Birdie #2
The stoplight in town caught me off guard. Although it was late for me to be getting off shift, it was still pretty early in the morning, and the light at this corner usually stayed green for a longer amount of time. Shoot. I flipped on my blinker, signaling a left turn.
The schedule was grueling, but I’d promised Beau I’d be ready to watch Juniper after a few hours of sleep. God, I’d fallen in love with that little girl so fast.
I needed to check my period tracker. These hormonal swings were killing me. A truck pulled up behind me, their lights blinding me through the rear view mirror. Thankfully, the light turned green, and I pulled into the intersection, turning down the road that would bring me home.
The truck followed. I thought about pulling over to let them by, the light still flooding my tiny car and making it almost impossible to see out through my windshield. Did they have their brights on? Asshole. At least I wasn’t feeling tired anymore. My fingers tightened around the steering wheel.
Two streets from my house, they turned down a different road, and my body finally relaxed. My street was quiet, and I felt boneless as I walked up the sidewalk, jingling my keys in my hand until I got to my door.
Twenty minutes. That’s all it would take.
Just grabbing what I needed—oh! And the picnic blanket I’d shoved…
in the garage? It would be better to have the waterproofing than to keep using the quilt we borrowed from Dolly on the grass in the morning.
Both Juniper and I ended up cranky from the dew seeping through.
I turned to close the door—mentally adding that blanket to my list—when a shadow appeared on the other side.
Before I could blink, the door was exploding back at me, and a large figure wrapped their hand around my neck and slammed me backwards into the wall.
I felt the drywall crack as my head bashed against it, my vision blurring.
I needed to scream. I tried to scream, but another hand pressed over my mouth and pulled me off the wall, throwing me to the ground.
Pain burst through my right wrist, searing up into my shoulder.
God…was it broken? The force of the assault dazed me.
I opened my eyes, my vision blurring once more as the door ricocheted off its frame with a loud crack.
Someone was in my house with me. A man. A very large man, with a mask obscuring his face…
I tried to think of something, anything, to get him the hell out of my space. My fingers could barely reach the strap on my backpack, but I moved my body just an inch and felt the fabric loop around my hand.
“H-here. Take it.”
“I don’t fucking want that,” the man growled, grabbing my bag and throwing it clear across my living room. I scrambled to my feet as he inched his way closer to me, his fingers curling into fists.
He was going to hit me.
And if he did, I might not wake up. What would he do to me then?
Fuck.
I turned, doing the only thing I could think of—I kicked my foot out, catching him right in the balls as I tried to get to the kitchen. I knew right where my knife block was. If I could just grab one in time, I might be able to defend myself against whoever the hell this was.
But just as I got my feet under me, my left foot caught on the edge of the area rug. It was enough to trip me, my ankle throbbing as I fell to the floor again. I crawled, my fingernails feeling like they might rip off with how hard I was trying to get any traction against the floor.
His menacing laughter followed me as I pulled myself toward the wall.
My wrist burned as I grabbed onto the door frame leading from the living room to the kitchen.
I didn’t care if it was sprained or broken, it wasn’t going to be the reason I didn’t make it out of my house alive today.
I’d crawl, I’d fight until the end if I had to.
My shaking hand slipped into my pocket as I listened to his steps grow closer. All I had to do was hit one button after I unlocked my phone. One single button and Beau would know I was in trouble. He’d get help. He’d get to me.
“You thought you held all the power, didn’t you?
You thought you’d teach me a lesson?” His hand tightened around my ponytail, wrenching it backward.
I felt the pull deep in my scalp and tried to scream, but his hand was pressing against my mouth again, suffocating me.
Once more, I was being shoved to the ground, only this time I knew the truth.
This time I could feel the cold, awful reality seeping deep into my bones.
I wasn’t going to make it back to the ranch.
I’d never get to hug my sister, or go to family dinner, or try one last time to make things better with my mom.
I wasn’t going to see Beau or Juniper ever again.
I’d never kiss him again. Or have sex with him. I’d never marry the love of my life. I’d never have his last name, or get to try to have his baby…
I dropped my phone as I reached back to stop the assault on my hair, the screen cracking into a million tiny webs as soon as the corner hit the tile. A screen that showed Beau trying to call me. I was desperate to reach out, to scream for help. I knew he would help me.
But it was too far away. He was too far away. The deep hum of an engine stopped outside my house, and I knew I needed to scream for help. The neighbor—or whoever the hell was out there—was my only hope.
I scratched at the fabric covering his arms as his hands threaded around my neck. I needed to be smart. There needed to be evidence. If I was going to die, I was going to leave something, anything I could for the deputies to find.
“You’re a fucking bitch.” His arm yanked me up off the ground, squeezing my throat harder. I felt him so close to my face, his breath radiated heat onto my ear. “This isn’t over.”
He tossed me to the ground, my tears falling as he ran out the back door.