Author's Note: Again I say, Wow! Thank you all so much for the overwhelming reviews. I'm thrilled that so many people seem to be enjoying my story. Here's the next chapter, I hope you like it just as well. All the reviews have been so wonderful, I hope I don't let you down. Be sure to let me know what you think of this installment!
Chapter Four: So You Wanna Spin My World Around
Jackson finished untying the belt from Lisa's wrists and leaned down to put his shoes back on. While his back was turned, Lisa wrapped the end of the belt around her hand and squeezed it so tightly that her knuckles turned white. When Jackson turned to face her again, she swung the belt at him. The heavy metallic buckle connected with the side of his head causing him to fall off of the bed. Lisa jumped off the bed as well, but as soon as her feet hit the floor Jackson had her again. This time however, Lisa had prepared herself. She grabbed his right shoulder with both of her hands and jerked down at the same time she brought her knee up, crashing it into his stomach. Coughing, Jackson fell down on all fours, grasping at his torso. Lisa went to make for the door, but Jackson caught her by the shin. So, she spun around and moved to knee him in the face only to have him block the assault, catching her lieg by the back of the knee. Now that he had hold of both of her legs, he simply jerked them up and out from under her.
Lisa crashed down hard on her back, the back of her head smacking into the ground. Her world went spinning, but she gave it no head, immediately shuffling back a little and kicking Jackson in the chest with her bare foot. He lost the balance he had on his knees and toppled backwards. Lisa flipped over onto her stomach and hopped to her feet, causing an instant headrush and dizziness to overcome her. She paused briefly, wobbling on her feet and groping at the spot on the back of her head where it had met the floor, then made for the door. He delay cost her though. Just as she was pulling open the door, Jackson slammed bodily into it, forcing it shut once again.
His pretty eyes glared at her. "Lisa." he growled in warning.
But Lisa was already halfway across the room and no longer listening to him. He didn't have time for this! They needed to get out of this hotel before someone noticed that she was missing. He followed after her and ducked as a flying lamp narrowly missed colliding with his head. The two of them weaved between the furniture, one trying to evade, the other pursue. Lisa reached an end table that had a phone perched on top of it and grabbed the reciever intent on calling the front desk, but Jackson appeared behind her and slammed his hand down on the base before she could dial even a single number. Instead she opted to hit Jackson in the jaw with the mouth peice. Never one to take things lying down, Jackson reciprocated by picking up the base and smacking her across the face with it. Lisa crashed down into the end table, the legs flying off into different areas of the room.
Lisa had learned to be a tough girl, but there were still things that even she couldn't sustain and being hit in the head with a phone was definitely one of them. She lay there groaning on her back for a long moment, she wasn't exactly sure for how long. Jackson was suddenly in her line of sight, kneeling beside her. He grabbed her by both of her arms and lifted her easily onto the couch.
"Come on, Leese. Wake up." He said, tapping her cheek gently with his fingers.
Lisa answered him with yet another low groan from deep in her throat. The world was blurry and tilting and she couldn't seem to keep her eyes open. Jackson sat down on the coffee table across from her, his legs on either side of her own. He reached over and lightly shook her by the shoulders.
"Leese, focus. Look in my eyes." He said cradling the back of her head with one hand and trying to get her to look at him.
Lisa tried as hard as she could to follow his instructions but her head was just so fuzzy. She struggled to focus in on the bright blue orbs of his eyes which were beaming straight at her, but she just couldn't seem to do it.
"All right," Jackson went on, "open up. Hopefully these will kick in quick."
Lisa opened her mouth slightly and felt Jackson lay two dry powdery pills on her tongue, then he held the rim of a glass to her lips. She instinctively drank the water down, swallowing the pills as she did so. It was as though someone had pulled a plastic sheet out from in front of her eyes as her surroundings suddenly came into clear, sharp focus. Jackson was still sitting in front of her, leaning forward, his elbows braced on his knees, his hands laced together in front of him. She focused her sight on his face. He had a cut above his right temple and his lower lips was busted open. Her handiwork. She smiled.
Jackson leaned further forward and slipped her shoes back onto her feet, glancing up at her with one eyebrow cocked. Her lovely face was already turning red and puffy and he had a momentary bout with self loathing for doing that to her. The moment passed and it was back to business.
"Ready to try and stand up?" he asked, his voice sincere and concerned.
"I don't know." She said honestly.
Jackson nodded, "I hate to say it, Leese, but you don't really have choice. Come on."
He reached forward and slipped his hands under her arms and easily lifted her to her feet. Keeping her on her feet on the other hand proved to be a little more difficult. Her knees buckled beneath her own weight and gave out. She lurched forward, falling against Jackson's sturdy form. He placed his hands securely on her lower back, holding her up. Lisa threw one arm over his shoulder anchoring it by cupping her hand onto the back of his neck while holding securely onto his bicep with the other hand. She let her head drop to his shoulder, closed her eyes and whimpered.
Jackson didn't know what to make of this. Here she was, leaning into him, needing him to hold her. She felt really good in his arms. He could smell her hair; sweet like sugar cookies. He was enjoying this way too much. He had expected to get into it when they were wrestling around, sadist that he was, but he had never counted on this tenderness and he certainly hadn't counted on the way that it was affecting him. Holding her like that, like they were slow dancing, he didn't want to admit even to himself how much he liked having her that close. He needed to get his mind back on his work and exactly what it was that he was there to do.
"You know you made me do that, right?" He had meant for it to come out colder than it actually had. It was meant to sound sarcastic and mocking, but it came out almost like an apology.
"Oh, shut up, Jackson." Lisa mumbled into his shoulder. She liked being able to smell his cologne. It was strangely comforting to her as she leaned against him, as was the feeling of his arms around her. She knew that he should be the last person to be able to give her comfort, but at the moment, with her world so unsteady, it seemed that he was the only thing that could.
"Okay, Leese, we gotta start walking." He said, shifting her to his side, taking all of her weight onto one arm.
Lisa dropped her hold on Jackson's bicep, but she wasn't ready to be separated from him just yet so she twisted the fingers of her other hand in the material of his jacket to keep him close. Even though she had him practically carrying her at that point, she still needed to grasp onto something if only to make herself feel more secure. Jackson paused when the reached the hotel room door.
"Do I need to remind you of what will happen if you decide to get cute?" he said without looking at her. He didn't trust himself enough to look at her at the moment.
"I know." she said, her head fallinf against his shoulder once again.
"Good." Jackson said simply and opened the door.
They made their way to the elevator, or more accurately, Jackson made their way to the elevator. He pushed the button just as Lisa slipped her free arm back up around his neck. She subtly nuzzled a little closer to him, hoping that he wouldn't notice her need for his warmth.
"Hey, come on, wake up." He said, gently brushing some of the soft strands of her hair, which had all come free from the clasp by that point, off of her shoulder. He let himself enjoy the feeling of his fingers sliding easily through it. "Come on, Leese." He tucked his hand beneath her hair and lightly massaged the back of her neck.
The elevator doors slid open and Jackson literally picked Lisa up and carried her in. He punched the button for the underground parking garage and quickly propped Lisa up in the corner. He bent his knees and hunched forward in an attempt to see her eyes which was a difficult task considering that her was tilted forward.
"Lisa, hey, Lisa, come on. Look at me." He cupped her face in his hands, "Are you okay?"
She made a small humming sound which Jackson did not consider to be an answer.
"Lisa? Come on, Leese, you're starting to scare me." He said, genuinely sounding worried.
His last statement had caught her attention and she wanted desperately to look up at him to see if he had meant it. His hands were holding either side of her face, so she raised her own fingers and gripped his forearms. He stiffened his arms at once so that she could hold on to them to keep herself up. Slowly, she raised her gaze to meet his and was shocked at all the different emotions that she saw swirling around in those clean ice blue lakes. There was truth there. She had always thought that he had pretty eyes, even when they were murderous, they were still gorgeous. They gave away his feeling when he wasn't careful. He really was worried about her at the moment. It was evident there in his eyes. What was she thinking letting him manipulate her like this? But he had meant his concern. She should have known. He never lied.
The elevator jerked to a halt and the doors slid open with a ding, signaling the arrival of the next passengers. Not wanting to alert anyone as to the situation, Jackson moved to Lisa's side but still kept an arm around her waist to hold her up. Lisa snuggled into the crook of his arm and rested her head against his shoulder as Jackson eyed the people who had stepped into the elevator. He and Lisa had been joined by a hairy round little man with a towel wrapped around his waist and a bad sunburn accompanied by a tall skinny blonde who had to be at least sixty, was dressed like a street hooker and had the biggest hair Jackson had ever seen. As the doors closed, the blonde jerked her oversized sunglasses off of her nose and smacked the man by her side on the arm. Jackson winced for him. With that sunburn, he knew that that slap had to have hurt like hell. If he had been the man, he would have responded by punching her in the nose.
"Look who it is, Vernie!" the woman slurred, obviously inebriated, "It's that cute little hotel manager!"
The man's eyes turned to Lisa and he smiled, "Yes." he said, his voice much deeper than Jackson had been expecting it to be, "Ms. Reisert."
Lisa opened her eyes and looked at them, then closed her eyes quickly before she had the chance to guffaw. Poor Mr. Lawsard looked like a giant lobster and Mrs. Lawsard had traded in her cheetah print pants for a skin tight hot pink vinyl mini skirt and white go-go boots. Lisa clung to Jackson's shoulders and pressed her lips tightly together to keep from laughing out loud.
"Yes, Mr. and Mrs. Lawsard," she managed, "How are those keys working out for you?"
"Much better, dear. Now that you sent that nice young man to fix that door." Mrs. Lawsard said.
Lisa turned back to face them, smiling and struggling to contain her laughter, "I'm very glad to hear it."
Jackson smiled down at her. Lisa was ever the professional. He could smell the gin on the woman's breath and took pity on her round little husband. He couldn't imagine having to deal with her day in and day out.
"Who is this young man?" Mrs. Lawsard inquired, her eyes traveling the length of Jackson's body as though he were a piece of candy.
Lisa and Jackson shared a look, their mouths both open and brows drawn together as though asking each other the same silent question. Then, Jackson abruptly turned to the Lawsards with a charming smile and said, "Jackson Rippner, ma'am. I'm just an old friend of Lisa's."
"Oh," Mrs. Lawsard cooed and Mr. Lawsard rolled his eyes. Jackson didn't blame him. The woman was insufferable. "Aren't you two just the cutest?"
"Yes, aren't we?" Lisa said, she and Jackson grinning widely as Jackson pulled her a little tighter against him.
"Look at you, you can't keep your hands off of her!" Mrs. Lawsard cackled.
The comment made Jackson's grin grow even wider if that was possible, "Well, if I let go she might try to run away."
He chuckled through closed lips as Lisa laughed into his shoulder at the truth behind the statement.
Mrs. Lawsard let out another raucous laugh and swatted at Jackson's arm. "You silly boy!"
Jackson noticed the way that Mr. Lawsard's eyes seemed to be examining Lisa's face. Her hair was pushed in front of her cheek hiding the redness from where he had hit her, but old Mr. Lawsard seemed to be trying to get a better look.
"Are you all right, Mr. Reisert?" he asked, reaching out to touch her arm.
Jackson reacted by gently tugging Lisa just beyong his reach and fixing the short man with a 'what the hell do you think you're doing' look.
"Oh, Vernie, she's fine!" Mrs. Lawsard bellowed, "Let the two kids be! They're in love."
Mr. Lawsard cast his wife a look that Lisa had seen him give her more than once. It was a look of pure annoyance. The elevator doors dinged yet again, opening up at the lobby. Jackson tucked Lisa further into the corner and stepped up a little, shielding her from anyone in the lobby who might be looking in their direction. The Lawsards stepped through the elevator doors, Mr. Lawsard toddling after his wife who was stumbling along on her stiletto heeled boots.
The doors closed back up and they dropped down to the parking garage level. Jackson helped Lisa off the elevator and wrapped his arm a little tighter around her waist when he felt her body stiffen. He knew how she despised parking lots and with good reason. If Jackson ever found the creep who had done that to her, even his dentist wouldn't be able to identify the body.
They walked through the small glass security door that required a hotel key to reenter and into the garage. Even in the middle of the night, it was astounding the affect that coming out of the air conditioning and into the blistering heat could have. The air was thick and muggy and pressed down on the two of them, making it difficult to breathe. The garage was poorly lit and one overhead light flashed incessantly giving the same effect as a strobe light and making the room seem like the set of a cheap slasher flick from the eighties.
"Come on, Leese." Jackson said, forcing her to keep moving forward. They paused as Jackson took a second to scan the room. Two headlights flashed at them. "Let's go." He said, releasing her waist and leading her by the hand.
"Where are we going?" Lisa asked.
"We don't have time, Leese."
"Tell me where we're going."
"Lisa..." Jackson warned.
Lisa stopped walking. Jackson turned and fixed her with a cautionary glare, then tugged on her arm but Lisa pulled away from him. She stumbled backward in the beginnings of running away, but she was still too weak from the blow to her head and she fell, landing hard on her tailbone. She raised a hand to her head as it lulled to the side.
"Look at you, Leese. You can't even walk on your own." Jackson said, stepping toward her.
Lisa saw him and used her hands to shuffle away from his approaching form. Jackson stopped walking and released a deep sigh, folding his arms over his chest and looking up at the ceiling.
"I'm not going anywhere with you." Lisa hissed.
Jackson slowly and deliberately brought his gaze back down to her. "Oh, yes you are."
No sooner had the words left his mouth than he had sprang at her, trying to get his hands on her waist. She kicked straight out and he caught her ankle just before her pump connected with his thigh. He narrowed his eyes and clucked his tongue at her, shaking his head like a disapproving parent. Then, he tugged on her leg, pulling her to him. Once he got his hands around her upper arms he yanked her to her feet only to have her twist and try to scramble away again. So, he threw her back down on the ground and dropped to his knees, straddling her thighs. He grabbed her by the neck and slowly began to apply a large amount of pressure on her jugular.
"Lisa, stop making this difficult." he said slowly.
Lisa clawed at his hands, her fingernails digging into his flesh. She kicked her legs back and forth, flailing beneath his weight, coughing and sputtering as she struggled against him. How could he do that? How could he be so kind and gentle and concerned with her wellbeing one minute and then holding her to the ground, strangling the life from her the next?
She looked up at him, her eyes pleading with him to let her go. Jackson couldn't stand to see that look on her face and immediately released her throat and took a step back. Lisa took three deep breaths and turned onto her side as though it would help her to fill her lungs. She looked so vulnerable, lying there coughing and trying to breathe, Jackson wanted to hold her, stroke her hair, as he had done in the elevator.
"Come on, Lisa." he said, his breathing labored.
Lisa glared up at him from the ground. "I'm not going."
Jackson rolled his eyes. "You just don't get it, do you?" He said jerking her to her feet and slinging her over his shoulder. "I told you, you don't have a choice."
Lisa wiggled and squirmed and pounded her fists on his back, but Jackson only tightened his hold on her legs. To add insult to injury, he didn't even quicken his pace letting her know that all of her thrashing had no affect on him. He approached the black Lexus that had bright lighted them, which Mellmott was seated in the driver's seat.
Mellmott popped the trunk open, which Jackson quickly slammed his hand down on to shut. He pulled open the backdoor, set Lisa down on her feet and then shoved her into the backseat and shut the door. He slid into the passenger seat with a heavy sigh.
"Drive." he commanded.
"Shouldn't you..." Mellmott began only to be cut off by Jackson.
"I'm not putting her in the damn trunk, now drive."
Lisa right herself in the backseat and went for the door handle. She tugged on it and shouldered the door, but it didn't budge. A frustrated scream escaped her lips through clenched teeth and she slapped her palm against the window twice.
"Don't you love childproof locks?" Mellmott snickered, casting her an insinuating smile.
Lisa glared at him and before he knew what was happening, she had thrown her high heel at his head.
"You bitch!" he growled and turned to hit her.
Jackson caught his arm by the wrist before it got anywhere close to Lisa. He narrowed his crystalline eyes at Mellmott and said simply, "Drive."
Mellmott turned back around in his seat and gripped the steering wheel.
"Can I have my shoe back?" Lisa asked.
"Hell no!" Mellmott snapped, but even as he said it Jackson held her shoe up over the seat without looking back at her, allowing her to snatch it from his hand.
"You need anything, Leese? You okay?" Jackson asked, eyeing her in the rearview mirror.
"Can I borrow a pen?" she quipped.
"Funny."
Mellmott maneuvered the car out onto the highway, nearly colliding with a Mercedes Benz as he did so. Jackson turned and gave him a wary gaze. In the back, Lisa hasitly fastened her seatbelt, shooting scornful lookes at the backs of her captures' heads.
She fought it off for as long as she could, but soon enough fatigue and her pounding head overpowered her will to stay conscious and she fell asleep. Eyes closed and body shifting ever so slightly with the movements of the car, she didn't realize that they were headed to an all too familiar location or she would have put up a bigger fight to get away. She may have even tried jumping from the speeding vehicle. Alas, the head injury she had sustained prevented her from remaining awake.
It wasn't until later, as they came to a stop at their destination, that Lisa's eyes fluttered open. She wiped a string of drool from her lower lip and groggily took in her surroundings as she rubbed a crick out of the back of her neck. She recognized this neighborhood, but it didn't make sense. The truth of where she was slammed into her like a hammer to the chest and she swore under her breath. There was no reason for them to be there, none at all. She wanted an explanation and she wanted it now.
Mellmott and Jackson both climbed out of the car, Jackson pausing briefly to open the backdoor so that Lisa could get out as well. She started out only to be pulled back in by the seatbelt which in her haste she had forgotten that she was wearing. She fumbled with it until she managed to get it unfastened and threw herself out of the car, catching Jackson by the arm as he started to walk away from her.
"Jackson?"
Jackson paused and turned to her, fixing his eyes on hers, "Lisa."
"What are we doing at my dad's house?"
Author's Note: Well, that's it for this chapter. Violence between these two is always fun to write, because you know it's 95 percent sexual! Let me know what you think!