Chapter 4 As soon as we round the corner and go up a floor, we hear whimpers. Moans. He swears and pulls me to the side when I falter in my steps. "You can't run if you get scared. You need to be an obedient prize and stay by my side, okay?" I straighten my spine and nod up at him. "Yeah." "I'll need to treat you terribly." "I know," I reply, my eyes flicking to the side when I hear a man laughing. "I apologise in advance." He genuinely sounds terrified, so I soften my voice. "Tobias, it's okay - just hurry up." He grips my arm and pulls me along the corridor, and I try to keep up. We round another corner, and my back hits the wall before I can even let out a gasp. Tobias plasters himself against my front and lowers his head to the hollow of my throat. "Sorry," he whispers, a soft breath through the hole at the mouth of the mask. "I'm sorry. I'm sorry. I'm sorry," he breathes repeatedly as he grabs my thigh and pulls it up to his side, playing the part. "Forgive me." Archie walks past with three guards. He's talking on the phone and not giving us any attention. He's yelling at someone to get someone under control. Once they're out of sight, he drops my leg and flinches back like I've burned him. "Sorry." He straightens me up and turns his head. "Do you think he was talking about Kade?" Tobias trembles a little, and I know he's vibrating with rage he's struggling to control. "Probably," he grits, glancing in the direction Archie went. "It's taking me everything not to snap the bastard's neck, but I can't risk you. Come on. I'll make sure he burns along with the manor." He takes my wrist and pulls me along the corridor once more. Annoyingly, a man with a cigar is walking towards us with one of the auction paddles in his hand. Tobias lowers his hand to my hip and greets the man, trying to blend in. The hand burns. Once the man is gone, his touch snaps away. I accept his hand in mine, his thumb rubbing over my skin to remind me that I'm safe as I follow him into another corridor, cold and clammy, doors lining one side of the wall, the rooms locked and filled with more moaning. I whimper and lower my head when a door opens and I see a girl waiting inside, her hands obediently resting in her lap. "What about the rest of them?" "Once I get you out safely, Barry, his men and the Russians will storm the place. They'll get the rest out before they burn it to the ground. The latter wanted to storm it right away, but I couldn't risk you getting hurt. This is the safest way." My hand is in his once again as we ascend the staircase, the music slowly filling my ears. Orchestral music - Alexandre Desplat. I usually enjoy his music while dancing or reading, but right now, it's making this entire situation worse. It grows louder as we get to the top, the stairs opening to the main foyer as the melody merges into "Statues". In the open, he lets go of my hand and takes my arm again, dragging and pushing me around corners. I know he's hating treating me this way, but we can't let anyone recognise him or what we're doing. Some of the other buyers are walking around, showcasing their new pets, all in white dresses identical to mine. Some look a little younger than me, some older, and some are downright terrified and sobbing. Instead of going through the entranceway doors, we take a right, bypassing the auction room, which is filled with workers cleaning up. He walks slowly, so I can keep up in my bare feet. No one blinks in my direction, despite the splatters of crimson dotted all over my dress and face. As if this is normal to them. A guard stands to the side with a gun strapped to his chest. He nods to Tobias. "Are you enjoying your prize, sir? Is she to your liking?" My body goes stiff as Tobias yanks me to stand in front of him, pretending to whisper in my ear words of assault, his hand just under my breast, while actually telling me not to give him eye contact and that he's once again sorry. "Oh, she's more than to my liking. Beautiful, isn't she?" "You'll join the others in the conference room?" "Maybe next time," he says, then grabs a fistful of my hair and drags me into the next corridor. I elbow him when we're out of view. "You did not need to pull my hair." "I like pulling hair." I roll my eyes. "Of course you do." He winks and pulls his phone out. "We're approaching. Have your men ready." He hangs up and looks at me. "There are no guards on this floor. Nearly there, little one." We stop in a small alcove in the lobby, and he throws aside the mask, his brows furrowing. He slips off his suit jacket, removing a blade and a gun and tucking them into his waistband. "Here," he says, sliding the jacket over me, helping me get my arms into each side and buttoning up the front to hide more of my exposed skin. "Well, that could've gone a lot worse. It was rather easy, to be honest. Other than having to touch you. No offence, but that made me want to vomit all over you." I want to call him a psychopath for thinking that was anything but terrifying, but he is one, so I'd just be stating the obvious. He doesn't feel the same way I feel; his emotions are learned, altered and altogether different from mine. "I think you enjoyed throwing me around a little too much. Payback for all those times I beat you at chess?" He scoffs. "Do not delude yourself into thinking that was even slightly enjoyable. I'd rather be throwing Aria around, preferably while she's wearing-" "Stop! Some things are best kept in a locked box, you idiot. And if this doesn't kill you, Aria will for escaping," I say. "Have you seen her?" "I've watched her, but I don't have the balls to go see her. Fuck, no. She'd send my ass back to the States. I think she might cut me off completely after this." "I think she'll understand," I say, letting out a confused uhh as he tugs at the suit jacket around me, so I'm glued to his chest, his face dropping to my throat as he pulls my head back by the hair, pretending to bite me just as a guard walks by. Then he pushes me away like I'm poisonous. "Barry is supposed to be good at his fucking job, the motherfucker. And again, no offence, but if one more person comes, I might need to let us get caught." "Why?" I ask. "I'm... very uncomfortable acting this out," he says, looking away and shoving his hands into his pockets. "I feel like I'm betraying my son and Aria." "It's not real." "I'm aware," he hisses. "It still makes me uncomfortable." His phone rings again, and after Tobias goes nuts for a solid minute, Barry tells him they're nearly ready and in position. He gives directions to the window we've to jump from, and we'll escape out the back of the grounds since no one is there. "I don't think Aria will forgive me for this one, if I'm honest. I've probably lost her. She'll hate me like the rest of the world." He sighs again and pinches his nose. "But I had no other option; you didn't show up for visitation. I had to escape." With something close to a disbelieving laugh, I stare at Kade's dad, at the tiredness in his eyes from constantly fighting with himself. "The world really has no idea who you are. You are a little bit nutty, but you care a lot about your family. You taught yourself to love - in your own way, yes - but that alone goes against everyone's opinion of you. You aren't heartless, Tobias. Who cares what the world thinks?" He grimaces; he hates compliments and softness. "Shut up or I'll take you back." I giggle. "I missed you." "Are you done?" I roll my eyes, and he takes my hand and leads me through the corridor again. We turn left and pause in our steps. A girl is pressed up against the wall, crying for two men to stop. They aren't guards. They're in suits. Bidders. One is trying to pull up her dress while the other grabs her face and tries to shove his fingers into her mouth. I can't see his face, but I feel the energy crashing into a dark void as Tobias pulls me behind him slowly, sliding the blade from his waistband at the same time. The girl turns her face to dodge a tongue, and I almost step forward when I see it's Cassie Sawyer, Bernadette's daughter. His fingers flex over the handle, and in a silent flash that has me backing away until I hit the opposite wall, he grabs the closest man's hair, yanks his head back and slices the knife along his throat. Animalistic noises fill the corridor, gurgling chokes, crimson splattering Tobias's face as he punctures his victim's skull with the blade for good measure. The blade stays impaled as the body drops to the floor, lifeless, sightless, his unseeing eyes on me. His beastly friend lets go of the sobbing Cassie, now covered in blood. She slowly falls to the floor in a huddle, her eyes glazed over, her lips chewed from her biting them. One of her nails is pulled up, the skin butchered, as if she'd been trying to claw herself free of their clutches. I rush to her, dropping to my knees and pulling her away from them as the remaining guy tries to swing his fist at Tobias, failing when he captures his wrist, breaks it with a quick snap then headbutts him. The man's nose cracks. Tobias shoves his arm away and punches him in the face, hard enough that he crashes into the wall - the man unable to retaliate as he smashes his face again and again. It's a vicious, continuous beating that has more crimson spraying around us like a fountain until the vile human is unrecognisable. Tobias has caved his face in completely. Cassie is conscious but slurring her words, blood drying into her cheeks. Her dress clings to her sweating body, and there's a large puncture hole in her arm. She glances up at me, barely seeing me - then her eyes roll to the back of her head and she collapses into my arms. Tobias's lips flatten. "Well, this is unfortunate. She's the enemy." He helps me up and tosses her over his shoulder. "Good thing we're nearly out of here. Grab her phone - it's on the floor over there." I pick it up and give it to him, and he slides it into his pocket. "Where are we taking her?" "She's the bait. Or blackmail. One child in exchange for the other. That's if they don't all perish when this place burns down." He links our hands again, keeping an unconscious Cassie on his shoulder as he leads us to the end of the lobby and slides open a window. I let out a relieved breath as Barry's face pops up. He grins at me when I smile. "Good evening, miss." I chuckle. "Stop calling me that." Kade's father grunts. "You both shut up. Take this." He practically tosses Cassie at him. Barry catches her limp body then hands her to one of his men, ordering them to take her to his car. Tobias helps me up to the window ledge, and one of Barry's men helps me down. As soon as my feet press into the soft grass, Barry pulls me into him - another hug I had no idea I needed. I wrap my arms around him just as tightly. "I'm glad you're okay. I was worried about you. I wouldn't have ever forgiven myself if something happened to you, Miss- Stacey." Tobias scowls at us and narrows his eyes at Barry. "Let go of her and move. Before someone sees us." Barry walks with us as we sneak through the grounds and into a small area of trees. My feet hurt, and I wince a little, but I don't say anything. We have more things to worry about than my bare feet. I accidentally forget to hold a branch, and it slaps Tobias in the face. I cringe and glance over my shoulder, mouthing an oops. He looks like he wants to stab me. We hurry through trees, and the music dies out as we pass by stables. There are no horses. I can't imagine Bernadette even caring for one. We walk out of the grounds' unused back entrance, the metal gate harshly creaking, yet not loud enough to draw attention to us in the dark. I'm too scared to feel relief yet, because something always goes wrong. Barry offers me a low nod and opens the door to one of the cars for me. "It's good to see you again," I say. "I hope Eva and Lisa are okay?" "They're safe and hidden. And it's really good to see you too. However, it's been rather peaceful without you." I shake my head. "Your cheeks turn red when you lie." When the car pulls out, Barry tells us that the Russians are readying themselves to storm the manor; that within the hour, it'll be up in flames. Hopefully the Sawyers burn. Even if their daughter is in the trunk. When we reach the lodge, the sun is already starting to rise, and I'm exhausted. I'd nearly fallen asleep on Tobias's shoulder, but he shrugged me off while he tapped away on the iPad, hunting for Kade's location through the security feed Barry had hacked into. I keep watching how much Tobias is trying to hold himself together - a shell as he turns the tablet screen off and blankly stares out the window, blinking more than usual, before checking the screen to see if there's any change then going back to staring. His shell shatters when we get out of the car. The door of the lodge is thrown open, and Aria rushes out, her eyes red as her body slams into Tobias and she lets loose a string of sobs. "Our babies," she cries. "We need to help them. Please help them." He strokes the back of her hair, his arm around the small of her back. "We will. I promise we'll get our kids back." The door opens again, and my eyes land on Jason.