A/N I'm very new to the idea of writing fanfiction, any reviews would be greatly appreciated! Thank you for reading and I hope you enjoy!
Today was the best day Carla had had in a while. Admittedly it was far from perfect, but since that monster had walked free from any charges and she had been branded a liar her days had been far from alright. However, today was the day Carla had managed to win back one of her clients. With all her others abandoning her on the word of the jury, she was grateful she could still offer some work to her machinists. She had suffered so much because of Frank; she wasn't going to let everyone else suffer too by losing their jobs. She didn't like to admit it, but the faith of Mr Leydon had boosted her mood too – it was good to know that there was at least someone out there that believed her.
'Yeah it looks good to me, Hayley.' Carla said, as she passed the sample she had made for the new order back to her. 'If you just put a bit more lace around there then it'll be perfect!'
'Thank you, Mrs Connor.' Hayley smiled at her boss. Sometimes Carla wished she wouldn't be so nice to her; it made her feel uncomfortable and weak. But Hayley was different; they had an understanding and they both genuinely cared for each other. Since Tony's stunt they'd looked out for each other – when you go through something like that together there's this inexplicable bond. Hayley had seen her scared, something Carla despised, but she had never used it as ammunition against her. She'd accepted Carla was a private person and hadn't mentioned a word to anyone about it. But Hayley could tell when she was scared or upset now, and always tried to help without being obvious and embarrassing her. Carla smiled back, reassuring her that she was ok. After all, today was one of the good days.
The door to the factory clanged and everyone turned to see who it was. They weren't expecting anyone and Mr Leydon wasn't due for another hour or so yet.
'Frank?' Carla was more surprised and angry at his sudden appearance at her factory than anything. What possessed him to think he was welcome? But once inside he didn't stop. He continued walking towards Carla. His stride was purposeful, his eyes wide and his head tilted slightly to the side. She'd only ever seen him do that once before, and she wasn't even going to think about what had happened then...today was going too well for memories like that.
'Frank what do you want?' she demanded, but he didn't stop, he just headed straight for her. Carla couldn't get her head around what was going on. He was always so cool and calculating, acting the victim. He would goad her until she couldn't take it any longer and snap, making her look like the manipulator of the two. She hated how he got under her skin, how his presence alone caused shivers down her spine, how his sickly sweet voice made her feel physically sick. But he wasn't playing games, this was full on confrontation, and she couldn't bring herself to think about where this was going.
He was about a metre away from her when she stumbled back into the office wall behind her. This wasn't happening, not now, not today. '...Frank...' Her voice was pleading. Now wasn't the time for her "hard-faced cow" facade. Unfortunately, she'd let him know her all too well when they had been together, so she knew there was no point trying to cover up her anxiety. He'd see straight through her anyway, and she'd only end up in a messier situation than she was already in.
As soon as he reached Carla he slammed his hands on the glass of the office either side of her body, trapping her. The sharp movements and the rattling of the glass behind her caused her to jump out of her skin. She had never been a jumpy person, but since that night any sudden noises or movements would freak her into having a glass of red to calm her nerves. She could hear come commotion coming from her staff, but all she could see was Frank.
Frank enjoyed watching her squirm under his control. He felt the power surge through his body as he looked into her terrified eyes. 'You're going to regret shopping me to the police.' It was a statement, not an opinion, and he spoke so matter-of-factly that Carla couldn't help but believe him.
'Was else was I supposed to do?' If she was resigned to her fate, she thought she might as well go down fighting. She hated the idea of her work force thinking she was weak, and at least this way she would be able to show everyone exactly what Frank was like.
'Oh I don't know...' Frank said as he looked around aimlessly, his hands sliding down the glass as his stance grew less intimidating. Then, without warning, he slammed them back to their original position and took pleasure in watching the broken woman before him jump in fright once again. She'd been getting too cocky, that should quieten her for a while. 'As you were told, would be a start.'
Carla's bottom lip quivered, but she was determined not to let him know how much he was getting to her. She wasn't going to let him win, that was the one thing she was sure of. She took a quick glance at her factory staff for moral support before she spoke. 'What? Drop the charges, let you go free and I'd live happily ever after would I?'
Frank laughed. He was actually enjoying this. 'Correct me if I'm wrong Carla, but you seem to be in a pretty similar position right now. Apart from the small snag of actually dragging me through the courts. Didn't go quite to plan did it, sweetheart?' He removed one of his hands from the wall and stroked her cheek.
It had been the first time he had dared to touch her again, and it repulsed her. She flinched away as she felt the bile rise in her throat and she gagged. Frank let out a small chuckle as he watched the woman he once loved struggle to regain her composure. Throughout all their time together, he had wondered how hard it would be to crush her barriers when she was trying her hardest to keep them up. He'd always considered her quite strong-minded and feisty, so he felt a sense of satisfaction at his achievement.
When he was satisfied that she wasn't going to retch again, he grabbed her by the shoulders and forced her against the wall; nothing like a bit of déjà vu to keep her in line. As her back collided with the wall the memories she had been trying so hard to block flooded back into her mind. He'd caught her off guard, once again, and she couldn't help it as she let out a whimper and a mascara-stained tear fell freely down her cheek.
She wasn't giving up. The worst thing she could do was give up. Physically she was weak, Frank knew that, and she knew that. But her way with words had always proved a powerful tool of hers, and she was going to use it until the very last slither of hope had vanished.
'You do realise that you're admitting this in front of the whole factory don't you? What will Sally say when she finds out? She'll think you're a...'
'Sally already knows. So nice try Carla, but you're not talking yourself out of this one.'
'She...what? How does she know?' This Carla was not expecting.
'I lost it. Let it slip about how you deserved everything you got. Which we both know is true, don't we?' Carla was shocked into silence. She wanted to scream at him how he couldn't blame his sick, twisted life on her, but she couldn't find the words. If Sally knew, that would mean that he no longer needed to pretend, that he could be as open about it as he liked. And here he was doing just that. Nothing was stopping him from doing exactly what he wanted.
Carla took a deep breath and composed herself. There was only one thing left to say, only one more thing she could think of to catch him out, only one more lifeline she had left. 'And what exactly do you plan on doing in a factory full of workers?' That was sure to stump him.
'Oh Carla! Is that all you've got?' Her heart raced as terror took hold of her. He made her feel so small, so insignificant, so petty. Her only plan hadn't worked, and now she had no idea what to do. The fact that this didn't bother Frank worried her, yet soothed her at the same time. His punishment was quite clearly going to be tormenting her and perhaps a beating, and nothing more, yet the humiliation of all this unfolding in front of those who she tried to remain professional with made her heart sink. 'I'm rather disappointed really. I've always admired you for strength and determination. Is this all I'm getting?'
SHe decided to concentrate on the positive side of the situation, and the relief which was rushing through Carla's veins was beyond anything she had ever experienced and suddenly Frank seemed less of a threat to her. She felt fearless, invincible.
'Thank god for that, the last thing I want is your admiration.'
'Don't push me Carla.' It was a warning. This was a first, she had to admit. Frank wasn't a man who warned his victims. He enjoyed catching them off-guard, making them fear the unknown. She couldn't decide what to make of it, but she settled on the assumption that he felt insecure about his power over the situation and she decided to make use of it.
'Or what, eh? What are you going to do Frank? Hit me? Well come on, I'm waiting!' His hands fell to his sides and he took a few steps back from her. She was taking the power back, and she felt great. He couldn't believe how little she was scared of him all of a sudden. Evidently this wasn't going to work, telling her to watch her back. He'd planned on giving her a slap and a quick reminder of how far he could go, but he was going to have to have a change of plan, he could tell. She was going to pay for what she'd put him through. And she certainly wasn't going to think she could get away with treating him like this.
He let a smile creep onto his face. He knew how much that unnerved her. 'Has anyone told you you're beautiful when you're angry?'
Was he serious? Her mind flooded back to Tony as they scrambled through the flames and how he'd said exactly the same thing to her. Her life was one nightmare after another, and no matter what happened, it never seemed to stop. Frustration built up inside her and the next thing she knew Frank was clutching his reddened face. She'd always given a good slap, although she'd barely ever done it. To be fair, it was usually her on the receiving end for her attitude.
His eyes glared at her, and they bored into her skin. If she had to name one of the most stupid things to do, that would have been it. He'd started to back off, and typical Carla had to make things worse.
He slammed her against the wall again. He was so close their bodies were touching and she didn't even dare to breathe. She didn't trust herself not to do anything else stupid. He leaned in and whispered coldly in her ear.
'See you tonight Carla.'
As he left, she exhaled and struggled to take in enough oxygen to compensate. She didn't even bother to try and put on a show. As she slid slowly down the wall, his sentence rang through her head. See you tonight. There was no way she could go home.