calling on the Angel of the Forest, she collected every ounce of power she could find within her and let out a keening howl that pierced the air.

  Stockman pulled away, stumbled out of the chair, and covered his ears. "What are you doing? Stop that screeching!"

  Brinn continued on, her voice pitching high and dipping low, producing a wailing chant that filled the cabin and carried beyond its walls like a siren. She ignored the tearing pain in her shoulder and the dizziness from blood loss and glared at Roy Stockman. Her eyes blazed with animal fury. Her body strained against the leather ties that bound her wrists and ankles. A burning rage poured through her blood, through her lungs; her voice escalated.

  The man had a mixed look of confusion, anger, and fear on his face, spurring her to double her efforts. Ratcheting her voice up another decibel, the ear-piercing sound reverberated off the stacks of books that surrounded the room like soldiers.

  "I said, STOP!" Stockman covered his ears with his hands, but his protest fell flat against Brinn's powerful cry. He started toward the bed and then stopped and spun toward a loud thump on the front porch. He drew the gun from the back of his pants and went for the door, still eyeing Brinn with fury.

  He barely had the door unlatched and opened a crack when the towering form of a large black bear forced him back. Stockman screamed as the bear charged on all fours toward him. A loud shot rang out and Brinn saw Kitty veer from her path. The big bear slowed her approach but closed the distance just the same. Stockman retreated and took aim again, but a massive paw shot forward. With one ferocious swipe of sharp claws, Kitty sent the gun flying across the room out of Stockman's grasp. She was standing on her hind legs, now head and shoulders over the man and growling down at him. The thunderous rumble reverberated through the room. Long canines and jagged teeth appeared beneath the curling lips.

  Taken aback, the man clutched his bloody hand and staggered backward, tripped over the chair, and crashed to the floor. Kitty left no room for escape. She was on the man in a flash, deadly claws raking across flesh, teeth snarling and tearing in vengeful fury. Stockman screamed and struggled to keep the chair between him and the bear, grasping at any possible protection from the deadly claws.

  Brinn averted her eyes but heard the pained screeches that escaped Roy Stockman as the great black bear sank teeth and claws into the leathered hide of the man who had haunted her dreams for so long. After mere seconds the chaos stilled.

  Brinn opened her eyes and looked to the bloody mess on the floor. Kitty lay motionless, covering the decimated body of Roy Stockman. He lay still and lifeless beneath the chair in the corner of her little cabin, stacks of books scattered about. Brinn let a sob escape her lips and felt the hot tears of mixed relief and sorrow that ran down her face.

  Kitty couldn’t be dead. She was her friend—the only one she’d had for companionship over those years of lonely nights and long summer days. She had named the bear cub after the Diary of Anne Frank, thinking it fitting that both girls had only one private friend that they could confide in and trust with their darkest secrets and deepest sorrows. No judgment, no expectations, just friendship.

  Brinn looked around the empty room, a new fear rising in her chest. She knew she'd lost a lot of blood from the shoulder wound that burned and throbbed mercilessly. What if no one came to find her? The ties that bound her wrists and ankles were painfully tight and the more she struggled to free herself, the tighter they pressed into her raw flesh.

  Crying with frustration, pain, and a mix of emotions that threatened to drive her into darkness, she gave up the struggle, closed her eyes, and began to pray. “Angel of the Forest, hear me. Help me, please.”

  A quiet presence fell around her. The shallow breaths eased and the undeniable force of love swept over her. Someone would come for her. She had family who loved her. She wasn’t alone.

  Kitty stirred. Brinn snapped her attention to the grumbling animal. Her heart pounded with relief and excitement. “Kitty, you’re alive! You saved me, girl.”

  The bear staggered to her haunches and then rose to sniff the air, lifting her upper lip in a wide grin as she approached the bed. Brinn laughed through the tears that streaked down her face. “I thought I’d lost you.” Brinn sniffled and nudged her cheek against the bear’s massive head that rested on the bed beside her.

  Barely a minute passed and Brinn heard footsteps coming toward the front of the cabin. "Help, I'm in here! Please, help me!" Brinn called out weakly now, her voice hoarse from fatigue.

  A wave of relief coursed through her body when a burst of sunshine broke through the door. Justin and Cody appeared in the gloom of the cabin, the bright sunlight at their backs. They nearly stumbled back out when they saw first the bear, and then Stockman’s bloodied body. Justin’s eyes were wide with shock, but he closed the distance, ignoring Cody’s warning about the bear.

  Kitty, perturbed by the perceived threat, reared up and stopped Justin in his tracks. Brinn spoke in soft lyric tones, and the bear settled down beside her again, but didn’t take her eyes off the newcomers. She sniffed back toward the bed, growling a guttural response to Brinn’s message, and ambled out of the cabin, nearly knocking Cody off the porch on her way by. Brinn could hear the rustle of shrubs parting as her friend limped off and disappeared into the thicket.

  "Brinn, thank God you're all right!" Justin reached the bed and began untying the knots, his hands shaking with tension. Seeing the blood-stained shirt and the bullet wound, he paled. "Oh, God, you've been shot."

  Brinn made the effort to smile reassuringly, "It's not as bad as it looks.” She gritted her teeth, stifling a groan as her arms were released from their bonds.

  She had never been so glad to see anyone in all her life. Regardless of why Justin had been kissing Charlene, he was here now. Justin lifted Brinn into his arms and carried her out of the shadowed cabin into the afternoon sunshine, the rays streaming through the trees and lighting the small clearing. The warm sun on her face and Justin's arms holding her tight to his chest felt like heaven. She started to cry and buried her face in his shoulder, list
ening to his soft-spoken whispers of comfort. He sat on a boulder nearby and held her, rocking back and forth, holding her on his lap and brushing her tangled hair out of her face.

  "I’m here, Baby. You're safe now. I've got you. I'm going to take you home. Everyone has been worried sick about you." He stopped rocking and lifted her chin, a tortured look in his brown eyes. “I’m so sorry about everything...” his voice was like warm velvet on her skin as she struggled to stay conscious. “I’m sorry I didn’t get to you before he hurt you—I’m sorry I let you down...”

  “You came after me.” Brinn cut him off as she fell into the brown pools of his tearful eyes, no longer caring if she had enough breath left in her to make it back to the surface. She wanted to swim to the very bottom and not come up. From inside a foggy haze, she recited softly, “Hope is the thing with feathers that perches in the soul...”

  Justin’s voice whispered along her cheek as she drifted toward the welcoming depths, “And sings the tune without the words, and never stops at all.”

  Chapter 38

  Over the Edge

  “Please, Brinn—you have to be all right.” Justin lifted her face to his, watching her blue eyes glaze over and flutter open as if she were struggling to focus on his voice. He held her close, rocking her and thanking God he'd found her. Her pulse was strong against his fingertips as he touched the side of her neck.

  After muttering a few words and ignoring his lame string of apologies, Brinn had slipped into unconsciousness. Hopefully she’d heard his final words of encouragement in reply to her latest Dickinson quote. As he stared down into her sweet face, Justin’s heart wrenched. He carefully set her on the ground and examined her wounded shoulder. The blood saturated the front and back of her tee shirt. The bullet had torn through the fleshy part of her arm, but appeared to have missed the bone. The seeping blood had begun to thicken. He took off his back pack, tore open the zipper, and furiously rummaged for bandages.