Natalie~
Natalie was thrown violently into the floorboard of a car by Damion and was held down by one of the other men named Ivan. The putrid smell of the carpet beneath her face was revolting and turned her stomach, so she breathed through her mouth trying to evade the repulsive scent.
How could you be so stupid Natalie? Why didn't you trust your gut tonight when it screamed at you to stay inside?
Damion had been too attentive to her that night, his eyes had followed her everywhere she went and gave her the same uneasy feeling he had given her the night she had first encountered him - the night he said Pierce's name without being told.
All the signs were right there in front of you, but you were so distracted you ignored every single one of them.
She was suddenly flipped onto her back and felt cool metal jab into her neck, right beneath her jaw. Damion was towering over her with a gun jammed against her skin.
"If you make a fucking sound, I'll empty this magazine into your skull."
Natalie knew she should feel scared and maybe she would in a few minutes when her mind could fully comprehend what was happening to her, but at the moment her adrenaline had surged enough to fill her with enough rage to overpower her fear. She wasn't scared, she was pissed.
"Pierce is gonna kill you, you know that right?" she hissed up at him, unfazed by this threat or the gun pressed against her.
Damion cackled with sadistic laughter that made her skin crawl before he addressed her threat.
"Oh I've got big plans for Lockland, don't you worry about that. Why do you think you're here?"
He leaned down close to her ear as he spoke his next words.
"You're the bait sweetheart, the opening act for the big show."
His words chilled Natalie to the bone and her fiery confidence dissolved.
Seeing his words extinguish some of the fire in her eyes, put an unnerving smile across Damion's face, before he turned around to grab something. He reappeared holding a large flat board that was upholstered in the same disgusting fabric as the car's floorboard and placed it over her, enclosing her in suffocating darkness. A loud thud sounded against the board and she heard car doors slam shut, realizing that she was in some kind of false bottom in the floorboard of the car with Damion and Ivan's heavy feet trapping her inside.
Claustrophobia had never been an issue for Natalie until that very second and her body panicked and pushed against the board that remained sealed and unmoved. The upholstered box they had placed her in touched her on all sides, leaving very little room to move or breathe with the board on top of her so tight that it touched the tip of her nose. Her only saving grace was that the board didn't sit flush with the edge. There was a one inch gap that allowed some airflow and she thanked her lucky stars for that tiny bit of cool air, which kept her from a full blown panic attack.
Choking back panicked tears she retreated to the most calm and peaceful part of her mind, the part that housed every precious memory she had of Pierce.
I know Pierce isn't here, but you need him, so go find him.
Closing her eyes she searched for his voice, for the feel of his muscular arms that always made her feel so safe and cared for, and once she found it, she stayed there, letting him comfort her even in his absence.
Tell me what to do Pierce.
She quieted her thoughts and listened to his deep voice that resounded with perfect clarity in her mind.
"Stay calm even when you're scared, Nat. Battle breathe."
Her body responded immediately to her internal dialogue, taking in a deep breath and holding it there before pushing it out.
When he thought you might get taken in the store he asked you to tell him everything you could about the men who were after you. Every detail. Focus through your fear and do that now.
Natalie started to catalog and organize every detail of her captors and the car ride to wherever they were taking her. She tried to quiet her mind and listen to their conversation and sounds around her, hoping she could find some kind of clue as to where they were going.
The minutes felt like hours, and the car hadn't seemed to jostle her much which meant they were traveling at a relatively constant speed, most likely on a highway.
She took notice when the car started slowing, hearing the brakes whine and screech as the car came to a slow stop or at least a slow roll. With her mind racing and her heart rate picking up, she readied herself to be removed from her tomb.
Sounds started echoing around the outside of the car - voices and cars honking. The loud bark of a dog near the car door made her jump, but helped her slowly piece together where they were.
The word "Tijuana" spilled from the driver's mouth, confirming what Natalie had already figured out.
We're at the border. They are taking me across the border.
One of the car doors opened near her feet, making the voices sound closer. The conversation happening around her wasn't in English, but there was a small dancing light from a flashlight that dashed and darted through the crack of the floor board.
Please check the floor. Please see me.
Like an answered prayer she felt the board being lifted off of her with a bright light shining in her face, blinding her against the harsh glare. She raised her hand to shield her eyes and tried to sit up, but the thick sole of a boot pushed her back down.
"Please help me!" she screamed at the border security guard who was shining his light directly on her.
As her eyes adjusted, she watched in horror as Damion unlatched the expensive watch from his wrist and handed it to the border guard, who whispered something in Damion's ear before turning his light off. The guard ignored her desperate pleas and turned his head as if he'd never seen her, slapping his hand on the top of the car and yelling that it was clear to cross.
No, no, no, no.
Damion's malicious smile was the last thing she saw before the lid to the floorboard was replaced over her and the car started moving again.
The tough outer shell that she had created and maintained had started to crack as she slowly realized that she was being taken into another country against her will and that the authorities didn't give a damn. That border guard valued a ridiculous watch over her life and the second the board was replaced over her shaking body, she allowed herself to cry. She sobbed terrified tears knowing that Damion was above the law and that her chances of escaping or rendering help from anyone were very slim. Then there was Pierce. Her heart was battling itself unsure what to hope and pray for. She knew that Pierce would come for her and was certain that he would find her, but she also knew he was most likely walking into a trap, and that in itself tore a hole in her already breaking heart.
Warm tears rolled down the sides of her cheeks and into her hair and she cried until she felt like she didn't have any tears left.
When the car finally rolled to another stop she held her breath and listened as all of the car doors started opening around her. This was it. They had reached their destination and were about to take her out of the car. She readied herself to take in every detail of her surroundings and to look for any opportunity to escape. Thankfully she had seen the clock when she sat up at the border and made a mental note to do everything in her power to catch a glance of it again.
The board was lifted from her and the evening air kissed her tear stained cheeks, making her feel like she could finally breathe again.
Damion forcefully pulled her out of the car backwards, restraining her arms easily and setting her on her feet.
Pivoting her head around she could only see densely wooded area with one small cabin and nothing else. It was too dark to see much, but she tried any way, desperate to find some sort of clue that would reveal where she was.
"We're going to play a little game." Damion hissed in her ear.
He manipulated her arms and slid some sort of weighted vest around her, securing it with zip ties around her torso in various places.
"Is this a b..bomb?" she asked with wide eyes and her insides in knots.
Damion laughed at her question before he answered.
"No, but I wish I would have thought of that. We could have blown you up and made Lockland come pick up all the tiny pieces."
His comment sucked the air from her lungs and made her light headed, causing her knees to buckle. Damion held her up by the vest she was now wearing and let out a laugh that churned her stomach as he righted her on her feet.
After securing her hands with zip ties in front of her, he yanked her by the shoulder of the vest, pulling it up with such force it hit her chin as he dragged her over in front of a second car that was pulling up with headlights shining directly at her.
She watched as a tall man climbed out of the car, buttoning his shirt like he had just changed clothes. Natalie recognized his face from the pictures on the table at Knight, but his hair was cut shorter and he looked twice as evil in person.
The man walked over to her with a sly grin on his face that made her want to vomit.
"Well, well, well." The man said, buttoning the cuffs of this shirt.
"Lockland didn't do too bad for himself, now did he boys? You are a vision." He reached up to run the back of his knuckles along her cheek, but she jerked her head away, evading his touch and glaring at him with more hatred that she had ever felt. She knew who the man was. It was Estrada, in the flesh, right in front of her. The man who wanted Pierce dead and was doing everything within his power to make that happen.
"Still has a little fight in her, I see." he laughed, causing the men around him to chuckle along with him.
"You're going to need that fighting spirit in just a second." he said coldly in her ear.
Now that all of the men had surrounded her, she took the opportunity to take a headcount. One, two, three, four men. Five total counting Estrada.
"Ready?" Damion asked.
Estrada nodded before he answered.
"Release her."
Wait what? Release me, as in let me go?
Damion shoved her hard, letting go of the vest, sending her stumbling backwards as she tried to stay upright on her bare feet.
She eyed the men who surrounded her. They were just standing there staring, completely unfazed and unmoved with weapons at their sides.
Her first instinct was to turn and run, but it couldn't be that easy could it?
Are these men going to shoot me in the back as soon as I turn around?
She stood there, frozen, calculating her options and trying to figure out the best plan of action when Estrada's voice sounded over all of the noise within her head.
"Did Lockland ever tell you how he killed my nephew?"
She was too terrified to respond.
"He hunted Mario down in the woods...like a wild animal. Stalked him like a predator and attacked him from behind before snapping his neck. All on camera...all for me to see."
Natalie's chest started pumping wildly as she pieced together what he was saying and started making the connections on her own.
"You're familiar with the phrase - an eye for an eye?" Estrada said as he circled her.
"Now run," he snarled in her ear.
***************************************
Don't forget to vote and comment! I want to hear all of your thoughts, theories, and opinions!