Chapter 144 TAKEN 2
SLOANE’S POINT OF VIEW.
Have you ever felt fear?
And I don’t mean that slight shiver that comes over you, or the goosebumps on your arms, or the way your heart skips as if you’re about to experience a heart attack that will never start?
I’m talking about real fear; the one that comes with knowing that any and every move you make could cost your life. I thought I knew what fear was. I thought fear was what I felt when I stared at the exam questions, worried that what I’d read would somehow exist. Fear wasn’t when I almost fell into the puddle of dirty rainwater after I’d stubbed my toe against a stone because I’d been so engrossed with my phone.
What I felt now….that was fear.
My legs shook, as my the feeling of something coiled around the back of my throat, coupled with the taste of bitterness, mixed with bile, as my skin grew pale, my eyes wide and fixated on the scarred man, still dressed as a Ravenscroft High janitor, sat across from us while someone drove the grey van he pushed Seraphina and me in.
His scar ran from under his right eye up to the spot where his collarbone sat.
Seraphina’s hand coiled around mine tightly, her fierceness slightly rubbing off on me as she fixed the man with a harsh glare. But I wasn’t fooled. Judging from how tight she gripped onto my hand, the way she squeezed as though if she let go by some mistake, she would disintegrate…it showed me just how scared she was,
And that added to my own fear.
Because I have never seen Seraphina scared….ever.
My eyes took in our surroundings. There was a rope hanging on the other side of the van, as well as a drill, some knives, another gun, and something with the inscription of a skull on it. Probably poison. My eyes darted back to our captor, and I glanced at the gun he still pointed at us, his eyes not once flickering from us.
I swallowed the tight feeling at the back of my throat and silently prayed that someone, anyone, had seen us walking to the van, or at least seen us walking with him close behind us, to his cleaning van. The moment I saw the van, the feeling of hopelessness clawed at me. It looked like a regular thing, like something anyone would look at and not even bat a fucking eye.
Hell, the damn thing has windows.
But Seraphina and I couldn’t do anything, at least not yet, because I was quite sure the fucker would not hesitate to use the gun on both of us, even if it meant that we’d bleed out before we got to wherever the hell it was that we were headed.
“Who are you?” Seraphina asked, causing my eyes to widen as I whipped my head to stare at her. What the hell is she doing?!
I squeezed her hand tightly, trying to send her a warning to shut the hell up. I don’t think it's wise to ask the crazy, scarred, quiet man with a loaded gun any questions, especially when we’re not sure if he’s gonna use the damn weapon or not.
From the corner of my eye, I could see her pull something out of her shoe. The glint of the tiny silver object caught my eye, and I smoothly pretended not to see anything, my eyes reverting to the psycho.
“You’re not even gonna answer?” She spat, her eyes shining with false strength. “At least speak to the teenage girls you are kidnapping.” She licked her lips, a sign of her anxiety, which I knew all too well. She rubbed her thumb against my palm softly, as though reassuring me that everything would be okay.
“My dad has money, you know?” She said, a nervous smile on her lips, even as her brows creased with sweat. “If that’s what you want, I’m sure we can get you some.”
Her throat bobbed as she swallowed hard, her eye contact with him not once breaking as she slowly moved the object from her shoe to hide it behind her.
“I don’t want your money.” He said for the first time since he pushed us in here. “I have already been paid enough for this work.”
“Oh, so this isn’t something you want to do to us personally?” She echoed, her voice unusually louder for some reason. All of a sudden, even as she spoke in that loud voice, I heard a click go off.
My grip on her hand tightened as I fought tears. All I could taste was my blood and my fucking heart at the back of my throat. I’d never been so afraid in my life. It felt like all I’d been afraid of for the past three weeks was crashing down on me, and there was nothing I could do about it.
“No. You two are not important to me, but some people need you.” He said, and rose slowly. All of a sudden, his steps advanced towards us as he dropped his cup of cheap alcohol. His dark, soulless eyes bore into us; each step he took sounded as if he weighed a ton.
My heart pounded harder with each step he took, up until he stopped in front of Seraphina and me. For a moment, he just stood there and glared at her, not me, but Seraphina.
She regarded him with a nervous smile, but she didn’t let go of the object she hid behind her. He went on his knees before her, his dark eyes had a twinge of curiosity and suspicion, as he regarded her as one would an ant.
I was about to say something, anything, as long as he got away from us so Seraphina could do what she wanted without him breathing down her neck. But before I could utter a word, she raised her leg in a harsh kick, connecting it with his jaw so he fell back, and dropped his gun.
“Now!” she yelled, and I didn’t waste a moment. I picked up the gun, rushed to the place with the bottle that had an inscription of a skull, opened it, and emptied it on both him and the driver. The sound of them screaming as soon as the liquid splashed on their skin filled the swerving van.
But Seraphina didn’t appear fazed. She kicked the door open, grabbed me by the hand, and before I could blink, she jumped, forcing me to jump out of the swerving vehicle, onto the almost buzzing street.
I hissed as my skin scraped against the harsh ground, but she didn’t even appear fazed. Instead, she rose to her feet, helped me stand and yelled, “We have to run, Sloane!”
I didn’t waste another second. I pushed my body against the pain and allowed the adrenaline to kick in as we both ran, our hold on each other not letting up.
I didn’t know where we were going yet, but I knew we needed to find help as soon as possible.