Page 143 of Always Red (Chasing Red 2)

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“Caleb. Oh God, where is he? I swear if you hurt him—”

“Hurt him?” Her upper lip curled as if I’d insulted her. “Hurt my Caleb?”

“Where is he?”

“Where is he?” she mimicked, her voice taunting and childlike as she moved closer to me.

I cried out in pain as she slammed the gun into my cheek.

“Hurts, doesn’t it? Uh-uh-uh.” I prepared to strike, but Beatrice-Rose stepped back, shaking her head and pointing the gun at my head again. “Make another move, and I’ll blow your brains out. Red.” Feral amusement lit up her eyes. “Red. Get it?” She laughed, and there was madness in it. “You’ll earn your name once your brains and blood are splattered on the floor. Red. Red. Red!”

“You’re crazy.”

She froze, the amusement leaving her face. “What did you say?” Her voice held a warning to tread very carefully.

“Just let me go. Let me go, and I won’t tell anyone about this.”

Her eyes narrowed. “Do you think I’m stupid? You’re never getting out of here.”

A fresh wave of terror slid up my spine. Beatrice-Rose was going to kill me.

“Where’s Caleb?”

“Don’t say his name! You don’t deserve him. Move!” she ordered, slamming a door open. The banging noise echoed throughout the empty house. “Down those stairs.”

It was pitch-dark, the smell of turpentine and fresh paint hitting my nostrils. She moved behind me, shoving me forward. I grabbed the railing to keep from stumbling, scraping my knuckles against the rough stone walls.

“I said move!”

This was my chance. If she was close enough behind me, I could surprise her, grab her, and push her down the stairs.

But the lights came on suddenly, blinding me. Before I could recover, hands shoved at me mercilessly, and I fell down the stairs with a scream. I was fast enough to shield my head, but I grunted as pain shot up my left leg when I landed hard on it. I realized there were only a few stairs. If there had been more, I would have been hurt far worse.

I could hear her laughing.

In my back pocket, my phone vibrated. I had to find a way to get it without her seeing me. I had to answer it or dial 911, but she was already skipping down the stairs toward me, a triumphant smile on her face.

“Not so pretty now, are you? Maybe I should cut up that face he loves so much before I kill you. Then he wouldn’t love it anymore, would he?”

Anger bubbled in my throat, pushing away the fear. I had been helpless before. I knew how fear could numb your limbs and mind so you were trapped, at the mercy of someone evil.

But not this time.

No, not this time. I wouldn’t go without a fight. I’d kill her before she killed me.

I could feel my pocketknife biting into my back as I carefully sat up. If Beatrice-Rose came closer, I could jump up and stab her.

Still, I looked around for any additional weapon I could use to defend myself. It was obvious the owners were renovating. Some of the furniture was stacked on the other side of the room. There was drywall everywhere, exposed beams, and tables covered in plastic. There should be tools, maybe on those tables, but they were too far away.

“All my life, I’ve never been good enough,” Beatrice-Rose snarled. “But with Caleb, it’s different. He made me feel beautiful, important. I was enough. You should have stayed away. He’s mine. He’s mine, and you stole him from me. But I’ll get him back. He always comes back.”

“Not this time. Not if you kill me.”

“We’ll see about that. Daddy killed Atlas, didn’t he? Daddy killed Atlas, and I forgave him. And Caleb will forgive me just as I forgave Daddy for killing my pet rabbit. You’re Caleb’s Atlas. You’re his rabbit. Do you see?”

She stood there, aiming the gun at my head, scratching her arm absently until it started to bleed. Her eyes were almost pleading for me to understand.

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