“Shit,” I hiss, rushing forward, digging my nails into Jonas’s hand and trying to release his grip on her. “Let her go, you fucking psychopath.”
He moves too quickly, and the next thing I know, my cheek is burning and I just about manage to lift my hands to stop my head from colliding with the wooden floor as I stumble back.
“Jodie,” Mum screams.
“You fucking hit me,” I gasp in horror, holding my hand to my cheek.
Still holding Mum in his unrelenting grip, he leers at me. His eyes are almost as black as his soul, and it sends a bolt of fear racing through me. But I refuse to cower. If the last few weeks have taught me anything, it’s never to cower. Instead, I summon all my strength and dig up my inner bad-arse.
What would Stella do?
“Do not disrespect me.”
“Why?” I hiss. “Will you lock me in the basement to teach me a lesson, like you used to do with Toby?”
“Don’t,” he roars, spittle flying from his lips as his gaunt, previously pale face turns red with anger. “Don’t even mention that scumbag’s name. He’s nothing. And once we’re free I’m going to make sure there is nothing left of him but memories.”
“No,” I cry, scrambling forward, but I only make it a few inches before he presses his boot to my hand. “Do as you’re told, sweetheart. Listen to your daddy.”
My stomach turns over once more. “You’re not my daddy. You’re a fucking monster.”
I snatch my hand away before he decides to break all my fingers.
He stares nothing but pure hate at me as I stand once more. My legs tremble, and I’m forced to reach out for the wall to steady me. His nostrils flare and his chest heaves.
He looks better than he did that day through Toby’s tablet, but he’s far from healthy.
“We can do this the easy way or the hard way,” he warns me. “But we are leaving this house as a family, and we’re never going to look back.”
“You’re delusional if you think for even a second I’m going anywhere with you.”
“Fine,” he says calmly. Too fucking calmly. “We’ll do it your way.”
Mum is discarded, thrown to the floor like she’s nothing. Unlike me though, she isn’t fast enough, and her head collides with the floor with a bone-chilling crack.
“Mum,” I race forward but he catches me, his hand covering my face once more—but this time, it’s not his skin that touches me, it’s cloth.
My arms flail and my nails scratch down his arms, taking chunks of skin with me as my legs kick, but nothing I do loosens his grip, and it’s not long before my body starts to get sluggish, weak, and my eyes start to drop, the claws of darkness beginning to wrap around me and threatening to drag me under.
“No,” I cry, panic flooding my system as I try to stave off the inevitable.
I can’t go under. If I do, I’ll have no idea where he takes us. I’ll have no way of getting to Toby.
Jonas is going to take us, and he’s going to…
“Toby,” I whimper.
“You’re not listening to me, are you, sweetheart? He isn’t coming. He doesn’t want you, not really. He just wanted revenge, and I guess your pussy was good enough to keep around a little longer than required. You just couldn’t see it. But then, I guess you always were irritatingly naïve.”
* * *
The scent of decay is the first thing that hits me when the darkness begins to lift. My nose wrinkles and my lip peels back.
The second thing I’m aware of is the cold. The bone-chilling cold that makes my teeth chatter.
Where the fuck am I?
Forcing my eyes open, I’m greeted by more darkness.