Page 102 of Goose

Goose screams as she walks over to me. “Leave her alone! Fine! I’ll do whatever you want!”

“Too late.”

Ellie Jo pushes me to the ground and then kicks me in the stomach. I look up to see the whip in her hand.

She glares down at me, then whips my back over and over while Goose screams. I lay on my stomach and look at him while a tear escapes my eye.

I try to just close my eyes and take myself away. Ellie Jo stops whipping me and rolls me onto my back.

“Open your fucking eyes and look at him. This is all because you wouldn’t leave him alone. You could have saved yourself, Tiffani, Olivia, and Goose if you had just listened to me!”

Ellie Jo takes a cigarette out of her pocket and lights it. She puts the cigarette to her mouth and inhales, then blows the smoke back out into my face.

“Fuck, I missed this. I had to pretend to be this sweet, innocent woman around all of you. It was fucking exhausting.”

Kneeling down, she places the burning end all over my body. My arms, my legs, my stomach. She lights the cigarette over and over just to burn small circles all over my body.

Ellie Jo stands up as I cry and curl up into a ball on the dirt floor. She walks over to Goose and wipes away his tears.

“It will be over soon. She needs to know her place and you need to see how much better off you are without her.”

She walks upstairs and comes back down a few minutes later with a bucket. Turning to me, she pours the freezing water over my head as I lay on the ground.

I try to sit up, but Ellie Jo places her foot on my stomach so I can’t move. She pours more water over my face as I try not to drown in the frigid water.

I can hear Goose screaming and trying to break his ropes that tie him down to the bed.

“Enough! Fucking enough!”

Ellie Jo just laughs as she pours the last remaining water over my face, then kicks me in the side.

“I’m done when I say I’m fucking done!”

She turns back to me and kicks me over and over. Finally, Ellie Jo stops and spits on my face.

“This will help you remember who is in charge around here. When Goose and I are making love in front of you, you’ll remember who won.”

She kicks me one last time before walking over to Goose. Ellie Jo leans down and plants her lips on him as he struggles to turn his head.

“I’ll be back for you, baby.”

Ellie Jo walks back up the stairs mumbling to herself again. She truly is fucking crazy.

Slowly, I scoot myself back to the wall despite the searing pain. I groan as I try to sit myself up by the sharp rock.

“Fuck...”

I look up to see Goose crying. Wincing, I scoot myself over to the bed and lay my head against his.

“We’re gonna get out. I promise, Goose. We’re gonna escape and live. There’s the sharp rock over there and it’s sharp enough to cut the thin ropes Ellie Jo used. Just... just do what she says, please. I love you.”

He turns his head, and we share a soft kiss before I scoot back over to the wall. I move my hands up and down as fast as I can.

“You’re so fucking resilient, Bambi. You’ve been through so much and yet keep on going. I’m gonna put the biggest fucking rock on your finger when we get out of here. Give you all the babies you want. You want a big house? I’ll build it. I want to give you the whole fucking world, angel.”

I sniff back tears as I work harder on cutting the rope. “I just want you, Sawyer. You and your home is what I want.”

He turns and smiles at me. “And big rock on your hand. I’m gonna marry you as soon as I can. I love you, Bambi.”

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