Page 92 of Redemption
Dad! Please, look out for us tonight.
I rise on shaky legs and wrap my little daughter in her blanket, then I open the door a sliver. I listen. Nothing. I open it wider and bring the little well-wrapped packet with me. Stopping for a moment, I stare at the deeply sleeping Christian on the couch. The light in the room is dim, but I can see his strangely attractive profile clearly.
Say goodbye to your daddy, Cecilia.
A sting of regret shoots through my chest. Then I act. I feel for the car keys in my jeans pocket before I carefully drop first one foot and then the other into my rubber boots. They’re all I have left. My thick winter boots lie outside my kitchen window and are probably soaked by now.
I glance one last time at his sleeping form. He looks so innocent, almost boyish. I can’t believe he can be so cruel, so lethal.
Carefully pulling down the door handle, I then sneak out through the smallest crack possible, cradling Cece tightly to my chest. As I close the door behind me, all the warmth and deceptive safety leaves me in an instant, ripped away by the violent gusts of wind that keep coming at us, tearing at our clothes, stealing my breath. Thank God I at least had a second down jacket, replacing the one I ditched. Doubling over, I start the slippery walk on the long slope down to where my car stands.
We’reout!I can barely believe it.
It’s dark. Really dark. The sky is probably overcast and no moonlight hits the ground. I know my way well enough, though. Carrying Cece, my left ankle hurts more and more, and finally sweat breaks out over the agonizing pain, but I continue, fueled by fear and a strong will to live.
In the dark, I nearly miss the SUV. As I feel for the handle, a feeling of hurry haunts my every move. My hands tremble violently as I clickUnlock. The remote doesn’t work, so I put the key in the lock the old-fashioned way and pull open the door, haunted, my back tingling.
“Ker!”
Oh, God! No!
His roar echoes through the dark woods, and the terror gives me extra strength. I lay a soundly sleeping Cece on the passenger’s side and hop in, slamming the door shut behind me. No time to buckle up right now. My heart slams and I can barely breathe. Trembling, I manage to insert the key into the ignition and twist. Nothing.
No!I twist it again. Nothing.
I lock the door at the last moment.
“Ker! What the fuck are you doing?”
A furious Christian has followed my tracks, poorly dressed and in his impractical shoes. He yanks the door handle and then slams his fists on the window when the door doesn’t open. He throws himself at the other doors, and for a moment I panic, having no idea if they are locked or not. I keep trying the key, refusing to believe my faithful SUV has stopped working, but my heart sinks with each unsuccessful attempt.
“Open the fucking door!”
I shake my head mutely as tears start falling down my cheeks. I don’t want to upset Cece by screaming.
“Open the doornow!” he roars, his voice sharper, more dangerous.
I stare emptily in front of me and just shake my head. No. No way. We can stay in here. We’ll be safe from him. Glancing at him again, I scream. He’s picked up a large branch and aims at the window.
I shake my head and mouth a ‘no’, but he backs up a step and lifts the piece of wood. “Get out of thefuckingcar!”
When I make no move to obey him, he slams it against the side window next to my head I scream again and throw myself over Cece, spreading my jacket wide, covering her with my body. “Stop it! Stop!Please!”
A milky web of cracks has spread across the surface. But it hasn’t broken. Maybe it’ll hold? He slams at it again and again, and suddenly it breaks into thousands of little shards that rain all over me. When he grabs me there’s nowhere I can go. I slap at his arms, but I’m helpless as he takes hold of my clothes and hauls me out through the opening, throwing me to the ground. I try to crawl away from the monster of a man towering over me, but he grabs my shoulders and shakes me furiously.
“What thefuckdo you think you’re doing?”
My panic intensifies into something completely unmanageable. Slamming my fists at his arms, I twist and scream, trying to get out of his grip. His arms and hands and legs and body are everywhere.
“Fuckinghell!Stop fighting me! I won’t hurt you! I’m sorry I did… I just can’t let you—”
He abruptly lets me loose, making me fall back to the ground. I use the moment to take a swipe at him. He dodges my fist and grabs around my neck, spinning me over on my belly, my cheek to the muddy ground, catching my arms between his chest and my back, making it almost impossible for me to move. I squirm and yank, but I only end up even more tightly wrapped in his embrace. He’s so close his hair falls on my neck.
“Let mego!” I scream, my insides churning with fear.
“No.”
His chest heaves as he presses me closer and I almost panic when I can’t move. “I hate you!” I cry.