Davenport Harbor (Six Degrees Book 3) (37 page)

His body moved in closer as his hands went over my breasts, gripping them painfully hard, then they moved down to my bare legs. I felt bile rising up my throat into my mouth. I shut my eyes tightly and tried to think about John.

John
’
s touch would never hurt me. Blake's hands moved back to squeeze my face, and I opened my eyes to look at him.

“
Is the kid his?
”

“
Ye...yea…yeah,
”
I stuttered, and he tilted his head to the side.

One hand still held my face tightly while the other moved down the front of my body, squeezing my breasts roughly once more. Then his hands pushed my legs further apart, going to my center where they roughly cupped me and moved on to the edge of my panties. I wished I could look at him with cold uncaring eyes, but I couldn’t. I was crying. Silently. My face was wet, my breathing slightly choppy with fear.

I hated being scared and weak.

I wanted to somehow wake up and be back in bed with John, with Zoey just down the hall. Instead, his thumb hooked below the waistband of my panties, tracing the scar that was left from my C-section. His soulless eyes were questioning me.

“
I ummm
…”

“
Hey Blake, you home?
”
A deep voice boomed from the top of the stairs, and his hand thankfully disappeared, both hands now gripping my shoulders, his stare suspicious.

“
You got fat.
”
His lips twitched in disgust, and I swore at that moment I couldn
’
t hate him more than I already did.

“
I
…”

“
Your hair and you got fat.
”

“
I
’
m sorry.
”
My stare was downcast, away from direct contact with his.

“
You should be. What the fuck did you do?
”
He roared again and I flinched.

“
Blake? You here or what, man?
”
The deep voice upstairs asked again.

“
I
’
m...I
’
m sorry, Blake, I
’
ll fix it.
”
I stuttered softly, still not looking him directly in the eyes.

“
You will be sorry. Right now, you better act cool, you got me? If not, I won
’
t be happy and you remember what happens when I
’
m not happy, right?
”
His eyes narrowed, beads of sweat were building on his forehead. I nodded.
“
I swear to fuck, you mess this up, I won
’
t go easy on you.
”

He grabbed a dirty towel and dried my face roughly. Grabbing the knife off the floor, he cut the ties off, and without a second to spare, he dug his short nails into my forearm as he moved my body up. He dragged me behind him upstairs to what seemed to be the first floor.

I
’
d been in a basement? Where the hell am I?

“
Pat! Fuck man, haven
’
t seen you in a long time! Sloan brought you, huh?
”
Blake said too loudly and too excitedly as we walked into a really dingy living room that had two main windows, one broken and the other boarded up.

I looked at Patrick standing next to a very tall and dangerous looking man with shaggy copper-colored hair and an overgrown beard. Pat had stubble on his face, not much, but just enough to make him look rougher than he had the day he
’
d come to look for John at his house. Combined with the ripped jeans and the grungy looking tee shirt he had on, I wondered if he had somehow fallen off the wagon since the last time I saw him. A sick thought came to me. Was Blake his dealer? Had he sold me out? Had he told Blake where he could find me?

“
Hey, man. Annie.
”
His eyes quickly met mine and left them just as quickly.

The dangerous looking man, who I assumed was named Sloan, was talking to Blake, but I couldn’t get myself to pay attention. I had to find a way to get out of here, find a phone and call John. I needed to get back to him and Zoey.

God. What would John think about me not being there when he woke up? Had he heard me when...

“
Annie?
”
Patrick
’
s voice snapped me out of my thoughts and he looked at me, his eyes raking over me,
“
Why don
’
t you and I do a couple of lines?
”

“
What?
”
A sick feeling twisted in my stomach.

I knew what that meant. I
’
d been around them in the past when they’d partied and did shit. Couples would go and do lines and mess around, hook up high as kites. No one ever asked to do stuff with me. Blake had determined me off limits.

“
Yeah, Annie baby,
”
Blake sneered at me, his eyes blank of emotion, but it was the way his lip twitched that told me he was angry. He
’
d always hated the way Pat and I had got along.

“
Go with Patty. He
’
ll make you feel good.
”
Blake
’
s fingers dug into the sensitive flesh under my arms as he shoved me towards Patrick.

My heart raced and acid ran rampant in my stomach when I heard Blake say something about only using my mouth. Sloan chuckled. His ice-blue eyes on me, Patrick almost stumbled towards me, wrapping a hand over my shoulder and leading me to the back of the rundown house we were in.

“
Patrick, please don
’
t, I just...I have to
…”
Panic hitting me, I could feel wetness at my eyes.

“
Shhh,
”
he whispered, his arm around my shoulders, and I looked up at him. His eyes were no longer on me but behind me, and my stomach churned.

Had Patrick told Blake how to find me? Had I been played?

He led me into a room in the back of the small house. Closing the door behind us, he reached into his pocket and I took a step back.

“
Pat.
”
My voice was soft and broken with fear; fear that I hated. Patrick frowned at me and pulled out his cell as well as a tiny plastic bag with white powder.

“
I
’
m clean, Annie. I promise.
”
He told me, standing straight and no longer swaying.

“
What?
”
My heart raced, leaving me feeling light-headed and confused.
“
But
…
.
”

“
Here.
”
He handed me the plastic bag and I looked at him,
“
I
’
m clean, but I
’
m not a saint. Being here, around this shit
…”

I closed my hand around his slightly shaking hand and took the baggie away, finally understanding what was going on.

“
You
’
re here to save me?
”
I asked and he nodded, pulling me into his chest. He ran his hands through my shredded hair.

“
You okay?
”
He asked and I nodded, trying to calm my heart, but my body was trembling. The shock and adrenaline were too much for me, but I couldn’t shut down. I had hope.

“
Okay, babe. It
’
s going to be okay.
”
His hands were on his cell phone. I watched him text someone a message then looked up at him.

“
I need to call John.
”

“
Shhh.
”
His hands patted the top of my head, smiling,
“
Who do you think sent me?
”

“
What?
”
I stepped away. Before he could answer, yelling started from the living room we
’
d just been in and Patrick pulled me behind him.

“
No matter what, stay in here under the bed! Okay?
”
His ice-blue eyes were full of concern.

“
Pat...
”

“
Promise me, Annie? No matter what, you stay in here,
”
he repeated, and I looked at the window. So damn close.

“
But
…”
I started to suggest, but his hands went to my face.

“
Promise.
”

“
I promise.
”
He nodded, his expression deadly. His hands reached behind him and he brought out a small gun. A knot formed in my throat at the possibility of something really, really bad happening.

“
Hide, now!
”

I hit the floor and scooted under the bed, closing my eyes, trying not to see what was down here and trying to block the disgusting smell. My mind blanked and focused on doing what Pat and the scary guy needed me to do to so that I was not in their way.

Loud shouting was going on, but it was too muffled for me to make out different voices. Two shots rang in the air, and I put my hand over my mouth, trying not to make a noise.

My eyes were closed in fear, but it didn’t stop the tears from running down my face or the hope in my heart.

John

Two shots.

Two fucking shots rang out loudly in the summer air, and I couldn’t handle it anymore. I could hear Matt Pierce yelling after me, but I didn’t look back. I kept running towards the back of the house where Pat had texted me he was with Anne. Reaching the window, I looked into the bare room. No one was in there. All I could see was a dirty bare mattress on a bed frame and trash on the floor.

Another shot rang through the air, and I reacted. I punched the window, shattering the glass, but I didn’t care. I didn’t even feel the sting of glass breaking my skin when I jumped into the room, somehow thankfully landing on both feet.

I looked at the rundown dirty room, knowing the shitty area the house was located in, and hated that my woman was anywhere near this.

“
Anne?
”
I said into the eerily quiet room, but couldn’t make out a thing, and I wondered if the semi empty room was the wrong one.

“
Kitten?
”
I whispered and then I heard it: a soft gasp coming from the empty disgusting bed. I knelt down and saw her bunched into a ball under the bed.

“
Kitten, it
’
s me. Come on.
”

“
John?
”
Her tear-filled eyes looked at me. Her big eyes stood out in the darkness.

“
Come on, baby, let
’
s get you
…”

“
Who the fuck are you?
”
A deep voice slurred, and I turned around, facing Blake Downey holding a gun in his slightly swaying hand as he pointed it right at me.

“
John fucking Davenport,
”
he smirked, evil in his eyes, and I stood tall, taking slow steps away from the bed, not taking any chances with my woman getting hurt.

“
Blake.
”

“
You know me?
”
He tilted his head.
“
Of course you fucking know me,
”
he laughed.
“
You took from me.
”
He yelled, swinging the hand that had hold of the gun towards his own chest as he continued yelling,
“
No one takes what is mine!
”
He screamed like a maniac, his eyes bright. He was obviously on something.

“
She
’
s not yours,
”
I yelled back, my blood boiling.
“
Not anymore.
”
His eyes grew wider and crazier.

“
She fucking is. She
’
s mine. If I can
’
t have her, then
…
No one can.
”
He turned the gun towards the bed, and I knew he was not going to hesitate to shoot, since his stare was nothing but evil.
No. I can
’
t lose her,
was my last clear thought before I lunged my body onto him. My shoulder connected with his chest, a bullet went off, hitting the drywall. Caught off guard, Blake lost control of the gun and we both watched it fly and land on the floor near us.

The gun away from us, I grabbed the son of a bitch, threw him against the cemented floor, and punched him. Thinking about every nightmare he
’
d made Anne live, I couldn’t seem to stop. I only saw red. Rage and anger flowing through me, my fists pounded into his face, but the fucker was only laughing like a damn maniac.

“
She will always be mine. I own her!
”
He kept laughing, probably high as a kite, and I could care less.

I got off of him, moving to grab the gun off the floor, when he pounced on me, punching my side. I was able to push him off when a gunshot rang in the air. Blake
’
s eyes were locked on mine as he fell down to the floor, blood pooling around him, and I looked behind him. At the door, a very pale looking Pat was standing with one hand on his side, blood running down from what looked like a gunshot wound.

“
Shit.
”
I started to take a step towards Patrick, but he shook his head.

“
Get her out of here,
”
he strained, taking out his phone,
“
Go
…”

“
Pat, I can
’
t leave you here,
”
I told him.

“
GO! I
’
ll take care of this.
”
I stared at him, at his body sliding down the wall. He leaned his head against it.
“
Get her out of here, John
…
let me do this. I have a lot of shit to make up for in my life.
”