TRAPPED (Breaking Free Book 2) Page 2

“Going somewhere?”

  Dan’s gruff voice makes me squeal in surprise and turn quickly to face him. Think, think, think. “Er, er, no. I was going to see your Mum. I recognised the bedroom as your old one.”

  He raises an eyebrow in question at me, clearly not believing the bull shit spewing from my mouth. I’m struck dumb by the state of him. The man has never looked like this in the ten years I have been with him. He has crazy eyes, blood shot and shifty, his once black hair that he religiously kept styled is in tufts as if he has been tugging on it. He has on ratty work jeans and an old, creased cheap t-shirt, not the designer clothes he usually wears. His skin appears to be sunken and paler since I last saw him as well. The man is a mess, and I am totally gobsmacked by it.

  Dan starts laughing, a full bend over and wrapping his arms around his stomach laugh and I take the opportunity whilst he is distracted to dart for the stairs, praying he doesn’t pull himself together until I am at least out of the front door and can scream bloody murder on the street and hope somebody hears me.

  No sooner have I reached the top step, do I feel a hand tug the back of my vest top and try to pull me backwards. I screech as the material gives way from the force of his manhandling and my body plummets down the uncarpeted stairs, bouncing off the majority of the steps on the way down. I just about protect my head by my hands in time, knowing I cannot take another hit there after him knocking me out earlier.

  A sharp pain radiates up my right leg as soon as I fall to the floor at the bottom. I cry out from the pain, attempting to hold back the tears that are burning the backs of my eyelids. I will not let that brute see me cry, he gets too much satisfaction from the pain he causes me.

  “You stupid bitch. See what you made me do?” I try ineffectively, to half shuffle, half drag myself away on my good leg in an effort to distance myself from the angry ex partner stalking down the steps towards me. The vibes he is throwing off makes me shrink in to myself, in an attempt to make myself smaller.“Stop trying to run from me!! You’re mine, do you fucking hear me Connie? Mine!”

  A whimper breaks free from my lips. I should never have tried to run, Dan will never let me go, he would rather see me dead than happy without him. Stupid, so so stupid! The only saving grace in all of this is that my babies are safe, and if I don’t make it out alive, I know they will be looked after and cared for by my Mum.

  That prick can never let me find a bit of happiness, he has to ruin everything. The anger starts bubbling in my veins, and my fight or flight sense kicks in. Fight it is! I start to kick out, biting my tongue against the pain in my leg and aiming for any part of his body within reach, he grunts as my foot connects and I feel a slither of satisfaction at the idea of him in pain.

  I continue to thrash, my emotions taking over and the pain in my body fades to numbness.

  “Children this is no time to mess about, come and have breakfast!” Dan’s mother’s voice registers somewhere in my brain, but I ignore it and continue to fight him, not going down easily.

  “Children please! Now that is enough. Dan you can show Connie some affection later.” The woman is seriously deluded, on what planet does me thrashing about on the floor at the bottom of the stairs, with Dan trying to make a grab for me count as him trying to show me any form of affection? And I often wondered why Dan was as fucked up as he is.

  “Mum fuck off, either help me restrain Connie or go and plate up the food.”

  My body has started to slow, aches and pains beginning to set in again slowing me down, but his words of restraining me have kicked up the adrenaline flowing through my system and I’m ready to take this bastard down. I cannot allow him to restrain me, I’ll never get away if he does.

  He growls before lunging at me, his whole body weight diving on me, and flattening me against the floor. My eyes zone in on his neck and I throw my head forward and sink my teeth in to the skin there, in an attempt to get him off of me.

  “You fucking bitch, you don’t learn do you?” He barks, before I feel him grip a handful of hair at the front and lift my head to smash it back down on the floor.

  He continues to batter my head on the floor, forcing my mouth to slacken and release his skin, the copper taste from obviously breaking his skin coats my tongue, and I laugh in satisfaction from leaving my mark.

  “I’ll kill you, I swear I’ll go down fighting.” Are the last words I manage to grate out before everything fades to black… again.

  CHAPTER THREE

  DAN:

  “Fuck, that bitch drives me fucking crazy. Why can’t she ever do as she’s told?”

  Connie is sprawled beneath me passed out. Even with my blood coating her mouth and chin, she is still the most beautiful thing I have ever owned. I could never tell her that though, her head is far too big for her body and she’d look down her nose at everyone. No, the only way to control your woman is to put them in their place and make sure they know you are inferior to them in every way.

  “Oh Dan, you really do need to make sure she learns to do as she’s told. It’s far too dangerous for a woman like Connie to be raising a family alone. You must take control like your father did with me. Take her up and put her in bed, that nice cuddle you were trying to give her would be a nice way for her to wake up, don’t you think?”

  “Huh, yeah I suppose. I should be there when she wakes really.” I reply to my nosey mother. She annoys the hell out of me, is slightly crazy since my Dad died, but always did as my father wished when he was alive, and that’s exactly how Connie needs to start behaving. How dare she leave me for some little rich boy? She ruined my life so I’ll be fucked if I’ll let her walk away and leave me now. I do everything for her and her kids.

  I pick her up and sling her over my shoulder, turning to my Mother and making it clear she is not to interrupt.“And Mum, just for the record, that shit Connie just pulled was her way of attempting to run away, take the kids and leave me. So no matter what you hear coming from upstairs, you are to ignore it, the bitch needs to learn her place.” I know she won’t get involved. Connie made her bed by trying to leave, now she needs to learn she belongs with me, and my Mum knows it.

  My mousey looking mother looks horrified all of a sudden, but I still turn my back on her and walk up the stairs.“Oh Dan, how awful. I thought Connie was perfect for you, you make sure to put a stop to her terrible attitude sweetheart. What a silly little girl, I cannot believe she would be so selfish as to only think of herself. I’ll stay away sweetheart, this is your battle after all. Such a shame though, what a silly, silly girl.” She mutters the last part quietly, more to herself than directed at me.

  The bedroom door slides open with ease as I kick the corner.

  I hate this shit hole, fist sized holes in the doors and walls, bare floor boards from where my dad threw a temper and ripped up the carpets.

  Looking down at my girl, I can’t help but wonder how it all went so wrong so fast, everything was so right and then she ditches me for a girl’s night out and everything went tits up. This is all her fault, had she not left that night I wouldn’t have gone out and got smashed, and my best friend would still be alive and well.

  A lump forms in my throat, the regret from the turnout of that night so many years ago still affects me in such a bad way. My girl and I were happy, had so much to look forward to, and then she threw it all away. She doesn’t get to decide to walk away and start again with someone else when she has drained me dry, the bitch did this to me and so she’s stuck with me. Together till the end.

  Throwing her down on the bed in anger, I watch her bounce and try to roll to her side. She groans, calling out for that bastard who took her away in the first place, Hunter. I start shaking in rage, how dare he come along and try and take my family away from me, they are mine, mine!

  I bite my tongue, the copper taste rolling to the back of my throat as I attempt to quell the urge to beat the feelings she has for this dickhead out of her. I spin on the spot and throw my fist in to the wall, a small sense
of satisfaction surfacing from the damage to the plasterboard, my brain visualising Hunter’s face in its place. Another hole to join the several others scattered throughout the room.

  “FUCK, FUCK, FUCK!” How could I have let it get this bad? How could I have been so stupid to mess around with that slag Rhia? I should have known she would find a way to tell Connie, the slag has been after my cock for months, turning me against my girl with her spiteful mouth to get her own way.

  The decision to make her pay for this mess is not a hard one, she will regret forcing my girl out of my life and into another man’s. She hasn’t got a thing on my girl, she was just an easy lay, and something different to fill the time, they all are. They will never compare to my Connie, they are a small distraction, a way to forget that awful night when I lost my best friend.

  My body begins to shake as the memories from that night surface. Watching my childhood friend Tom stagger out in front of me, rather than waiting for me to turn the car around for him, the grin on his face replaced with horror as he realised I was about to hit him, myself being unable to stop the car in time, and watching his face smash through my windscreen and flip him in to the air before his body landed in the road, lifeless, broken and unbreathing.

  I did the only thing I could at the time, I put the car in reverse and raced away from the deserted street and my best friend’s body as fast as the car would go. I parked it in my Mum’s garage and it hasn’t come out since. I couldn’t hang around and try to help him even if I wanted to, I was so far over the legal drinking limit, mylife would have been gone, arrested on the spot. No way was I willing to have those consequences put on me, if it wasn’t for Connie going out and Tom staggering in to that road then it wouldn’t have happened. This wasn’t my fault, and no way was I about to spend years of my life locked away for their mistakes.

  God, realistically if Connie had just stayed home with me I wouldn’t have gone out drinking, I wouldn’t have driven home drunk, and I sure as hell would not have hit my best friend. Connie killed Tom and our relationship. I can’t bring myself to forgive her, and I can’t bring myself to let her go. She’s mine, and it was always meant to be us against the world.

  Several sets of tyres screech to a halt outside the house, and I snap myself from the awful flashbacks, panic setting in that Hunter has come to take my girl from me. The room is eerily quiet as I start to plan my escape with my girl before they can take her from me, Connie’s gentle breathing, and my harsh, deep breaths the only sounds in the room.

  I rip open the top drawer, throwing money and my passport in to my pockets. Connie is still out for the count. Car doors close, and I hold my breath, hoping it’s one of Mum’s neighbours.

  Knocking on the front door begins. I immediately rush to Connie’s side, picking her up and throwing her back over my shoulder, checking to make sure I have my hunting knife in my pocket as I walk from the room.

  The door kicks open, and I hear my Mum’s shrill squeal in shock, her efforts to hold back the intruders proving ineffective as I hear orders to spread out and search the house.

  I run to the end of the hallway, opening the window and climbing out to the conservatory roof, situated below. I grunt as I drop the small distance, keeping a firm grip on my girl.

  “Stop, you take one more step and I’ll shoot.”

  My eyes take in the ladder a small step ahead of me leading to the ground, and take a quick glance behind me, spotting Hunter climbing from the window behind me, gun in hand ready to shoot. I could laugh at the desperate mug, but I haven’t got time for this. I need to get my girl away from this, somewhere where it’s just me and her, and no one can come between us.

  I sneer at the bastard,“You really gonna shootme, when I’m holding the one thing you came for? If I go down she goes down with me. Now back the fuck up or I throw her.” Hunter’s eyes flare for a brief second, before a neutral unaffected mask comes across his face.

  He deliberates for a second, before backing up to the window and waiting for me to go ahead and leave.

  I know I look like a smug bastard, the smirk on my face is instantaneous knowing I not only have Connie, but I have just got another one over on him.

  Spinning back around, I quickly and carefully manoeuvre myself down the ladder. Approaching the last few steps, a sharp sting hits me in the lower leg and I fall forward, Connie dropping to the grass beside me as I collapse. I hear the shouting, several male voices behind me, and I swallow down the defeat, making the decision to leave without Connie whilst I still can.

  I ignore the pain, and run to the end of the garden, throwing myself over the small fence and jumping in the jeep I have waiting for me at the end.

  I squeal away from the parking spot, cursing and punching the steering wheel as I go, out running the three heavily muscled men chasing me.

  They may have her for now, but I’ll be back. Connie’s mine, and I’ll do whatever it takes till she’s back in my arms!

  CHAPTER FOUR

  HUNTER:

  “Come on. Fuck man, what’s taking so long?” Seriously, Connie is going through god only knows what, and here we are sat making phone calls and going around in circles.

  “Dude chill, nothing is going to happen to Connie, I’m just chasing up a few leads and I am heading out.” Harry throws my way, not even glancing up at me from his phone.

  Does he think I’m stupid? That I didn’t pick up on the fact that he said“I”. Not a chance is he going to get her without me, I’m going to get my girl and more fool the person who tries to stop me.

  “Yeah well, just hurry it up, I can’t stand the thought of her being alone with that sick fuck. Are we taking your car or mine?” Harry finally looks my way, brows furrowed at my words. He must see the determination written quite clearly all over my face. He sighs, shakes his head and mutters something under his breath that sounds a lot like‘stubborn fucker.’ I’ll live with that, I am a stubborn fucker, especially when it comes to my girl.

  Harry throws his phone in to the pocket ofhis black combats, turns on his heel and starts talking over his shoulder as he strolls towards the lift in my apartment.“I have a lead. The Jeep Dan was driving was spotted on CCTV heading towards Thamesmead, right around the corner from where his Mum resides. If you’re coming you follow my lead, you don’t do anything stupid or rash and you stay back. If you can’t follow my rules you don’t come along. Do we understand each other? I will not have you putting yourself or Connie at risk because of a split second decision. YOU STAY BEHIND ME!”

  I begrudgingly nod, knowing Harry is only doing what’s best and is trained in situations like these. And judging by the bollockinghe has just given me, he knows that if I get the chance I’m taking Dan down, regardless of what he says.

  We arrive outside a dilapidated terraced house, on a nasty looking estate. The windows have a brownish colour to them, and there is paint peeling from the walls. The garden is waist high, huge weeds taking over most of the grass. It shocks the hell out of me that someone chooses to live this way.

  Groups of teens, wrapped in hoodies and baseball caps are congregating on the street several houses down, eyeing up the vehicles we have ridden in and glaring through the windows at us. Let em’ try something, I’m sure we can have heaps of fun taking down a few street punks, whose balls haven’t even dropped yet.

  I wait for Harry to remove himself from the driving seat of his black Range Rover, before I follow his lead. I am itching to break down the door, but as Harry said, it could endanger Connie and force Dan to do something rash without thinking clearly.

  The adrenaline is causing my whole body to shake, the rage flowing through my veins is so extreme, Idon’t think I have ever felt this volatile in my life before.

  Harry nods at the symmetrical vehicle behind, and out jump three men, suited and booted in combat trousers, black tank and chunky black boots. All have buzz cuts and are wearing nasty looking scowls on their faces. They are quite clearly connections from his past, a past th
at haunts him and he doesn’t ever talk about. Not that I’m complaining, I’ll do whatever it takes to get my girl back.

  Harry starts throwing hand signals around, and two of the men head off around the back of the estate, I can only guess to cover the back entrance. He nods at me, handing me a small hand gun and gesturing for me to follow.

  He knocks on the front door, as if we are a neighbour coming to ask to borrow some tea bags. I bite my tongue to rein in my wild thoughts, thoughts of smashing the door down and storming the house. Shooting everything that moves. I know this is for the best, it’s just so bloody hard when my girl could be inside hurting.

  The door cautiously opens, a small, older woman with dark brown hair and plain features peeks her head around the side. Her eyes bulge as she takes in the sight of three massively intimidating men staring her down on her door step.

  She gasps and tries to slam the door shut, but Harry is too fast for her and slips his foot in the gap, gripping the edge of the door with his fingers and wrenching it back. She squeals in protest and starts wailing that‘we are not welcome here, she’s an elderly widow and this isn’t good for her health’. I leave Harry to deal with the crazy woman at the door and head straight for the stairs, catching fresh spots of blood out the corner of my eye on the bottom step.

  I throw myself up the uncarpeted stairs as fast as I can, not even pausing to take a breath. I can hear shuffling and grunting from the end of the hall, and a window ajar grabs my attention. The fury is building the closer I get, it’s like I have built in radar to Connie, I know she’s out there and I’ll do whatever it takes to get her back and take down the fucker who thought he could take her from me.

  “Stop, you take one more step and I’ll shoot.” I hold the gun with my arm outstretched, legs dangling over the window sill, readying myself to shoot and take him down. A red haze flits across my vision upon seeing Connie passed out, dangling over Dan’s shoulder with blood covering her face and parts of her body.