Page 7 of Fallen to Thievery
We walked for a while. Their boots crunched over the ground, creating a familiar rhythm that kept my panic in check. I could almost pretend it was my father’s boots beside me. The two robbers ahead kept close to us, keeping with our slow pacing.
“This is taking too long. We need to get her blindfold off,” my captor said, while bringing me to a stop.
My chest tightened. This wasn’t good.
“Get the masks out. We’ll have to endure it. We need to move faster.”
Thank the gods. They would have their masks on. Their faces would stay hidden.
No one said anything; no one objected to his order. Was it because of his obvious annoyance? Were they scared of him too? There was a thump on the ground and then the sound of a zipper. A backpack?
“Shit,” the driver hissed. “I forgot one. I only have two. Fuck! Should I run back?”
“There’s no time. We can’t be out here in the dark,” my captor cautioned.
There was silence for a moment. He was right. Being in these woods in the dark was a bad idea. A shudder whispered through me at the thought.
“Put the masks on,” my captor said flatly.
“But what—” the driver was cut off.
“It’s fine.”
“Are you sure?” the woman asked.
There was no answer from my captor. He simply moved around me, my heart thundering in my chest. His fingers gripped the blindfold, and I instinctively clasped my hands over his, keeping them from moving, the zip-tie straining against my wrists.
“Don’t,” I begged. “If I see your face…” I couldn’t say it out loud. There would be no turning back. I would be as good as dead.
“Let go.” There was no empathy in Death’s voice.
I shook my head, tears soaking the blindfold. No, I couldn’t.
He ripped his hands free, the blindfold with it. I clenched my eyes shut, covering them with my fists.
Please, no.
A sob ripped from my throat.
He pushed my hands down roughly. “Open your eyes, we don’t have time for this.”
No. I refuse to die like this.
Please don’t let me die.
I can’t die here.
I spun around, fast as lightning and ran in the direction we came from. I was running blindly, my eyes still trying to adjust. I was desperate to get away. To live. My only thoughts were that I couldn’t die. Not here, not now. I had a promise to keep. A pact with Rachel to uphold.
A branch ripped along my upper arm, causing an instant searing burn through it, but I didn’t stop, didn’t slow. The sound of his boots hitting the ground behind me, propelled my feet forward.
I stumbled and hit the ground but was up in an instant.Shit!It had cost me. He was close.
Three seconds later, he yanked my arm backwards and we slammed into each other, tumbling to the ground as I screamed in desperation. We rolled and his body crushed me to the forest floor. We rolled again, and I had the upper hand. I pushed off him with my bound hands, trying to get away. But he grabbed the front of my dress and yanked me back to him. I brought my elbow up and used the force of his tug to drive my elbow into his throat. I knocked the wind out of him with the blow, and he let go of me. I pushed off him again, but this time he wrapped his legs around my waist and twisted. Before I could process, I was pinned beneath him. I screamed in sudden rage, clawing and scratching at his face. He hissed as my nails hit their mark, leaving two deep gashes over his left eye. He grabbed hold of my wrists and pinned them above my head. I writhed beneath him in defiance, fighting hard to get free. But he held me down seemingly effortlessly while he tried to catch his breath.
He coughed and clutched at his throat. Then a raspy chuckle—his coughing turning into a fit of laughter. He threw his head back, his whole body shaking with it.
I was fighting for my life, and it was funny to him? He was a fucking monster. A psychopath. The disbelief and rage of people like him existing, walking around freely, with no concern for living beings, burned through my body.
