From This Moment (19 page)

Rona climbs out of bed and follows me to the door, “I love you.”
  She kisses me all too briefly, “Don’t worry.”

Shutting the door, I hear the lock engage.

Hell, I hope she’ll be okay.

~~ Rona ~~

Climbing back into bed after Cade leaves, I feel a bit better.
  I decide to prop myself up and grab my phone just in case.  I wasn’t too concerned about Tom coming after me, until Cade got all stressed out about it.  His concern has kind of rubbed off on me.

Hearing a car outside, I wonder if
its Jake and Elise.  I decide to stay put in case it’s Cade, coming back to make sure I’m following orders.

Five minutes pass when I hear what sounds like breaking glass.
  Listening again, I can’t hear anything.  My heart is pounding.  I don’t know whether or not to ring Cade; it might just be my imagination.

Then I hear footsteps on the stairs, “Elise!”

Shit
.  I grab my phone and ring Cade.

“Elise, I know you’re here, you little bitch.”

Cade answers, “Rona is....” I don’t let him finish.

“Tom’s here.
  Upstairs.” I panic.  I’m really frightened now.

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“Fuck!
   I’m on my way.  Stay on the phone.”

I can hear him in the background shouting for someone to call the Sheriff.... that Tom is in the house with me.

“Cade,” I whisper.

“I’m here, we’re on our way,” he says, in a strange voice.

“He’s trying the doors up here.... who’s with you?”

“Justin and Anna.
  She’s called the Sheriff, he’s on his way.”

Oh god, he’s outside the room.
  Please go past; please go past – no such luck.

“Cade, he’s trying to get into the room,” I whisper.

“I’m less than ten minutes away.  Go in the bathroom and lock the door.”

“Okay.”

Diving out of bed, I try to get around the side of the bed, just as my door flies open and Tom stands there.  I freeze for a split second.  I run.

“CADE!”
  I scream.  He grabs my hair and pulls.

“You little bitch.
  This is all your fault.”

~~ Cade ~~

 “RONA.”  I shout, but the phone has gone dead.

“He’s got her.”
 I can barely talk, I’m worried sick.

“Dad
try and calm down.  We’ll be there soon and Daniel isn’t too far out.”

“It’s not that easy.”
 I try not to crash the car.

~~ Rona ~~

After having my hair yanked and brought up close and personal to Tom, I try to kick him, but he’s so big and has me in a tight hold.

“Where’s Elise?”
  He asks dragging me out of the bedroom.

“I don’t know.”
 I try not to cry.

“You’re lying!”
 He shouts.  “Well, it doesn’t matter, because we ca {bec0">“Youn have some fun while we wait.”

He’s pulling me towards the stairs and then down them.
  It’s difficult and painful, because Tom is still holding on to my hair.

Downstairs he throws me into the lounge.
  I land on my right side, after hitting the coffee table on my way down with my left hip and thigh.  The pain brings tears to my eyes.

“Tom, what the hell are you doing?”

Nick, what the hell is he doing here?

“I want to know where Elise is,” Tom replies raising his hand to strike me.

Just as he brings his hand down, Nick stops him, “If she’s too banged up she won’t be able to transfer the money.”

I take a deep breath.
 Tom takes a few steps back.

Nick moves over to me and helps me up onto the sofa.
  “Now babe, you need to make the transfer and then we’ll leave you alone.”

“You expect me to believe he’ll walk away?”
  I nod in Tom’s direction, trying not to give in to my tears.  My hands won’t stop shaking.  I’m actually more terrified of Tom than Nick.

“Yes he will, because we’ll have the money which we need, and then we’ll go.”

“I thought you were in jail anyway?”

He laughs at me, “I have a good lawyer.”

Crying now, I really am terrified and my left hip and thigh are throbbing with pain.  “I really don’t know where Elise is.  I went to bed with a migraine and she left while I was asleep.  As for money….”  pausing, I try to wipe my face, “get my notebook from the bedroom Tom found me in and I’ll give you the money as long as you promise to leave me and everyone else alone.  Then just go and promise to take him with you.”

After staring a
t me for a few moments, “As long as you don’t try anything.”

“How can I?”
  I cry.

Tom goes to get my notebook and leaves me alone with Nick.

“What are you into Nick?”  I whisper.

Running his hands through his hair, “I was selling drugs with Tom and a couple of other guys, but we were skimming from the top and putting the cash in an account in the Caymans.”

Seeing my shocked expression, “Not everyone has an easy life babe.”

God, I really hate him
.

“So what happened?”

Laughing at me, “Turns out the big boss knew what we were doing and was waiting for us to bury ourselves.  Now he wants his money back before he buries us.”  On a sigh, “So now you know why I have to disappear.”

Then he looks at me, “I’m sorry Rona, I really am.
  I promise after you’ve completed the transfer to leave you and everyone else alone for good.”

He thinks I’m an idiot and will believe him!

Tom comes back down the stairs, “I think we have a problem.  I found her phone on the floor.  She made a call just before I found her.”

Tom comes over to me and shouts, “Who did you call?” at the same time he throws my notebook at me.

Shouting back at him, “Cade, and he called the Sheriff!”

Tom hits me straight across the face knocking me over on to my side.
  Breathing heavy he goes to hit me again, but Nick stops him.

“Calm down, damn it.
  We have to get out of here and she’ll have to come with us until we have the money.”  Nick throws my boots at me.

“Get them on now!” Nick shouts.

Oh god, no, Cade where are you?

“Tom you stay here and bring her out when you hear the car.
  Make sure she brings her notebook with her.”  Nick leaves.

The whole time we’re waiting for the car, Tom just stands in front of me glaring, even as I put my boots on.

He’s one creepy guy.

Hearing a car, I just pray
it’s Cade or Daniel.

Tom grabs hold of my arm and drags me to the front door.

Opening the door he drags me through and gets me half way down the steps, while I try to walk on a bum leg in freezing snow and ice.

“Tom.
  Let her go.”  Daniel orders, with his hand resting on his weapon.

As I try to concentrate on what’s going on, all of a sudden, Tom lets go of me and I {o odiv>

  Daniel shoots Tom, who had released me to shoot him.  I didn’t even know Tom had a gun.

Daniel runs over to Tom and kicks his weapon out of reach, before checking for a pulse.
  He then comes over to help me up.

“Rona, we meet again.
  Are you okay?”

Ready to burst into tears, I just shake my head.
  My leg and hip are throbbing and the fall down the last few steps hasn’t helped and left me even shakier than I was a few minutes ago.

Trying to stand up, I discover I haven’t the strength and that I’m in too much pain.

“Let me help you Rona.”  He takes my arm and tries to help me up, we don’t really get anywhere; he picks me up and carries me inside.  Putting me down on the sofa, he grabs the blanket from the back, which he wraps around me.  “Do you want to lie down?”

“No.”
 Tears roll down my face.

Passing me a tissue, “Rona, I need to take a statement, but that can wait until you get into dry clothes.
  I’ll help you upstairs once the coroner arrives to remove Tom.  Okay?”

“Cade’s on his way, he can take me upstairs to change when he gets here.... Daniel, Nick is still out there.”

“What do you mean by that?”

“He was with Tom and when they realized I’d made a call he went to get the car and Tom was supposed to bring me out when he heard it.”

“Give me a minute.”  He reaches for his radio to tell dispatch to look out for Nick.

“What did they want?”
  Daniel questions me.

“Nick still wanted money and Tom did as well, but he also wanted Elise.”

Taking a couple of deep breaths, “They said that they’d been selling drugs.  Skimming off the top and that the big boss was after them so before he buries them he was going to disappear.  But Nick never mentioned Tom when he talked about disappearing.”

“
I need to make a phone call.  After you get changed we’ll get you checked out by the paramedics, then myself and a colleague will take your statement.”

“
Will you find out where Cade is please?  I really need him.” I try not to cry, but I think a couple of tears escape.

“Will do.
  I’m just going back outside for a few minutes.  Will you be okay here?”

“Yes.”

~~ Cade ~~

Pulling up outside my home and seeing Daniel there with Tom motionless at the foot of the steps, has my heart nearly jumping out of my chest.  No sooner have I stopped the vehicle, I run over to Daniel.