by Lisa Simmons
I shifted uncomfortably. The cheap, scratchy sheets felt foreign on my skin, and the mattress wasn't the one I was used to. Even my own bed, on the few harshly missed days when Jack had allowed me to stay home, hadn't seemed quite right. I craved to be in Reece's bed under the familiar covers with his perfectly familiar body pressed against mine; I was certain that would be the only way I would ever get a real night's sleep again, after all this.
My muscles were stiff from keeping such a tight position night after night, but it was how I felt most safe. I held my breath as I dared straighten one leg to work out the kink that was slowly forming, praying Jack wouldn't wake up. My actions were so slow, I hardly moved, but soon I had relaxed the muscle in one leg before I started to repeat the process with the other. I nearly had it straight when I heard a soft creak sound from the front of the small house.
I froze, my arms clamped over my chest and my legs stiffening so quickly it almost hurt. I held my breath as I listened for another sound to confirm I had actually heard something and wasn't just hearing things. A few seconds ticked by but I heard nothing. I relaxed a little, or as much as I really could given the fact that Jack was sleeping right behind me with his arm around my waist.
I continued to stare at the wall across from me, determinedly not looking at the door for fear another horror would appear to haunt me even more. I tried to focus on the rhythm of my heart, which always felt too slow and lethargic these days. The sound of it pulsed quietly in my ears, and I couldn't help but be reminded of the cold that had settled over me again, chilling me from the inside out. I tried to summon the heat that Reece provided by focusing on him and only him, willing him to appear, but it didn't work; I was still cold and wrapped in the wrong person's arms.
I sucked in a quiet breath when I heard the sound again, this time a bit closer and distinctly more human-derived that the first had been. My heart gave a heavy thud while my eyes widened even more in the darkness as they shifted toward the door against my will, waiting for Samuel or Liam to burst through with some new horrifying experience they demanded I partake in.
Another sound came from in the hall and this time I was almost sure it was a footstep of someone nearing the bedroom. My heart sped up even more, certain whoever was here would be of no benefit to me. I waited for the inevitable, torn between pretending to be asleep and keeping my eyes open. My breath was held as I heard whoever was outside grab the door handle. Squinting into the darkness, I watched in horror as it turned slowly, the opener obviously trying to be careful not to alert Jack or I to his intrusion.
I heard the click indicating the door was open and watched helplessly as it pushed inward, the hallway just as dark as the room I was in. A shadow shifted forward, entering the room extremely slowly before a tiny sliver of light from the window caught his face.
My heart pounded so heavily it nearly broke through my ribcage, and I couldn't stop the audible gasp from sucking through my lips.
Reece.
I watched in horror as he raised his finger to his lips, silently shushing me as he took yet another step into the room. My jaw was hanging open stupidly, but I couldn't help it. He couldn't be here; this was entirely too dangerous. Shock was the only thing keeping me from reacting and calling him an idiot right away, which was a good thing because me yelling at Reece for being stupid definitely would have woken Jack.
I tried to focus on keeping my breathing quiet and even as I watched him reach a hand forward, the fingers curling as he beckoned me to him. I could see the hurt in his eyes at seeing me in bed with another man, even if I was fully clothed and obviously in utter agony. It hurt him to see it as much as it hurt me to be there. I shook my head minutely, terrified that any movement would wake Jack.
His eyes widened in frustration and I saw his nostrils flare slightly as he beckoned me to him again, this time flicking his entire hand rather than just his fingers as his urgency grew.
"Come here," he mouthed, making no sound and not daring to come any closer. My heart was thudding so heavily I was sure that sound alone would wake Jack as I shook my head again.
"No," I mouthed, my facial expression surely that of incredulous confusion. How could he possibly think this was a good idea?
"Abigail," he whispered, his voice so quiet that the sound of my breathing all but drowned it out. "Come on."
I stared at him in shock, the fear of waking Jack weighing me down far more than the weight of his arm. Even now, in this silent battle we'd suddenly become engaged in, I felt my body being pulled to Reece's. My muscles twitched at his presence, silently begging me to crawl out of bed and join him. An internal battle raged on inside me, torn between forcing him to leave and slinking out from under Jack's grasp to run away with him forever.
"Please," he begged silently. His eyes, even now in the dark, were burning into mine beneath his brows pulled low. He looked very haphazard, as if he'd thrown on whatever he could find and came over here in a spur-of-the-moment decision. Of course it was spur-of-the-moment, because it was probably the stupidest thing he could have done- sneaking into Jack's house in the middle of the night to try and steal me away.
Idiot.
Amazing, wonderful, selfless, perfect idiot.
I felt a shudder rip through me as I sucked in a breath, my mind made up. Silently, I rolled from my side to land on my back, the muscles in my arms and legs stiff as I shifted beneath the covers. Jack's arm remained on top of me, sliding over my hip to land on my stomach once I'd changed positions. My eyes left Reece's to focus on what I was doing, and I held my breath as I steeled myself.
Slowly, I inched myself toward the edge of the bed and toward Reece, my hand reaching behind me to grab the pillow I had been using. Cautiously and tediously slowly, I inched farther and farther away from him, the distance between us increasing while his arm slid farther and farther off my stomach. I had almost cleared enough space to replace my body with the pillow when he let out a sudden heavy sigh, freezing me in place.
I could feel the tension in the room as I glanced at Reece, his hands extended out in front of him as if he'd reached to help me but stopped himself when he realized what he was doing. I squeezed my eyes shut and turned to look at Jack, terrified I'd be met with the cold, dark gaze when I did. Slowly, I squinted down at him and blew out a heavy sigh of relief- he was still asleep.
With a final deep breath, I shifted the rest of the way out of the bed, my feet landing silently on the floor as I stuffed the pillow under his arm simultaneously. I hovered for a second, waiting in terror for him to wake up and realize the fairly pathetic substitute, but he didn't. His eyes remained closed and his breathing even.
I felt Reece moving behind me and managed not to jump when his hand slid into mine, the familiar feel of his palm against my own sending a jolt through me. He squeezed tightly and I looked at him, the relief on his face masked by the still very present tension. His head jerked toward the door, indicating I follow him back the way he'd come. I nodded silently before looking back to the bed one last time, relieved to see Jack still fast asleep, his arm draped lazily across the pillow now instead of me.
Reece tugged lightly on my arm, his grip on my hand never loosening as he pulled me through the doorway and down the hall. We moved slowly, more afraid of making a sound and waking him than making a quick getaway. The house was dark and relatively unfamiliar still; the entire time I'd spent here had been in a numb haze, and details such as where the carpet ended and what items cluttered the floor had escaped me.
I focused on following Reece's exact footsteps, determined not to make a sound as we moved down the hall. Every step we took away from Jack only made my heart pound faster, certain he was going to wake up at any moment and stop us. Luckily, Reece seemed to know the way he'd come in, because his steps led us closer and closer to the door. My grip on his hand had to be cutting off his circulation by now, but he made no indication of it.
When we reached the end of the hallway and move
d into the living room, I stopped myself from letting out a sigh of relief. We weren't in the clear yet, but I could see the front door. Freedom was so close I could almost taste it. My eyes shifted to the ground, their gaze following Reece's steps as I copied them and narrowly avoided stepping on a rogue beer can that could have potentially woken Jack up. I drew in a slow breath in an attempt to keep quiet when all I really wanted to do was suck in lungfuls of air I had felt deprived of over the past few days.
I jumped when I heard the same sound I had heard only moments ago while still trapped in bed with Jack- a light creaking of the front door as it opened under Reece's manipulation. I shook my head slightly, calming the nerves that were constantly on edge as I watched Reece's lanky frame slide through the gap in the door. He held my hand tightly, pulling me through after him before his hand closed around the handle to shut the door as quietly as possible.
My feet were cold as they landed on the concrete of the sidewalk, once again bare as I fled the house. As soon as we were outside, I let out a shaky, audible breath that I'd been holding since the moment I'd heard Reece enter. My hands started shaking by my side as relief so strong crashed through me it actually made me stumble. Reece caught me easily, righting me as he turned to face me. Without a word, his hands wrapped around my jaw and his lips crashed down onto mine.
My eyes squeezed shut in an attempt to stem the tears I hadn't even realized were building as I felt his lips on mine. Everything in me that had been subdued roared back to life- the fire, the heat, the sizzling sensation that ripped through my nerves, everything. All too soon, he pulled back and broke the kiss. His hands remained on my face as I forced my eyes to open and meet his gaze- the same burning gaze that had rooted me to my spot the very first night I'd met him.
"Let's go home, Abby," he whispered. A shaky, cautious smile pulled at my lips as I nodded silently, unable to speak. He gave me a soft grin, the dimple pressing into his cheek as his hands left my face to grab my hand. Together, we turned toward the street and started walking, our freedom only moments away.
"Stop."
Everything around me came crashing down, as if a monsoon of ice-cold water had descended over me and extinguished any positive emotion I had just felt.
No, no, no, we were so close.
My eyes squeezed shut while my heart pounded painfully in my chest, desperately trying to will away the darkness I knew now stood behind me. In perfect synchronization, Reece and I both turned around. Before I could even comprehend what was happening, my body was shoved forcefully behind Reece's, his grip on my arms tight as he held me behind him with one hand. His other arm reached forward, his fingers splayed wide in front of him. My gaze traveled from Reece's defensive stance, down his arm, and past his fingers before fixing on the sight beyond them.
Utter horror ripped through me as my mind processed what I was seeing. There, standing only feet away from us, stood Jack with his arms cocked out in front of him. My petrified gaze was immediately commanded by the sleek, black barrel of the gun he was holding- the gun he currently had pointed straight at Reece's chest.
I couldn't stop the terrified gasp that ripped from my throat and I felt my chest practically cave in, my body buckling under the terror but somehow managing to stay upright behind Reece. I peered around his shoulder, my gaze utterly transfixed by the barrel of the gun bearing down on us. On Reece. Before I even registered what I was doing, I scrambled to move in front of him, determined to put my body between the gun and his. This was all my fault and I couldn't let him even be in that position.
My frantic actions were stopped immediately, however, by Reece's strong grip on my shoulders. His arms stilled my movements and held me in place behind him, his gaze ever leaving Jack's, before he managed to subdue me and keep me still with his fingers wrapped around my wrists.
"Where the fuck do you think you're going, Abigail?" Jack said, his voice ringing with the disturbing deadly calm it often carried these days. My jaw fell open as I tried to respond but the choking sounds of my breathing overtook me. I couldn't even formulate a mental response, much less physically speak.
"She's coming with me, Jack. This is over," Reece said firmly. One of his hands was busy restraining me while the other was raised by his side, exposing his empty palm.
"No, she's not going anywhere," he replied, shaking his head. His arms were steady as they aimed the gun at Reece, his grip never wavering.
"She is. Can't you see how miserable she is? Do you really want her to force her to be with you?" Reece said cautiously. His attempt at reasoning was clearly ineffective, his words aimed far over Jack's unstable head. I already knew he was past reasoning.
"I don't care," he said. "She stays with me."
His eyes were far too wide in the darkness, and they appeared to be bulging out of his head slightly. The muscles in his neck were taught, easily showing beneath the pale skin that looked far too loose for him now. Despite his relatively unstable appearance, his muscles remained firm, holding him in place without the slightest quiver.
"Look, man," Reece said, his careful tone cracking slightly to reveal some of the tension he held underneath. I stepped forward and placed my hands on his lower back.
"Be careful," I whispered. My voice was quiet enough that he would hear, but Jack wouldn't. Reece made no indication that he'd heard me as he continued speaking to Jack.
"How is this good for you? How is forcing her to be here, completely against her will, of any benefit to you?" Reece said, continuing his attempt at reasoning. I sucked in a breath when he took one tiny, cautious step toward Jack. His hand wrapped around my wrist tried to force me to stay back, but I followed anyway.
"She'll get over it," Jack said tightly. "Eventually she'll get over it."
"No, she won't," Reece said slowly. His grip tightened on my wrists before releasing them and nudging them away slightly, silently indicating I stay back while he took another step forward. Jack twitched when he noticed his movement.
"Stay fucking back!" he shouted, losing the calm façade completely.
"Okay, okay!" Reece said, raising his hands by his sides once more. "Let's just put that down and talk, yeah? Like adults."
"Fuck you," Jack spit. "Don't talk to me with that condescending tone. I've been waiting for the day I get to shoot you so give me one fucking reason and I will."
I couldn't stop the strangled sob that escaped me as tears flooded down my face. I was absolutely paralyzed in terror, my hands frozen over my mouth where they had risen on their own accord. My feet were planted firmly to the ground as I watched in shock. Reece was, somehow, halfway between Jack and me now, still blocking me from him while he approached slowly. He was halted now, frozen as I was with his hands by his sides in the air.
"Okay, but please, put the gun down," Reece said calmly. How he remained so calm was an utter mystery to me, because I felt like I was absolutely losing my mind. Breath ripped from my lungs as I cried and I could feel the quivering shake that had set in on my limbs once more.
"No! She's mine!" he roared. The words echoed in front of the house, each resounding word sounding more and more insane than the last. I flinched as the last of the echoes sounded out. "If I can't have her, no one can. I'll fucking shoot both of you."
"You're gonna shoot her? The girl you went through all of this for? Don't be stupid," Reece said, his voice quickly losing the calm as well as blind anger started to take over.
Oh no.
"I'll fucking shoot her, I don't care!" Jack yelled insanely. I could feel the situation slipping out of anyone's control as irrationality took over Jack, fueled by Reece's defiance and the frustration of my continued resistance.
"You won't shoot her," Reece said, taking another step toward Jack.
"Stay back, you think this is a game?! You think I'm fucking around?!" Jack shouted. His eyes were positively bulging out of his skull now and his face was a deep red. "I'm not fucking kidding!"
His word
s were frantic now, every syllable completely deranged and delusional as he continued to point the gun at Reece. Every word he spoke was accented by a jab of the weapon forward as if he were moments away from actually pulling the trigger.
"Abigail!"
My name sounded from behind me on the street. Everyone's attention was momentarily drawn toward the sound, the sudden arrival of whoever had called it distracting everyone. My eyes focused on the body emerging frantically from the car that had arrived without my noticing- Emily.
Before I could react at all, a flash of movement out of the corner of my eye caused my head to whip back the direction I had previously been staring. I had been wrong- the sudden arrival had distracted all but one of us- Reece.
A scream of terror ripped from my lungs as I saw him launch forward, his shoulders lowered as he drove himself into Jack's chest. A painfully loud bang erupted around us as the gun went off, a patch of grass behind Reece flying up as the bullet buried itself in the dirt, narrowly avoiding his shoulder. The two bodies landed on the ground with a heavy thud as Reece tackled Jack, both of their limbs flying frantically as they tried to gain the upper hand on one another.
Reece was on top of Jack, his legs managing to pin Jack's down after much struggling on the grass. It wasn't enough to stop Jack's fists from flying toward whatever parts of Reece they could reach, and I heard a sickening thud when one of his aimed hits connected with Reece's ribcage. Tears streamed from my eyes as I searched the ground frantically for a sign of the gun that was no longer in Jack's hands, but I couldn't see enough to find it.
Emily appeared suddenly at my side, her hand clutching my forearm that was still frozen in front of me while she held her cellphone to hear ear with the other. I could vaguely hear her calling the police, but the sound of it was mostly drowned out by the heaving sobs and ear-shattering screams leaving my body. I watched in pure terror as the two men fought in front of me.