Chapter One

Chapter One

            Just a few weeks ago my dad and I had gotten into a car accident in the middle of town.  I woke up in the hospital with my shoulder all wrapped up and a few bandages on my face and leg and a significant concussion.  The first thing I asked was where my dad was and I was informed that there was no one in the driver’s seat by the time the authorities reached the scene.  After having battled through the confusion and lack of understanding, I asked about what happened to the other driver and how they were doing.  Again, I received the same answer: there was no body on the scene.  The doctors ignored my raging temper and all of my questions and made me focus on the injuries my body sustained.  My left shoulder had gotten the brunt of the accident having received a significantly large piece of glass from the blow.  Everything else were just minor cuts and scrapes, now of which are all healed up, my shoulder barely scarred over.  I tried convincing the doctors that I could’ve gone home earlier, but they insisted that I stayed longer considering my first few days admitted I was unconscious.  After that, they wanted to run some tests on me and wait until my brain swelling went away before letting me even so much as walk to the bathroom without an escort.

Staying with my mom during the day had its pros and cons.  Yes, she had a chance to see me for the first time in a long while, but she wouldn’t let me do my own thing, insisting that I follow doctor’s orders.  In the evening, however, I managed to sneak out of the house to pay my friend Meg a surprise visit considering she hasn’t been feeling the best lately and that I was just released from the hospital yesterday afternoon.

It was just past one o’clock in the morning and I was on my way home from visiting, regretting having stayed out so late.  The roads weren’t the best and the flurrying snow made it difficult to see.  I could hear the wind as it howled outside, kicking up snowdrifts and carrying them across the road.  The moon was hardly visible, its bright light shut out by dark grey clouds and the falling snow.  My tires struggled to maintain their grip on the slushy pavement and the second I felt something hit the back end of my car I lost the little traction I was maintaining and spun out into the ditch.  Looking in my rearview I saw a second set of headlights behind me, pulling off to the shoulder as well.

That son of a b***h! I climbed out of my car and slammed the door shut as I stomped up the gradual slope of the ditch, stopping once I was on the edge of the pavement.  The wind blew my hair in front of my face and the snow stung and instantly numbed the back of my neck.

“Hey!  What the hell are you doing?” I kept my fisted hands in my pockets, my voice barely audible over the howling wind.  The headlights were blinding and gave me no choice but to raise my hand to shade my eyes, squinting from both the snow and the brightness. “Can you kill the brights?”

The lights were dimmed and then they shut off completely, leaving spots in my field of vision and the night sky to appear darker.  It would have been nice if the driver would get out of their car and meet me halfway instead of making me make the whole walk by myself �" it was freezing outside.  The ground was slick beneath my feet and I was surprised that I was able to keep my balance as much as I did.  My cheeks were already numb from the frigid air and every breath I took stung my mouth and nose.

Right before I reached the car, a set of strong arms wrapped around me from behind, trapping my arms tight to my side.  They lifted me off the ground with ease, despite my struggle, and held me secure to a hard chest.  The pressure sent a sting of pain through my shoulder that traveled throughout the rest of my body, making me cringe and stop moving.  I looked around in an attempt to get a look at the guy but my eyes were still adjusting to the darkness.

“Open the trunk!” The gruff, deep voice was male.  He didn’t sound fazed by my struggle but instead he only tightened his hold on me.  I cringed.  He stopped and I could feel him tilt his head down closer to me as he took a deep breath.  I tried to move away from his proximity but his arms prevented it.  There was a heat radiating off his skin and he smelled as though he took a recent shower, a spicy smell emanating from his hair. “She’s starting to bleed,” he hissed.

“It’s open!” Another male voice hollered, not as deep as the one that belonged to the man holding me. “And don’t even think about doing anything!  We have our orders!”

“Let go of me!” I squirmed even more, kicking and throwing my head back, but all I did was evoke more pain in my shoulder.  The friction from rubbing it against his chest burned and the pulling from trying to wiggle out of his grip made me want to stop and cry, the pain almost too much.  But I didn’t.  I kept twisting against him, kicking my legs out when he carried me closer to the other man at the back of their car.  The partner grappled at my legs, securing them with a strong grip as he helped toss me into the trunk, slamming the hatch shut above me.

Their doors shut after they climbed back into the vehicle, the quiet purr and gentle vibration from the engine alerting me that we were moving.  I squirmed in the limited space of the trunk, my shoulder throbbing and burning from the struggle and being tossed onto the hard surface.  I still had some pain medications for it but they were in my car…however far back that was.  My heart was racing within my ribcage and I could feel moisture soaking through the back of my shirt.

Great.  Now my shoulder’s bleeding.  I groaned loudly and reached into my pocket.  If I could call for help, surely something would be able to be done.  Looking at my screen, my hope quickly died and was replaced by annoyance.  Dead.

“Of course…why wouldn’t it be dead?  Get kidnapped by a couple of goons and need to call for help and it’s dead.  Why wouldn’t that happen?” I grumbled to myself as I shoved my phone back in my pocket, officially irritated.  My shoulder was trying to tell me to sit still or to move off of it, but I ignored it.  I felt around for the release but there wasn’t one.  They must’ve broken it.  Somehow I needed to get the attention of someone in the car or possibly someone else driving.  But who would be out driving at one o’clock in the morning?  I bit my bottom lip and rolled so more of my weight was focused on my shoulders, feeling the sting shoot through me.  Ignoring it, I kicked my feet against the hatch as hard as I could in the limited space I was given. “Let me out of here you son of a b***h!” The scream I let out hurt my throat, the sound echoing in the enclosed area.  I kept kicking and my foot hit the back corner which gave out on impact, allowing cold air to flow in.  Why didn’t I think of that sooner?  The taillights!  I kicked the spot again as I pounded on the hatch, cussing at the top of my lungs in hopes that the men heard me.

Sure enough the car stopped abruptly, making me slam into the side and cuss again as all my weight was forced onto my bad shoulder.  Their doors opened and slammed shut with unnecessary force.  It was quiet, except for the hum of the engine and the snow crunching below their feet.  I held my breath as I anticipated the trunk opening, and just as I heard a hand touch, it left as soon as someone spoke up.

“Hold up… What the f**k is he doing here?” Irritation flooded his voice, but I thought I could pick up on a twinge of fear.  That didn’t make me feel any better, but it took my mind off the pain in my shoulder.  They moved away from the vehicle and towards the one that was pulling up.

“Hey! Get outta here!  This doesn’t concern you!”

“Whatcha got in there?” A new voice.  Deep and masculine, it was radiating with dominance as its owner stepped closer.

“This doesn’t concern you,” his voice now wavered as he backed up into the car I was still stuck in.  I sucked in a sharp breath and kicked the hood of the trunk as hard as I could, making one of the kidnappers punch back in response.

“Nothing ever concerns me.  Now, I won’t ask again.  What’s in the trunk?” The new voice filled with impatience.  From what I could tell, he had stopped walking and I remained still, taking my weight off my shoulder once again.

“Go to Hell.”

“Oh, I intend to.” I could almost hear a smile in his voice just before I processed that he had resumed moving towards the car.  The other two had pushed off towards him but it wasn’t more than a few seconds before one of them was thrown back into the car.  Then I heard a higher pitch sound.

Is he…is he whistling? I scowled to myself and started kicking the side of the trunk again until my leg started to hurt, and once that happened, I kept kicking.

“Impatient one you’ve got there, Derik.  Batter up.” The sound of ringing metal was faint as it came through the hole in the corner of the trunk, but the sound of a body dropping was not, causing me to catch my breath.

I kicked the trunk one last time, feeling it give way and cold air came rushing in, stinging my skin almost instantly.  The headlights of the other car burned my eyes as I started to sit up, barely catching a glimpse of the metal bar in the new guy’s hand before having to tightly shut my eyes and raise my hand over my face.  My fingers started to lose feeling almost immediately, the wind blowing hail against them like shards of glass.

“Who-”

“Let’s go.” His hands grabbed hold of me and effortlessly pulled me out of the trunk and into the frigid open air.  I tried pulling away but the staining sent pain shooting through my shoulder, causing me to grit my teeth.  His hands never let me go, his arms hardly even budging.  Every effort I made to open my eyes to see his face, my eyes were welcomed with unbearable brightness and burning.  Whoever this guy was, he was standing still with me, and I could feel his eyes on me.

“Who are you?” I tilted my head to the side and slowly opened them in an attempt to adjust them to the bright lights, taking note of a body on the ground beside the back tire. Where’s the other guy?

“Don’t worry about it.  But you…you’re coming with me.”

“What?  But you just… No.  I’m not going with you.” I pulled back again, this time harder, ignoring the ripping sensation I felt happening in my shoulder.  His grip never weakened.

“No, you really are.  If you don’t, they’ll just come after you again…probably more of them next time.  Besides, your car is a long walk back.” He lightened his grip on me as I stopped struggling.  I turned my head to look up at him, but as soon as I did that, he had turned away and started pulling me to the passenger side of his car.  He opened the door and pushed me inside, slamming it shut behind me as he made his way around the back, opening his door and climbing in within seconds.

The dome lights didn’t go on at all, the only light coming from the dashboard and the numbers on the clock.  It wasn’t enough light to see anything inside, preventing me from seeing what he looked like.  The seats were soft leather, heat coming from beneath me.  I could faintly see the driver’s hand in the center, shifting through the gears as he picked up speed �" manual car... The vents were blowing their warmth at me so I shifted my weight off my hands and held them in front of the air coming through.  Despite the heat, however, I still couldn’t stop shivering.

“Why don’t you close your eyes…relax a little bit.” His voice was quiet and calm.

“I’m not tired.” I fell back against the seat and sucked air in through my teeth when my shoulder hit hard. “S**t.”

“You’re hurt.  Relaxing will help.  Did they do that?”

“Hurt me?  No, they didn’t.” I hung my head a little as I reached up and grabbed hold of my shoulder, wishing there was some way I could take care of it better.  My voice had dropped to a quieter volume as my thoughts started to drift to what happened the day of the accident…back to what could have happened to my dad’s body.

“What’s your name?”

“Don’t worry about it.” I turned my attention to outside, resting my head against the window.  Snow and hail were flying past us, the moon hidden behind a thick layer of clouds, its halo attempting to peak through. He’s going so fast… That unsettled me.  Dad was driving fast the day of the accident… I’m not afraid of driving fast but… In this weather…

He let out a frustrated groan as the car started to slow down to a more comforting speed, and when I looked over at him, he was checking his rearview mirror.  The more my eyes adjusted the more I could make out his features: his jaw was strong and set, his torso maintaining a gradual curve as lounged in his seat, one long arm reaching out to the steering wheel, the other dropping in his lap.  His hair was darker and loomed just barely past his brows.

“Stop staring.  Close your eyes and this drive will go a lot faster.”

“Why?  Are you worried that I’ll call someone and tell them where to go?” My questioned remained verbally unanswered as he tightened his grip on the steering wheel, his hands rubbing against the leather it was made of.  Quickly he removed one hand and shifted gears as he urged his car to pick up speed once again. That’s gotta be it! “It’s too dark for me to see anything, so I don’t know why you’re worried about it.” I rolled my eyes.

“Good.  I’m not going to say it again; close your eyes and relax.”

“Or what?  You’ll throw me out of the car?” Those words came out of my mouth before I could even think about stopping it.  The car started slowing down, once again, and the man driving it dropped his hand from the wheel and rested it on the arm of his door.

“You’re very bold for not knowing me…don’t tempt me,” he snapped, becoming more and more agitated.  After looking at me long and hard, he redirected his attention back to the road, picking up speed once again.  He reached into the backseat and brought forward a piece of cloth, which I was assuming was a hanker-chief. “Or I’ll just blindfold you.  Take your pick.”

I stared at the cloth in his hand, my jaw slightly slack.  My first instinct was to dare him, but like he just said, I don’t know him…I don’t know what he will and will not do. Don’t test him.  He started moving his hand closer to me, removing the one from the wheel to start stretching out the cloth.

“Fine!  I’ll close my eyes!  Just…keep your hands on the wheel, please!” I kicked off my shoes and brought my feet up on the seat, sitting so my knees where alongside me and my right shoulder against the seat, my back to the guy driving.  The temperature in the car was warm enough to ward off any goosebumps and shivers that would have liked to take over, but not warm enough to make me start sweating.  Actually, it was making me drowsy the more I sat still and relaxed.

Just as I was starting to do doze off, he swerved sideways and I slammed against the dashboard.  The guy driving grabbed me by the back of the shirt and yanked me back into the seat, and once I was steadily positioned, he moved his arm so it was out in front of me, his hand gripping the handle on the door panel.  I gripped his arm tightly and buried my face into his upper arm when he leaned closer to me as he worked to regain control over his car.  I could feel his steady breath in my hair as it caused something to flutter in the pit of my stomach.

Get a hold of yourself! You don’t know anything about this guy! Just stay calm…

Breathe. A voice?  That thought wasn’t my own.  It was…male.  I wanted to look up, because there was something familiar about it, but then I was snapped back to what was going on, and I just buried my face into his arm even more.

Finally, the car came to a quick and rough stop, permitting me to relax.  I lifted my face up from his sleeve and loosened my grip on his arm despite him not moving.  His arm was tense and I could feel the curves of the muscles in his upper arm, keeping their firmness as his arm upper arm progressed to his forearm.  He was sturdy.  It wasn’t until he had turned the car back around in the right direction and slammed on the gas, shifting gears with his other hand as quickly as he could, that he started to straighten himself up in his seat, cussing under his breath.  He remained leaning slightly towards me, without saying anything and without looking at me, until I realized it was because I was still holding his arm.

“In this weather you shouldn’t be driving as fast as you were.  The ice-”

“That was no ice.” He was looking in the rearview mirror every couple of seconds, his arm still tense against mine.  I released my hold on him completely and he slowly but instantly retracted his arm from my side of the car and used his now free hand to shift gears. “They’re coming,” he muttered.

“What?  Who are?” I put my seatbelt on and turned in my seat in an attempt to see behind us, but there was no sign of another car.  Yet, as I turned and looked at the man driving, he was rigid with tension, his jaw clenched as tightly as possible.

“Don’t worry about it,” he growled.  Then he sighed and I noticed how his shoulders and chest relaxed, his jaw unclenching. “I’ll take care of everything.  Trust me.  Just…relax.” His voice softened, almost a plea, as he turned his head and looked me in the eye.  I may not have been able to see the look in his eyes, but just his attention fixated on me made my stomach flutter and then clench in a way that brought me comfort.

I sighed and slouched back in my seat, leaning my head against the window.  The snow and hail continued to fly by and as I watched, my eyes grew heavy and before I knew it, I was shrouded by complete darkness.