Eighteen

Allie

I felt sick and nauseous and… wet.

I opened my eyes slowly and groaned. My body screamed and my arm wouldn’t move. My hands were bound behind my back, my mouth was covered in tape and my eyes were cloaked. I was on a hard, cold floor that stank of dust and mould. My body was on its side – on its good side – but the palpable pain in my other arm made breathing a chore no matter the position.

I knew what the wetness was. My blood. Coating my thin top. The copper smell invaded my nose and I cried. Tears streamed down my face endlessly as I wondered where in the hell I was.

Loud screams bellowed out and I startled.

What the fuck was happening?

A door opened and closed and footsteps sounded out from nearby.

“What in the fuck is this, boy?” growled a man.

“She knows everything,” Matt said. “I had to bring her here.”

“She knows everything or did you tell her everything?”

No response from Matt.

“You fucking screw up,” the man cursed in anger. “You come in here with her bound up and hurt, and you give yourself away! What use are you to me now? Huh, boy? You were meant to stay undercover. To be my eyes and ears around this town –”

“I don’t wanna stay undercover,” Matt interrupted harshly. “I don’t deserve it! And you shouldn’t fucking put Ryker on a throne, either! I knew it was Heath all along! I’m the one responsible for his attack, Garrett –”

“Don’t you fucking say my name, you dumb little shit!” he roared. “And on that note, you can’t even hire the right men to get a man killed? What stopped you from coming to me first, huh?”

“I wanted to do it on my own. I wanted to impress you, Uncle. And when it didn’t work out the way it was meant to, I knew you’d be disappointed. But I’ve been keeping tabs on him. I’ve been following him. I know all about where they’re putting their money!”

“Ryker and his man have already beaten that out of him, you useless fuck,” he retorted. “He’s about to get his head blown off, and now you’ve brought his woman to the mix. That kid of theirs is going to grow up a fuckin’ orphan. God, you’re pathetic.”

It was silent for a few moments. I heard him exhale and tsk under his breath.

“I’m sorry,” Matt apologized, his voice thick with emotions. “I’m sorry. I try so hard.”

“Shut up, Matt. Just… shut the fuck up, alright?”

Matt refused to shut the fuck up. “Where is everybody?”

The man sighed. “There was a call about another cash house being raided right this second. I sent the men out to get it checked.”

“Who’s left?”

“Ryker, some guy he says is good at torturin’ people, and that Lawson boy is in the next room. And now of course you’ve had to complicate shit and make your presence known. They all fuckin’ heard you. So pick the girl up and take her into the room too. Might as well die together. Ain’t that the romance nowadays? Be together, die together? Some stupid fucking shit like that.” He mumbled under his breath as he walked off.

I was breathing heavily, completely absorbed by their conversation. When a hand grabbed at my arm, I groaned and tried moving away.

“Come on, Allie,” Matt’s guilt-ridden voice said. “Please, hon.”

I shook my head and continued trying to wriggle from his grip, but he was stronger than me. He forced me up, and my head pounded even harder. Muffled, I cried from the dizzying pain as he pulled me to him and led us somewhere.

A door opened and the sounds from within grew louder.

“What the fuck is this!” I heard Heath scream in a pained voice. “This is fucked up, Ryker. No, no, this is fucked up. What the fuck is Allie doing here?!”

“You’ll have to excuse my nephew,” said the man. “He fucked things up on a whole new level by bringing her here. Apparently, my nephew has been a real shit behind my back. He’ll get punished for this.”

I felt someone at my front and a hand grabbed at the cloth over my eyes. It was pulled down until it pooled around my neck and I blinked my eyes open, distressed for a few seconds from the light overhead.

Ryker stared at me right in the eye, barely a foot away from me. He looked menacing, like the crazed man that’d come to the house hours prior to take Heath away. He didn’t look bothered that I was here. He just looked a little annoyed, glaring over at Matt.

“He’s your nephew?” he then asked in a hard voice to the middle-aged man I’d passed once. “Why the fuck didn’t you say so?”

The man sighed. “Boy, I got to have eyes and ears everywhere. Matt’s weak. He’s only ever been good at observing. He can’t put a bullet in someone’s head like you. Which is why she’s here. He couldn’t take care of it.”

Matt dropped his head, looking shamefully down at the floor.

I tore my eyes away from them and looked at Heath. He was seated in the middle of the room with his hands bound behind his back. They’d stripped him down to his briefs, and there were bruises everywhere, all over his solid upper body. His skin gleamed with sweat under the dim light bulb. His face was bloody, his lip busted up. His dark eyes stared right into my own, and I saw the fear that lurked within them. He looked completely taken aback by me.

“Let her go,” he demanded. “She hasn’t done anything! Fuckin’ hell, just let her go!”

A large, bearded man circled around him with a knife in one hand and an… apple in the other. He casually cut it up and ate while looking around the room like he was watching an entertaining play. When his dark eyes landed on mine, he smirked at me. He was incredibly unnerving, and the fact his hands were bound with rags – rags that had fresh blood on them – told me he was responsible for hurting Heath.

I shut my eyes. This was really happening, wasn’t it? Nobody was going to rouse me out of my sleep and tell me it was some nightmare. No, it was really going on. I was going to die with him here, and it was all going to be in the hands of Ryker. Fucking, piece of shit Ryker. And what would become of Kayden?

I lost balance standing up, nearing the verge of collapsing.

“She’s hurt,” Heath went on. “Matt, you dog little cunt, you’re gonna die for this! You piece of shit! You’re going to fucking die!”