Willow
willow
I put one shaky foot in front of the other as Braydon led me down the dark alley toward the back. Maybe someone would be outside? A cook or a busboy, or—someone. Anyone.
Tears filled my eyes as we got closer to a rundown little car. There were rust spots all over it, and the door was hanging at a weird angle. I swore I’d seen it before, but I never thought twice of it.
The door screeched as he pulled the back door open and roughly shoved me inside.I tumbled into the backseat, my face hitting the putrid, stained fabric. He ignored me as he hopped in the driver’s seat and started the car. It thudded to life, and I held my breath, half hoping the battery would die and we’d be stuck here.
But then we pulled away from the restaurant, and all my hope flew out the cracked window. What was I supposed to do? How did I save myself?
My phone . I still had my phone.
Reaching into my purse, I fumbled with it. I was careful to not look at the screen or open it too much for the light to show. Braydon’s eyes were wild in the rearview mirror as we pulled onto the highway. Instead of turning toward Cedar Ridge, he went the opposite direction toward Blackrock Bay.
My thumb slid along the cool screen. I knew where my apps were, and I knew Ronan was the last person I’d texted. I fumbled with it, hoping I was tapping the right parts of the screen, hoping that I was pressing the right buttons.
And then I heard the faint ringing, and I cleared my throat to cover the sound. Was he going to answer? Was he still fighting with my family? What if he didn’t hear his phone?
But then?—
“Hey, where are you?”
He answered.
“Baby?”
Tears filled my eyes as I turned the volume down as far as it would go. Ronan’s voice disappeared, but I knew he was still on the line.
“Braydon, where are you taking me?” I kept my voice raised, hopefully loud enough for Ronan to hear through the purse. “Why are we going to Blackrock Bay?”
“I said shut up!” Braydon shouted, banging his hand on the steering wheel. I jolted at the sound, and I scooted further back in the seat. “Fuck! Fuck!”
We were closer to Blackrock Bay than we were Cedar Ridge, so the drive was only about ten minutes. I tried to keep the conversation going, but every time I opened my mouth, he yelled at me to stop talking. So, I finally did.
Ronan hopefully knew what was happening and was coming for me. But when we pulled into a rundown apartment complex, my heart rate skyrocketed.
It might not matter if Ronan was coming for me. It might be too late by the time he got here.
Braydon shifted the car into park and twisted to glare at me. He lifted the gun and pointed it at my face. “If you scream, I’ll shoot you. Do you understand?”
“I understand,” I breathed, nodding.
He slipped from the car before opening the back door. I kept my hand away from my purse, hoping he wouldn’t think anything of it. When I got to my feet, the gun returned to my side. My knees wobbled with every step we took toward the bottom floor apartment, right in front.
“I always hated living on the bottom floor,” I said shakily, hoping Ronan could hear me.
Braydon’s fingers tightened on my arm until I was sure I’d have bruises. He roughly shook me, and my head snapped forward. “Shut the fuck up,” he hissed.
We got to his door, and he quickly unlocked it before shoving me inside. The air was thick and musky, filled with the scent of trash and mildew. I stepped into the darkness, my foot hitting something on the floor.
The click of the door shutting was deafening, and for a moment, we sat in the darkness, in the silence, and then I felt Braydon’s breath ghost along the back of my hair.
“I’ve been waiting for this for so long.”
His fingers brushed down my side before he pulled away. The dull light was blinding as he flicked it on. As my eyes adjusted, fear took root.
All over the walls were photos of…me. Photos of me at work, at the lighthouse, through my window, sleeping. I moved toward it, my teeth chattering.
He was only a foot from my face—he’d been inside my house. He’d been close to me while I was sleeping, just feet away. Inches away.
“Oh my god,” I breathed, my trembling fingers lifting to my lips. “Oh my god.”
I scanned the others, bile burning my throat as I stared at Ronan laying on top of me, kissing me at the beach. The one next to it was us in the truck, my hand between my legs, and Ronan’s head thrown back in pleasure.
“That’s my favorite one,” Braydon murmured. “You look so pretty.” He tapped his finger against a photo of me at the lighthouse the day I’d found Sailor. The wind whipped my hair from my face as I peered out at the ocean, apparently in deep thought.
My wide eyes flitted around the room, trying to find an escape. Every surface was covered in stuff, every corner cluttered. The brown carpet was stained, and there were yellow water marks on the popcorn ceiling.
I couldn’t breathe.
I was going to die .
“I’ve been watching you for a while,” he admitted, oblivious to my fear. “Only two months. But in that time, I feel like I’ve really gotten to know you.”
My throat was too tight. I turned to look at him, finding him already staring at me. There was a gleam in his eye I didn’t like, and I stumbled back a step.
“But then—” He followed me, step for step, until the back of my knees hit his stained couch. “Then you chose that fucking sheriff guy over me , your soulmate.”
I blinked. “Wh–what?”
He slapped his hand against his chest. “I’m your soulmate, ! Don’t you feel it too?”
His hand rested against my chest, and I had no doubt that he could feel my heart thundering beneath his palm. “I’ve even got all this stuff”—he threw his hand out, vaguely gesturing toward the room—“for us to start our lives with.”
I looked around again, noticing that most of the stuff were random house items. “Have you been stealing things from people, Braydon?” I asked, and he frowned.
“Not stealing,” he said, shaking his head. “I’ve been preparing our home. For you and our kids.”
It was too much. I laughed—it was filled with terror and hysteria, maybe a touch of insanity. This was not my life. It couldn’t be. This was a dream. Nothing else made sense.
The back of Braydon’s hand connected with my face, and my head snapped to the side, my smile falling from my mouth. I sank onto the couch, and he braced his hands on either side of my body. He brought his face only inches from mine.
“Don’t fucking laugh at me!” he shouted, and I cringed away from him.
“Okay,” I breathed. “I’m sorry. I’m sorry.” I searched for something to say, something to appease him. “You’ve done all this for me? For us?”
He blinked, and some of his anger melted away. “I did,” he murmured. “Do you like it?”
I looked around again. “And you’ve been—watching me?” When his face morphed again, I quickly added, “That’s the most romantic thing I’ve ever heard.”
He leaned away, suspicions rising. “You’re still dating that cop,” he muttered. I swallowed the rise of bile in my throat.
“No,” I rasped. “I—I broke up with him tonight. That’s why I was out there alone.”
He stared at me for a long moment, like he was weighing my words. “Really?”
“Yes.” I tightened my grip on my purse, hoping Ronan was still on the line.
Was he on his way?
His eyes stayed on me as he began pacing, his lips moving as he muttered to himself.
“I’ll be back,” he suddenly said, turning and moving into a room at the back of the apartment. I glanced over my shoulder, my breath lost in my lungs. I counted to seven, letting it ground me before I peered into my purse. The call was still there. Ronan was coming.
I turned the volume up and quickly pressed the phone to my ear. “We’re at Blue Haven Apartments in Blackrock Bay. Apartment 104.”
“I’m coming, baby. Just hang?—”
The phone was ripped from my hand. It crashed against the wall, shattering to a million pieces. A scream ripped from my throat, and I jolted around, finding Braydon’s blazing eyes glaring at me.
“What the fuck are you doing?” he screamed, spit flying from his mouth. “Who was that?”
“What?” I licked my lips. “It was—it was no one. I—I don’t—it was no one.”
“Was it him?” His voice rose with every word. “Lying whore!”
His hand connected with my face again, sending me flying back. I landed on the floor with a hard thud, and pain radiated up my tailbone.
“After all I’ve done for you?” he roared. “You ungrateful bitch!”
He rounded the couch and loomed over me. My heart hammered in my chest. I didn’t know what to do. There was nowhere to go, my phone was broken, and I didn’t know where Ronan was.
Braydon reached for me, but I batted his hand away. I kicked my foot out, connecting it with the inside of his leg. He cried out as he fell to the floor, clutching his knee. I scrambled toward the door, but I stumbled in my heels, nearly falling to the floor. The momentary slip-up gave him the chance he needed, and his hand latched around my ankle, yanking me back.
I landed heavily on my front, my chin knocking into the floor. Metallic blood filled my mouth, and I choked on it. His nails dug into my skin as I tried to shake him free.
Tears streamed from my eyes.
Where was Ronan?
I screamed—in agony, in fear, in frustration.
Everything crashed down around me all at once. A part of me thought about giving up, letting him do whatever it is he wanted to do. I was mentally and emotionally exhausted. I didn’t know if I had fight in me anymore.
But then Ronan’s face flashed behind my eyes, and I knew I didn’t have a choice. I couldn’t give up.
I clawed at the carpet as Braydon dragged me toward him. He flipped me onto my side and kicked his foot into my stomach. All the air in my body left me in a violent whoosh, my lungs aching as I tried to breathe. I clawed at the carpet, pain filling my stomach. Braydon screamed something else, but I didn’t listen. I couldn’t hear past the roaring in my ears.
There was a loud crash, and I winced, bracing myself for the next blow. Then, all at once, I was yanked to my feet, something cold and hard was pressed against my side.
First, I saw his dress shoes, too shiny in the dirty apartment. As my eyes traveled up the long, strong length of his body, I noticed the tremors wracking it.
Finally, my gaze met his, and I froze.
Ronan stood in the doorway, his lips peeled away from his teeth, and his gun drawn. He’d made it, but I didn’t know if it was too late.