**Trigger Warning: Contains violence against the main character by her partner. It isn't anything that is graphic and is the usual for a Kamen Rider (getting hit and punched). However, since it is abuse I decided to put the warning here. Please skip this chapter if you can't handle that and it triggers you. Thank you**
-Chapter 27: Runaway If You Can
I step out of Hiden Intelligence's building as the wind blows. Today is a nice day. It is the perfect day to have off, but I don't have it off. Nope, Horobi tasked me with gathering more intel for him to use against everyone else in the human world. Wonderful.
"Juli."
I look over, my heart stopping. "You..."
How did he know where to look? Then again, it is obvious. It is my job to come to Hiden Intelligence and work with them on things.
Allen moves towards me, walking quickly. "You ran away without saying goodbye, Juli," he says, stopping in front of me. "If you don't come with me, I'll make your life miserable. Do you understand?" He holds out his hand, holding it out to me.
I look down, staring at his smooth hand. "I don't want to go with you, Allen. I'm my own person now," I reply, shaking my head.
He takes my hand, pulling me towards him. "You're coming with me whether you like it or not," he spits out, sounding mad.
His face looks so calm and eerie. What is going to happen to me now? I need to be at Daybreak in the next hour or else Horobi is going to get mad at me for not showing up.
"Allen, please..." I don't want to go with him.
"I'm not giving you a choice, Juli. You're not leaving me again." He turns, pulling on my hand. "The car is waiting for us to get in and we're going to head out on a trip together. You know, like we used to?"
"Let me go," I say, keeping my voice down. "Allen...please..."
He pulls me towards the car, dragging me. He stops at it and he opens the passenger side door, holding it for me. I have to get in or else right now. He's not giving me a choice in this matter.
He releases my arm. "Well?"
"I'll get in, but you're not going to take me anywhere to fix my face," I state, looking him in the eyes. "I don't want to change it."
"Then get in so we can go. You're going to enjoy the view where we go and it won't be a plastic surgery clinic. Not like they can come up with a plan to fix what you've done to your face in a hurry."
I get into the car, ducking my head, and he shuts the door. He moves around the front, going up to his side of the car. I'm on the left side and he's on the right side. Great.
He opens the door and ducks, getting into the car. He closes his door and turns to me, looking me over. He is wanting me to do my seatbelt now.
"Do I need to do it or do you have this covered?" he asks me.
"I have it." I look down and grab my seatbelt, buckling it quickly. I want to get this over with and hurry up to where he wants me to go. I knew that I wouldn't be able to last long in Daybreak Town with Horobi and Jin.
I look up as he locks the doors. He looks ahead, staring out the windshield, and puts his hands on the wheel. He put his seatbelt on fast.
"I don't know why you decided to run away over a tiny fight," he says, sounding upset. "But it is whatever it is. You didn't mean to run away, right? You wouldn't leave me over something like that. I get me ending your pregnancies, but that? No, you wouldn't. No, not ever."
I look out the window, staring at my reflection. I wanted to run because I wanted to run. I ended up with Horobi because I wanted to. There isn't an explanation about why I ended up thinking of going to him, but I did.
"Did you leave me over another guy? Did he talk you into leaving me?" Allen asks me. "Is that what is going on?"
I close my eyes. "It wasn't a guy that made me leave you. I was wrong to have tried leaving you again." I'm going to have to do what he wants me to do. "I didn't mean to go."
I'm never going to see Horobi again at this point. I'm going to be stuck with Allen for the longest time because of how weak I am. He's going to make me be his wife again and change my face back to how it used to be or similar to how it was.
"I knew that you didn't want to truly leave me. You love me so much and you couldn't think of leaving me when your mind is clear. You thought about it when you were upset and I get that," he says. I don't care if he is driving, I don't want to see everything go by.
How can he think that I wouldn't want to leave him? He's a nightmare to be around. He's horrible to me every single day of my life when we're together. If we're apart, things are good. Why couldn't I have been born without her face?
"I missed you while you were gone. Did you think about things properly? I won't be mean again, I promise. I can change." He won't change.
I open my eyes and turn my head, looking at him. "I thought about things." I don't want to keep talking about this.
"Good." He looks at me. "Good, girl."
He looks back at the road and he turns, taking a left. I wonder where we're going. I don't want to be isolated with him.
"You'll see. Please, just sleep for now."
"A-alright." I have no choice, do I? Sleeping is better than talking to him or seeing his face.
~.~
Allen pulls on my wrist, dragging me towards the waters. We're at some lake or something. It seems to be man made, but it is beautiful looking. The water is glittering from the sunlight and it looks beautiful on the dark water.
"Isn't this beautiful, Juli? I wish we could have come to see this together when we first got together. Maybe this would have blessed our humble beginnings due to its beauty," Allen tells me, stopping.
I look at him, my legs trembling. "What about her? Your first wife? Did you get to see things like this with her?" I question, raising my voice.
He turns his head, looking at me. "Are you wondering about that? I love you, Juli. Elise is dead and gone. You know that means that she won't come back, Juli."
He pulled the plug on her once he knew he could just get a new model who could do things on their own. Elise wasn't ever going to wake up, so he had no choice. However, it is sick that he waited until he found me to do so.
"But you loved her so much that you left her the moment you found me. You didn't have her soul anymore and you couldn't live with that! So, you married me despite me not being even close to her spirit wise!"
If I was close to being Elise, I wouldn't have endured endless amount of abuse. Of course, none of that is her fault. She, from what I know, was a good person. She didn't have to deal with this version of her husband. When he was with her, he was the perfect man.
"But you can become similar to her. You have a stubborn personality is all. If you become like her, you will be able to coexist with me without angering me."
I shake my head. "You know I can't be anything like her. I changed my face just to put an end to it."
"You didn't mean to change your face at all, Juli. You didn't know what to do without me being at your side. That's all that happened. You didn't know what to do." He looks at me, eyes watering. "You love me."
He moves closer to me and he places his free hand on my face, keeping his other one on my wrist. He leans in, closing his eyes. He's going to do this out here? What if someone sees us?
I close my eyes. I'm going to be stuck like this with him for the rest of my life. I won't be Mari much longer.
"It is a shame that someone like you can touch someone like her."
I open my eyes as Allen pulls back, eyes going behind me. What is going on? Did someone just save me? An angel?
"I know you...she drew you." Allen's face changes, turning into hatred. "And she told me she wasn't seeing someone else." Horobi is here? He came all the way out here to come and save me? Why?
I turn my head a bit and look him in the eyes. "Go!" I shout.
He doesn't need to help me. I can deal with being Allen's wife once again. I'll leave the rest of my life out miserably just like his mom did and his sister!
"I see that you're manipulating her view on things once again. How pathetic." Horobi steps forward and Allen pulls me closer to him, forcing me into his chest. "Is that how you're going to be? Should I be forceful in taking her from you?"
Forceful? He's going to force Allen to hand me over? I doubt anyone can change Allen's mind. He thinks he owns me because of a face.
"Juli is mine."
"I believe that to be wrong," Horobi states. "Mari belongs to me and I believe that you say her legal name." He shouldn't say that. He's making my heart race.
Allen looks down at me and I close my eyes, swallowing hard. This isn't going to end well for me, right? He's not happy with how this is going.
"I brought my wife here to see the beautiful dark blue water and you show up. You should have stayed in her thoughts and notebook instead. You have no right to steal someone's wife from them."
"Ex-wife," Horobi says, correcting him. "I believe that you will come to find that she is indeed mine. That bracelet proves that she is mine." Bracelet? Wait...did he put a tracker on me just to find me?
Allen lifts up my arm and I open my eyes, eyes going to the black and purple bracelet that Horobi made me. The silver heart charm...it has the tracker in it, right? I thought it was a simple and innocent charm.
"Take it off, Juli."
"But..." I like it. It's from Horobi and it is the only nice thing he has done for me.
"Remove it now or else."
"She's my girlfriend, not yours." What? Did he just seriously claim that? "I would appreciate it if you just move on."
Allen puts my arm down and he pushes me back, making me stumble. What is he doing to me in front of Horobi? How could he do this right now?
"Allen..." I hope he doesn't try killing me in front of Horobi.
He points at me, brows angry looking. "You're going to end your relationship with him and come home with me. You shouldn't lie to me about being with another man. I know you got with him while you didn't know who you were, but I am demanding that you end it."
My eyes are burning now. Great! Just great!
"No response? You need to end it or else!" He shakes me, eyes burning a hole into my heart. "You have no room in your heart to love this man who looks like he doesn't have his life together." Oh, Horobi does have his life together.
"If you keep threatening her, I'll be forced to threaten your life in return," Horobi states and I turn a bit, looking at him. He looks the same as usual. He is way more breathtaking out here in the sun than indoors.
"You want her? Well, you're never going to be the man she wants."
I feel something hit me and I fall, landing on my butt. My cheeks burns, pulsating from where his fist connected with my face at. Did he seriously have to do that in front of Horobi? Why is he being so violent in front of someone now?
Allen steps forward and picks me up, eyes shaking madly. "You deserve everything you get."
He hits me again, fist hitting me in the stomach and he shoves me back. He turns around and wipes his face with his hands, sighing heavily. He's not sure about what he should do now.
I cough, placing a hand on my throbbing stomach. "I'm okay," I say, my voice low. "I'm going to be okay." I need to make myself know that I'm okay. I'm not going to die here.
"Mari, are you alright?" Horobi asks and I look up as he touches my head gently with his hand. He's by my side now? He's quick.
"You're just going to take my wife from me? I will end you." I look over at Allen as he turns to us, looking mad.
Horobi removes his hand and he pulls out something. No...that isn't a something. Don't tell me...
"I will fight you if you come towards her right now." Horobi points his blade at Allen. "And I won't repeat myself again on her being mine. You are going to listen to me and let me have her now."
"Juli, you can decide what you want to do in this case." He's changing his tune because of the katana. "His argument has been pretty...convincing." More like he doesn't want his head on the ground in front of Horobi's feet.
I stand up, making sure not to bump into Horobi's katana. "I want to be with him." I look at Horobi. I rather be with Horobi than be with Allen ever again.
Horobi hooks an arm around me and pulls me into him with his free arm. "She made her choice. Respect it from now."
I look over at Allen as he undos his tie, looking pissed off. "Fine, take her. I'll get her back when she decides you're not worth being with." He moves forward, going around me and Horobi. "She's your problem for now. She's not a good listener by the way and she'll just piss you off."
"I can deal with her. Trust me."
I close my eyes and lean against Horobi's body. I am so relieved and tired. That was too scary to handle. Also, my face hurts a lot right now. I'm probably going to have a huge bruise there now. Allen works out a lot in his free time when he's not busy dealing with other things.
"Mari."
"I..." I need to calm down. "Thanks..."
"I'll help you back. Good job for speaking up for yourself. Take one step at a time with this," Horobi says, praising me. It isn't like I did that much for myself. He did the hard stuff since he is actually pretty threatening.
He's just really wanting Abyss to himself, huh?