How You Take Me (5 page)

“
I...I'll tell Julian you saved me, and you can
get your money,” I speak rapidly. “I just want to get
out of here, and get the money that Julian owes me as well. I tested
that blasted machine for weeks, so...I'm going to make sure he pays
me my due. We just need the money, you and I. It's just all about
the money.”

She gives me a long, hard look and stands. “Not
for you it isn't,” she says.

I lower my eyes. “Did you sleep with him?”
I mumble at last.

Aleisha snorts out a mocking laugh. “Of course.
Sex is a weapon.”

“
But...you're not pregnant.”

“
No.”

“
So—how are you going to...”

She rolls her eyes. “After I get the money, I'll
just tell him I suffered a miscarriage, blah blah blah. And
depression, and so on and so forth. He's a gentle, trusting man.
That's easy to see. I can read men like a book. And it's pretty
obvious that you...” She frowns at me, a trace of hostility
flashing in her eyes. “What is it about you? You're not much
to look at, pretty weak and gullible, and judging from your reaction
in his office, rather insecure and stupid.”

I force myself not to break eye contact, not to let any
emotion show on my face. Ugly though they are, I recognize the truth
in her words.

At the door, she stops abruptly. “Let me give you
some advice. Don't be weak and stupid. There's only one person
worth loving—and that's yourself.” With that, she bangs
the door shut.

I collapse on the ground, succumbing to the pain in my
body and my heart. I stare at the tattered remnants of my clothes,
and blink back the hot tears in my eyes. Pulling myself up, I grab
the pieces of torn clothing off the floor and use them to dab away
the lines of blood down my arms and legs. Clean myself up. Take
care of myself. Don't be weak and stupid. I wince and try to
swallow the lump in my throat.

The door opens and some clothes are thrown into the
room. A small bag lands beside the clothes and the door snaps shut
again. I shuffle to pick up the faded, baggy jeans and t-shirt.
Pulling them on hurriedly, I turn my attention to the discolored
pouch lying on the floor. It looks like a make-up pouch. Carefully,
I open it to find a lipstick and some powder and foundation. They
look old and used and only a little of everything is left.

It seems Aleisha has taken heed of my words. It's all
about the money, so—I am to make myself presentable for Julian.

There's no mirror so I can't see how skilfully or badly
I am applying the make-up to my face. Doesn't matter. There are
worse things to do at this time than to play with make-up. And if I
appear to be on her side, helping her secure that ransom, perhaps she
would keep that Big Brute from coming back in.

With trembling hands, I uncap the lipstick and raise the
chipped tube of red to my broken lips.

There is a sudden impact against the door and my eyes
snap open. There are shouts and voices and the door shudders as
something is thrown against it on the other side. In a heartbeat, I
scramble up and tense for whatever violence is coming my way.

Right on cue, the door swings open and Big Ben comes
stumbling towards me, his eyes wild with fear and rage. There is
trouble written all over his face. I try to dodge him, but he is
extraordinarily fast and strong. His terror and desperation propels
him towards me like a tornado.

With a roar that belies his fury and his fear, he
lurches forward and grabs me by the throat. He drags me in front of
him, using me as a human shield. I freeze, as the sharp blade of a
knife presses against my neck. “Don't come any closer, or I'll
slit her throat,” he bellows.

There is a shadow at the door. The figure moves closer
and I gasp, “Julian!” Behind him, I glimpse dark
uniforms moving and guns being trained on us.

Julian's eyes flick to me, and the anguish and anger
immediately deepen on his face. His eyes are dark and sunken. He
looks like he hasn't shaved or slept in days yet there is a
dangerous, determined glint in his eye. “Don't hurt her,”
Julian says quietly. “I'll give you what you want. I'll give
you everything.”

“
You called the cops!” Big Ben screeches,
tightening his hold on me. “We told you not to call the cops!
No cops, or she dies! Isn't that what we said? Well, it looks like
you've made your choice, Dr. James. She...dies!”

I feel the knife press deeper into my skin and that
small stab of pain jolts me into action. Maybe it is the pain, or
the fury, or the panic, or the sudden memory of what this brute did
to me, but I don't hesitate. A potent, powerful mix of emotions
surges through me and I lash out. I don't stop. I can't afford to.

In a flurry of movement, I sink my teeth hard into his
arm, at the same time elbowing him in the ribs and twisting out of
his arms. I hear Julian's voice and I raise my eyes to him as he
shoves me out of the way. I careen towards a wall and a sharp pain
blinds me momentarily as my shoulder slams hard into the wall. When
I regain my focus, I see Julian wrestling with Big Ben on the floor.
Julian is pinned down but he manages to roll out of the way as the
blade stabs down with blinding speed. Big Ben's attacks are
merciless and relentless. Locked in a lethal embrace, the two men
roll and writhe on the dirty floor, the knife glinting menacingly
between them.

I push myself up against the wall, my eyes staring at
the tangle of muscular arms. With a cry that sounds more animal than
human, Big Ben slams Julian down on the floor and rears up. Julian
tries to hold him off but with a flash, the blade whirls through the
air, plunging straight towards Julian's throat.

“
No!” I scream.

Big Ben jerks up but I don't see him. I don't see
anything but that deadly knife as I fly towards it. Rushing straight
at them, I throw myself at the brute, hoping to knock him off Julian.
We crash to the ground, the impact almost shattering every bone in
my body. My vision wavers and darkens and through a haze of red, I
see Julian yanking Big Ben off me with a murderous look on his face.
He punches Big Ben hard in the nose and jaw, and shoves him hard
against the wall. Julian is shouting, and even though I can't make
out his words, the wrath and raw pain in his voice is obvious.

Julian smashes his fist again and again into Big Ben's
bloodied face until uniforms swarm the room and two police officers
hold him off.

As Big Ben is cuffed and led forcefully out of the room,
Julian rushes to my side, his eyes wide and fearful. I blink at the
blood on his hands as he yells over his shoulder, “Ambulance!
We need an ambulance! Sophia...” He cradles my head. I lift
a blood-stained hand to his face and smile. “Sophia, don't
move, just hang in there, you're going to be okay...”

I try to smile, but something trickles from the corner
of my mouth. I raise my hand weakly to wipe it away and my hand
comes away stained with fresh blood.

I frown and try to speak but only a gurgling sound
issues from my throat.

Why is there so much blood on my hands and on my body?

There are so many people crowded round me now, I can
hardly breathe. With great pain and difficulty, I manage to raise my
head to look down the length of my body.

So that's where the blood is coming from.

There is a knife buried in my side.

It takes a few labored breaths for me to fully register
the fact, and a few more to wonder if I shouldn't be feeling more
pain.

Gripping Julian's hand, I turn to him and whisper, “I'm
sorry...”

“
No, no...” his voice cracks as he presses
my hand to his lips. “You're going to be all right,
Sophia...everything is okay...you'll be fine...”

I can still faintly hear his voice as the buzzing in my
ear grows. Even as my eyes begin to close, I hold on tightly to his
hand. I don't want to ever let go. My eyelids flutter but I can't
keep them open any longer.

Even through the urgent shouting, rushing footsteps and
spinning shadows, I can still feel Julian's hand holding mine.

The last thing I see is his rugged, handsome face and my
name on his lips.

*****

I nod and smile politely at the two police officers at
my hospital bedside. They have been coming so often they're almost
like fixtures in my hospital room. Officers Claire and Ryan, both
young, sharp, professional and always polite.

I have answered all their questions regarding the
kidnapping, but there is always more. Julian helps me sit up and
arranges the pillows behind me. He has been taking care of me these
past weeks. He has hardly left my side, holding my hand, feeding me,
talking to me. When I refused to let them inform my parents—I
just didn't want to worry them yet again, Julian said adamantly.
“Then you cannot refuse to let me take care of you. It's
because of me that...”

“
No,” I countered. “It's not because
of you. I'm alive, because of you. You saved me. And...Aleisha did
too.”

“
Aleisha?”

But before I could explain, there was a knock on the
door and the two young police officers have entered.

So, here they are.

“
How are you feeling, Miss Adams?” Claire
inquires. Her blond hair is tied neatly in a sleek ponytail, not a
strand out of place. Her partner, Ryan, smiles warmly, his blue eyes
crinkling as he nods at me.

“
Much better, thanks,” I reply as Julian
hands me a glass of water. He rubs my back gently, comforting me,
supporting me.

“
We're sorry to be taking so much of your time,”
Ryan begins. “There's just a few more questions...”

“
Not at all. I'm happy to answer all your
questions,” I say, straightening up as Claire whips out her
notebook.

“
Ben Rutherford will be charged with kidnapping
and a host of sexual assault charges. Aleisha Stone will be slapped
with extortion and kidnapping charges,” Claire informs me,
reading from her notebook. “Miss Adams, has Aleisha hurt you
in any way?”

“
No.”

Claire nods, but raises an eyebrow.

“
No,” I repeat. “It was Ben
who...attacked me. Aleisha stopped him from...from raping me.”

The officers note down my answer and after a brief
pause, Ryan looks up and addresses Julian, “Dr. James, have you
met Ben Rutherford before?”

Julian shakes his head. “No. I've only met
Aleisha...once. But after that night, she has been trying to contact
me, leaving messages on my office voice mail, emailing
me—blackmailing me. I...I knew what she wanted, right from the
beginning. So I ignored her, quite successfully. Until that night.
When she turned up at my gate, I knew that she wouldn't leave without
what she came for. I wanted to stall her, record enough of our
conversation and hand it over to the police...”

I turn to Julian in surprise. “You recorded
everything she said?”

“
Not everything. Most. I even managed to record
the car with my phone camera as it sped away.”

“
That's how we located you so quickly,” Ryan
says helpfully. “The description, the images that Dr. James
captured, everything matched. Ben Rutherford has been involved in a
number of prior assault cases. And Aleisha Stone has been extorting
money from quite a few rich men, but she has never been caught. The
men, most of them married and pretty respectable and well-known in
society, don't want their involvement with her made public. So they
pay up. Dr. James would have been her next victim.”

“
So they're partners in crime,” I say
slowly.

“
No,” Claire answers. “They committed
their previous crimes separately.”

I nod. “No wonder they didn't seem to agree
on...quite a lot of things. Aleisha...” I swallow. “She
saved me from Ben. She didn't hurt me, I mean, aside from kidnapping
me...”

“
It wouldn't have benefited her to hurt you,”
Claire says, slipping her notebook back into her pocket. “She
just wanted the money. More and more of it, it seems. She has been
extorting bigger and bigger sums of money from the men. But Ben
Rutherford wants more than just money.”

I wrap my arms around myself, shuddering. “Did
you know...” I whisper to Julian. “Did you know that she
wasn't...pregnant?”

The two police officers take a step back from my
bedside, attempting to give Julian and me some privacy.

“
Yeah. I knew it all along.”

“
But you were going to pay her...”

His throat moves as he swallows painfully. “Just
so she'll leave....leave us alone. I didn't want you to...to...”

“
To know?” My eyes round as my voice rises
a pitch. “Have more faith in me, Julian. I should know.
I...want to know. I want to know you,” I say softly.

“
I just thought...”

“
You just thought I was weak,” I tell Julian
in an even tone. “Which I was. Was—but I won't be weak
anymore.”

Discreetly, the two officers take their leave from my
hospital room. When the door closes, I lie back on my pillows and
look out the window. It's been three weeks since they patched up the
knife wound in my side. I heard the doctor telling Julian that I am
ready to go home.