Chapter 2
Chapter two
Lottie
**please be aware this chapter contains an attempted assault.
I chewed my lip as Walker rushed out, watching how his broad shoulders moved under his shirt.
My tummy did a funny flip-flop. I'd told a tiny fib about having a ride—I was taking the bus so I could save my cab fare for Thursday.
Outside in the cool night air, I hugged Mr. Snuggles tight against my chest, still feeling warm all over from being near Walker.
The way his strong hands had wrapped around the mug when he made me tea, the low rumble of his voice when he asked questions.
..I shivered, and it wasn't from the cold.
The bus stop was empty. I had ten minutes until the next one.
I smoothed my dress beneath me on the bench, crossing and uncrossing my legs.
Something about Walker made me feel squirmy inside, like butterflies were dancing between my thighs.
I hadn't felt that way in...maybe ever? The thought of those large hands on my skin, maybe turning me over his knee when I'd been naughty, made my cheeks burn hot in the night air.
When the bus arrived, I barely noticed the driver or other passengers.
I sat near the front, watching city lights blur past the window while daydreaming about Walker's stern face softening just for me.
How he might pull me close, whisper that I'd been a good girl, and then.
..My breath caught. I squeezed my thighs together, suddenly very aware of the tingling warmth spreading through me.
"Nebraska Avenue," the driver called out, jolting me from my thoughts.
I looked up, confused. This wasn't my usual stop—during the day, this bus continued another half mile to Maple Street, much closer to my apartment.
"Excuse me," I said, approaching the driver. "Doesn't this bus go to Maple?"
"Not after nine, miss. Route changes. This is the last stop on this line."
My stomach dropped. "Oh." I hadn't considered that the route might be different at night, and the last time I'd been I'd splurged on a cab with it being later.
With no other choice, I stepped off the bus, immediately feeling vulnerable as it pulled away. Two blocks. It wasn't that far, but in this neighborhood, after dark...
I sucked in a trembling breath and forced my feet forward, sticking to the cracked sidewalk beneath the flicker of a lone streetlamp. My fingers dug into Mr. Snuggles’ matted fur as I quickened my pace. Just two blocks. Nothing could happen in two blocks.
The first block passed in eerie stillness: a boarded-up convenience store bristling with graffiti, its metal grates rattling in the wind, and a dim laundromat where an old man’s stiff back was bent over a folding table. Nothing to fear.
Halfway through the second block, laughter shattered the quiet—a jagged, drunken cackle—and the clink of glass bottles.
Three silhouettes reeled out of a dark alley, their shadows stretching long and threatening.
They walked in a loose triangle, swaying, a paper bag sloshing with something heavy between them.
I darted across to the opposite curb, head bowed, heart hammering so loudly I thought the sound might leak from my ears. Maybe they wouldn’t see me. Maybe they’d stagger on by.
“Hey! Hey, pretty girl!” The first man’s voice slurred like poisoned honey. “Where’re you off to, all alone?”
Panic coiled in my stomach, and I moved faster, clutching Mr. Snuggles’ arm. My pulse thundered in my throat.
“Aw, c’mon, sweetheart,” growled the second, his tone harsher, edged with hunger. I heard their footsteps pivot, crunching gravel as they crossed the street.
My lungs burned. Just half a block. Home was so close.
“She’s got a teddy bear, fellas!” the third laughed, words slurring together.
The sound scraped against my skin. “What’s wrong, baby?
Need help?” I nearly broke into a run but thought better of it—running meant giving them reason to chase.
I kept my eyes on the distant neon sign of my apartment building.
Then a hand like iron clamped on my shoulder, yanking me around.
I stumbled, breath whooshing out as the man’s ruddy, liquor-scented face filled my vision. His eyes burned with something feral.
“Where d’you think you’re going?” he snarled, leaning in so close I tasted whiskey on his breath. His friends closed in, their grins crooked and cruel.
“Please,” I whispered, voice shaking like a leaf. “I just want to go home.”
His gaze trailed down my pink dress, making me feel dirty. “Pretty thing like you,” he slurred, “shouldn’t be out here by yourself. We could show you a good time.”
I swallowed bile. “No,” I managed, voice cracking. “My—my boyfriend’s waiting.”
They laughed, a grinding, terrible sound that echoed off the brick walls.
“Boyfriend, huh?” The tallest one closed the gap.
“Don’t see any boyfriend.” He reached for me, fingertips brushing my cheek, cold and uninvited.
I shrank back until my spine hit brick, my heart slamming against my ribs. Trapped.
“Let me pass,” I gasped. The words were small, almost swallowed by the night. The first man’s hand shot out, grazing my cheek and dragging down my arm. His grip crunched painfully around my wrist. The other two pressed in, shadows pooling around us.
“Aw, she’s so soft,” he murmured, voice low, predatory. “Bet you’re soft everywhere…”
Tears burned my eyes, but I clenched my jaw, refusing to scream—trapped in a silence so loud it roared in my ears.
“Look at her,” slurred the second, hot breath against my ear. “Begging for it.”
They lunged, dragging me toward the black maw of the alley. Mr. Snuggles slipped from my grasp, thudding onto the grimy pavement. I reached for him, fingertips grazing dirty fur, but they yanked me deeper into the void. My back slammed hard into the brick. Stars burst behind my eyes.
“Shut—her—up!” snarled the tallest. A rough hand clamped over my mouth, cutting off my scream. I felt ripping fabric as fingers tore at my dress. Cold night air bit into my skin, raw and humiliating.
“She’s crying,” one whispered, voice leering. “Just like a baby.” I bit down on the hand over my mouth, tasting iron. A searing slap bloomed across my face, my jaw rattling. I gasped for air, head spinning.
“You shouldn’t have done that,” the man hissed, raising his fist for another blow.
But the blow never came.
Instead, there was a blur of movement, and suddenly the man was gone from in front of me. I heard a sickening crunch, followed by a howl of pain. My legs gave out, and I slid down the wall, clutching the torn pieces of my dress together as I tried to make sense of what was happening.
Walker. It was Walker, moving with a violent precision that seemed almost beautiful in its efficiency.
He slammed the first man face-first into the brick wall, then turned to the second who was lunging at him with a broken bottle.
Walker caught his wrist, twisting until I heard something snap, then drove his knee into the man's stomach.
The third man tried to run, but Walker caught him by the collar, spun him around, and delivered a single punch that dropped him like a stone.
It was over in seconds. Three bodies on the ground, groaning or unconscious, and Walker standing over them, chest heaving, his eyes burning with a rage that made me shrink back against the wall. Then his gaze found me, and the fury in his expression melted into concern.
"Lottie," he said, his voice impossibly gentle as he crouched down beside me. "Sweetheart. It’s me.”
I couldn't speak. My whole body was shaking so hard my teeth chattered. I felt every bruise, my body throbbing from where I'd hit the wall. I tried to stand but my knees buckled, and Walker caught me immediately.
"Easy," he whispered, his large hands cradling me close. "You're safe now. I'm here."
I tried to tell him I was okay, but only a broken sob came out. My dress was torn at the neckline, exposing my bra, and I frantically tried to hold the fabric together with trembling fingers.
Walker shrugged out of his jacket without a word, draping it carefully around my shoulders. The material was warm from his body heat and smelled like leather and something clean that made me feel safer instantly.
"Can you stand?" he asked, his voice so gentle it made my chest ache.
I nodded, though I wasn't entirely sure. Walker let go, then extended his hand to me. When I placed my shaking fingers in his palm, his hand closed over mine with infinite care.
I tried to move but my knees buckled again, but Walker caught me, one arm sliding around my waist to steady me.
"I've got you," he murmured against my hair. "You're okay now."
I looked around for Mr. Snuggles, panic rising when I couldn't see him in the darkness. "My bear," I whispered, my voice cracking.
Walker's gaze swept the alley until he spotted the teddy lying near the entrance. He guided me carefully to lean against the wall, then retrieved Mr. Snuggles, checking him over before placing him gently in my arms.
"Is he hurt?" I asked, clutching my bear to my chest.
"Just a little dirty," Walker said softly. "Nothing that can't be fixed."
I buried my face in Mr. Snuggles' familiar softness, trying to stop shaking. Behind us, one of the men groaned, and I flinched instinctively.
"They can't hurt you anymore," Walker said firmly. He pulled out his phone, and I heard him speaking in low, clipped tones to someone—the police, probably. The words washed over me without meaning.
When he finished the call, he glanced down at me looking uncomfortable. "Lottie, I need to ask you something, and I need you to be honest with me. Did they..." He swallowed hard, his jaw clenching. "Did they touch you? Hurt you beyond what I can see?"
I shook my head quickly. "No. You got here before..." I couldn't finish the sentence.