Another chapter for you amazing fans! Thank you for your follows/reviews/faves and reads. It's all so very appreciated! I know we all miss our Daryl, but it's only a few more weeks! As far as this story goes, Daryl will be back very soon, I promise.
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On with the show!
I woke up to my arms aching so much that they burned; a deafening roar filling my ears to the point of making me want to puke. Cracking my one good eye open to the ravage of daylight, I find my arms are chained above my head to a post. My range of motion is severely limited; even more so by my naked body mere inches from the post in front of me. It's then that I realize I'm in the town square with probably every Tom, Dick and Harry's eyes trained on me. I can't turn around; my line of vision is limited to peripheral. Just when I thought the crowd couldn't get any louder, the roar starts up again. I held my breath waiting to hear what happens next, it can't be good.
"As you all know there is a price to be paid for disobedience. There are rules that are expected to be followed. When one chooses not to follow the rules, to disobey, they will pay a price. This girl, Allie, chose to commit a heinous offense this morning while I slept; she attempted to take my life. If it was anyone else I would take their life, an eye for an eye as such. But I think Allie too pretty, too young, if not useful when properly broken. Do you agree?" Marcus paced around the small arena enticing the crowd even more. Each time he came near me, he would smack me somewhere on my body with an extendable metal baton like police use. The pain was brutal on the tender skin of my ass and the backs of my legs. The crowd thundered around the square; I saw people giving the thumbs down, others yelling for my death. I shuddered thinking about what the loss of my life would do to my mother, not to mention my father. It would break them both to lose me, as it broke them to lose my brother.
The crowd quieted down when Marcus spoke again, his voice carrying in the small area. "What is it we do to a dog that does not mind their master? We punish them until they learn wrong from right!" I heard a crack break through the silence, then white hot searing fire burning across my back. My knees buckled; but I couldn't hit my knees. I hung from my arms in the shackles attached to the post. Screams ripped through my throat each time the leather tendrils with the metal tips split my skin open. Tears flowed freely down my cheeks; the pain was excruciating. I couldn't imagine anyone inflicting pain like this on another human being. I hoped to pass out, just to stop the pain.
"STOP THIS SHIT RIGHT NOW! SHE'S HAD ENOUGH!" An unfamiliar male voice boomed over the crowd cheering for my demise. I thanked whoever was up there listening for the reprieve from the whipping. The arena fell silent as the male walked past me. I couldn't see his face, only his boots and pants, it hurt too much to raise my head. Whomever this man was he had balls to go against Marcus, he was my savior at the moment.
"Well, well, well Agron, you're back early from the hunt. Did you bag anything for the town?" Marcus' snide tone made me want to spit in his face, if not puke all over him. This must be the head of the hunting group that the assholes who took me were talking about. I hoped he was more sympathetic to my plight, anything would be better than what I was going through now; well almost anything.
Words were exchanged between the two men; I couldn't make any of it out. Minutes passed like hours; until one of Marcus' guards jerked my head back by my hair. The cold steel of a collar clamped around my neck, my arms were unlocked as I fell to my knees in the dirt. Marcus' boot connected with my chest kicking me over onto my back. His eyes met mine; if looks could have killed I'd been dead.
"Be thankful Agron seen fit to spare your life. You're his problem now." Marcus kicked me in the ribs, that was the end of it for me. The last stroke of pain to throw me over the edge into unconsciousness.
Emma ran up to Agron, a limp body cradled in his arms dripping blood onto the floor, a rifle over his shoulder as he walked into her room. Emma's heart skipped a beat when she realized the body was Allie.
"Oh God! What did he do to her Agron?" Emma's voice cracked with stress and worry, Marcus was a madman. The sadist in him would have taken pleasure in torturing Allie to death if someone hadn't have stopped him.
Agron's voice dripped with anger; his body visibly shaking with the rage burning within him. "The sick son of a bitch had her chained to a post in the arena, naked, whipping her in front of the entire town. Her back's tore open; that's my chief concern at the moment. Get it patched up the best you can. Pack your shit Emma. I'm getting you and Allie out of here." Agron laid Allie on the bed, face down, grimacing at the wounds criss-crossing her back. He'd seen those kinds of wounds before; they would never heal right, no matter what Emma did.
"How do you plan on getting us out of here? You know if we leave he will hunt us down and kill us. Do you think you can really keep us safe?" Emma's hands trembled surveying the wounds. She knew the best she would be able to do with such a small time frame would be to cover the wounds, and wrap Allie into a blanket to stave off the cold until they could properly dress her.
"Marcus said she was my problem. Going to take her right out to my truck and put her in the toolbox. She'll fit. Sneak her and you right on out. I'll slide you under the backseat. You can cramp up small enough to fit. He can hunt all he wants, but the hunter can stay one step ahead. I'll make Marcus my prey; I'll make him pay for what he's done to her and every other woman he's tortured. Have her ready to go in 30 minutes, I'm going to go pack my gear and get my truck." Agron hissed between his teeth, struggling to keep his anger under wraps. He took one last look at Allie lying motionless on the bed before turning on his heel; stalking out the door.
Emma quickly cleaned the wounds in Allie's back, packing the avulsions with gauze before covering them. Allie's body twitched as she moaned, her eyes still closed. Emma placed a blanket over Allie while she picked through her supplies, grabbing medical supplies and food, stuffing it into her backpack. The more she could cram into the backpack, the more they would have to survive with, the more they would be stealing from Marcus.
Emma peeled Allie's eyelids open, shining a penlight in each eye, watching for the eyes to react. Allie's blue eyes slowly constricted to the bright light; the breath Emma wasn't aware she was holding left her in a rush. Thank god Allie didn't suffer any brain damage from the beating. Only time would tell how extensive the damage really was, but for now the main worry was infection.
A solid knock sounded at the door, before Emma could answer the door popped open, Agron's hulking frame blocking the doorway. Agron bent over the bed, swinging Allie up into his arms, cradling her protectively against his chest as Emma wrapped the blanket around the girl's body.
"Time to go Emma. Grab your bags, the truck's outside." Agron turned, carrying Allie out the door. Emma trotted along behind Agron; his strides were exceptionally longer than hers. Agron tucked Allie safely into the toolbox, making sure blankets, pillows, jackets, anything soft were crammed in around her. Agron closed the lid slowly; he knew Allie would only have maybe an hour of air before things got critical. He had to get the girls away from this hell, he had to keep them safe, he had to be the hero.
Agron opened the back passenger door of the truck, pushing sleeping bags and his tent aside to make room for Emma to curl up under the back seat. "I know it's going to be an uncomfortable position for a bit, but it's the only way you're getting out of here. You'll just need to lie still until we're clear. Then I'll get you and Allie out." Emma nodded, pulling her knees to her chest as she lay on her side. Agron piled his tent and sleeping bags over her, slamming the door shut.
Emma felt the rumble of the diesel truck starting up underneath her, as it rolled slowly through the town. She held her breath when Agron rolled the window down, the guards at the main gate stopped the truck. Emma couldn't hear the conversation, but breathed a sigh of relief when the window closed and the truck moved on. Agron's voice broke the silence, making Emma jump.
"We made it out of the town, gotta give me a bit more time to get far enough away from the town to ensure we're not being followed. If you can hold out about another 10 minutes I'll stop and get you and Allie out ok?" Agron chose his words carefully, the last thing he wanted to do was end up the liar and not escape Marcus' grasp. Agron didn't want to send the girls back to that hell, he would give his own life to save them if it was the last thing he did.