Total pages in book: 169
Estimated words: 162138 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 811(@200wpm)___ 649(@250wpm)___ 540(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 162138 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 811(@200wpm)___ 649(@250wpm)___ 540(@300wpm)
I threw all my strength into a punch and tried to knee him in the groin. My hits became desperate as I started throwing punches, knees, and kicks, screaming with everything I had. He released my jersey suddenly, making me stumble backward, and threw a punch at my face so hard that I fell back instantly. My ears felt hollow as I fell, my eyes doubling with burning tears. It hurt so much that I didn’t even feel the fall when I landed on the pavement. The scream that ripped out of me sounded animalistic. Through my hazy vision, I saw him kneel and get closer.
“You beg for his life?” He spat in my face. He grabbed my throat and squeezed. “You belong to me, little girl.”
He pressed his lips against mine so roughly that I was sure he’d break my gums. I punched at him, but my arms had grown weak in the attack. I kneed him again and felt myself make contact with something. He pulled back, the motion setting me free, and I began to get up, but he recovered too quickly, and I only made it to my knees before he pulled me back down.
“This is what happens when little girls are disobedient,” he hissed. “Remember that when you try to let another man have you.”
Another sharp blow landed on my face — everything went black. My ears were ringing loudly, and the taste of iron filled my mouth when I came to again. I tried to open my eyes, but they wouldn’t open fully. He cupped me over my jeans and squeezed. I whimpered, waiting for him to pull them down, but he let go. His form looked like a black shadow rising above me as he stood. I felt him place something firm against my torso, his foot maybe. He pressed down hard, sending a different kind of pain through me. My throat formed what it could of a scream before everything went dark again.
I heard voices near — so many voices. Someone touched me and I screamed again, as my entire body shook. I felt someone move me, carry me, and place me down on a hard surface. A pinch on my arm made me yelp.
“For the pain. Just hang on,” the person said.
I tried to nod but sobs ripped through me again. “It hurts. It hurts. It hurts.”
“Hey, I’m here. You’re going to be okay.” I heard Marissa say shakily.
“Lachlan,” I tried to say in my hoarse voice. “Lachlan.”
Then, everything went dark again.
Opening my eyes felt impossible, but I knew I was at the hospital. I heard the machines beeping; I felt the sting of tape over my hand from where they’d put an IV. I’d felt this all, once before, when I’d had an asthma attack and had to stay overnight. My face still hurt, but not as much as it did, and I knew, without asking, that they were filling me with morphine. I opened my eyes slowly to cloudy vision.
“Hey.” Prescott squeezed my hand. I started breathing hard, my eyes filling with tears.
“Lachlan,” I said in a broken voice. “Please. Lachlan.”
“He’s okay.” He ran his fingers softly over mine. “They took him to another hospital, but he’s okay.”
A sharp wail filled the room, and I realized it was coming from me. He’d hurt him. He’d hurt him enough to put him in the hospital. Would he survive? Oh my God. My chest heaved.
“Hey, hey,” Prescott said. “He’s okay. He’s fine, Lyles. He’s fine.”
“She’s awake?” That was Marissa. I heard her footsteps rush over, heard tears in her throat as she said, “Oh, thank God. We were so worried.”
“Lachlan,” I whispered.
“He’s okay,” Marissa said quickly. “You need to focus on your recovery.”
I tried to shake my head. Maybe I did. The tears wouldn’t stop running down my face. I couldn’t see him anymore. It didn’t matter where he went. As long as I was around, he’d be in danger. The realization caused a sharp pain in my chest that no amount of morphine could numb. I’d found what people search for their entire lives and lost it in an instant. They let me cry until I ran out of tears. The nurses came in, messed with the IV, and asked questions that I answered numbly. By the time it was just us again, I could form shaky and hoarse words they could understand.
“Pres, I can’t see him anymore.” A sob formed in the center of my chest, but I fought it.
He ran both hands down his face. “Lyles, he’s not just going to let you walk away. He’s already been asking about you.”
That set me off crying again. When I took soft, shaky breaths, I looked at my friend again.
“I need to leave.” I swallowed. It hurt. Everything hurt, but most of all the words leaving my mouth. “I don’t know what it’ll take. Change my identity. Move somewhere he wouldn’t think to go to. I don’t care. I can’t. . .” I took another shaky breath, as tears filled my eyes. “I can’t see him again.”