Page 6 of Make Me Feel Again

Whatshouldtakemean hour to drive to the location Casey gave me, only takes me forty minutes. This is where he took her when he wanted her to roleplay Rylee. The thought makes me shake with anger. Images flash through my mind of ripping his head off his fucking shoulders. The things he made Casey do to him in this place makes my stomach drop. What if I’m too late and he has already done those things to Rylee?

“Cash. Calm down.” Boh’s voice breaks through the horror images playing in my mind. I brought Boh with me because who knows what state James is in, who knows how far he will go to keep Rylee. If she is here, I’m not leaving without her. I don’t care who I have to go through to get her.

“What if—” Boh’s hand lands on my arm, stopping me from speaking the what-ifs. Sometimes, it’s like Bohdi can read my mind. If he could, though, he would probably disown me because he would be disgusted in me for how I feel about Rylee.

“Don’t think like that, Cash. This is Rylee. She is strong, remember that.” I nod, not able to verbally agree with him. She is. She is one of the strongest women I know, but who knows what James has done to her. He could have drugged her. Hurt her.

We creep toward what looks like a barn converted into a modern-looking house, except all the windows have been blacked out. I park the car down the pathway, out of sight. If my head wasn’t so all over the place, it would have probably been a good idea to park well away from here, but it’s too late now.

Boh pulls on my arm as we creep up the drive. “We should have called the police, Cash.” He keeps his eyes on the only door we see to the house.

“We will, but I can’t have them startling him if he has her in here. We need to catch him by surprise.” We edge more and more toward the door, it’s dead silent, and I feel in my gut that something isn’t right. Something tells me she is here. I gently try the handle, but it’s locked. I look over my shoulder at Boh and shake my head.

“Help!” A scream comes from inside the house—Rylee’s scream. The adrenaline sears through me quicker than it ever has before. I scan my surroundings for anything that will help me knock this door down. There’s fucking nothing. Boh kicks the door, and I join him, hoping doing it together will break it down.

After what feels like hours, of kicking but it’s not even a minute, the door splinters. My adrenaline skyrockets, and Boh’s leg goes straight through, taking half the door down with it. We push through, then scan the hallway before we kick out each door we come across. The next door opens to an extremely large room, and the high ceilings and wooden beams that go across prove this used to be a barn.

“Cash . . .” My eyes land on Rylee, devastation mars her face as her eyes fill with tears and her mouth drops before she is tugged by her arm through another door at the rear, a door you wouldn’t know was there unless you were really looking. Bohdi and I run across the large open space. The door closes, and I pray with everything he didn’t lock it. She is here, in front of me. I can’t lose her now. Boh reaches the door before me, and as soon as we get through it, there is another wide open door at the end of the empty room. It leads out of the house. We take off through it, and a hooded figure runs toward a parked car.

“James!” I bellow at the top of my lungs. I know it’s him. I don’t have to see his face to know. He falters a bit before he continues to pull Rylee. Her gaze locks with mine. She cries my name, and her eyes beg for me to help her as we chase him down the path. Rylee flails her arms and drops to the ground, making it harder for James to drag her. She screams out more as she’s dragged along the rubble before leaning forward and biting his hand.

“Ahhh,” he shouts as he lets her go. He glances back enough for me to see it’s for sure him.

“You piece of shit,” I scream as I get closer. Rylee scurries away on her ass, staring up at him, but he doesn’t do what I think he will do. He doesn’t try and get her, he leaves. He takes off running toward the car. I approach Rylee, dropping to the ground.

“Rylee.” I cup her cheeks with my hands. “Please talk to me. Are you okay?” I examine her face, checking for any visible injuries.

“Cash.” Her arms fly around my neck, and she grips me with every bit of strength she has.

“Ry,” Boh whispers crouching down. She jumps when the car starts and rubble kicks up behind it as he speeds off. I didn’t want to let him go, but this is going to the police now. All I care about is having Rylee in my arms. James will get caught; I’ll make sure of it. She wails into my chest, gripping my top. I frown at Boh. What the fuck has he done to her?

“Ry, I need to call the cops. Boh is going to take you to the car.” I run my hands through her hair and hold her as tight as she is holding me. I don’t want to let her go, but I need to call them and get them here. They need to see this place and find out what James has been doing. She nods into my chest, peeking up at me before moving her gaze to Boh.

“Boh,” she weeps as he pulls her away from me and buries his face into her hair.

“We got you, Ry, he’s gone, we are going to get you home. Can you stand for me?” She continues sobbing into his chest. He doesn’t ask her again, he just hooks his hands under her legs and picks her up. She clings to him, not moving her face from his chest. I want to rip her out of his arms, hold her, and make her better and safe.

I call the cops, explaining everything that went down, and they send out a unit. They wanted us to wait here, but I told them no. Rylee needs to be back with familiarity, not here. I said I would bring Rylee to the station first thing tomorrow morning. She’s staying with me so I know she’s safe. The cop protested, but I hung up on him. He can turn up at my house, but I won’t be letting him in. I know him through Bridge anyway, so I’m hoping he takes my word and leaves it at that.

Chapter six

Cash

Theadrenalineisstillcoursing through me as we pull up to Rylee’s apartment. Boh stayed in the back with her the whole ride home. She didn’t say a word, and just stared out the window. He tried to get her to talk but she wouldn’t give us anything. It’s like she’s in a state of shock.

I turn the engine off, and we sit there in silence. My gaze flicks up to the rearview mirror, and Rylee continues staring out the window.

Boh called Bridget as soon as we had her. She was in Toronto working on a big project she almost didn’t take because of how long she would be away for, and was now waiting for a flight home. I had told her to go and Boh and I would look after Rylee. She needed this break, and to get her head back into work. Being there for Rylee was holding her back, and the grief was weighing her down more and more. Bridge still called her every night to have their chats. She had mentioned Rylee wouldn’t answer some nights, and I know that’s Rylee wanting Bridge to have time to herself. Bridge is selfless, but Rylee is just as selfless back.

“Rylee. We are home, come on.” Her head turns to Boh, and her eyes are glazed over. What the fuck has he done to her? My teeth grind. All I want to do is scream at her to tell me what happened, but I know I can’t. My mind is in overdrive, trying not to imagine all the things he did. Why didn’t we catch the fucking creep? I get out of the car and walk toward the entrance, not even glancing back at the car. My mind and body are too pumped to be calm enough to talk to her and get her out of the car. If I have to go over there, I will drag her up the stairs, and she most definitely doesn’t need that.

I pull the door and hold it open, waiting for her or Boh to take it. When I realize no one is there, I turn and Boh is crouched at Rylee’s door talking to her. She stares down at him, but I don’t even think she is hearing what he is saying. My heart sinks in my chest. I stay there for a few more seconds, then walk over and stand next to him. Boh peers up at me, frowning, not knowing what to do with her. I nod my head to the side and bend down so I’m eye level with her.

“We are going upstairs, okay, you can either walk or I’ll carry you.” Her head falls forward, so I guess that is my answer. I place my hands under her legs.

“Cash,” Boh interjects, but I don’t listen to him. I place my hand around her back and lift her into my arms, and the minute I do, I know I made the right decision. She grips my arms and lays her head on my chest. The adrenaline leaves my body in an instant. Having her in my arms and knowing she is safe douses the fire raging inside me. Boh regards Rylee like he wants to take every bad thing that’s happened to her away. I wish someone could take it all away.

I walk up the stairs, hugging Rylee tighter to my chest to make sure she doesn’t smack into anything. She grips me even tighter and cocoons herself into me more. As much as I shouldn’t, my chest beams knowing I am the one she wants. I place her down on the sofa, but she doesn’t let go of my arms as I go to stand.

---