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I don’t slow down, but I welcome his company. I might go crazy otherwise.
“You don’t even know where to look,” Wyatt yells after us. I flip him the bird over my shoulder and keep walking.
The sound of feet pounding dirt assails me as both Wyatt and Gabby catch up to us. “I’ll drive,” Wyatt says. “It’s legal for me to speed. ”
We pile in Wyatt’s police car, Hunter and Gabby in the backseat, me in the front. Wyatt pulls out and heads south toward Ocracoke. “There are more secluded areas this way,” is all he says by way of explanation.
Which is true, but we don’t even know if Chad stayed in this area. “He could have headed north and be across the Virginia border by now for all we know. ”
Wyatt shakes his head. “I don’t think so. I think he wants to deal with Alyssa now. He’s waited for this moment, and I don’t see him waiting longer. ”
His words shred me, because if I look at this rationally and with common sense, there’s a chance Chad has hurt her already. I know it’s not manly, and I know I don’t have time for this shit, but my eyes fill with tears over the prospect that Alyssa could die. I stare helplessly out the window as the miles pass by, and we see nothing of any use.
“Where in the world would he take her?” Wyatt muses out loud. “He’d want somewhere private… secluded. But close… if he doesn’t want to wait. ”
No one has the answer, but then Gabby yells from the backseat. “Wait. I have an idea where he may have taken her. I mean, I’m not sure… it’s just a guess. ”
“Where?” I practically bark at her as I turn in my seat. Gabby doesn’t even bother to get angry with me. She knows I’m at my breaking point.
“The abandoned lifeguard shack near Tar Hole inlet. Alyssa told me about it… said he’d taken her there once before. ”
Wyatt doesn’t even hesitate. He slams the brakes on and does a hard U-turn on the highway, flipping lights and the siren on as he punches the gas. Tar Hole is back north… just outside of Nags Head, but still very secluded with marshy swampland on one side, and a small beach on the other that’s eroded so thinly, hardly anyone goes there. Plus, there’s just no decent parking with the dunes coming right out to the road’s edge.
I have no clue if Alyssa’s there, but I’m going to choose to believe she is. It’s the only thing that’s giving me hope at this moment and without it, I’m afraid I’ll sink so deeply in despair, I won’t be able to pull out.
Chapter 26
Alyssa
I hear noise… a tapping sound. It’s steady, quick paced, and I have no clue what it is.
My head hurts so bad and before I even try to open my eyes, I raise my hand up to touch it. I moan as the pain spikes when my fingers find wetness near the hairline of my temple. I don’t have to see the red to know it’s blood.
I slowly open my eyes, thankful that wherever I’m at, it’s gloomy dark. I don’t think my head could take bright light right now.
The tapping noise starts a quicker pace, and I turn my head in the direction of the sound. I focus… something dark.
Maybe a hand holding something dark and tapping it on a wood floor.
As my eyes clear, it all comes back to me in a rush. Chad has me.
He’s sitting on a wooden floor a few feet away. He has a gun in his hand, and he’s tapping the barrel against the floor. “Bought time you woke up, sleepyhead. ”
His voice causes my body to shudder, because it’s sweet and caring, but I know that’s the sound of someone who is totally maniacal.
Memories rush in fast. I pulled up to The Haven and walked into the kennel, never for a moment thinking anything could be wrong. As soon as I stepped inside, I saw Chad. I had no time to run or even scream when he hit me in the head and blackness engulfed me.
I turn my head the other way, taking in my surroundings. I’m in a room with a wooden floor, wooden walls, and heavy, wooden shutters over the windows. It takes a moment, but then I understand. We’re in the lifeguard shack at Tar Hole.
My heart sinks because we are in a fairly remote place with no houses or businesses nearby. The beach is eroded, which makes it fairly deserted. No one will be coming to help me here.
“I’ve been waiting for you to wake up,” Chad says quietly. “It’s no fun when you’re unconscious. ”
I turn back to look at him and try to sit up. Nausea rises but I tamp it down, struggling to push up to my elbows. “Why are you doing this, Chad?”
“Why do you think I’m doing this?” he sneers. “Give it a go and let me see if you’ve learned any lessons by now. ”
My eyes search his for some semblance of normalcy… for anything I can reason with. I don’t see anything, and it causes my frustration to peak.
My mind spins frantically, trying to think of the best thing to say to diffuse this situation. “Chad… listen. You’re in a lot of trouble right now. If you kill me, you’re going away forever. Don’t throw your life away like that. ”
He laughs… high pitched and highly amused with me. “I’m not going to kill you, Alyssa. I’m just going to dirty you up a bit. I’m sure your new boyfriend won’t appreciate that too much. ”
The man basically just said he’s going to rape me and rather be scared or worried, anger rises in me. Fury that he’d try to hurt Brody through me.
He just made a huge mistake. He screwed up by telling me he doesn’t want to kill me, and he screwed up by saying he wants to hurt Brody.
Those are fighting words to me.
I try to decide if I want to throw myself at him in attack, or just casually get up and try to walk out, put him to the test of what he’s really going to do to me. But before I can even weigh the pros and cons of each option, he launches himself across the floor at me, knocking me back to the rough wood. The air expels from my lungs in a massive whoosh and I’m left gasping, starved for oxygen.
Chad wraps one hand around my throat and places the gun to my temple. Leaning down close to me, he whispers, “I don’t want to kill you, but I will… if you push me, so I suggest you be a good little girl and take what I give you. ”
His words terrify me, but they don’t subdue me. I’m not going to give him a single second of what he wants. I buck underneath him furiously, which only manages to push his pelvis against mine. I’m sickened when I feel his erection, and he moans, “That feels good, baby. Keep it up. ”
I bring my arms up and start pushing at his chest, scratching at his wrists. He just laughs at me. “Go ahead and fight… you’re just exciting me more. ”
Oh, this f**king pervert. He gets off on a woman’s terror and there’s no doubt in my mind, he did this to that other woman.
Chad pulls the gun back and slides it a few feet away. It’s still within easy reaching distance but it frees up both of his hands, which he now uses to try to push my shirt up my torso. I twist and turn, bucking again hard and punching at him.
“Stop,” I scream. “Get off me. ”
Chad is panting hard, from exertion, from excitement, I don’t know, so I scream again. He slaps a hand over my mouth to quiet me and I bare my teeth, sinking them into the meaty flesh of his palm. I bite hard, envisioning me ripping his hand off, and I taste his blood.
Chad screams as he rears back until he’s straddling my waist, clutching his bleeding palm to his chest. He glares down at me in outrage and raises his other hand to hit me.
I don’t hesitate… not for a second. I buck as hard as I can, which throws him off balance, and I flip my body to the side. He rolls right off of me, and I swing my right arm as hard as I can toward his crotch. My fist connects solidly with his nuts, and he cries out before he doubles over on himself.
Scrambling to my feet, I turn, place a well-aimed kick at his ribs, and scream, “You motherfucker!”
Then I spin and push the door open, running down the ramp. Just as my feet hit the sand, I look left and right, hoping that
some moonlight stroller will be along to help me, but the beach is deserted and there’s not a single home within sight.
“You f**king bitch,” I hear, turning to see Chad lurching out of the door. He barrels at me down the ramp and I turn to run, but he’s grabbing the back of my shirt. His momentum propels us both forward a few feet, and we both go falling face-first into the sand.
He loses his grip on me and I start crawling away, but his hand snatches my ankle, pulling me back. I turn to look at him, and his face is awash in fury. I’m pretty sure rape isn’t the only thing on his mind anymore. He starts to stand, and I pull my legs up to kick out at him when something dark comes flying out of nowhere, catching Chad in the chest and throwing him several feet back into the wet sand by the surf’s edge.
Turning on my side, the moon provides enough light that I can see someone on top of Chad, pulling an arm back and launching it toward his face.
It hits with such force that I think I hear a bone crack.
“I told you I’d end you. ”
Brody!
He found me.
He pulls back his arm, hitting Chad again in the face with his fist.
He does it again, and I can see blood fly from Chad’s mouth, who is now screaming at Brody to stop.
But he doesn’t… he keeps hitting Chad, and all I can do is sit there and watch.
Someone else goes flying by me… Wyatt, I think, and he tackles Brody.
“Oh, God… Alyssa, are you okay?” Gabby says as she throws herself down on the sand beside me, wrapping her arms around me tight. Hunter walks by casually and stands nearby, watching carefully over Chad to make sure he’s not going anywhere.
We both turn to see Wyatt struggling with Brody, who’s trying to break his hold to get back at Chad. “Let me go, Wyatt… I’m going to kill him. I told him I would end him if he touched her. ”
“Stop it, Brody,” he yells as he struggles to push Brody back. “You want to go back to prison?”
Brody pulls free of Wyatt, his fists clenched and arms stiff at his side. He screams, “Yes! I’d gladly go back and spend the rest of my life there if I can end that miserable f**k for hurting her. ”
“No, you don’t want that, man,” Wyatt says quietly, trying to bring Brody down.
Pushing out of Gabby’s hold, I stand up on wobbly legs. “Brody… baby… I’m fine. I’m okay. ”
He turns his head, rage still swimming in his eyes. In just two steps, he’s in front of me, his hand coming up to touch the blood at my temple. His breathing is ragged, and he closes his eyes. “I want to kill him, Alyssa. ”
Wrapping my hand around his wrist, I tell him, “I know. But you’re not a killer, and I don’t want you to go away. I need you with me. ”
Brody lets out a long gust of breath from his mouth and touches his forehead to mine. “He needs to suffer. ”
“He will,” I tell him softly, my hand coming up to cup his jaw. “You know he will. You’ve been to prison so you, more than anyone, know he will suffer. ”
Nodding his head at me, I can feel the fight start to ease out of him. Brody pulls me into a hug and whispers, “Christ… I was so scared. ”
Chad groans from down on the sand, and we both turn to look at him. His nose is flattened and pushed to one side, with blood pouring out of both nostrils. “You’re going back to prison, you ass**le. You just assaulted me and if I’m not mistaken, that violates your parole. I demand that you arrest him,” Chad says as he looks up at Wyatt.
Wyatt leans over and pulls Chad to his feet by the front of his shirt, who then gives a triumphant look to Brody. “I might be going down, but you’re going down with me,” he sneers.
Chad is still grinning at Brody with bloodstained teeth, when Wyatt pulls his arm back and punches Chad in the jaw, sending him sprawling back to the sand where he lays unconscious. Holding his hand out, Wyatt flexes his fingers and winces. I see his knuckles are bleeding, so he must have nailed Chad in the teeth.