**TW this chapter will involve some violence as well as emotional abuse. If these things trigger you, please be cautious reading this chapter.

Chapter 25

Elena struggled trying to free her wrists from the ropes Andie had tied around them. She had tied the knots pretty tight, but she didn't really factor in how thin Elena's wrists were. After working it and angling her wrists around enough she was finally able to slip her right wrist out of the knot. She quickly undid the other one and stood up. A rush of dizziness hit her she assumed from her head wound. She gripped the pillar waiting for the head rush to dissipate.

She took a quick glance around the empty basement. She didn't find anything that was going to pass for much of a weapon, so she grabbed the discarded rope. She made her way to the stairs. She took her shoes off and tip toed up the stairs careful not to make any noise. She paused when she reached the door. It had creaked when Andie opened it. She slowly turned the knob and pushed it open. It creaked a little and she cringed, tip toeing through the door. She put her shoes on and looked around. She was in a small green and white kitchen, modestly decorated. She walked past the fridge and there were pictures of Andie and a few articles she wrote taped to it.

She was in Andie's house, she realized. She assumed Andie didn't leave and there was only one door out of the kitchen. She spied a phone on the edge of the counter. Her heart was thundering in her chest, but this was her only shot. She picked it up as quietly as she could, but it made a light clicking noise when she took it off the receiver.

"What are you doing?" Andie ran into the room.

Elena dialed Damon's number as fast as she could before Andie came rushing at her. She rushed Elena and Elena dashed out of her way dropping the phone in the process. She lunged to the ground for it as soon as she heard Damon's voice come on, but Andie was closer.

"NO!" Elena's hopes shattered when Andie picked up and then threw the phone across the room.

She grabbed the rope from her back packet and whipped it at Andie's eyes. Her hands went instinctively to her face. Elena took the opportunity to run as fast as she could out of the kitchen.

"Get back here." Andie sounded sort of panicked she was right on her heels, but Elena was faster. She ducked into the living room and spotted the door right away. She bolted for it with Andie at her heels. Elena's hand went for the handle as a sudden instinct to back away, hit her hard. She spotted a car pulling into the driveway through the window near the door. It was a black sedan that she had never seen before. She bolted in her tracks and shakily took a few steps back.

She turned to look at Andie with pure desperation in her eyes.

"You have once chance to let me go." Elena whispered. "Stall him and let me slip out the back."

"I… can't, it's too late." Andie said, her voice a little shaky.

The knock at the door chilled Elena to the bone, for a moment she was frozen in her tracks as she watched Andie answer the door. He was introducing himself to Andie his face full of fake reserve and politeness.

Most women found Craig to very handsome. He was tall and muscular with dark tan skin. He had curly dark reddish-brown hair he had cut it short since she last saw him and slicked it down. He had a sturdy jawline and dark almost black brown eyes. But Elena didn't see a handsome man when she looked at him, to her he looked like a monster. The angles of his cheekbones seemed too sharp, his eyes too black, his muscles were like weapons waiting to strike.

"Elena." His voice was as deep and rough as she remembered.

"No." She whispered, unable to take her eyes away from the walking nightmare standing in front of her. She could feel her hands starting to shake and her heart was pounding out of her chest.

"I'm just so glad you're okay. I was so worried someone would catch you before I did…Andie dear, could you give my wife and I a moment?" Craig asked Andie, playing the concerned husband role to the tee.

"No please. Don't leave me with him." Elena's voice was hardly a whimper she felt as if all her newfound power had been sucked away the second, she set eyes on him again.

"It's okay Andie. We'll be out of here soon." He gave her a smile. She nodded glancing at Elena again before hesitantly walking into the kitchen.

"Elena…" He started.

"No. no." She started backing away her eyes wide with fear.

"I'm not going to hurt you." He stepped closer and she flinched turning her head away.

"Please Elena, please look at me." He begged.

"Listen to me, baby girl." He begged and she felt like she could throw up when he used that old pet name. At one point she had thought it was sweet. Later she realized that it was anything but. The pet name was just another way for him to make her feel less then. To make her feel like a child that needed her husband to guide her.

"I know things got bad. I don't want things to be like they were before. I've changed." He said kneeling down in front of her, so she was forced to look at him.

"I don't believe you." She said crossing her arms around herself. It was her only barrier at the moment.

"Just let me take you home. I'll show you. Things will be better this time." He pleaded.

"I am home. This is my home now." She said feeling some of that power come back. She clung to it like air. She'd die fighting if she had to, but she'd never willingly go with him.

"No, your place is with me. You are my wife." He said his lips tightening.

"I was never your wife. I was your puppet. I was just someone you wanted to control." She looked him the eyes and took a deep breath mustering as much strength as she could. " That's not a marriage. it's a dictatorship."

"This is about the rich boy isn't it? The one you got that reporter all up in a roar about?" His eyes narrowed as he studied her.

"In a way it is. He showed me what love really is." She said. "That's why I'm staying here, but it's not why I won't leave with you."

"You're acting like a fool. That boy will tire of his plaything soon enough. What would someone of status and money want with a worthless little slut like you?" He laughed.

This time the words didn't sting or hurt. They didn't make her feel low and hollow. Instead they angered her.

"I love you enough to deal with this. I can move past this as difficult as it might be. I'm willing to forgive your betrayal. If you leave here civilly with me now." He continued in a condescending tone.

She felt any remaining fear fade way to anger all the sudden. Everything he did or said to her seemed to hit her all at once, and she never hated him more than she did at that moment.

"I won't leave here with you now or ever because I hate you." She spit out as viscously as she could. "I hate you for how you treated me, for forcing me away from all my friends and family. I hate you for how you sucked the life out of me. I hate you for how you hit me time and time again. I hate you for raping me. And Last but not least I hate you for trying to destroy everything about me."

"But guess what?" She continued, her voice rising. "It didn't work; it didn't work. Because I'm still standing and I'm stronger than I ever was. Nothing you can say to me is going to change that. So, if you want to take me out of here, you're going to have to kill me first, and then you can spend your life avoiding my dad's wrath in prison."

"Listen up you little whore." He grabbed her chin hard and she fought back the tears that wanted to fill her eyes. She refused to let him see her cry again. "Playtime with your little rich boy here is over."

"Go to hell." She spat back.

"Damn it, Elena." He slammed his hands against the wall on either side of her and she jumped. "Why do you make me do this?"

"No!" Andie jumped out of the kitchen her eyes wide and her face pale white. "Don't hurt her. Come on man…"

"Stay out of this." Craig turned to look at her.

"No I won't." Her voice was shaky. "You lied to me. I'm calling the police."

"And what are you going to tell them? That you kidnapped a girl and tied her up?" He laughed. "How lucky was I? 3 years of searching and Elena managed to piss off some crazy chick enough to get herself busted."

"I didn't know." Andie looked like she was going to be sick. She could hardly look at anything but the floor.

"I should just kill you. You're a waste of a woman anyway." He looked her up and down disdainfully.

"And you are a disgusting wife beating pig!" She yelled her head snapping up angrily.

He back handed her and hard and Andie fell to the ground. Elena gasped; she hadn't seen that coming.

"Now look at what you made me do." He turned to glare at Elena who was staring at Andie in shock.

"Three years, and then you got cocky, didn't you?" He laughed again. "Did you think it was cute, getting someone to spy on me?"

Elena felt her blood go cold. "Did you hurt him?"

"Your PI?" He laughed an evil sounding laugh. "No actually he came in handy. I used him to make a nice little diversion. As far as he is concerned, I'm still in the air, so it looks like your lover's on the way to the airport. What a shame that I missed him." His lips curled into a cruel smile.

Elena's eyes got wet then despite her best efforts. This was it. Damon was on his way to the airport. Andie was passed out and she couldn't fight him off. The thought of never hearing Damon call her his angel or his sweetheart or tell her he loved her again did her in, and the tears started to fall.

"We're leaving now." He grabbed her shoulders his eyes dark and cold.

"Just let me go." She begged.

"You are my wife. I will never let you go." He said his voice hard.

"Like hell you won't."

"Damon." She breathed out, he was running into the house, he seemed to come from nowhere she hadn't even heard the door open.

"You just stay out of this." Craig whipped around glared at him.

"The fuck I will." Damon was right in front of him his blue eyes were enraged like she had never seen them before.

"You had your fun. She's my wife." Craig pushed at him.

"Fuck you." Damon hit him hard and fast and Craig stumbled back and away from her. She ran away from the wall towards Damon.

"Go out to my car, angel." His eyes softened a bit as he looked at her.

"I can't leave you in here with him." She shook her head.

"Touching." Craig stepped towards her and Damon jumped in front of her.

"You get nowhere near her ever again." Damon hissed at him.

Damon lunged for him knocking them both to the ground. Damon was on top of him and grabbed for his throat, but Craig managed to out strength him and push Damon off. They stood off circling each other. Elena watched the scene before her in dread. She noticed movement in the corner of her eyes and saw Andie had come to. She was reaching in her pocket slowly. Elena peeled her eyes away, not wanting to alert Craig to what Andie was about to do.

Damon took another swing at Craig, but he saw it coming and ducked out of the way.

"Time to say goodbye to your lover boy, Elena," Craig said.

She saw him reaching for his gun and reacted without thinking, jumping in front of Damon and holding her arms out.

"You'll have to kill me first." She said.

"No." Damon grabbed her arm and desperately pulled her back behind him.

"You think I wouldn't do that now? At this point my life is pretty much over. No one's leaving this house alive tonight." He said his voice almost an eerie calm. He took his gun from his pocket and held it up. Elena saw the corner of his eye twitch.

Damon stood in front of Elena, his body stiff. He stepped backwards slowly and slightly so he was close enough to shield her.

"Just stop for a second man." Damon held his hands up talking slowly. "Do you want to go down as the cop that slaughtered a house full of people?"

Andie had managed to get her phone from her pocket, but Craig saw her do it.

"Andie, move!" Elena screamed just as Craig pointed it towards her. In doing so he turned away from Damon and Damon rushed forward knocking the gun out of Craig's hand.

"Damn you." Craig grunted lunging for his gun at the same time as Damon. Elena and Andie both watched in horror as they struggled on the ground over the gun.

Elena saw a vase on a table near her and grabbed it she threw it down over Craig's head as hard as she could. It shattered and he fell off Damon grunting. Damon grabbed the gun and stood up holding it down on him.

"Don't you dare kill him."

Elena jumped at the voice and turned to see Liz and Jeremy walking in. Jeremy ran to her when he saw her, tears in his eyes.

"I'm okay." She assured him embracing him.

"It's about time." Damon grunted.

"Put the gun down, Damon." Liz warned.

"As soon as you have yours on him. No chances." Damon said.

She nodded and pulled out her gun carefully walking over to him. She held it on him and circled his passed out body. She narrowed her eyes.

"He spits on the badge he wears. You will get justice Elena. I promise you." Liz assured her.

"Damon." Liz gave him a warning glance.

He still hadn't moved his eyes flashing with emotions as he held the gun pointed at Craig.

"Hey." Elena gently touched his arm. "I know believe me. I want to take the gun from you and shoot him myself probably more than you do, but what happens now is much worse for him. Everyone he knows is going to find out what a sick bastard he is. He threatened and intended to kill all three of us tonight. He's spending life in prison with the criminals he put there."

"She's right." Liz agreed.

"Put it down Damon. Do it for Elena, she's your reason." Jeremy said.

Damon nodded and put the safety on and then handed the gun to Liz. He looked down at Craig one last time and spit in his face.

He turned to look at Elena then his eyes sad. He trailed her chin lightly.

"I'm so sorry Elena." He said pulling her into a hug.

"It's not your fault Damon, you saved me." She threw her arms around him and buried her head in his shoulder, the tears flowing freely.

"No, you saved me when you cracked him over the head with that vase." He said sounding proud.

"I should have got here sooner." He said. "I should have realized. She set you up. When Andie called, I almost didn't answer it thinking I didn't have time for her shit. But then something told me to pick it up, and then I heard you scream. I drove back here as fast as I could, but not fast enough."

"I'm okay Damon it's hardly even a bruise." She said stroking his cheek. "I was just so scared. I wouldn't see you again and tell you how much I love you."

"Come here sweetheart." He pulled her back into his embrace his hands stroking her back. "We're going to get through this. I'll be here every step. I love you."

She sobbed a little and squeezed back. "I love you too."

Liz's back up arrived just as Craig was coming to. Damon held Elena close to him and she watched as a confused Craig was read his rights and hauled out of the house by two deputies. Liz was in the corner questioning Andie. Elena gasped when she saw Liz starting to cuff Andie.

"No! Don't arrest her. She tried to help me. She stopped him from hitting me." Elena pleaded.

"Elena, she set you up." Damon said glaring towards her without any empathy.

"He lied to her he made me out to be some con that was playing you. She needs help but not prison." Elena said.

"That's for the courts to decide Elena." Liz said.

"It's okay I confessed." Andie said giving Elena a weak smile. "I'll testify about everything that happened here. I want him to go to prison too and if I have to go also, I deserve it after what I did. I don't know how I sunk that low."

"Please Liz can't you see she just needs help?" Elena begged.

"How can you be nice to me after what I did to you?" Andie asked.

"Because she's a good person, she's kind and sweet. She doesn't kidnap girls from their work to deliver them to their murderous husbands." Damon snapped.

Damon." Elena said softly. "She didn't know...and when she figured out, he was lying, she took the hit for me."

"What?' He looked at Andie, seemingly noticing the large red swollen mark on the side of her face for the first time.

"I didn't realize he was going to hit me. I just didn't want him to hit you." Andie said.

"Is there anything we can do?' Damon sighed.

"Get her a good lawyer a real good lawyer. She kidnapped a woman from her workplace. It doesn't look good for her." Liz said.

"I made my bed." Andie said quietly.

"Can you two meet me at the station, so I can take your statements?" Liz asked.

They nodded; Elena watched sullenly as Liz led Andie out of her house in hand cuffs.

"Can we get her a good lawyer?" Elena asked.

"Right now my focus is you and what you need." Damon said.

"I know but she..."

"Made the choice she did." Damon said.

"Damon please?" She asked.

"Okay for you, I will hire her an attorney, but if it encourages her more then we have a whole new batch of problems." He sighed.

"It won't not after tonight." Elena said.

"Are you hurt anyone where else?" He studied her carefully.

"Uh my head." He held the back of it was a little sore. "But I think its fine. I don't think she hit me that hard."

"Andie hit you!" He imploded.

"She knocked me out to drag me here, but she thought I was a con woman out to wreck you." Elena said.

"I don't care what she thought. I'm not helping her now." He said.

She sighed giving it up for the time being. "I'm fine though really."

"We should get you checked out." He said slowly.

"No." She shook her head trembling. "No hospitals."

"I know you hate hospitals." He said softly. "But what if you have a concussion or something?"

"I don't I'm sure." She said "I've had them before. This is just a bump, I swear."

"Okay." He said hesitantly.

The police car with Craig in it was started moving down the driveway. Elena stopped and stared watching it drive off a sudden determination to fight and win setting in.

Her eyes narrowed, "I can finally beat him now. I'm going to be free."