31. Chapter 30
Chapter 30
Savannah
I feel like death warmed over. It’s obvious Declan will not let me avoid the topic much longer. He purposely tries to get me pregnant every time we have sex and, if I’m honest, his breeding kink is hot.
The memory of the day I revealed my pregnancy to Derek and shared the joyous news of Kenzi’s impending arrival still lingers in my mind. Despite my expectation of his happiness, his demeanor turned out to be cruel and vicious, leaving me taken aback. The mere thought of going through that experience again sends a wave of anxiety coursing through my veins.
It’s not that I don’t know Declan and Derek are totally different, it’s a psychological thing. What if Declan changes his mind and doesn’t want a baby or breaks things off with me now I’m pregnant? Throughout my entire pregnancy with Kenzi, Derek told me how fat, disgusting, and gross I was. That he didn’t sign up to be married to that. As I catch a single tear that flows down my cheek, I try to work out in my mind how to accept that I’m probably pregnant.
When I enter the kitchen to say goodbye to Kenzi, I watch as the sweet sound of her referring to Declan as “Daddy” brings a huge smile to his face. I should know that he won’t react like Derek did. He can’t contain his joy, knowing that Kenzi loves him and considers him to be her father.
Declan is controlling, possessive, and overprotective, but his heart is in the right place. He’s always trying to take care of Kenzi and me, even when I’m being stubborn, like me refusing to accept that I’m probably pregnant.
Later that afternoon, the sound of heavy thuds on the front door, as if someone is relentlessly pounding on it with an object, startles me. I strain my eyes, desperately peering through the windows, but I can’t see anything. A sense of unease washes over me, causing my heart to race.
In haste, I reach for my phone and with trembling fingers, dial Declan’s number, only to be met with the cold emptiness of voicemail.
“Declan, there’s someone outside banging on the front door. It feels like they are purposely trying to scare me.”
After leaving my message, I notice an eerie silence enveloping the surroundings. Peering through the windows again, I strain my eyes but fail to see anyone lurking outside.
Contemplating my next move, I feel a tinge of apprehension creeping up my spine. Suddenly, the sound of someone forcefully pounding on the back door reaches my ears. What the hell? I don’t understand what is happening. Is someone playing mind games with me?
“Derek?” A cold shiver runs down my spine.
I hear a loud crash as the sound of shattering glass echoes from the farthest corner of the house, sending a chilling shiver down my spine. The acrid stench of smoke permeates the air, invading my nostrils and causing my lungs to revolt, triggering a fit of coughing. As panic tightens its grip around me, my trembling hands instinctively reach for a weapon in the kitchen drawer, grasping the cold handle of a butcher knife.
Another crash echoes through the cabin, breaking the silence, and the subsequent sound of more glass breaking gives me chills. Realizing I must escape, I cautiously make my way towards the front door, clutching the knife tightly in my trembling hand. But to my dismay, the door refuses to yield.
“What the hell?” I mutter in frustration, as billowing smoke engulfs the room, stinging my eyes and filling my nostrils with an acrid scent. Through the haze, I catch a glimpse of a shadow, advancing towards me with purposeful steps. Squinting, I strain to identify the figure, but whoever it is remains elusive, their features blurred. Yet, a nagging suspicion creeps in–– could it be a man? Did Lisa get out of jail? What about Chet?
Fear slithers over me as I try to figure out who it could be. They are clearly here with malicious intent. And if so, there is only one man capable of wreaking havoc upon Declan’s home. The man I fear above all others.
Desperately, I conceal my hands, tightly gripping the kitchen knife behind my back, hoping to surprise him. Fully aware of his superior size and strength, I silently pray to catch him off guard, to gain the upper hand.
As the shadow comes closer, my worst fears are realized. It’s Derek. And he looks like he’s totally lost his mind. He looks nothing like the man that I married, and he’s even worse now than when I last saw him.
“Hello, wife,” he says as his mouth turns upward into a sinister smile.
His clothes are disheveled, wrinkled, and stained. I gag when I smell a mix of sweat and body odor as he comes closer to me. Derek’s beard is unkempt, and his hair is limp and greasy. He looks as if he hasn’t showered in months.
“What are you doing here, Derek?”
He starts talking to me like it’s a regular afternoon chat with a friend at first.
“That damn cop won’t stop snooping around in my business. The captain fired me from the department. It’s all your fault, and you going to pay for betraying me. I saw you fucking this Paul Bunyon-looking fucker. How dare you whore yourself out?”
“I’m not whoring myself out. I love him. He treats me and Kenzi better than you ever did.” Honestly, I surprise myself talking back to him, but I realize that my strength comes from the support and love I’ve gotten from Declan over the last few months.
Then, I notice what Derek has in his hands. He swings a baseball bat, breaking everything sitting on a shelf in the kitchen. In a mocking voice, Derek says, “You love him? I didn’t treat you well?” before he proceeds to use the bat to swipe everything off the kitchen counter and continues to swing it and smash the items in the floor into pieces.
Staying silent, I refuse to answer his questions because I know it’s a trap. One that I will undoubtedly be punished for.
“Now I’m going to demonstrate how poorly I can treat you, you despicable bitch.”
Clearly, Derek has no concept of reality if he thinks we were ever happy.
As I wipe a tear from my cheek, I muster the courage to say, “I was never happy with you.” While I’m talking, I keep my other hand concealed.
Derek swings the bat again and as more smoke fills the room, I wonder where it’s coming from.
“Derek, what did you do? Why is there smoke?”
“Dear little na?ve wife. The air is thick with smoke, because I started a forest fire. If you refuse to return to me, we will meet our demise together. It’s a pity that the wretched brat isn’t here, so that we can all be together again as one happy family.”
“You intend to kill us both?” I question in disbelief. My words linger in the air, creating an atmosphere of tension and unease. Suddenly, the room feels suffocating, as if the walls are closing in on me, and that’s when my panic sets in. I can almost taste the metallic tang of fear on my tongue, mingling with the stagnant smell of despair. Coughing, my throat burns from the lack of oxygen. I realize I have to leave, so I spin around, desperately searching for an escape route. My mind races, overwhelmed by the thought that Kenzi will grow up without a mother. And poor Declan, he will find out I’m dead, left without a body to mourn and bury. Determination takes hold, propelling me forward, as I fight against the oppressive weight of the situation, determined to find a way out.
“You have the choice to come back home with me or die here. So, make your choice.”
Knowing, if I go home with him willingly, I will probably still end up dead, I decide to take my chances on escaping. Though, I have to get past Derek first and he’s blocking the exit.
I figure I’m going have to use the element of surprise. So, taking a deep breath, I lunge forward, striking fast and hard. Bringing the knife from behind my back, I aim to plunge it into Derek’s chest, but I hit his shoulder instead. He stares in shock at the protruding knife and the red stain that blossoms across the top of his shirt. Then, he steps forward, grabbing me hard enough that it’s painful, and I know I’ll have his marks bruised onto my skin. The wound doesn’t seem to slow him down. With an animalistic cry erupting from his mouth, Derek keeps coming towards me. “You won’t ever get away from me, whore. I’m going to keep coming until I have you.”
I lunge forward again, striking with precision and speed and catching him off guard. As my fist connects with Derek’s jaw, a thunderous crack echoes through the cabin. His eyes widen, momentarily stunned by the unexpected blow. I seize the opportunity, delivering a swift knee to his gut. Derek doubles over, gasping for air, his grip weakening. I break free from his clutches, pushing past the pain. My heart pounds, urging me to run, to escape. But I can’t leave without ensuring Derek won’t pursue. I grab a nearby object, the metal baseball bat Derek had, and I prepare to strike. With a final, decisive blow, I render him unconscious. With my path to freedom cleared, I race towards the exit, escape within reach.
Abandoning the bat, I desperately attempt to open the front door once more, but it remains stubbornly sealed. What the hell did he do to the door? By now, the fire has enveloped the rear part of the cabin, so the back door isn’t an option. Frustration grips me as I divert my attention to a shattered window. Gritting my teeth, I exert force, pushing aside the sharp shards of glass, each crunching under my determined effort. As I squeeze through the narrow opening, the smell of smoke and fire becomes even more pungent. Suddenly, gravity takes hold, and I plummet towards the unforgiving ground outside. It’s not a long drop, but the fall knocks the breath out of me.
Stunned by the fall, black spots swim behind my eyes, and when they clear, I see Derek looming over me. Despite the knife sticking out of his shoulder and blood running down the side of his face, he’s still smiling. “Did you notice I nailed the front door shut? I was going to let you die alone, but I couldn’t control the impulse to see you suffer.”
“Derek, you aren’t making any sense. Please don’t do this to us, to our daughter.”
Derek cackles maniacally. The sound is chilling.
“You were willing to leave me in there to die just now and you are going to pay for that, you whore,” he seethes, his voice filled with venom. The repulsive stench of his breath invades my nostrils as he leans in, spitting in my face. With a sickening thud, his boot connects with the side of my head, sending waves of excruciating pain radiating through my skull. The world spins violently, the sharp impact intensifies the agony coursing through my body. Then, darkness engulfs my vision, swallowing me whole.