Page 15 of Hurt to Love
She turned to look at me, a mixture of confusion and apprehension marring her delicate little face. Maybe it was my reference to ‘us’ that had confused her. Did she think I was going to dump her on the roadside, or palm her off to the next asshole we came across?
“I’m in this with you, okay? We’re going to get you somewhere safe. No one will ever hurt you again. You have my word.”
She gave me a slight nod in agreement, so subtle I could’ve missed it, if I wasn’t becoming so in-tune with how she reacted. I liked imagining what she was thinking in that mixed up head of hers. Guessing what she would say if she trusted me enough to share her words with me.
I fished my mobile out of my pocket. Thirty-two missed calls and eighteen voicemails. I wasn’t in the mood for a chat with anyone, but I opted for listening to Julian’s voicemail. I guessed his would be the least dramatic or threatening of them all.
“Cill, mate. What the fuck have you done?” I could hear his heavy breaths down the phone, like he was walking or jogging out of earshot. Shouts and the revving of engines could be heard in the background. “I take it I’m getting an Uber home with Nick then?” He chuckled. “Seriously though, mate, they’re gonna kill you when they find you. Why did you take off like that?” He sighed down the line, and I could imagine him standing there, running his hand through his hair and grimacing. “I don’t know what you’ve done. They’re talking about you stealing something. I’m assuming that’s the girl you came here for. Just a heads up, they’re on their way to your place now, so whatever you do, don’t go home. You need to get as far away from this city as you can. Nick and I are playing dumb, but I’m not sure they believe us, so I’m gonna cut this call in a bit. Mate, I wish you all the best. I hope to God they never catch up with you. These aren’t normal people, Cill…” The line suddenly went dead. No doubt Julian had hung up for a reason. I just prayed my actions wouldn’t get my two friends into shit they didn’t deserve.
“We don’t have much time.” I pocketed my phone and threw the car door open then I ran around to her side to get her out. It sounds chivalrous, but really I was making sure she didn’t make a run for it. “The Contis are already at my place. We need to get an escape plan sorted. Get out of this city and lay low for a while.”
I motioned for her to walk towards the elevator. I knew she didn’t like to be touched, and I wanted to respect that. Well, apart from when I manhandled her back at the house, but that had been a necessity. If they’d found us in that garage, we’d both be dead. She had her arms wrapped around her tiny frame as we waited for the elevator to arrive, and she was shivering. I took my jacket off and draped it over her shoulders gently. She flinched slightly, but reached into it to pull it further around herself. When I’d found her in that barn, she was only wearing a grubby grey tracksuit. It was no wonder she used those horses for the warmth.
Once the elevator doors opened, we both stepped inside and headed up to the top floor. When I knocked on Jackson’s door seconds later, I prayed it’d be Ryley who’d open it. I wasn’t sure how Wednesday would react to Jackson. As awesome as the guy was, he wasn’t the warmest fucker when you first met him. Turned out, my luck was running out.
“What the fuck?” Jackson stood in the doorway, still dressed in his work suit and looking decidedly pissed off as he glanced between Wednesday and me.
“Mate, I need your help.” I made sure my facial expression showed how deadly serious I was, and that this wasn’t another one of my jokes.
“What’s going on? Who is she?” He didn’t move or step aside to let us in. Not until Ryley piped up from the lounge area.
“Jax, who is it?”
She came up beside him, and her eyes grew wide as recognition of what was happening dawned on her.
“Oh my God, Cill. Come in. Jax, let them in.” She pulled the door open for us. Jackson gave her a look as if to say, ‘have you lost your fricking mind’, but he relented and stepped back.
“Thanks.” I manoeuvred myself so I was behind Wednesday and she’d have to walk in first. I still wasn’t convinced she wouldn’t make a run for it.
We walked into the lounge, and I pointed at the couch for Wednesday to sit down. Like the well-trained slave she was, she did, perching herself on the edge like she didn’t want to dirty the fabric or something. She kept her head down, not looking at any of us, and wrung her hands in her lap. Poor girl was probably terrified. I’d dragged her away from her horses, hauled her into my car and driven her to a place where the first face she saw scowled and bellowed,‘what the fuck’, at her.
“Do I even want to know whosheis and what the fuck is going on right now?” Jackson shouted, and Wednesday flinched. I’d probably disturbed his naked yoga show and he was royally pissed.
“Jax, you’re scaring the girl. Stop shouting.” Ryley threw him a threatening stare as she spoke. Guess he needed to rein it in if he wanted to get lucky tonight.
“I’m not shouting,” he said, in a slightly less shouty voice than he’d previously used. “Who is she?”
I glanced down at Wednesday, sat there like a ghost, probably wishing she was invisible as well as mute and could blend into the patterns in the fabric of the couch.
“I did what you always taught me to do, Jax. I saw an injustice and I wanted to make it right.”
Jackson looked at Wednesday, and I could see the cogs in his brain turning, his expression softening, as he took in her raggedy clothes, dirty condition, and petrified state.
“Where did you find her?” His voice was a whisper now. He knew fear when he saw it, and it was painted all over her face.
“She was being kept as a slave, a prisoner. It wasn’t right, Jax. I had to save her. You did the same for me all those years ago, remember?” I knew he was going to ask me who had her, and I knew the answer would send him over the edge. So I was laying the foundations. Making him care about the whys and not the hows.
“Where from, Cill? Where was she?” Jackson could read me like a book. He knew he wasn’t going to like what came next, and the way he folded his arms over his chest told me he was bracing himself. The girl looked like she hadn’t seen the sun in months. She was thin and frail, and would most likely need a dozen showers to wash away the caked on dirt. And they were just the external problems. Ryley came to stand next to him, anticipating that she may be needed to intervene in this delicate situation at any minute.
“The Contis.”
I watched as he narrowed his eyes on me and clenched his jaw. He was doing a really good job at trying to hide his fury in light of his current audience, but I could tell he wanted to explode.
“Fuck,” he said through gritted teeth. “Do you have any idea how fucked up those two motherfuckers are?”
“Err… yes.” I nodded down to Wednesday, hoping he got the hint about the level of fucked up she’d had to endure since being with them.
“Jesus, Cill. They are fucking animals…”
