by Darla Lark
~
Cheyenne awoke and tried to rub her eyes, but quickly remembered the handcuffs. Her shoulders were hurting. She began to look around for the masked man, but he wasn’t anywhere in sight. Suddenly the lights came on making her squint.
He moved toward her. “I brought us some dinner. You hungry?”
Her stomach growled, which made her realize she was hungrier than what she thought. “A little bit,” she reluctantly admitted. “Could you unlock the handcuffs? My arms and shoulders are hurting.”
He stared down at her and finally folded his arms. “On one condition.”
“What would that be?”
“Don’t try running away—or else I’ll handcuff you again— without food.”
“As long as you take these off, I promise.”
He bent down to unlock the handcuffs around her wrists. Once her arms were free, Cheyenne rubbed her wrists and ankles and once more scoured her surroundings.
“You okay?” he asked.
“How can I be okay? You freaking kidnapped me.” She noticed the large sleeping bag on the floor. “What’s that for?”
“For us. I thought that maybe we could sleep in it tonight.”
“Us? Tonight?”
“Yeah,” he said as he flashed his gun. “Just don’t be stupid and try to run—because I’ll catch you.”
“I won’t.” She realized she needed to change the topic from the sleeping bag. “What’s for dinner?”
“Spaghetti. I went to Adolfo’s Spaghetti. We’ve also got salad and garlic bread and I a bottle of wine.”
Cheyenne tried to remember what street it was on. Was it Erie Street? No. Superior Street. Yes. That’s it. She had to be close to it. “I’m starving.”
“First things first,” he said as he opened the picnic blanket atop a folding table. He quickly placed a chair on each side of the table. Plates, silverware and glasses appeared from thin air in his hurry. With a flourish of his arm, he motioned for her to sit down. Reluctantly, she did.
“Eat,” he said. She complied, never taking her eyes off him.
~
They finished eating and the man nodded his head toward the sleeping bag and pointed the gun at her. “Get in.”
“I’d rather be handcuffed to the pole,” she said as she folded her arms.
“I don’t care what you want. Get in the sleeping bag.” When she didn’t move, he shouted, “NOW!”
“What if I have to go to the bathroom?”
“Do you?”
“Why would I say anything if I didn’t?”
He studied her before motioning her to get up. When she stood, he pointed to a corner. “Over there. Go. I’ll be right behind you.”
With the gun in his hand, she didn’t argue and walked over to a portable toilet. She groaned. “Are you kidding me?”
“Just go.” He watched her.
“Do you mind? Have you ever heard of privacy?”
“Don’t try anything stupid.” He nodded to the gun in his uplifted hand.
“What could I possibly do?”
He shrugged and hesitantly turned his back to her. Cheyenne focused on what needed to be done. She was about to ask where she could wash her hands when she noticed a bottled of hand sanitizer on the floor next to her. She sanitized her hands, thinking how disgusting it was. No sink to wash her hands made her stomach churn. She didn’t know what was next, but this man was going back and forth between being nice and cruel. The sleeping bag thing was an extremely unpleasant idea, but if she was going to survive, she had to do whatever he told her. At least until she could figure a way out of this.
Chapter 34
So that how’s the jerk wants to play. He causes my Cheyenne so much agony and tries to take her from me. That’s not going to happen. She’s the most important person in my life. We’re meant to be together and I will not let that asshole get her. The steering wheel absorbed most of the angry pounding. How dare he try to take her from me! I tucked the gun into my waistband and pulled on my mask. I kept thinking about him kidnapping my woman. The love of my life in such a shoddy, run-down building. How could someone bring such a beautiful and bright woman to a place like this?
I will rescue you from this place and take you away from that monster. I won’t let him harm you. I love you too much, Cheyenne. You deserve so much more than this. That creep is going to die. What a loser! If someone is going to kidnap someone, why not take them to a nicer place unless they intend on killing them? Oh no! He’s going to kill her! I’ve got to get him before he does.
Chapter 35
Cheyenne wondered how she was going to escape while he lay next to her. There was no possible way she would be able to live like this. Not with him. Not after what he did. He murdered Gabrielle and Michael. How could he be so disturbed to think that things would be okay after what he’d done? His touch, his voice, his smile, everything about him made her nauseous. When the opportunity arose she would escape, but she had to be patient and figure out how.
When he rolled over and pulled her closer, Cheyenne tensed up. As luck would have it he had the gun in his hand. She slowly and nervously moved her arm toward the gun, but quickly pulled back when he suddenly jerked. He laid his arm down across her. Once again, she reached for the gun, but before she could, he whispered in her ear.
“Don’t even try it.”
“Try what?”
“You know what.”
Cheyenne stared at the gun for a moment, debating whether or not to make a move. Deciding it was too risky, she lay there hoping he would go back to sleep and stop watching her. How was she going to get out of this predicament?
Cheyenne sat up. “You are so paranoid. I wasn’t doing anything but lying here. Why would you think I was trying something? Huh?”
He grabbed a handful of her hair, yanked her back down onto the sleeping bag and angrily whispered in her ear, “Watch that pretty mouth of yours. If you don’t, I might lose control and, believe me.” He took a deep breath. “You don’t want that.” Each word slowly enunciated.
When he let go of her hair, Cheyenne struggled to remain placid as she swallowed her tears back. Despite her struggle, she failed to maintain control and flopped on her side with her back to him and cried into her pillow. When was this nightmare going to end?
~
Something hit her stomach, which made her grab her belly and cry out in pain. She glanced up. The man glared at her. A booted foot came at her again. The look in his eyes was so evil it sent a shiver down her spine. He kicked her again, causing her to scream. She breathed hard, still holding her stomach. Seeing his boot coming at her once more, she rolled over, which was excruciatingly painful. She crawled across the floor and prayed that he would stop. She cried and screamed in pain as his boot came in contact with her back. There was nowhere to run, nowhere to hide. He kicked her again. This time she put herself in a fetal position. What else could she do?
“Stop! Please! Why are you doing this?” He quit kicking her, which made her nervous. There was no telling what was coming next. Suddenly something was around her throat, choking her. She grabbed the rope and tried pulling it off, but he was much stronger. So she kicked him where it counted, knocking him down. Somehow, she mustered up the strength to get up and run. She ran to the only door and tried to open it but there was a lock in place. Only one person had the key and it wasn’t her. She looked over and saw him getting up. He stood and glared at her. He charged, giving the loudest, scariest cry she had ever heard. Cheyenne was shaking so badly she couldn’t move. The next thing she knew, he was tackling her. They went down. She hit her head and struggled to get free of him despite the blood running down the side of her face.
“Didn’t I tell you not to try anything? Didn’t I?” He yelled at her as he continued to beat her.
Cheyenne screamed and begged him to stop, but he wouldn’t let up. She had never felt more alone and was scared and helpless not being able to defend herself. Suddenly he quit beating her, stood
up and stared down at her through squinted eyes. He leaned over her, gently lifted her in his arms and walked over to the sleeping bag. He laid her down and caressed her hair. Through the one eye that wasn’t swollen completely shut, she observed him unbutton his pants.
“No,” she whispered. “Please no!” If she had enough energy to run, she would have but she was too weak. “No. Please don’t.”
He ignored her pleas and raped her.
~
He finished, stood and pulled up his pants. He smiled proudly. “That was good. Wasn’t it? Now we are one.”
All she could do was roll on her side and cry into her pillow. Why was he so sick? What was going to happen next? Not that it really mattered. She would never be free again unless she was dead. If that’s what he had planned for her, she would welcome it with open arms. She didn’t know if she could survive much longer. There wasn’t much more she could take. Death would be the best thing for her.
He bent over her and stroked her hair again. “I’ll be right back. Don’t do anything stupid. I’m going out to get us some breakfast.” He kissed the top of her head. “One more thing: You can’t escape. The door will be locked.” He winked at her and shook his finger as if to let her know he wasn’t joking then strode to the door.
He left and Cheyenne remained on the sleeping bag. The pain was too great to even try to move. Not to mention, she couldn’t see very well out of two swollen eyes and there was no way she could try to escape—not when it felt like her ribs were broken. All she could do was bide her time and wait. Her head throbbed. She blacked out.
~
“Cheyenne, baby, wake up.” She felt him shake her gently and opened the one eye she could see out of. He stood over her once again. Not saying anything, she stared at him and he beamed at her. “Come on baby. Let’s get something in your belly.” He helped her up and to the table where he opened the McDonalds bag and took out a sandwich and a hash brown. “Eat. You need your strength,” he encouraged as he set them in front of her.
Cheyenne stared at him catatonically. Her appetite was non- existent. Why should she eat? He acted like nothing happened. She knew he was going to kill her. After what he did to her, how could he not? It made her ill.
He stared at her from across the table as he bit into his hash brown. “Are you going to eat?” She didn’t respond. “Hm. I see. Well then…” He reached across the table, grabbed her food and flung it across the room. “Now,” he screamed at her, “if you want to eat, there it is. I treat you nicely, get you something to eat, and this is how you repay me? You’re an ungrateful tramp. Of all the women I could’ve chosen…” He begrudgingly shook his head. “YOU should be glad I chose you.” He went to her, kneeled, and placed his hands over hers. His voice softened. “Why can’t you see how much I love you? That’s all I’m trying to prove to you. I want you to tell me that you love me too. Please.” He squeezed her hands. “Okay. Maybe another time. Oh! I’ve got a surprise for you.”
She could care less about him or his stupid surprises. After the rape, how could he be so cold and act like nothing happened? There was nothing to say to him. Her hatred grew more and more by the minute. He bent over the sleeping bag and Cheyenne’s thoughts were turning darker and darker of how she was going to kill him. Her state of mind was becoming stronger. This newfound anger and hatred grew in her and made her stronger. She could use it to her advantage. Not only did she want to escape, but wanted to kill him. Until she healed, she would have to play his game. He was going to pay for what he had done. Of that, she could be sure.
~
After they finished their dinner, he cleaned up and led her to the sleeping bag. Suddenly there was a loud banging on the door. Cheyenne’s heart beat fast. Maybe it’s help. Her captor placed a finger on his lips and she nodded compliantly. He moved toward the door. Please let it be the police.
He cautiously opened the door and peered through the crack. The door was snapped open.
“You piece of shit! How dare you take her! She belongs to me.” Another masked man stood face-to-face with her captor.
“What are you talking about? Who the hell are you?”
“Someone you don’t want to know—especially when you capture the woman I love and hold her hostage. You should be more concerned with what you did and how you’re going to pay.”
“What are you talking about, man? Get the hell out of here.”
The stranger pulled a gun from his waistband and pointed it. “I think I’m going to stay.”
Cheyenne’s eyes widened. She felt beads of sweat form at her temples as her body trembled. This was a terrifying turn of events. What am I going to do now? How can I possibly win against two of them and why does this one’s voice sound even more familiar? She tried to wrap her head around it as tears slid down her cheeks.
Her captor held his hands up and laughed. “Shoot me if you have the balls. Or else leave.”
“You should never have taken her, but I will give you credit for being clever about it.”
“Look man, lower you’re gun and we can talk this over.”
The other masked man stared and shook his head. “I don’t think so.”
“Come on, man. Put the gun down.”
“Do you have a gun?” the second man asked with the gun still pointed at her captor.
“No.”
“If I lower it, don’t do anything to make me shoot you.”
Her captor nodded reassuringly. “You have my word.”
“Sometimes your word isn’t enough.” He walked to her before he stopped abruptly and stared. “What the hell did you do to her?” He stooped down and tenderly touched her face, concern in his eyes.
“She was disobedient.”
“I see.” He spun around and grabbed the other man by the throat slamming him to the ground. “I know all about disobedience, but never have I ever beaten a woman.” The other man struggled to breathe and tried to fight, but his opponent was much stronger. “If you ever put your hands on her again, I’ll kill you.”
“Fine.” Her captor gasped for air. “I won’t.” When his opponent let go, his hand immediately went to his throat to massage it.
“Good.” The visitor kneeled in front of Cheyenne. “She’s too beautiful to have any damage to her face. I won’t allow him to hurt you any further. I promise.” He placed a finger under her chin and raised her face to his then leaned in to kiss her.
Cheyenne’s stomach churned. Two psychos. What were the odds? She wasn’t going to make it out of this alive. God help me, please.
Her captor suddenly jumped up and yanked the other man off her. He was on top pounding on the other’s face. It was a full out war. Fists and blood were flying. It was hard to see through the clouds of dust and dirt. If she hadn’t been beaten so badly, she would’ve made a run for it. Her body was too weak and in an immeasurable amount of pain. They were grappling on the floor. They took turns throwing punches. Cheyenne closed her eyes and said a prayer when something slid next to her. With her non- swollen eye, she scrutinized the item next to her finally realizing what it was. Before she could pick it up, one of the masked men shoved her over and seized it. Moments later there was a loud pop and a body fell on top of her. She screamed and tried to push him off her.
“Shut up.”
Cheyenne froze and looked up at the man standing over her. Upon gazing at his face, her heart nearly stopped. His mask had been ripped off during the struggle.
“It can’t be.”
~
“Are you surprised?” When Cheyenne didn’t say anything, he grinned. “I’m not sure I understand why you’re so surprised, but I guess I’ll just have to explain at another time.”
She stared at him. “Daniel? How could you do this to me? Who is this man? What’s going on?”
Daniel shrugged. “How am I supposed to know who he is? I guess we should find out.” He hunched over and slowly pulled the other man’s mask back.
Cheyenne’s eyes widened and she gasped
. “No. Oh, God, no!” Her mind and heart kept telling itself it couldn’t be, but her gut was telling her otherwise. “I have to call her. She has to know.”
“You’re not calling anyone!” Daniel yanked her up by the arm and shoved her against the pole she had been chained to. “Do you understand me?” Frightened, she nodded. “Now, you’re going to help me bury his body.”
“Do you even know who he is?”
“Yes. I know your whole family. Raina will simply think he ran off with another woman. Doesn’t she already suspect his infidelity?”
“How would you know that?” Without saying a word, he released her arm and shrugged lackadaisically. She threw her hands over her mouth upon realizing what he was implying. “You wire tapped my phone, didn’t you? You’re a psychopath.”
“Call me what you will, baby, but I’m not going anywhere and neither are you. You’re going to help me get rid of his body.”
“What makes you think I’ll help you?”
He lurched forward, snatched her up by the arms, and shook her. “You’ll help me because I’m telling you to.”
Cheyenne knew better than to argue. It would only encourage another beating. For the time being, she had no choice but to agree to help him. How could she get out of it without getting killed?
“Get in the sleeping bag. Now!” She could hardly stand up, much less walk after the recent developments. Shock overtook her. What had Aiden been thinking? How could he do this to Raina? Me? Why hadn’t I noticed it before? Oh Raina. I’m so sorry.
Chapter 36
Cheyenne was still reeling from the previous night.