Page 96 of Science Project

My suspicions had been fucking correct. I should’ve come over sooner.

Adrenaline rushed through my veins as I banged even harder. Yet neither Nicole nor her father answered. So, I stepped a few feet back, found a rock the size of half a melon, and flung it through the front window.

I raced forward, but before I could get more than a couple of feet, someone clamped their hand over my mouth from behind and hurled me to the ground. My head bounced off the pavement, and suddenly, a bag was forcefully pulled over my head, plunging me into darkness.

Another pair of hands restrained my arms, tying them behind my back. I kicked upward, trying to make contact with someone, but I was unsuccessful. Nicole raced through my mind, and I did everything I could to try to get away, to rescue her.

The scent of dirty, old fabric filled my nostrils as the rough material scratched against my face. I knocked my shoulder back, hitting someone hard in what felt like the chin. Images of Nicole’s tear-streaked face only pushed me harder.

With a jolt, the world around me shifted, and someone hoisted me upward, the bag still obscuring my vision and becoming tighter by the moment. I jerked my arms and legs as hard as I could.

But whoever this was … they were much stronger than I was. And I didn’t have a weapon to defend myself. I honestly hadn’t thought that I would need one. All I knew was that I wasn’t going down without a fight, and whoever was dragging me hadn’t wanted me to walk in on the police chief raping his daughter.

For a moment, the man’s grip on my arm loosened. With a burst of desperation, I twisted and writhed, my muscles straining and aching. However, his grip tightened on me. Fury raged through me, and I did what I could. Which wasn’t enough.

The man punched me in the ribs, cracking them in three different places. I cried out in pain and sucked in a breath, but there wasn’t any more oxygen in the small, tight bag around my head. Stars danced in my vision.

Finally, he stopped, and my throbbing body collided with the cold sensation of metal. A door was opened, and suddenly, I was thrown into what felt like a trunk. Ropes bit into my wrists, the tight bindings so painful.

The trunk lid slammed shut, and then a moment later, the car started.

Breathing shallowly, I tried squirming out of the bag placed around my head. But the more I moved, the tighter it became. My chest tightened, and my eyes filled with hot tears because I couldn’t save her.

I couldn’t fucking save her.

Her father had been abusing her all this time, and I hadn’t put it together until now.

Why couldn’t I see it before? What was wrong with me?

Seconds felt like minutes and minutes like hours. I screamed and kicked and jerked my body in every direction in a mere attempt to get the hell out of here. But it was no use. Every bit of energy I used up only made me dizzier.

When the engine turned off, I calmed myself down and tried to come up with a plan of escape. Using my energy like this was pointless. I couldn’t get out of these binds and could barely breathe. At this rate, I wouldn’t be able to think.

After a moment, the trunk opened. A gust of frigid air rushed through me, and strong hands yanked me out of the car. With a heavy thud, I slammed down onto a solid surface. The air carried a distinct salty tang, and the rhythmic crashing of waves drifted through my ears.

I was by the beach.

And I only knew one gang in town that had a place down by the beach …

Someone grabbed my shoulders, and another man grabbed my feet. They carried me up some steps, then into a building much warmer. My fingers twitched, and I couldn’t stop thinking about Nicole looking so helpless.

Once we made it into a room, they hurled me onto a chair. My body missed it almost entirely, and I smacked hard against the ground. Then, in a jarring movement, the bag was ripped off my head. I forced my stinging eyes open.

Standing before me was the bitch herself.

Mom.

CHAPTER

FIFTY-SIX

NICOLE

I didn’t know what burned more—my eyes or my pussy.

Whimpering to myself and feeling undeniable shame, I stood in front of Akio’s door and lifted my hand to knock. I had been standing here for ten minutes, and yet I couldn’t get myself to do it. My worst fear had come true.

Akio had seen my father rape me, and he hadn’t done anything about it.

---