Blade (RBMC: Dallas, TX #4)

Chapter Nineteen

“Maybe”—MachineinKelly&BringMeTheHorizon

T here was a knock at the door, and I set my book down on the end table and got up. When I peeked through the window, I saw it was one of the prospects from Ankeny.

“Chad! How are you?” I smiled and he grinned. “Blade isn’t here right now.”

“I’m good, hon. And yeah, I know. I’m supposed to snag you and give you a ride to him. A prospect’s work is never done,” he explained with a shrug.

“Aww, I’m sorry,” I told him as I slipped my shoes on. He’d always been so nice to me before I’d had to leave.

“No worries. It’s part of the job and a means to an end.”

We climbed into the truck, and I turned his way. “We could’ve walked. I’m not such a princess that I can’t walk in the heat.”

He laughed. “I know you aren’t. But he’s down the road at one of the neighbors. He wanted me to bring you down to see their new baby horse.”

My grin got so big my cheeks hurt. I loved horses and the fact that he was doing this for me made my heart swell.

We got to the gate, and he pulled out his phone and tapped on the screen a few times. The tall gate slowly swung open, and we drove out, taking a left at the road.

“This is the first time I’ve been outside the compound since I got here,” I told him. “It’s nice to be out in the world again.”

As we drove along the two-lane highway, I admired the livestock in fields as we passed. I stared up at the big fluffy clouds. I admired the elaborate gates to some of the fancy ranches.

“How much farther?” I asked as I glanced his way.

He turned to look at me before returning his attention to the road. “Not too much. I know it’s on the right up here. I’m just watching for the big arch he told me was there.”

“What’s it look like and I’ll keep my eye out too?”

“Stone and wrought iron with a uh H on it. Or was it an A? I think I’ll know it when I see it,” he explained as he watched the road.

“Umm, okay?” Weird.

The truck slowed and I looked around in confusion. “This is a wooden gate.”

“Yeah, but this is the address.” He flashed me the screen of his phone, but then set it in his lap as he turned the truck onto the gravel drive.

As we continued down, I grabbed the door because it was so bumpy. “Oh!” I squealed and grabbed the door and the dash when we hit a big rut.

“Sorry about that,” he murmured as he focused on the road ahead.

“Jesus, this is terrible. They need to get their driveway fixed,” I observed with a nervous laugh, but he didn’t reply.

Finally, we rounded the bend, and a rundown barn came into view. The house didn’t look much better. There were weeds grown up around the base and taking over the short sidewalk in front of the house. “Oh God, what a mess. These poor horses,” I muttered.

Except I wasn’t seeing any sign of horses.

“Where are they?” I asked searching around the area. This didn’t look right. “I think we might have the wrong place.”

“No. It’s the right place. Come on.” He shut off the truck and jumped out. He came around to my side and opened my door. “This way.”

Unease settled in the pit of my stomach as we struggled through tall, dried grass and a million different weeds. I glanced behind me, debating just going back to the truck. Chad grabbed my arm and hurried me along.

We stepped into the dim interior of the barn and alarm bells went off in my head. I should’ve trusted my gut when we pulled up. “Blade?” I called out, though I knew he wasn’t going to answer.

The light from the doorway dimmed and I turned to see three men coming in the door. I started to walk backward toward the other end of the barn, but I bumped into a stack of crates. Dust and old bits of hay fell, and I sneezed.

The men just stood there staring at me and blocking the door. I scooted sideways to the edge of the crates and then around the corner of them. To my relief they didn’t follow me, but I wasn’t foolish enough to think I was in the clear yet.

“Is that my pretty little Goldilocks?”

At the sound of that voice and that nickname, sweat beaded up on my skin and I became immobile.

No.

It couldn’t be.

Please God, no .

This was a nightmare and I’d be waking up soon. I heard footsteps but there was so little light, I couldn’t tell where they were. I ducked in between the end of the crates and a wooden stall wall.

“Where did she go?” I heard him demand from the opposite end of the barn.

Trying to be as quiet as possible, I moved deeper into the shadows. When I reached what I assumed was the wall of the barn, I realized I’d cornered myself. There was no way out. My shaking hand blindly felt around for something to use as a weapon.

Wait. What was that? Were those… ladder rungs? Reaching up, I confirmed that they were wooden rungs fixed to the wall. I wasn’t exactly sure what they went to, but I hung on them a bit to see if they were sturdy enough to hold me.

If they weren’t, I was fucked. But this time I wasn’t going down without a fight. So, I reached up and lifted my foot for the lowest rung which was still pretty high. As I heard several people milling about in the dusty old barn, I started to climb.

“What the fuck? I thought you said this barn was empty!” I heard him say in that familiar accent that made my blood run cold.

How had they found me? It had been over three years.

I kept climbing until I reached a platform at the top of the makeshift ladder. Carefully, I shimmied up on it trying not to think about what kind of disgusting things I was probably crawling through.

Afraid I might hit a rotten area, I laid flat on my stomach once I was fully on the platform. Eventually, they would figure out where I was, but I just needed to buy myself some time to think.

And pray that someone found me before they did.

Beneath me, I could see lights sweeping around and I knew they had flashlights and were searching for me. I started having flashbacks of the one time I escaped the room he had brought me to. I’d hidden outside in a boathouse for hours before they found me and dragged me back.

I’d been punished severely and shoved in the little cubby that became my home for so many days, I lost count.

I couldn’t go back to that. Tears burned behind my clenched eyelids.

“She didn’t go out the doors and there’s no windows. She’s here. We’ll find her,” I heard another male voice say.

“Did you hear that Goldilocks? I’m coming for you. You thought you could escape, but you forgot that I have endless resources and I’m very patient. I knew you’d slip up eventually and I’d get to you.” He chuckled darkly. “Wait until you see the pretty accommodations I have ready for you.”

Chills rushed over my skin and my heart thudded so loud I was afraid they would hear it. Something scurried next to me, and I bit my tongue to keep from screaming.

They were getting closer. I heard them below me.

Please, please, please , I begged in my head.

Then I heard one of them whisper, “Over here!”

The next sounds I heard were someone climbing the ladder I’d used. This was it. I couldn’t believe it. It seemed my three years of freedom were actually an illusion.

When the text messages and phone calls started coming in, I should’ve known it was him. What shocked me was that Chad was a rat. He’d been a new prospect, but he’d always been so kind to me before I left. To learn it was all an act, was another betrayal that I hadn’t seen coming.

It was evident the guy was getting to the top. I lifted my head to look back and saw his head pop up over the edge. He shined his flashlight at me and the bright light momentarily blinded me.

“Got her!” he yelled down to the others.

I scrambled to my feet and tried not to stare at the light. Desperate, I glanced around.

“You’ve got nowhere to go, you little bitch,” he gleefully announced after he obviously noticed what I saw. There was no railing. Just this long catwalk-like platform that I assumed held hay at one time.

Still, I started to inch my way away from him.

We both paused when we heard a rumble in the distance that seemed to be coming closer.

“Hurry up! This wasn’t supposed to take this long!” he raged. “Bring her to the helicopter!”

Because I wanted to keep my attention on the asshole slowly closing in on me, I didn’t look down. I could hear several people running. Then a bright light from the other end of the barn permeated the dim interior, telling me they’d gone out a back door.

“Harvey!” one of them shouted from below. “Get her and let’s get the fuck outta here! Someone’s out there!”

By then, the rumble and roar of several bikes could be plainly heard. The engines cut off and the front door burst open.

“Eliska! Where are you!” Blade called out and I smiled with relief.

“I’m up here!” I shouted down to him. “There’s one up here too!”

“Coming!” he replied right as a lower whirring sound started up. The sound was familiar but I couldn’t place it. That is, until it started to lift off. It must be the helicopter he had mentioned.

“You bitch! They’re leaving me!” the guy that was closing in on me shouted. “If I’m going down, so are you!”

Before I could process what he meant, he rushed at me. I screamed as I toppled over the edge. In a heart beat, I was slammed to the ground, landing on an old wheelbarrow. The massive crunch I heard was immediately followed by agonizing pain. Then my momentum tipped the wheelbarrow over and I landed in a crumpled heap.

“Eliska! No!” Blade shouted as his booted feet pounded toward me.

I was aware of him dropping to his knees and his hands feathering over me as if he was afraid to touch me. But though I was aware, I couldn’t move. Breathing was becoming difficult and I started to choke as my mouth filled with something hot and coppery. It spewed forth and I could swallow again—but it didn’t last long before I coughing up more.

“Oh fuck. Oh shit. Oh baby, no.” My lids were heavy, but I forced my eyes open. He was openly crying as he brushed my hair out of my face. I could feel that, but I could no longer feel anything else.

“Dammit,” Squirrel swore. I couldn’t see him as he was standing behind me. “I tried to transport up to her, but that prick tackled her off before I could. But I got him.”

Blade cradled me to his chest as he let out a feral sound straight from the depths of hell, then began to sob. “Fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck….”

“Let me see her,” Angel quietly demanded.

Their voices were muffled—like I was underwater.

I was aware of being jostled, but then I couldn’t hang on any longer. Darkness descended, and with it, my desire to breathe.