Chapter 2
Chapter Two
ALICE
“ D on’t embarrass me tonight,” Declan growls as he pulls me from the car. I nod shakily. I can already tell he’s in a mood tonight, and anything will set him off. I don’t know why he decided to take me out, knowing he’s already agitated. Despite how much I will try not to aggravate him, I know exactly how this night will end.
It’s the same repeated cycle. One I can’t seem to free myself from. And he knows it. He made sure of it.
I don’t know how our relationship turned into what it is now. When I met Declan in high school, he was the sweetest and kindest person I ever met. I was a freshman, and he was a junior.
I was so smitten with him. We fell fast and hard. Despite my father’s disapproval, I continued to see Declan. He never gave me a clear reason for his dislike of Declan, only saying there was something about him.
I should have listened. After being with him for eight years, I now know maybe, just maybe, my father knew Declan was all a facade.
Once I graduated from high school, Declan proposed, and I accepted. My father was so disappointed he didn’t bother showing up at the courthouse. It hurt so much at the time. I didn’t speak to my father for over a year.
That was a tough year. Declan was always gone because he was in the police training academy. After he would get home, he would eat dinner, shower, and go to bed. Occasionally, we would have sex. It was never anything spectacular, so I never pushed for it.
It wasn’t until I told Declan I felt neglected because we weren’t spending time with each other that things changed. He had never yelled at me before that night. He called me ungrateful. In his eyes, he was trying to make a living to take care of me, and I was only worried about myself.
I didn’t want to lose him, so I apologized. Once he finally became a cop, I figured things would get better, but they didn’t.
Declan wanted to start trying for a baby, but I felt like I was too young. I wanted to figure out what I wanted to do with my life. He took that as me trying to leave him. He broke down and made me feel so guilty I agreed to try.
Looking back, I see how much he manipulated me. He was molding me to be exactly what he wanted. I was in love, and he was in control.
Six months after trying for a baby, I still hadn’t gotten pregnant. He accused me of taking birth control behind his back.
It was the first time he hit me.
I was so shocked I just stared up at him with tears running down my face. He quickly apologized and said the stress of work was getting to him, and he didn’t mean it. The next morning, I woke up to roses and a tennis bracelet. There was a note where he apologized and said it would never happen again.
But it did.
Over and over again.
The only thing that changed is he didn’t bother apologizing anymore. I’m pretty sure he hates me. I don’t understand. If I displease him so much, why not just let me go?
But he refuses to. He says I belong to him, and the only way I’ll be free of him is if I die. Sometimes, that option doesn’t sound too bad. I don’t know how much more of this I can take.
Declan pulls me toward the diner one of the officers from work recommended. The other officers were hesitant to give this place a try. The MC in town owns it. I’m surprised Declan brought me here. He and his brother hate that MC. I’m not entirely sure why, but I’ve heard them talking about taking the club down more times than I can count.
When we walk through the doors, a hostess is waiting with a polite smile and quickly leads us to a table. I keep my head down the entire way. If I inadvertently make eye contact with another man, this night will end with me being beaten for it.
Once we’re seated, Declan grabs my hand, locking our fingers together. “I want to fix us, Alice. I want to see you smile again. I miss how you used to look at me. You looked at me like I was your whole world. Do you think we can get that back?”
I want to scream, Are you high?!, but I know nothing pleasant can come from that. I know this is only a trick. He does this time and time again. I’ve learned to stop falling for the empty promises.
It’s like he enjoys watching me become hopeful just to destroy me all over again. I know the monster I’m married to. There’s nothing he can say that will change how I feel about him.
The love I had for him died a long time ago. Nothing but dread and sorrow stirs inside of me now. This is my life and there’s no escaping it.
I offer him a small smile and nod.
The waitress approaches our table, and Declan grabs the menu.
“Hi, my name is Rose, and I’ll be your server today. What can I get ya?”
I don’t bother making eye contact with her. My job is to be invisible. Declan doesn’t like it when I look or speak to anyone.
“I’ll have the steak dinner cooked medium with a baked potato and green beans. She’ll have the Caesar salad. Do you have any low-fat dressing for the salad?”
I hear the sharp intake of breath. I peek up at the waitress, and my eyes bulge as she tries and fails to hide her anger. She’s looking at Declan like she just might poison his food. She gets herself together enough to grit out a “no.”
“Well, I guess the Italian dressing should be fine. It isn’t too fattening. I’ll have a sweet tea, and she’ll have water.” Declan dismisses her, flinging the menus at her. I don’t want to see the look of pity I’m sure is on her face, so I keep my eyes pinned to the table.
“I’ll be back. I need to use the bathroom.”
Once he’s gone, I take a peek around the diner. It’s pretty much a full house. My attention is drawn to a family a few tables over, and I can’t help but feel jealousy rising in me.
They look so happy.
I thought I would be getting a happy family of my own the day Declan proposed, but I only got heartache and disappointment.
“Alice?”
I turn and see one of my closet friends from high school. I almost jump from the booth to bring Oscar into a hug, but I remember who I’m here with.
No, no, no, no.
If Declan comes out here and sees Oscar talking to me…
Game. Over.
It won’t matter that Oscar has absolutely zero interest in me. Oscar has known he was gay since he was eight. Declan knew this, but after arguing every time I wanted to go out with Will and Oscar, I gave up.
It was always easier to give Declan what he wanted.
“Oh my God, how are you? Wait till I tell Will I ran into you. He’s going to be so jealous.” He takes Declan's seat, and my heart beats erratically. I have to get him out of here. I miss my friend, but this will only end badly for the both of us. Declan has had many men who have talked to me arrested on fabricated charges.
“Please tell me you’re not still with that douche?”
“Umm—” I murmur before I’m interrupted.
“Actually, we're happily married.” The sound of Declan’s cold tone sends a shiver through me. Declan grabs onto my arms, roughly pulling me from the booth. “And we’re leaving.”
Oscar gets up in a rush. He looks furious. When he takes a step toward Declan, I shake my head frantically. “Please. Don’t,” I plead. No one can save me. I don’t want any more deaths on my conscience.
Oscar freezes and eyes me with sadness. My eyes fill with tears as Declan squeezes my arm hard enough to make me whimper before dragging me out of the diner. As soon as we’re out the door, his hand clamps down on the back of my neck in a bruising grip.
“I told you not to fuckin’ embarrass me, and what do you do? Invite a goddamn faggot to our table.”
I don’t bother trying to explain the situation. I know no matter what I say, he’s going to believe what he wants. Once we reach the car, Declan shoves me into the passenger door. I don’t have time to recover before his hands are wrapped around my throat, squeezing.
I’m losing air quickly. I grab his wrist, but I don’t fight back. Fighting back only makes things worse. My vision blurs and my lungs burn.
Headlights shining on us catch my attention. Declan is so angry that he doesn’t notice a truck coming to a screeching halt. Two women jump out and come racing toward us.
“Hey! Get your hands off her, asshole!”
If I could talk, I would scream for them to get away.
As they get closer, I notice one is a blonde woman, and the other has what looks like gold eyes. Maybe the lack of oxygen is making me see things because I don’t think I’ve ever seen gold eyes before.
They round the car and try to pull Declan off me. He growls, shoves me away, and takes a swing at them. To my surprise, they dodge the attack and take a defensive stance.
“Take another shot at me, and I’m going to plant you on your ass,” the one with gold eyes growls.
Declan's fist clenches as he stares down at her. “You’re nothing but a biker whore! Mind your fuckin business!”
It's then I notice the vests they’re wearing. The local MC name is stitched on the front of them.
“A whore? That’s so original coming from the piece-of-shit coward who has to beat on a woman to feel like a real man!” Declan takes a step forward like he’s about to snap. “I warned you once. I won’t do it again. Take another shot, and I’ll show you just how much of a man you are.”
That’s all it takes for him to take another swing at the woman. She ducks and gives Declan an uppercut that has him staggering backward. I watch in horror as his hand goes to the gun tucked in his waistband. Everything happens so fast there’s no stopping it.
Once the woman realizes what he’s doing, she doesn’t run like a sane person would.
No, this woman charges forward, grabs hold of his wrist, and twists. I hear a snap, and Declan cries out. His gun falls to the ground, but his attacker isn’t done. She extends his arm and brings her knee to his elbow.
Now, I’m not a doctor, but I’m pretty sure that sickening crunch I heard was his arm being broken. With one last swing, she punches Declan hard enough to knock him out. I stare in disbelief when he slumps to the ground.
She just…. she…. I can’t even process what I just witnessed.
For years, this man has haunted my life, and she just knocked his ass out like it was time for a lullaby.
“Are you okay? What’s your name? I’m Sara and this is my sister Cara. We can get you out of here,” the blonde says.
Rubbing my neck, I shake my head. “I’m Alice and y-you should go. Please. When he gets up, there’s no telling what he’s going to do.”
“Well, the first will be going to the hospital.” Cara snickers.
“Cara!” Sara hisses.
“What? It’s the truth.” She shrugs and jogs back over to the truck. She comes back with a card in hand. She offers it to me, and I take it. “When you’re ready, give us a call. I’ve helped many women like you before. I know you think he’s so powerful, and you’ll never be able to escape, but I promise you can.”
I just nod. My gaze moves over to a laid-out Declan. The blonde places a hand on my shoulder. “Please believe us when we say we can help. No woman deserves to go through what you’re going through. You nearly passed out from him choking you before we intervened. One day, he will kill you. Don’t wait until it’s too late to get out.”
They both leave me as I sink to the ground, tears streaming down my face.
I know they’re right. One day, he will kill me. But escaping Declan will not be easy. He has the law on his side from all angles.
I wish it would be easy to just pack up and leave, but this is my life. A life stuck with a monster that I will never be free from.