Ooh, we have a big scary chapter today!! Thanks for the reviews so far. There's only seven more chapters left after this and then it's the end :(

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The Dragon and the Rose

Chapter Twenty

Sweet Revenge

Jenny sat at the table, putting cake mix into a bowl. 'I need an egg, mummy,' she called. Libby came over, cracking the egg on the side of the bowl and adding it to the mixture. 'Can I mix it?'

'Sure,' Libs replied, handing her the whisk. 'Make sure it's creamy, alright?' Jenny nodded, tongue peeking out the side of her mouth in concentration.

She left the kitchen, Swill sat on the sofa watching TV. With a grin, she grabbed one of the cushions and bashed him around the head with it.

'Hey-Ow!' he complained, getting to his feet. 'You'll pay for that.'

'Oh, really?' she replied in a teasing voice. He grabbed a cushion and advanced towards her.

With a laugh, she skittered out the way, throwing her cushion at him. It missed, knocking a picture off the mantelpiece.

'Look what you've done now!' Swill grinned, chasing her around the sofa. He smacked her bum with the cushion, before grabbing her around the waist. Libby laughed, trying to get away. Suddenly, Jenny raced in, leaping at her dad and trying to climb onto his back.

'I wanna play too!'

'Me too!' said a small voice in the doorway and Charlie came racing in, Lucy just behind him. She laughed when she saw them.

Charlie grabbed Libby's leg, hanging off it like a monkey. She almost fell, Lucy there to catch her. Swill then bashed the blonde around the head, and Lucy turned, pushing him into the sofa.

'You can't sneak up on me like that!' she laughed, before lifting Jenny up.

'I'm going to nursery today,' the dark haired girl said proudly. 'Me and mummy are making cakes for me to take. Charlie and you can 'ave one too!' Lucy grinned.

'That would be great.'

'They're Dora the Explorer cakes. With white icing and there is some stars too, there is.'

'I want one too!' Charlie demanded, before kicking Swill. 'Oi, I got a new football.'

'Don't kick, Charlie,' Lucy said. 'Uncle Swill will only kick you back.'

'No, 'e won't!' Charlie laughed, kicking Swill again.

'Nah, I'll do something much worse.'

'Like what?' Charlie asked daringly, kicking him again. Swill suddenly sat up, lifting the blonde boy off his feet and marching into the kitchen. He turned on the tap and tipped the boy upside down.

'Like this,' he laughed, the little boy trying to wiggle away.

'No! No! I take it back,' laughed Charlie, red faced. Swill paused for a moment, before setting him back on his feet.

'Alright… but be warned. I'll use mustard next time.'

'Yueh.'

'You're telling me.'

--

Rhys stared down at what little money he had, a grim expression on his face. Fuck. He had no where near the right amount of money that Craig wanted. And today was the day he had to pay it back.

He paced, running his hands over his dark hair repeatedly.

There was no other choice.

He had to run.

He moved to his bedroom, pulling on his trainers and jacket. His bedroom was still neat and tidy; he hadn't really had time to unpack as he'd tried to gather as much money as he could.

If he got out now, he'd be gone before they could even think of finding him.

Rhys moved towards the front door, pulling it open. 'Hello, Rhys,' smiled Craig. He was a head shorter than Rhys, grey hair combed and tidy. He stepped in, followed by four bigger men. Rhys grumbled under his breath as Eddie grabbed his arm and yanked him back into the living room. 'Nice place you got here.'

Rhys said nothing, instead pulling himself out of Eddie's grip.

'So, have you got my money?'

'Straight to the point,' Rhys said, shaking his head. 'Craig…'

'I hate it when you put on that tone of voice, Gruffudd. It means you've not done what I wanted.'

'I'm sorry. I tried.' He gestured at the notes on the table. With a look from Craig, Eddie stepped forward and began to count the money.

'How much is there, Edward?'

'£90.'

'Only ninety?' Craig tutted. 'I thought I was getting £20,000 off you, Rhys. Not ninety.' He shook his head. 'You've let me down.'

'Craig, please-'

'You know what happens to men who let me down. Jesus, you've dealt with men who've let me down.' Rhys backed off towards the doorway, but one of the men pushed him back to the center.

'You don't need to do this,' he pleaded. Craig sighed, sitting down in the armchair.

'No; well, I wouldn't need to if you'd gotten my money in time.' Then, he gave a curt nod.

Eddie stepped forward, grabbing Rhys and punching him. Another man pushed him over, kicking him in the stomach. Rhys shut his eyes and took the blows, knowing he could do nothing.

Eddie stepped back as the three other men rained blows down on the man curled up on the floor. Grabbing the stereo off the shelf, he came forward and smashed it over his head. Rhys groaned, as Billy kicked him in the chest.

He wheezed, coughed up blood and rolled onto his back. 'Stop,' he groaned.

'Sorry, can't hear you,' grinned Eddie, grabbing a vase off the otherwise bare shelf. He came forward and swung it into his head.

Rhys saw white spots form over his vision, as Todd grabbed his hair and lifted him onto his knees. 'We could kill you right now, so stop moaning and take it like a man,' he hissed into his ear, before punching him in the throat.

Rhys fell forward on all fours, hacking. He couldn't breath. He started to panic, trying to find air as he wheezed and gasped.

Another fist in the face and a boot in the back. Rhys blinked, but his face burned in pain. 'Stop crying,' laughed Eddie. 'Big girl. You can give all this, but you can't take it.'

'Yeah; remember Ryan Reed?' taunted Gary, coming forward to press his foot against Rhys' head. He applied pressure. 'Remember the thrill you got when you pounded his face against the floor until blood came out his ears?' He moved away, Rhys breathing in deeply.

Eddie laughed, kicking him in the chest. 'Remember Darryl Hewitt? Huh? Do you remember pulling his arm so far back it snapped out of place?' Rhys sobbed, the beatings having stopped.

'I was on orders,' he managed to gasp, voice hoarse. He coughed, spitting on the floor. Kneeling up, he stared up at Eddie, a smirk spreading on his lips. 'Just like you are, you fucking little mongrel. Following him around like a fucking dog.' Eddie kicked him, sending Rhys sprawling on the floor.

'I aint a fucking dog!' he hissed, stamping on his back.

'Could have fooled me,' he replied, with a manic laugh. Suddenly, there was a loud knocking on the door. All the men seemed to pause, gazing in the direction of the knocking.

'Oi, mate?' came Pete's voice. 'I need to talk to you. It's urgent.' More knocking. 'Mate, come on! Look, I'm sorry about us fighting. And… I really need help.' Craig smiled, getting to his feet as Pete continued to knock.

'If you even breathe…' he threatened with a smile, before moving into the hallway and answering the door. The tall blonde frowned back at him.

'I think you've got the wrong house,' Craig said. 'Who're you looking for?'

'PETE!' The blonde watched as Craig smile froze in place, as the pained, desperate cry silenced them both.

Pete pushed his way past Craig and into the living room. Rhys was pressed into the floor, four big men surrounding him.

'We were in the middle of something,' Craig said at his side. 'But, you can join us if you want?'

'Get the fuck off him,' growled Pete, starting forward. Eddie pushed him back.

'You wanna end up like him, eh?' he laughed. Pete shook his head.

'Does it really take four of you to beat him up? That's fucking fair, aint it?' Pete seethed, before swinging a fist up.

'I'll meet you outside,' Craig simply said, leaving the house as Eddie smacked Pete right in the face. It was chaos. Rhys seemed forgotten as the four men began to circle around Pete. Even the hooligan wasn't a match for the steroid pumped men.

Rhys crawled over the carpet, managing to drag himself behind the sofa. He dug in his pocket for his mobile. The screen was cracked, but he didn't care about that as he rang Tegan.

'Hello? Rhys?' came his sister voice. Suddenly, Eddie was there, pushing the sofa out the way and advancing towards the Welshman.

'Please help us,' he sobbed down the phone. 'They're going to kill us.'

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Ooh, is there character death in the near future? Catch the next chapter sometime next week to find out!