26. Chapter 26

Chapter 26

Lacy

My face still hurts, but thankfully, Josh hasn’t been back since he assaulted me. What hurts more than the sting of his hit, is that he told me he had let Drake hear the slap. One of his goons stood by and watched, while allowing Drake to listen in.

I can only imagine what Drake is thinking.

Now that I can see, I notice I am in an old, abandoned warehouse. There’s only one place like this in Hollow Cove and that’s the old Industrial Park on the outskirts of town. No one comes here anymore. The buildings are all falling apart and the roads have been weathered away. It’s a dangerous and dirty place. Now that I think of it, it’s the perfect place for Josh.

Hidden. Dirty. Dangerous.

I’m sweating as my body struggles to stay awake. I’m so thirsty and my stomach is roaring with hunger pains. I don’t know how much longer I can stay awake in this heat. I just hope Drake can make it in time. If not, I don’t want to even imagine what Josh and his loser goons will do to me.

***

At some point, I had passed out. When I come to again, Josh is sitting in an old wooden chair in front of me. He is watching me with a strange interest and the way his eyes travel up and down my body makes me sick.

“Good morning,” he smiles.

“Why can’t you just leave me alone?” I ask.

“What fun would that be?” he laughs, letting his head fall back. His greasy hair sways and I almost vomit.

“You are a sick bastard,” I cry out.

“Sure, but what about your Raven boy?” he asks.

“Leave Drake alone. This is between you and me now,” I roar out. I am using the little bit of strength I have left to fight for Drake. It may be the last thing I do, but I will do it for Drake.

“This was never about you,” Josh hisses. “You are just the icing on the cake. You could be any bitch that Drake is hooking up with. Just something tangible that he cares about. My only goal here is to ruin the Ravens. Getting rid of you will drive Drake crazy. You are somewhat of a prize to him, so taking you was what had to be done,” Josh mocks, as though he is talking about an object and not a human life.

I shake my head and my whole-body shakes. Josh has this sick, twisted view of what revenge is. He’s so immature. “You are so pathetic,” I say, almost laughing. “You are holding this insane grudge against Drake, and he didn’t do anything but fight for his family. Chuck attacked the Raven’s because he was jealous of what they had. Now that Chuck is gone, you think you can come in here and destroy what they love. But you will never win. Go ahead, kill me. Hurt Drake. I can promise you this; the Raven’s will always come out on top. And you want to know why?” I ask, even though Josh isn’t going to answer. “Because the Raven’s are good people. They aren’t twisted, sick fucks like you. People love and admire the Ravens. You can’t say the same for you and your criminal family,” I finish, pride filling the holes caused by Josh’s destruction.

Josh just sits there quietly, menacing. His silence frightens me, as I know the crazy thoughts in his head are swirling around now.

Josh flinches, wincing like he is in pain, but then that evil smirk reappears and my heart drops to the pit of my stomach.

“Strong words for someone who is tied up and at my mercy,” Josh says, inching his way closer to me.

I fight to move away from him, but it is no use. He has me trapped. Sad thing is, Josh didn’t kidnap me because he believed I was special or worth something. I was just a ploy to upset Drake. This man--this monster before me only has revenge on his mind. His heart has been so burned at some point; he can’t see true love. He can’t even imagine how to love.

“You may not care about me, but Drake does. And, so does the rest of the Ravens. They are out looking for me right now and when they find me, they will you,” I seethe.

“By the time those stupid Raven’s figure out where you are, my sweet Lacy,” Josh says, as he runs his filthy hands along my cheek,” you will be long gone.”

I want to vomit at his touch. He licks his lips and his fingers trail down my neck. He keeps inching lower until his fingers brush across my breasts. I bite my bottom lip to keep from screaming. My body is shaking and tears are spilling from my eyes. Josh touching me is the most revolting thing ever. The only man who is supposed to touch my body, to feel my skin, is Drake Raven.

He hums as he continues his descent down my body. I look away, unable to watch his face and how his features turn to amused as he notices how disgusted I am by his touch. “I can see why Drake likes you so much,” he whispers, his hot breath burning my neck. “Tell me, Lacy. Have all of the Raven Boys gotten to play with you?” he asks.

His hands reach my thighs and I clench my legs together. I am so scared right now; I feel like I may just pass out again. But, I can’t. I refuse to let Josh win right now.

“The Raven’s are better men than you could ever dream of becoming. They love their women and protect them. They don’t use them as objects,” I hissed.

Josh stops caressing my thighs and he stills. His head moves to the side as though he is listening for something.

A few of the guys who I now notice standing by the walls, perk up too. They had been obviously enjoying the show of Josh groping me, but now, they are listening for something.

Suddenly, the faint sounds of engines roaring down the road come to life and my heart perks up.

Drake.

The Ravens.

Motorcycles.

I knew it. I just knew Drake and the guys would come to find me.

Josh jumps out of his seat and begins frantically rushing around.

“They weren’t supposed to find her until later,” he screams out. “Stop them from coming inside,” Josh shouts.

The other men begin pulling out guns from their back pockets and true fear and adrenaline shot through me. I knew these guys were bad, but I hadn’t seen guns and weapons until now.

Voices from outside being yelling and my ears instantly pick up on the soulful sound of Drake’s voice filling the night silence.

“Drake!” I bellow, using every ounce of strength I can muster to scream his name.

Josh comes back over to me and slaps me across the face, this time his punch lands on my lips and I watch in horror as blood splatters down onto my jeans.

“Shut up, bitch,” Josh warns. “Scream like that again and I will shoot you straight in the head,” he says, brandishing a gun from his waistline and pointing it straight at me.

I cringe and settle back into my seat. Commotion and chaos ensue outside as I hear Josh’s men race out there. I can hear screams and fighting as the Raven’s come ambushing them.

“Lacy!” I hear my name, and I know without a shadow of a doubt, that it is Drake searching for me.

I go to scream, but the gun now touching my forehead, stops me from saying anything.

I hear a click, as Josh releases the safety on the gun. He is ready to end my life at any second. Fear paralyzes me and all I can do is sit and wait and pray to everything holy in this world that Drake will save me.