NINETEEN

~Jake~

            “Let go of me, you slimy b*****d!” she cried, her screams bouncing off the trees around her. “They’re going to come after us, you know!” She hoped. She hoped that they would see the blood trail she left and see that she didn’t just leave them. That was her worst fear right now.

            “I doubt that. Nobody cares about you. You are pathetic and worthless,” Richard growled, not even stopping to look down at her. Richard continued to drag her away, her feet scraping against the ground. Jake twisted against his hold but he was too strong, she couldn’t break his grip. Jerking her forward, her arm was slammed against a thick tree root, sending spasms of pain searing through her, her vision darkening until everything went black.

            “Wha-“ she stuttered, her eyes fluttering open. She was sitting in a dark cavern, her back pressed against the hard stone wall. Her arms were bound together in her lap, connected to the wall by a thick, brown rope. Groaning against the pain she struggled to look around. Richard was sitting farther down in the cave in front of a large black cauldron, surrounded by torches chained to the wall. His hair was sticking up in all directions, but the red ring around his eyes had faded slightly. He was muttering under his breath, flipping through the pages of a black, leather- bound, old book.

            She looked around her. One of the same torches that lit Richard’s small room, hung across from her. There was a heavy pounding in her head, blood pulsing through her temples. She looked around the floor near her. There were a few sharp rocks but they were a distance away. Sighing, she started to edge closer, sliding once, staring up at Richard, and sliding again. Soon she was just close enough that she could wrap her fingers around a triangular piece of stone, the heavy rope pulling at her wrists. Carefully edging back, she made it back to her spot before Richard looked up.

Jake slipped the rock in her pocket just as Richard stood up and began walking towards her. His movements were slow, jerky. His legs barely bent with every step towards her, making his shoulders shudder. Finally reaching her, he squatted down, putting their faces just inches apart.

“What are you doing?” he rasped, his voice was dry and scratchy. Jake could see right through his translucent skin, the sharp bone that pressed sharp against his skin. His eyes were wild, the red rings starting to darken. She could see how loosely his clothes clung to his body, how thin he had gotten from when she knew him. He stared at her, unblinking.

“N-nothing,” she sputtered. She could hear how shaky her own voice was, revealing how nervous she was. Richard gave a grim chuckle, reaching out and grabbing a fist full of her hair. Painfully, he dragged her up, forcing her to stand on her feet. He leaned forward even more, staring at her. The stones in the cave stabbed her painfully in the back.

“Help,” he whispered, catching her off guard.

“What?” she gasped.

“Help me.” His voice had changed, it was quieter, more how it had used to be. All the red in his eyes had disappeared. He looked scared, innocent, normal.

“Richard,” she whispered, lifting her hands. He let go of her hair, taking her hands in his. And then it was gone. The red returned to his eyes, he clenched his hand shut around hers and knocked her to the ground. Her hip stung from where she landed, sending waves of pain hurdling through her. Looking up at him, Jake saw venom dripping from his eyes, his glare burning a hole through her. He spat next to her, storming away with the same jerky, stiff movements.

           ~Adrian~

“Come on Richelle, we have to keep moving,” he sighed, trying not to be angry but he was impatient. He wanted to find Jake, he didn’t want to let her go. Richelle hitched the bag higher on her shoulders and continued over the tree roots.

“Adrian look at this,” she called ahead. She bent down to one of the tree roots and pulled away with a piece of white cloth. It looks like it had been torn from a larger piece of fabric. It had stretch marks from where it had been twisted tight. Adrian moved back, taking the cloth from her.

“There’s blood on it,” he sighed. Richelle gave a small whimper, following him as he continued moving forward. She watched quietly as he crunched the cloth in his hand, keeping it in his hand.

“Adrian,” she whispered. He stopped and turned around, looking at her. His eyes were tired, dark rings underneath them. “We are going to find her.” Adrian looked at her, and slowly nodded. Stepping forward, she hugged him, feeling all the sadness in him.

            “I know,” he whispered back. Let’s just hope we find her alive, he thought to himself. 

Reviews

[Sylvana]

Ahhh~~~~~~~~~ dude. I totally had forgotten what Richard wanted with her, but still. I wonder if Richard will settle down enough to quit hurting her. *thinks*