by A J Kent
The sound of clanging echoes through my entire body, my head abruptly whipping around to look at where the noise is coming from. My Dad. My father.
Where did he come from? Where did he go?
What the hell.
Why is he standing at the door with a woman, a young woman. She can’t be more than a few years older than me. His eyes are thunderous and zealous, “I can’t believe you did this. To her, to me. To us.” my voice hoarse as I spit the words out.
My father laughs and walks towards me before kneeling down. He grabs my face in his hand, squeezing my cheeks, “Button, you don’t understand. You are just a child. A minor. You don’t know half the things that witch has put me through. She’s made my life a living hell since the day I married her. Since the day I said I do, she’s challenged me on everything I’ve done, criticised me, emasculated me. She tried to make me the perfect man. Despite me telling her that perfection does not exist, despite me pushing back. She tried. Telling me that our perfect daughter needed a perfect father. I couldn’t take it anymore button, I couldn’t be around her or you anymore. Perfection does not exist. Everyone sins. Lust, anger, greed, everyone experiences them.
Even you, even her. I’m better off without you both. I’ve found someone who understands me. Who makes waking up easier. Who doesn’t drain all the life from me. That’s exactly what you both are – drainers of life. You suck the joy from my body and bury it. You suppress me. Well not anymore, button. Not anymore. You and your stinking bitch of a mother will reap what you sow. You will deal with the consequences. You will pay for the consequences. My perfect little button, the ramifications of her actions, of her choices will fall on you. Just you watch. Just remember, your lucky number ten. Remember that number. Ten. Until then button. Until then.”
My father releases my reddened cheeks from his grasp, his fingers rough. He stands up and looks down at us and kicks my Mom in the face, one more time. Just one more time for good measure. He had to have the last laugh. He has to show us that he has all the control. His eyes linger of me or a few seconds before he is turning on his heels and rushing out of the door with an unknown woman on his arm. Gone. He’s gone. He’s left us. He’s left us with nothing. How are we supposed to survive now? How are we supposed to live? The only reason Mom and I never left was because we needed Dad. I know it’s selfish but without him we would have had nothing. Mom was too sick to work, and my part-time jobs only brought in so much. We suffered with him, but it was necessary.
But now he’s gone. He’s left.
We are free. Free of his hold, his grasp, his control.
Free of his much-needed safety net.
I push my arms around Mom’s body and pull her close. I tighten my grip as her sobs increase, my shirt drenched from the tears in her eyes. I know I should be crying too but I need to be strong. I need to be strong for her. She needs me. My Mom needs me.
Fifteen minutes later Mom is fast asleep, her head resting on my legs as I lean against the fireplace. A bang from upstairs grabs my attention before a familiar voice cursing fills my body with heat. Theodore.
“Down here,” I shout as I hear him walking around upstairs searching for me.
A few seconds later his heavy feet are pounding on the stairs and his handsome face is knocking me for six as he strides into the room with five tubs of Rocky Road and endless amounts of candy.
His tanned skin goes pale and the five tubs of ice cream and endless amounts of candy drop to the floor, pooling into a puddle around his feet.
“What the fuck happened?” He asks as he leaps towards me, grabbing my hands in his.
His touch sending my body into overdrive.
Shit. Here comes the waterworks. I tried to be strong. I tried to hold it in, but Theodore makes me feel things. I can’t pretend with him. I can’t hide with him.
“My Dad,” I splutter as I create my own waterfall of tears, “He beat Mom and then he, he, just left. He said he was better off without us. He said that we ruined his life. That we were worthless and sucked the life from him.” The words make me fly over the edge, my chest tightening as I struggle to breath, the wind knocked straight out of me.
Theodore puts his arm around me and moves my head, so it is resting on his chest, “Shhh,” he whispers in my ear as his hand draws circles on my shoulder. “You’re free now. You’re both free. You’re better off without him. You don’t need him. You’ve got me. You’ll always have me. I’ll protect you and your Mom. You’re safe.”
He repeats the same words over and over, reassuring me that he’s here, day or night to protect me, to protect us. To look after us. In this moment I can confirm, even though I’ve known if for a while that Theodore Riley is the love of my life. I can’t breathe when I’m around him. I can’t think when we are in the same room. He consumes my mind and body.
I love him.
I love him more than anything else in the world.
◆◆◆
Hard and rough fingers dig into my cheeks as I sway in and out of consciousness. My mind is foggy and numb. All is see is darkness. Everything is black. All is see is emptiness. My eyes strain as I try to open them but nothing. I can’t see a thing. I am blind-folded and a musky, dirty sack is pulled over my head with the rope tied around my neck, barely leaving me any room to breathe. I try to scream, I try to make a noise, but nothing comes out. My throat is dry. The ropes burning my skin every time I move. My body jolts side to side, pain soaring through my body as I smash against something hard, something like, metal. It’s metal.
My chest is heavy, the weight nearly crushing my ribcage into thousands of pieces. Where am I? What happened? How did I get here? I shake the thoughts from my mind and try control my breathing. My hands strain against the zip-ties, a cool liquid, no doubt blood pours from my sore and sensitive wrists and drops from my fingers as I try to wriggle myself free from the restraints. Free from the bounds holding my hands hostage.
Theodore. Where is he? Is he hurt? Was he taken too? Thoughts of the man I just professed my love for floods through my memory as my body grows weaker and weaker. What if he thinks I left him again? My body starts to shake and tears pool down my face as I picture the face of the man I’ve always loved, broken and crushed, thinking that I’ve ran out on him again.
My breaths start to quicken as the sound of screeching makes my whole-body cringe. My body stops moving and for the first time in the last few minutes I realise that I am in a car. A van. If I had to bet on it, I would say I’m in my father’s van. The one he and his little mistress have been using to murder women for the last few weeks. My whole-body freezers as voices engulf my senses, the hairs stand up on the back off my neck as unwanted bodies brush against mine.
Hard and rough hands grip my shoulders with another pair gripping my feet. I am being carried. By two people. My body goes rigid as nails dig into my flesh, shockwaves of pain soaring through my body with every touch. The cool breeze causes goose bumps to appear on my arms, my dress starting to cut off my bloody supply.
A few grunts and bangs later my body is crashing to the ground. The cold and rough sensation of the concrete causes my eyes to widen under my blindfold and my breaths to quicken as I cry out in pain as I roll across the hard floor.
I cringe and squeeze my eyes together as the blindfold is ripped from my face and a bright spotlight burns into my soul. I slowly open my eyes, allowing them time to adjust to the light after being in complete darkness for what seemed liked forever.
“Where am I?” I cry out. “Is there anyone here?” My throat burns as I spit the words out.
Silence. Complete and utter fucking silence. I used to love this moment. Cherish this moment. Savour this moment. But not anymore, not right now. Right now all I feel is fear.
I am scared. I am scared for my life.
My whole body seizes up when laughter erupts from the dark corner of the room, could that spot be anymore cliché. I pull my eyes up from the floor and squint them, focusing on the figure ed
ging from the darkness, walking closer to me.
The adrenaline soaring throughout my veins intensifies as the figure gets closer. My captor. My abductor. My father.
“Hello button, did you miss me?”
19
Theodore
The unlocking of the penthouse door has me snapping my head into that direction still hoping that this is all a dream and Rory is going to walk through the door with that infectious smile on her face. Denial. I am in complete and utter denial. My whole body is numb. Broken. Useless. I am fucking useless. She’s gone. I was unable to protect her. I was unable to keep her safe. I promised her that I would always be there for her. I promised here that no matter what happens, as long as I am around nothing is going to happen to her.
I lied. I was wrong.
I failed. I failed her. I had one job and I blew it.
I fucked her and let her slip through my fingers.
The skin on my knuckles whiten even further as I continue clutching the letter to my chest. The last letter. The last thing Rory would have seen before she was taken. The last words she will possibly ever read.
“Theo,” Henley shouts as he rushes across the room and drops down to my side. “What happened, where is Rory?” he questions.
Wouldn’t I like to fucking know.
I close my eyes, “She’s gone,” I reply, barely a whisper. “He’s got her. He’s fucking got her.”
Henley falls back onto the floor, his complexion now ghostly. I know he’s not known her as long as I have but he’s really grown to like her, he’s witnessed how much she means to me which means she’s important to him.
“What do you mean she’s gone? How do you know this, Theo?” I uncrumple the letter from the safety of my chest and hand it over to Henley. His large hands taking it from me straight away. His eyes read the contents of the letter, sadness and fear taking over them.
“I told you we would meet again. Turn around button, you’re mine now,” he whispers under his breath. The words shattering me to my very core.
Thirteen words. Thirteen little words confirming all of our fears. He was going to take her all along.
How did he know that we were going to be here? It’s impossible. We were careful. I was careful. Charlotte ensured that only a handful of people knew where we were going so how did he pull this off. We only planned this within a few hours so how did he manage to know our every move. My mind goes into overdrive as I try to piece together how this has happened. She should have been safe. I should have kept her safe. I should have watched her, protected her. I should have kept her by my side but instead I let her come back to the room alone. I let her walk into a trap. I led her right into the arms of her kidnapper, her abductor, her father.
I should have fucker her here instead of in the stairway. I treated her dirty, I treated her like any other women. I treated her like a quick fuck. I should have been stronger, I should not have given into the temptation of my dick wanting to plough into her beautiful pussy.
The unlocking of the door has my head whipping around again to get a glimpse of who is trying to enter. A flash of red hair blocks my view as Charlotte rushes over to the balcony to where Henley and I are sat on the floor.
“Guys, what happened? Why are you on the floor?” she asks, her voice breathless as she looks back into the room behind her. “Where is Rory?”
The sound of her name makes my whole body go numb and my mind go blank. Once again, I am left with a million fucking dollar question that I do not know the answer to. Where the fuck is Rory? The woman I want to spend the rest of my life with.
Henley shakes his head, unable to use any words as he passes the letter to Charlotte so she can read it. I know we shouldn’t be touching it, compromising the evidence, but I don’t care. We know who’s responsible, we know who’s to blame. We know the orchestrator, the puppeteer behind this well-planned abduction.
Charlotte’s perfectly arched brow burrows as her eyes take in the words on the white paper in front of her. “He has her? Her father has her? How did this happen. I can’t believe he found her,” she pauses as tears pool in her eyes, “I made sure we were safe, I made sure Rory was safe. I did everything I could to keep her safe.” Her body shakes as her head falls into her hands. Her cries muffled and hysteric.
“This is not your fault, Charlotte,” I say as I take her hand in mine, “I let her come up here alone, I let her walk away when she told me she wanted to be with me. I am the one to blame. Not you.” The words sting on my tongue, cutting me deep to my core.
I pull my body up from the ground and pull my phone from my pocket before dialling. A few rings later the phone is picked up, “Hello?” Frieson says, her voice sleepy. It is about two in the morning after all.
“It’s Rory. She’s been taken. Her father followed us to Vegas. He has her. He left his calling card. He left the letter. He said she’s his now.”
The line goes silent before I hear rustling in the background, “Get your ass down to the local police department, I’ll call the Chief, he will be expecting you. I’ll fill them in on everything. Be ready to work. You don’t have a lot of time Theo,” she pauses, “Hell I hate to say it, but we might already be out of time. We might already be too late. Use your team, use us, use any resources you deem necessary. Get her back.” The line goes dead and my legs are moving before my brain has time to catch up.
Before I know it, I am sat in a black sedan heading towards the local police station. A few minutes later we pull up outside, Henley, Charlotte and me rushing inside. As we walk through the double doors we are met by a very large man in a uniform.
“You must be Agents Riley, Jefferson and Tipton,” he says, his voice deep and respectful, “I’m Officer Pullen but you can call me Chris.”
I nod and shake his hand, “Yes that’s us. Director Frieson said she was going to fill you in on everything that’s going on?” I question as we follow him down a long corridor.
“Yes, I’m all up to speed and so is my team, use us. We will follow your lead. We will do everything we can to get your colleague back Agent Riley.”
We will do everything we can to get your colleague back.
The words ring in my ears as I replay them over and over in my mind. I wish this was just a matter of getting a colleague back. If that was the case my mind would be clearer, smarter, quicker. I would be able to think straight. But Rory is not just a colleague. She’s my life, my world, my everything. I can’t believe I’ve been so stupid. Why did I try to push her away? Why did I distance myself from her? Why did I fuck her in a stairwell instead of making love to her in the hotel room? I should have cherished every available moment I had with her as those moments might have been my last.
They can’t be my last.
They won’t be my last.
I need to get her back.
I will get her back.
The rulebook is out of the window
I am getting my woman back, even if it’s the last thing I do.
◆◆◆
The light from the sun shines through the window as the sun rises from the mountains in the distance. It’s been four hours since Rory was taken and we still have nothing. No information, no leads, no answers. My eyelids are heavy and are threatening to close. I need to sleep. I need to rest but I can’t. I won’t. Sleep is a luxury not a necessity. Getting her back safely and alive is paramount. I will not rest until her pretty blonde head is standing in front of me. I will not rest until I am holding her in my arms. Getting Rory back is the only thing on my mind right now. That and sending her father six feet under. Hell, I don’t even think that is enough. I know that sounds awful. I know I took this job to serve and protect but I don’t care anymore. This man does not deserve to live, to breath to exist. He is going to pay for what he’s done. He is going to suffer.
I pour another cup of coffee as I search through CCTV footage of the city, hoping for a glimpse of Rory or her father. We’ve just looked at the hotel footage but that was usel
ess. Somehow, they managed to disconnect and overwrite the whole system leaving us empty handed. Sneaky fucking bastards.
“I think I might have something,” Officer Pullen, Chris says as he pulls up a picture of a van a traffic camera picked up. I stand up and walk over to the monitor to get a closer look at the picture on the screen.
“That looks a lot like the van Emilia, our witness described. Don’t you think?” Henley asks as he removes his glasses from his face.
“It does. And look at the plates RH10 HH07.” Very fitting of him to have his and Rory’s favourite numbers.
“They’re private,” Charlotte says as she writes the numbers and letters down onto the whiteboard.
I smile. School boy error. Having private plates makes it a lot easier for us to find out information. It makes it a lot easier for us to find the person of interest.
“I’ve just sent out an APB on the vehicle. If that van is anywhere in the vicinity, we are going to find it.” Officer Pullen says as he puts his walkie-talkie back into his chest pouch “Now we wait. We wait for God to guide us in the right direction.” He says.
I shake my head and grab my jacket from the chair, “I can’t sit here and do nothing. I need to be out there looking for her. The more eyes, the better.” I pull the keys from my jacket and start heading towards the hire car that is parked outside.
“Wait up,” a voice calls from behind me.
I turn around and see Henley running towards me with Charlotte hot on his heels. I smile and shake my head. I know I shouldn’t be smiling in a situation like this but these two are literally glued at the fucking hip.
“What are you guys doing?” I question as I open the door to the sedan.
Henley pulls a face as he opens the backdoor, allowing Charlotte room to slide in, “We are a team. We stick together. Or did you forget that?” Of course, I didn’t forget that, Henley and the guys back home have always had my back just like I’ve had theirs. We are a unit, where one goes the other follows.