“Who are you? Can you at least tell me that?”
“That’s none of your concern,” I answered finally. “None of this is your concern, really. At least it doesn’t have to be.”
“What the hell does that mean? How could it not be my concern? I’m supposed to be walking down the aisle right now! You’re kidnapping me on my wedding day! Of course it’s my fucking concern!”
The guys and I chuckled at her anger. I knew she was a feisty one. “What kind of language is that for a delicate little bride like yourself?”
“Well, it seems if you all have your way...I’m not a bride anymore. At least not today. And I’m certainly not delicate.”
“Let me ask you a question, Jada Chavez,” I stated, leaning closer while chewing a toothpick between my teeth. I watched her stiffen up at the sound of her name on my lips. “Does Paul Garcia love you?”
“What?” she murmured under her breath. I waited for the answer. “Yes, of course he does. We’re getting married. Or...we were.”
“Good. Then you should have nothing to worry about.”
“What do you mean!?”
I grew quiet again, letting her squirm. I made a point to speak in a lower tone than usual when talking to her. I didn’t want to risk her recognizing me from my voice. At least, not yet.
“As long as your beloved fiance and his family do what we say, you’ll be delivered safely back into his arms in no time. You two can get married and live happily ever after and it will be like none of this ever happened.”
“You don’t understand,” she started to sob. “I don’t have time to wait. I have to get married to him today. It has to happen now. Can you please just take me back? I’m sure they’ll give you whatever you want.”
I wondered why she was so insistent that the wedding happened right then, but shrugged it off. It made no difference to me. That wasn’t how things like this worked. And anyway, we were pulling up to the hideout where we planned to stay until everything was finished - for better or worse. There were two small houses shrouded by thick trees. A tiny shack where Jada would be held and bigger living quarters next door for the rest of us. It would have been poetically just to hold her hostage on the very property Mr. Garcia and I feuded over in court, but I didn’t want to risk getting caught.
Two of the guys grabbed Jada by each arm, but I pushed them away and threw her over my shoulder instead. The door to the shack was lined with locks on the outside, which were open and waiting for me to deliver her. I kicked it open and tossed her into the corner. Once again, she was like a cat - quickly struggling her way up to a seated position so she could feel alert and in control.
The others came in behind me and started gathering around like a pack of hungry hyenas, ready to pounce.
“When do we get to play with her?” one of them snarled.
I pushed them back. “You don’t. Now get the hell out.”
I could see them seething with arguments for why I should let them have at her. If she wasn’t terrified and desperate to be let go by the time we made our first attempt at contacting the Garcias, we wouldn’t get the price we demanded. But I wasn’t about to let anybody else do anything to her. As long as she was here, she belonged to me.
She kept her back braced against the wall, and I could hear how shallow her breathing had become from the commotion and the barrier of the fabric across her face. Her dress had ripped a little and her breasts were bursting over the top of the corseted gown. The memory rolled through me like a sip of bourbon - her laid out on the grass in front of me as I yanked her dress down to set her free. Only this time, she wasn’t spread out as a willing receiver to whatever I had to offer. She was closed up and restrained in every sense.
“Will you untie my hands and feet?” she asked. “Uncover my face?”
I wasn’t ready for her to see yet, but I walked over and leaned down to undo the rope on her limbs. The door was shut behind me and there was nothing a tiny thing like herself could do to a big man like me to get out. I noticed the red burn marks and broken skin where the ties were and felt a surge of anger and protectiveness. I had no intention for her to go unscathed, but I hadn’t tied those ropes. I was angry with the others for hurting her.
I went back to the opposite corner as she steadied herself and tried to stand up. She was shaky from nerves and stumbled a bit, but finally, she made it onto her feet. With her hands spread out wide in front of her, she started to feel her way across the room. I watched as she got closer and closer. I didn’t move. I kept my feet planted firmly as she felt the faintest touch of my chest in front of her. She jerked her hand back and hovered above the edges until she had reached my face.
Her fingers touched my cheeks and features carefully as if she wanted to and didn’t want to all at once. She looked like she was feeling her way through a rosebush, blind, and trying to avoid the thorns. But part of her knew I was the thorn. There was no way around it.
“You seem familiar,” she said softly with trembling lips. “Do I know you?”
I swiped her hands away, maybe too harshly because she stumbled and nearly fell. I marched to a different corner of the room to get away from her.
She nodded as if she was accepting she might not ever know who I was or why this was happening. “Just don’t hurt me,” she said, more as a statement than a question. She wrapped her hands around her wrists and added, “Well, at least not any more than you already have.”
“I didn’t do that to your hands and feet,” I argued. “But even still...I can’t make any promises. At least not to say you won’t get hurt.”
I expected her to buckle over and cry, to scream out in fear. But she straightened her spine and stood up tall. She accepted her fate, whatever it may be. Or maybe she just didn’t believe me. She didn’t know how afraid to be.
“I told you...As long as Paul can get his father to do what we say, you will eventually make it out of here and be okay.”
“And if he doesn’t? Or if he can’t?”
I pursed my lips and cocked my head, even though she couldn’t see it. My silence was enough of an answer.
She pulled at the rope still tied around her neck and tried to lift the cloth off of her face. It was damp from her hot breath and starting to cling to her nose and mouth worse than before.
“And this over my eyes? Can’t you take this off? Surely you can’t keep me blindfolded like this forever.”
I stepped close to her once again. “Don’t underestimate anything that I could do to you,” I warned.
I planned on making the most of the big reveal. I pressed my hands on her hips. She immediately tensed up and tried to smack them away.
“Do you want the blindfold off or not?” I snapped.
She swallowed hard and panted with restrained whimpers escaping between each breath as I ran my hands from her hips up to the curve of her breasts. I didn’t dare to grab them as fully as I wanted to...just yet. Just as she thought I might, I quickly spun her around - fast enough to send her falling back against my chest.
I kept my hands planted firmly across her - one on her thigh and the other near the base of her throat. It was everything in between that I wanted to touch, but I restrained myself. Slowly, I trailed my fingers up to the rope knotted behind her neck and began to untie it. I tossed it along with the black hood down to the floor and loosened up enough for her to turn around and face me.
Chapter 8
Jada
Everything in me sank the moment I turned around and saw Nicolas standing there, staring back at me. I thought I might be dreaming. I had imagined seeing him again for so long, and then all at once, there he was. I almost forgot that we were facing each other again because he had stolen me from the altar, tied me up, and locked me in a room. For a brief moment, I was just a woman being reunited with the man she had been dreaming of.
But slowly, the reality started sinking in. My heart and mind raced through all of the possibilities. Had he captured me out of jealousy? Did he fe
el the same way I did? Maybe he had been just as enraptured with me ever since that day when we snuck off from the garden party.
His wavy black hair was no longer tied behind his neck. It was hanging free, framing his chiseled features. His strong chin was stubbled with hair, and his dark eyes sparkled at me. But there was something different about him now. He didn’t seem as sweet and as kind as he did before. He looked stormy and dangerous.
“Why?” I finally asked, still in disbelief. “Why did you snatch me from the church and bring me here?”
His expression darkened, and an evil-looking grin flashed across his mouth, but he didn’t answer me. He broke our gaze and turned to pace the room with a cynical sort of air about him. I couldn’t look away. I just kept studying him, looking for all the traces of the man who had charmed his way between my legs. I was looking for the man I had given my virginity to so impulsively and willingly.
“Why did you say all of that before?” I tried again. “Why did you ask if Paul loved me? And say as long as he did what you wanted, I wouldn’t be hurt? What is all of this!?”
My questions grew more frantic. I needed to know what he was trying to do. The longer he stayed quiet, the more things I felt like I wanted to know. The thoughts piled up in my head, and he didn’t seem in any rush to give me relief.
“You don’t need to know anything more than what I’ve already told you,” he replied after a while.
“What do you mean I don’t need to know!?” I shrieked. “Do you know Paul!? Is that why you were at that party!? Why have you taken me?”
“You seemed so clever when I first met you,” he said arrogantly. “Now I’m less impressed. Your questions are boring me.”
“What the hell do you expect!? You crashed my wedding and tied me up and brought me here and now you won’t tell me why! How am I supposed to react!?”
“I don’t know,” she shrugged. “I’ve never been in your position before. I like to stay on this side of things as the captor rather than the victim.”
“So you’ve done this before!?” He fell back into silence.
The reality of it all started crashing in. Of course, he’s done this before. Elaina told me who he was. He was a gangster...a criminal. I didn’t know what he wanted from me...beyond what he had already taken by the creek, but I knew I had to stop confusing him with the man I made up in my head.
“I’m starving,” I told him. “And thirsty. Can I please have something to eat? Some water?”
“This isn’t a hotel,” he scoffed with a look of disgust.
His face morphed into something unrecognizable. I started to realize why it was so hard to believe he was a criminal. He had been pretending to be something else when I first met him. He put on an air of someone decent and charming, but I was beginning to think this was the real version of him...the side that he kept so well hidden from me outside of the party.
“You’re different. You’re nothing like the man I thought you were by the creek.” He cut his eyes over to me, but did not stop slowly pacing the room in front of me. “What was that all about? In the woods!? Why did you come and talk to me and...everything else.”
“What do you mean why!?” he shot back. “Look at you. You’re a naive but attractive young woman. You wandered off by yourself. How could I not help myself? I just didn’t realize you’d be such a willing participant.”
My gut twisted into shame and sickness. “Was that all?” I asked under my breath, to myself more than to him. “It all meant nothing. The connection I thought I felt…”
“Connection!?” he laughed out loud, making me hate him more than ever before. “You are more naive than I thought. And maybe a little delusional. I thought you knew something of the world, but maybe you’re no better than your sheltered, spoiled little groom waiting back at the church for you. Perhaps you two deserve each other.”
“Then take me back!”
He groaned, “You’re insufferable. I have other things I need to tend to.”
Without another word, he stormed out of the room, slamming and locking the door shut behind him. I ran over and threw myself against it, pounding my fists. But it was useless. I wasn’t getting out of there until he wanted me to, and he didn’t seem in any hurry.
I sank in the corner and tried to catch my breath. Tears started welling up in my eyes, and I finally let them fall. I was relieved that I had held them in so well in front of Nicholas. Another kind of relief washed over me too. As afraid as I was, I was glad not to be at the church.
I told myself it was absurd to feel that way. Nicholas was nothing like the man he tricked me into believing he was, and now he was holding my prisoner in this dark, cold room. I didn’t know when or if they’d feed me or give me anything to drink. I should have been celebrating my marriage with my family. I could have been dancing and drinking and eating cake. Instead, I was locked up by a criminal, and yet that still seemed like a better alternative to marrying a man I didn’t truly love.
I pulled myself up from the floor and raked my hands across my face, angrily tugging at my wet cheeks. “What is wrong with you, Jada!?” I hissed to myself.
My sisters, mother, Paul, and all of the Garcias were probably worried sick about me, and here I was, thinking that this was somehow better than my wedding. Nicholas was right. I was delusional. I had been so foolish to think that time by the creek was anything more than a horny man taking advantage of a desperate, inexperienced young girl.
I wrapped my hands around my stomach, remembering the life that was growing inside. I wasn’t about to be foolish enough to tell Nicholas about it. There’s no telling what he would do with me then. The only thing I knew for certain about him is that he was troubled, dangerous, and not to be trusted.
After walking around in circles for what seemed like forever, I finally collapsed in the corner once again and waited, though I didn’t know what I was waiting for. I didn’t know how much time had gone by, but the room was dark with only a little light shining in through one of the grimy, film covered windows.
I jumped when I heard the sound of footsteps outside. One by one, the locks came undone, and the door opened. A man slammed a tray down inside and immediately left, but I could see Nicholas watching over the whole thing from nearby. He leaned against the outside of a house, smoking a cigarette. But he didn’t say or do anything before the door was shut and locked once again.
They had brought me cold soup and stale bread with a small glass of water. I was just starving enough to scarf it down without really thinking about how gross it was, but the water was not nearly enough to satisfy me. I rolled my dry tongue around in my mouth, thinking what I wouldn’t do for a big pitcher of ice-cold water…
A while later, I could hear the sounds of music and laughter coming from the nearby house Nicholas had been leaning against outside. The later it got, the rowdier they got. I imagined what my wedding reception would be like with all the joy and music. That part would have been fun at least, regardless of how I felt about Paul. But then I thought about what would come after...Paul whisking me away for our honeymoon and me praying that he didn’t notice I wasn’t a version. Me forcing myself to make love to him even though I knew being with him would be nothing like what I experienced with Nicholas.
My eyes were growing heavy with exhaustion, but there was no good place to sleep. One pathetic excuse for a mattress was in the corner, but it was covered with stains and dirt. A blanket full of holes that smelled like mold was thrown on top. Every so often, I could hear the scurrying and squeaks of mice, or worse - rats, from the walls and the edges of the dark room. I was convinced that the moment I closed my eyes, they would try to eat me.
I was dozing off in a seated position with my back against the wall when suddenly there was a loud banging sound outside. I could hear the door of the house flinging open and the music from within grew louder until the door swung shut again. Footsteps and the sound of several laughing men were coming closer. I clenched up when I heard the lock
s being undone again.
The door opened and three dirty old men stumbled in. They reeked of alcohol and I could see gaps from missing teeth as they grinned at me. I couldn’t help but wince at the sight and smell of them, but they didn’t seem to care. They looked at me like starving hyenas, and I started to feel sick with worry about what they might do.
“He was right. She’s pretty,” one of them said over his shoulder as if I wasn’t in the room.
“Who goes first?” the other guy answered as they started closing in.
I curled up, making myself as small as possible. “Get away from me!”
My cries only made them laugh more. They inched closer and closer, until suddenly - the door flew open again. I saw Nicholas come blazing through in a blur, quickly grabbing each one of them and tossing them out like big logs. Once they were gone, he slammed the door shut and turned towards me, fuming with anger.
“Thank you,” I offered, but the way he snarled at me made me feel stupid for thanking him for anything.
Whatever those men had wanted to do to me, Nicholas might have very well been planning to do the same. Maybe it wasn’t about keeping me safe at all, but rather just having me all to himself. But I was not about to give myself over to him again. Not after learning who he really was.
I couldn’t lie. I did get a secret thrill from the way his eyes drifted along my body, likely remembering what it had been like before when he had me. A big part of me was still dying to feel him move inside of me again, but I kept reminding myself that it was all a lie. I should have put all of that out of my head from the moment Elaina first told me who he really was.
“I don’t want you anymore,” I insisted out loud. “If you think you’re just going to come in here and I’ll roll over for you the way I did by the creek, you’re dead wrong.”
He laughed with a twisted smile. I could tell he was drunk too. He may have been better looking than the others, but I didn’t like him this way.
Stolen Pregnant Bride (Olive Skin Devils Book 3) Page 6