Chapter 6
SHELBY
CHAPTER SIX
Afraid to open my eyes, I wake up slowly.
The last thing I remember is Evan paying me another visit. Maybe if I pretend to be asleep next time he comes, he’ll leave me alone.
Birds chirp in the distance, but they seem closer than before.
I freeze. What am I lying on? It doesn’t feel like cement.
A breeze caresses my body, and I shiver. That’s not right. I don’t remember ever feeling a breeze before. The basement doesn’t have any windows.
Carefully, I open my eyes, and everything is green.
Shocked by the change, I raise my head. I’m outside of the house, but I can’t remember how I got out here. I try to stand up, but I fall back down.
I slip my hand out from underneath me. Something slick covers it. Blood extends up part of my arm. My heart beats out of control. I gasp for breath.
“Fuck, what did I do?” I whisper.
What’s the last thing I remember…? Evan, he… No, oh God. I can’t think about what he did.
I grip the earth as tears run down my face. I killed him with the pointy end of the duster when he…
I dry heave.
Evan left the door to the basement unlocked and open when he came down. I used that chance to run. But I didn’t make it very far.
I have to escape. Roger could come back at any moment.
My head whips around, looking for him.
On shaky legs, I stumble into the woods that surround this place. I can’t feel my feet or my legs anymore. My left eye is swollen shut, which makes it hard to see.
For the tenth time, I trip over a root, falling to the ground hard, my arms too weak to catch me.
I have to move! I’m not far enough away, barely a hundred yards into the woods.
I force myself to move, but I don’t see the hill until it’s too late. I roll down it.
Evan beat the hell out of me, and tumbling down this small hill isn’t helping. My ribs are killing me, but I force myself to get up once again.
I don’t know how far I have gone when I fall.
This time I can’t budge… I’m so exhausted…need to sleep…
My eyes flutter shut. I crawl on the ground, dragging myself until I find somewhere to lie that has a little bit of cover.
I pull leaves on top of me to keep me warm and hidden before passing out.
“It says she’s around here,” a voice says from nearby.
I don’t move. Now that I’m free, I’m not going back.
“Shelby?” a male voice calls out.
That voice, I know it. I try to move, but every muscle hurts.
“Nick,” I say in a raspy voice.
“Shh. Everyone shut up!” Nick yells.
I raise my hand, breaking through the leaves. “Nick.”
“Found her,” he bellows before he crashes through my leafy hideout.
As he brushes the leaves away from my naked, shaking body, his eyes widen with shock. “Shit, someone give me a jacket or a shirt!”
A jacket suddenly covers my body, then someone picks me up. I try to open my eyes, but they won’t budge.
“You’re safe now, Shelby. I got you,” Nicks says, hugging me tightly against his body.
Hands touch me, and I jolt awake screaming. I try to back up, but strong arms grab a hold of me.
“Don’t touch me!” I scream.
I can’t see anything; a bright light blinds me. Something beeps like crazy, causing my ears to ring.
“Ms. Winters. You’re in the hospital,” a male voice says.
I don’t recognize that voice. “Don’t touch me!”
I thrash around, getting tangled in something.
“I’m just checking your vitals. Please calm down, or I will have to sedate you.”
Oh, hell no. No one is going to sedate me.
“Get out!” I scream at him.
Something blurs in my peripheral vision, causing me to flinch back again and almost topple off whatever I lie on. The blur clears as my eyes finally adjust to the light, focusing on Nick and Cin.
“What’s going on here?” Nick demands.
“She’s overreacting. If she doesn’t calm down, I’ll have to sedate her,” the guy says as he continues to pin me down to the bed, causing me to thrash harder against his hold.
“You will do no such thing! A guy kidnaped her for a month. I think you need to leave and send someone more caring in. A female, please,” Cin scolds.
He huffs as he walks away, and Cin comes slowly over to me, frowning. “Hey, girl.” She eyes me with concern. “You look a little rough.”
“I’ve been gone for a month?” I pant in shock, my throat raw from all the screaming and lack of use.
“Yeah.”
My eyes whip over to where Nick stands by the door, rubbing the back of his neck.
“I’m sorry.” Nick lowers his head. “I never should have let you go with him.”
“Not your fault.” I take a deep breath to center myself. “Cam…” I whimper. “I got Cam killed.”
The flood gates open and I let loose. Every time I think about not seeing my beautiful blond Cam ever again. It destroys me. Tears and snot run down my face.
Nick says something, but I can’t hear anything past the breaking of my heart.
Cin gets in front of my face. “I need you to calm down and listen to what Nick is saying to you.”
She hands me a box of tissues, and I drag in a couple of ragged breaths, wiping away the snot and tears from my face.
“What are you talking about?” Nick head tilts and frowns.
“Evan told me Cam died from his stab wound,” I cry out.
“Fuck, I knew I should have gone and talked to that asshole.” Nick paces back and forth. He reaches out to grab my hand but stops when I flinch back.
Letting his hand drop back to his side, he makes sure I’m looking at him. “Shelby, I need you to listen to me. Cam is alive and recuperating in Florida with his dad.”
I shake my head and curl up, crying hard again. I’ll never be the same after losing him.
“Call him,” Cin says.
Is it possible that I’m wrong? But those texts Evan showed me…
“Princess…I need you to look up.”
Now I’m hearing his voice. I must be losing it.
“Shelby, look up at Nick’s phone. It’s me. Evan lied to you. I’m alive.”
I open my eyes to see Cam smiling back at me from Nick’s phone. “Cam?”
“Hi, Princess.” Tears shimmer in his eyes.
“They told me you were dead,” I cry.
“No, baby, I’m fine, a little sore, but fine. I’m missing you terrible.”
“I’m so sorry, Cam.” I can’t look at him anymore. It’s all my fault he got hurt and almost died.
“No, Shelby, don’t turn away. Please,” he begs.
“She needs some time, Cam. She’s been through a lot,” Nick says. “I’ll keep you updated.”
“I’ll be on the first plane out. See you soon. I love you, Shelby,” Cam says.
They let me cry until I turn over and face them again.
I sigh. “Dom, Mav, and Luke?”
Nick grimaces. “We discovered how they were constantly being hypnotized and managed to stop it from continuing. We’re still trying to find someone to undo the hypnosis, but they have been acting a little more like themselves regarding others around them. They’re confused and still have a lot of headaches.”
I wave my hands. “Is Dom and Mav hurt? I was at their place, and Roger told me he had someone on the inside, and if I didn’t rob them, then he was going to kill the twins. They caught me.”
I put my hands over my eyes as I’m rocking back and forth. “Please tell me they weren’t hurt.”
“They’re fine, Shelby. Do you hear me? They are fine. Frank and I figured out what you were trying to tell him.”
I heard what he subtly didn’t say. The guys still hate me, and they always will unless the hypnosis is reversed. But they’re fine. Roger didn’t hurt them because I screwed up.
When I got away from Roger the first time, I remember what it was like. The constant headaches and illnesses that plagued me.
“Frank said it looked like it hurt you to try to tell him about the rat, so thank you for telling us about it. It was a security guard who cut the cameras that night, and we found out that a maid had put sleeping pills in their drinks.”
That’s good. I open my eyes and glance down at my body. I’m covered in dirt and leaves. They say I’ve been gone a month, and I must stink to high heaven. Plus, I keep feeling his hands on me. I want to scrub him off me.
“Can I shower?” I fight the urge to wipe the shadow-hands away.
Nick peers down at his feet. “Not yet, Shelby. They want to do a rape kit.”
I swallow before shaking my head. “There’s no reason for them to do one.”
“So, you weren’t raped?” the nurse asks as she walks in.
I look at Nick. For some reason, I don’t want him to know.
Cin catches me looking at Nick. She walks over and whispers something in his ear.
He gives me a sad smile and walks out of the room.
“I would recommend getting a rape kit done. That way, you have evidence against him when they find him,” the nurse continues.
I look at the dry blood on my hands. “It won’t be necessary.”
She smiles at me gently. “I’ll give you some time to think about it, but I recommend you have one.”
“She just said no. Does everyone here have a hearing problem?” Cin berates the nurse.
“Miss, I’m just doing my job. If she was raped, she needs a rape test,” the nurse states adamantly.
Every time someone says that word, I cringe. I zone out… my ears are ringing. I can’t hear what’s going on.
Mom walks in. Her mouth is moving, but I still can’t hear.
She pushes the nurse out, shuts the door, then walks over to me. When she goes to hug me, I cower. For a few seconds, she can’t figure out what to do.
“I want to go home, Mom,” I sob and raise my head, glancing at my mom.
Her eyes are all red, and she has bags under them.
“Honey…” She swallows “You need medical attention.”
Tears cloud my vision. “Please.”
I’ve never begged her for anything in my life, and I always told myself I never would after the last time she left me for drugs. But I’m begging now.
“Okay, I’ll tell the doctors.” Then, she turns around and walks stiffly out the door.
“You need some clothes, let me figure that out,” Cin says and follows my mom out.
I sink back down into the bed and pull the cover over me.
About an hour later, I’m in mom’s SUV and heading home.
Mom sits in the back with me. I feel bad right now. She wants to hold me, but I can’t take that right now. Peter barely said two words to me and only frowns.
When we pull up to the house, everything looks the same, as if I haven’t been gone a month. A month in three different, dark places.
Peter opens the front door for me. “Thank you for taking care of my daughter.”
I smile and step into the living room. All that is on my mind is to get a shower and sleep.
Hannah runs around the corner. “You’re home.”
She goes to hug me but stops when she sees how I have my arms wrapped tightly around myself.
“I’m sorry I got lost in the woods and couldn’t save you like you saved me. Please forgive me.” She cries into her hands.
I sigh, so tired but still having to comfort her right now.
“You did your best, Hannah. There’s nothing to forgive,” I tell her as we walk back to our bedrooms.
“After Christmas, I’m going to go stay with my aunt who lives in Iowa on a farm. Can you imagine me on a farm?” Hannah fills the silence with her chatter. “I need some help, and Dad thinks it would be good for me.”
I smile tiredly. “Take care of yourself. I’ll talk to you before you leave.” I turn away and continue to my room.
“I’m glad you’re back,” Hannah says quietly before she heads into her room.
“Do you want some help in the shower?” Mom comes up right behind me, causing me to startle.
I shake my head and step away. “No, I can handle it. After the shower, I’m going to sleep.”
“Let me know if you need anything.” Mom walks away.
Cin gently gets my attention. “I’ll be up in Nick’s room. Call if you need anything.”
I shut my door and head right to my bathroom, stripping off the clothes Cin found and turning on the water as hot as it can go.
Stepping under the scoldingly hot spray, I let the water run down over me. I watch as all the dirt and blood run down the drain. I grab my sponge and add soap, scrubbing my body raw. I keep feeling his callous hands all over my body. I can’t stop feeling it.
Tears are pouring down my face as I slide down my shower wall to the floor, where I curl up in a ball, and everything I’ve held back comes out. I’m so numb I don’t feel the water turn cold.
I don’t know how long it is before my bathroom door opens, and Cin stands there staring down at me. “Oh, Shelby.”
She comes over and turns off the water and grabs a towel. When she tries to dry me off, though, I curl in on myself.
“Is there anything I can do?”
I shake my head. I’m not able to look at her. I still feel so dirty.
She scans the room. “It looks like you don’t have clothes again. What can I get you?”
“Something warm.”
“I’ll be right back.” She walks out the door.
I slide my legs under me and try to stand, but I fall right back down to the floor.
Cin comes back in, putting the clothes on the sink and sees me still on the floor. “Do you need help up?”
I let my eyes finally meet hers, and as I expected, tears stream down her face. “He hurt me, Cin.”
She gets down on the floor with me and wraps the towel around my shaking body.
“I know he did, Shel, and I’m so sorry that happened to you. It might take a while, but you’re strong, and you’ll make it through this. Now, how about we get you off this floor and into some clean clothes? I’ll even brush your knotty hair out.”
I let her help me up, then I take a step away from her to finish drying myself off.
She helps me put on my clothes and ushers me out to my bedroom. She has me sit down on the couch and asks if she can brush my hair.
When I nod, she slowly settles behind me when I turn my back to her. The brush slides gently through my hair, while she tries to work out the tangles.
We sit quietly while she works. When she is done, she makes sure to move within my line of sight. “It’s going to take some time to heal. But you will heal, just like last time. Nick and I are here to help. Climb in bed and take a nap. Your phone is on the table beside you. Call if you need me.”
Nodding, I crawl into bed. I close my eyes and hope to dream of something good.