Aftertaste (Sin #2)

XLII.

I don’t know how much time passes that I sit here alone and cold when I suddenly hear shouting and rustling.

My spine stiffens and I try to sit up straighter, but the ropes dig into my skin and my teeth clench in pain. I don’t know whether to start screaming for help or be quiet because I don’t know if someone came here to save me or … do the exact opposite of saving.

I feel the panic rising inside of me, but the need to run gets the better of me and I just start screaming, “Help! Help me, please! I’m here!” I scream it on the top of my lungs, as loud as I can. I don’t know what’s going on outside, but I don’t hear any shouting anymore, although I can still hear voices.

But nothing happens. No one runs in here to untie me and that makes me start screaming even harder and my tears start running even faster in fear and desperation. God, please don’t let me die tonight.

I’m crying so hard that I almost don’t see someone standing in front of me through my blurred vision. I stop immediately. Stop crying. Stop screaming. Stop breathing. And when I see it’s actually Alexander coming towards me, I start crying even harder because of relief and happiness and disbelief that he’s actually here and it’s really him.

When he’s in front of me, he puts his hands on my cheeks. “I’m here, Gabby, baby. What did he do to you?”

I shake my head, unable to talk. “My wrists hurt so much,” I hiccup.

Alexander releases my cheeks immediately, walking behind me. “Motherfucker,” he says angrily, cutting the plastic with a knife. I pull the wrists towards me immediately, seeing the red marks around them. Alexander cuts the rope that’s tying my feet together and he’s in front of me again. I lean my head against his stomach, having no energy to even sit up straight and I just … cry. “Please … Take me out of here,” I beg him.

He easily picks me up into his arms and I cling onto him, unable to stop shaking and crying.

“It’s okay, baby. You’re safe now,” Alexander promises me, gently kissing the side of my head. He takes me out to his warm car. As I sit inside, I take another look at my wrists and cringe because I just know this will leave big marks for days. If not weeks.

Alexander sits in the car and drives off. I chance a look at him and see he’s barely keeping it together. I see he’s mad. Completely pissed-off. I look back down on my lap. I wrap my arms around myself, hiding the ugly marks on my wrists so I don’t have to look at them anymore. “How did you find me?” I ask him

He looks at me. “I tracked your phone down. My mother called me that you didn’t show up today when you were supposed to and you weren’t picking your phone up. She didn’t know we’re … working things out. I called Sam, she told me you didn’t come home, said she thought you were already at my mother’s place. And then I slowly started losing my goddamn shit.”

I let out a shaky breath, feeling myself getting warmer again and calmer. “How did you know Ryder took me?”

Alexander is quiet for a few seconds and I look at him. “I didn’t. It was a wild guess,” he says, but I know there’s something he’s not sharing with me. He sighs when he sees me staring at him. “Okay, I found out a few days ago that he’s back, although I didn’t think he’d strike again, especially not at you. But my mother’s putting his sorry ass in jail this time.”