Fight With Me (Fight and Fall) (17 page)

             
“Take her into the woods,” I hear Marcus say.

             
My eyes widen in absolute fear. Oh my God, they’re going to kill me and leave my body in the woods. I can let them do this. They can’t get away with this.

             
I try to squirm out of Todd’s hold as he curses at me to stay still. He drags me farther into the trees, and I realize that I can barely make out the road anymore.

             
He tosses me to the ground as I land on twigs and moss. I gulp for air, trying to calm my body down. My panic attack is in full form and doesn’t seem like it’s letting up.

             
“Watch the road. If anybody comes by, tell them that you have a flat you’re changing,” I hear Marcus say calmly.

             
I grab the dirt underneath my palms, hoping for relief. I look over at my right arm and notice that it’s twisted at an odd angle. I cry out, feeling like I’m going to be sick. My body convulses on the ground, the pain and lack of air leaving me defenseless.

             
“What is wrong with her?” I hear Todd mutter.

             
“Who gives a fuck?! Maybe she has asthma,” Marcus replies.

             
I hear Marcus laugh brutally, obviously loving the fact that I’m in pain. I see him crouch down beside me, touching my face gently with his fingers. I shiver in fear and disgust.

             
“I’ve always wanted to see you like this, Emma. Afraid, helpless, gasping for air,” he murmurs.

             
His fingers trace my face, almost adoringly.

             
“I know why you’re here, Emma. I know why you moved to Astoria,” he says.

             
I whimper, finally able to breathe a little bit better.

             
“You like what he did, didn’t you? You probably led him on and wanted it. Well, I’m here to finish what he couldn’t,” he says.

             
“It’s a shame what I’m going to have to do to you. If you would’ve just left Aiden alone, our paths might have never crossed. But you had to ruin everything, didn’t you, Emma?”

             
I see the dark look in his eyes right before he punches me in the face. I yelp out, the full force of his brutality knocking the wind out of me. I grab my stomach, trying to squelch anymore blows.

             
“Had to make it fucking difficult for me,” he says kicking my stomach.

“You ruined everything!”
he screams accusingly.

             
He kicks me a few more times, the discomfort blinding. He’s torturing me, each kick pushing me closer to the edge. Once I fall off the cliff, there is no coming back.

             
“Pick her up,” Marcus yells.

             
I look over at Todd, a look of shock on his face. Did he really think that this wasn’t going to happen? How much of this did Marcus plan? Todd looks shell-shocked.

             
“Fucking do it, Todd!”

             
He walks over to me, hesitantly bending down to grab me. I groan, my body already beaten and bruised.

             
“Put her against the tree,” Marcus says out of wind.

             
“Marcus, this isn’t…” Todd says before Marcus cuts him off.

             
“Shut the fuck up. Just do it before I beat the shit out of you too,” he snarls.

             
Todd hesitates briefly but complies, hauling my body up off the ground. I groan, my stomach feeling queasy, hallow. I’m at the point where I still feel pain but am too tired to cry out. I’m in my worst nightmare. Unable to fight, unable to run. If I die, who am I kidding,
when
I die, I need to know why
me
? Why is Marcus doing this?

             
Todd puts me against the tree as I sway, trying to keep my balance. I almost fall but Marcus grabs my wrists, pinning them above my head against the tree trunk. The rough bark scratches my skin, as he tightens his hold on me. I feel his warm breath on my face, his black eyes searing mine.

             
I’m done being afraid. I won’t spend my last few seconds on this earth in fear. When I die, it will be on my terms. I’ve already accepted the inevitable.

             
“Why, Marcus?” I barely whisper.

             
His lips quirk up, obviously wondering when I was going to ask him this question. Do I think this is going to be like a movie, where the villain tells his entire evil plan? Fuck no! Do I think he will be vague and make me suffer before I die? Hell yes. But I have to try.

             
“The only thing that matters.
Money
, Emma. The one thing that everyone, every fucking person wants more than anything,” he chuckles.

             
My brows furrow in confusion and I realize this is as good of an explanation as I’m going to get.

             
“It became so much more than that though.
You
became so much more,” he says pausing.

“That first night I saw you, I…I saw something I see in few people, Emma. Determination. It is very hard to gain but very easy to break. I knew that I had to break you. Too much
strength isn’t attractive on a woman. You all fucking think you’re just like men!” he spits out.

“You’re inferior.
You’re nothing. I have the power, not you. I needed to make you see that,” he smiles.

“Why don’t,
why don’t you stop running your mouth and prove it already,” I slur.

I feel my body shutting down from the pain and I’m barely able to keep my eyes
open

He laughs, the
movement rattling my entire body. I close my eyes, welcoming the pain, the darkness. He thinks he broke me but he didn’t. You can’t break something that was already damaged. You can only chip away at the tiny pieces of what remain.

I feel his right hand
leave my face and hit me square in the jaw. I moan in agony, trying not to let him get to me. He wants my pain. He feeds off of it.

I barely crack open my eyes
, when feel my mouth filling up with blood. I may even have lost a tooth but I’m not quite sure. I decide to end this sooner rather than later.

I spit the blood in face,
mustering one last smile. Some of the liquid trails down my throat and I choke on it, laughing hysterically.

“Harder. I like it rough,” I
hiss.

I
can’t see his face clearly, but I can only assume how much he must be loving this. He wants me to fight and beg.

I feel his hand close around my neck, cutting into my windpipe. I gasp
for air, knowing that this will be my last moment alive.

“Fucking beg, Emma. Beg me,” he
demands.

I
shake my head in defiance, refusing to do what he asks. I’m stubborn in life and even more stubborn when facing death.

“Goddam
mit, Marcus! That’s enough!” I hear Todd yell faraway.

I feel myself falling to the ground, my neck
finally free of his hold. I’m desperately gulping in air, greedily getting my fill.

“Don’t you ever touch me again,
you stupid asshole,” I hear Marcus yell.

“Man, I did not agree to this.
You’re going to kill her and we’re all going to go to jail. Shit,” Todd says, his voice cracking.

My eyes wander up to Marcus, the hatred radiating from his skin. It
practically sizzles. He catches my gaze and before I can figure out his intent, he kicks me in the face. I suck in a sharp breath, seeing stars in front of me.

He kicks my body a few more times but I’m past feeling. I
the only sensation I feel is drowning, being swallowed alive. Is this what it feels like to die? To take your last breath? If it is, I’m ready.

I hear voices yelling in the background but I’m not sure who is talking
or what is being said. My body starts to feel tingly and numb at the same time. I realize that I am alone now, all by myself in the woods. Nobody knows where I am. I doubt anybody is even looking for me. If and when they find me, it will be too late.

I don’t know how much times passes before I feel fingers touch face. They brush across my
skin, almost whispering that I’m safe now. I try to open my eyes, when I see the outline of a figure, a man if I’m not mistaken.

“Emma, wake up. Stay with me, honey.”

Jeremiah? Could it really be him? He always used to call me honey. He knew I hated it but he kept calling me that, a colossal joke to piss me off.

“
Jer…Jerimiah,” I try to say.

“I’ve got you. You’re going to be okay.”

I feel my body being lifted, carried away from where I was left for dead. I look up into two piercing blue eyes, recognizing their owner.

“It’s Leo, honey. Try to
stay awake. I’m taking you to the hospital.”

I nod, my body finally slumping in defeat. All I hear is my name being called over and over before the
blackness closes in. My last image is of Jeremiah, his cold lips kissing my forehead reassuringly.

“I’ve got you, honey. I
won’t ever leave you again,” he whispers.

             
“What the fuck happened?! How did she end up in there like that? Somebody fucking answer me!”

             
“Calm down. Get it together. You’re not helping her by yelling and freaking out. She needs you to be strong for her. The doctors are doing everything they can.”

             
I attempt to open my eyes but they feel glued shut. I try moving my body but it feels immobile. I hear bits and pieces of yelling but I don’t know who the voices belong to. I feel trapped in my body and I can’t get out!

             
Is this heaven? Hell? Purgatory? I try to focus all of my energy on moving. I feel something heavy on my mouth, almost as if it’s breathing life back into me.

             
I couldn’t be in a hospital, could I? I was practically beaten to a bloody pulp. How would I have survived? No, I must be delusional right now. I’m supposed to be dead. The odds were against me in every way.

             
“How is she?!”

             
“You fucking son-of-a-bitch!”

             
I hear yelling and skin on skin contact.

             
“Aiden, let him go. It wasn’t Lucas’s fault, so fucking relax, man!”

             
“It wasn’t his fault?! He supposed to look after her and he lets her borrow his car, which then breaks down on the side of the road. This is all his fault!”

             
“What about you, Aiden? You’ve been back in town and failed to protect her too. You’re a fucking hypocrite! You’re the one she was driving to go see.”

             
I hear more shuffling and yelling.

             
“Guys, please stop. What if she ends of hearing you and you upset her?” I hear a feminine voice plead.

             
“Leslie, I’m sorry but this asshole is fucking asking for it. All he does is cause her pain and now her and the…”

             
“Lucas, stop.”

             
“No, Leslie. He needs to know the truth. He needs realize that this is not just Emma’s life he’s ruined.”

             
“What the fuck are you talking about, Lucas? Just spit it out!”

             
“She’s pregnant, Aiden. I’m not sure if she still is but…she was. That’s what she was going to tell you. Something that couldn’t be said over the phone. She was going to leave town because she didn’t feel safe here anymore. She wanted to protect your child.”

             
I hear more yelling and moaning, distinctly coming from a deep voice. I try to concentrate, feeling sorry for whoever who is in such agony. It sounds like the heart being ripped out of a wounded animal. I try to cover my ears, the sound unbearable. My arms are still heavy, forcing me to listen to the never-ending pain.

             
“Oh my fucking God! Why didn’t anybody tell me?! I would have come back to her in a heartbeat. That is my fucking child too and she didn’t tell me!”

             
“Aiden, man, she only found out two days ago. She was going to tell you as soon as possible. Don’t blame Emma.”

             
“I don’t. I blame
me
. If she lost…loses this baby, it will be all my fault. I take full responsibility.”

             
“I just got a call from the police and they said that Todd’s sister found blood and dirt on him a little while ago. They said that he just confessed to…hurting Emma. But he says it was all Marcus’s idea. He says he’ll tell the police everything if they give him immunity.”

             
“Jesus Christ.”

             
“I hope they let him go free. It will give me the chance to take care of him myself and anybody else who hurt her.”

             
“Aiden, you need to calm down. You can’t do what you want to do. Do you want to go to prison for the rest of your life? Do you want Emma to wake up and find you gone? What about your baby? It needs its’ father around.”

             
“Fuck, Leo. I really don’t want to hear this bullshit right now.”

             
“Well, tough shit.”

             
The voices are drowned out, as I find myself falling once again.

             
“Sleep, honey. I love you,” Jeremiah’s voice says to me.

             
“Emma, wake up. Please, wake up.”

             
“Jeremiah,” I croak out.

             
“Oh thank God, she’s awake!”

             
“No, sweetie, it’s Lucas.”

             
“And Leslie,” I hear a soft voice say.

             
“And Leo,” a gruffer one says.

             
I slowly open my eyes, the brightness from the room blinding. Where the fuck am I?

             
“What…?”

             
“Emma, you’re in the hospital. You’ve been unconsciousness for a few days,” Lucas says.

             
I look into the corner of the hospital room and notice a figure sitting in a chair, his head in hands. Well, his head in one of his hands. His prosthesis is missing from his left arm.

             
Aiden.

             
Driving to Aiden’s house, breaking down, the attack, everything rushes back to me all at once. The memories flood me and I cry out in overwhelming pain. I see Aiden’s head snap up, his eyes swollen and bloodshot. He doesn’t come over to my bed, he just stares, almost as if he’s fused to the chair.

             
“My…my baby?” I cry out, touching my flat stomach.

             
I look down noticing a cast on my arm and a splint on my hand.

             
“Emma, honey, the baby…the baby didn’t make it,” Leo says sadly.

             
I look around at the faces, all torn, broken. The one in the corner the worst of all. His eyes are listless, utterly destroyed.

             
“No, no, no!” I scream.

             
I flail my body against the bed, trying to break free of the tubes attached to me.

             
“Emma, calm down, baby. You’re going to hurt yourself,” I hear Aiden say, finally coming towards me.

             
I feel him try to calm me, his hand against my cheek. His touch angers me, reminding me of how things used to be. It can never be that way again. Everything has changed.

             
“Don’t touch me. Don’t fucking touch me! I hate you!” I sob.

             
I feel him retract his hand, as if he’s been burned.

             
“Emma…” he says reluctantly.

             
“Get out! Get away from me!” I croak, my voice sore.

             
I see a nurse come into the room, trying to take in the scene before her.

             
“Sir, you need to leave. All of you do. I need to make sure she’s okay. I don’t think it’s a good idea if you come back for a while. It will probably upset her,” she says staring directly at Aiden.

             
My insides drop and I feel like shit for behaving this way. I know I’m not being rational and I know I’m a having a meltdown. I probably have post-traumatic stress or something. All I know is that seeing Aiden and having him touch me sent me into a downward spiral.

             
I see Aiden hesitate, pain marring his face. I wish I could take back the hurtful way I reacted to him but I cant. His touch isn’t something I can handle right now. I want to hurt. I want to feel pain and…I want him to feel it too.

             
I see him nod at the nurse, quickly glancing at me. I see the silent pleading behind his eyes. He’s practically screaming from the inside out. Doesn’t he realize that I’m unfixable and there is nothing him or anybody can do to help me?

             
I turn my head away from him, ignoring his mute imploring. My eyes close, a stampede of pain running over me. I can’t tell if it’s physical or emotional. I just can’t tell the difference anymore. All I know is that I’m overwhelmed and I’m not sure how much more I can take.

             
My eyes are still closed, when I hear footsteps leave the room. I think Aiden finally admitted defeat. He’s know I don’t want him near me. I can’t bear to be near the man that gave me a purpose in life, just to have it so easily ripped away. Our baby is gone and there is nothing that he can do to mend that.

             
“I’m going to check and make sure that everything is okay. The doctor will be in shortly to discuss…” she pauses, looking directly at my face. “To discuss what happened and what you need to do for you to heal properly.”

             
I look over at Lucas, Leo and Leslie, confused by her choice of words. I was beaten within an inch of my life and survived. What exactly do
I
need to do?

             
“We’ll see you in a bit, Emma,” Leo says as they all make their way out of the room.

             
I sigh as the nurse looks me over. I see the doctor walk in, as I switch onto auto pilot. He says how I broke a few ribs, my arm, and fractured my hand. There was some internal bleeding in my stomach but they were able to stop it. Pretty much the baby never had a fighting chance. I cringe, realizing that I didn’t do my job. I didn’t do everything I could to protect him or her. I failed before I even begun.

             
He starts talking about my face, still swollen, bruised and cut. Apparently my facial piercings were dragged across my skin and a few were imbedded, forcing the doctor to dig them out. He says that it will take a while to heal and only minor scarring will occur if I take care of my skin and apply ointment.

             
I never respond to him, I just stare straight ahead, wanting him to leave. I don’t want to know the things that have happened, the irrevocable damage that Marcus has done. I feel it, deep inside of me. I lived it, I don’t need a fucking power-point presentation. I wouldn’t be surprised if he took out a laser pointer and shined it on all of my injuries.

             
The doctor leaves the room eventually and I see Leo slowly come back in the room.

             
“I called your mom, Emma. I…didn’t tell her what happened, just that you had an accident. I wanted to, believe me, but at the same time…you were in such bad shape. I know that I wouldn’t want to see Lucas in a bad way, so I tried to protect her, I guess,” he says torn.

             
I blow out a sigh of relief. I am so fortunate that he didn’t tell her about the attack. I remember how she was after the ordeal in Arizona and I don’t want her to have to relive that.

             
“No, thank you for not telling her. She’s very protective and I, well…I guess I’ve always rebelled against her protectiveness. I don’t want her to worry about me. No mother should have to go through that.”

             
He nods his head at me. “I told her that I would have you call her as soon as you can. It’s up to you about what you want to tell her.”

             
I look at Leo, my savior, my father-figure. I tear up, knowing exactly what would have happened had he not found me in time.

             
“Leo…how, how did you find me?” I ask him tearfully.

             
He blows out a harsh breath, probably replaying the horrible event in his head. I’m sorry I asked but I want to know. I want to thank him for saving me.

             
“Aiden called me at the bar and said that you were on your way over to his place but you never showed. He called your phone but there was no answer. I tried to get ahold of Lucas but couldn’t, so I called Leslie. She told me that you probably borrowed his car to see Aiden, so on a whim, I went to see if I could find you. I know that Lucas’s car is a piece of shit and figured that something might have happened to it.”