-ellen-
I stepped into my light blue dress and smiled at the mirror. One of the items on my bucket list was "have a fancy dinner" and that's what we were about to do.
Noah had found this sophisticated place in one of Iowa's cities called "Chez Belle", which apparently translated into "among the beautiful"- according to Logan, anyway.
I had gotten giddy with the excitement of dressing up and putting on a pretty face, and I found myself wishing that I had a best friend to share it with. I mean, Noah wasn't exactly happy that he had to change out of his sweats, and it took a lot of pleading before Logan put on a pair of skinny khaki pants. The both of them insisted on wearing sneakers, so I gave up and decided to go in sneakers too.
I slipped my favorite gold ring onto my pinkie. I had been wearing it more frequently, for a reason unknown to me.
"Let's go, boys. We're walking," I said with a grin as I joined them in the living room.
"What?" Logan sprang up from his seat. "That's crazy, Ellen. It's like, seven and pitch dark outside."
"So?" I questioned. "It's only a couple blocks away, I think. Man up, you two."
Noah groaned and put his phone into his pocket. He was wearing a plaid button-up and some skinny jeans, and he didn't look that bad. Neither did Logan, who was in a sweater and some khakis.
"You look like a snobby rich boy," I said with a chuckle in his ear. "It works on you."
Logan rolled his eyes and ruffled up my hair a bit.
"Aw, come on!" I shrieked, frantically trying to fix it. "This took me ages!"
"Man up, Ellen," Logan called over his shoulder as he headed out the door. I rolled my eyes in response and followed him into the chilly night.
The wind was harsh and sharp, nipping at my nose and piercing my skin like daggers. Within three steps, I was shivering.
"This was maybe a bad idea," I murmured as we walked down the sidewalk. We seemed to be in the heart of the city- there were tall buildings and traffic surrounding us on all sides. Every now and then, you'd catch snippets of a conversation, which was sometimes interesting.
"Are we almost there?" I whined.
Noah raised his eyebrows. "Who needs to 'man up' now, hmm?"
"Well, you guys both have sleeves!" I cried. "I'm sleeveless! And I don't have pants, either!"
The boys laughed and kept walking, ignoring my obvious turmoil. "You guys are terrible!" I yelled. "Awful demons, go back to the firey depths of hell from which you spawned!"
"Ellen, shut up," Noah said with a freaked-out glance around us. "People are starting to stare."
"People are starting to stare," I mocked in a high-pitched voice.
Maybe I wouldn't have been so rude to them if I knew what would happen in the following hours.
• • •
We entered the restaurant and a lady with thick lipstick and a pearl necklace swooped down on us. "Bonjour!" she crowed. We gave meek waves and she led us to a booth near the back.
The restaurant certainly was classy. I heard smooth piano music from a far corner, and I could smell food. More specifically, delicious, divine, scrumptious food. The entire place was dimly lit, which sort of made me uncomfortable for a reason I couldn't place. Under every other noise, you could hear the low hum of people chattering amongst themselves.
"Here are your menus," the lady said in a rich, buttery voice. "I'm Amandine, and I'll be your server tonight."
We smiled at Amandine. She was a thin woman, probably in her twenties or early thirties. I could sense Noah melting into a puddle beside me.
"Can I get you beverages to start off?" she asked gently.
"Yeah, I'll get a lemonade," I said with a nod.
"Can I have a... um... a coke, please?" Logan asked. His polite request completely contrasted my harsh demand.
"I think I'm in the mood for a pepsi," Noah said with a winning smile. "Thanks, Amandine."
Amandine grinned back. "Ah, no trouble. Très fantastique!"
Then she fluttered away like some sort of butterfly. We sat and twiddled our thumbs for a few moments. I started people-watching; it was kind of awkward staring at people while they were eating. I made up a game where I stared intensely at a certain person and timed how long it took for them to notice. Some of them never did.
"So, how about that Amandine lady?" Noah asked with a smirk. I rolled my eyes and whacked him on the shoulder.
"Noah, you perv!" I laughed. He wiggled his eyebrows in response.
"So, let's look at the menu," Logan said loudly.
I opened up the menu and looked inside. To my surprise, it was all Italian food. Spaghetti, pizza, Italian pastas and soups- I was a bit disappointed.
"Isn't this supposed to be a French restaurant?" I asked with a raised eyebrow. "I mean, it's got a French name and French waitresses. This is all Italian."
"Let's ask Amandine when she gets back," Noah suggested quickly. I rolled my eyes and, after skimming the menu for a few minutes, decided on a lobster macaroni and cheese dish with gruyere cheese. I wasn't sure what it was, but I had always been a sucker for mac and cheese, and this sounded fancier and more delicious.
"Hey, guys, I'm going to go pee quick," I said. "If Amandine comes back, order this thing for me and make sure Noah isn't a sexual predator."
I hopped up from the booth and headed toward the front of the restaurant where I saw some bathrooms as we came in. As I pushed the door open, I heard a loud cough behind me.
I swiveled my hips lightly in order to look behind me, but I didn't see anyone suspicious. In fact, the front of the restaurant was mostly empty- nearly everyone was in the back. I found that a bit strange, but I just ignored it and walked into the bathroom.
They were nice bathrooms, I guess, with classy music playing over a speaker. It smelled of hand soap, which wasn't unpleasant but not something I really wanted in my nostrils. There were only three stalls, and I chose the one closest to the door.
As I hiked up my dress and sat down on the cold and unwelcoming toilet seat, I heard the door open and shut loudly. Then footsteps that started quietly and stopped abruptly.
I narrowed my eyes and waited for the lady to leave- of course I wasn't going to pee with someone else in there. But the woman just stayed where she was, unmoving.
I sighed and stood up, then unlatched my stall. I'd have to go later. I rounded the corner and came face-to-face with the person- not a woman, in fact, but a guy in the girl's bathroom.
He was a tall and broad guy, probably around twenty-five years of age. He could easily pound either Noah or Logan into dust if he wanted. He had high cheekbones, a large nose, and a trace of stubble around his chin. His eyes were bright and blue, peering at me intently.
We regarded each other closely for a moment, curious. I spoke first. "I think you have the wrong bathroom, sir," I said meekly.
He smirked a little. "What's your name, pretty thing?"
"Ellen," I replied reluctantly. "And yours?"
The guy shifted his weight from one foot to the other. Unlike everyone else in the restaurant, he wasn't in nice clothes- on the contrary, he was wearing grubby jeans and a T-Shirt.
"I'm Nathan," he replied. "But most people call me Nate."
He had a strange look on his face that was making me uncomfortable. It was as if he was analyzing me, sizing me up, but I didn't know what for. I just wanted to get out of there and back to my best friends, where I felt safe.
"All right, buddy," I said softly. "Great to meet you, but I'm just going to-"
I tried heading out the door, but he stepped in front of it to block it. "Honey, you're not going anywhere."
My eyes widened. "Um... what?"
Then it seemed like billion things happened at once. Nate rushed toward me and gripped me securely, one arm around my waist and another clamping my mouth shut, I could smell his disgusting body odor, and I screamed. Then he gripped me tighter.
"Shut up," he hissed. "I swear to god if you make another sound, I will kill you."
I bit his finger and he let go, staring at it in shock. I should've run, but for some reason I stood there, caught like a deer in the headlights.
"You bitch," he spat. Then he swung a hand at me, which collided with my face, resulting in a smack and intense pain. I whimpered pathetically and shrunk back against the sinks.
"Let's try this again," Nate sighed. He grasped me once more and this time I dutifully went with him.
We left the restaurant and stepped out into the cold night. Instead of being scared, my instincts kicked in and I went into survival mode. I tried to be aware of everything around me.
What Nate didn't know was that I had an advantage. My left foot was resting upon my phone, which was nestled in my shoe. I had put it there before we left, because I didn't want to carry it the whole way there but I didn't want to carry a purse, either. I don't even think I owned a purse, actually, I was more of a backpack girl.
Nate and I walked down the street in the opposite direction of the RV. I thought about trying to run, but he still had an iron grip on me, and I knew he could catch me anyway. The dude was a giant. Besides that, I was terrified of him, and who could blame me after the finger-biting incident?
"Can I ask you something?" I asked meekly.
"No. Stay quiet," Nate commanded. I rolled my eyes- I mean, I was in a dire situation, but I was still sassy.
"Well, did Kate put you up to this?" I asked, this time boldly.
Nate narrowed his eyes at me. "Who the hell is Kate?"
"Never mind," I sighed. I glanced at the city around me- there was still a ton of traffic, and occasionally I would make eye contact with a driver and try to signal for help. But there wasn't much I could do with the position Nate was holding me in- I suppose it looked like we were a happy couple out for a stroll- so I was limited to facial expressions.
"Here," Nate said gruffly. He yanked me into a building- it was tall, but still short compared to the buildings around it. I don't think it was a shop, there wasn't a sign on the door or anything. It appeared to be an apartment complex of some sort.
We entered through a side door and he slammed it behind us. It was a sketchy place, with a flickering lightbulb swinging from a rope of some sort. There were stairs going up and stairs going down. Nate pulled me down.
We entered a musty basement with washers and dryers against the closest wall. There were tables and wooden chairs on the opposite side, and the basement reeked of cigarettes. I heard something dripping, but I wasn't sure what it was. Hopefully water.
"Here's what's going to happen," he murmured. "You're going to sit in this here chair-" he pulled a chair out with his foot- "and wait for my instructions."
"No," I spat. "I'm a woman, not some fucking doll that you can play around with."
Surprise, surprise, I got smacked again. I doubled over and winced, then gathered my pride and sat straight back up. "I'm not going to do this, Nate."
He sucked in his cheeks, thinking. "Well then, we'll have it your way. I've got rope, and you've got time, so let's sit here and wait for you to be good."
He shoved me into the chair and immediately began tying up my limbs. He first did my wrists, securing them behind me with a harsh knot. The rope was scratchy and unforgiving, and I tried not to struggle too much in fear of ropeburn.
After he did my legs up, he circled around me slowly. His eyes were cold and unforgiving.
I knew that he had unclean intentions, I was trying to come to terms with that. I tried to consider the possibilities- he either wanted me for sex, money, or both.
"What are you going to do to me?" I asked quietly, trying to keep the quiver out of my voice.
"Hey, you're a pretty little white girl," Nate chuckled, still eyeing me. "You've gotta have people looking for you, right?"
I squirmed uncomfortable under his gaze. "You're going to hurt my friends?"
He shrugged. "Depends on how they act."
Now, I'm a girl with a lot of pride, but I'm willing to admit it just this once-
I was scared.
(A/N): Hey, this was edited a little so yay