Chapter Sixteen
Preston
It’s time to get myself together. Damn, what a day. I just keep picturing that guy with his filthy hands on Adeline. That is not what I need to be focused on right now. It’s time to fight, and that’s exactly what I’m going to do. Addy helps me shrug into my fight robe and I see her off with Grant and Gavin to be seated where my parents already are. I grab Grant by the arm before he can walk out. “Grant, I need to know she’s taken care of.” “I got this. I promise.” I nod and he walks off. I hear my intro music and start making my way down the tunnel. One last chance to see Addy before getting in the cage. I walk through the crowd and see my team all standing in the front row with Addy. I stop right in front of her just like I have since the first fight she has come to. Only this time, I’m looking at my wife. I give her a big smile as I take in all the features on her face. God she’s beautiful. I pull her into me for a long slow kiss. Bringing my heart rate back down. I hear all the comments around us, but for me it’s just about kissing my wife. She calms me before I have to get into this cage. This being a huge fight for my team I really need to be focused on that. Instead, in the back of my mind I keep picturing Adeline getting taken. I keep reminding myself that she is right there in the front row. She’s perfectly fine and our baby is just fine. I see my opponent enter the tunnel and he ends up stopping right in front of Addy. I need to remind myself that when I bring attention to her other people will use that against me. I see my brothers and my dad all step in front of Addy as Grant tells him to fuck off. Yea. I love my family. I shake my head as I look to Addy to make sure she’s good. She gives me a nod because she knows what I need right now. I break out into my cockiest grin. Yes, I know I’m cocky. You don’t get to the position I’m in without a little bit of it going to your head. I like to think I am still pretty grounded though. They call us to the middle and make us hit gloves. Both of us just stand there. Neither of us wanting to go before the other. The ref repeats, “I said touch gloves.” I wait and he goes first. I meet him and hit gloves. Then the fight begins. The guy is obviously bigger than me. A lot of them are, but where I lack in size my technique makes me better than them. I can also move faster. I am at the bottom of the heavyweight class’s weight and once you’re the champion everyone wants to beat you. This guy has been gunning for me since I got the title last year. He keeps throwing punches and I move, so he hasn’t gotten me yet. I wait for the right time and get the first punch in. We go round for round until the last round. I know Adeline is probably dying over there watching this. It’s time to finish it. I do two one two punches and get him in the temple. Hard. I watch as the guy’s eyes go into the back of his head. He hits the ground and the ref comes and lifts my arm as the winner. I look to the front row and I see my wife smiling huge. Everyone is jumping up and down and there is total pandemonium in the entire stadium. I do my interviews while the guys make sure that Addy and Adrionna get backstage safely. My trust is in them while I finish up with the reporters. They get pictures and I sign autographs. My UFC rep comes up and tells me I gained two new sponsors. I will have meetings with them next week to setup their advertisements. It takes a lot longer than I would like for me to get back to the room, but I can tell from here that something is not right. I start shoving through people when I see my brothers standing there with horrible looks on their faces. “What the fuck is going on?” “Preston, we’re so sorry. Addy. It’s Addy. She’s gone.” I instantly can’t breathe. “What do you mean she’s gone?” I push my way into the room and see my mom standing there balling. Adrionna is beside herself. “What happened? Where is she? She can’t be gone. Gavin, Grant, Dad. What are we doing here? We can’t just stand here? We know what he almost did to Adrionna. Think about what he will do to Addy. She’s the one he wanted all along. I need her back in one piece. Please. What do we do?” “We are going to find her. She got sick, I think it was the fighting. She came back here and went straight to the bathroom. Insisted that no one see her get sick. She went in and after a little bit we realized she should’ve been out of here by now. When we went in the window was pushed out and she was gone.” I shake my head. “She’s not sick because of the fighting. Please.” “Preston, we’re going to find her. Don’t tell them like this. Please, wait til she’s with you.” This was whispered by Adrionna. “No, they need to know the urgency in this. The reason she’s sick is because she’s carrying my baby. We need to find her and my baby. Please.” A ton of hard faces all pointed at me. “She’s only five weeks along. We were waiting to tell you when she was at twelve weeks. Please I am completely beside myself right now. That psycho has her and my baby.” That is when the whole place burst into action. I see my mom completely shattered as she sobs into my dad’s arms. Not the ideal way to find out you’re going to be a grandparent I’m sure. “Let’s go. Adrionna stay here with Sandra. Dad, Grant, you go with the LVPD. Preston, you’re with me.” I nod quickly and head out the door. Still dressed for the fight I probably will look ridiculous, but there is no time to dress. I need to make sure I get Addy back exactly the way she left here. Mentally and physically.
Adeline
Why does my head feel like it was bashed in with a brick? I try to open my eyes, but wherever I am it’s dark. I can’t tell when my eyes are even open. Are my eyes swollen? I moan out in pain. Where am I? I see a light flicker on, but it’s a dim light. Is someone there? “Oh, good Adeline. You’re awake. I much prefer you to be awake the first time we’re together.” No. “James, why are you doing this to me? I never asked for any of this. Please. Preston is probably going crazy right now.” That’s when everything comes back to me. From the wedding to the fight. Oh my God. He almost raped Adrionna. What will he do to me? Please don’t let him hurt my baby. Preston, please find me. “Adeline, stay awake. I need you to be conscious for all of this.” “I don’t think I can. My head hurts really badly. I think I’m going to be sick.” Before he could even say anything I am throwing up again. “Jesus, why do you keep getting so sick?” “What do you mean?” “You were sick when I took you. You even got sick when you were passed out. Now you’re sick again. What is wrong with you?” “It’s the fighting. James, my dad used to beat me. I can’t watch it. Please don’t do this to me.” “Your father used to beat you?” “Yes. That’s why I stayed away from guys in general. I couldn’t do it.” “Until you fell for a guy who hits people for a living?!” “That’s just it James. Yes, he does that as his job, but he would never do what you’ve done. Look at all the people you have hurt. You had a great life. I don’t understand what happened.” “Don’t tell me what I had. You have no idea what it’s like to be me.” Yes, he’s yelling. I hope we are somewhere that people can hear us. “James, please. You can stop this. You haven’t gone too far. You can fix all of this.” “No I can’t! Nothing can be fixed now. I just wanted you.” I start to cry. I know I’m weak, but this time I will blame the hormones. Once I started crying this triggered another puke session. Seriously, he’s going to want to give me back if I have anything to do with it. “I need you to stop getting sick. We have business to attend to.” Well, if that wasn’t enough to keep me vomiting I don’t know what is. “James I can’t help this.” “You can and you will.” Apparently he was done talking because he picked me up off the floor where I was and placed me on a nearby…oh my God no. It’s a bed. No this cannot happen. That is when I start to scream and start flailing my arms and legs. That is when everything goes black again. Shit. “Adeline, wake the fuck up. It’s time to play.” Oh no. I thought when I woke up Preston would be here to save me. I wonder how long I’ve been out. I keep my eyes closed and focus on where I am. If he thinks I’m still out, he hopefully won’t touch me. I try to take stock of any injuries I may have. So far I can tell that my head has been hit. I’ve now been hit in the face because that’s how he knocked me out this past time. I open my eyes a little to try and see where James is to me. Can I see any exits? I know the longer I wait the closer I will be to Preston fi
nding me. He has to be going completely crazy right now. I turn and look to see that James is there and he has a gun in his hand. Fuck. Sorry this was necessary to say at the time. He looks like a madman waving that thing around while he talked to himself. Great. He’s a complete psycho. “Oh good. You’re finally awake again. Now, please don’t make me knock you out again. If you do, I’ll just have to do what I need to do with you unconscious.” Oh God. This seriously can’t be happening. He trains the gun on me as he walks over to the bed. If ever there was a time I needed to throw up it was now. I just didn’t have anything left in me to do it. He crawls over me giving me some of his weight because he was still holding the gun on me. He has his pants unbuttoned and partially down. “I hate this shirt you’re wearing.” With that he rips it off. Oh God. No. I look to the gun and look at him. This is going to be the only chance I have to still be me after Preston finds me. I cannot let him rape me. I grab the gun and struggle with it as he tries to run his hands over my body. Oh no. He’s obviously stronger than me, but I think I caught him off guard. We both struggle with the gun. It’s pointed at him, then me, then him. That’s when the gun goes off and everything goes black. I’m sorry Preston.
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