Page 4 of Madison
I can’t help but rub my eyes with my palms. “I know, and I know you’re trying to help.” I look at Asher and point to my head. “I get that all here, but here…” I point to my heart, “is breaking and thinking of all the possibilities of what’s happening to her right now. I just..” I can’t say more as I fight the tears that threaten to fall. I feel a presence come up behind me and without evening speaking, I can tell it’s Pa by his sheer size. I turn around ’cause I know he’s got something to say.
He surprises me by grabbing me by the neck and touching our foreheads, like I’ve seen him do many times with his sons. I’m not as tall as Jon, Rory, or Juan, but my six-one height isn’t that much shorter than Pa. “We’re gonna go get your woman, my little one, back, son. We’re going to get her back and take care of those sons of bitches who took her. Remember, we’re knights in shining armor till someone hurts our family…”
I finish the sentence as a wave of anger and determination surges through me, “Then we release the wrath of Valhalla onthose who dare to do us harm.” He squeezes my neck once more before he lets go.
Before I can say anything more, the door to the tech room opens with a bang, and Juan announces, “I think we’ve got it!” He carries his laptop over to the table where Erik and some of the other brothers are sitting. “You said they had a few hundred acres, but from what we can see, they’ve sold off a lot of it over the last decade or so. There’s only about fifty acres or so left that’s still theirs.” Jon says what I’m thinking. “That’s still a shit ton area to have to search—”
Logan interrupts Pres, “Yeah, but there’s only a smaller section that has buildings. I think we can rule out the houses, ’cause they’re occupied. It looks like there are only a few outbuildings.” He starts to point them out.
Erik stands up fast, color draining from his face. He looks at Pa and speaks with what can only be described as worry in his voice. “They still have it. You think they’d take her there?”
We all watch Pa’s face as he realizes what Erik just asked him. “You know them the best. It looks like the most secluded building, and fuck, that psycho bastard probably has some delusional reason for repeatin’ history like that. Let’s get the fuck up there now.”
It looks like Jon’s gonna argue about Pa going with us, but before he can, Pa moves into his space and, in a voice that barely contains his rage, he speaks with complete clarity. “I am going. That ismylittle one and I’m going. I also am going to be a part of sending Joseph and the fucktards who took her on their way to meet Hel. Let’s go.”
He doesn’t have to say that twice for me to be running out the door. We pile into four trucks with Rory, Ry, Jameson, and Asher driving. I wanted to drive, but it’s probably safer that Pres told me to ride. I would be doin’ close to a hundred to get up there.I’m coming, Mads. Just please be okay.
Mads
After what feels like an hour of driving, with the last bit on a very rough and unpaved road, the truck comes to a stop. It’s dark out so I can’t tell where we are, but it definitely gives off the wholeHills Have Eyesvibe. The older one in the front speaks up. “Take her in there and put her with the others. Remember, Joseph wants her unharmed, so don’t go throwing her.”
Lug Two pulls me toward him as he gets out. Luckily, he quits yanking on my arm long enough to let me slide out of the truck so I don’t fall on my ass. As soon as my feet hit the ground, he takes off the cloth that was in my mouth, puts his hands, which are as big as a bear’s paws, around my neck, and slightly tightens his grip. I can’t get much air in, and he’s got my hands that are still tied together trapped between us. “You do as I say or I can hurt you without leaving a mark. Don’t test me. You’ll regret it if you do and Joseph decides to give you to me.” The look in his eyes scares the shit out of me. It holds the promise of pain that I don’t want to have anything to do with. He releases my neck and I gasp for air. Holy shit, these guys are fucking crazy. He pulls me through the trees. We walk for a few minutes before we come up to what looks like a small cabin, but with no windows on the side I can see. We’re almost to the door when Lug Two mumblesjust loud enough so I can hear him, “I’d be fine if Joseph would pick you for me. You’ve got some good childbearing hips I could get used to.”Eww.I can’t imagine being forced to doanythingor get married to any one of these sickos.
Fuck me.If someone doesn’t get up here, I’m gonna be tossed to one of these crazies. Please, gods, help me. This is the group that took Ma all those years ago. Even though she never said the words, Iknowwhat happened to her. A wave of dread and nausea washes over me at the thought.
Lug One comes up from behind us and unlocks the door. He makes a grunting sound before speaking. “Get in there. I’m sure Joseph will be around soon to check you out.” As soon as Lug One has the door open, Lug Two pushes my back to make me walk into the cabin. The door slams shut before I can turn around.
I’m stunned at what’s in front of me. There are three other girls in the cabin. The closest one to me, who looks like she’s in her twenties, maybe, speaks up. “Who are you? I know you’re not from up here ’cause I’ve never seen you before.”
I shake my head without thinking. “I’m Mads-er Madison. I don’t even know where here is, but I can tell you I ain’t from here.”
She waves to the other two girls in the room who haven’t spoken yet. “I’m Christy. I was born and raised up here.” She waves her arm again in the direction of the other two girls. “These two aren’t from here either. Have a seat. We were just talking about how to get the hell outta here.” She walks up to me and unties my hands for me.
As soon as I sit down, I look at the other two girls and ask one of the questions at the top of my list. “How long have you been here and where are you from?”
The one sitting closest to me speaks up. “We’re both from Spokane. We’re cousins and were up at UDUB for a volleyball game when we were taken. I think it’s been a week or close to it. I’m Kelli and this is Erica. We don’t know why we were chosen. They haven’t touched us since they threw us in a van to get us here. We’ve only seen them a couple times a day when they bring us food.”
I look over at Christy and ask her, “If you’re from up here, why do they have you in here? Did they do that to you?” I point to her black eye and the bruises on her neck and arms. She stands up and walks over to what looks like a counter. She grabs a bottle of water and brings it over to me, tripping twice in the ten steps back over to me. “Yeah, they did. I’ve tried to escape five times. I was the furthest away this last time but they brought me back here. I don’t want to be here. I don’t want to be anyone’s first wife or second wife up here, which is what Joseph declared I would be. I made it longer than any of the other girls before he declared he’d seen who was going to be my husband. He made that declaration last week. I don’t want to have anything to do with the man he decided on. Leslie is a horrible excuse for a human. I’ve been trying to escape and find the one person who can maybe help me. Before my mom passed, she told me about a girl she was friends with who managed to escape. She had help from the one person on the outside who’d understand us. She’s spoken about in hushed tones among the women up here,especially the ones who aren’t happy.” Could she be talkin’ about Ma? I ask Christy, “What’s this woman’s name?”
Christy goes to sit down and almost misses the chair but catches herself before she falls on the floor. This girl seems to be a klutz or at least have klutz tendencies cause she’s fallen more in the few minutes since I met her than Kierstie has when she’s drunk.
Once she’s safely sitting in the chair, she answers me. “Her name is Lynn or Linnea. Something like that.” I must show it on my face ’cause she immediately asks, “Do you know her?”
I nod and answer, “Yeah, I know her. She’s my mom. I mean, I’m adopted, but she’s my Ma.”
Christy looks like she’s in shock before she lets out a squeal and gets excited. “That means they’re gonna come looking for you, ain’t they?” This gets Kelli and Erica’s attention too.
Erica speaks up for the first time. “Do you think someone’s gonna come looking for you?”
I feel in my soul they are. Mick, even though I probably pissed him off tonight, will still come find me. “Yeah, I think they will. My dad’s part of a club that will help him find me. I don’t know why they took me, but my brothers and boyfriend are smart enough to put things together. I believe that with all my heart.” Please, gods, let what I just said be true.
We make small talk for a bit then Christy asks a question that shows me how little faith she’s put in people. It means she’s never had anyone she could trust. As annoyed and pissed off as I was at all of my siblings and Mick earlier, I know, without a shadow of a doubt, I can trust them with my life. I can’t imagine not having that. This girl needs that. Kelli and Erica seem youngbut like they have a good background from the little they’ve talked. Shit, pay attention, girl.
Christy asks her question again. “Do you think if your family finds you and rescues you and these two, would they help me escape? I don’t have any money to pay them or—”
I stop her by putting my hand up. “You don’t have to pay. You are a grown-up. You don’t want to live up here, then we can help. You can come stay with me till we figure things out.” I don’t know Erica and Kelli’s situation, but don’t want them to be left out. “You two can, too, if you don’t have somewhere to go.”
Kelli tells me, “Oh, we have a family and I can’t wait to get back to them.”
