It's not long before I regain consciousness. I wake up to the sound of sirens and frantic voices. I am in the back of a car, with men sitting on either side of me. I wriggle around. My hands and legs are bound together. Again.
"Hey, she's up!" a man's voice says. I recognize the voice, too. It's Beardie, one of the 'gang' members I had an encounter with, and now Haley's recruit.
I look around. Haley is frantically driving the car, and another man sits in the passenger seat. He turns his head to the side, and I instantly know who it is. His deep blue eyes reflect off the moon.
My phone then buzzes, and I pray that the burly men beside me don't notice. Instinct tells me it's Thomas wanting to know where I'm at. I can't believe I'm saying this, but thank God for my previous encounter with Haley, otherwise Thomas wouldn't constantly wonder about me when I'm gone so long. At least rescue, if possible, will be quicker.
The car suddenly comes to a screeching halt. Haley yells at Ky. I hadn't been paying attention to the current conversation.
"Can you two argue at a better time? Pretty sure the cops will be on our trail soon!" Beardie yells.
"Shut up!" Haley yells. "I know what I'm doing. And the cops aren't going to catch us."
"You sure about that?" the man to my left asks. "We're all over the news. Well, you are anyway."
"Exactly. I am," Haley says, then smirks.
"I don't get it," Beardie says.
"She's going to make one us drive," Ky interjects, his voice laced with annoyance.
"Ohhh," the men say in unison.
"Why are you doing this, Haley? Huh?" I ask.
Haley glances at me, a fiery passion of evil burning in her eyes. But yet, she still managed to stay calm.
"Because I'm with some guy you liked in high school?" I press, desperate to smack some sense into her.
She looks at me in a deranged manner. "Some guy?! Oh, dear. That's where you've made a mistake. At least I can appreciate Thomas for what he really is. My soulmate."
Even the brute men sitting beside me look a little creeped out.
I decide not to answer. Haley is seriously messed up in the head.
"Kevin, you are driving. I'm going to be in the passenger seat to tell you where to go. And Ky will be in the back with, it," she gestures to me with a disgusted face. "And the other guy."
They nod, and Haley, Ky, and Beardie, who I now know is named 'Kevin', get out of the car. They switch seats and Ky is awkwardly sitting beside me. I ignore conversation. However, if I were to make any, it'd be alone and in an attempt to convince him to let me go.
We begin driving once again, and my phone buzzes for the second time. Ky glances at my pocket. He reaches down and pulls out my phone. He turns it on and the screen buzzes to life. I can catch a glimpse of the screen, and I think it says 'Thomas'. He tosses it to the side.
"You are going to love your new stay, Brookie," Haley says, looking at me.
"I highly doubt that," I reply, trying to keep calm.
"Come on. No need to be sour," she says, smiling.
"I hate you."
"I get that a lot, thank you," Haley replies, then faces forward. "Someone shut her up."
The other guy beside me grabs a cloth and brings it up to my mouth. I fight back, not allowing him to proceed. "A little help?" he says, glancing at Ky, who is watching the event unfold.
"Right," Ky replies, then firmly puts his hands on my shoulders so I can't move.
The man successfully places the cloth around my mouth, and the only sounds I can make now are muffled.
I give up struggling and stare up at the car roof. Then, the same man grabs my hair and yanks me up in a seated position. Pain screams throughout me, and it feels as if my scalp is coated in lava.
Finally, after what feels like forever, the car stops and Beardie and Haley get out. "Jeff, Ky, get her and bring her in," Haley orders. Ky and Jeff, the guy who was sitting beside me, grab me by my shoulders and pull me out of the car. They cut the rope that bound my legs together. I take note of this. I nearly fall to the ground but eventually manage to stay up.
They take me into a worn out shack, much like the one I was at before, but this one looks slightly smaller. They sit me down in the chair and them stand in the corner of the room. Haley circles me, like a lion watching its prey.
"Ready to die?" she asks calmly.
I ignore her, and she walks over to me. With a swift movement, she yanks the cloth out of my mouth, and her sharp nails pierce my skin. I gasp in pain, and my faces begins to heat up. Next thing I know, blood drips from my cheek. She takes her index finger and wipes a bit of blood away. She examines it and then wipes it on her dress. What is wrong with her?
"Now I can finally get rid of you," Haley says, smiling deviously.
She pulls out a knife, sharp and slender. "You know what I'm gonna do with this knife?" she asks me.
"What?" I ask, playing along.
"I'm gonna stab you right in the heart with it. Fun, huh?"
I ignore her, and instead, get to my feet and body slam her into the ground. She lands on the ground with a thud. The knife clatters to the other side of the room. I dive for it, but someone else has already gotten to it.
I look up, and Ky is holding the weapon. "Ky, do the sensible thing and hand me the knife!" I hear Haley screech.
"Don't," I mumble.
Ky looks between the both of us, a flurry of confusion on his face.
"KY! GIVE ME THE DAMN KNIFE!" Haley yells.
Ky sighs, his mind made up. He looks at me, sorrow hidden behind his blue eyes. No, I think. He is actually going to kill me. He takes a step towards me, the knife raised in his hand. I hear Haley laugh. I squeeze my eyes shut, preparing myself for the piercing pain of the knife.
I think of my life. I think of Thomas. I think of my dad and brother. I think of Rachel. I think of Evan. I really am going to die this time. A tear slips down my cheek as I wait for my death.
...
...
But it never comes. Instead, I feel a whoosh of air above me, and hear knife through flesh. Gurgling sounds erupt. And they aren't mine. I open my eyes. What I see shocks me. Haley is convulsing on the floor, a knife pierced through her chest. Her body is surrounded by blood.
I look up, and Ky is staring at her, no regret on his face whatsoever. Jeff is staring at the both of them, shocked and scared. He almost runs off, but Ky runs over and pins him to the ground, knocking Jeff unconscious.
I get up, and walk over to Haley. It's a ghastly sight. Her eyes are bulging and her face is slowly losing its color. Then, her movements slow and eventually become still. She's dead.
I look at Ky, who is getting up himself. "You didn't kill me?" I ask.
"I wouldn't," he says.
"But why?"
"Because, I-"
Next thing I know, the door is kicked in and the shack is being invaded by police officers. They hold up their guns, and glance at Haley, who is dead on the floor.
Thomas runs in after them, and relief washes over his face when he sees me. He pulls me into a hug.
The police grab Ky. I glance at Ky, who merely smiles at me as he is being escorted out of the shack.
"I'm so glad you're okay," Thomas weeps, tears filling his eyes.
I wipe away his tears and we continue hugging. But a thought kept crossing my mind. This was going to take a lot of explaining to the police. I just know it.