First Love (19 page)

"What is it?" I ask not knowing if I really want Angel to answer me.

"One of the counselors saw her leaving with a woman a little after one o'clock. But nobody knows who she was."

"Follow me. We can check security footage from today. I had Amber install cameras everywhere," Jax says as he starts running back inside with Angel and I following close behind.

Who would she leave with and why? I clench my jaw, clenching and unclenching my hands. My anxiety level spikes and that feeling twists my stomach into knots. I do not have a good feeling about this at all. When we get to Jax's office, he pulls all the video feeds up on his computer. He waves me around his desk so I can see what he sees. We see Darcie come into her office. What the hell is she doing here? Amber stands up quickly and her body stiffens. She looks terrified. Then, I see it. I can feel the blood drain from my face and my hands start to shake. In fear or anger, I’m not sure. She has a fucking gun pointed at Amber. I can't move. I barely register that Jax on the phone calling the sheriff and Angel calling Paul. My stomach does a painful flip-flop and I quickly run out of the office to the bathroom. I barely make it to the toilet before I start heaving. Once I know I have nothing left in my stomach, I start running down the stairs and bolt toward the front door. Suddenly, two sets of arms grab ahold of me, yanking me to a stop.

"What the Fuu …" I turn and see Paul and Marcus have a pretty tight grip on me.

"And where do you think you are going?" Paul asks with a raised eyebrow.

"Where do you think? I can't just sit here and do nothing. I have to go find her." I try breaking free from them, but it's no use. My whole goddamned world has just tipped upside down and these assholes are keeping me from fixing it. Not that I know where she is or how to fix it. I can’t just do nothing.

"We need to wait for the sheriff to get here. We can't go halfcocked and make things worse." I nod. I know he is right, but I feel so damn helpless. My girl is in trouble and I’m going to sit here on my ass doing nothing. Some fucking man I am. This is all my fault. I should've been keeping her safe not putting her in danger because I screwed a crazy bitch. We all walk back upstairs to wait for the sheriff. I sit in a chair in the corner of the conference room. Jax has a laptop set up to show the sheriff the video footage. When he finishes, he walks over to me.

"If I can do anything to help, man, please let me know." I look up at him. He tries to smile, but he can’t do it any more than I can right now. I can tell he is being sincere and wants to help.

"Thanks. If you could just make sure everything keeps running as it should, that would be great. I know Amber will appreciate that. I will make sure to keep you filled in on anything we find out."

Sheriff Lee Beasley walks in and he looks about as upset as the rest of us. He has known Amber and me since we were little. Even though he was about twenty years younger than Amber's grandfather, they were pretty good friends. Jax goes through the video with him and I can see him cringe when the gun comes into view. I can see the anger in his face when he recognizes Darcie on the screen.

"You boys know if we are dealing with Beau Hartly, we have a problem, right?" I look at him, confused. I am not sure what he is trying to say.

Before I can ask, he continues, “We have responded to some pretty nasty domestic calls over the years between him and Darcie. Of course, she didn't follow through with pressing charges, out of fear I suppose. There have been three women over the last six years disappear. We have always thought it was Beau, but never had enough proof to charge him." He gives me a sad look. “We have found two of the three bodies over the last couple years." At this, I totally break down. The tears leak out on their own accord and I feel the fury pumping through my veins, the adrenaline coursing through me. I can’t control it. We have to find her. So help me God if that son of a bitch has harmed a single fucking hair on her head. I will fucking kill him with my own bare hands.

M
Y HEAD
is throbbing. Every time I take a breath, a stabbing pain shakes me. Last night I convinced Beau to untie me so I could go to the bathroom. I promised I would behave. As soon as he untied me I tried to run. He and Darcie caught me before I got to the front door. By the time Beau finished with me, I really wished I hadn't done that. He punched me right in the face, knocking me to the floor. Then, his boot connected hard with my ribs. I saw him rear back, ready to kick me again. I tried to cover my stomach with my arms, but his boot flashed before my eyes. Now, I have splitting, seriously splitting headache, but I can move. Only one hand is tied to the bed. I try to turn and stretch, but I hurt all over. I lift my hand to my face, feeling how swollen my bottom lip is.

Footsteps are coming toward the room. My pulse speeds up and my whole body tenses. I never pictured him as an evil man. To being capable of this. The door opens slowly and Darcie walks in with a tray of food. My stomach growls, but my mind heaves at this response. She walks over to the other side of the bed and sets the tray down.

“Are you hungry? I made you a sandwich," she says as she gives me a slight smile. "Amber, you need to eat. I can hear your stomach from here." She's right. I am starving; it's been over twenty-four hours since I’ve eaten. Against my minds refusal, I pick up the sandwich and take a bite. It's either the best damn turkey sandwich I have ever had or I was really starving. I give her a small smile. “I really am sorry I had to bring you here. Beau promised if I did it he would leave me alone for good. It doesn't look like that is going to happen, though." She looks sad and broken. There are cuts and bruises on her face. I refuse to feel sorry for her.

“You can't honestly be trying to make me feel sorry for you?"

“No, but you need to realize I have been living with his torture for over seven very long years. Think about the lengths you would go to get away from him after one day. Now, imagine seven years of what you have experienced, plus much worse. I am not making excuses. I hate what I did and I’m sorry. But, I was desperate. I thought he was going to finally free me. He has, since then, made it perfectly clear to me that it’s never going to happen," she states, her voice wobbly with emotion. It was then that starts crying. Deep, heaving sobs that wrench me. Damn it! I’m too soft hearted. How do I know she isn’t making all of this up?

“Then, let's help each other get the hell out of here."

“There is no way out! We are at Beau's fishing cabin. The only way in and out is by boat. We are in the middle of the Everglades with nothing but swamp and gators for miles. He didn't even take my phone. There’s no chance of reception out here." My stomach rolls at her words.

“He’s done this before, Amber."

"Done what?"

“I'm so sorry, Amber, for doing this to you,” she says between sobs.

As I lay here, seemingly helpless, I take in her words. I’m confused, but I’m patient. And strong. I fight back my compassion and appear irritated, waiting for her to continue. She’s not the one tied up, she wasn’t bound and kidnapped. I let my anger stir, still patiently.

“He has taken women and held them out here until he had his fill of them. Then, he killed them. We aren't getting out of here alive," she finally admits. I still at her words, yet I’m not surprised. I dig deep into myself and find my hope. Kyle.

“Kyle will look for me. They will find us. We can't give up Darcie." I don't think she buys it, not that I can blame her. I don't really believe it myself at this point, either. But, I try. It shouldn't surprise me. I’m finally happy, truly happy, have everything I could possibly want, and it’s all going to end.

“How are they going to even know where to look? They won't know I took you."

“Yes, they will. Jax had security cameras installed at the youth center in every room. They will come look for us." I try to look confident, but I’m praying they find us in time. I know, deep down, Kyle won't give up until he finds us.

I hear Beau coming down the hallway. Darcie must have heard him, too, because her whole body tenses up. She is terrified of him. It’s written all over her face. She gets up and starts to clean up the lunch tray. He opens the door and looks between the both of us.

"What are you ladies up to in here?" he asks maliciously. “Take that stuff out of here and close the door on your way out, Darcie." He gives her a stern look. She gives me a sympathetic look, quickly picks up the tray, and hurries out of the room. As soon as the door closes, he slowly makes his way closer to the bed and sits down next to me. I inch over as much as my restraints allow. He leans in close to me and runs his hand along my swollen lips.

“You need to learn to do as I say and be nicer to me. I won’t have to do things like this to you if you’re a good girl. I’ve been in love with you since we were kids. I have waited a very long time to be with you. I don't take pleasure in hurting you.” He runs his hand along my cheek and my skin crawls. He is definitely a few sandwiches short of a picnic.

“Eventually, you will love me. You’ll see. We both know Kyle will end up hurting you anyway. It is just a matter of time." Oh yes, this man is seriously delusional. Darcie’s right. We are never getting out of here alive. Beau leans down even further. Before I realize what he’s doing, his lips are on mine. I try to move my head away, but he grips my face with both of his large hands. When I feel his tongue slide across my lips, I feel physically sick. I bite down on his lip, hard. The taste of blood fills my mouth.

“You BITCH!" he roars as his fist connects with the side of my face so hard my ear rings. I scream from the pain. Beau is standing up now and pacing around the room. I can tell he is fuming, trying to rein in his temper. I pray he is going to be successful. He sits on the edge of the bed again.

"Why do you force me to lash out at you this way? I only want to love you. I don’t want to punish you, but you keep doing these things that leave me no choice. Why?" he asks. I should be smart and just tell him what he wants to hear. Normally, I am not one to rock the boat. He just pisses me off to no end. The fact that I am scared shitless really doesn’t help either. So, here I go, opening my mouth again knowing I should just shut up.

“Why? Are you seriously asking me that? For one, you can't make someone love you. I am sorry, Beau, but I have just never felt that way for you. No matter what you do, that will not change. And two, you sent your ex-wife to take me at gunpoint. That did not win you any points. And three, the worst of them all, you laid your hands on me. Even if I did love you, the first time you hit me I would have let you go. That is not something you do to someone you claim to love." I look him straight in the eye, waiting for the blows to come. What he said and did next not only shocked me but made me sick at the same time.