Kidnapped

The Chase Begins (Revised)

Crippling pain down my spine. God, my head hurt. My face was cold against the concrete floor.

The basement.

Andrew.

"Skip." My own voice drilled holes into my skull. Silence.

"Skip!" I said again, louder this time. No answer. My volatile temper flared and I cursed him.

The second we take care of Andrew, I'm going to kill you, Skip.

For a while, I couldn't move without sending another debilitating wave of pain throughout my body. I spent an eternity sprawled out on the cold floor, incapable of even opening my eyes. This gave me plenty of time to work up a good rage for my son. Even though he spilled our dirty little secret to the slut, I hadn't planned to kill him. Not yet, anyway. For years, I hoped it wouldn't come to this, that he would finally grow into a man. I gave that little bastard endless opportunities and forgave him of all his weakness every time he screwed up. But this was too much. I'd have to get a new heir to my legacy, which wouldn't be hard considering my line of work. The little slut would just have an extended stay and motherhood duties.

Finally, the pain subsided. I stood. I gripped the table beside me for balance and the girl came back to memory. I lick my lips at the thought of her strapped to my table. Oh, how I would've loved to break that one. She was a fighter. Maybe that's what had been the deciding factor for my son. She was so- courageous. A deplorable trait for a girl like her to have, but that must have been it.

I'll make her the mother of my next son.

"Skip!" I yelled. It felt like a bowling ball crashed into my head and my knees buckled beneath me. The table held my weight. I growled.

That boy is going to pay for this. I should've killed him the night we butchered his mother.

I scanned the room and found Skip's crumpled form. His empty head was laying in a pool of his own blood. That idiot was dead. I slumped against the table and swore until my headache was gone. I couldn't believe that I had to spend my time and energy cleaning his mess up. That would take more time than it was worth. I had more pressing issues to attend to anyway.

Andrew. Right. He was gone.

Everything was at stake.

"More trouble than you're worth, you ungrateful bastard," I hissed through my teeth. I hauled myself away from the table and picked Skips dead body up by the shoulders. "The dogs haven't been fed today. Might as well give them a treat."

I stumbled through the house, dragging Skip with me, and kicked open the back door. The dogs howled when I approached the shed. I called out to them and their frenzied cries took on a new level of desperation. They knew what daddy's visits meant, and they were hungry.

Inside the cage, the dogs hopped over each other wildly. I unlocked the cage and wrestled Skip inside. The second his body hit the floor they attacked. I watched his muscles rip from the bones for a moment before remembering I had someone to kill.

Back in the house, I wasted no more time with clean up. That could wait. Andrew couldn't. The more time I took at the house was more time he could take getting away. I wasn't even sure how much of a head start he already had on me.

I stuffed my gun into my waistband. I snatched up one of Andrew's shirts from his room and went back out to the dogs. Like piranhas, they had already stripped Skip down to his bones. A few entrails remained, but by the time I opened the cage they were gone.

"Hounds!" I barked. The pack turned to me attentively and I repeated my command. Two old bloodhounds stepped to the front of the cage. The three of us stepped outside and they sat side by side obediently, patiently waiting for my direction.

"Find." I threw the shirt on in the ground and they buried their noses in it.

Once they found his trail, I ran to follow them. The stupid kid ran right out onto the main road. I let the dogs run and went back for the van.

Let's see you get away from me now!

Ͻd