Chapter 66 Part 66
Asher
Asher gave her a morbid look, and closed his eyes. “Our Bradleys were hit by a rocket. Nobody died in that attack, but when we got out, a dozen men had rifles pointed at our heads. There were 18 of us, in total. They led us back to their camp on foot, tied together by a rope. For the first week, we were kept in dirty cells in the dark. There was never enough to eat, or enough water to drink, but we survived. We rationed ourselves.”
His chest heaved, and he took a few deep breaths, fighting the panic off. It almost felt like he was back in that cell, chained to the wall, unable to help Sharon fight them off.
“They took Rowena first. She was 23, at the time. They took her out of the cells where they kept us, but we could hear her scream. They laughed and jeered as she screamed. I’m not sure what they did to her, but I’ll never forget her screams. She never came back. Some days we could hear her begging, but I never saw her again.”
Maggie clenched his hand tightly. She could feel it shaking. She had tears in her eyes as Asher talked, and he wanted to stop, but now that he’d started, he couldn’t stop.
“Seven of us walked out of that camp, after two months; the others were killed. We were all tortured in various ways, some worse than others. They had Peter and Charles on their knees. They slit their throats in front of us. They were still bleeding out when they cut their heads off, and left their bodies in that cell with us for days. They would take us outside at dawn, tie us to wooden poles, and leave us there until sundown. They’d kick or slap us when they walked past us. I had blisters on my back from the sun. The leash around our necks was meant to humiliate us. That’s how Carlos died. He refused to go down on his knees. They beat him to death.”
“I’m so sorry, Asher,” Maggie whispered.
“Sharon was the last of us to die. They stripped her naked in front of us and raped her. She never screamed or begged. She clenched her eyes shut, but we could all see the blood as she bit down on her tongue. They were vicious and aggressive, but she kept quiet. We were the ones screaming that day. We were chained to the wall. There wasn’t a damned thing any of us could do to help her.”
“Asher.” When Maggie’s voice came out as a sob, he finally looked at her. The tears were glistening in her eyes, and she wiped her cheeks.
“Sharon’s body was left in our cell, naked, and mutilated. I didn’t think we’d ever leave there. Sometimes, it feels like I’m still there, caught in a dream that I don’t want to wake up from.”
Maggie’s sobs were shaking her shoulders as Asher held her against him. She was crying for people she’d never met—people she didn’t know. He’d known them, spent time with them. They’d eaten together, laughed and joked, shared news from home, and played soccer in the sand dunes.
“There are other things that happened—things that I did, but I can’t ever talk about it. I’m sorry, Maggie, but I’ve told you as much as I can handle to talk about tonight. I’ve told you more than I’m allowed to talk about.”
It took a while for Maggie to stop crying, and by that time, Asher had stopped, too. He was exhausted, but he did feel lighter. Telling Maggie about the terrible things had helped, not a lot, but the little bit was worth it to him.
“Please, tell me when the darkness gets too much. I’ll do whatever I can to help you through it. I don’t know how you’re the person you are. You’re the strongest person I’ve ever met, Asher.”
“Don’t give up on me, Maggie. I know I come with a lot of baggage, probably more than you expected, but—”
“Asher, I’m not going anywhere. When the snow melts, and the flowers start to bloom, I’m marrying you,” she said.
“I love you, and if you really want me to go see someone, then I will.”
“I want you to do what you feel comfortable doing. You have a whole family on this ranch who loves you so much. Every one of us will stand by you; you just need to tell us what you need,” Maggie said.
“I just want to forget, Maggie. I don’t want to talk about it, but I think it might be time to fill my prescription.”
“Prescription? For what?”
“Antidepressants. The doctor I had to see, after we were rescued, prescribed them. I never took them, but maybe I should. I don’t want to think about the things I think about. I don’t want to let that darkness in,” he said.
“I think that’s a really good start, but you might have to get a new prescription.”
Asher chuckled, and shifted onto his back. “I’ll get a new one.”
They fell asleep in each other’s arms, and Asher woke up an hour later, covered in sweat. The dreams had been different. This time, he was standing on the outside, looking in. It wasn’t him being tortured.
He sank back on the mattress with relief. When Maggie turned on her side, Asher slid to the edge of the bed, and got to his feet. He went downstairs and found Dakota in the living room.
His ears were pricked, and he was staring out the window. In the distance, it almost looked like someone was walking across the field. Dakota gave a low growl, and goosebumps appeared on Asher’s arms.
In seconds, he had the rifle in his hands, and he unlocked the front door. The rifle lay on the railing as Asher looked through the scope. He could faintly make out a moving shadow, so he fired a shot.
Bark from the tree next to the figure exploded as the bullet found its mark, and he saw the jerky movements of someone running. The silencer had made a loud popping sound. Headlights came on, and then the vehicle was driving away.