Forsaking All Others (From This Day Forward Book 2)

by Shannon Myers

  Her cell phone chirps and she glances down.

  I mute the television, “Who is it?”

  She sighs, “Lauren. She wants me to go up to the office and print out tomorrow’s schedule, so we can call patients and reschedule if we get snowed in.”

  I stretch my feet toward the fire, “Why isn’t she doing it?”

  Beth looks up from the phone screen, “Oh, I forgot to tell you! Mike’s mom came into town this weekend and they were having some big dinner thing. Lauren’s been a nervous wreck.”

  “Betsy? Oh man, I hate that I’m missing her. She used to give me all kinds of shit back in the day—I don’t think I’ve seen her in at least a year.”

  “Apparently, she’s not a big fan of Lauren’s, so it’s probably best we’re not over there.”

  I stand up, “Ah, she’ll come around. Lauren grows on you—kind of like a fungus.”

  Beth swats my leg, “Rude.”

  I head to the door, “I’ll go. You stay here.”

  She smirks up at me, “Yeah, if you knew what you were doing that’d be awesome. Plus, you know Lauren would kill me if she knew you were going through patient records—she’s already had people thrown in jail for violating patient privacy, I’d hate to see what she does to you.”

  She puts her now empty bowl of ice cream on the side table and stands up, pressing her hands into her lower back. “I’ll run up there and be home in five.”

  “Are you sure? I can go with you.”

  She comes over and leans into me, “I’m a big girl, David. I got it. You should stay here and keep that fire going,” she trails her hand down my arm lightly, giving me chills. “I might want to strip down and let you warm me up in front of it later.”

  I bite back a groan, “Okay, go, but hurry back.” I tuck her hair behind her ear and take her mouth with mine.

  Letting her walk out that door is a decision I’ll regret for the rest of my life.

  I finish printing the schedule I need and double check that the phone numbers are listed correctly on it. The sky looked ominous, but everything remained calm for the moment. It was hard to imagine that things could change so drastically in just a matter of hours.

  As if he’s feeling ignored, little man starts kicking up a storm. I giggle and place a hand on my belly, feeling his little body moving around. “Almost done, little guy. Then we’ll go back home to Daddy.”

  I grab my purse, tucking my phone into the back pocket of my jeans. I shut off the lights and unlock the back door, pushing it open and into a man’s body.

  I try to jump back inside, but the door is wrenched from my hands.

  Landon.

  He stalks toward me in the unlit back hallway, “Thought you’d get away with it, didn’t you?”

  The blood is rushing in my ears and his voice sounds so far away, “G-g-get away w-w-with w-w-what?” C’mon mouth, don’t fail me now.

  He looks down at my belly and sneers, “You promised me that night that you hadn’t slept with him, but you lied to me. You lied like the whore you really are!”

  I start calculating the distance between him and the door. If I could slide around him, I could make it. I had to distract him though. “Landon, I don’t know what you’re talking about, I didn’t lie to you.”

  He laughs and the sound fills me with dread, “Oh, I didn’t realize I was dealing with the Virgin Mary here. Immaculate conception got ya down?”

  He glances away and I take the only chance I’m going to get. I try to push my way around him and toward the door. The problem is that Landon’s a whole foot taller and outweighs me by at least one hundred pounds. He throws his body into mine and I slam into the wall before falling back into his arms.

  He takes a fistful of my hair and slams my head into the wall again. The blow stuns me and my head immediately feels fuzzy. He effortlessly turns me until my back is flush with the wall. His hand reaches out and strokes my face, “Look what you made me do, Elizabeth. I don’t want to hurt you, but you can’t pull shit like that again. Okay?” He speaks to me as if I’m a small child.

  I spit into his face, “Fuck you, Landon. You think David is going to let you get away with this?”

  His fist connects with my jaw and it pops loudly. I try to close my mouth and pain shoots up into my ear. It’s dislocated…or broken—probably both.

  I shakily bring my hand up and wipe away blood from the corner of my mouth. Don’t cry…do not cry.

  Landon pins me in with his arms on either side of my face, “Look around you, pretty girl. Do you see Davey anywhere in this fucking building?”

  My body starts to tremble, but I refuse to shed a tear in front of him. I told David five minutes—it’s probably been fifteen by now.

  “What? No tears for me? You once claimed to love me and now you don’t even have the decency to feel ashamed of your actions.”

  David, please come looking for me. I plead the words over and over again in my head. I close my eyes, if I could just stall him—

  Crack!

  I gaze up at the ceiling, the room spinning around me. How did I get down here?

  Landon snarls the words from somewhere above me, “Goddammit Elizabeth. You fucking answer me when I’m talking to you!”

  I can smell the whiskey on him. It’s as if it’s seeping through his pores. The sickly sweet smell turns my stomach. I move my head away from him to retch onto the tile.

  He yanks me up by my arm, “Stop making me hurt you. Be a good girl.”

  The sudden movement causes pain to radiate through my skull. He pushes the door open with one hand while the other keeps me in a firm grip. I’m seeing double right now—it’s not like I can escape, no matter how badly I want to do just that.

  I scan the parking lot, praying to see David’s truck. Landon hits a button and the lift-gate goes up. He pushes my head down and I scream out in pain as my head connects with the vehicle floor.

  He presses himself up against me and I can feel how hard he is.

  He’s getting off on this?

  The thought makes me want to vomit again.

  He grabs a fistful of my hair and begins thrusting against me, “It’s okay if you’re feeling shy in front of me. I know it’s been awhile since we were intimate. I bet I still know how to make you moan though.”

  What the hell is wrong with him?

  The baby begins kicking in earnest now, startled by a stranger’s voice. Hot tears spill down my cheeks and I try to push myself up. He makes a disapproving sound and yanks both arms back, forcing my head back onto the floor.

  I jerk involuntarily at the feel of cold metal around my wrists.

  No!

  I push my body back, trying to free myself. My body connects with his pelvis and I freeze.

  “Greedy girl, you’ll just have to wait a bit longer.”

  He roughly pulls me up and into the back of the Tahoe, closing the gate before I can move. I’m propped up between the back seat and the glass, blood is dripping from my mouth onto my belly and I fight back another wave of tears.

  I have to stay strong and think of a way out.

  I look up at the clock. It’s been twenty minutes—she should’ve been home by now. I grab my phone and dial her number.

  It rings several times, “Hey, you’ve reached Elizabeth Greene. You know what to do.”

  I try to shrug off the feeling that something’s wrong, but I can’t. I stare at the fire before making up my mind. I’ll just go up there and she’ll get onto me for being overprotective.

  Yeah.

  She’s fine.

  I grab a coat and jump into my truck.

  Once I reach the office though, the bad feeling increases. Her SUV is sitting dark in the parking lot.

  I bang on the back door, praying that she throws it open. I’ll take her being upset over the feeling currently residing in my gut.

  I dial her phone again. It rings a few times and goes back to voicemail. Feeling frustrated, I dial Lauren.

  “D
avid? Thank God you called. I see where Mike gets his interrogation skills from. Betsy is driving me—lovely. I can’t wait.”

  I can tell she’s talking to someone else in the background, “Lauren—I’m gonna need you to get over to the office. Beth came up here to print out schedules like you asked, but she’s not answering her phone now and I’m locked out of the building.”

  Lauren goes silent, “David, I didn’t text her to go up there—” She covers the phone, but I can still faintly hear her, my heart is racing in my chest. If she didn’t text her, then who did?

  “Dave, Mike and I are on our way. Give us a couple of minutes.”

  I hang up, feeling completely helpless. I’m worried that she’s lying inside that building hurt or worse, that someone followed her in. I’m considering breaking a window when Mike pulls up, lights flashing on his truck. They must’ve run every light to get here as quick as they do.

  Lauren’s hands shake as she unlocks the door and hits the light switch. The hallway illuminates my worst nightmare. Beth’s purse is overturned, the contents scattered on the floor. Her coat and keys are together near what looks like vomit.

  I’m shaking with fear and rage, while Mike has gone into full-blown detective mode. A small bloody hand print confirms my worst fear—someone took Beth and she fought like hell to stop him.

  Mike grabs his cell phone and presses several buttons, “Shit! Laur—call 911—do not under any circumstances tell them I was here. David, get in the truck!”

  Lauren is still standing with her hand over her mouth, in shock. “Mike, what’s going on?”

  He glances down at his phone again. “She somehow made it out of here with her phone on her,” He holds it up to show us, “Whoever has her is outside the city, heading south.”

  He kisses her, “Just do what I said. Tell them you came up here to meet her and found this—don’t touch anything.”

  She nods numbly and watches us go.

  Mike starts the truck and reaches under the seat. He presses a .40 caliber Smith & Wesson into my hand before securing his Glock. “We’re gonna need these.”

  My head bounces painfully against the back glass as we travel down a dirt road. Landon’s been singing along to the radio as if he’s on a leisurely drive in the country—maybe in his mind that’s what this is.

  “Elizabeth, do you know how long I had to watch you, just waiting for an opportunity like this? You really hid the fact that you let that bastard knock you up though. I mean, here I thought I’d show up on your birthday and you’d welcome me with open arms. Would anyone blame me? I’ve spent all this time searching for Katya—I deserved some happiness in my life. You had to fuck it up though—coming to the door with your swollen stomach. It messed up my fantasy.”

  I try to move my mouth to speak, but my jaw has swollen to the point it’s frozen. My words come out sounding slurred, “What about Katya? Why are you giving up on her?”

  Maybe if I reasoned with him, he’d realize what a mistake this was. My phone vibrates in my back pocket and I give a silent prayer of thanks that the ringer is off. I try to reach into it, my shoulder popping painfully in the process. I’ve almost got my hands around it when Landon answers me.

  “Elizabeth, you’re going to see Katya. She’ll be so pleased to have some company.”

  He stops the SUV abruptly and my hands fall from my pocket. I scream silently.

  He pops the lift-gate and lifts me up into his arms as though he’s a groom carrying his bride over a threshold. I try to take in my surroundings with the light from his vehicle as guidance.

  I’m in the middle of nowhere.

  He carries me up the porch steps of an old farmhouse that probably should’ve been condemned decades ago.

  “Honey, I’m home!” Landon laughs at his joke and continues on through the house, turning on lamps in the process. The house smells of dust and the lights illuminate mouse droppings covering nearly every surface.

  He sets me down in the hallway and takes off my handcuffs, “Now, I’m only doing this because you’re not going to run again. Right?”

  I nod and rub my wrists gratefully. He hits a light switch in the hall and opens a door to reveal stairs going down. I back up a couple of steps and shake my head no.

  He squeezes my arm, “Don’t be a bitch. We have a houseguest who’s been dying to meet you.”

  He follows me down the stairs, pushing me down each step. I stop at the foot of the stairs, not willing to move another inch. Landon ends up dragging me across the dirt floor. I begin screaming the minute I see her.

  We’re driving much faster than I would normally be comfortable with, bouncing up and down back country roads. All I can think of is getting to Beth though. Mike has me manning the app, tracking her cell phone.

  The only time either one of us speaks is when he asks me for an update on her location and I give it. Otherwise, the truck is deathly quiet.

  She’s about twenty-five miles from our location. It looks like she stopped somewhere north of New Home. I silently urge the truck to go faster.

  Beth

  Beth

  Beth

  Every heartbeat pounds out her name.

  I’m coming, baby.

  Hold on.

  I’m coming for you.

  I thought she was dead. Then her eyes popped open and I began screaming again as she silently watched me.

  I think back to the girl I saw in the photo at Landon’s house, the girl whose face is plastered across billboards. The girl in front of me looks nothing like that.

  Gone is the dark brown hair.

  Her hair has been bleached until it’s as blonde as mine.

  She is severely emaciated and has bruises covering her once perfect skin.

  She’s wearing a replica of my wedding dress, but hers is filthy and ripped. I glance down and see blood between her thighs and I have to look away in horror.

  “K-katya?” My voice shakes.

  She nods slightly, never breaking eye contact with me.

  Landon pulls me back to my feet, “Now, that we’re all acquainted, let’s get started. Did you see all the hard work I went to for you, Elizabeth? I tried to get her look just right, but no matter how hard I tried, she couldn’t compare to you.”

  I try to focus on something else, the bile rising up in my stomach, but instead I see my wedding picture lying on a rusted metal table.

  I point to it, “Is that my picture? You’re the one who broke in and stole it that night!”

  He bends my finger back until it snaps, and I scream in pain. “It’s rude to point at people, Elizabeth! Davey let you get away with so much, but not me. I’m going to make you into a proper lady.”

  My finger is throbbing and I know without looking that he broke it. He pushes me back until I’m sitting in a chair before going over to the metal table and looking over something. “Are we ready? Good.”

  He holds up a small knife and I push myself out of my chair, “Nooo…” I stumble and fall onto my knees before I begin crawling toward the stairs. I’ve got to get out of here. I’ve got to find help…for both of us.

  Landon grabs me by my hair and pushes me back into the chair, “Do I need to use the handcuffs again?”

  I shake my head violently, causing more pain. Katya continues to stare blankly at me.

  He runs the back of the knife down my cheek, “Good girl. See—you’re learning. Now, I know you’re probably as anxious as me to consummate this relationship, but there’s one small problem—” He brings the knife down to my stomach and I stiffen immediately, “I can’t let this go unpunished.”

  My blood is like ice in my veins. He gently traces designs against my stomach with the knife. I don’t move a muscle. I can’t let him hurt my baby. Katya’s eyes widen with understanding and her lip begins to tremble.

  I look away from her. I will not allow this monster to break me.

  “Landon, what are you doing? You don’t want to hurt me.”

  He smiles sweet
ly at me, “Of course I don’t want to hurt you, sweet girl. I love you. I can’t allow you to have any piece of him though. You belong to me. We’re going to cut that reminder out and you’ll be mine again. Just like before.”

  I feel the urge to pass out, but I can’t lose consciousness. I fight to stay awake. I take a deep breath to steady myself, and place my hands on his arms, stroking gently. I resist the urge to vomit on him. “Landon, I’ve missed you. And I know that you’re mad, but if you try to cut this baby out of me, I’ll bleed to death. We’re too far away for help to get here.” I choke up and continue talking through the tears, “Please don’t make me leave you when I just got back.”

  I don’t mean a damn word of it, but I need him to think I do. He drops the knife into the dirt and pulls me into him. “I’ve waited six months to hear those words from you. Six long months.” He kisses the top of my head before stepping back to look at me, “You’re right. I can’t take a risk like that with your life.” I close my eyes in relief. Maybe if I’d kept them open, I’d have seen what was coming.

  Katya screams out a warning just as Landon’s fist connects with my abdomen. The blow knocks the air out of my lungs and I sink to the dirt floor, gasping for air. My stomach contracts painfully.

  He stands over me, “You are mine, Elizabeth, and you will not walk out of here pregnant with that bastard’s kid.”

  His foot comes up to kick me and I roll, my ribs taking the brunt of it. His fist comes down again and he connects with my belly before I can move. The pain is excruciating and I see spots, but I refuse to pass out. I will die fighting for my little boy.

  Katya’s screams pierce the air and I fight the urge to tell her to shut the fuck up as I dodge blows and kicks. I run my hand through the dirt and connect with the knife. I read the Outlander series a few years ago and I remember the clansmen teaching Claire how to fight with a knife. I clench it tight in my fist and try to remember how to effectively use it.

  Landon grabs a fistful of my hair, dragging me up off the ground. “Stop fighting me. I don’t want to hurt you. It’ll all be over soon.”