In Charlie's Arms

21 • 911

Seraphina thrashed and bucked as arms closed around her, trying to fight off her captor while her heart lurched into her throat.

"Quit strugglin'," a rough voice said in her ear. "We're not gonna hurt you, so calm down."

Sera ignored him, still trying her best to break free of his hold. "Let go!" She yelled out, managing to jam her elbow into his rib cage.

The man let go of her instantly, groaning as he pressed a hand to his side. Sera made use of this brief window of time and sprinted towards her bedroom where she kept the firearm her father insisted she have in the house, barely able to see anything in the dark house. The curtains were drawn, only letting a few rays of the setting sun shine through.

She ran straight into a body, her nose painfully colliding with a pointy chin. Arms reached out to steady her, and then hold her in place as blood streamed down her lips.

"Hey, calm down," another voice commanded, tightening his grip on her upper arms. "We ain't gonna hurt you, okay? So just chill out."

Sera didn't trust the man one bit, his words causing her to fight against his grip even more.

"LET GO OF ME!" Sera screamed, shoving at the man's chest.

The man easily overpowered her, turning her around and holding him against her as he slapped a hand over her mouth, cringing as he made contact with her bloody face.

"Crap, I think she's bleeding," he said to his friend across the room.

"What? How's she bleeding? She's not suppose to get hurt," the other man said, moving closer.

Sera could barely make out his face in the dim light, only seeing a rough shape of his profile and outline of his body. He was a smaller man, with a large nose and bushy eyebrows—and was completely foreign to her.

"She hit her nose on my chin," her captor said, flinching but otherwise remaining still when she tried to bite his palm. "Man, we should've brought the rope in, she's a handful."

"I can go get it," another voice called out from in the living room. This one sounded vaguely familiar, but she couldn't see him well enough to tell who he was. "You got the keys?"

"Yeah," the man holding her said, unwrapping his arm from restraining her torso in order to dig around in his back pocket.

Sera shot forward before he could retrieve his keys, spotting a straight shot to the front door. She only made it a few steps before she was painfully yanked back by her arm, the same man pulling her back to him.

"Quit running!" He barked out. "Or this is gonna get worse for you!" Sera heard the shuffling of keys as he handed them out to the man with the familiar voice. "Go get the rope before I break the 'no harming rule.'"

"You already have," Sera spat back, her tongue coated in her own blood. She thought for a second before she asked the question that had been plaguing her mind, something she wasn't sure she wanted the answer to. "Where's my dog?"

"We set him free," the man holding her said, tossing his keys to the other man, who left shortly after. "Don't worry, I'm sure he'll be just fine."

The answer was good enough for her, lifting a weight from her chest as she realized he was most definitely alive. "And what about me? What do you plan on doing with me?"

The man with bushy eyebrows breathed out a laugh, as if this whole situation was amusing to him. "You'll find out."

"Just tell me now," she demanded, her anger mixing with her fear. "I think I of all people deserve to know. Is this ransom?"