Chapter Eight

As the storm developed with such an unexpected intensity, Daphne could barely see where she was going as she tried to evade her former Receptionist. The first time she had tried to kill her, it was with a switchblade knife. Now she had a gun, and Daphne had no weapons to defend herself. All she could hope for was the storm to give her enough cover to escape her former Receptionist and find help in public. But as it was so dark, and she was in a forest she wasn't familiar with, Daphne had no idea if hope would be available.

"I can't believe you lived through my knife attack!" the former Receptionist shouted. "Do you think you'll survive bullets?"

The former Receptionist fired her gun three times. Two bullets came close to hitting Daphne against a tree a meter to her left. Daphne could barely breathe and couldn't move as she hid behind a tree.

"You were smart to dye your hair black," the former Receptionist said. "Otherwise, you'd be easier to spot with the flaming red hair you used to have,"

Despite feeling terrified, Daphne was a little annoyed. Why were people so obsessed with her hair? Three more shots were fired, and they were closer by fifty centimeters. Daphne had no choice but to run. Satisfied that she could hear her running, the former Receptionist began to run in her direction.

"You can try to run!" the former Receptionist shouted. "But under the right circumstances, I would have killed you already!"

Another three shots were fired, and to Daphne's relief, none of them came close to hitting her, but that didn't prevent her from being terrified. As she continued to hear her footsteps, the former Receptionist became more furious.

"Goddamn it!" the former Receptionist said to herself.

She fired her gun, intending to shoot another three shots, but only one more bullet came out. She just heard the gun click. Daphne heard the gun click, too.

"Fuck!" the former Receptionist said, annoyed. "I thought I had more ammo!"

The Former Receptionist assumed Daphne hadn't heard her make that statement, but Daphne heard her perfectly. She looked around to see if nothing was lying around to defend herself, but she found the perfect thing. A large branch that she picked up immediately. Daphne didn't know if the former Receptionist had more ammunition on her, but she knew she had to take a chance while she still had one. Daphne turned around carefully and listened for her former Receptionist.

"Goddamn it!" the former Receptionist said as she looked in her handbag for more ammunition.

And that's when Daphne made her move. She raised the branch and struck her former Receptionist right in the face. She fell on her back, and once she was on the ground, Daphne hit her in the face ten more times before she screamed in frustration and terror. Then she saw her gun and picked it up.

"Jeepers!" Daphne said, upset as she ran out of the forest.

Daphne hoped the former Receptionist wasn't carrying a second weapon, but she didn't hear anyone following her as she had knocked the former Receptionist out cold. Five minutes later, she exited the forest and into Coolsville Park. It was empty due to the storm, but she couldn't believe her luck when she saw a taxi in the distance.

"TAXI!" Daphne yelled.

The driver inside the taxicab saw her, and he drove in her direction as Daphne ran towards him gratefully. Then he looked nervous as he saw she was carrying a gun. She realised this and put it behind her back.

"Don't worry," Daphne said as she opened the back door of the taxicab. "It's not loaded, and I really need to get out of here!"

"Sure," the taxi driver said. "Where to?"

"Christopherson Apartments," Daphne replied. "It's on the corner of North Avenue and Griffin Street in downtown Coolsville,"

The taxi driver drove away, and Daphne looked behind her frantically. There was no one in sight, and Daphne collapsed on the seat. The taxi driver looked at her as he couldn't help but wonder what was happening.

XXXXX

When Daphne returned to her apartment, she could only think about taking a hot shower as she was so cold from the rain. But that didn't stop her from being cautious, as she had nearly died. Once inside, she locked her door and ran to her bathroom. The bathroom door didn't have the kind of lock she needed to feel safe, but she would rectify that soon. She locked the door, stripped as fast as possible, and turned on the taps quickly. Once she was under the showerhead, she felt relieved. Daphne loved the heat of the water and washed herself slowly. Daphne wanted to feel warm. She washed herself everywhere three times or more.

"Jeepers!" Daphne said, feeling relieved to be warm again.

Daphne turned off the taps, got out of the shower and dried herself off. Thankfully, she had a dry towel as she hadn't done her laundry that week. The hairdryer was next to the bathroom sink, and she plugged it in and dried her hair. She loved how the hot air from the hair dryer felt against her hair. Once dry, she wrapped the towel around her waist and entered her bedroom to put on some dry clothes. She wore a dress and entered her living room to get a shock she wasn't expecting. Her former Warden was holding a gun and a spray can of red hair dye.

"Jesus Christ!" Daphne said without thinking.

The Warden couldn't help but laugh.

"No, it's just me, and it's wonderful to see you again," he replied. "But I hate what you've done with your hair. You don't look anywhere near as beautiful,"

Daphne began to hyperventilate with fear.

"What do you want?" she asked, barely able to get the words out.

"Firstly, I want to do something about your hair," he replied.

The Warden walked closer to Daphne, and she began to shake.

"Don't move and close your eyes," the Warden said. "I don't want this to get in your eyes,"

Daphne did what she was told, and the Warden sprayed her hair. It took a few minutes, and the Warden was pleased that her hair was red again.

"That's better," the Warden said. "You can open your eyes. You look so beautiful now,"

As Daphne opened her eyes and looked at the Warden, she was more terrified than she thought she could be. Even so, she had to know something.

"H-H-How did you escape?" she asked nervously.

"It's none of your business how I escaped," the Warden replied. "Now take off that dress and your underwear, and get in the position you know I love against your sofa,"

Daphne did what she was told and felt so ashamed to be naked. Then she leaned over the end of her sofa and stretched her arms in front of her.

"Good girl," the Warden said as he placed his gun on a small table beside the lamp.

Daphne began to hyperventilate even more as the Warden touched her calves and then her inner thighs.

"God, I've missed you," he whispered.

He touched her buttocks and rubbed them. Daphne began to cry, and the Warden didn't like that.

"Hey, don't cry," he said. "Don't you remember I don't like that,"

"Yes," Daphne said, and she did her best to stop crying.

He moved her hands to her belly.

"I can't wait for our baby to grow in there," the Warden said.

Daphne thought she was going to be sick.

"And you know what else?" he asked. "It doesn't matter what you've got planned for your life; you were always destined to be my favorite bitch,"

And that's all it took to snap Daphne out of her fear. That's not who she was and wasn't what she would be. She straightened herself up, and the Warden couldn't believe it.

"What are you doing?" the Warden asked as she turned around.

Without answering, Daphne punched the Warden right in the face, and he fell on his back. Then Daphne kicked in the groin as hard as she could. The Warden groaned in pain, and Daphne continued to kick him there ten more times before she grabbed his gun.

"YOU DESERVE TO DIE RIGHT HERE AND NOW!" Daphne yelled. "HAVE YOU GOT THAT?"

The Warden began to cry uncontrollably.

"Please don't kill me!" he cried.

"WHY NOT?" Daphne asked, yelling.

"Because you're not a killer!" he replied.

That was enough to make Daphne come to her senses. Although she still wanted to kill him, she wasn't a killer, and she needed to prove that, not just for herself, but for her son.

"Stand up and walk to the window," Daphne said.

The Warden mistook Daphne's motives and thought she would still kill him.

"Are you going to kill me for public display?" he asked, terrified.

Daphne liked that he thought that way, and she wouldn't change his mind.

"JUST STAND UP AND DO IT!" she yelled.

The Warden stood up and walked to the window.

Her cell phone was in her bedroom. Daphne sprinted, picked it up and called the number she had saved for the FBI as she re-entered her living room. It didn't take long for her call to be answered.

"Agent Hanna," Agent Hanna said. "What can I help you with, Daphne?"

"Just get to my apartment as fast as you can, and when you arrive, look up at my window," Daphne replied. "I have a surprise for both you and your partner,"

As the Warden continued to listen to her conversation, he was positive he was going to die that night. Daphne loved that he was thinking like that, and she was in no hurry to correct him. While waiting for her FBI friends to arrive, she got dressed again quickly, and the Warden did not attempt to move.

XXXXX

Agents Hanna and Barbera arrived at Daphne's apartment block quickly, and they were shocked to see the Warden standing in her window. Once they arrived upstairs and arrested the Warden, Daphne wouldn't let the Agents off easily. Both Agents knew what was coming.

"Why didn't you tell me that the Warden had escaped?" Daphne asked.

"We were given false intel that he had left the country and showed no signs of returning to the States," Agent Hanna said.

"And why didn't you tell me this?" Daphne asked back. "Didn't you think I had a right to know?"

"We were ordered not to tell you anything," Agent Barbera replied. "If it were up to us, we would have told you,"

"You should have told me anyway," Daphne shot back. "It's my life he ruined for over six months! You should have told me!"

They argued for another hour, and once Agent Hanna and Agent Barbera were gone, Daphne no longer had any friends in the FBI as far as she was concerned.

XXXXX

With Shaggy in rehab and Velma in the hospital for a severe assault, Daphne was faced with the fact that she was more alone than ever and needed a friend. She walked around town but didn't wear any disguises. Daphne needed to know she could be brave until she absently mindedly walked down the street where Darren's gym was. There was no doubt in her mind that she missed him and wanted to see him more than anything, but Daphne needed to be strong. She was familiar with the phrase strength in numbers, but she realised that she needed to find strength in herself first.