Page 49 of Bleed for Me

Vanessa Farley is a bait and switch for one of the local sex trafficking groups. Her job is to lure unsuspecting women in so her employers can capture them easily. Mick had thrown a huge fit when I told him my plan, saying it was much too dangerous. I was so confident we could do this that I eventually wore him down. At the moment, I’m wishing he would have stuck to his guns.

Grinding my teeth, I chance a peek around me. I’m in the back of a large vehicle, most likely the van I was staking out. It’s dark and empty except for the two rows of bench seating on either side of the space. Cautiously, I peer down and see that my legs have been strapped to the floor, a rope running through a metal ring soldered to the floorboard. Contorting my body, I peek over my shoulder. My eyes focus on my bound wrists, finding they have been tied together and the attached rope secured to another similar looking metal ring on the bench.

I resign to the reality that there is no way I am going to get myself out of this, my only hope is that Mick was predictable and saw me get taken. Forcing my breathing to remain even, my mind retraces the events leading up to my capture. There had been no sign of Vanessa, or anyone else, when I approached the van. I was shocked to find the vehicle empty when I slid open the door. At least Ithoughtit was empty, until large hands gripped my forearms and yanked me back into the dark space.

There’s no way they could have known I was coming, or why, which meant there was only one real possibility behind my kidnapping. They were at that park for a reason. Rather than taking Vanessa and putting her schemes to an end, I handed myself over on a silver platter.

My fear ratchets up as the severity of my situation sets in.

I’m alone.

I don’t have my phone or any way to contact anyone.

No one but Mick knew where I was going tonight.

I’m being kidnapped. Again. And somehow I think I’d prefer to be chained up in Mick’s room to whatever these people have planned for me.

I push down the tears that are threatening to well up in my eyes. Closing them instead, I send out a plea I wouldn’t have thought would cross my mind two months ago.

Mick, please save me.

The van jostles, startling me awake. I don’t remember falling asleep but must have at some point. My head throbs and the moisture seems to have spread farther, causing me to think I hit it hard when they pulled me inside. Concerned I might have a concussion, I make a vow to stay awake.

Keeping my eyes closed, I attempt to stave off the worsening of my injury by avoiding unnecessary strain to my eyes. A sound has my ears perking up. My sluggish brain works to place it, recognizing the inflection of a voice. Multiple voices.

“We’re almost there. You’re going to need to go back out and get another girl tonight, in case this one doesn’t make it.” A gruff voice rumbles from somewhere within the confined space.

A feminine voice snides in response, “We wouldn’t have to worry about that if you hadn’t hit her head.” The wound aches at the reminder.

Ah, so that’s what happened.

I bite my cheek against the pain, straining to hear the conversation.

“She wouldn’t stop screaming!” The deep voice snaps back. “It was going to draw too much attention and you know it.”

A sigh sounds before the woman concedes. “I suppose, Ronaldo. Just hurry up, I was hoping to get out early tonight. Drake and I have plans.” I cringe at the fiendish tone of her voice. I’m pretty sure whatever plans she is referring to are going to be at the expense of someone else. A pang of guilt stabs through me as I wish again that I had accomplished the job.

Ronaldo snickers. “Aye aye captain.”

Neither speak again until we pull up somewhere and come to a stop. The breaks press down hard and I’m thrown to the side, only stopped by the ropes tying me in place. I take several deep breaths to calm myself and brace for whatever’s about to come next.

In and out. In and out.

I repeat the mantra in my head to calm the storm in my mind.

The door slides open and I see the woman I had set out the night planning to capture. Her appearance is carefully designed to appear ragged and defenseless, aiding in her ability to draw in the help of her targets. The gleam in her eyes as she scans over my body reveals there is nothing helpless about this woman. She is a predator in every sense of the word and I have fallen into her trap.

I steal my shoulders and refuse to cower before her gaze.

She may be dangerous, but so am I.

Whatever Mick awoke in me is thirsting for blood, screaming for violence, demanding to be unleashed. The side of her mouth ticks up in a sinister grin, her eyes holding my own as she purrs, “Well hello there. I see you’re awake.” Her head tilts to the side as she studies me. “I am impressed you aren’t crying or screaming. Most girls in your position are quite out of sorts.” I scowl at her which only causes her grin to widen. “Ah, you are going to be so fun to break.”

Turning away from the van, Vanessa shouts something and a large man takes her place. I shrink back instinctively when he reaches in and unhooks the rope from the floor, leaving my feet still tied but free from the metal ring. Grunting, he climbs into the van and grabs hold of my shirt. Yanking me forward, he shoves my head between my legs while placing a firm hand onto the back of my scalp. I wince as the pressure in my head increases from the angle and painful grip he has on me. I can hear him fumbling with the rope on my wrists with his free hand.

Swallowing the pained noise from the jostling, I focus on my breathing again.

In and out. In and out.

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