Page 69 of Anything For This Love

Without thinking through my intention further, I rear back and headbutt him in the nose. His hands fly to his face as I shoot to my feet. A hand clamps around my ankle and I pitch forward, barely catching myself, scraping my hands on rocks and twigs when I land. I kick at him blindly, finally finding my footing once more. I bolt, running as fast as I can back toward the trail we veered from earlier.

But I’m not fast enough.

“You stupid bitch!”

My head jerks back as he snatches my ponytail and I skid to a stop. I cry out at the burning sensation on my scalp. He releases his hold on my hair, bringing his arms down to clamp around my waist and pinning my arms to my sides. My breath leaves me in a whoosh, his arms squeezing so tightly around me, I can’t inhale.

His breath is fetid and hot against my cheek as he taunts, “You’re gonna pay for that.” He eases his bone crushing hold on me only enough to turn my body to face his. The back of his hand connects with my face and pain explodes over my cheek. I stumble back, nearly losing my footing again, but manage to stay upright. He grabs me by the hair again and I let out a shriek of pain. Dragging me back toward the giant oak he’d had me pinned against, he stops next to a duffle bag. Keeping his hold on my ponytail, he bends to retrieve something from the bag, pulling me down with him. I grit my teeth against the pain, refusing to give him the satisfaction of hearing me cry out again.

Pulling a roll of duct tape from the bag, he releases my hair and forces me to the ground. I fight him, trying to wriggle out of his grasp as he pushes me onto my belly and plants a knee in the small of my back.

“You won’t be running again, you little bitch,” he grits out. I try to kick, but he’s too strong. He catches my ankles and wraps them in several layers of tape. “If you don’t stop moving, I’m going to tape your arms behind your back.”

I catch movement from the corner of my eye and stop squirming. Caleb thinks I’ve finally decided to comply, when in reality I’m trying to get a better look at a flash of color streaking past his shoulder.

“That’s a good girl,” he croons. “Maybe if you learn to behave, I won’t be as rough on you.” Bile rises in my throat at his vile suggestion. He’s a disgusting, deranged human who never should’ve been released from prison.

He rolls me onto my back and grabs both of my wrists with bruising force. I hiss through my teeth, afraid my bones will snap under his forceful grip. A shadow passes over him, but I can’t see anything past his head with the blinding afternoon sun shining in my eyes, creating a halo of light around him. When he stands, I notice a pair of jean-clad legs standing a few feet behind him.

“Let her go,” a deep, familiar voice rings out.

Caleb freezes, his eyes bugging out of his head.

“Jacob Daniels.” Without turning, he says my boyfriend’s name like the words leave a bad taste in his mouth. “Coming to save the day again.” The madman regains his composure, the shock of his discovery quickly wearing off. He starts to turn around, but Jacob’s menacing tone stops him.

“Don’t move or I’ll blow your fucking head off.”

Jacob’s holding the end of a tire iron to the back of Caleb’s head, the circle of metal pressing into his skull. To Caleb, it probably feels like the barrel of a gun. In the heat of the moment, with adrenaline coursing through your veins, the mind can be easily fooled. Smart move on Jacob’s part, especially since I no longer carry my revolver in my backpack. I was afraid Chloe would get a hold of it. Now I wish I had it. Caleb wisely remains still this time, unknowingly submitting to a car tool and not a firearm.

Without taking his eyes off Caleb, Jacob calmly asks, “Abby, can you grab that tape and bind his hands?”

I nod and struggle to my feet, grabbing the roll of tape Caleb dropped when Jacob surprised him. Caleb watches me with unguarded malevolence.

“You’re not going to shoot me,” Caleb declares. He tries to act self-assured, but his confidence is wavering.

“Why the hell not? You’ve attacked Abby twice now and caused her a lifetime of trauma. Ending you would be the most satisfying thing I do all year. I’d be doing the female population a favor.”

“So you’d shoot me in the back? A defenseless man?”

Jacob scoffs, “Defenseless? I bet if I looked inside that bag, I’d find allkindsof weapons and tools for torture.”

My stomach heaves and I barely suppress a gag. The horrible things he was planning to do to me make my skin crawl and my insides turn to Jell-O.

I pull at the edge of the tape with shaky fingers, releasing a long strip from the roll. Caleb finally admits defeat and brings his hands together, lifting them toward me.Lowering my trembling hands, I stretch the tape over his wrists. Before I can make the first loop, he slams his palms into my chest and I stumble back, unable to stop myself from falling on my ass. He turns, catching Jacob in the temple with his elbow and darts away, running deeper into the woods. Jacob straightens, momentarily stunned, and shakes off the blow. Then he’s on the move, chasing after my attacker.

“Jacob!” I cry, my heart pounding even though I’m rooted to the spot, my ankles still bound. I dig through the bag beside me, certain there’s something with which I can slice through the tape. My fingers brush over the hilt of a hunting knife and curl around it. Unsheathing the sharp blade, I cautiously begin to saw through the layers, careful not to cut myself.

“Miss, are you alright?” I jump, startled by the park ranger approaching. I look up into the concerned face of a colleague. “Abby?” Missy’s brown eyes widen as she takes me in and settles on the side of my face where Caleb struck me. I can only imagine the bruise blossoming there. “Dear lord, child, what happened to you?”

My face scrunches in misery and terror. “Caleb Carlisle attacked me! My boyfriend, Jacob ran after him!” I sob.

“Which way did they go?” I point in the direction they disappeared, and she takes off after them. “Backup is on the way!” she hollers over her shoulder.

Minutes later, another park ranger and a sheriff’s deputy come barreling through the trees, spotting me as soon as they hit the tiny clearing where Caleb had dragged me. By now I’ve managed to get the tape loose and pull it off. Steve, the park ranger, helps me to my feet while the deputy continues into the woods in hot pursuit of Caleb. Several minutes pass before Steve’s radio crackles, a burst of static blasting through before Missy’s voice comes over the line. “We’ve got him.”

I exhale my relief, letting my eyes close and my head fall back, then I jerk back to the present and ask feverishly,“What about Jacob? Is he okay?” Steve relays my question and Missy responds immediately.

“He’s okay. Face and arms are a little tore up from running through some dense underbrush, but he’s not injured.” More deputies arrive within minutes and Steve acts as a guide, helping them collect evidence as we wait for the four people who went into the woods to come out.

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