The woman peers at me, frowning. "Who are you?"
And those three words are all it takes to practically shatter me to pieces. "You don't... but Mum, it's me. Grace."
She shakes her head, biting her ruby red lips. "No. No, I have four children. Not five. I have four." She shakes her head again. "Right, Donald?"
Amon's father grips her shoulder tightly. "Right, sweetheart. How about you go check on the quads, and I'll talk to this young lady, okay?"
Mum nods, still looking like a confused five year old as she walks gracefully outside. She's just like I remember her- wrinkles from laughing and smiling, full lips, forest green eyes, playful smirk, slim piano-playing fingers.
Donald, Amon's father,steps forward, closing the hall door gently, a horrible mean look on his withered face. "Amon." Donald says darkly, eyeing me. "What have you done?"
"I was...," Amon looks at me. "In the area, is all."
Donald nods. "So you didn't bring her," He shoots me a look of disgust. "Here on purpose?"
"Dad." He hisses angrily. "Don't do this. Not to me. Not now."
"Amon, you knew this...thing about Lea. You knew it all. Yet you brought her into our home! Into her life again!" Donald says in a flat tone.
"Dad, don't be stupid. Grac-,"
"Are you still working for Greyson?" Donald interrupts, running a hand over his mantle piece. It's then I realise the other children, Cat and Patrick, are no longer in the room. It's silent.
I feel like I'm in some bad Mafia movie. I can tell there is something that Amon, the Donald knows that they aren't telling me. They know why Mum doesn't recognise me. I can tell. I sink into the leather sofa, just as Amon does. Donald pours himself a glass of brandy from a crystal bottle.
"Dad." Amon says in a warning tone.
"Answer the question, Amon."
Amon grunts in an annoyed tone, crossing his legs in front of him as he leans back on the couch. "Yes."
Donald scowls. "I see." He sips his drink. "And Greyson brought you here, correct?"
Amon remains silent, glaring at the floor like a five year old on time out.
I stare ahead of me. Out the kitchen window, I can see my Mother paying with four black-headed children, three boys and a girl. They all resemble her- resemble me. How does she not see it? How does she not recognise me? I'm her daughter!
The blinds flip shut on the image, and I look up to see Donald securing them tightly, glaring at me like I've just robbed a bank.
It's silent, until the hall door bangs open, and Cat sticks her head in. "They're here."
Donald grins toothily and I shiver as a feeling of dread washes over me. Amon jumps to his feet. "Dad, you don't know whaty you're doing!" He yells, hauling me off the couch and into his arms protectivly. "Stop this, call them off."
"You know I can't do that, Amon!" Donald yells. "It's what they want! It's Martain Johnson's fault! He did this, not me!" His dark eyes lock with mine. "You, Grace Johnson, have made a grave mistake, coming here."
The hall door bursts open and three men, all weilding guns, barrell their way into the room. The sound of the gun cocking fills the air. The leader gestures to Amon. "Hand us the girl."
Amon shifts me behind him. "No." He turns to his father. "Dad, don't do this. It's not her fault! It's not her fault!"
Donald chuckles like a sadistic murderer. "Someone has to take the blame. Someone has to pay the debt."
Shots are fired, my hearts racing as they grab me. Amon, wheres Amon? I can't see him anymore. They're gripping my arms so tightly, they are going numb. I can't struggle because the gun is pushed into the side of my head, digging into my skin.
"No!" I scream, finding my voice. "Don't do this!" I kick and writh in their grip.
I fall to the ground, my shoulder landing on the curb painfully. I try to crawl away, by their holding me by my leg, pulling me along the cement. "AMON!" I scream. "AMON!"
Donald is watching us from the window, his eyes dark and pittyless. I don't understand whats happening. I can't move.
"Stop struggling, you stupid girl." One of them spits, jamming his knee into my ribs.
The air washes from my lungs as I'm hauled, feet first into a black van. It's dark, I can't see anything, but I can here them moving about. They let me go and I fall painfully onto the metal flooring.
A light flickers on to my right. A man in a suit, smoking a large cigar, smiles at me. His teeth a blackened with decay and I can smell his breath from across the truck. It starts up under me, and the truck moves, rumbling at some insane speed away from Donald's house.
"Well, 'ello poppet." The man chuckles. He's american. Definatly American.
My stomach lurches as his men start to tug at my clothes and my hair. They laugh and hoot, slapping eachother out of the road so they can have a turn. They don't hurt me, they just stroke my skin with their twisted calloused fingers.
"What do you want with me?" I ask queitly.
The man chuckles again. "Always the same question, 'in it?" He mutters darkly, tapping the ashes off the cigar onto the floor. He stares at me for a moment. "But you really don't know, do you Poppet?"
I shake my head as my arms, which are holding me up, give out and I find myself lying on the ground of the truck, feeling like I'm dying.
"Oh, dear me." He chuckles again, the same flat, humourless sound. Like nails on a chalk board. "Didn' Daddy tell you of 'is little ... debt? Surly he mentioned to you, that you went for the high-high price of $20 Million Dollars. Just enough, 'ey. After Lea escaped us, we needed new payment, see. It took awhile to track you down, love."
I shook my head. "No."
He smiled toothily again. "Yes. Isn't it great? You get to spend eternity wif me."
I gag slightly as he blows the sweet smelling smoke in my direction. "I'm gonna be sick." I mumble.
He clicks his fingers and a bowl is placed under my chin as I empty my lunch into it.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Greyson's POV
"He shoots, he scores!" Benny yells happily, doing a strange little dance around the carpark, the basketball bouncing away from him.
I stare up at him and roll my eyes. "I don't see how you can be so happy, considering you just scored a point in a game against no one."
Benny sticks his tongue out at me. "Whatever, Greyson. Stop moping around, have some fun." He races down the carpark after the orange, nearly flat basket ball.
"I'm not moping!" I protest, crossing my legs under me ans taking a gulp of my beer.
"Pfft." Benny scoffs. "She left two hours ago, and you've been silent and glum ever since." He shakes his head, which is weird given his short crew-cut hair. "She is beautiful though." He grins at me, shooting the basketball again for the large, empty dumpster that has become his hoop.
"Beautiful is an understatment." I reply cooly, rolling my long pants up as the sun sets around me. "Where was Amon going anyway?
Benny laughs. "Changing the subject hey?" He wiggles his eyebrow, taking another shot at the dumpster. He misses by miles, the ball hitting the brick wall and rolling lazily to his feet. "To see his Dad, I think. He lives around here."
I nearly choke on my beer, my mind going into a flurry, my heart speeding up. "What?!"
Benny frowns, shooting the ball again. I watch as he flicks his wrist too much and doesn't extend his tanned arm high enough. "What's wrong with that?"
"Shit. Shit, Shit!" I scramble to my feet and race back inside the motel room. I pull a thin shirt over my head, change into a pair of cut off jeans and my boots. I cock my gun, sliding it into the waist band of my shorts, the knife in my sock.
"What? What's happened?" Benny asks anxiously as he practically trips into the room.
I fling my silver nokia at him, not even looking up as I dig through my bag, pulling out weponds, fake ID's and all sorts of stuff. "Call Amon. Now." If I am correct, and what I think has happened, has happened, we're all screwed. And Grace is in danger.
Benny shruges and types in the number, putting it on speaker phone.
It rings. Once. Twice. Three times.
"They have her." Amon's voice yells into the phone before it's disconnected.
Damn it, damn it all to hell.
I scramble over the bed I never got to sleep in, chucking a shirt at Benny. "Put it on. Go get the car." He nods, dropping my phone on the bed, as pale and worried as I am.
I take all our phones, both our iPods, even Graces, and put them in a bin. I pile in clothes, shoes, socks, anything we've worn anywhere but here or that someone's seen us in. I throw in pictures of family and eventually, my whole bag, along with anything else I find.
Benny beeps the horn and I quickly check my pockets for everything Benny and I need. I grab the bin and haul it into the car park. I pour a tiny amount of kerocean over the top and light it on fire. Getting in the car, Benny looks are me skepitcally as I pass him a knife and a gun. "Drive."
Out on the main highway, Benny turns to me. "Where too?"
I cough loudly, turning up the music so I'm not allowed to think too much. "Brisbane. Go."
Please be alright, Grace. We're coming for you.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Sorry for the late upload. Any thoughts on this chapter?
Can anyone guess what's happening with Grace's mum, Lea?
I know what your thinking... "But didn't Amon, Benny and Greyson kidnap Grace already?"
Answer: Yes and No. Can you work out what's happening?
Love Kate :P