Page 7 of Shattered

My tears spill forth, washing away any hope of escape.

Running my hands up and down my thighs I realize my phone is in my purse.By my feet.All I have to do is lean down and grab it.As I move forward, Samuel turns his head in my direction, watching me as much as he can without crashing his vehicle.

“What are you doing?”

“Nothing,” I whisper, sitting back in my seat.Samuel is proving to be unpredictable, and I’m not sure what I should do.He’s showing me a side of himself I thought only existed in other people’s imaginations.And because of my need to prove them wrong, I ended up in his clutches.

Exactly where he wanted me.

Every time I smiled in his direction, trying to appease his nervousness, he took my niceness as an indication of my feelings for him.Or what he thought were my feelings.I was simply trying to not judge, not treat him like everyone else did.I knew he was different, and I wasn’t going to be like everyone else.

I should have been.

I should have never made eye contact.

I should have never been nice.

I would have been safe.

If I don’t do or say anything right now, if I let him drive me closer to wherever it is he’s taking me, then I will lose.

My freedom.

My happy little bubble.

My world.

To hell with it!I dive forward and retrieve my cell as quickly as I can.Grabbing my only hope, I swipe the screen and do my best to dial 911.I know in my gut I won’t complete the call.But I try anyway.

My sudden movements cause Samuel to whip the wheel to the right and skid to a stop on the side of the highway, kicking up gravel all around us.

I reach for the handle to jump out of his truck, but he grabs my arm before I can escape.

“No!” he shouts.“Why are you being like this, Sara?Why are you trying to leave me?”

I have no words for him.I don’t even fully comprehend what’s taking place right now.I know I’m in danger, but it’s like I’m moving in slow motion, an alternate world dancing around me.Pulling me in deeper and deeper until I can’t even hear him.

I see him, though.

He’s angry.

So angry.

The muscles in his face start to tick, tiny spasms jumping the more upset he becomes.His eyes blink in quick succession, his hold on me tightening the more his body betrays him.

“I…I…just want to go…go,” I stammer.“Please, let me out.”I try to shrug free, but it’s no use.

I’m not going anywhere.

Glancing into his eyes, I see my future and it terrifies me.I bear witness to the man sitting next to me come unhinged.My life isn’t my own anymore, of this I’m sure.Lost in my own dread, I don’t even see it coming.

A sharp pain to my temple throws me into unconsciousness.

~~~~

The world starts to fade in and out as a ripping pain tears through my brain.I try to reach up to grab my head, but I can’t.My arms are restrained, a coarse rope grating against my sensitive skin.I make it worse with each struggled attempt.

I try to remember how I ended up here and that’s when the memories come flooding in, fitting all the jagged pieces of the puzzle together.

---