In Darkness, Angels
Chapter Four: Deception and Abduction
When Anthony woke up the next morning to discover that Amy wasn't next to him, he felt a brief moment of panic before he realized that he could hear the shower running. He heaved a sigh of relief then climbed out of bed, deciding that he would join her for a nice morning shower.
When he entered the bathroom, the steam from the shower nearly blinded him. He waved his hand in front of his face, coughing, and heard the sound of low sobs coming from the shower. He opened the curtain, his heart catching at the sight of Amy sitting on the floor, her knees drawn up to her chest as she cried. The hot water had run out already, and she was shivering in a combination of fear and cold.
Anthony reached over and shut off the faucet, then stepped into the shower and knelt in front of Amy, pulling her into his arms and out of the shower. When she hit the cold air of the bathroom, her flesh broke out in goose bumps and she began shaking so hard her teeth rattled. Anthony grabbed a towel and wrapped her up; vigorously drying her hair, then gave her a concerned look.
"I…I'm…o…okk…kay. I just…I guess I started thinking about…Deavers…and…I got scared…"
Anthony led her out of the bathroom and back to the bed, laying down next to her and pulling her close, rubbing her arms through the towel and pulling the blanket over her legs. Eventually, her shivering stopped, and she pressed against his warm body with a sigh. "Anthony, do you think I'm a fool?"
He shook his head, and then gave her a baffled look, and she sighed, stroking his chest. "I'm just so scared that something will happen. If I lose you…or…what if…what if…" she gulped back tears. "What if I lose the baby?"
He shook his head again, and then kissed her, communicating his reassurance. As he kissed her, she felt him slowly removing the towel. "You want a little morning loving?" He gave her a wicked, eager smile, and she gave a pretend sigh of resignation. "A woman's work is never done."
Anthony tossed the towel into the nearby hamper and shifted himself so he was on top of her, then threaded his fingers in her hair, still kissing her. Amy slid her hand down his body, stroking him into hardness, and he slipped his hand in between her legs, his talented fingers making her wet. It didn't take long-both of them knew exactly what to do to make each other squirm with need-and Amy gave a loud moan as she felt Anthony slide into her. It was a feeling that got better and better each time she experienced it, and now the fact that these blissful moments had produced a child was something that made her more elated than she had ever been. She would lie awake at night, running her hands over her stomach as she marveled at the miracle of life.
'And now I'm letting some idiot who can't let go of the past ruin my future? Well, no more!' "I'm not hiding!"
Anthony looked at her, slightly confused, and she laughed when she realized she had said the second part out loud. She stared into his eyes. "I can't hide away here forever. Eventually, I will have to go out into the big wide world. I told you once that I would never hide from Deavers, and I won't. He still scares me, but he will never control me. And to prove it, I propose that we go to the Green Forest for a late breakfast. How's that sound?"
Anthony nodded, and soon the two of them were off to the cafe. When they arrived, the owner greeted them, steering them over to the best table. "Welcome back, you two. I'll be by with your drinks in just a second. Hot coffee black for the gentleman, and a raspberry mocha for the lady, right?"
Amy laughed. "That's right. We do come here quite a bit, don't we?"
The owner laughed a bit too heartily, causing Anthony to give him a piercing glance. "Yes, you two are becoming something of a fixture here. Well, I'll go get your drinks." He left, and Anthony stared after him, frowning. Amy looked over at him. "What's wrong?"
'I don't know. Something isn't right here, but I can't pin down what it is. But he's nervous about something, you mark my word.'
Amy nodded, trusting her lover's instinct, and glanced around the café. Besides her and Anthony, there was an elderly couple sharing an apple pie, a young man sipping on a mocha with a half eaten scone in front of him, and a woman seated by herself reading a newspaper and nursing a cup of tea. Nobody looked too suspicious to Amy.
The café owner returned, bearing their drinks. "Here you go. I made a fresh pot for my best customers, so drink up!"
Anthony sniffed his coffee. It smelled okay. He took a small sip. It tasted okay. 'I guess I was just being paranoid.' He took a drink, smiling, and then gave the owner a smile of thanks.
"Oh…you're welcome. Miss Amy, how's your mocha?"
Amy grinned. "Very…raspberryish." She took another large sip, and then blinked. "Whoa, I think I drank too fast, I'm feeling a bit…odd." She pressed her hand to her head, moaning. "I…I think I'm going to go splash some water on my face."
Anthony watched in shock and fear as she stood from the table, swayed, and then dropped to the floor in a dead faint. He gaped at her still form for a few moments in utter incomprehension, and then with a yowl of rage launched himself at the man in front of him. But as he got to his feet, a fierce wave of dizziness swept through him, sending him crashing to the floor. The last thing he saw before blackness overtook him was the woman with the paper handing the café owner a wad of bills.
The next thing he knew, he was being lifted by the arms and legs and thrown into the back of a van. He drifted in and out of consciousness as he felt the road changing from hardtop to gravel and back as he was bumped and jostled along. He had no idea where Amy was or if she was safe and that terrified him. If she was hurt, then the person responsible would suffer.
The van came to a halt, and he was lifted once again. He felt himself being carried inside a building, then up a flight of stairs and deposited on a cold wooden floor. His kidnappers left the room, locking the door behind them. Anthony rallied briefly, but then the blackness overtook him once more.
He didn't know how long he remained unconscious, but he soon became aware of voices filtering through his head.
"I think he's starting to come round."
"Well, don't just stand there, tell Dustin to bring the girl out here. We don't want Anthony to miss this, do we?"
'The girl? ! Oh God…AMY!'
A low moan came from Anthony and the people in the room with him-a woman and two men-looked over at him. The woman walked over, slapping his cheeks and speaking in a sing song voice. "Wake up, Anthony. We've got a surprise for you."
Anthony's eyes flew open, and he tried to attack the woman, but nothing happened. The realization that he was firmly tied to a chair hit him, and he struggled against his bonds to no avail. The woman laughed. "Don't try to get free, that chair is bolted to the floor. Besides, I want you to watch this." She stood and called over her shoulder. "Bring the little bitch in!"
Anthony gave a harsh, gasping sob as Amy was dragged into the room, bound, gagged, and unconscious. The man that had dragged her in deposited her in a chair directly across from Anthony, tying her up, and then snapped a capsule under her nose. Amy shot awake, her eyes wide in fear and panic, and began to struggle, tears pouring down her face.
The woman came forward and slapped her hard across the face. "Stop that this minute! Worthless chit! What ever Anthony saw in you is beyond me! Really Anthony, you go from me to….this worthless girl."
Anthony's eyes went wide in recognition, and he growled in rage at Vivian Wood. She smiled at him in insane triumph. "So you figured it out. Like my new look? You see, after you left me to die, I had some time to think about things. We were good together, weren't we? That night…do you remember?" She knelt in front of Anthony, running her fingers up and down his chest, and he shivered in revulsion. "I made you shiver in another way, remember? You were quite the animal." Vivian leaned up and kissed him, making sure Amy could see. When she finished, she looked over at Dustin. "Take the gag out of her mouth." He obeyed, and Amy spat out bits of cloth and glared at her.
"He's mine."
Vivian laughed. "Not for long, girly. You see, there's a friend of yours here, and he's got a few very interesting things in mind for you. Whereas I think I'd like to…punish Anthony for leaving me all alone at that mission house. I also love an audience, so I'm going to let both of you watch the other get punished. Dustin, go and see if Malcolm is ready yet." Dustin left the room, and Vivian turned back to Anthony. "I think maybe I'll let you watch first this time. Would you like that?"
Anthony growled at her in rage, and she chuckled. "I thought you would! Ahh, Malcolm! I trust you are prepared?"
"Indeed I am."
Amy went stiff with terror as she heard Deavers' voice from behind her. It was deadly cold and insane. Then he stepped into her vision, and she went white. His face was lit with an insane smile, and in his hand he held a knotted rope. "Time for a whipping, my girl. Dustin, if you would?"
Dustin tore Amy's shirt and bra off, and Deavers smiled. "Thank you. Now, I did get in a bit of practice, but I can't promise that I'll be as precise as I want. You'll just have to put up with me." He raised the rope, bringing it down across her shoulders in a stinging arc, and Amy bit her lip as tears of pain leaked from her eyes. Deavers struck again, this time across her breasts, drawing a fine line of blood, and Amy whimpered, and then fell silent. Again and again the rope landed on her breasts and back, but she refused to scream even as she was whipped bloody.
Anthony tried to look away, but two of Vivian's goons held his head, forcing him to watch, and he felt a sickening despair at the knowledge that there was nothing he could do to stop this. He heard Vivian laugh, and felt a wave of hatred so powerful that it sent him reeling. He looked up at Vivian, and was pleased to see her blanch at the look of pure hatred on his face.
Deavers was panting hard from exertion. He knelt in front of Amy, grabbing her chin in his hand and forcing her to look at him. "You think this is the worst I'm going to do? This…is nothing. I've got some very interesting things planned. You'll end up screaming, I promise."
He gave her right breast a painful twist, and Amy yelped, then gave a low chuckle and glared at him in contempt. "What's wrong, Deavers? Can't you get it up unless I scream? I'd guess not, but even if you could, it's probably not even worth the effort for a tiny thing like yours."
Deavers glared at her in rage for a moment, then backhanded her as hard as he could, splitting open her lip. Amy spat out blood, giving him a bloody grin. Deavers grabbed her shoulders, shaking her hard and screaming at her, spittle flying from his mouth. "DON'T. YOU. EVER. SAY THAT TO ME! YOU WORTHLESS WHORE, I'LL SHOW YOU HOW 'TINY' I AM!"
Amy began shaking. "No…please…don't…please…" She yelped in terror as Deavers pressed himself against her, grinding hard into her pelvis and giving her breast a painful squeeze.
"I'll show you, you little asshole…you're going to experience a real man…and that silent ape over there can't do a damn thing to stop it!" He looked over at Anthony. "Make sure you pay attention, dummy. You might just learn something." He gave Amy's inner thigh a hard squeeze, then kissed her, shoving his tongue inside her mouth and biting her lip hard. "Oh…baby you are going to feel me…I'm going to give you a real nice hard fuck…one that I think I deserve…"
"No…no…please…please stop…please…don't…Malcolm…please….please don't…" Amy sobbed as her shorts were yanked down, and Deavers glanced at her panties.
"Black silk. Naughty girl. You'll have to be punished for…What the hell was that?"
From below came the sounds of fighting. Vivian frowned, turning to the goons that were holding Anthony. "Go see what that is!" They immediately left, and Vivian turned back to Malcolm. "Well, what are you waiting for? Keep going, this is fascinating."
Anthony watched, tears of helplessness and rage flowing down his face as Deavers forced Amy's legs open wide, his hands digging so deeply into her thighs that his nails drew blood. He was about to yank off her panties when the door burst open.
The Angels had arrived. Nat glared at Vivian. "Hello, Miss Wood. Long time, no see." She stepped forward, and the fight began.
Dylan and Alex ran into the room, yanking Deavers off Amy and giving him a blow to the head that sent him crashing to the floor. Dylan quickly untied Amy, then took off her jacket and wrapped it around her. Amy was shaking, her eyes blank as she stared into the middle distance.
Alex untied Anthony, and he realized that Nat had knocked Vivian into a bookcase. She blinked, dizzy, and Anthony's hands itched for his sword. He stood, letting the ropes fall, and advanced on Vivian, his eyes hard with hate. Nat noticed the look in his eyes and stepped back. Anthony stepped forward, and then wrapped his fingers around Vivian's throat, squeezing hard, his face alight with the joy of the kill. Vivian gasped, and Anthony dug his fingers in deeper. Vivian clawed at his hands, but it did no good.
Then Anthony twisted his hands, and there was a sickening crack as Vivian's neck was broken. Anthony dropped her corpse to the ground, and then flew over to Amy, pulling her into his arms with a cry of relief. She blinked, and then pressed her ear to his shirt, listening intently. A mighty shudder ran through her, and she wailed, and then clung to him, shaking and sobbing, her breath coming in great heaving gasps.
Dylan looked over at Alex and Nat. "We'd better call an ambulance."
Nat nodded, her eyes on the two people that were clinging to each other, each completely unaware of anything else.
'Now that is love.'
Note: You'll find out how the Angels knew where to find them in the next chapter. Oh, and the baby is fine.
