Reid winced and tried to move but every muscle in his body ached from being held in the same position for hours on end. He looked up when he heard Clayton's heavy footsteps on the floor above. So far the killer hadn't come back but Reid knew it was only a matter of time before Clayton came back and beat him more. He turned and frowned when he heard a soft scratching noise coming from the other end of the cellar.
He stood there and watched as one of the old doors opened and what was left of the sunlight poured into the cellar. Reid turned his head away the light hurting his eyes. He squinted and then opened his eyes fully when the door was closed again softly barely making a sound. He saw a dark figure walk down the rickety wooden steps. His eyes became wide when he saw that it was Tucker. She walked over to his side barely making a sound. He looked down and saw it was because she had removed her shoes. She placed her hand on his cheek and he felt how cold it was.
"I am going to get you out of here," she whispered softly leaning in and kissing him on the cheek.
"Tucker, leave, he could come down-," Reid started but Tucker covered his mouth with her hand.
"I am the one he wants. I am going to untie you then you get the hell out of here."
Reid shook his head telling Tucker he wasn't leaving without her. He saw the fear in her eyes and knew she was scared for him but he wasn't going to just walk out and leave her behind. He loved her too much to let that happen. He watched as she moved her hand away from his mouth. She leaned in and kissed him softly on the lips. Reid kissed her back and wished he could hold her in his arms. He rested his forehead against hers when she pulled away. He knew that he couldn't let her fight Clayton alone.
"Spence, please. Just do this for me. I can't," Tucker swallowed the lump in her throat, "I can't let anything happen to you. Please just do this for me."
"I can't. I can't let you sacrifice yourself for me."
"Yes, you can and you will."
Tucker pulled away and started to work on the knots trying to untie them. She couldn't though. She cursed and looked around. She saw the table with all her father's toys laid out on it. She didn't want to go over there knowing what she would see but she needed to get Reid out of there. She took slow steady steps towards the table telling herself that she could handle seeing those instruments again. It had been years since she had last seen them and held them in her own hands. She stopped and stood in front of the table and looked down at the knives and various other instruments of torture. She heard the screams and voices of her father's victims pleading with him to let them go.
Reid watched Tucker and saw her body start to shake. He knew that the memories from the past were slowly coming back to her and causing her to shake and relive them all over again. He pulled on the ropes again and wished he was free so he could hold her in his arms and comfort her. He watched as she grabbed a knife and practically ran back to him. He looked up when he heard Clayton's heavy footsteps coming towards the cellar door. He winced as Tucker accidently nicked his skin with the blade.
"Sorry," she muttered finally cutting though the ropes and getting his right hand free as the door to the cellar opened.
"Get out. He's coming," Reid told her as she turned and started to work on his left hand.
"I am not leaving you," Tucker stated firmly her hand shaking as she heard her father's footsteps down the stairs. She finally gave up on cutting the ropes from Reid's left hand and whirled around to face the stairs. She tucked the knife in the back of her pants against Reid's gun. She stood there and waited.
She watched as his shadow became bigger and bigger. She took slow breaths to try and calm herself but it wasn't working. She could feel her hands shaking more. She resisted the urge to grab the gun and hold it in front of her. She clenched her hands in fists when she saw her father's legs then his torso. He turned the corner and she saw him fully for the first time in years. He stopped when he saw her and his green eyes met hers. She took a step back away from Reid hoping that her father would let him go now. She was willing to do anything to protect Reid.
"Deliverance," Clayton said taking the rest of the stairs two at a time his eyes staying on Tucker all the time.
"Don't come any closer," Tucker said holding up her hand. She saw how it shook and wished that she could fake not being scared of her father. She hated him and wanted him out of her life.
"Why not? I have missed you, my darling. You look so much like your-."
"Don't you even mention her! Don't you dare, not after what you did!"
Reid saw Tucker falling apart before his eyes. He slowly reached his right hand over to undo his left hand keeping his eyes on Clayton. Clayton however, seemed to have forgotten all about Reid and was focused on Tucker. Reid knew that that was bad; Clayton was unravelling and he knew that in this state if Tucker rejected him it could end up in Clayton killing her. Reid couldn't risk that happening; Tucker was the first woman he had ever considered spending forever with, and he didn't even believe in the idea of happily ever after.
"I did what I had to. I needed to make sure that you stayed with me. She was going to take you away from me," Clayton said walking closer to Tucker. He hated that every movement that his daughter made was away from him and not closer. He wanted to hold her in his arms. It had been so long since he had held her close to him. He couldn't believe how much she looked liked Karen. Their daughter had turned out just as beautiful as he had imagined.
"She should have. God, I wished she had. You are a monster!"
Tucker knew her father would lash out at those words. They were the same words that her mother had screamed at him when he had chained her up in the barn and had begun torturing her. Tucker took the backhand from her father and stayed on her feet. She turned back and looked at him blood dripping from her busted lip. "Hit me again, you sick freak."
Clayton's anger rose to new heights. He punched Tucker in the face and watched as she fell to one knee. He kicked her other leg out from under her and she fell to the ground on her stomach. He saw the bulge in the back of her shirt. He bent down to reach for it but was knocked to the ground by Reid. He easily tossed Reid off of him and heard Reid thump against the wall. Clayton wasn't strong but he was stronger than the lanky doctor that his daughter had apparently chose over him.
Reid winced and held his ribs. He had hit the cement wall hard and by the feel of it he had cracked a couple of ribs. He tried to push himself up but the pain was spreading and he couldn't move. He turned and watched as Clayton got to his feet and headed over to Tucker. Tucker met Reid's eyes and he saw love in them. And then Clayton started kicking her over and over in the stomach. Reid watched as she took it and took it. He bit his lip and pushed himself up slowly. He got to his feet and walked over to Clayton. Reid grabbed his arm and Clayton whirled around and hit Reid in the mouth.
Tucker curled up in a ball and heard her father hit Reid over and over. She rolled on her side and pushed herself up slowly ignoring the pain that ripped though her body. She had spent a couple years on the streets and had felt this kind of pain along with countless others before. She reached behind her and grabbed the knife. She got to her feet and held her stomach with one arm. She clenched the knife tight in her hand and whistled at her father. She watched as Clayton turned around and faced her; his face full of anger. She didn't glance at Reid knowing if she did and she saw how much pain he was in she would never be able to go thru with what she had to do. She watched as Clayton glanced at the knife.
"You may be my daughter but I doubt very much you have the guts to use that," he stated wanting to grab her and do all the things that he had done to Karen to her. He should have known that in the end his child would turn out like Karen; the bitch just kept screwing him over.
"Come over here and try me," Tucker said standing tall. She was not going to show fear in front of her father. It was the time to fight and she was ready.