Saved By You (The Spring Rose Bay Series Book 3)

by K. L. Jessop

  She looks cold, she looks broken, but it’s the words attached to the image that has the fury in me seething.

  Want to play hide and seek?

  And just from those words, I know damn well who’s got my girl. And this time he’s gone too fucking far.

  “I’m not going to break, Amelia, because I’m not going to lose her. I’ll find her even if it kills me.”

  Chapter Twenty-Nine

  Victoria.

  My head feels like it’s split in two as sunlight hits my closed eyes. I lay still, mentally examining my body from head-to-toe trying to work out what hurts the most. I can sense the dried blood cracking on my skin above my eyebrow from the impact of the gun that knocked me unconscious, the sharp cuts that dig into my wrists and ankles from whatever I’m tied up with and the dryness of my throat from lack of water and the coldness I feel down to the bone.

  I can feel everything.

  Every ounce of my body hurts with the fight and the struggle to escape my capturer but the worst feeling of all is my heart. The pain is unbearable at the thought of not knowing if I’ll ever see my boys again.

  Lucas… Our last words were during an argument, but the pain I felt from his accusations is nothing compared to what I feel now.

  I need him—I need him to find me.

  Listening, I try to focus on the noise around me but there’s nothing but the sound of the ocean: no traffic, no voices, nothing. I could be anywhere, but I know I’m not alone. I can feel the iciness of his eyes. I can hear his deep ragged breath and I can smell his sick scent. Those years on the streets where people intimidated and scared me was nothing compared to now: I feel so vulnerable, terrified to be in the hands of a man that is out to inflict pain, if not worse.

  None of his words have made any sense. I don’t even know who he is, and I don’t understand what this has to do with Lawson.

  “Wakey wakey, Victoria. I know you’re not sleeping.”

  Oh, God…

  Before I have a chance to do anything, the heavy, hard thud of his boot makes contact with my stomach. All the air is ripped from my lungs as my ribs crack and tears burn my eyes as I fight to catch my breath. Grabbing my hair, he yanks me up into a sitting position and gets right in my face. He looks just as putrid as he did the night in the club, only now his nose is cut and swollen.

  “About fucking time. I’ve been wanting a little chat.”

  I keep my mouth shut; anything I do will be wrong. If I reply it will be wrong. If I sit in silence that too will no doubt be wrong.

  He grabs my jaw, jerking my head up and squeezing my cheeks. “What’s the matter, got nothing to say?”

  I’m trembling. I don’t like this game anymore and I know it’s barely even started. “Answer me.”

  “What do you want from me?”

  “Revenge. Don’t you remember?” His dark twisted eyes lock on mine.

  They say you shouldn’t judge a book by its cover, but I can tell this man has everyone running before he even opens his mouth.

  “Yes, I remember. But I don’t understand. Why am I your target when I don’t know who you are or what I’ve done wrong?” My face already feels bruised when he lets me go, he steps back, grinning at me.

  “My apologies. Allow me to introduce myself. I’m Richard.”

  I fix my eyes on his extended hand before looking up at him. I can’t work out if this is a joke or he does in some screwed up way genuinely want to introduce himself. Either way, that’s not in the least what I want. He’s reassuring nod suggests that I should welcome the gesture, but just as I reluctantly place my hand in his, the back of his other fly’s around to smack me in the face, busting my lip.

  “Don’t take it personally, princess; I’m not here to make friends.”

  My nostrils flare as I breathe through the sting. Pain congests in my chest and I suddenly feel like that defenceless little girl that I once was. For a moment, I don’t see Richard standing in front of me. I see Lawson, and those feelings I try so hard to bury all come rushing back.

  Please come for me, Lucas…

  “You never answered my question,” I say, fresh blood building in my mouth. “Why am I your target?”

  “Lots of reasons.” He begins to pace before turning back to retrace his steps whilst throwing the solid black pistol from one hand to the other like it’s no big deal. “One: you’re here. Two: you shouldn’t have come back. Three: you’ve dug up a lot of old shit because of this. Four…” He stops, turns to me and smirks once more. “You’ve become acquainted with a man I loathe. That’s enough to just scratch the surface yet pop the cherry on the whole damn fucking cake at the same time.”

  This man talks nothing but twisted fuckery. I work in a strip club, people form enemies there like it’s going out of fashion. Anyone can see that Wes brings in a shit load of cash on a night. Businesses see him as a rival, even if they aren’t in that form of trade, and men get jealous just by looking at him if he should have a pretty girl on his arm. But I can tell from the look on Richard’s face that this goes beyond everything I’m thinking. “A lot of people are jealous over Wes. Scarlett’s is a popular club.”

  He throws his head back and laughs. “I’m not talking about the fucking club. Why the hell would I be jealous of a place that’s like a walk-in sex trafficking department? I’m talking about the prick of a boyfriend?”

  Lucas? The puzzle pieces start connecting: the cut on Lucas’ hand and the one on Richard’s nose. Did he do that? Is this fucker the reason why he was so shaken up the other night? “You’re jealous of Lucas?”

  “No, I’m not jealous of Lucas. I fucking hate him. That boy has crossed the line too many times. People like him don’t deserve to walk this planet and it won’t be fucking long before his fate will come.”

  I feel sick.

  How can he say these things about anyone, let alone one of the nicest people I’ve ever known? People that cause such pain to others by their ruthlessness, lies and murderous ways should be the ones that don’t deserve to live, not good people, and certainly not my Lucas. “You’re not making any sense. Why do you hate him?”

  He starts to rub his face with his hand, the low growl under his breath notifying me that my question has aggravated him.

  “Because he’s caused far too much trouble for me over the years. I wanted respect and acceptance. I wanted to be known for who I was not how I became part of that family. And for a long time, I had that, until they fell for his fucking charm and paid more attention to him than they did me.”

  Richard. Uncle Richard. Oh my God.

  “You’re his uncle?” Tears threaten. I need to get out of here. I need to somehow warm Lucas of the danger that he’s in before it’s too late. Only that seems impossible as cable ties cut into my ankles and wrists and I can’t see a way out. There is nothing but emptiness and walls. The smell of seaweed and oil fills my senses as puddles scatter the ground from the broken windows in the roof. Even though it’s daylight, the place is still dark and hollow. I could be anywhere.

  “You won’t get away with this.”

  “Oh, you’ll be surprised what I can get away with.” He lights a cigarette and flicks shut the metal cap of the chrome lighter before puffing out a ring of smoke. “You know, I’m surprised he hasn’t found you yet. I mean, forty-eight hours or so is a long time to miss someone when you’re in love. Even the pretty little picture I sent him of his Raven battered and bruised hasn’t brought him any faster. I think that clearly shows he doesn’t care.”

  “You’re lying!” I spit, trembling with anger. “You’re a fucking arsehole!”

  My heart rate increases when Richard walks towards me. I dig my heels into the concrete and try to shuffle back in escape but it’s no use. Bending down, his eyes crack with amusement as he slides the tip of the gun up my leg, never taking his eyes off me. The higher it comes, the faster my throat closes. He circles the barrel around my thigh, trailing it up my body until it’s pointing under my chin, my h
ead tipped back against the wall. I’m shaking, trying to gain control but losing the battle every second.

  “Why would I lie, sweetheart, when I’ve got nothing to lose. I can do whatever I want with you right now: I can beat you, fuck you or even kill you and you can’t do a damn thing about it. The only one that has got a shit ton to lose right now is you.”

  My heart breaks because he’s right. I may have come back with little in terms of materialism, but Lucas and Charlie are my everything. I can’t lose them, I can’t lose the family of friends I now have and Charlie can’t lose me.

  “What do you want from me?” I swallow, my voice a shaken mess.

  He retraces the steps with the gun down my body, glancing at my breasts. “I want a replacement for everything I ever lost.” His hot breath hits my ear, beating against my skin as he whispers. “You’re a beautiful woman, Victoria. I can see why he fell for you.”

  I whimper, slamming my eyes shut and praying that what is going through my mind isn’t going to become my horrifying reality.

  His low laugh bounces between us as if he’s proud of the fact I’m terrified. “You know, I once heard him talk about how he loved his life and the women that were in it, how he’d always take care of them no matter what. Then, I heard him brag about how much pain he put you through, about how he loved to hear you cry.”

  I quickly learn the conversation has switched from Lucas to Lawson and my gut wrenches with each word that falls from his mouth. “He loved how scared and feeble you looked, sitting at the top of the stairs in your bedclothes, sniffling after being beaten. He was proud of the fact his delightful cousin ripped away your virginity while you were pinned down in your little pink bed. Yeah, I heard and knew of it all. At first, I thought he was fucked up, but then I noticed things and the more I noticed them, the more I became on his side and closed myself off to what he was doing. As far as I was concerned, he could do whatever the fuck he wanted with you. Just like I can now.”

  My stomach rolls when he licks a line up my throat. I’m shaking to the point my teeth chatter.

  I want Lucas. I need Lucas.

  “Please stop,” I whisper on a cry, trying to push him away with tied, bloodied hands. My strength now is gone. My body slowly losing the battle and for a moment I feel like giving up all hope. He’s going to fuck me then kill me and I feel like screaming at him to get it over with and not prolong the torment.

  “I’ll stop when you’re dead.” He pulls back, and I release the sickening breath I’m holding. Stepping away from me once more, he stares down at me with his arms folded as though he’s plotting a new massacre, sweat trickling down his temples.

  “Everything that man said about you was true: you were the reason Lawson came to hate life so much because you were the child that was never his. I just thought you were a silly little brat like the rest of them. Only my life plans changed, and then they changed again, and you are the reason behind them all.”

  “So, you hate me because your life didn’t pan out how you hoped?”

  He starts to clap as if he’s mocking me. “Finally, she gets it.”

  Mind games have never been something I could cope with. They confused my thoughts to the point I make myself crazy and I have to turn to something to make those thoughts stop. Richard’s game is working. He’s confusing me, spinning my thoughts like they are on a plate waiting to smash into tiny little pieces. But I try to focus, all the while thinking how fucking ironic this is that the man standing in front of me knew me as a little girl and has a connection with the man I love now.

  “Just now, you were after seeking revenge on Lucas. What is this, Richard? Some twisted game to try and scare me? Because if that’s the case, then this bullshit of yours isn’t working.”

  “This game is far from twisted. This game just got real. You are your mother's daughter and that reason alone is more than enough.”

  I narrow my brows. “What has this got to do with me being her daughter?”

  “Because if it weren’t for you, she’d still be here with me and we’d have what I always wanted.”

  “Which was?”

  He turns to me, eyes blazing in so much anger as the vein at his temple becomes prominent. “Our child.”

  A chill of hot and cold runs through my body and my eyes widen in shock. This can’t be true. My mother loved Lawson; she was faithful to him. Or was she? There came a time when I lost her because I thought work was more important, yet I also tried to believe she only did the long hours to keep food on the table. Yet here I am, many years later, in front of a man who can only be her lover and the one who is about to end my life.

  “I… I don’t understand.”

  “For fuck’s sake. You don’t understand much, do you? We were having an affair, you fucking idiot. She was pregnant with my child. I’d never felt joy like it. I was going to be a father. It meant I was going to be something. Then…” His voice turns grey, his words vicious and haunting. “She went and had a fucking abortion and cried her sorry little arse back to that fucker that was too drunk to even realise she existed. I was livid. I was hurt, and no one makes a fool out of me.”

  “So, you’re still bitter and twisted over something that happened nearly a decade ago and you’re still seeking revenge because her firstborn is alive? Jesus, you really are fucked up.”

  “Shut your mouth.”

  “What’s your plan next, Richard? Kill everyone that has a connection with me? Work your way through the town so there are no traces of me or my family left? You’re fucking sick and your games are pathetic!” I don’t know what I’m doing. My mind is trying to tell my mouth to shut up, but it won’t. I can’t stop it. Another sting from the back of his hand makes contact with my face and my legs are suddenly set free when he slashes the cable ties with a knife—a knife I have no idea where it just came from. Looking down at my ankles, I see the dark crimson gash of where the blade made contact, but a new wave of panic races through me about what his plans are next, and I start to scramble across the dirty ground, desperate to get away from him. I cry out when I’m jerked up by my shoulders as eyes of red-hot rage burn into me.

  This is it.

  This is my fate.

  “Let’s play my pathetic game shall we?” His fingertips press hard into my skin and I wince with the pressure. “I always like a good game of ‘cat and mouse’. You run, I chase.”

  “And what happens when you catch me?” I gasp. “You going to fuck me then kill me?”

  “No, I’ll just skip to the end and put a bullet in your head,” he grins sickly. “Or we can play hide and seek. You hide, I seek and shoot. You get the drill.”

  “Or you could just shoot and get it over with.”

  He steps closer, teasing the blade of the knife across my throat as my lip trembles. “Yes, but where would be the fun in that? I like the chase and I love the fear in your eyes. Now. Run."

  Before I've even had a chance to think it through, I'm running like my life depends on it with my hands still tied, knowing the outcome will be with me dead anyway. My only thought is to try and escape, scream for help.

  Lucas will come for me—he has to.

  He's saved me so far; he'll do it again. I know he will. When I reach the battered-out door at the far end of the building, I swing it open and halt. My body instantly freezes, and the air leaves my lungs. I'm faced with nothing but water around me. We are at the southern pier, the one that’s under construction, and the one that has more rafters broken than it has a decent one. I've nowhere to go and he knew this all along. There’s no escape. Richard’s sick laugh from behind dominates the ripples of the ocean and I feel the presence of him coming towards me.

  “You see, this is why I love playing games. Whatever the option, my opponent always loses. Fancy a swim, Twinkle Toes?”

  I turn to him, weak and tired. Defeated. I want to die now. I can’t take anymore. There’s no way out. “Why are you doing this?” I scream.

  “Payback, Victoria.
You can thank your mother for this little chat we’ve had. No one messes with me and gets away with it.”

  “But she didn’t! She was punished by a man who punished me. Have you ever stopped to think that she was protecting herself? Have you ever stopped to think that the baby could have been Lawson’s? That man was a monster! He killed her in cold blood and never even fucking realised!”

  His laugh echoes around me, and the more time that passes, the more his hysteria increases.

  Until it stops dead.

  His eyes blaze into me and the words fall from his mouth as though they mean nothing. “No darling. He never killed her in cold blood. It was me.”

  Everything stops: my breath, my heart, my thoughts.

  Everything.

  White noise hurts my ears as the words replay the horror story of what I’ve just discovered. Acid leaves my stomach and I hold my waist, my body running with sickness, pain and anger. I wanted to die just now, but I’m already dead.

  “What?”

  “Lawson never laid a finger on her, but he was too fucked up to even coordinate his eyeballs to see straight. I shot the bitch then left. Job done.”

  It’s not true. This can’t be true. My chest rises and falls fast with panic and I want the world to swallow me up.

  I can’t breathe.

  “You?” I whisper. “You killed my mum?”

  I don’t have time to process anything because he’s heading towards me, gun in hand. The closer he gets, I find myself walking backwards, trying my hardest to step over the rafters that are broken. No matter how hard I try to stay calm, my insides are running wild.

  Lucas’s uncle murdered my mother.

  “Rebecca is the reason I never had my own child, and being her daughter, I can't stand the fucking sight of you or the thought of you having the right to walk on this fucking planet. I’ve waited years for this moment and I knew the day would come. And now you die too, just like her and just like you deserve. Are you ready?”