Reece and I follow him outside; the sun is starting to come up. It’s good to breathe some fresh air and I’m looking forward to feeling the warm sun on my skin. Jack unlocks the tool storage shed and hands Reece and I a paintbrush and two cans of white paint, we begin at opposite ends of the wall. Jack lights up a cigarette and watches us.
“So what do you do for fun, Jack, when you’re not working here?” It’s a funny thing, I never really did much when I had my freedom but now that I’ve lost it, I crave knowing about how others are spending their time. I can kind of imagine it’s me out in the world doing those things.
He chuckles. “Believe it or not, gardening. We like spending time with our Grandson and we like being alone together, snuggling up on the sofa watching TV. We’re simple people.”
I smile at him. “Simple is good, I was the same. What TV shows do you like to watch?”
“Dragon’s Den is one of our favourites. We enjoy seeing the inventions some of those people come up with.” He laughs to himself. “I’ve got a soft spot for that show, thanks to my Grandson. He’s saving up his pocket money for a bicycle and I guess he wanted to ask us if we needed any jobs doing that we’d be willing to pay him for. So he came in with a piece of cardboard under his arm and said ‘I come to you today, asking for…’ just like they do on the show.” I can see in my mind’s eye his little Grandson doing that, it’s the cutest thing ever and I bust up laughing. I turn my head and see Kayden standing next to a male guard. Jack heads over to the guard but I can’t hear what they’re saying because I’m focused on Kayden. He looks pale and exhausted, his scrubs are drenched, he looks like he took a shower fully clothed and there are stains down the front of his scrubs. He looks so sad.
He starts to sway, so I run over and throw my arms around him. “Ugh, you’re wet and cold.” I smile up at him. “Are you okay sweetheart? I’ve been worried about you.” He doesn’t answer me but his arms snake around me and he pulls me close. “Ahh Kayden, you’re crushing me, I can’t breathe.” He loosens his grip a little.
“I’m okay, sorry I’m wet, I had to take a shower.”
I hear Jack’s voice. “Slave, let her go and get to work.” Kayden actually growls, then squeezes me tighter; his face is pressed into my neck. “Slave,” Jack yells at Kayden.
Kayden laughs humourlessly. “What’s his deal, is he jealous?”
I see Jack reach for the fob on his belt. Oh no, he’s going to shock Kayden. “Jack,” I say desperately. Kayden’s head snaps up, he looks at me and then shoves me away, he scowls at me. I watch as he stomps over to the tool shed and picks up a paintbrush. He winces as he picks up a can of paint, is he hurt? I turn to Jack. “Please, can I speak to him for a few minutes, something is wrong.” Jack sighs but nods his head and I run across to Kayden.
I place my hand on his arm. “Kayden, what’s wrong? Are you hurt?”
He glares at me for a few minutes before replying. “Why? Do you care?”
“Of course I care, I love you,” I reply, frowning at him. What has got into him? “You look exhausted, is that why you’re so grumpy?” I ask him.
He gives a loud sigh. “I didn’t get any sleep and my back hurts, I think I pulled a muscle.”
I rub my hand over his back and then I walk over to Jack, he’s stubbing out his cigarette. “Jack, Kayden’s exhausted; please will you let him rest for a while?”
He slowly shakes his head. “No, he’ll be fine.”
“He might be, but I won’t. I’m going to be worried about him all day. Please Jack. Just this once, for me.”
He stares at me for the longest time. “Fine, he can rest for an hour but I expect him to make up for lost time.”
I throw my arms around him and give him a peck on the cheek. “Thank you.”
Kayden is staring at me but he quickly looks away when he sees I’ve noticed him. “Jack says you can sleep for a while,” I tell him.
“Well ain’t Jack the hero,” he mutters, avoiding my gaze.
I reach for his hand. “Come on, over here.” I pull him across to a quiet spot behind the laundry where we’re out of sight of the other guards in the yard. I sit down and rest my back against the wall of the building. Kayden is still standing, gazing down at me. I pat my lap. “Lie down and rest your head on my lap sweetheart, get some sleep.”
He kneels down in front of me and cups my face in his hands. “I’m sorry I’m grumpy and I’m sorry I’ve ruined your life, I didn’t mean to.” I watch his Adam’s apple bob as he swallows. He lies down on the floor and nuzzles his face into my stomach. I trace little circles through his damp hair.
“You haven’t ruined my life Kayden, I’ve never been so happy as I am when I’m with you.” He’s already asleep; I don’t think he heard me. I’m sure he’ll feel better once he’s rested. There are red marks on his neck close to his shock collar, they look like burns.
I don’t know if Jack has forgotten about us or if he’s being kind, but he’s left us alone all day. Reece has painted all the building except for the spot I’m leaning against. I heard him muttering under his breath, calling Kayden and I lazy. I don’t blame him for being annoyed, but my priority is Kayden. He hasn’t stirred but I’ve enjoyed sitting here in the sunshine, listening to the bird song. I close my eyes and imagine I’m back at the farm.
I hear the sound of someone clearing their throat and I open my eyes to see Jack standing in front of me. “How would you like to spend the night with your brother?” he asks me. I’m pretty sure I’m staring at him in shock.
“Err, I’d love to but I don’t think they’ll let me.”
He crouches down in front of me. “There is a way. They let us borrow a slave, if we need any work done around the house. As far as the administration here is concerned, you’d be locked up at my house but I’ll let you stay with your brother.”
My mouth falls open. “You’d do that for me? Thank you.”
“I’m putting my trust in you, Savannah. I’m doing you a huge favour so don’t make me regret it. If you run, they will find you and you’ll see a different side to me.”
I shake my head. “I won’t run, I know you’re taking a risk doing this for me.”
“I’ll fill out the paperwork and you’ll leave with me when my shift is over.”
Reece is putting away the brushes and paint. I gently shake Kayden and whisper in his ear, his eyes slowly flutter open. I smile at him and bend to kiss him on his forehead. “It’s time to eat darling.”
He looks around and frowns. “Have I been asleep all day?” His voice sounds croaky.
“Are you thirsty sweetheart? You haven’t had anything to drink yet.” He nods his head. “We’re going to dinner now; you’ll get a drink then.” He’s just woke up and he’s still a little sleepy so I won’t mention yet that I won’t be here tonight, I’ll tell him once we’ve had dinner.
As we sit down to eat, I slip my hand into his. He looks at me and gives me a small smile, then squeezes my hand. We’re served some unappetising looking meat and potatoes but I’m hungry enough not to care anymore, food is food. I wolf it down and notice that Kayden has only eaten half of his, he usually eats faster than I do, I hope he isn’t ill. He pushes his half-finished meal across to me. “Are you feeling sick?” I ask him.
He smiles. “Nah I’m okay, I don’t want you to be hungry.” He gazes into my eyes and strokes his fingers softly along my cheek. “I love baby, you know that, right?”
I place my hand over his. “Of course I do.” I’m about to tell him I love him too and about my plans for tonight but I don’t get the chance because Jack is standing in the doorway, he calls out to me. I hold my finger up to ask him to give me a minute but he shakes his head and motions with his hand for me to join him. Kayden has a puzzled look on his face as I get up, I can’t leave him wondering where I am all night. “Kayden I-”
“Savannah, we leave now or not at all.” Jack shouts, sounding annoyed. I’ll have to go, this is the only chance I’ll get to
spend some time with Simon and if I make Jack mad he may change his mind. When I reach the door I turn around, intending to blow Kayden a kiss but he’s standing at the other door and has his back to me. I follow Jack through to the reception. “Wait here while I sign some paperwork and then we’ll be on our way.”
I do as he says but I have to ask him something. “Will you please find a way to let Kayden know where I am? I didn’t get a chance to tell him.”
He rolls his eyes. “I’ll call the guard on duty and get her to let him know you’re with me.”
CHAPTER TWELVE
Kayden
Just my luck, Bailey is on duty again tonight. She lets Reece into the cell but puts her arm out to stop me. She tells me to follow her and that she wants a word with me, again. As I’m following her out to the yard her phone rings. She holds up her hand for me to wait while she talks to whoever it is. They must be telling her something good because she’s smiling. She ends the call and looks at me. “Well, well,” she says, her smile turns into a grin, “guess who I just spoke to?” I frown at her, how the hell should I know who she talked to and I couldn’t care less. “That was Jack on the phone. Savannah’s spending the night with him,” she says. My mouth goes dry. She must be lying, Savannah wouldn’t do that to me, she wouldn’t sleep around. I stare at Bailey. “Yeah,” she says, still smiling, “he’s taking her to dinner and then she’s going to share his bed. Don’t you believe me?” I look at the ground and shake my head. She’s trying to mess with my mind, I’m sure of it. “I’ll prove it to you, follow me.” She crooks her finger and I follow her over to the razor wire fence. “Look,” she says as she points to a car in the parking lot. I look in the direction she’s pointing and get a pain in my chest when I see Savannah. She’s standing by his car and he’s holding the door open for her. I try to swallow but my throat is tight. Savannah’s looking at him and laughing. “She looks happy doesn’t she?” Bailey says. “She never looks that happy when she’s with you.” I’m shaking, it must be cold. I can’t take my eyes off Savannah, she’s in his car now, he’s gonna take her away from me, she’s gonna make love to him. I don’t feel well, I think I’m gonna be sick. “Do you want to know what she told him about you Kade?” I shake my head and clench my fists, I don’t want to know, it’s gonna hurt. “I think you should know,” Bailey says as she rests her hand on my shoulder, my muscles tense. I watch him drive away with my baby, I can’t breathe. “She told him she doesn’t want you anymore, she no longer loves you, she can’t forgive you for ruining her life.” I close my eyes, my legs are wobbling. “She wants to dump you Kade but she’s afraid, she said you’re violent.”
I open my eyes and glare at Bailey. “I’d never hurt her, why would she think that?”
Bailey laughs at me. “Quit crying, you wimp.”
Am I crying? I put my hand to my cheek, it’s wet. I look away from her and wipe my face. “I’m not crying, I’m tired, my eyes are sore.”
She moves closer. “I’ll make you feel better Kade.”
Is she fucking kidding me? I’ve just lost the best thing in my life, the only person apart from my mum who I’ve ever loved, and it’s all my fault and she thinks fucking her is gonna make me feel better. “I don’t want you,” I snarl at her. “If she dumps me or not, I don’t. Want. You.” I turn away from her. “So leave me the fuck alone.”
“Maybe another night in that small cell will change your mind.”
“Nothing’s gonna change my mind. Do what you want to me, I don’t care anymore.”
She pokes me in the back. “Move, before I fry your arse.”
She takes me to the room with the little cells, opens one of the doors and orders me to squeeze in. I’m glad she shut me in here, I want my back and legs to hurt, maybe it’ll take my mind off the pain in my heart. Savannah thinks I’m violent, I was so happy that she saw me as a real person. I can feel the tears on my cheeks this time but at least there’s no one around to see, and no one who cares, not anymore. How am I gonna deal with seeing them together every day? Every time he touches her I’m gonna wish it was me. Fuck, I’m gonna wanna kill the son of a bitch. Savannah’s right, I am violent. I can’t breathe. I try to relax and take some breaths. I don’t blame her for hating me, I have fucked up her life and I’ve never been more sorry about anything. How can I make it up to her? She looked happy when she was getting in his car. Bailey’s right, she never looks that happy with me. If I love her, than I should want what’s best for her, shouldn’t I? It’s not me. I’ll have to let her go. I don’t even bother trying to stop the tears that are streaming down my face. This hurts too much, I love her too much, I can’t do this. I press the heels of my hands against my eyes. How am I ever gonna do this? My head hurts, I need to stop thinking. I close my eyes and focus on the blackness.
I dunno how many hours it’s been when I hear someone unlock my door. I screw my eyes shut as the light shines in. A male voice tells me to get out. I stumble out of the cell and wince as I try to straighten my back. The guard shoves me towards the door and out into the hallway. When I get to the laundry, Savannah ain’t here; I’m not sure how I feel about that. I’ve got a picture in my head of her in bed with him, holding him like she used to hold me. If I’ve gotta suffer, I’d rather suffer with a picture in my head than see the real thing. I guess the guard who brought me in is going to be on duty today. He sits down at his desk and puts his feet up. Looking around I don’t see any laundry that needs washing. Reece is working the press so I guess I’m supposed to help him with that.
“I hear your girl has been shagging that guard all night,” Reece says. The fucker smirks at me, the son of a bitch. My life is falling apart and he thinks it’s funny. The rest of the room disappears and all I can see is his smug, fucking grin. As my fist heads towards his face all I can think about is wiping his grin off. I don’t even feel it when my fist smashes into his nose, I think he might of screamed or something, I know blood spurted out. I hit him again and catch him on the jaw; he falls back against the wall. I think the guard is shouting at me but I ain’t finished yet. I punch Reece in the stomach and as he bends over I grab the back of his head and slam his face into the wall. My jaw locks as pain shoots through me, my muscles stiffen and I hit the floor.
I open my eyes and sit up, I’m in our cell. I rub my neck, the skin under my collar feels raw and my head aches. Bailey’s leaning against the wall, smiling at me. I get to my feet.
“You have to know you can’t get away with beating up on Reece,” she says as she takes a few steps towards me. “I happen to like Reece. You must know I can’t let that go unpunished.”
I’ve got nothing to say, I don’t care anymore. It was worth it to wipe the smile off his face, and there’s nothing she can do to me that will hurt me more than I’m already hurting. I’ve lost the girl I love, nothing else matters. “Whatever. Do your worst.” I shrug. She reaches for the fob on her belt loop and I try and brace myself for the shock.
She lets the fob fall from her hands. “No, that will be far too easy.” She rests her hands on her hips. “I thought long and hard about the best way to punish you and then it came to me...Savannah” She grins. I’m suddenly feeling cold and my stomach flips. I stare at her.
“Her work is sloppy, she makes too many mistakes and she doesn’t respect authority.” She leans back against the wall, and laughs. “I wonder if she’s a screamer. I’ll find out when I whip her tomorrow. I think I’ll chain you up and force you to watch.”
My mouth goes dry and the room spins, my legs are wobbling. I shake my head. “No. No.”
“It’s your fault Kade, if you’d given me what I wanted, she’d be fine.”
“You fucking bitch,” I scream at Bailey. She’s looking at me with that stupid fucking grin on her face. She wants sex; I’ll give her fucking sex. I run at her, knocking her back against the wall, I put my hands around her throat and squeeze. “You dirty, filthy, fucking whore. You want me, you can fucking have me.”
She makes a grab for the fob, but I’m faster, I rip it from her belt and throw it across the room. Her hand flies towards me, she claws her nails down my face, they rip at my lip and I taste blood. I grab her wrists and pin her arms to the wall above her head. “You sick bitch. You’re so desperate you have to force slaves to fuck you.” With my free hand I unbuckle her belt, tear open her pants and yank them down. “My dick can’t even get hard for you, so I guess I’ll have to fuck you with my fist.” I shove my hand down between her legs and then I hear her laugh.
“God, this is hot. Come on Kade, take me.”
I freeze. What the fuck am I doing? What am I doing? I scramble away from her, holding my head, my fists clenched. “What the fuck are you doing to me?” I scream at her.
She tuts and scowls at me. “You’re such a disappointment.” She walks over to where I threw her fob; I let her pick it up because I can’t trust myself to go near her right now. I slide down to the floor and hug myself. I’m losing my fucking mind. “I’m looking forward to seeing Savannah tomorrow,” she says as the door slams closed behind her.
I pace the floor of the cell. Bailey means what she says, she don’t bluff, she’s gonna hurt Savannah and I can’t let that happen. I should have killed her when I had the chance. I smash my fist into the wall, I hate that bitch. I close my eyes and take some breaths. I can’t lose my cool, I need to think, there has to be a way to stop her. Thoughts jump around in my head. It’s no use reporting her, they ain’t gonna do anything about it. I could jump on her before she gets chance to touch Savannah, but then she’d just shock me and I’d be useless. I work through every idea in my mind and there is only one way.
Locked Together (In Chains) Page 8