“Emily, what are you talking about? We haven’t spoken with Ezra since we left the house.” I was so sure it was Gavin or Axle on the phone, I didn’t stop to think who it could have been.
“Are you sure Gavin didn’t call him?” I asked. It was driving me crazy to not know who he spoke to.
“No, I’ve been in the car with him this entire time. We’re still driving back to town. Is everything alright? Should I call Robert?” he asked with worry in his voice. I was tempted, but thought it would be best not to make such a fuss about the situation.
“No, if I get annoyed enough I can go talk to Robert. It was probably his girlfriend anyways. Plus, Robert is doing some sort of protection spell for Kimmy right now, I wouldn’t want to interrupt,” I answered, feeling slightly better about the situation. Gavin and Axle were bad ass dudes and if anyone could take on Damon is was those two. I was glad to know they were on their way to help Kimmy.
“I really appreciate you guys going to look for Kimmy. She means the world to me and if anything were to happen to her…” I choked up. “What I mean to say is thank you for this. You have no idea what this means to me.”
“Anything for you, babe. Don’t worry, we will find her,” he replied.
After we ended our call, I felt disconnected. I didn’t want to face Ezra again, but I didn’t want to be alone. The only person who would understand was Kimmy. I really needed to get her back. I felt helpless, There was nothing I could do. I tried to look up the number Damon had called me from but no luck, he called from a blocked number. I desperately needed to hear from him. I had to know that she was ok, that he wasn’t going to hurt her or worse.
I heard a knock at the door. I didn’t even bother getting up, I had a feeling I knew exactly who it was.
“Go away,” I called out. I couldn’t deal with more drama at this point. I was one conversation away from snapping.
“Sorry, dear. I made you some dinner. I thought you might be hungry,” Nelly replied.
I was mortified. “I am so sorry, Nelly. Please come in,” I said as I ran to the door to unlock it and let her in. She gave me a concerned look as she entered, carrying the most delicious smelling food on a tray.
“Do I look that bad?” I asked her. I knew the stress was getting to me.
“No dear, not too bad for what you are going through. It’s perfectly understandable.” Her comment caught me off guard. I really did look bad. She was trying to be nice. Her being in the room made me feel that much better.
“Well, I brought you some tomato bisque, mac and cheese, apple sauce, peach cobbler, and some green tea. I know it seems very random but I didn’t know what you would like so I just made comfort foods.”
It brought tears to my eyes. She placed the tray on the bed and pulled me into a hug. She felt warm and smelled like home. I didn’t want to let go. I could handle everything that was going on as long as Nelly was by my side.
“I don’t know what to do, Nelly. I would do anything to save Kimmy, but they won’t let me leave.” I was getting angry at myself for not standing up to Ezra and leaving.
“You know what I think?” I looked down at the tiny old lady with hopeful eyes. Maybe she would know what to do to make this all go away.
“I think you should eat something, drink your tea, and take a nap. After you are all rested, then I’ll come back in here and sit with you until the boys get back.” She rubbed my arm and then she exited the room.
Not exactly the Yoda advice I was looking for. I couldn’t expect anyone to have the answers. I ate every single bite of my food on the couch and took my tea to the bed. I texted Axle to get an update, but he replied that they were still driving. I sipped my tea as I thought about what Nelly had said to do. I did feel better getting some food in my stomach but she didn’t really think I could sleep at a time like this.
Then it hit me. The only way I could speak to Damon was to sleep. I could dream and hopefully talk to him. I could try to convince him to trade Kimmy for the book. I had no way of getting my hands on the book, but it was worth a try. I sat my tea down and laid back. I rolled for a few minutes, trying to get comfortable. I was getting sleepier by the minute, which was unusual under the circumstances.
I hadn’t realized I drifted off until I saw Kimmy. My heart felt like it had exploded when my eyes met hers. She was in the same run down jail cell and tied to the same chair as I had been in my first dream of Damon. If felt odd to see her in the same position I had been just a few hours before. Her head was bent down in front of her with her hair covering her face. I was afraid to see what Damon had done to her. I would break down if he had hurt her. She was such a strong woman but she could never go up against the likes of a vampire. I heard laughter. My body went still, my lungs just wouldn’t work. I could feel sweat rolling down my face. Damon opened the door to the cell and strolled in. He gave me a knowing look and walked over to Kimmy. He pulled her head up, but she was so limp. I couldn’t tell if she was even alive till I heard her whimper.
“Kimmy, what were you thinking?” I whispered out loud, more to myself than anyone. Damon gave another evil smile.
“I swear, Damon, I will kill you myself!” I threatened.
“When, Emily? You can’t touch me in your dreams, but today is not about you. It’s about your beautiful friend here.” He removed a few curls from her face. She had a black eye and a busted lip. She still had color in her face, so at least she had that.
He started smelling her neck as he held her face. She gave a slight jerk. She still had a small bit of fight in her. That’s when I noticed the multiple teeth marks in her neck, the bastard was biting her. Everything was happening like my dream. He gave me a crooked smile before he bent down, teasing her neck, He whispered into her ear but I couldn’t hear what he told her. She looked me straight in the eyes and I knew what came next. His teeth grew long before he bit her again. She opened her mouth to scream, but I didn’t hear anything.
Chapter Twenty-Three
I awoke back in my room. Drenched in sweat and panting, I was glad to not be surrounded by men. I gripped my pounding head.
“Everything ok, dear?” Nelly asked.
Her presence startled me. I thought I had been alone.
“Nelly, I’m ok, I guess, given the current circumstances.” I had a bottle of water on my nightstand. I picked it up and started chugging. Nelly waited until I was through quenching my thirst.
“How was your dream?” she asked.
I ran my hand over my face to clean up the sweat. “It was horrible. Damon has Kimmy and he is killing her. He wants that stupid spell book. No one here will ever give it to him. They would rather just let Kimmy die. And on top of everything, I’m trapped here. I have to get to her.” I poured out my soul. It hurt to admit my current situation out loud. It made it feel worse. I had been hoping for every minute that this was all a bad dream and I would wake up sooner or later. I picked up my phone, no missed calls, no voice mail. Meaning they hadn’t found her. Which I already knew from my dream.
“So, you want to get the book and leave?” she asked, sitting down beside me. Her presence was making me feel calmer.
“I know it sounds insane. There is no way I could ever get the book. And then there is no way I could sneak pasted Ezra, again!” I was giving up fast. I was kidnapped.
“I can help you, if you would like,” she replied softly. It was such a nice offer, I knew it impossible, but it’s the thought that counts.
“Oh, Nelly, you are so sweet but like I said, I can’t get the book and break out.” It felt good to have at least one person on my side in this house.
“Emily, you underestimate me. I can get you the book and help you break out as call it.” My eyes had to be the size of plates. I was in shock. Excitement started coursing through my veins.
“Can you really help me?” I asked, with hope in my heart.
“Wait, right here,” she replied with a smile on her face. She quietly departed my room. I ran over and gr
abbed a backpack I had found earlier in my closet. I filled it with my necessities and a few clothes. Just in case. I threw in my phone, purse and charger. I knew if we were about to really do this I would need both hands free. By the time I packed Nelly returned with the big old book in her arms. My mouth fell to the floor. I couldn’t believe what I was looking at.
“What, How?” I stammered.
“We have to hurry. Now, be extremely quiet and follow me,” she answered.
“What if we run into Ezra?” I forcefully whispered. He would kill me if he found out what we were planning.
“Robert is in Kimmy’s room, trying a different protection spell, and Ezra is feeding in his room,” she answered with a smile on her face.
I wasn’t sure what to think about Ezra feeding yet again, but I didn’t have time to think twice about it. We were off, creeping down the hall. I felt like a fugitive breaking out of the big house. We went through one hall and into another, so far so good. I thought to myself. We heard a door shut and froze. Nelly gave me a look that said to stay calm and silent. I should have offered to take the book. It seemed so big next to her little body. She nodded, giving the ok to keep going.
We made it to the kitchen, and she placed the book on the counter and turned to the pantry. She opened the door and walked in. I grabbed the book and followed her. The pantry was amazing, filled with all kinds of different foods. It had to be twenty feet long. She grabbed a can of beets at the very back and pulled it forward. The pantry wall shifted and she turned to me and winked.
Sneaky little Brownie.
I shut the pantry door behind us and crept through the secret door. We entered a dirt tunnel that was about four feet tall. The tunnel was very dark, I could barely see in front of me.
“Take my hand,” Nelly whispered. I jumped because I didn’t realize she was standing directly in front of me. I had to bend down in order to walk in the tunnel, very uncomfortable but it was my escape and my way to rescue Kimmy. We walked hand in hand for what seemed like forever. The floor was at a slight incline. I finally saw light at the end of the tunnel. Something inside told me to turn around and run, but thankfully I wasn’t dying so I didn’t need to fear the light. As we reached the outside, I felt like I wanted to do a celebratory dance. The tunnel ended in the forest. Trees and brush surrounded us. I didn’t care how far we would have to walk or run, I was just so happy that we had made it out of the house with the book. Kimmy was going to be saved.
“We’re not out of the clear yet, honey. We need to hurry.” Nelly pulled a key out of her front pocket. This woman was my savior. We started walking through the forest stepping over roots and weeds. She moved with such grace and quickness, almost as though she knew the path well. We walked for a few minutes before we came to a thin clearing, wide enough to fit a tiny car. We turned left and kept walking. In the distance, I could see a vehicle but it was too far to make out what kind exactly. As we got closer, I could see it was a small silver car. We hopped in and took off.
Not one word was spoken for about an hour. My phone broke the silence.
“Shit, it’s Ezra. Should I answer?” I asked her nervously. My hands were shaking.
“Probably best to let it go to voicemail, I suppose.” She looked at my phone like it was a monster.
What would I even dare say to Ezra? I was thankful she suggested not answering it. I really didn’t want to speak to him. It would just upset me more. A few minutes later I received a call from an unknown number, I didn’t wait to hear what Nelly had to say, I knew it could be Damon and we desperately needed somewhere to meet.
“Hello?” I answered.
“Emily, are you ok?” Gavin replied, sounding upset.
I felt slightly disappointed. “Gavin, I’m fine. I’m sorry I had to go. I have to find Kimmy,” I replied, trying desperately to make him understand.
“Em, even if you find her, how do you think you are going to save her? You are not as strong as us.” He sighed. I felt like a child being scolded for doing something silly.
“I’m going to negotiate for her life. I don’t need to be as strong as you guys, I just have to be smarter.” I tried very hard not to lose my cool, but I was becoming annoyed.
“That is not smart. What are you going to do, negotiate your life for hers?” He seemed just as annoyed. He made it sound like he would rather Damon have Kimmy than me. I guess since it was his job to protect me, if I gave myself up that would mean he failed. I didn’t want to get him fired, but Kimmy came first over all of these men.
“What? My life? No, I am going to give him the book and say the spell in exchange for Kimmy.”
“And how do you expect to give him a book that is locked away in Ezra’s house?” he asked.
I realized no one knew we had taken the book yet. I couldn’t help but smile. Not only had we escaped the prison we took a book that was protected by a bunch of supernatural creeps.
“Please don’t tell me you stole the book.” Gavin took my silence as an answer.
“Well, I didn’t exactly take it,” I told him with a hint of uncertainty in my voice.
“But you have the book in your possession right now?” he asked, catching on.
“Um, well yes actually.” It was nice to have something to smile about even if I felt guilty for having a little fun at a time like this.
“You’re shitting me,” he replied, totally catching me off guard.
I started laughing. “I shit you not.”
“Oh, little girl, you are going to be in so much trouble.” He didn’t even seem too upset about the situation.
“Look, it’s not like I can even use the stupid book for Damon, so it’s pretty much useless to him,” I replied, getting to my point.
He sighed. “Emily, you have a lot to learn. Just promise me when you get to Damon you will call me before you meet up. I want to be closer to you.”
“Why, Gavin, if we weren’t in hell right now I would think you were hitting on me,” I teased.
He laughed and disconnected the phone.
“Well, the cat is out of the bag now, Nelly,” I informed her.
She continued to keep her eyes on the road. “What cat?”
“Um, never mind it’s just a figure of speech. They know we have to book.”
She sighed and gripped the wheel harder. We arrived back in town at midnight and decided to hide out at a motel. We needed to get some shut eye, and I had a date to plan with Damon. I needed to let him know I had the book so I needed to sleep. We used cash to pay for the room just in case the guys tried to track us down. By the time we got to the room I was half asleep. I threw my bag on the floor and passed out on the couch, letting Nelly have the bed. I got the best sleep of my life. No dreams whatsoever.
I woke up, pissed off, to the smell of coffee.
“Dammit.” Sunlight was peeking through the curtains.
“What’s the matter, dear?” Nelly asked, handing me a cup of coffee. It tasted amazing, usually motel coffee taste like dirt.
“The one time I needed to dream and I didn’t. I can’t understand why,” I answered angry. How was I supposed to know if Kimmy was still alive if I couldn’t find her? The one time needed to dream and I couldn’t even get that right. I couldn’t save her life. I was a nobody. It would be my fault that I couldn’t save her.
Nelly must have known I was beating myself up. She took my cup and pulled me into a motherly embrace. “Now, don’t feel sorry for yourself. We will find her. He won’t kill her, knowing that’s his only weapon against you.” She comforted me. I felt close to Nelly. We had a connection, we were both rebels. My phone started ringing.
“It’s probably Ezra trying to find us,” I said as I answered my phone.
“Hello,” I sighed into the phone, not ready for the conversation we were about to have. The good thing was that I could just hang up if it got too heavy.
“Do you have what I need?” a raspy voice asked. I immediately grabbed my chest, it was Damon.
Chapter Twenty-Four
“Damon, yes yes yes! I have the book. Please just give me Kimmy and you can have it,” I shrieked. I was so relieved that he had called me.
“Whoa, slow down. I’ll give you directions where you can meet me. You will bring the book and nothing else. You come alone or I’ll kill the girl,” he threatened. The way he said it made me believe he wasn’t bluffing.
“Damon, I’ll do whatever you want just… please don’t hurt her anymore,” I begged, holding back my tears. I didn’t feel too tough any longer. I was so close to getting Kimmy back. I didn’t want to get her killed because of my pride.
“Meet me at 735 Elmore Avenue, and I’m being dead serious if I even think you are bringing your little side show I’ll kill her and then everyone you know.” He hung up.
“Geez, he’s grumpy,” I stated out loud.
“You know you can’t go alone.” Nelly looked worried.
“I have to, Nelly, if I don’t he will kill Kimmy.” I knew she was right, Damon could kill me without even trying. But I was stuck.
“Ok, I have an idea. I can drop you off. Then I’ll wait a few minutes and call Gavin. I can give him the address,” she explained, smiling.
I returned the smile, this could work. I called Gavin to let him know of the plan.
He answered on the first ring. “Hey, are you guys still in town?” I needed as much protection as close as possible.
“Yes, we stayed at my apartment last night. Can I ask you where you are?” he asked.
I laughed nervously. “Yeah right, good try though. Look we have a plan. Damon gave me an address to meet him at. I’m going to show up alone and then have Nelly call you guys with the address so you can save my ass.” It sounded so easy surely this had to work.
“I don’t know, Emily, I really don’t like this. It doesn’t feel right. I need to at least call Robert and Ezra,” he replied.
Dare to Bleed (Emily Sullivan Series) Page 15