Meanwhile, Raquelle comes to the final destination. After leaving her car on the road, switching off the motor, getting out of it, and locking it with a key, the girl hesitantly looks around in the place where she is now. There is no one around, and literally a dead silence is settled in the air. Since the time is almost evening, the weather is cloudy, and there is a coldness in the air, being here is a little horrible and even creepy. That’s why, at some moment, Raquelle even wants to get into her car, leave this place, and never come back. But the girl quickly remembers what she must do, quickly braces herself, sighs deeply, and slowly goes somewhere straight, looking around with a scare in her widely open eyes and getting obsessed with stronger fear every second.
Raquelle feels so frightened that she wants just someone to be with her. Fear makes her legs weak, and her hands get quite cold. She can barely move and always wants to fall on the dirty ground from weakness and slight dizziness. This place reminds her of a location from a horror movie or a terrible nightmare. The girl’s eyes are open wide and running from one side to another, her breath is getting slower and deeper, and her lips are pursed. She gets obsessed with all the possible negative and frightening thoughts that make her dream of leaving this place as soon as possible and forgetting this hell that she has to get through.
Raquelle sharply reacts to any noise and sound that she hears near and far because she is afraid that some of Simon’s accomplices are hiding behind a bush or a tree. Someone that could come to her from behind very quietly and kill the girl by hitting her on the head with something heavy. Or at least knock her out for a while, take her somewhere, and tie her up tightly to a tree… And tape her mouth not to let her shout… All these thoughts make Raquelle shake from fear much stronger and understand that she is about to get a panic attack. She is alone, there is nobody around, it’s quite cold, and Simon and his friends could be hiding anywhere.
Thinking too much about it, the girl does not notice she quickly passes a long enough distance and ends up not far from the large brick, five-floor building, the walls of which are painted with colorful graffiti. The frames of multiple windows are rotten and covered with a thick layer of dust and webs. There are many trees with thick trunks. Leaves no longer grow on some of them. And dry sticks, dirty pieces of paper, empty bottles, and other trash are thrown around, and nobody even thinks about cleaning the territory. Probably, lovers of adventures love coming here at times to examine every single corner of this place, which is really not under the view of anyone. Where people can do anything, so nobody even knows it.
Understanding how strongly she is shaking from fear and coldness and embracing herself tightly with both arms, Raquelle looks at the building from up to down with horror in her widely open eyes and does not find the courage to move on. But since there is no way back, the girl starts getting closer to it hesitantly with a fast heartbeat, understanding that her weak legs can barely hold her, feeling a little dizzy, and breathing heavier and heavier. At this moment, she feels like a little, five-year-old girl that got lost in an unfamiliar place and is trying to find her mom or dad so hard, as she is about to fall into hysteria from fear of loneliness, fall to her knees, and start crying bitterly. The cawing of crows that she sometimes hears near her makes her feel a much stronger fear and makes her think that she may not get out of here.
After passing some distance, Raquelle stops in front of the big black hole that leads to the unknown. The infinite darkness. After hesitating a little, starting to breathe rarely and very deeply, and rubbing her cold hands energetically, the girl comes to it slowly and hesitantly and enters it, while she can see her breath, and sticks break quietly under her weight. She ends up in a long, narrow, poorly lit hall where there are multiple ways to other rooms. Big pieces of concrete and sand are lying on the sand, as well as a lot of small rocks and literally much more trash than outside. Not knowing where Simon is supposed to wait for her, Raquelle starts going straightly with a slow step, looking around scarily and shaking when she sees a big spider that is spinning a web in the corner and a cockroach that is crawling near it. The girl cannot hold down her loud scream when a big rat runs by her. And she cannot do this when something far away falls to the concrete floor with a defeating crush.
“My God, when is everything gonna be over?” Raquelle asks herself, barely holding her tears down and looking around with widely open eyes. “Where is Simon? Why hasn’t he come here yet?”
Barely remembering that she should breathe at least sometimes, Raquelle keeps moving on in an unknown direction. She looks hesitantly into all the rooms, where she can also see much dust and dirt and a lot of living creatures. She barely manages to jump aside with a loud jump when a big, heavy brick falls somewhere from the up at some moment. And the fact that she can barely see everything due to the evening time, a lack of windows, and a lack of at least one dim light bulb makes her fear much stronger and makes her feel like a character from a scary movie, in which an antagonist is chasing them to kill.
During this long, senseless walk, Raquelle gets up to the second floor with the concrete stairs, getting her hands a little dirty because of the railing that is covered with dirt. A lot of bunches of dirt and rotten boards are also lying around, the brick walls are painted with weird graffiti by unknown artists. While walking down the narrow and long halls and stepping over piles of concrete, the girl ends up in a large, empty room with multiple windows, from which slightly shaking sticks of trees are shown. She goes further slowly and looks around, not knowing where to go or how to find Simon, who has not let her know about himself yet. The pale, scared-to-death girl starts sobbing quietly and shaking slightly, embracing herself tightly with both arms, putting her head on her shoulders with a strong wish to run away from here, and opening her mouth unconsciously because of the fear of what may happen at any minute.
“Simon!” Raquelle pronounces in a shaking, high voice and hears multiple echoes that spread throughout the whole room. “S-Simon, where are you? It’s me, Raquelle! I’ve come!”
Raquelle sniffs quietly, looking around with widely open eyes.
“Show up… Please… I’m here…”
Raquelle takes a few steps before she hears a quiet rustle that she can hear not far from here. As if someone is getting closer to her very closely… It scares the frightened girl much more, and she goes slowly to where she hears that weird sound. When she gets very close to the one, Raquelle starts to examine it carefully but finds nothing. But she makes a deafening scream when a little mouse runs by her, being definitely afraid of her and rushing to hide somewhere in a safe place as soon as possible.
“My God, when will it be over?” Raquelle begs in despair. “When? I wanna go home… I no longer wanna stay here… My gosh… I’m so scared…”
At this moment, Raquelle does not even suspect that Simon is watching her right now. He is not far from the girl, hiding behind one of the brick walls, and wearing a black coat with a hoodie. His little eyes full of slyness are now covered with dark glasses, and he is now watching the girl with interest. To be clear, the way she shakes from every single sound, cries quietly, and screams at the sight of any living creature. This scene amuses Simon enough, and he is ready to watch his enemy showing her weakness again and again and letting herself be so vulnerable.
“I would have much pleasure in watching you shake from any sounds like a coward bunny a little longer,”Simon thinks with a sly smile. “And look around with your scared eyes. But I do not want to stay here forever. I want to get off you, after all. And explain why I started all of that. It’s time to end all of this once and forever.”
Simon watches Raquelle for a few seconds and then goes out of his hideaway, comes closer to the girl, and looks at her with contempt in his eyes and his head proudly raised.
“Raquelle!” Simon pronounces loudly.
Raquelle shakes strongly in surprise and turns sharply to the side, where Simon is standing and killing her with his look full of hate. The girl’s heart starts beating much faster when she sees this man, who makes her feel like a little, unprotected girl. She does really want to run away from here as far as possible, but she recalls what she should do, puts on a mask of indifference to hide her fear, and slowly but confidently comes to the man, the pretense of who settles coldness and panic inside her.
“Simon…” Raquelle pronounces quietly. “There you are… I have been looking for you everywhere…”
“We have finally met, Raquelle Cameron,” Simon smirks evilly.
“Yeah, we have done.”
“I was waiting for this so badly.”
Simon comes to Raquelle confidently with his head proudly raised and smiles at her falsely, showing her his rotted teeth that might be chipped in some places.
“Waiting for this meeting,” Simon adds. “Even much more than you did, my dear girl. I was literally counting down the days until the moment we would be here.”
“Imagine, me too,” Raquelle says coldly.
“That’s how! So, it’s nice to know you wanted to meet me so badly.”
“But do not get me wrong. I wanted to meet you to talk about the current situation. Not to listen to your disgusting voice and see your ugly face.”
“M-m-m, you are snapping.”
“Anyone, who stands next to you, would have to do their best not to clean their stomach. Because they would never meet someone, who was much uglier and more terrible.”
“Excuse me, I am not a handsome man from the cover of a magazine, photos for which are getting retouched for hours. To let young girls like you admire them.”
“Even if you are not lucky to look like this, you could at least do some good things. They would outstand any weaknesses about your look.”
“Why would I do good things? I don’t see a meaning!”
“Have you never wanted to try to get a little better and kinder?”
“Ah, Raquelle…” Simon shakes his head with a slight smile and starts walking in front of Raquelle with his arms crossed over his chest. “Kind people cannot survive in this cruel world. Nobody needs your kindness. Everyone is for themselves in this world: if you want something, you will have to give a damn about everything and everyone to get what you want and make your dreams come true.”
“Sorry!” Raquelle exclaims, not letting Simon stand behind her, trying to keep him in front of her, and keeping a cold and contemptuous look at him. “Maybe, you are loved more.”
“I do not need anyone’s love. As well as your pieces of advice.”
“Alright, let’s talk about your bad tricks,” Raquelle says coldly, slightly clenching her hands into fists. “Talk about how you ruined my life. Got me to fight with all my friends and close people and got me so exhausted that I literally wanted to die. And you also made everybody think I was crazy.”
“You know what people say? There is a part of the truth about everything! As well as my words.”
“I am not crazy, Simon!” Raquelle says loudly, understanding that her heart might get out of her chest at any time, perform a couple of crazy dances, and get in the back, but still pretending that she is not afraid of Simon. “Not sick! My mental health is fine!”
“Any sick person denies that they are sick. I have not met a single person that would admit they are ill.”
“I will never admit what is a lie!”
“But you have already shown everything. And made people sure that I told them the truth.”
“Listen, Simon…” Raquelle tries to pronounce as quietly as possible while her voice starts shaking slightly from excitement.
“Raquelle, my sweetie girl…” Simon smiles slyly. “I highly recommend that you take the mask that you put on off. And stop pretending to be a heroine that fears nothing.”
“I am not pretending!” Raquelle lies excitedly.
“Don’t lie, I saw the wide eyes that you had when walking here. I saw you shaking strongly! Screaming at the sight of all the rats! You needed just a little to faint here from fear.” Simon smirks loudly. “But when I showed up, you instantly became a heroine and began to pretend to be brave and sassy.”
“Do you want me to fear you?” Raquelle wonders.
“Listen, you, stupid girl, stop playing the fool with me,” Simon demands coldly. “You will not cheat on me! I do know all your fears and see you are afraid of me.”
“No!”
“Yeah? Are you not also afraid to lose your pathetic relatives?”
“What?” Raquelle rounds her eyes.
“Remember, their lives depend on me. If I want to do it, I can easily defeat them.”
“You will not dare…” Raquelle hisses through her teeth, clenching her hands into fists. “You will not dare!”
“Oh, I will,” Simon smiles slyly. “I will dare to defeat them anyway. Whatever you do.”
“What do you want to do to them?” Raquelle asks quietly with a scare in her widely open eyes.
“You know it well.”
“What do you want to do to them, Simon? Answer me!”
“So, scared? Are you afraid they would die, and you would be guilty of that? Don’t you want to become a potential killer of them?”
“Remember, jerkoff, if you do just something to someone from those people, you will pay a high cost for that. I will skin you alive! DID YOU GET IT, RINGER? I SHALL MAKE YOU PAY FOR THAT!”
“OH, YEAH!” Simon happily cries with a wide smile on his face, raising his hands up to the sky. “YES! I am finally seeing the real Raquelle Allison Cameron! YEAH! FINALLY!”
“Do you think I am kidding?” Raquelle wonders in a strongly shaking, high voice, letting her emotions get obsessed with her and understanding that her eyes get wet with tears. “DO YOU THINK I AM KIDDING?”
“That’s much better! Now I can clearly see fear in your eyes! I see how much you are afraid of me. How much you are afraid to be at this place.”
“BASTARD!” Raquelle grabs Simon’s coat with both hands and shakes him slightly with her widely open eyes. “Why are you doing this to me? WHY? What did I do to you that you hate me so much?”
“Quiet, quiet, girl, quiet,” Simon pronounces softly, gets Raquelle’s hands off himself quickly, and goes aside, still looking into the girl’s eyes. “Do not rip my coat.”
“BASTARD!” Raquelle shouts loudly. “I HATE YOU! CURSE YOU! FOR EVERYTHING YOU HAVE DONE TO ME! BURN IN THE HELL! DIE!”
“Why are you shouting like this?” Simon shakes his head with a sly smile. “Do you really think it would help you?”
“I said everything, Ringer, if you dare to hurt at least someone from my close people, you will be dead,” Raquelle threatens Simon with a finger.
“Relax, girl, your relatives will stay alive for a while,” Simon says confidently.
“What do you mean for a while?”
“What if I do not have to do anything to them? I really doubt at least one of them will live another day. They would hardly like what is going to happen to you very soon.”
“What?”
“Maybe, everybody blames you for their problems and is probably afraid of you because they believe that you are a crazy lady, who must be put in a mental hospital. But they still love you. It’s impossible to kill the love for a short period of time.”
“Do not even dare to hurt them!” Raquelle throws coldly. “DO NOT DARE! I DON’T KNOW WHAT I WILL DO TO YOU IF SOMETHING HAPPENS TO THEM.”
“No, Raquelle, I really doubt you will do something to me,” Simon replies confidently with a sly smile.
“No, Ringer, I shall turn you to dust and do my best for you to burn in hell for the rest of your life.”
“I wonder, how are you going to do this?”
“I shall find a way!”
“Ah, my girl…” Simon shakes his head. “You are just pretending to be sassy. But you have actually always been a cowardly and insecure girl. Who was bullied in childhood. Who wants to prove to everyone that she stopped being the one and has changed. But that’s not the truth. You are still the same, Cameron. The same…”
“No matter how much I fear you, I am ready to do anything for my quiet life and to save the lives of those, who are guilty of nothing for you.”
“You will do nothing to me.”
“While I am alive, you will not care to hurt anyone of those, who mean so much to me.”
“Who said I would kill them when you were alive?” Simon smiles innocently. “Do you think I am so stupid? No, Raquelle! First, I shall get off you and then defeat your family and your friends.”
“NO!” Raquelle shouts with her widely open eyes. “YOU WILL NOT DARE!”
“You know, honey, it took too long to decide whether I wanted to give you a chance to say goodbye to your close people and learn the reasons why I started all of this,” Simon confesses thoughtfully with a sly smile. “I truly wanted to make your death easy and quick. But at some moment, I lost my pity. And I made my decision. I chose your pity.”
Simon glances at where there are fewer people, including Richard, to whom the man makes a sign. Hiding behind one of the brick walls, the young guy says something to very rude and bad-looking people, who are standing near him, and takes them somewhere, still talking about something on the way. Before they leave, Raquelle manages to notice that they have some backpacks in their hands. She starts to think there is something inside them that they would probably use to torture or kill her. Imagining all the worst tortures ever that she has ever heard and read about in some sources, the girl swallows up nervously, feels a little dizziness, and tries to pump much air into her lungs as she madly lacks it right now.
“Do you probably wonder what kind of decision that is?” Simon asks with a sly smile. “Alright, alright! I will tell you about your tragic fate!”
“What do you want to do?” Raquelle wonders with horror in her eyes, feeling like her eyes are getting wet from tears.
“Due to the current situation, I do not think you would manage to see your close people for the last time. Because they left you and think you are a crazy psycho, who has mental issues.” Simon crosses his arms over his chest. “Maybe, the only exclusion could be your grandfather, who you decided to live with after your cruel fight with your ex-boyfriend. I think that man could hardly imagine he would have seen you for the last time before saying goodbye to you.”
“Simon, please…” Raquelle pronounces with pity in the eyes that are wet from tears.
“As for your aunt, I have doubts because she is hardly so rich to go to the USA, as if this country is one step away from her. So… She is not able to say goodbye to you.”
“What a bastard you are…” Raquelle sniffs quietly. “Shameless scumbag…”
“People like your ex-boyfriend are showering you with mud, hate you to death, and want you to be in a mental hospital,” Simon smiles widely. “Your former friend is madly happy she ruined your life… And the others are happy about your failures…”
“That’s what YOU think!”
“Well, as your close people refused to talk to you, I cannot, sadly, let you say goodbye to those, to whom you have not said, ‘farewell.’”
“Are you not ashamed? Are you not ashamed of slandering innocent people?”
“What innocent people are you talking about?”
“My friend!” Raquelle throws irritably. “You made me believe she was a betrayal. But she did not do what you tried to make me sure about.”
“What are you talking about?”
“Natalia cannot do that! She was always a loyal friend of mine. Since childhood.”
“Girls can’t be friends with girls. And a man can’t be friends with a girl. Because one is always in love with another.”
“We did befriend! And I’m regretting doing such a disgusting thing to her.”
“M-m-m, that’s what you say?” Simon smirks quietly and looks at Raquelle with contempt in his eyes, crossing his arms over his chest. “So, do you still not believe that gal told me where to find you and your close people? She did not give me all the contacts I needed… She did not want to revenge on you because you were more successful. Because men pay much more attention to you, not her, such a beautiful and sweet blonde with gorgeous hair and magnificent blue eyes.”
“You framed her, Simon!” Raquelle says confidently. “Now I do not doubt it!”
“Did you just realize it?”
“I thought of everything very well and understood I did just a disgusting thing.”
“Wow…”
“You do not know that girl at all! You do not know what she could do.”
“So, do you refuse to believe she was working for me?”
“Even if Natalia says something, she cannot say anything bad. All your arguments were as worthless as your revenge, a meaning of which I still cannot understand.”
“But you believed them at first.”
“Yes, I did! But now I understand I was wrong.”
“So… Since you will be dead very soon, I shall reveal my cards before your death.”
Simon raises his head up proudly with a sly smile, looking at Raquelle with contempt in his eyes.
“Yes, I really lied,” Simon says without regret. “I framed your friend when I said she allegedly told me all the phones and addresses of your friends and relatives. When I said she was spying on you to tell me everything later.”
“You’ve confessed it!” Raquelle throws coldly.
“Actually, that gal is guilty of nothing. But you did not think so and fought with her. You were so excited and mad that you were ready to believe any word of mine. And my great power of charm played a major role. It helped me make the others think that you were crazy. And it seems like I made you sure about it… You believed in your craziness and started to show it to everyone unconsciously.”
“Just like I thought,” Raquelle clenches her hands into hard fists. “And, you, scumbag, have confirmed everything. YOU HAVE RECOGNIZED WHAT YOU DID, AFTER ALL! You framed the poor girl and made me think she was a spy of yours.”
“Now you can change nothing. It’s too late.”
“Because of you… Because of you, I lost my best friend, whom I befriended since childhood. Who was like my own sister! Whom I loved with all my heart. But you, bastard, did your best for us to fight and literally pull each other’s hair out.”
“M-m-m, I would have wanted to watch you rolling on the floor and dragging that poor girl by the hair,” Simon laughs with evil.
“My God, what did she think of me? I was really crazy! A crazy lady that went to her home and treated her like that!”
“And I want to say that I wanted to get that reaction. I was sure your friend would have thought you were a sick, hysterical girl if she had seen you being so excited and wild.”
“SCUMBAG!” Raquelle explodes, getting much more furious and dreaming of strangling Simon with her own hands. “I HATE YOU, SCOUNDREL! I HATE YOU!”
“I am imagining how much your friend hated you. How much she cursed you… How much she regretted standing in your way…”
“Do you, jerkoff, know I looked like a crazy girl for my friends and close people?”
“I do. That’s what I counted on.”
“God… I’m even afraid to think those people really thought I was crazy!”
“But they made sure I did not lie to them.”
“My gosh…” Raquelle closes her face with both hands, making a couple of quiet sobs. “How ashamed I am… Ashamed of the way I behaved toward them… I… I was really like a sick, hysterical girl, being next to whom was really dangerous. You… You made me the one! You made me believe I was really the one!”
“My goal was to make all your friends and relatives leave you alone. And I reached it. Everything happened as I planned. You easily got caught in my trap and proved to everyone that my words were true.”
“BASTARD!” Raquelle screams at the top of her lungs with evil in her eyes. “I HATE YOU! TO DEATH! I HATE YOU!”
“I am sorry that I did not see your fight with your friend. I could have admired the girls pulling each other by the hair and pulling each other’s clothes.”
“Alright, Ringer, you got me really mad…” Raquelle hisses through her teeth.
“Oh, oh, the baby scared the adult!”
“After this, I will have no pity for you! I will do my best for you, jerkoff, to pay for everything you have done to me.”
“I do not need your pity,” Simon says with his head proudly raised. “I am not afraid of your threats. They sound like empty words.”
“Do not be so confident.”
“No, you stop pretending to be a heroine and talking to the wind.”
“So, maybe, you can explain how you got the phones and addresses of my close people?” Raquelle puts her hands on her hips. “If you decided to admit the truth and tell me why you brought me to this condition.”
“M-m-m, I will explain it, as well.” Simon crosses his arms over his chest with a sly smile. “As for spying, phones, and addresses, first, I have a couple of people. They were spying on you and your friends and relatives and could easily find out how to find the home of any one of them. You can always meet your familiar people in the city and find out where they go. It was too easy for me…”
“Agree!” Raquelle exclaims. “Too easy!”
“And second, I have a familiar computer hacker, who managed to hack your iCloud account for a few days. You had all the information on there: calls, messages, photos, videos, and notes that could contain addresses.”
“Ah, that’s why! You hacked my account!”
“And you did not even notice it. You did not notice your account was checked by third faces. And they saw everything you had on there.”
“I should’ve guessed I had the data there.”
“And you, stupid girl, should have kept them in a safer place. Maybe, I would not have found the addresses of your friends, familiar people, and relatives. And actually, there was much interesting on your account. I spent a few days examining all of that. And I got so busy that I didn’t notice that time flew fast.”
“And what? You liked it?”
“M-m-m, I did…” Simon smiles widely. “Of course, I could have leaked some photos of you on the Internet. But I was not interested in it. Because, to my sadness, there was nothing bad about your photos. No nude photo. No photos of your naked body…”
“Did you want to view explicit photos of mine?”
“It would be great… And thanks to me, men from around the world could have admired your naked body… Which they did not get, but which the one to be much luckier got.”
“You know, to be honest, I’m truly surprised the photos from my hacked account were not leaked on the Internet.”
“I’ve already said I was not interested in publishing similar selfies, snooty romantic photos with your sweetheart, or photos of you hanging out with friends or shooting commercials. I would have gotten no pleasure.”
“Do not worry, Simon, I will never keep photos like these on there. And actually, I will do my best for even the smartest hacker to hack it and get any information.”
“The secret is easy: you had a too simple password that my acquaintance picked up very quickly.”
“Next time, it’s going to be much harder.”
“Do what you want! I do not need your account anymore. I just watched to see what you had. And I used the moment when I found all the addresses and numbers of your close people.”
“And did you decide to turn them against me?”
“Exactly! And I got much pleasure when you began to lose your friends and had to run into the betrayer of many close people that left you for different reasons.” Simon smiles slyly. “Your ex believed in a non-existing betrayer that I told him about. And you fought with your friend. You made yourself an idiot when you blamed her for spying against you.”
“Natalia was slandered by you!” Raquelle exclaims. “Cruelly slandered! She is a victim! As well as those, who believed I was so bad and could give them only problems. And I was a stupid idiot because I believed you, and then I attacked my best friend with shouts and fists and blamed her for nobody knows what. I made her think I was a sick, hysterical girl!”
“You know, anyone gets a little crazy when they get enraged,” Simon smiles slyly. “But your ex has been a psycho since childhood. It’s not a secret to people in the show business that he has always had a short-tempered character. And I believe none of my familiar people have such inflated self-worth as he does. But nobody talks about it openly. And Terrence himself is terribly afraid that someone will tell people about his egoism and destroy his image as an innocent angel.”
“I am not guilty of that. It’s his problem.”
“He was so afraid that he literally got paranoia. MacClife was ready even to sleep with any girl for his little fans to keep admiring him and thinking he is literally God.”
“Ha, how do you know it?” Raquelle simpers contemptuously. “You did not know that man when he started building his career!”
“Right, I did not know him at that time. But I know people, who worked with him at the beginning and took the demons into his head. Someone even was fired by Mr. MacClife because they did not praise him too well and do what he wanted.”
“What are you talking about?”
“It’s funny…” Simon smirks evilly. “The guy grew up in a poor family, in which there was only one kind mother, who worked for hours to feed her beloved sonny. He was supposed to become kind, caring, and shy. But MacClife turned into such a hysterical cad. And he got mental issues.”
Simon shakes his head.
“There is only one explanation: he got too much love from his mommy,” Simon assumes. “He got so used to being the middle of the Universe for her that he started demanding that others do the same. When children are in the first place for mothers, who would sacrifice anything for their son or daughter, it might lead to terrible consequences. You should not expect your child to become shy, loving, and decent. And when a child has a daddy with much more serious mental issues, you should not expect anything good from them.”
“Do you really think you would prove it? Prove that man is really so terrible by just asking someone to confirm it?”
“Anyone would confirm it, my darling. MacClife has worked with many people, who know about his disgusting character very well.”
“Yeah? Do you have so many friends that would agree to tell everyone the alleged truth?”
“Yes, I know many people. For example, John Fallon, his former manager, who did not leave alone the woman, who managed your work, on the photoshoot of MacClife and you. He knows all his demons very well and could easily ruin his career. Which everything is very bad about.”
“Do you count on the power of your charm, which is the reason why everyone believes you? Do you think when you say something, people trust you immediately?”
“Oh, yeah!” Simon smiles widely. “I am really lucky to have been able to speak well and had a wonderful charm. Moreover, I know much about psychology and can see a human through. So, I know how to control them.”
“Come on!”
“So, my girl, I am well aware of what that arrogant man, who acts like a king, is made of. And I can make his reputation worse at any time. Even if it’s not very good.”
“Telling me about your dreams?”
“Telling you the truth. I remember I was told there was a case when he got so nuts from the fame that the little boy at the age of fifteen felt free to demand to treat him specially. He was the hell nobody but pronounced himself a celebrity! And when he got much more famous at the age of eighteen after playing the famous role of Mason… M-m-m… I’m even afraid to talk about it.”
Simon shakes his head.
“Yeah…” Simon exhales sharply. “That’s what happens when a little boy gets famous early. Someone like him cannot take such great pressure and starts to go crazy slowly. As a result, they cannot build a career.”
“Come on!”
“Trust me, girl, someday MacClife will surely start drinking and end up somewhere alongside homeless people without money, without food, and without a home.”
“We will see,” Raquelle pronounces coldly. “We will see if your dreams will come true.”
“I do not doubt it.” Simon falls into silence for two seconds and looks at Raquelle from head to foot with interest in her eyes. “And I must confess that I am really amazed that you did not go insane from the crazy fame. Because you got fame and confession when you were a teenager. But… It’s the official information. That is not always one hundred percent true.”
“Did you want me to go crazy?” Raquelle smirks evilly. “Right?”
“Right. Examining your biography, I found no mentions of your disgusting behavior. Only positive things… Just an image of an angel! Yes, there were a few cases when you could get nuts and refuse to work on shootings or have a little hysteria, but it’s quite fine for girls because any lady can get excited and cry for no reason. Moreover, everyone forgot them quickly, and you could have no worries about your reputation.”
“So, did you decide to make my biography worse by spreading false rumors about me coming to shootings drunk, having hysterics, and starting scandals,” Raquelle throws rudely, crossing her arms over her chest.
“And people really believed you did it! Do you know why? Because still waters run deep! Just because you keep the image of an innocent angel and do good things in public does not mean you have no dirty laundry. So, when I gave a reason to discuss it, people started getting disappointed in you and realizing that you were pronounced a goddess for nothing.”
“But thank God, they later released that it was just a dirty rumor that you spread. It was really good that the truth about what you did to me went out.”
“Yes, yes, a certain girl and your friend working as a photographer told journalists everything and proved their words. And everyone believed them! Everyone began to shower me with mud. As a result, I became the one people mocked! If those pathetic people had not gone to the office of one of the American channels and opened their fucking months, nothing would have happened.”
“Did you think everyone would love you?”
“As a result, my plans to make your life much worse were ruined. But I decided to leave you alone for a while. To let you relax. Moreover, I felt quiet because nobody found out who was the one to spread all the rumors.”
“That’s why here’s a conclusion that any truth would come to light early or late. But it seems like you forgot that when you decided to slender me…”
“You were just very lucky! That’s all!”
“Remember, Simon, even if ten or twenty years are over, people would know the truth anyway. Someday, there would be someone, who wanted to tell the whole world everything and open people’s eyes.”
“Right, they will. Early or late, people will know about all your sins. For example, about how you, being a little girl, harmed one famous model. The daughter of the powerful man working in the government of the country.”
“What?” Raquelle opens her eyes widely.
“Yes, yes, my sweetie, I know you had to do with the situation with Camilla Pettigrew. The one, whom you pushed off the stairs to get rid of your opponent, who annoyed you all the time.”
“How do you know it? Who told you?”
“The one, who was working at the fashion show, which you were suspended from. And he nicely gave me a lot of photos and videos, which clearly showed how the poor girl suffered because of you. How you gave a fuck about her hard condition. You only cared about your precious ass. You didn’t want anyone to know it and ruin your career.”
“And how long have you been aware?”
“I learned about it before I contacted Kendrick and asked him to publish a couple of articles about you.”
“So, did you want to make it public?”
“I did. But I decided to save it for a better moment. I was going to give all the photos and video to Kendrick and bring the person, who agreed to give an interview for a lot of money. But alas, it didn’t happen!”
“I can’t believe it…”
“So, girl, did you think nobody would ever know it? Did you think you would pretend to be an innocent girl forever? Pretend that Camilla fell off by herself and had several long surgeries when the doctors literally pasted the pieces of her bones together. When she almost had her heart stopped because the girl could barely take narcosis.”
“I know.”
“Yes, of course, I lied a little in some cases. But in general, all those rumors were kind of true. And I could not miss a chance to reveal you and tell everyone what a bitch you are.”
“I’m not as bad as you think! Yes, I will not deny all of it, but there are some reasons for that.”
“Which? Fame made you lose your mind? Did you like the feeling when girls imitated you, and boys told you compliments and gave you flowers and gifts?”
“One of the reasons.”
“By the way, after everyone knew the truth about me, there were rumors that you wanted to sue me for slandering you and demand moral damage,” Simon recalls thoughtfully, stroking his chin. “And you really filed a lawsuit and started discussing that with your lawyer. But later, you refused to do this and dropped the suit.”
“I just did not need the money,” Raquelle replies with contempt. “I filed that lawsuit when I was too excited. But then I calmed down and realized I did not need it. I realized I did not want to spend much more nerves on that suit for thousands of dollars. I did not want to sue you just for that.”
“Oh, it sounds so noble on your part…” Simon glances aside and simpers quietly, shaking his head slightly. “You probably thought that if I got caught and literally turned into a pauper, you could get no cent out of me. And you probably felt sorry when trying to get the last money from Uncle Simon, who could barely buy everything he needed.”
“I do not feel sorry for those, who show no mercy for others,” Raquelle says confidently. “So, do not think I dropped the suit because of pity for your situation.”
“I do not need pity! Either yours or anyone else! The only thing I want more than anything is to make you pay for everything you did to me.”
“Why, Simon? What did I do? Are you really such a vengeful and shameless man that you are ready to kill someone just because they proved that they didn’t have to do with the rumors you spread?”
“Not only because of that,” Simon smiles slyly. “I have been waiting for that for many years. And I am not going to give up.”
“No, Simon, don’t do this!”
“And you will not make me sure to leave you and all your close people alone.”
“But…”
“Did you think you could change my mind and make me sure to give up on revenge? Did you think I would suddenly wake up after talking to you, understand I made a mistake, apologize to you and never bother you or people in your circle? Yeah?” Simon scoffs evilly. “No, silly girl! It will not happen!”
“Please, Simon, change your mind!” Raquelle begs with despair and horror in her eyes. “It’s not too late to give up on your wishes and let us live a quiet life.”
“Have you really not understood that I am not playing games with you? Everything is serious!”
“I promise if you leave us alone and hurt nobody, I will forgive you for everything I had to get through because of you,” Raquelle sniffs quietly. “Believe me, I’m not a vindictive person and can get cool quickly. But I am begging you for one thing – to kill nobody and let me and my close people live quietly.”
“Oh, gosh, Raquelle, what a naive girl you are…” Simon shakes his head. “And stupid! Are you still a child that continues to be a little girl that truly believes love and kindness rule the world?”
“I will do nothing to you if you leave me alone.”
“Do you still believe in fairytales and think a happy end will happen now? Everyone will live happily after? I will suddenly forgive you for all the bad things and give up on the plans that I have been planning for such a long time? Did you think I would become a benefactor and give you my forgiveness and a chance to live a quiet life?” Simon smirks very loudly. “Ha, do not wait, bitch! Stop whining so fucking hard!”
“No, Simon, please!” Raquelle begs loudly in despair. “Nobody should suffer!”
“Stop trying to make me a good man! I will never become the one!”
“I don’t want to die…” Raquelle makes a quiet sob. “I don’t… I’m too young…”
“SHUT UP NOW!” Simon roars at the top of his lungs. “STOP CRYING!”
“Please…”
“Alright, I am done with these snotty scenes that I am terribly sick of! It’s time to finish you off once and forever!”
Simon quickly takes a charged pistol out of the inside pocket of his coat and points it at Raquelle. Who gets immediately white and shakes slightly from fear with a quiet gasp, looking at the gun pointed at her with her widely open eyes. At this moment, she calls the memories of the event when she was under a pistol when trying to save her aunt Alicia from Eleanor Woodham. The policemen, among whom there was Alexander Bradford, were protecting her, and everything was over in a good way. But now there is nobody around. It means there is nobody to get help from. The girl has to count only on herself.
“M-my gosh, S-s-simon…” Raquelle pronounces in a very shaking voice with tears in her wet eyes. “C-come on?”
“I shall finally do what I have been dreaming about for such a long time,” Simon says with a sly smile. “And nobody can stop me from doing this.”
“Do you want to kill me?”
“Yes, my girl.”
“But… You promised not to do this if I didn’t take the police with me. I did what you wanted! I brought nobody with me and came here alone.”
“Ah, Raquelle…” Simon laughs quietly, shaking his head. “You, brainless girl… I thought you were much smarter… But I was deeply wrong.”
“Nope…”
“You have probably watched not so many TV shows, in which something similar or more terrible might happen… And you do not know what these events might lead to. You didn’t think about why I invited you at such a beautiful place where people came rarely.”
“Please, Simon…”
“Even if you had taken the police, someone of your friends, or your ex-boyfriend, I would have killed you anyway. As well as your support group.”
“No…” Raquelle shakes her head. “No, it can’t be the truth!”
“Nobody will find you here. And very soon, your close people will know that you are going to be dead. IN A FEW MOMENTS!”
Simon begins holding his pistol pointed at Raquelle with both hands, keeping a confidently and cold look. And the girl realizes Alicia and Frederick were absolutely right when they said this man made her come here to kill her quietly. She starts to understand the man could blackmail her not to let her run away anywhere and try to ask someone for help. The girl is silently cursing everything in the world and regretting not listening to her relatives and not asking anyone for help. Because she is about to be dead…
“Is what you have done and are going to do to me not enough for you?” Raquelle wonders in a loud and high voice. “Do you want to destroy me at all?”
“Did you think I would be playing with you?” Simon laughs evilly. “Did you think I would torture you a little and stop it? No, sweetheart!”
“No, Simon, please, don’t do this… I’m begging you… Don’t do this!”
“Do not worry, sweetie, your death will be quick. You will feel nothing because everything will go black shortly after I take one shoot.”
“I don’t want to die…” Raquelle sniffs with wet eyes. “I don’t…”
“Why don’t you want? You would immediately stop suffering! You would stop crying, suffering, and feeling lonely.”
“No, don’t do this…” Raquelle shakes her head sharply. “Pity me… Let me go…”
“I shall tell you all my secrets and then kill you with one shot at you. I do not rush. We can spend a lot of time here. And when I finish my business, my friends will help me bury your corpse somewhere in the wood. You will take my secrets with you. And nobody will know them. NEVER!”
Simon laughs loudly with his mouth wide open, making Raquelle frightened, while she steps back slowly, literally stopping to breathe and feeling the echo of the fast heartbeat in her head.
“Ah, Raquelle…” Simon shakes his head. “I never got as much pleasure as I am doing now… Deceiving people and getting much money out of them is not as nice as getting off the person, who dragged you in the dirt.”
Simon smirks evilly.
“Poor victims of Simon Ringer!” Simon exclaims with a wide smile. “Those stupid idiots believed I would make them famous and rich. Many of them could actually only be cleaning people or cookers in the city canteens!”
“So, did you also rob someone?” Raquelle frowns slightly. “Am I not the only one that you mocked?”
“Yes, before dealing with you, I was getting pleasure from playing the fool with naive people for many years. Do you want to know how I was doing it? I’m going to tell you!”
Simon moves the pistol off Raquelle, who is tightly clenching her hands into fists.
“Everything is very easy: I just got money out of them and disappeared,” Simon confesses with a wide smile. “Just like after waving a magic wand! I had fun with them for a very long time and got very much money that I needed.”
“M-m-m, so, are you a known persona in the police?” Raquelle concludes.
“No, the police have never gotten me caught. Yes, some people reported me, but nobody could get the one, who always called himself by different names and looked different. I always changed myself not to let anyone recognize me. And people suspected nothing. All those stupid fellows gave me their money.”
Simon simpers evilly.
“But a few years later, this scheme stopped working as people knew much about the fraud that got money out of them,” Simon confesses. “People got brains and began to piss me off when I came to someone on the streets or called random numbers. And I got sick of it. I wanted something new.”
“I can’t believe there were such stupid people, who believed your lie,” Raquelle throws gloomily.
“I am not guilty of them being so stupid and naive.”
“I can’t believe you have to do with so many crimes.”
“But I do not regret anything…” Simon smiles mysteriously. “I do not feel sorry.”
Simon glances aside.
“So, as my scheme stopped working, I had to stop doing what I was doing,” Simon confesses. “And I decided, so to say, stand on the right way and earn money in an honest way.”
“Bloody hell…” Raquelle shakes her head.
“So, I began to look for a job with a good salary. But nobody wanted to give me the one. They offered me a dirty job and a very low salary. And I immediately declined it.”
“Are you mad that your dream of becoming a director did not come true?”
“I accepted it a long time ago and did not even try to reach it. I needed only to survive. And someday, I was madly lucky when I met your ex thanks to my acquaintance. Terrence MacClife.”
“That’s how,” Raquelle says coldly.
“I knew who he was very well and decided to use it. I began to try to make him feel sorry and told him a sad story. I was kind of lonely and had no money to live on. And MacClife quickly got sympathy for me and offered me a job as a personal driver. He promised to pay great money to me.”
“M-m-m…”
“So, I agreed! And I was very happy with how much he paid me. I was able to live well. And I could save some money for a bad day. Or use it to destroy you.”
“Wow…”
“Everything was wonderful! But one beautiful day, I met you!” Simon sharply points at Raquelle with a finger, holding the pistol in the other hand. “The one that ruined my whole life!”
“Me?” Raquelle rounds her eyes.
“And yeah, you probably wonder why I did not hurt the photographer and his girlfriend,” Simon assumes thoughtfully. “I will answer! I was not interested in dealing with them! I had no time! I could have done it, but I did not want it. My goal was you.”
“So, what do you want from me?” Raquelle asks.
“I will tell you openly, my girl, I have always hated you as a model. And I do not truly understand why the fuck you were literally pronounced a goddess. Why all the men lose their minds and want to be with you.”
“That’s all?” Raquelle crosses her arms over her chest with an evil simper. “Did you decide to ruin my life just because you didn’t like me as a model?”
“Not quite… Yes, I really wanted to ruin your career and your life. I wanted to open the eyes of people, who chose the wrong idol. But the case is not only about it.”
“And what? I had not known you before we met for the first time! And I can’t remember doing something bad to you!”
“You did not know, but I knew you very well,” Simon smiles slyly. “I have known you literally since you were a baby.”
“Since I was a baby?” Raquelle frowns slightly.
“I decided to use you and take revenge for the fact that your mother preferred the other man over me.”
“What?” Raquelle rounds her eyes. “Did you know my mother?”
“I did. And I will never forgive Elizabeth for preferring your father Jackson.”
This statement gets Raquelle shocked. She did not expect Simon would actually mention her parents and say he dated the girl’s mother.
“Although I already took revenge on her, I thought it was not enough,” Simon confesses. “And I wanted to play a little bit more and defeat her daughter.”
“I can’t believe it…” Raquelle shakes her head with widely open eyes. “You and my mother…”
“Yes, yes, my sweetheart, we had an affair,” Simon says confidently.
“How? How could she pay attention to such a stinker like you?”
“I was just very charming. And your mother could not resist my charms.”
“But she lived in England!”
“Yeah, I lived there, too!”
“Really?”
“Of course! Did you think I was an American? No, my girl, I was born and lived in Great Britain. In Cambridge. After graduating from school, I went to London to go to one of the colleges. And among many girls, I saw your mother. Who I came to without any resistance.”
“Are you taking it out on me because she preferred my dad?” Raquelle wonders. “Did you make me a victim just because of that?”
“Who else!” Simon smiles slyly. “Her daughter. Her beloved daughter, who is going to meet her parents very soon.”
“But I am not guilty of the fact that she preferred another man!” Raquelle says in despair.
“You are guilty of being similar to her. Looking at you now, I see Elizabeth in front of me. My Lizzy, whom I loved with all my heart. But who betrayed me so cruelly.”
“You are crazy, Simon, just crazy. My God… Did you start it all just because of the long-time offense against my mother?”
“You know, my girl, I’m going to tell you something more,” Simon says confidently. “Something that’s going to turn everything upside down and get you deeply shocked.”
“What?” Raquelle simpers evilly. “Are you a real father of mine? My dad is not actually my dad?”
“No, Raquelle, I am not your father. You can have no doubts that your father’s name is Jackson Cameron.”
“So, I don’t know what would get me shocked.”
“Yeah? So, let’s check it out.”
Simon smiles slyly.
“As far as I know, you and your close people believe that your parents’ death was an accident,” Simon says thoughtfully. “They were guilty of that event because they were fighting and not watching the road.”
“How do you know about the accident?” Raquelle frowns slightly.
“So, everything is actually not quite the truth.”
“What do you mean? Mother and Father died in that car accident accidentally! Their car crashed into the truck, and they got traumas that were the reason why they died almost shortly.”
“No, Raquelle, the accident was not an accident,” Simon replies quietly. “It was provoked.”
“Provoked?” Raquelle rounds her eyes.
“Yes.”
“But who?”
“You will find out everything now.” Simon clears his throat quickly. “I met your mother, Elizabeth, two or three years before you were born. She was about eighteen at that moment. And she was eternally beautiful. So beautiful that I fell in love with her literally at first sight and wanted to make her mine. As I said, it happened at the college. Sadly, we did not manage to study together because I was not studying what she decided to choose. But I managed to persuade her to give me her number and left her mine. After that, I often called her and invited her on dates under the pretext of an excursion in the city where I knew nothing and nobody.”
Simon starts walking slowly in front of Raquelle, who looks at him with her widely open eyes.
“At first, your mother did not answer my feelings and was just gentle and friendly to me,” Simon says. “But I did not give up and continued to woo her. And in the end, she started answering me back and fell in love with me. It made me very happy…”
Simon glances aside.
“Our affair got much more serious,” Simon says, crossing his arms over his chest. “We planned to get married and give birth to many children. And Lizzy wanted to introduce me to her parents and sister. And I wanted to take her to Cambridge and introduce her to my stepfather, with whom I always got on well.”
Simon clears his throat quickly.
“And yeah, I want to specify, my mother died early enough, and I’ve never known my father,” Simon confesses. “But my stepfather did not leave me and educated me as his own son. Moreover, he was barren and was not able to have kids.”
Simon says nothing for two seconds and swallows up nervously.
“But some time later, I had to leave the city and leave Elizabeth alone,” Simon continues. “My stepfather got seriously ill and wanted me to be by his side. And I could not refuse, and Lizzy insisted that I did it. So, I solved some problems at my college and went to Cambridge. I thought I would be back quickly, but I left for one year… Sadly, my stepfather died, and I stayed all alone. So, there was no meaning to stay there, and I decided to return to London. To keep studying and marry your mother. And do you know, my dear Raquelle, what I found out when I was back?”
Raquelle just shakes her head with dumbfounded eyes.
“Your mother met another man,” Simon says rudely and stops sharply in front of Raquelle. “Who was your father, Jackson Cameron.”
“And…” Raquelle stutters. “How did you know it?”
“Somehow I wanted to make a surprise for your mother and decided to get her caught in places where she loved to walk. And I wanted to call her. But she did not answer me. I tried to do it many times, but I heard only beeps. And some time later, I met our acquaintance that told me she moved to the USA a long time ago.”
Simon moves a gloomy look at Raquelle.
“First, I thought her family decided to do it,” Simon says quietly. “But that man said Elizabeth moved to the USA for a man. It goes without saying, I was overwhelmed by that piece of news and thought he just kidded me because he could do that. But my acquaintance told me he saw your mother in the arms of that man many times and found out that he came from the American city, Kingston, for his business and met Elizabeth thanks to her older sister, who had met him much earlier.”
Simon shakes his head.
“The more he told me about Cameron, the stronger pain I felt,” Simon says in a much lower voice. “It was hard to believe Elizabeth left me. Preferred a pathetic idiot, who was Jackson, over me!”
Simon falls into silence for two seconds and moves his eyes aside.
“I was grieving and suffering very much,” Simon says with despair in his voice. “I could not understand why she preferred that idiot. I could have given her everything: love, care, money, and everything! I always asked myself what I did wrong and wondered why Elizabeth did that to me. She said nothing about the breakup! Nothing! She left me without words! But I should’ve guessed something was not right when she did not answer my letters. I sent thousands of them, but I never got anything back! I blamed her studies for that. I thought she had no time. I found any excuses for the reason why she was ignoring me.”
Simon exhales sharply.
“Some time later, I came to myself and decided to take measures,” Simon confesses. “I borrowed some money from one man, bought a ticket to the USA, solved problems with my documents, and went to Kingston to get the love of Elizabeth back. I was not afraid to go where I knew nobody. I did not care that I didn’t know where to find her. For my love, I was ready for anything! I was ready to go anywhere! To any place in the world. I didn’t care if I would have to live in a dirty hostel along with pathetic beggars and do a dirty job to earn some little money.”
Simon swallows up nervously.
“But when I met her on the street by chance, she was very mean to me,” Simon says. “I tried to find out why she did that to me and met another man for one year that I was in the other city. But she refused to explain something. Even though she confirmed all the words of our acquaintance. And she said she got married to your father and was expecting a child from him. Yes, yes, girl, your mother was already pregnant with you.”
Simon frowns strongly and glances aside.
“I begged her to come back to me,” Simon says quietly. “I said I was ready to accept her, even with a child from another man. But Elizabeth said she no longer wanted to see me and would never come back to me. She said she never had feelings for me. She played with me like a kitty! She wanted to find a way to get off me and was not planning to get married to me, even if she had said different things before. And my trip to Cambridge was an excellent chance to start a new life. WITHOUT ME!”
Simon looks at Raquelle gloomily with a much heavier breath, while she is listening to him with her widely open eyes.
“So, I got really mad and said she would pay me a lot for that,” Simon says rudely. “I swore to revenge her for the pain she gave me, for the refusal to be with me, and for the betrayal. But I didn’t know how… Anyway, I decided to stay in the USA and turn the lives of your parents into hell.”
Simon raises his head proudly.
“While I didn’t have a plan, I was spying on your mother much,” Simon confesses. “I found out where she lived with your father and went there in the daylight and the nighttime. And I do even remember the day Elizabeth got released from the hospital after giving birth to you. I remember how happy your father Jackson was when looking at you and holding a little parcel tied with a pink belt. All your relatives come to meet you and your mother: from your grandfathers and grandmothers to your aunt. Everybody looked at the parcel and smiled. They celebrated the birth of you.”
Raquelle swallows up nervously.
“So, when your mother got busy with motherhood, I started to make my plane come true,” Simon confesses confidently. “I began to threaten her husband and her. I said if your mother did not come back to me, I would kidnap you. I said I would never let them see their daughter. But it did not get Elizabeth scared. She kept rejecting me and saying she loved only her husband and thought of him and their daughter.”
Simon glances at his pistol for two seconds.
“By the way, Jackson was aware of the fact that I was chasing Elizabeth from the beginning,” Simon adds. “She told him everything. And somehow, he met me on the street and started to threaten me openly. He swore to put me in prison if I got closer to his wife and child. I tried to persuade your father to give my woman to me at his will. I said I would do nothing bad to him. But he went mad and literally beat me after all my threats. He reminded me of your ex when being like that. He could not the fuck fight and was just pretending to be tough. But I must confess that Jackson was not such an egoistic bastard as Terrence is. That one was educated somehow.”
Simon simpers evilly.
“And somehow I managed to get very close to you…” Simon confesses. “Look at you very carefully. You were a little baby. An unprotected baby, looking at who I, honestly, got tender feelings. Even if I never usually felt anything like that. But at that moment, I broke down. I got such tender feelings that I literally cried.”
Simon cracks a slight smile.
“Your parents distracted themselves by talking to their friends and did not watch the carriage you were lying in,” Simon says. “They gave a damn about it. And I used the moment, came to the one, and took you in my arms. I shook you a little and kissed you on the forehead. You didn’t understand who was talking to you, but you did not cry or shout. You just looked at me with your slanted eyes.”
Raquelle glances aside.
“But later, your parents finally woke up,” Simon says. “When they saw me holding you in my arms, Elizabeth shouted like crazy and began to insult me. And Jackson started a fight and beat me before the eyes of fewer people. But we were quietly broken up, and I did not start a scandal and just left. But I said that Elizabeth would be with me anyway.”
Simon looks at Raquelle with a sly smirk while she shakes her head with dumbfounded eyes and does not stop looking at the man, who starts walking in front of her at some moment.
“After that event, your parents went to the police and reported me due to meddling in their personal life and threatening the people’s lives and claiming a wish to kidnap their child,” Simon says. “I learned that when a few policemen went to the hostel where I lived in a small room and gave me a piece of paper. It banned me from coming to them. If I had done that, I would have been sued.”
Simon tightly clenches his hand into a fist.
“It got me much more surprised,” Simon confesses. “I did not want to take the fact that my beloved woman reported me to the police and blamed me for being chased by me and having to look around to protect her child. And I was so mad that I came up with the idea of taking revenge on your parents some time later. At first, I wanted to agree in a good way, but Jackson refused to give up, and Elizabeth continued to say she never loved me. So, I decided to do it.”
Simon swallows up nervously.
“I was getting ready for that event for a long time,” Simon adds. “I was thinking about my plan very well and impatiently waiting for the day I could revenge on both of them. What did I come up with? I just wanted to kidnap you! And use you to blackmail them! But later, I refused to do this. I thought the child was guilty of nothing and did not have to pay for the sins of her mother. So, I began to think about something different.”
Simon cleans his throat quickly.
“And everything was eventually so easy…” Simon smiles slyly. “I had to come up with nothing. Somehow, I just slightly cut the hydraulic brake hose in the car of your father while nobody saw it. So, as Jackson and Elizabeth were supposed to go somewhere in it, I killed both of them… Though, I didn’t think it would happen. I thought I’d kill them by one. But no. It was much better than I expected.”
This statement gets Raquelle deeply shocked and makes her speechless. As Simon assumed. The girl would have never thought this man would be guilty of the car accident, in which her parents died.
“You can say nothing,” Simon says quietly, watching Raquelle closely, who looks not just white but kind of white from the shock that she is feeling. “I was sure it would get you shocked. Yes, yes… But I’m not lying to you. It’s all the truth. And I am not dreaming up, as you wanted to think. I was guilty of that car accident.”
“No…” Raquelle pronounces in a little shaking voice, shaking her head.
“News of the century, huh? All your life, you have thought nobody was guilty of that situation! But that’s very wrong!”
“So, did you become a curse of mine before my birth?”
“If your mother had made the right choice, everything would have been otherwise.” Simon glances at the pistol with a slight smile again. “And yeah, you probably want to know the truth about their divorce. I will tell you. I shall tell you about their divorce, which never happened.”
“What?” Raquelle rounds her eyes. “Never happened?”
“Yes, my girl, it never happened. Your parents really wanted to divorce because they had conflicts in their family. Everything was perfect before the wedding and for some time after that. But the birth of the child, taking care of you, and working from the early morning to the late evening could not let them enjoy each other and live happily after. Elizabeth and Jackson started to take it out on each other very often and blame each other for all the sins, refusing to listen to their relatives and try to reconcile. So, it led to the moment when they started to get colder to each other more and more and were about to divorce.”
“And how do you know it?”
“I was told everything by their very kind and naive neighbor. Somehow, I quickly gained her trust, using my charm and true smile to make her sure I was a good friend of their family. And I asked that woman about the lives of Elizabeth and Jackson. She knew everything that was happening in their family as their apartments were above one another, and she could hear everything clearly… She told me they did not get on with them. So… I was sure that lady would have hardly come to them and told them about their alleged friend.”
“Yeah, you planned everything well,” Raquelle throws coldly.
“I did not plan it – I was just very lucky.”
“What are you talking about?”
“So, that’s how I found out about their fights with each other and all their relatives.” Simon exhales sharply, running his hand over his face. “I got terribly happy when I found out about ше. I even started to believe that your mother would change her mind and wish to come back to me.”
“Huh, naive…” Raquelle throws gloomily.
“I was ready to accept the fact that she had a daughter because I loved that woman so much that I could forgive Lizzy for everything she did to me. Yes, I would have been happy to adopt you and become a wonderful father for you if your mother had wanted it.”
“Thank God, you are not my father or stepfather. I would not take it.”
“When I found out about their divorce, I decided to wait for a while and then find a way to get closer to her and get her and her back again. I did not doubt I would get a good result, and I was sure my life was about to get much better. I dreamed of the three of us living happily after together: Elizabeth, you, and me… I should’ve just waited for a while and put in some effort.”
Simon falls into silence for two seconds and looks at Raquelle with evil in his eyes.
“But it did not happen!” Simon throws coldly and loudly. “As I said, some time later, they reconciled and decided to give their relationship a second chance. I found it out thanks to their talkative neighbor. Though, I didn’t believe it at first. But I made sure about it personally when I saw your parents hugging and kissing each other like teenagers right before my eyes.”
***
The end of the 90s of the twentieth century.
Maybe, it’s gloomy and cold outside now, but the young married couple, Jackson and Elizabeth Cameron, do not care about it. Some time ago, the spouses managed to establish their relationship after being close to divorce and getting each other exhausted with scandals and hysterics. But now their life is getting much better. Everything is starting over again. As if they are spending a second honeymoon… Taking care of their little daughter Raquelle does not stop Elizabeth and Jackson from getting out somewhere together in their free time to walk in the city and give each other some love and attention they lacked so much. It seems like a crisis in their relationship is over, and now the Camerons are going to live well.
“That’s so good my boss had a good mood today and let me take a day off, seeing I worked too much lately,” Jackson says with a slight smile, leaning on the brick wall with both hands, while Elizabeth is leaning on this one with her back.
“You just deserved a good rest after working so hard for the whole week,” Elizabeth replies softly with a shy smile and caresses Jackson’s face tenderly with both hands.
“And I’m truly grateful to him for giving me a chance to have a rest. Because I can use a chance to spend some time with my beloved woman.”
With these words, Jackson carefully fixes Elizabeth’s hair, while she continues to give him a cute smile that warms his soul up.
“So, where do we go today?” Elizabeth asks in a low, nice voice, putting her arms around Jackson’s neck and pressing her body to him while he is standing very close to her and leaning on the brick wall with both hands.
“Wherever you want, sweetheart,” Jackson purrs with a wide smile. “With you, I’d even follow you around the world.”
“Just like I’d do. Now I can say it confidently. Without a single doubt.”
After looking at Jackson for some time with a wild, tender smile, Elizabeth gives him a couple of cute kisses on his lips.
“If only you knew how much I missed you all that time,” Jackson says with tenderness in his eyes in a low voice. “You know how bad I felt when we were about to split off.”
“I don’t even wanna think I could’ve lost you because of my stupidity.” Elizabeth shakes her head and strokes Jackson’s hair down. “I can’t believe I was such an idiot and behaved so disgustingly. I pushed my close people off.”
“Don’t think about it, Lizzy.” Jackson tenderly kisses Elizabeth on the forehead, holding her face in his hands, and looks at her with love in his eyes. “It was just consequences of your condition.”
“My gosh, Jackson, I’m so ashamed of everything you had to take and hear from me,” Elizabeth says with pity in her eyes, shaking her head slightly with tears coming to her eyes. “I… I don’t know what I was thinking of when acting like a sick and hysterical woman.”
“Elizabeth…”
“Yes, I really did not have a very easy period. But I swear, I didn’t want to hurt anyone and make my close people turn their backs on me.”
“Sweetie, please, stop blaming yourself. The similar behavior is quite possible when having the condition that you had.”
“It’s not an excuse for what I did to you.”
“Moreover, that bastard Simon was chasing us and threatening to kidnap our daughter If you hadn’t been with him. It also got us very nervous.”
“Oh, thank God, he has disappeared and stopped annoying me…” Elizabeth makes a quiet sob. “Simon was literally obsessed with me… Yes, I dated him when I was too young and stupid. But later, I realized I didn’t feel comfortable with him… I didn’t feel like I was happy and in love… I understood what love was when I met you.”
“He’s just a sick man, who must go to a psychiatrist,” Jackson replies softly. “But if Ringer loved you, his love became an obsession. A serious obsession.”
“If only he didn’t show up and start to terrorize us.”
“Don’t worry, honey, if that bastard shows up again, we will do our best to put him in prison,” Jackson promises confidently. “If Ringer dares to do something to Raquelle and kidnap her, I will personally skin him alive.”
“No, no, I don’t want something to happen to my daughter,” Elizabeth shakes her head sharply. “I shall not take it if Simon kidnaps her and does something to her. If my girl is not near me, I will go crazy.”
“I would cut his throat for her.”
“I almost died from fear when we saw him holding Raquelle in his arms and kissing her.”
“You’ve got no reason to be afraid, Elizabeth,” Jackson says confidently, softly caressing Elizabeth’s face with both hands. “With me, you and our daughter will be in safety.”
“I’m even afraid to imagine what he could come up with.”
“Anyway, Ringer will not get just one warning and will pay for all the treats and acts of chasing us.”
“My God, why didn’t they put him in prison then? Did they think a warning would scare him?”
“The police clearly said if he got closer to us again, he would get in great trouble.”
“Yeah, I remember…”
“Anyway, he will do nothing to us. He will not ruin our family. Nothing can ruin it.”
“No, no, please, God!” Elizabeth shakes her head sharply with her widely open eyes. “I don’t wanna lose you again… No… Somehow, I could’ve lost the one I couldn't imagine my life without. And I don’t wanna cry and worry because of ruining everything anymore.”
“You will not lose me, sweetie,” Jackson promises confidently, taking Elizabeth’s hands. “I shall not leave you and will be with you, despite nothing.”
“Really?”
“I promise I will not leave you, even if I have to live hard times again, and I will try to help you get over depression. No matter how loudly you shout at me. No matter what you blame me for. I shall be by your side.”
“Jackson…”
“We will live much better than before. All together. You, our little daughter, and me.”
“My God, when I think of what I did, I really wanna hang myself…” Elizabeth sighs heavily.
“Sweetheart…”
“I didn’t think of anyone but me… Even my little daughter. Who saw her mother was like crazy and ready literally to kill anyone, who would’ve stood in her way.”
“Lizzy…”
“I was a psycho idiot… Who went nuts and ruined the lives of her close people…”
“No, sunshine…”
“Oh, gosh, how ashamed I am… I want the ground to swallow me up or to burn from shame… God…”
Elizabeth makes a few quiet sobs, closing her face with both hands and shaking slightly from excitement. Jackson looks at her with great pity in his eyes for two seconds and takes her in his strong hug, starting to caress her head tenderly and cutely kissing her on the top of her head while she is crying quietly, pressing her to his chest and tightly grabbing his coat with both hands.
“It’s okay, Elizabeth, calm down, please,” Jackson pronounces softly.
“I’m afraid to think what Raquelle thought when looking at me,” Elizabeth makes a quiet sob.
“Our daughter knows you love her anyway, despite nothing.”
“I’m imagining how scared she was when I started to fight with her father without a reason.” Elizabeth tightly hugs Jackson and puts her hands on his back. “I think she even began to ignore me and is afraid to come to me.”
“No, my sunshine, don’t say that,” Jackson protests softly.
“Raquelle always ran to me, whooping happily, ‘Mamma! Mommy!’ and kissed me on the cheek. She always wanted to show me something… She asked me to play with her… And it’s not happening now. She is ignoring me.”
“Raquelle loves you, whatever you are.”
“No, Jackson, my daughter doesn’t love me anymore,” Elizabeth makes a quiet sob. “She’s afraid of me…”
“Don’t say that, Lizzy. Our daughter loves you very much.”
“But she doesn’t come to me and ignores me!”
“Our daughter just saw you were in a bad mood and let you stay alone. Raquelle is our very smart girl. You don’t have to explain anything to her. She is watching, listening, understanding, and memorizing…”
“Do you think she will love me again?”
“She loves you. And when she sees you’ve finally come to yourself, the girl will be kissing you and hugging you tightly again. Just come to her, hug her tightly, and say how much you love her.”
“Maybe, I should take her somewhere?”
“Yes. Raquelle would be happy with your attention.”
“My God, I’m ready to burn down from shame…” Elizabeth makes a quiet sob, steps back from Jackson a little, and looks at him with pity in her eyes. “Shame for you and our child, who shouldn’t have suffered because of her crazy mother.”
“No, don’t say so, you’re not crazy.”
“I don’t want my daughter and you to ignore me because of what you had to take.”
“Nobody ignores you, Lizzy. I know you would’ve never behaved like that if all of that hadn’t happened to you, and you hadn’t had to take care of your daughter for hours. Anyone would go insane if it happened to him or her.”
“Say, Jackson, what can I do for you to stop thinking I’m sick and guilty of the fact that we almost divorced?” Elizabeth asks with pity in her eyes.
“Honey, we’ve discussed everything. I’ve told you many times that I’ve never thought you’re sick and guilty of what happened.”
“I swear, I didn't wanna hurt you. And make you miss the shy girl Lizzy that you saw on the day we met for the first time.”
“There’s my fault, too. I spent too much time at work, forgot about you, and didn’t almost help you raise our daughter, blaming tiredness after a long day at work.”
“Jackson…”
“I should’ve braced myself somehow and helped you. Instead of putting all the care about our child and homework on you, watching a TV, and lying on the bed with a semifinished product heated up in the oven.”
“No, sweetie, please, don’t blame yourself,” Elizabeth begs with pity in her eyes. “You’re guilty of nothing. Your duty was to provide for Raquelle and me and earn money. And you were doing that excellently.”
“But alongside earning money, I should’ve given attention to my sweet girls.”
“We knew you loved us anyway. But sadly, I didn’t prove that I was a good housewife and mother. I thought only of myself. I began to go crazy. And I thought I could get over that. Alone or with someone’s help. But I didn’t do that…”
Elizabeth inclines her head guiltily and sniffs quietly, but Jackson raises her face by the chin almost at once and makes the young woman look into his eyes.
“For me, you’ve always been a wonderful housewife, an amazing mother, and an excellent wife,” Jackson says softly with a slight smile. “Yes, you couldn’t do much and looked at some things with your widely open eyes. But my father has always said that if you wish, you can learn anything. And you did it. After making lots of mistakes, you did it.”
“But I wanna get much better than I am now,” Elizabeth replies, looking at Jackson with wet eyes full of pity. “And I swear, Jackson, I will give my everything not to make you regret marrying me. I shall not make that inexcusable mistake and will control my emotions not to become a psycho, who fought with all her close people and turned into a monster that her husband and child were afraid of.”
“I believe you, Lizzy,” Jackson smiles much wider. “We’ve talked about everything.”
“I know, but I can’t stop thinking of that and blaming myself for what happened.”
“But you should forget that. Try to think of our future… About how we would be raising our daughter… How happy we would be… How she would grow up, get married and make us happy with grandchildren… Or maybe, you and I will make one or two more babies. And Raquelle would have a brother or a sister.”
“If you want another baby, I will surely give birth,” Elizabeth promises confidently. “Two or three – it doesn’t make sense. Moreover, I’ve always dreamed of a big family. And at least two children.”
“It will surely happen,” Jackson replies with his head proudly raised. “We’ll be very happy. Very happy…”
Jackson grabs Elizabeth’s face softly and caresses her cheeks tenderly with his warm hands.
“I promise I’ll do my best to take care of you not worse than your parents did,” Jackson promises confidently with a slight smile. “And our Raquelle will not stay without my attention. I’ll be taking care of my girls and making them happy for the reason and without.”
“Jackson…” Elizabeth smiles shyly through tears that are rolling over her cheeks.
“And yeah, let’s agree that you don’t cry, don’t get sad, and don’t think about that horrible time from now.”
With these words, Jackson carefully wipes tears off Elizabeth’s face and kisses her on the cheeks two times.
“I don’t wanna see your tears,” Jackson says softly. “I wanna see your shining eyes and your wonderful smile.”
“If I have no reason to cry, I will not do this,” Elizabeth replies shyly.
“You will not, I promise.”
Elizabeth smiles much wider and sniffs quietly again. And Jackson takes her in a touching hug and caresses her head tenderly, while she answers this cute action, putting her head on his shoulder and running her hands over his back.
The madly nice warmth and caress of her beloved man help the girl come to herself quite quickly and stop crying from the sense of guilt that she has because of her disgusting behavior that scared her close people to death. Although everything was discussed some time ago, Elizabeth just finds the strength to take what happened, stop blaming herself and try to forget it like a nightmare.
“Okay, my sunshine, calm down, please,” Jackson says quietly and very softly, tenderly caressing Elizabeth’s head and putting a hand on her cheek. “Let’s not think about bad things. We wanted to go for a walk and spend a good time together. Why we would make this wonderful moment worse by talking about those terrible memories.”
“Sorry, sweetheart…” Elizabeth pronounces in a little shaking voice. “Sorry… I will not do this anymore… I promise…”
Jackson calms Elizabeth down for a few seconds before he steps back from her a little, looks into her eyes for some time, and then gives her a couple of cute kisses on her lips. It makes the girl smile shyly, and her mood is getting much better. She is getting more ready for a wonderful pastime with her beloved man, who gives her love, care, and caress.
After rubbing the tips of their noses against each other’s nose with a wide smile, the young spouses get each other involved in a tender, continuous kiss on the lips. Elizabeth presses herself to the wall with her back and puts her arms around Jackson’s neck while he puts his arms around her waist, but later grabs her face tenderly and caresses it while trying to feel the taste of these soft, sweet lips that he likes to kiss so much. He understands how it’s good to feel a nice warmth spreading over the whole body, slight dizziness, and a slight tickle in the abdomen… Both of them lacked it so much. Jackson and Elizabeth are so happy they are able to enjoy these unforgettable moments that make their hearts beat much faster. Just like it happened when they started to date a few years ago…
First, everything happens very tenderly and slowly, but since the excitement gets stronger, the lovers get much more confident. For example, Jackson breaks the kiss with Elizabeth, leaves a few short kisses on her face, and smoothly makes his way to the gracious feminine neck that he starts covering with different kisses and slight pinches with great pleasure.
She definitely likes it very much and sometimes cannot hold down her quiet sighs and breathes too unevenly while feeling these unforgettable kisses on such sensitive areas of her body, which makes her feel like she gets slight shocks. Moreover, the young beauty lets her hands confidently slide over the masculine torso and helps the man a little by leaning her head back or bending it on all the sides, showing all the parts of her neck that he caresses with his soft lips with great pleasure.
Elizabeth and Jackson spend time at this place all alone, enjoying each other for some time. They do not notice that not a very tall man with a rude, repulsive look goes by here. He is going somewhere, thinking of something, putting his hands in the pockets of his black coat, and looking definitely upset by something because of the sadness that there is in his little eyes similar to a pig’s ones.
When he comes closer to the lovers kissing each other passionately, the stranger moves his eyes to them and stops sharply, starting to watch them. And all his attention is focused on Elizabeth, whom he definitely knows.
“Damn, is that Lizzy?” the stranger gets horrified. “Is that really her?”
The man watches the spouses for two seconds and recognizes Elizabeth as his beloved woman, whom he still wants to get back after she preferred him over the other man.
“No, no, it cannot be true…” the stranger shakes his head, watching Elizabeth with dumbfounded eyes while she smiles when Jackson covers her neck with kisses and lets his hands slide over her body and caress it with all the love. “Elizabeth… My Lizzy… She is with him again… That stinker Jackson… The one that stole the love of my life from me!”
The stranger gets madder and madder because Jackson lets himself be so loose towards Elizabeth and caresses her body with hands and lips shamelessly. The body that should have belonged only to him…
“I must be kissing and hugging her!” the stranger hisses through his teeth, clenching his hands into such hard fists that his chuckles get kind of white. “I, Simon Ringer, must be instead of that bastard, whom I shall always hate. I do have a right to be so loose towards that woman, caress her body and see it naked. NOT THAT SCUMBAG!”
At some moment, the man named Simon breathing heavily calls the memories of the fact that Elizabeth and Jackson wanted to get divorced some time ago after all the scandals that the neighbor of the spouses told him about. He truly hoped the woman would get divorced from the father of her daughter and come back to him. But as it turned out, her feelings for this man were much stronger. Jackson won again and got Elizabeth back…
“Oh, shit, they wanted to divorce!” Simon exclaims with horror in his eyes. “Their neighbor said they separated and were going to file for divorce… So, it happened that they changed their mind? Or that old hag lied to me? Divorced people would hardly be kissing like this. That bastard Jackson would hardly dare to kiss MY Elizabeth like THAT. And feel her whole body up!”
Meanwhile, Jackson and Elizabeth are fully busy with each other, kissing passionately, hugging tightly, and smiling widely. They do not notice the cold and contemptuous look full of hate and evil that Simon sends them while being a few miles away from them. So, the woman pays much attention to the strong masculine torso that she rubs confidently with both hands while he leaves short kisses on her breasts with pleasure and tenderly caresses them, making her roll her eyes, make sensitive sighs, and slightly bend her back.
“Oh, you, scoundrel…” Simon hisses with evil in his eyes. “That bastard is feeling up her breasts, and she is happy! She dares to moan! She is about to get naked in front of him! YOU CAN ALSO FUCK EACH OTHER BEFORE MY EYES!”
Being furious by what he sees and burning from shame and jealousy, Simon wants to come to Jackson and Elizabeth kissing passionately and make their pastime worse. But after finding the strength, the man decides not to do this. Ringer is a little afraid to do this because of the case when Jackson could have beaten him before the eyes of people that almost called the police because he dared to get closer to his little daughter Raquelle.
“Alright, bastard, that was the last drop,” Simon hisses through his teeth with evil in his eyes. “THE LAST FUCKING DROP!”
Simon clenches his hands tightly into fists.
“BITCH!” Simon throws rudely. “WHORE! You betrayed me! Betrayed the love of you and me! I did want to make you the happiest woman in the world. But you refused and chose that beggar, who earns a little money and spends hours at his fucking office.”
Simon swallows up nervously.
“I could have given you everything, Elizabeth, if you had divorced from that scumbag and come back to me with your daughter,” Simon says coldly. “That girl would have been a daughter of mine. I would have loved Raquelle like my own daughter, and never thought you gave birth to her from Jackson. I would have surrounded you with love, care, and attention. I would have worked for hours to give you two everything you need.”
Simon shakes his head and clenches his hands into hard fists, watching Elizabeth and Jackson kissing and hugging each other.
“But you just killed my love for you,” Simon says rudely. “You did! I believed you would change your mind and come back to me until the end. But it seems like that scumbag is more important to you.”
Simone exhales sharply.
“So, fine,” Simon pronounces quietly. “If it’s so, live with that bastard and your daughter. But we will see how long you will live together happily after. Don’t think I would leave you alone. I will not do this. I shall take revenge on you. If that woman is not with me, nobody will get her. Especially, that jerkoff. I will kill you two. I swear, Elizabeth Lauren Thompson, the funeral of you and Jackson will happen soon. You will not survive my revenge. I will do my best to make it real.”
Due to his obsession with anger, Simon literally gets kind of green and barely holds down a wish to shout out about his pain because of the love that was just killed. He could come to Jackson and Elizabeth and do away with them right now while nobody sees. But the man decides not to do this, even if he swears that the woman and the man will not live happily after, as they want to do.
“You both will die on the same day,” Simon promises in a low, rude voice. “And I will surely reach your daughter. I swear I shall make her pay for the sins of her mommy. Yes, I did not want to make her guilty, but that betrayal gives me no choice. When she dies, I shall make her daughter pay for the pain I felt.”
Simon starts breathing much deeper and heavier.
“Simon Gordon Ringer does not talk to the wind!” Simon exclaims. “He shall destroy the Camerons in any way. I SWEAR, I WILL GET THEM OUT OF THE GROUND! I will kidnap that girl! They will never see her! Never! I SWEAR! Since that whore Elizabeth did not want to be with me, she will have to pay much for that. SHE WILL PAY ME FOR THAT!”
While Simon continues to watch Jackson and Elizabeth with anger and evil in his eyes, they step away from each other after a long, passionate kiss and go somewhere with a wide smile, hugging each other, often sharing a tender ogle, aiming to press to each other as close as possible. Sometimes every one of them leaves cute kisses on each other’s faces or heads. And do not even suspect that something terrible may probably destroy Elizabeth, Jackson, and their little daughter Raquelle.
***
“After that day, I started to think of a plan for my revenge,” Simon says. “And as I have said, I did not have to think too much. I just cut the car of your father a little. Again, I was madly lucky. It was like someone wanted me to take revenge on those people for all the pain they gave me.”
Raquelle swallows up nervously, getting much more shocked by everything she hears.
“Ah, yeah, on that fateful day, they did not go to fill for divorce, as you were told, they went to have fun,” Simon confesses. “On a date, I guess. You were left with your grandfather, who became a nanny of yours again. And your mommy and daddy decided to spend some time together and flirt a little. Not knowing they met you for the last time.”
Simon glances aside with a contemptuous smirk.
“And somewhere in the middle of the way, Jackson could not stop the car when driving it at a high speed,” Simon continues to say. “They had no chance to save themselves as he could not stop it, but jumping out of the car was not a good way… So, some time later, the car crushed the truck that you mentioned before some time alter. And if you wonder how I know it, everything is easy. I was chasing them. And I became a witness to that car accident. Along with a couple of people that were answering questions of the police that came to the place where it happened.”
***
February, 24th 1998.
The young married couple, Jackson and Elizabeth Cameron, are going on a romantic date to spend some time together. After making peace, they often go out somewhere together and give each other much more attention. Just like they did in the old times when their relationship was just getting started.
After leaving their little daughter Raquelle with her grandfather on the father, Elizabeth and Jackson decided to go to their favorite place, where they love being together. In the man’s car, in which they are driving on the empty road, quiet and peace settle. And the happy and relaxed lovers sometimes share a tender ogle and a wide smile with each other.
“Honey, I’m driving,” Jackson says with a slight smile when Elizabeth starts kissing him on his cheeks cutely and pressing as close to him as possible. “I need to watch the road.”
“Well, just a little…” Elizabeth whines with pity in her eyes, caressing Jackson’s cheek tenderly. “I can’t sit and just watch you.”
“Wait for a while, my sunshine. We’ll come very soon. And then we’ll spend an unforgettable time in the place where only you and I are going to be.”
“In our favorite one, where we walked when we just started to date?” Elizabeth smiles shyly.
“Yup! We’ll walk just like we did in the old times and distract ourselves from all the cares. Forget everything, at least for a while.”
“At least, I’m quiet for our daughter. Because your father is watching her.”
“Yeah, Dad agreed to watch her with pleasure. He has nothing to do now.”
“Hey, haven’t you told him you and I reconciled?”
“Not yet, but I want to do it at the nearest time. He’s truly worried about us and wants us to reconcile. So, I’m sure Father would be madly happy to know we decided to give each other one more chance.”
“Mr. Cameron has always wished us the best. He’s always been so nice to me.”
“You do know well that my father is delighted by you and thinks you are almost his own daughter. He adores you with all his heart.”
“I know.”
“But I see no reason not to love such a wonderful woman, who gave him such an amazing granddaughter.”
“You know, my parents also adore you. They got love for you after you met them for the first time.”
“Do your parents not also know about our reconciliation? Have you talked to Mr. and Mrs. Thompson?”
“Nope yet. But I think it would be great to tell our families about our reconciliation, paying a visit to my parents and your father together.”
“Listen, I wanted to suggest you do it together so they believe us,” Jackson smiles shyly and changes the speed with the gearbox. “Your parents and my father will be madly happy to know we’re together again and will live happily after, raising Raquelle and planning to make a second child.”
“Let’s visit one of them right tomorrow?” Elizabeth suggests cheerfully, moving her eyes to Jackson. “And when everybody knows it, we can have dinner for our families and celebrate it.”
“Yeah, I think there’s no need to pull it out. Dad always asks me if there’s hope that I will reconcile with you and not hurt my daughter. I can’t wait to make him happy.”
“Then we’ll do it tomorrow. Agree?”
“Agree. Tomorrow we will pay a visit to my father and tell him everything.”
“Okay…” Elizabeth smiles shyly. “And then we will call my parents.”
“Excellent!”
Silence settles in the air for two seconds, during which Elizabeth thinks about something, looking at her hands. Jackson continues to drive the car that has been moving straight for a long enough time and has not stopped as they have not run into the red light. At some moment, he glances at his wife and notices that she gets kind of sad.
“Are you okay, Lizzy?” Jackson expresses anxiety.
“Yup, I’m okay…” Elizabeth replies thoughtfully with a slight smile. “Just thought of my family… About what was lately happening…”
“Oh, honey…” Jackson sighs tiredly. “Are you thinking of what happened between us again?”
“Not quite…. I don’t worry about it, I worry about my relationship with my family.”
“Your family?”
“Especially, my relationship with my sister.”
“With your sister?”
“After we fought so hard the last time with your pretense, we’ve never met again.”
“I know.”
“Alicia ignores me when I was at the home of my parents during their short visit to America or talking to them on the phone.”
“She just didn’t wanna make the situation worse. So, she didn’t wanna bother you.”
“And I did not have a very good relationship with my parents… I’m really worried about it… My daughter still treats me suspiciously and doesn’t trust me, and my family is mad at me.”
“I’m sure they’d understand you if you paid a visit to them, explained everything, and apologized for everything.”
“Ah, Jackson, if only you knew how much I want it,” Elizabeth sighs with sadness in her eyes. “How much I wanna apologize to my mother and father… How much I wanna apologize to Alicia.”
“Do this then.”
“My sister was guilty of nothing, but I hurt her for nothing. I blamed her for nobody the hell knows what. I hurt her so much that she doesn’t even want to talk to me.”
“No, Lizzy, it’s not the truth. Alicia doesn’t run away from you. She doesn’t just want to annoy you.”
“Did she say something to you about me?” Elizabeth moves her sad eyes to Jackson. “You often talked to her and discussed me…”
“Alicia is also devastated because of the conflict with you and wants peace. But she is also scared.”
“Yeah?”
“Anyway, you really scared her with your behavior the last time. Your sister is used to seeing you as a shy and obedient girl, but you talked to her in that way… You literally attacked her with fists…”
“And I’m really ashamed of everything I said and did to her at that moment. I shouldn’t have done that to her.” Elizabeth shakes her head. “Alicia is my older sister. I love her, whatever she is. And I will always love. Because she’s a part of my family.”
“I’m glad you understand it,” Jackson smiles slightly. “I often asked my parents to give me a sister or a brother when I was a kid. And they wanted to make a second child. But my mother’s illness that led to her death did not let them make their dream come true.”
“We always got on well. We were best friends. Yes, we often argued about cosmetics, clothes, guys, and something like that. We lived like all the brothers and sisters… But we always loved each other. And we never fought as hard as we did it on that day…”
“Just call her and explain everything. And if it happens that she’s in the USA, meet her face-to-face and apologize. Alicia won’t be mad, will forgive you quickly, and will help you as much as my father does. Of course, she does very much for Raquelle, but if you ask her, your sister will do much more.”
“Do you think Alicia will really forgive me and speak to me as well as she did before?”
“Sure! You just need to take the first step and express a wish to start everything over again.”
“It would be good if my sister were here. Because it’d be easier for me to explain everything and apologize for all the bad things I did when I was a psychotic idiot. And I should ask my parents for forgiveness… They had to take many bad things from me.”
“I think you wouldn’t have to wait for their arrival here. Your family often comes here for our daughter, helps Dad take care of her, or gives Raquelle some gifts.”
“What If I ask them to come here to talk to me about my behavior and my apology to them?”
“I’m sure they won’t refuse to do it and will come here immediately.”
“And Alicia?”
“If you ask her about it, she will surely do this.”
“I think I will do it.” Elizabeth sighs quietly and moves her sad eyes to her hands. “Or I wouldn’t get rid of the remorse that has been torturing me.”
“It’s gonna be fine, sweetie,” Jackson encourages and cracks a shy smile at Elizabeth. “I believe in you and know you can make your relationship with your sister better and remind your parents of how much you love them.”
“Thank you so much, Jackson,” Elizabeth smiles shyly, moving her eyes to Jackson. “Thank you for supporting me.”
“It couldn’t be otherwise.”
“You’re the best. The best man I love very much.”
Jackson smiles much wider and cannot hold down his wish to kiss Elizabeth on the cheek, forgetting about having to watch the road and believing that nothing would happen if he distracted for a second. There is nobody around, nobody would run and go on the highway, there are no people in this deserted place, and the highway is fenced with a metallic fence.
“You are my best and most beloved one,” Jackson says in a low, nice voice, caressing Elizabeth’s cheek and head. “I love you very much, my sweetheart.”
“Sweetheart…” Elizabeth smiles widely and cutely.
With these words, Elizabeth and Jackson rub the points of their noses against each other’s noses for two seconds, but then the man moves his eyes to the road and continues to watch it and carefully drive the car.
“Ah, I can’t wait to come…” Elizabeth rolls her eyes dreamily, putting her head on Jackson’s shoulder. “I wanna press you to me and smoother you with kisses.”
“We’re very close, sunshine,” Jackson smiles widely. “We’re gonna see the turn on our favorite place. And we’ll have a chance to spend a wonderful time.”
Jackson distracts from the road again to tenderly kiss a curve of Elizabeth’s neck, making her smile widely, close her eyes from pleasure, and forget that her husband does not watch what’s happening in front of him.
“Do you want to make me crazy before we come there?” Elizabeth asks softly in a low voice.
“I can’t hold me down when such a wonderful beauty is next to me,” Jackson smiles shyly, running the tip of his nose and lips over the skin on Elizabeth’s neck. “And believe me, I can’t wait to come to our place not less than you.”
“Then, maybe, you should step on the pedal stronger and drive faster?”
“I think it’s a good idea.”
Jackson changes the speed with the gearbox, but a few moments later, he notices that there is the turn he needs somewhere a few miles away from him.
“Oh, I don’t need to…” Jackson pronounces thoughtfully. “Here’s the turn we need.”
Starting to get closer to the turn, Jackson presses the brake pedal to lower the speed for turning. But he is surprised that the car suddenly refuses to stop and continues to go at the same speed as it has been driving for a long time.
“Damn, what’s going on?” Jackson swears quietly.
“What’s wrong?” Elizabeth expresses anxiety.
“I can’t stop the car. I press the brake pedal, but the car refuses to obey me…”
“Try to press stronger. Maybe, you are pressing it slightly?”
“No, it doesn’t help…”
Jackson tries to slow the speed by pressing the brake pedal strongly several times. But his car still continues to go at quite a high speed.
“Damn…” Jackson swears, getting more obsessed with anxiety.
“No?” Elizabeth rounds her eyes, getting very, very excited because her husband cannot stop the car and get ready to turn.
“No!”
“But why? We were able to stop it well when we were going on the road!”
“I don’t know, I understand nothing…” Jackson falls into a panic, trying to stop the car so hard. “Everything was fine about the car… We were driving well…”
“So, it happens that we won’t be able to stop?”
“I can do nothing… The car refuses to obey…”
Understanding that the car does not want to stop and continues to go straight at a high speed, Elizabeth and Jackson start to panic much more, understanding that it might end badly for them.
“Damn, damn, damn…” Jackson continues to swear and get nervous, pressing the brake pedal strongly. “C’mon, stop… Stop…”
“Oh, Jesus…” Elizabeth pronounces in a shaking voice with a scare in her widely open eyes, closing her mouth with a hand.
At this moment, Elizabeth gets a very bad presentiment that tells her that the current situation might be over very tragically for her and Jackson. There is a high risk that they may crush something at a high speed, get many traumas and just die. The more time is gone, the stronger the woman starts to panic and understand that it’s hard for her to breathe from fear, and she gets goosebumps on her back.
“Shall we die, Jackson?” Elizabeth asks quietly with horror.
“I dunno…” Jackson pronounces with despair. “But the car doesn’t stop… It’s driving at a very high speed.”
“I’ve got a very bad presentiment…”
“Holy shit! What’s going on? Why doesn’t the brake pedal work?”
“Oh, gosh, gosh… I’m frightened…” Elizabeth starts strongly shaking from fear and crying from the despair of the situation that she and Jackson got into. “Try to stop it again… Please…”
“Nothing does help!” Jackson pronounces a little louder, hitting the steering wheel sharply, getting obsessed with a strong panic, and breathing heavily enough. “Damn! It seems like we’re in a trap…”
“No…”
“The car doesn’t stop and is driving at a high speed. Jumping out of it is just madness.”
“Maybe, we really jump out? The car is definitely malfunctioning if it doesn’t want to stop!”
“Are you crazy?” Jackson rounds his eyes. “What if we crush while jumping out of the car driving at a high speed?”
“But would we not crush if we stayed here?” Elizabeth raises her voice, being excited.
“I don’t know!”
“I’d rather skin my knees and elbows when falling than crush nobody knows what and crush on the malfunctioning car.”
Two seconds later, Elizabeth stops her eyes at the turn that is so close.
“Here’s the turn!” Elizabeth exclaims.
“I see!” Jackson pronounces loudly.
At this moment, Jackson turns the car on that turn. But because of the high speed, it skids, and it’s getting harder for the man to control this iron horse that is driving on the road. Moreover, along with Elizabeth’s cry, the front of the car crushes a bigger part of the metallic fence on the edges of the road for a few seconds. After such a strong crush, a strong dent appears on it. Not only that. Their car almost hits a man and a woman, who barely manage to jump aside at the last moment and not to crush themselves.
“What do we do?” Elizabeth wonders with horror in her eyes. “We need to stop this thing! Or we’re gonna crush something and die!”
“Most likely, something happened to the brake line,” Jackson assumes, being excited but trying to keep cold and find a solution. “That’s why the car refuses to stop.”
“And what could happen to it?” Elizabeth wonders.
“I don’t know! It might probably be broken.”
“That’s what happens when you never check the car and always drive it to professionals.”
“They probably, really did something wrong. And if it’s so, I shall make them pay for that.”
“If only we did not die right here after crushing a car…” Elizabeth sighs in despair.
“Stop saying nonsense, Elizabeth!” Jackson throws gloomily. “Nobody’s gonna die!”
“Do you really think we’ll stay safe and sound after crushing something at a high speed?”
“I don’t know!”
“And couldn’t you check the car before we went on a date?”
“How could I know the car had problems with the brake car?” Jackson wonders loudly. “I went to work without problems. My car was absolutely fine.”
“Right, you must learn everything about cars and check them before every single arrival,” Elizabeth starts to say louder and louder. “Instead of counting on other people!”
“So, am I guilty of the fact that the car refuses the fuck to stop?” Jackson asks irritably.
“If you’d checked the car, we wouldn’t have put our lives in such great danger!”
“How could I kno-o-ow about this malfunction?” Jackson raises his voice a little. “Do you think I’m such a brainless idiot, who would get into the car that might crush at full speed and let my wife do it?”
“So, you are an idiot if we are now sitting in the car and might suffer!”
“Ar-r-r, are you starting to get nuts and blame me for everything again?” Jackson sharply turns on Elizabeth. “Nothing left from a good girl?”
“Can you the fuck stop this fucking car and save us from a risk?” Elizabeth shouts, sharply waving her hands.
“I CANNOT THE FUCK STOP IT!” Jackson shouts loudly. “Can’t you hear me?”
The situation is getting so difficult and dangerous that Jackson and Elizabeth start to get mad and shout at each other. The woman is sure the man is guilty of what’s happening, and he cannot take her reproaches again and is about to do something that he will regret much later.
“What can I do if this iron thing doesn’t want to stop?” Jackson shouts, not watching the road, letting the steering wheel go, and starting to gesticulate actively. “What?”
“So, do we have to die now?” Elizabeth asks loudly, irritably.
“I don’t know!”
“I actually want to live! And I am going to apologize to my family.”
“And what do you suggest? What do you suggest?”
“Jump out of the car!”
“Are you out of your mind?” Jackson knocks at his temple with a finger with his widely open eyes. “If you do it, you will surely crush yourself to death!”
“Would we not crush now, huh? The car is driving at a high speed, and you cannot stop it!”
“Alright, if you are ready to die, take off the belt and jump out of the car. C’mon, jump!”
“I will jump!”
“Jump!”
“I WILL JUMP!”
“JUMP! My life is more important to me! I want to live! And I am not going to die early! I will surely watch…”
Jackson does not finish his thought because Elizabeth moves her eyes to the road and sees a big truck that is placed ahead, and the car is getting closer to it. A few miles away from crushing it at high speed! It means the accident would surely happen, and the man would be able to do nothing.
“WATCH OUT!” Elizabeth screams at the top of her lungs with her widely open eyes.
Jackson does manage to react and turn the car aside. His car, in which he and Elizabeth are sitting, crushes into the big truck, which is placed on the roadside, gives a start, and turns aside from such a strong hit, at a high speed. The spouses’ automobile gets a few meters away and gets a great dent. Its hood gets destroyed and broken, and something suddenly explodes and burns up inside it. While getting a hit, Jackson gets a very strong hit on the head against the steering wheel by inertia, and Elizabeth gets not less a serious hit on the head after she hits the glass of the passenger door.
The front is totally destroyed, and the front, back, and side glasses are broken. A strong smoke starts spreading out of the burning motor. And after the strong hit, Jackson and Elizabeth get squeezed into the inside of the car. They would hardly get out of here without someone’s help. Moreover, they get blood on their faces and some parts of their bodies, and pieces of glass or some iron things get into them. Their noses suffered especially much because a red stream was getting out of them. The consequences of this car accident may be serious if the spouses do not get the first aid kit in time.
And Jackson’s sharp hit on the head is so strong that he loses consciousness, getting terribly white, bleeding, and not moving while his head is placed on the steering wheel, against which he hit it. Elizabeth is also about to be pulled into the darkness, but she realizes what is happening around her. However, her body hurts a lot after what happened. She has tinnitus, and her head is literally ready to tear apart from pain. The woman’s forehead is wounded by pieces of glass that got into it and is bleeding quite strongly. Also, an iron thing got into her stomach after either being inside the car or coming off one or another part of the auto and getting into it deeply. That’s why blood is getting out of it strongly and covering the feminine clothes with it.
Despite the strong pain in her head and the blood that is getting out of literally everywhere, Elizabeth finds the strength to tear her head off the passenger door, look around and realize the car just crushed the big truck that suffered not very much after the hit. The girl tries to move her body and gets horrified when she realizes that she is squeezed between the seat and the front of the car, which is totally destroyed. Elizabeth cannot feel one of her legs, and another one supposedly got a serious trauma because she feels a very strong pain. Getting through which she tries to get out of the trap somehow. But she does not have the strength to do it, her body is squeezed too tightly, and her legs literally become numb.
Understanding that she would not get out of here on her own, Elizabeth starts to panic, breathe heavily, and cry quietly, not knowing how to get out of the smoking, burning, and totally broken car. And a little later, the woman moves her eyes to Jackson being next to her and sees his bloody head placed on the steering wheel, and he does not move or give any signs of life. Thinking this car accident brought him to death, she starts to shake and cry much harder and shakes her head, getting horrified from thinking she may lose this man.
“Jackson?” Elizabeth pronounces quietly with horror in her eyes. “Jackson?”
Since Jackson does not react to his name, Elizabeth having tears in her eyes shakes him by the shoulder slightly.
“Jackson…” Elizabeth pronounces in a shaking voice. “Jackson… Jackson! JACKSON!”
Elizabeth looks at Jackson being terribly white with horror in her eyes, shakes her head, and starts shaking him much more strongly, making louder sobs and being afraid of the worst – her husband’s death.
“No, Jackson, please, answer me…” Elizabeth begs with despair, crying bitterly, caressing Jackson’s head tenderly with a hand that gets immediately covered with the blood he is bleeding with. “Don’t die… P-p-please… Say something to me… I’m begging you…”
Elizabeth looks around and starts looking for a way to get out of the trap so hard and save herself and Jackson, who is also squeezed into the inside of the car.
“My God…” Elizabeth pronounces in a little shaking voice. “God… God…”
And while Elizabeth tries to move her legs that are squeezed so strongly that it’s impossible to set them free, Jackson makes a painful moan and starts to move his body very slowly and barely tears his head off the steering wheel, suffering from the terrible pain in it.
“Oh, shit…” Jackson moans painfully, very quietly. “What happened?”
Jackson slowly looks around the totally destroyed inside the car, in which he is squeezed between the steering wheel and the passenger seat, and sees Elizabeth trying to get out of the trap with tears in her eyes.
“Elizabeth…” Jackson pronounces as if it’s the last minute of his life.
Elizabeth moves her eyes to Jackson and looks at him with her eyes full of tears.
“Jackson…” Elizabeth pronounces in a shaking voice with despair, caressing Jackson’s face tenderly and seeing much blood on it. “Jackson, sweetie… Sweetheart…”
“Oh, damn, you’re all in blood…”
Jackson looks at Elizabeth with his widely open eyes, seeing tracks of blood on her face, and gets much more horrified when he sees that a piece of iron is stuck in her stomach that is bleeding.
“Bloody hell…”
When Jackson barely touches the piece of iron to try to get it out of Elizabeth’s stomach, she makes a quiet, painful moan from the pain that instantly gets obsessed with her body.
“AYE, AYE, AYE!” Elizabeth shouts. “Don’t do this… It hurts… Very hurt…”
“Oh, no…” Jackson pronounces in a shaking voice, being overwhelmed.
“We need to get out of here…” Elizabeth says quietly with a painful moan, breathing heavily enough. “And look for help… In any way… Or we’ll die here…”
“Wait for a while, sweetie…” Jackson replies excitedly. “Wait… I’ll get you out of here now. Wait…”
But trying to get out of the trip gives Jackson nothing. The man gets horrified upon realizing that he is squeezed between the steering wheel and the passenger seat. And he also suspects that he has a fracture of an arm and a leg that is squeezed in an unnatural position and is literally burning from the unbearable pain that he feels in it.
“Aye!” Jackson shouts loudly, wincing strongly. “I think my leg is broken… Damn… How it’s hurt…”
“Mine too…” Elizabeth winces strongly with a heavy breath, keeping a hand on the bleeding stomach. “And I don’t feel a second one… It’s like I don’t have it…”
“A-a-a-a, damn… And how much my head is tearing apart… I can’t think… A-a-a-a…”
Jackson grabs his head and moans painfully from the strong pain that he has never felt before. He understands he definitely has many fractures after this car accident, in which he and Elizabeth got literally two minutes ago. And the woman is getting worse every new second due to a massive loss of blood and serious traumas and fractures. She is getting whiter and whiter and losing her strength very, very fast.
“I’ll try to call someone and ask for help…” Jackson barely says. “We won’t get out of here… We’re squeezed so strongly we can’t even move…”
Fighting back a wish to clean his stomach that he is getting obsessed with after a strong hit on the head, Jackson tries to find his phone in the destroyed inside the car but finds nothing but the broken glass, sharp iron things, and parts of the front of the car crushed into a few pieces. Moreover, his left arm, which got quite a strong hit while getting into the truck, suddenly gets numb.
“Fuck, I don’t feel my arm…” Jackson gets horrified, touching his left bloody hand, into which many pieces are gotten, and which is bleeding. “I feel like I don’t have it…”
“I feel like I’m paralyzed…” Elizabeth says quietly. “I can’t feel my legs… I can’t…”
“Damn, damn, damn, we’ve gotta do something… Damn…”
While Jackson tries to decide what to do, Elizabeth does not pay attention to his words. She starts to feel dizzier and sicker and loses more and more blood every new second. Her wound on the abdomen is very serious because the piece of iron got into it very deeply and most likely hurt some organs. And the woman starts to understand that her death is close. No matter how hard she does not want to die, it will happen anyway. Right now…
“Don’t do it, Jackson…” Elizabeth pronounces with a painful moan, leaning her head back and exhaling slowly with a slight shake in her body. “We will die anyway… Nothing will help us…”
“No, no, Elizabeth, don’t say it!” Jackson jabs excitedly, caressing Elizabeth’s cheek with dumbfounded eyes, seeing much blood on it. “I swear, I will do my best to get you out of here… I will call an ambulance… Now… I need just to get out…”
Jackson makes an attempt to get out of the car again, trying to set his squeezed legs bent in an unnatural pose free and not holding down his loud shout from pain.
“I will do…” Jackson pronounces in a little shaking voice. “I must… Must… Mu-u-A-A-A-A!”
Jackson does something too sharply, hears a loud crunch, and feels a much stronger pain. That makes him shout loudly. However, thinking that he must save the dying Elizabeth and get her out of the car that turned into a bunch of iron after crushing the truck, the man makes himself forget any pain in his body, blood on it, dizziness, and strong vomit.
“I will get out of here…” Jackson pronounces confidently. “I will do…”
Jackson tries to open the door on his side, but it does not open because it’s jammed. Moreover, he cannot also take off the seat belt that refuses to get out of the fixing plate, no matter how hard he tries.
“Fuck, come on!” Jackson swears excitedly, getting more nervous and doing his best to get over the strong pain that is the reason why he cannot stop wincing. “Fuck! It’s jammed! No… No, no, no, no…”
Jackson spends a few more seconds dealing with the seat belt and the door, which is jammed and does not succumb to any of his actions. At some moment, Elizabeth being too exhausted and white stops him, putting a hand on his hand, then taking it softly, squeezing it tightly, and looking at the man as if she sees him for the last time.
“Leave it, sweetie…” Elizabeth pronounces quietly, with despair. “Don’t do this… We’ll die anyway…”
“No, Lizzy, we won’t die!” Jackson jabs excitedly with dumbfounded eyes. “We will not! I shall not give up and will get out of here and help you do that in any way.”
“Don’t need to try, Jackson. Nothing will save us…”
“No, don’t dare to say it! Hear me, don’t dare!”
“I feel our time has time… We’re about to die…”
“Stop even thinking about it, hear me! We will live! For our daughter! For Raquelle! She needs us! We can’t leave her!”
“At least, I will surely die…” Elizabeth makes a quiet sob. “I feel like I’m losing my strength… And I am ready to leave this world…”
“No, Elizabeth, no… Listen to me…”
Jackson grabs Elizabeth’s face softly, wipes some bloody tracks off it carefully, and moves a few black strands of her hair aside.
“I’m begging you, please, hold on,” Jackson begs with despair. “Hold on as hard as possible… We’ll get saved soon and brought to the hospital.”
“Nobody will do anything…” Elizabeth pronounces in a little shaking voice. “We are doomed…”
“No!”
“So, the time has come… To say goodbye to each other…”
“No, Lizzy, no! Don’t say that!”
Before answering, Elizabeth sniffs quietly and caresses Jackson’s cheek tenderly, looking at him with despair and tears in her eyes, in which the fire that they had a few minutes ago is fading away little by little.
“Probably, nobody else has made me as happy as you made me feel,” Elizabeth says in a shaking voice. “Despite all the difficulties we had to get through, I’ve never stopped loving you. Never… You’ve always been the best thing that has ever happened to me in my life. Such a short life.”
“Please, don’t say it like you’re gonna die,” Jackson begs with pity in his eyes.
“I will die, Jackson… Die…”
“No, you can’t die! I need you! Our daughter needs you. We can’t leave Raquelle alone! She is a baby yet!”
“I can’t…” Elizabeth sniffs quietly. “I have no strength…”
“Please, honey, hold on. For us. For those, who mean a lot to you.”
“Please, don’t blame yourself for what happened… You’re guilty of nothing. I know I wouldn’t have gotten into a defective car… You wouldn’t have let me do that.”
“But I’m really guilty of that! If I’d checked the car and found out that the brake line was damaged, nothing would’ve happened.”
“How could you know that?” Elizabeth shakes her head and slightly winces from the pain. “You could not…”
“Elizabeth, please…”
“I… I… Oh…”
Elizabeth sighs very hard and slightly winces in pain in her stomach. Very much blood has gotten out of it, covered her clothes and made them brightly red. Taking this pain is getting unbearable. But the woman says nothing about it, even if her bitter face clearly says she feels very bad and hurt.
“My death is close…” Elizabeth pronounces resignedly and closes her eyes for two seconds. “I’m about to die…”
“No, no, and no again!” Jackson jabs loudly with horror in his eyes. “I won’t let you die! I will not do it! I will get you out of here! In any way!”
The excited and scared Jackson tries to get out of the trap again to do just something to help Elizabeth. While she accepts the fact that she is dying and does nothing to get saved, just sitting in the passenger seat with unbearable pain and weakness, grabbing her bleeding stomach and barely holding down her loud shout.
Again, she stops the man from falling into a panic more and more, while he pulls his hair out from despair and hits the steering wheel with both hands, instantly feeling a strong pain and wincing strongly. Understanding that he can do nothing to save himself and his wife, Jackson is close to a nervous breakdown and almost ready to cry from realizing that the situation is hopeless, and there is nobody, who would help them.
“I can’t let it happen…” Jackson says in a quiet, low voice, shaking his head slightly and holding down tears of despair. “I can't…”
“We will die…” Elizabeth makes a quiet sob. “We will die. Right now.”
“No… It can’t be the story of our life… It can’t be! IT CAN’T BE!”
Jackson hits his probably broken hand against the steering wheel and does not pay attention to the unbearable pain, refusing to believe he is in a trap and absolutely powerless in the current situation.
Looking at the man, who is almost crying, Elizabeth starts crying and watches Jackson with pity in her eyes, feeling that her heart is squeezing and bleeding from seeing him like this… Seeing him for the last time. And understanding that she is about to die, the woman cannot hold down her wish to give her beloved man a farewell kiss and tell him words of love. That’s why she, getting over the pain that is like torture, gives her everything to put a bloody hand on the man’s cheek.
“Jackson…” Elizabeth pronounces quietly.
When Jackson barely moves his eyes to Elizabeth, he instantly gets involved in a shy kiss on the lips and closes his eyes automatically. Feeling the soft lips on his lips and the nice warmth that is spreading out over the whole body makes them forget what happened some time ago and what may happen now. Despite the strong pain from hits, fractures, and many wounds, they can feel these incredible emotions that have always given them pleasure and made their hearts tremble nicely.
It seems like it’s a breath of air that they lack more and more every second… Something that could help them hold on until they are found and given first aid. Is this not one of the reasons to literally sink the teeth into any chance to hold on? Could this kiss become some kind of magic and give them a wish to fight for their lives and each other’s lives? Give them some strength to wait for salvation and help!
But alas… Even such a touching and probably most touching kiss in their lives does not do a magical thing. Unfortunately, Elizabeth and Jackson understand their death is too close. Even if someone is near them, it would be too late to do something. No matter how sad it sounds, it was their last kiss. Last. They will never happen again. Realizing it, the woman steps back from the man first and looks at him with sadness with her exhausted look, not holding down the tears that are rolling on her cheeks. She does know that the time has come, and everything is about to go black once and forever. That’s why the white brunette looks at her husband like for the last time, tenderly caressing his bloody cheek and carefully wiping off tears under his sad, red eyes.
“I love you, Jackson…” Elizabeth confesses in a shaking voice, finding the strength to crack a true smile. “I will always love…”
After a few seconds of resisting before Elizabeth’s eyes close very slowly, and her body is getting soft and falls rightly into Jackson’s arms. He watches her with dumbfounded eyes and starts to shake strongly when the woman gets deathly white with a painful, farewell moan and relaxes the hand, with which she grabs his coat slightly.
“Elizabeth…” Jackson shakes his head with horror in his eyes. “Elizabeth!”
Thinking of the worst things and realizing his nightmare came true, Jackson starts clapping Elizabeth slightly on her cheek and rubbing it to try to wake the woman up.
“No, no, Lizzy, don’t die…” Jackson begs loudly in despair. “Don’t die! Hear me, don’t die! Stay with me! Stay with me! For me! For our daughter! Elizabeth!”
But clapping on the cheeks and shaking her by the shoulders does not help Jackson wake Elizabeth up, no matter how much he wants it. Her white body becomes soft in his bloody arms. Her eyes are tightly closed. She has no emotions on her wounded face. And blood is still bleeding out of the abdomen of the probably dead woman.
“Please, sweetie, don’t do this to me!” Jackson begs loudly, carefully moving a few strands of hair off her white face of Elizabeth and tenderly kissing her on the temple. “You can’t do this… Don’t leave me… Please… Don’t leave me alone… I need you… Lizzy…”
Jackson checks the pulse on Elizabeth’s neck with a shaking hand and gets horrified when finding out that she does not have it. So, it means the woman is dead. Nothing will help her. The man cannot take it and thinks it’s just a nightmare. His beloved wife is actually alive and healthy.
“No…” Jackson shakes his head, looking at Elizabeth with horror, pressing her to himself and trying to bring her to life. “No, Elizabeth, no… Don’t do this! Elizabeth, please, come back to me! I’m begging you… Don’t leave me!”
Jackson refuses to believe that Elizabeth just died before his eyes, in his arms. He tries to make himself sure it’s not the truth, and the woman is alive yet. But he has to admit it, holding her white dead body, on which there is much blood, many wounds, and bruises, and realizing he is in the car that turned into a big bunch of scrap metal after the fateful crash against the truck.
“It can’t be happening…” Jackson pronounces in a shaking voice. “Can’t be… I can’t lose you, Lizzy, can’t…”
Jackson shouts with despair.
“I would’ve rather died instead of you…” Jackson adds. “I’m guilty of what happened… I should’ve died… Me… Not you…”
Jackson tenderly caresses the cheek of the dead Elizabeth.
“I killed you, sweetie…” Jackson pronounces guiltily and sniffs quietly. “Killed… Killed… It shouldn’t have happened! Shouldn’t have! SHOULDN’T HAVE! A-A-A-A!”
In the end, Jackson cannot hold down his emotions and starts to cry. Tears are rolling over his face, mixing with the blood on it, and getting on Elizabeth’s wound on her abdomen. Since there is nobody around, the man lets himself let these emotions go out and scream out about his pain at the top of his lungs. There is no wish to hold himself down. Especially, now. When he is holding the dead woman in his arms that he loved so much.
“NO-O-O-O!” Jackson screams loudly, straining his voice, pressing Elizabeth closer to himself, hugging her tightly and caressing her head tenderly. “NO-O-O! WHY? WHY? A-A-A-A-A-A!”
Maybe, some time ago, Jackson had a reason to save himself and get out of the car, but now he stops trying to do something. It seems like he is ready to give up and wait for his death. To go to another world after Elizabeth, who he tenderly kisses on the forehead, the top of her head, temples, the tip of her nose, and the lips, not stopping caressing her face and pressing the dead woman to himself.
“I love you, Elizabeth…” Jackson whispers in a shaking voice, sniffing a couple of times. “I always have… I have never been attracted to someone as much as I am to you… I love you… Love… Love…”
This tragedy, Elizabeth’s death, makes Jackson so shocked that he does not pay attention to the very strong pain in his body from hits and fractures, having probably much more of them than he assumed. But now it does not make sense. The man refuses to fight and try to save himself.
He does not care that he does not feel his legs and arms. He does not strain his voice from pain from the fracture of another leg. He does not care that glassy, plastic, and metallic pieces hurt his body, got into some areas deeply, and hurt some organs. His traumas are not less serious than the wounds of the dead Elizabeth, who lost all her blood.
But they later let Jackson know about themselves when he feels unbearable pain and gets sick due to the possible strong concussion that he got after the hit on the head. But he does not resist it and is quietly sitting in the passenger seat with his dead wife in his arms, kissing her often as if it would help her come back to life and help her hold on until they get help.
Some time later, Jackson gets so bad that he understands he is about to fall into darkness and never get out of it. So, he silently says farewell to all his close people and is getting ready to close his eyes forever and leave this world after Elizabeth, whom he caresses tenderly on the head and kisses the top of her head. And then he leans his head back and starts closing his eyes slowly, understanding everything goes blurry and less clear.
He quickly gets dragged into darkness, and his body becomes soft. But one hand of his keeps being placed on the head of the dead and white Elizabeth, while another hand just falls next to him like something heavy. And a few moments later, Jackson closes his eyes forever with a painful moan and leaves this world after his wife, along with whom he, unfortunately, died in such a tragic way and was deprived of a chance to get saved and continue to live happily after.
The dead spouses did not even suspect the car accident was provoked by their greatest enemy named Simon Ringer, who comes closer to the accident place some time later, sees the car smoking and burning after being crushed, and smiles slyly. He does not doubt Elizabeth and Jackson, who were in the one, did not manage to survive. So, it means his plan to murder them on purpose has come true.
***
“An ambulance could not help them in time when they came to the accident place after a call from one of the witnesses,” Simon says. “So, doctors declared that they were dead. A little later, they gave a reason – traumas of the whole body that are incomparable with life.”
Simon clears his throat quickly.
“And some time later, the police declared that the accident was provoked by a malfunction of the motor,” Simon confesses. “Which was broken for a long time, but your father never noticed it. It means the police did not open a case. And honestly, I was surprised. I thought idiots were working at the police because they did not find out the real reason for the car accident, or they did not want to work on it.”
Simon glances aside.
“Anyway, I was very happy,” Simon says confidently. “If someone had suspected me of being guilty of that car accident, I would’ve been put in prison. But the police did not find it out and blamed your parents for everything. Who were blamed by the witnesses, who were talking to the police. They said they were allegedly drunk or just too irresponsible.”
Simon smiles slyly, bending his hands into elbows in front of himself.
“So, that’s the story, my darling,” Simon finishes. “I think you understand why I was trying to find you in any way. I was revenging on you because your mother left me. I swear you would pay for the sins of that woman after her death. My death was not finished after the death of Elizabeth and Jackson.”
Simon raises his head proudly.
“I shall never forgive her for giving a damn about my feelings,” Simon says confidently. “And found another man while I was not in the city.”
After everything she heard, Raquelle wants to wake up at home and realize everything that’s happening now is the most horrible nightmare in her life. The girl cannot believe Simon almost ruined her career and her life on purpose. He was doing all of that just to get revenge on her because Elizabeth somehow rejected Ringer’s love by getting married to Jackson.
“So, are you the one to do that?” Raquelle concludes, tightly clenching her hands into fists and breathing heavily. “So, did my parents die many years ago because of you?”
“Yes, my girl,” Simon smiles widely. “You know the truth now.”
“Stinker… Jerkoff! BASTARD! THEY DIED BECAUSE OF YOU! BECAUSE OF YOU, I BECAME AN ORPHAN AT SUCH AN EARLY AGE!”
“Your mother did not want to make the right choice. So, she paid a lot for that. And your father had his sins. He stole his beloved woman from me and refused to give her to me. And he dared to threaten me. They should have understood I would never leave them alone and would kill them anyway.”
“I hate you, Simon Ringer, I HATE YOU!” Raquelle shouts with despair. “KILLER! KILLER!”
“I thought a little and decided that you should have found out the real reason why you had to pay for the sins of your parents,” Simon confesses and looks at Raquelle with a sly smile. “So, you heard the real reason for the death of your mommy and daddy. You know who was guilty of that.”
“Never, hear me, I will never forgive you for that,” Raquelle hisses through her teeth. “HEAR ME, NEVER!”
“I don’t need your forgiveness.”
“Forget everything you heard before. I am taking my words back and not going to give a damn about what I just heard. Do not wait for mercy from me, Ringer. I shall destroy you! TURN YOU TO DUST!”
“No, Cameron, you will do nothing to me.”
“I will do! I will do my best to make you pay for the death of my parents. You, bastard, will go to prison and stay there UNTIL THE LAST DAY OF YOUR LIFE!”
“Alas, my sweetheart, there is only one winner in any game,” Simon replies quietly. “And I will win this game! But you, bitch, will die right now!”
Simon points the pistol at Raquelle again, while she shakes slightly from fear and starts to be really afraid that the man will really shoot her down.
“No!” Raquelle exclaims with her widely open eyes.
“So, scared?” Simon smirks evilly. “Nobody can protect you and knows what is going to happen to you.”
“No, Simon, please…”
Meanwhile, Raquelle thinks with tears in her eyes:
“My God, why was I such an idiot? Why? Grandpa Frederick and Aunt Alicia were absolutely right… I should’ve gone to the police and asked for help. But I didn’t do it. And now this man is about to kill me… God… God… Simon is gonna kill me. Kill me as well as he killed my parents… I don’t wanna die. I don’t want!”
“Alright, my dear,” Simon says with a sly smile, keeping the pistol pointed at Raquelle. “Since I am the man, who it’s hard but possible to agree with, you have a chance to make only one last wish. And when it comes true, I will kill you with great pleasure. And I will have no regret about it.”
“I have only one wish!” Raquelle says with evil in her eyes. “To know you paid for everything you did to revenge on my mother as much as possible.”
“No, my dear lady!” Simon simpers evilly and loudly and points the pistol at Raquelle again after he moved it off for a little time. “I am giving you one more attempt. THE LAST ONE.”
“And I want to turn you to dust. For killing two innocent people! Killing my parents! MAKING MY FAMILY AND ME SUFFER! They were grieving for a very long time!”
“So, don’t you have any wishes?”
“I hate you, scumbag, I hate!” Raquelle exclaims with despair, as her nostrils inflate. “KILLER! KILLER OF MY PARENTS! I WANT YOU TO BE TORTURED BY REMORSE!”
“Alright, as far as I understand, you have no wishes.” Simon slowly runs his hand over the pistol. “So, excellent, it would be better for me. I would not have to waste time letting you do what you want.”
“There will be a day when you will pay for everything you have done,” Raquelle hisses through her teeth. “I do believe in justice and know it will glory early or late.”
“I give a fuck about what you say. I am going to kill you right here and now.”
“KILLER!”
“Say goodbye to this world, my sweet girl. Your time has come!”
Simon points the pistol at Raquelle and wants to shoot at her with great pleasure. But then they suddenly hear a loud, male voice that is madly familiar and full of hate and anger out of nowhere:
“Do not dare to hurt her! Or you will have to have a serious talk with me! Even though I have much to tell you anyway.”
Simon and Raquelle turn sharply to the side where the voice sounds. They see a few policemen, who are pointing their pistols at Ringer and surrounding him from all sides slowly but confidently. Among these people, there is also Terrence. He is looking at Simon with hate in his eyes and clenches his hands tightly into fists, wishing to do something to him. While Simon gets wild because his plans were ruined, Raquelle wonders truly to see someone expect her offender at this place. And the girl is much more surprised to see her ex-boyfriend. And her friend, who, as she thought, forgot about her.
“Terrence?” Raquelle pronounces surprisingly, rounding her eyes. “Hunter?”
“Simon Gordon Ringer, you are under arrest for being a fraud, meddling in a personal life, threatening many people, and intentional infliction of injury,” Hunter says loudly and clearly, keeping a cold look and holding a pistol pointed at Simon. “Put the gun on the ground, raise your hands up, and slowly get down on your knees. Remember, anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law.”
Simon ignores Hunter’s words and focuses his attention on Terence, to whom he comes slowly.
“Oh, gosh, who decided to come here…” Simon pronounces with a wide smile, looking at Terrence contemptuously from head to foot. “Did Terrence James MacClife himself decide to make us happy with his pretense?”
“As you see, I did,” Terrence pronounces in a rude, low voice.
“So, my dear, did you come to watch a dramatic scene? In which his ex-girlfriend is tragically dying. Who he actually left without shame!”
“Do not even dare to hurt her!” Terrence says rudely, looking at Simon with hate in his cold eyes. “Or you will pay much for it.”
“What would you do to me?”
“I can do much! And I will do that! You have done too many disgusting things. So, it’s your time to pay for all your dirty tricks.”
“Oh, MacClife, MacClife…” Simon shakes his head with a loud laugh. “How stupid you are… Do you think i will change my mind just because you brought all these policemen with you? Do you naively think I would give up so easily and leave this gal alone?”
“Either you do it at your wish, or I, bastard, will hurt you so much that you will regret being born in the world,” Terrence hisses through his teeth with both hands clenched into hard fists.
“Come on? Did the love for this bitch suddenly wake up inside you? Did you naively think you would get her back if you came here with the police and beat my face? Is this another attempt to whitewash yourself after doing a bad thing?”
“If I have to, I will beat you so hard that you will even forget your name!”
“Jeez, Raquelle, you just look at your ex…” Simon simpers maliciously, glancing at Raquelle being shocked. “This arrogant peacock, who come here to show off.”
“Stop showing off, bastard!” Terrence demands rudely. “Do you think I will leave this place shortly after you tell me to do this.”
“M-m-m, look, girl… Look how hard he is trying to become good. Again. Everyone knows well that MacClife always does something good on purpose when the media spreads dirty rumors about him. Which he is afraid of as much as fore. He is afraid that they will make his image worse. The image of the irresistible, pretty guy and innocent angel that all the young girls want to be with.”
“Do not make me mad, Ringer!” Terrence clenches his hands into fists much tighter. “You have done enough for me to start to curse you. Make me wish you to burn in hell!”
“Listen, Terrence, do not prevent me from doing my business,” Simon says with a contemptuous smirk. “Take this gang and get out of here. What if you get your hair worse or rip your coat that costs not less than one thousand dollars.”
“We will not leave!” Terrence raises his head proudly.
“We have enough reports, which say how you were deceiving naive people and getting money out of them to make them allegedly famous,” Hunter adds confidently. “We have gotten very much of them for a few years.”
“You can prove nothing!” Simon exclaims.
“No, Mr. Ringer, you are wrong. The investigation established that people were deceived by the same person. No matter how hard you change your appearance, voice, and name, there are many things that could help us understand that all these cases are connected.”
“And what?”
“The arrest! Moreover, your attempts to threaten some people and kill them are one more good reason to take you under arrest.”
“Yeah? I wonder, who told you where I wanted to kill this gal? And who told this plucked rooster, MacClife, everything? Who, as I can see, got over his pride and went to become a hero for his ex-girlfriend. Even if he left her!”
“It’s none of your fucking business, bastard!” Terrence throws rudely.
“Oh, did Cameron take you with her? Whom everybody left after they found out about her mental issues and watched her confirming everything by behaving like a sick, hysterical lady! Did this bitch decide not to obey me and to take helpers with her?”
“Mr. Ringer, do not waste the time of you and us and give up on the police,” one of the policemen suggests, pointing a pistol at Simon. “Leave this girl alone and let her go home.”
“NEVER!” Simon cries. “NEVER! I was planning everything for a long time not to terrify this bitch and let her go after telling her to keep herself far from me.”
“You will go to prison anyway, Ringer!” Terrence throws with anger in the eyes. “Even if we have to do that by force and pull you off the innocent girl. Whom you have tortured for a long time!”
“Do you really think I will give up on the police so easily and pay for that? Ha! Never!” Simon points the pistol at all the policemen and Terrence. “None of us will get it! I will do what I have been dreaming about for many years. Even if it’s going to happen before your eyes.”
“Why?” Terrence wonders. “Why are you revenging her? Why have you the fuck been torturing the poor girl like this for such a long time?”
“Her mother was guilty of everything!” Simon points sharply at Raquelle. “If that whore had not preferred me over the other man, everything would have been alright.”
“What?” Terrence pronounces surprisingly. “Did you date her mother?”
“I did! But she preferred me over the father of this gal! She left me! She left me in the worst way! She said she never loved me, got married to the other man, and was expecting a child from him!”
“Could that woman really get a crush on such a bastard like you?”
“As you can see, she did. But she did not appreciate me enough. Just like her daughter did not appreciate you.”
With these words, Simon moves a sly look to Raquelle, who swallows up nervously with her widely open eyes.
“I love the love of my whole life!” Simon exclaims. “I lost the one I loved! Because of that bastard, Jackson. Because of the scumbag, who dared to steal MY ELIZABETH from me!”
“And you killed both of them because my mother left you somehow and preferred my father!” Raquelle adds loudly. “But it didn’t seem enough to you! You kept revenging on the dead person!”
“Right. I did not want to stop and wanted to defeat the daughter of those people.”
“I am not guilty of the fact that my mother did not want to be with you!”
“You are the daughter of Elizabeth Thompson! So, you will pay for the sins of your mother, who was sleeping with your father while I was in Cambridge and taking care of my sick stepfather.”
“It’s some kind of obsession, not love.”
“No, my girl, I loved. Loved with all my heart. And I was ready to accept your mother, even with the child. She needed just to leave your father and say she loved me and wanted to be with me. THAT’S ALL!”
“If Mother did not love you, you could make her do!”
“She would have understood I was better than Jackson!”
“Why? Why would you be better?”
“EVERYTHING!”
“Did you decide to kill her with the thought that nobody would get her after you did not get her?”
“I did not want to see her with your father. I wanted to see her with nobody else! But even if that bitch had survived in the car accident, she would have paid me for that betrayer. But after she died, the one, who is connected with her, will suffer. I mean you!”
Listening to all of this, Terrence gets shocked and did not expect to hear that Simon would have to do with the car accident, in which Raquelle’s parents died.
“Oh, shit, is that really the truth?” Terrence wonders, glancing at Raquelle standing next to him. “Did Simon really have to do with the death of those people?”
Although Terrence does not expect an answer and thinks this is a rhetorical question, Raquelle answers it shortly, even if she does it very quickly and quietly:
“Yes, it’s true.”
While Raquelle looks down, Simon smirks loudly and crosses his arms over his chest.
“Oh, it is really the truth,” Simon confirms confidently.
“So, as it turned out, not only are you a fraud but also a killer?” Terrence gets mad.
“If that woman had made the right choice, she would have been alive. And her boyfriend would have been alive if he had not stolen MY love from me.”
“Holy shit, she made a mistake when she stood in your way.”
“I loved Elizabeth with all my heart! I literally lost my mind after I met her! I wanted to get her love. And when she answered me, I was madly happy. She made me smile and get much better. Lizzy was the woman, with whom I wanted to spend my whole life. I thought she would give birth to my babies and take care of me.” Simon smirks nervously. “No! While I was taking care of my stepfather, she met the bastard named Jackson, who is the father of this nasty bitch…”
Simon sharply points at Raquelle.
“And he stole my love,” Simon adds rudely. “He dared to put an eye on what belonged to me.”
“Maybe, she wanted to be with him?” Terrence assumes. “Maybe, she saw that that man was much better and chose him?”
“She thought he was much better! But when Raquelle was born, their relationship got worse. I thought she understood her mistake and would have come back to me. Moreover, I was ready to accept Elizabeth, even with the child, and raise her like my own daughter. But no! Those scumbags reconciled! And all my dreams got ruined like a card house! AGAIN!”
“And did you decide to kill people in anger?”
“Actually, I originally wanted to kidnap their daughter from them and do my best for her to never see her parents. But then I changed my mind. And some time later, I just provoked the car accident by cutting the brake line of the car, in which Raquelle’s parents went to have fun.”
“You are a bastard…” Terrence shakes his head. “A sick scumbag that must get therapy.”
“I did not see the moment of the crush, but I saw what was left of their car. That crushed the truck at a high speed. I saw lifesavers getting their dead bodies out of the bunch of iron and unsuccessfully trying to rescue them. But alas, both of them got such serious traumas that they could not survive.”
“Did you kill two innocent people and decide to do the same to their daughter? Who does not have to do with that situation!”
“I don’t want the girl, who is amazingly similar to her mother, to live and always remind me of her. If you saw photos of Elizabeth at the age that Raquelle has now, you would see they are similar like two drops of water.”
“Were you not ashamed? Were you not ashamed of breaking those people’s car? When mocking Raquelle for such a long time?”
“Revenge on your enemies never makes you feel shame and regret. It makes you feel a nice, warming feeling when your plan comes true. Nothing makes a human as happy as the fact that their enemy is suffering somehow.”
“Is that why you were looking for a reason to meet her so badly?” Terrence concludes. “Is that why you were looking for those, who would help you get what you want?”
“That’s why,” Simon nods with a sly smile. “I was waiting for this little lady to grow up. And then I started to make my plan come true. I decided to turn the life of this gal to hell and get her as exhausted as possible. And then just kill her. And I would kill her right now with pleasure if you…”
Simon points at Terrence with a finger, looking at him with evil in his eyes.
“Had not come here with your pals from the police and stopped me!” Simon adds rudely.
“So, I got it,” Terrence says thoughtfully. “I understand why you were so happy when you told me you met Raquelle. You needed a reason to get closer to her.”
“Right. And I was a witness to your conflicts. Starting from the first one.”
“What?”
“Yes, yes, my sweetheart. I remember every single fight of yours. And I memorized your first kiss, after which this queen of runways slapped you in the face for the hundredth time.”
“That’s why…” Raquelle pronounces thoughtfully.
“I was listening to everything closely. I was watching everything… Taking notes… Looking for something that would help me make my plans come true,” Simon smiles slyly. “And that was so good you fought then. I could spread any rumors, and nobody would have even guessed that was my work. You would have blamed Terrence for everything. He would have become the number-one suspect. And it would have been very good for me.”
“You know, Simon, I suspected that something was wrong,” Terrence confesses confidently, looking at Simon with contempt in the eyes. “I clearly remember that you wanted to find someone, on whom you wanted to take revenge so badly. You told me about it. You said there was someone that you hated and could not forgive for many years.”
“What you are talking about…” Simon shakes his head.
“But I did not think Raquelle would be the one. And you would take revenge on her for what her mother did.”
“M-m-m, wow…”
Being a little confused because of these words, Raquelle looks at Terrence a little suspiciously and frowns slightly but says nothing.
“You are smart,” Simon says amazingly. “Gosh, Terrence, I am sorry about doubting you! Maybe, you are a sick, hysterical one with a high self-rating, but you have brains.”
“So, are you confirming all my words?” Terrence asks.
“Yes, all your guesses are right and true. Bravo, Terry, bravo!”
Simon claps his hands loudly, while Terrence glances at Raquelle, who looks definitely scared and hesitant because of the fear she has been obsessed with for a long time.
“By the way, my dear Raquelle and I talked about you being a mad and too confident penguin that got too much love from his mommy,” Simon says thoughtfully. “By giving you too much attention, she made you an egoist, who thinks only of himself. You are used to being the middle of the Universe and want everyone to treat you like a king.”
“Stop palavering me again,” Terrence throws coldly. “I do know all your tricks and learned not to succumb to them.”
“Oh, yeah! Did you get brains after I lied to you about your ex-girlfriend the last time?”
“Yes, I made a mistake the last time. But now you will not make me believe any lie of yours.”
“But thanks to my lie, I opened your eyes and helped you understand what Raquelle Cameron was. And she understood that people told the truth about you. After being in a relationship with you for a few months and seeing you furious, she understood that the rumors were not rumors. Even if you were able to use your attractive appearance and your ability to charm any girl, nobody would have stayed with you much longer than Cameron did.”
“I said, stop palavering me!”
“I just told you the truth.”
“Remember, Simon, I will not leave until I am sure you do not hurt this girl.”
“Oh, shit, how it’s funny to watch you trying to play a hero so hard…” Simon shakes his head with a wide smile. “What’s the reason for wishing to be a hero, Terrence? Are you afraid that Raquelle would betray you so much that you decided to get her a little softer after breaking up with her and not to let her tell everyone what shit you are?”
“It’s none of your business!”
“She could easily tell the whole world about all your disgusting actions and literally confirm all the rumors that have been spread before. And your career will be ruined. You will have to run away from here as far as possible not to get ashamed. All the little girls will throw cassettes with your movies and tear posters and magazines with photos of you.”
“You should do nothing hard – just to stop wasting our time and leave Raquelle alone.”
“And you should do nothing impossible – take this gang with you and get out of here to the fuck.”
“Do not make your life worse, Ringer. Refuse to take revenge and give up on the police. We will go on different sides and forget everything that’s ever happened. Now this is the best thing you can do for this girl.”
“No, my dear,” Simon shakes his head confidently with a sly smile. “I never give up on half of the way and always bring the case to an end. I always get what I want. No matter what I have to get through.”
“Simon Ringer, give up right now,” Hunter recommends highly. “Remember, we will not leave until you give up. And the sooner you stop this show, the better it will be for you, us, and this girl.”
“Oh, no, Mr. Policeman, this show IS GETTING STARTING!” Simon says loudly with a wide smile. “GETTING STARTED!”
“Simon!” Terrence yells.
“If you all came here, even your pretense will not stop me from DOING WHAT I WANT!”
At first, Simon looks at Raquelle being white from fear and standing next to Terrence. But later he runs up to her as fast as a bullet, grabs her sharply under an arm, and takes her aside so quickly that nobody gets time to say or do something. Then Ringer moves his eyes to Richard, who has been hiding behind the concrete column along with his friends and waiting for a sigh.
“Hey, Richard, get ready!” Simon commands loudly. “Get everything we need! We will get rid of the corpse of this gal!”
“Come with me, men!” Richard exclaims. “That way!”
Richard sharply springs out of the hideaway and runs to nobody knows where along with his friends. After hearing these words, Raquelle shakes slightly with her widely open eyes. But Simon grabs her under an arm much tighter.
“Stay quiet!” Simon hisses through his teeth and puts the pistol against the temple of Raquelle, putting an arm around her neck. “Don’t move! DON’T MOVE, I SAID!”
“Let her go now!” Terrence demands rudely.
“Shut up there!” Simon moves the pistol on Terrence for a moment. “Or I will shoot your head down!”
“Do not make me wild! I shall strangle you with my own hands if you don’t let her go!”
“Try if you are not afraid to die!”
While Terrence is trying to help Raquelle get out of Simon’s grip, the girl starts shaking strongly from fear with her widely open eyes, and her offender is threatening her ex-boyfriend and her with a gun, the policemen start a short talk.
“Hey, guys, is that Richard Stalker, who has not been able to get caught for a long time,” one of the policemen says.
“Who is Richard Stalker?” Hunter frowns slightly.
“That kid has been on the hook with the police for a long time. He has stolen something many times, killed someone, and been a part of many crimes.”
“Why can't they get him caught?”
“He covers his tracks well. My colleagues know that was him, but we can’t prove his fault. No fingerprints, no personal things – nothing. He has only been caught by cameras several times.”
“Right!” another policeman confirms confidently. “That’s really Richard Stalker! I remember that he was a part of many cases. For example, I know much about a case of grand theft at a large bank. And theft of a rich man.”
“Here’s one more criminal!” the third policeman replies cheerfully.
“Imagine how many things we’d do if we caught both Ringer and Stalker.”
“That’s right! We must catch them in any way! What if our police brass gives us a little reward for getting two especially dangerous criminals arrested?”
“Ar-r-r, stop dreaming, idiot!” another middle-height policeman with dark hair, a strong constitution, and a mole on his chin growls quietly, rolling his eyes. “We have to do our best to catch these two. Can’t you see they refuse to give up?”
“Yeah, James, you’re right, but we’ve gotta get them caught somehow quickly and take them to the station.”
“I doubt we’d leave at the nearest time. Both of them are definitely going to be hard to reach. Moreover, we should catch those three men, who got out somewhere along with Stalker.”
“Yeah!” the policeman, who is dreaming of a reward, exhales sharply. “But getting much more money would be great for me…”
“Shut up there!” another policeman throws gloomily. “Someone is about to be killed, but you care only about money!”
“Exactly!” Hunter agrees. “You found a very good thing to dream about… My friend is in danger, and we must save her in any way. I will not leave Raquelle and let her suffer because of this stinker.”
Meanwhile, Simon is keeping the pistol against Raquelle’s temple, grabbing her neck with an arm tightly, not letting her go, and preventing any attempts by Terrence to help her. Realizing that she is about to die at any time, the girl’s eyes full of a true scare are wide open, and her heart is about to jump out of her chest. She is strongly shaking from horror, crying quietly, dreaming of walking up, and understanding that it’s just a nightmare of hers.
“So what, my darling, it’s your time to pay for the sins of your mother,” Simon smirks loudly. “You can say goodbye to all these people. Because I am going to shoot your head down.”
“No, Simon, don’t do this…” Raquelle begs in a quiet, shaking voice. “Don’t do this…”
“When I deal with you, I will kill your ex, who came here with the hope that he will rescue you.”
“No, don't do this!” Raquelle pronounces a little louder.
“You love him. No matter how hard you deny it, this man does not leave you indifferent. But I realized it when I got your reaction to the news about MacClife hanging out with another girl. Who was much mo-o-ore beautiful than you.”
“Shut up, Simon, SHIT UP!” Raquelle shouts with despair.
“When I deal with MacClife, I shall defeat all these pathetic policemen. Of course, they did a noble thing by agreeing to fight with me to save you. But they will lose. And they will not be remembered as heroes because they did not get the evil uncle Simon, who had deceived so many people and killed two innocent people.”
“I wish you burned in hell, bastard…”
“And then, when nobody can stop me, I shall deal with all your relatives. Moreover, they are closely connected with your mother and father. I want to get rid of everything that reminds me of her.”
“Do not dare to hurt anyone of my close people!” Raquelle hisses through her teeth with evil in her eyes, clenching her hands tightly into fists. “You hear me? DO NOT DARE!”
“You will have been dead. You will have been able to do nothing for me. As well as your dead mommy and daddy are not able to protect you. They are able only to wait for their daughter to go to them.”
“I would tear you apart if you dared to hurt at least one of my close people.”
“I do not care about your senseless threats.”
“I am not kidding, Ringer! Do not even dare to get closer to someone I know.”
“Oh, fine, stop talking! I shall destroy your family anyway after I deal with you.”
“NO!”
“So, as your ex-boyfriend decided to come here, he can watch you dying and choking with your blood. I want to make him happy and give him a chance to see the one to cloud his mind dying before his eyes. Let him know that he could stop having to be afraid that someone would betray him. He would be able to marry his gorgeous blonde tomorrow.”
“Let her go now, Simon!” Terrence demands with evil in his eyes. “Don’t dare to do anything to her.”
“Oh, oh, oh, I am so scared…”
“I am not kidding, bastard. If I see at least one hair falls off her head, you will pay a high cost.”
“So, Terry, are you afraid to see your ex-girlfriend dying before your eyes?” Simon smiles slyly. “Or are you afraid to faint from a lot of blood and thinking you would have a human’s death?”
“I said, let Raquelle go now!”
“You know, I wanted to kill her quickly not to make her feel anything. But for you, I will change my plans. I will be killing this cutie slowly. To get pleasure and torture you.”
“If you do not let her go now, I, scumbag, will be killing you slowly and making you moan from pain,” Terrence threatens rudely.
“Only after the gal dies and goes to her mommy and daddy.”
“I AM DEMANDING TO LET THIS GIRL GO FOR THE LAST TIME! OR I WILL NOT BE RESPONSIBLE FOR MYSELF AND THE CONSEQUENCES OF MY ACTIONS.”
“Whoa, whoa, calm down, Terrence, calm down…” Simon smirks evilly. “Do not get so excited.”
“EITHER YOU LET HER GO OR I WILL STRANGLE YOU WITH MY OWN HANDS.”
“If only someone called a mental hospital and sent doctors here. Dear policemen, can you do a good thing? Send doctors here and tell them to take this psycho with them and put a straitjacket on him for a few months.”
“DO NOT GET ME MAD, JERKOFF!”
“Maybe, they would treat your broken nerves and teach you not to wave your hands like a sick psycho. You should do something before you really kill someone.”
After losing his patience, Terrence sharply moves and attacks Simon with fists so quickly that Raquelle barely gets to jump aside with a loud gasp and set her eyes full of horror on both of them. However, the fight does not last for a long time because MacClife gets a strong hit in the yawl for what he did from Ringer and falls to the ground with a taste of blood in his mouth. While he gets up, tries to attack Simon again but does not do it as the policemen stop him, Ringer grabs tightly the hair of Raquelle shouting loudly, presses her sharply to himself, and puts the pistol against her temple.
“Nice try, MacClife,” Simon throws rudely. “Nice. But you will get nothing by having hysterics. I shall kill this bitch right here anyway.”
“DO NOT DARE!” Terrence screams at the top of his lungs.
“Mr. Ringer, let the girl go now!” one of the policemen demands confidently.
“NEVER!” Simon throws rudely. “I am not going to let go of the one I have been chasing for so many years.”
“If you have some claims that we can make to set her free, let us know. Nobody will suffer if you agree to work with the police.”
“I have only one claim – you must take this psycho MacClife with you and get out as far as possible. I have wasted too much time on you, even if I could have killed this girl a long time ago and buried her body somewhere in this place.”
“It will happen only over my dead body!” Terrence says rudely and confidently. “To kill this girl, you will have to kill me first.”
“You will die anyway, my sweetie. Do you really think I would let you stay alive? Oh, no!”
“Catch me first! But believe me, it’s going to be a very hard mission for you.”
“Ha, seriously?” Simon smirks loudly. “One shot at your heart before you will die instantly! You will not even say farewell to your ex-girlfriend, who – I am sure – will not stay indifferent to your death.”
“No, Simon!” Raquelle shouts loudly with despair and tears in her eyes. “Don’t do this!”
“But what I’m talking about! You will have been dead when I killed him.”
“Please, don’t do stupid things that would hurt you… Don’t kill anyone else!”
“Do not worry, my sweet girl, you and your ex-boyfriend will meet in heaven, and he will meet your mommy and daddy.” Simon smiles slyly and bites his lip slightly. “But at first, I want to torture you a little. Use the help of my loyal people, who have already prepared everything.”
“I said, OVER MY DEAD BODY!” Terrence shouts with evil in his eyes, clenching his hands into fists. “You will hurt her only after you deal WITH ME!”
But Simon does not listen to Terrence and continues to look at Raquelle with a sly, wide smile, keeping the pistol against the girl’s temple with one hand and slowly running a second one over her hair. At some moment, something clicks in his mind, and he starts to look at the white, terribly scared girl much more closely and compares her with her mother at the same age as hers.
“Damn, girl…” Simon pronounces in a much lower voice. “How much you are similar to your mother… Just like two drops of water…”
“Stop, Simon, please…” Raquelle pronounces with tears and pity in her eyes.
“But I am sorry your hair is not black but brown. You should not have dyed it… I do love black hair color… It’s so sexy and attractive…”
Simon begins to look into Raquelle’s face very closely while she looks at him with her widely open eyes, and sometimes unsuccessfully tries to get out of the man with a pistol in his hands.
“But your eyes are similar to your mother’s ones…” Simon says in a nauseous voice. “Very beautiful… I would not mind drowning in them.”
Simon presses Raquelle much closer to himself and wants to kiss her on the neck carefully, as if he is starting to forget who he is holding in his strong grip and confusing her with someone that gets him so attracted. But the girl being much more frightened tries to get out much harder.
“Are you out of your mind?” Raquelle gets horrified loudly. “What are you doing?”
“You are really a mother’s daughter,” Simon smiles widely, filthily. “Mother’s one…”
The more Terrence watches this scene, the wilder he gets. He gets a strong wish to take something heavy and throw it right in Simon’s head. At some moment, the man gets sick of taking this torture that makes him burn from anger and jealousy that gets instantly obsessed with him when Ringer tries to leave a kiss on Raquelle’s neck.
Terrence starts off and wants to attack Simon, but that one takes a sharp step back and points the pistol at him, not Raquelle, who he kept under the gun before. The man stops instantly and raises his hands up, understanding that he would not better ask for trouble.
“If you take one more step, you will get your ex by little parts,” Simon says in a cold voice, tightly pressing Raquelle to himself and pointing the gun at Terrence.
“Let her go, Simon,” Terrence demands as quietly as possible, standing where he is standing with both hands raised up and barely holding down the anger and jealousy he is obsessed with. “Just let her go, and nobody will not suffer. I promise.”
“Do not be a little naive boy, Terrence,” Simon throws rudely. “Do you really think I would give up so easily and forget about all my plans that I wanted to make come true for so many years? No! Do not even dream! I will go until the end!”
“Let her go now!”
“Better close your mouth and say nothing! When I deal with this gal, your time will come, as well.”
“No!” Raquelle shouts with despair and tears in her eyes. “No, Simon! Don’t do this!”
“So, girl, are you scared?”
“I’m begging you… Don’t hurt him… Don’t hurt him! Please…”
“Are you also so naive that you think you would make me sure to give up?”
“You can kill me if you really want. But for God’s sake, don’t hurt Terrence. He doesn’t have to do with it. He doesn’t have to do with this situation.”
“Oh, he does…”
“I don’t want you to kill one more close person of mine,” Raquelle makes a quiet sob. “You have already deprived me of my parents! Watching you kill him would be too much!”
“Oh, my gosh!” Simon laughs hysterically with his mouth wide open. “What a drama! How hard you are protecting your ex… How hard you are begging me not to kill him…”
“I don’t want anyone else to suffer because of me,” Raquelle says with despair. “I don't want you to kill someone.”
“M-m-m, what a twist… It seems like, you could not stand him some time ago and literally danced from happiness because of your breakup. What happened now, my dear?”
“Just don’t dare to hurt this man.”
“What a changing girl you are. So changing…”
With these words, Simon tickles his nose against a curve of Raquelle’s neck, while she winces slightly because she does not feel comfortable because of what this man is doing.
“And your ex quickly changed his mind,” Simon notices thoughtfully. “Right, Terrence?”
Simon moves his eyes to Terrence breathing heavily and points the pistol at him.
“You also wanted to forget this girl,” Simon recalls. “This thankless bitch that did not appreciate the gift she was given.”
“How much time will we have to waste?” Terrence asks coldly. “When will you the fuck let her go?”
“Listen, why did you come here? Why? You better go to your girlfriend, who you began to kiss and hug when you broke up with Cameron!”
“That girl stayed in the past, if you want to know.”
“Come on? Didn’t your affair last for a long time? But it seems like that beauty was hanging on your neck and looked into your eyes some time ago. With a wish to please you and be much better than Cameron.”
“You see what you want to see.”
“So… Sorry… Very sorry that gorgeous blonde with an incredible body and long thin legs did not manage to steal your heart.”
“Ha, how do you know I spent time with the blonde?” Terrence smirks contemptuously.
“Trust me, I know everything,” Simon smiles slyly. “Nothing can be hidden from me.”
“Ah, sorry, I forgot! You told your pathetic pals to watch everybody that has to do with Raquelle and tell you everything that was happening to us.”
“So, my helper saw you with that cutie. Many times. He told me how happy you were when you walked next to her with a proud look. And answering her kisses right in public with great pleasure.”
“Was your helper chasing me from my home? Since he knows everything so well!”
“No, he was just lucky to meet you in the city with that beauty. Who did not make you forget the one your heart still belongs to.” Simon shakes his head with a quiet simper. “So, Terrence, could you not get strength and a wish to forget the one that clouded your mind and does not want to leave your soul? Did you realize you loved this girl and have no wish to lose her after breaking up with her? You cheated on Cameron with that cutie and realized the queen of runways was the only one to give you what the blonde would not give you.”
“You know everything!” Terrence smirks evilly, crossing his arms over his chest.
“Yeah, you know it happens. For example, young people get married without real love under their families’ pressure or an obsession with a strong passion. They live together for some time and fight so hard that they feel unbearable from being together. But some time later, they realize they cannot live without each other. That’s your case. A rare but possible one.”
“M-m-m, that’s how…”
“So, MacClife, are you obsessed with the instinct of a hunter? Do you like to run after the girl who can't be caught? Other girls gave up on you without a fight and were ready to obey you in everything, but Cameron is different and refused to dance attendance upon you and showed resistance.”
“Oh, damn…” Terrence growls quietly with his eyes rolled up. “I guess hiding from you is possible only somewhere on a different planet… Maybe, you reach for nobody there.”
“Believe me, my dear, I know everything that happens in your circle. I examined any information that I received. But I want to notice that anyone could know about your short love affair with that beautiful blonde. Do you know why? Because I saw the news about you cheating and dating the unknown girl in every second newspaper. That’s why rumors about the relationship issues of one of the most beautiful couples in the show business were spread. Everyone is talking about your breakup. Moreover, your betrayer became the main reason why people began to discuss many other rumors that they called a lie before.”
“You know, Ringer, to be honest, I do not care how you got the information,” Terrence says confidently. “And you can say no more about all the tricks you did before. I already understood that you were a more shameless bastard.”
“I became the one because I got rejected!” Simon throws rudely. “I was used as a doormat and got spit in my face!”
“And what, should any man kill a woman that rejects him, her partner, and even their children?”
“If Elizabeth had not rejected my love, had not gotten married to that bastard Jackson, and had not given birth to the child from him, I would not have started all of that.”
“It sounds like a sick obsession. In the opposite case, you would’ve left Raquelle’s mother alone and let her live with her husband and their daughter.”
“Moreover, I want to tell you that I still love Elizabeth. Yes, even despite a great offense, that woman still lives in my heart.”
“You killed that woman!” Raquelle shouts loudly in despair. “With no shame!”
“For my love for her, I always turned my back on the way she treated me. I was ready to forgive her for anything to get her back. And I could have become a father of this girl. She would have been like a daughter of mine!”
“I would hang myself if I had a father like you,” Terrence throws rudely.
“You would better solve problems with your real one. You said he was a stinker!”
“As if you are better!”
“Yes, maybe, I killed Elizabeth. But I will always love her. And remember her as the girl I met for the first time. Moreover, her daughter does not let me forget it…” Simon cracks a slight smile at Raquelle and looks at her kind of filthily. “I still remember what she was like… That was an amazing creature… A sweet and innocent one… A shy and obedient girl, who thought of her studies and was well educated…”
Simon bites his lip slightly, still looking at Raquelle as if he is planning something.
“I wonder, is her daughter the same?” Simon asks himself. “Or is she different? But I think she does not have the character that her mommy has. She is sassier… But who knows… Maybe, this beauty would become the second Lizzy and agree to be mine… Only mine…”
Looking at Raquelle closely from head to foot, Simon starts thinking of quite haunting things that he would definitely do to the girl. And she understands it and gets madly frightened when trying to imagine her offender could think she is Elizabeth and even… Rape her… It seems like Terrence is guessing it and gets much more furious, barely holding down his wish to strangle Simon right here and now.
“SHUT UP!” Terrence shouts at the top of his lungs, tightly clenching his hands into fists. “Close your fucking mouth, you, dirty nasty animal! OR YOU, JERKOFF, WILL BE DEAD!”
“Simon Ringer, stop it all now and let the girl go!” Hunter demands loudly and clearly. “Do not do stupid things and give up on the police!”
“Do not waste our time!” one of the policemen encourages.
“SHUT UP, EVERYBODY!” Simon shouts. “You can stay here as long as you want, but I will not give up on you. I will not let this gal go as I have many plans for her.”
“We will have to open the fire if you do not give up,” James says confidently.
“Better give up yourself and leave! You would do me a great favor!”
“Nobody will leave!” Terrence throws rudely. “And this girl will leave only with me.”
“She is mine! And I will do anything I want to her!”
“SHE IS NOT YOURS! SHE WILL NEVER BE!”
“Oh, she will be! Your ex will replace my Elizabeth. And before she dies, I want to have a little fun and find out what this sexy cutie can do.”
“CLOSE YOUR DIRTY MOUTH, BASTARD!” Terrence gets wild. “If you dare to touch her and just try to take her clothes off, I will bury you right here ALIVE! YOU GOT IT, SCUM?”
“Oh, listen, MacClife, stop shouting here like a sick psycho,” Simon winces slightly. “I am starting to get a headache from your shouts. That would not help you and this gal.”
“DO NOT EVEN DARE TO THINK TO TOUCH HER WITH YOUR DIRTY HANDS! DO NOT DARE!”
“And yeah, stop showing off, pretending to be a hero, and proving that you are kind of jealous and want to save Cameron for the love.”
“What you are talking about!”
“You have never loved Raquelle. You have always loved only yourself. Well, maybe, also your beloved mommy, who did not teach her sonny to treat women well. Who loved him so much that he demands respect, love, and much attention from everyone.”
Terrence sharply takes a step forward to try to attack Simon again, but the gun that the man instantly points at him makes him stop sharply.
“Calm down, my dear, calm down!” Simon pronounces quietly, cracks a sly smile at Raquelle, and fixes her hair with the muzzle of the gun. “Do you really want this gorgeous girl to die because of you trying to stand up for her so hard?”
“I will cut your throat if you do something to her,” Terrence says coldly, tightly clenching his hands into fists.
“You know, I’m going to change my plans a little. I will not kill her immediately. Because I came up with something. And I want to make it real before this girl is killed and buried here. Or somewhere in woods…”
“And did you want Raquelle’s mother to be with you? You don’t know how to treat women! You were maniacally obsessed with Elizabeth. And this girl now! Since you are going to rape her!”
“Oh, Terrence, how sick I am of you…” Simon sighs tiredly. “You are wasting my time.”
“Do what you should do, and everything will be fine.”
“You better take your pals and get out of here if you don’t want to die RIGHT NOW! My dear Raquelle and I have something that we should do before she goes to her parents.”
“I am not afraid of your threats, Ringer!” Terrence raises his head proudly. “And I swear, if you do not let Raquelle go now, you will regret it. I will get off you with great pleasure not only because of her but also because of everything you did to me.”
“You have five minutes to take this gang with you and go where you all came from,” Simon replies rudely, pointing at all the policemen and Terrence with the pistol and still holding tightly and pressing Raquelle to himself while she is crying quietly. “I am done, MacClife! I am not going to play with you anymore!”
“I am telling you for the hundredth time that I will not leave before you are arrested.”
“Either you leave at your wish, or I WILL KILL YOU FIRST!”
“You will hurt her OVER MY DEAD BODY!”
“No!” Raquelle shouts with tears in her eyes, being terribly worried about the lives of the people, who are here. “Go, Terrence, go! Take all these policemen away!”
“I will not do it!” Terrence says confidently.
“Please, Terrence, I am begging you, get out! I don’t want Simon to do something to you or someone of these people.”
“He will not do it, I promise.”
“For God’s sake, go away! Save yourself! Or Simon will kill you!”
“No, Raquelle, I am going to go nowhere,” Terrence says much more confidently.
“Please…” Raquelle sniffs quietly. “Go… Leave me alone…”
“I will not let this bastard do anything to you.”
“Get out, Terrence, get out!” Raquelle begs with despair. “Or Simon will not pity you…”
“If he wants, he can kill me. But while I’m standing here alive, this scumbag will not dare to hurt you.”
“I don’t want anyone to die because of me.”
“Nobody will die, you will see it.”
Raquelle says nothing and just sniffs loudly, looking at Terrence with pity in her eyes, while he is not going to leave without this girl.
“Alright, I'm sick of this show,” Simon says rudely. “Either you will shut up and leave, or I shall shoot at your heads to the fuck!”
“Mr. Ringer, if you do not give up right now, we will have to shoot at you,” one of the policemen says confidently. “You are about to get a great sentence by adding resistance to the police staff to what you have done.”
“We are giving you the last chance to give up,” James says loudly and clearly. “If you do not do it, we will open fire.”
“YOU WILL NOT BRING ME DOWN!” Simon roars at the top of his lungs. “MY DEAR ELIZABETH AND I WILL RUN AWAY AS FAR AS POSSIBLE!”
“Are you out of your mind?” Terrence knocks at his temple with a finger. “She is not the fuck Elizabeth!”
“THIS IS MY LIZZY! SHE IS BACK TO ME! AFTER SO MANY YEARS!”
Simon starts laughing very loudly with his mouth wide open, starting to think Raquelle is really the late mother of her named Elizabeth.
“IT HAS FINALLY HAPPENED!” Simon exclaims happily. “HAPPENED! YEA-A-A-A-AH!”
“But…” Raquelle pronounces in a little shaking voice. “I’m not Elizabeth!”
“You are back to me, my sweetheart, back…”
Simon looks at Raquelle filthily with a sly smile, fixing her hair slightly with the pistol.
“Lizzy…” Simon pronounces in a much lower voice. “My Lizzy…”
“Leave her alone RIGHT NOW!” Terrence gets wild, clenching his hands tightly into fists.
“I can’t believe it… Elizabeth… My Elizabeth… Is that really you? Damn…”
Simon breathes in the smell that Raquelle spreads with a wide smile, already starting to lose his mind.
“Oh, yeah…” Simon pronounces with enjoyment. “You smell like her… Like my beloved Lizzy…”
“S-s-Simon, w-w-what’s wrong?” Raquelle pronounces in a strongly shaking voice with her widely open eyes. “What are you doing?”
“You are back to me from heaven, Lizzy… Back… To make me happy… You and I to be together…”
“Wake up, Simon!” Raquelle steps back sharply from Simon. “You don’t know what you are talking about!”
“I know you would choose me someday…”
Simon presses Raquelle to himself again, grabbing her tightly by the waist.
“You understood I would be the only one to give you love and care…” Simon says with a sly smile in a low voice. “Understood that you would not meet anyone better than me.”
“GET YOUR DIRTY HANDS OFF HER NOW!” Terrence roars, breathing heavily enough and literally choking from evil and jealousy. “OR I WILL PULL THEM OUT!”
“You’re going to be mine, Elizabeth Thompson… Mine… Nobody else…”
Simon fixes Raquelle’s hair with the pistol, runs a second hand over a curve of her waist, and puts it on her thigh.
“Quiet, quiet, babe, quiet,” Simon smiles widely, sharply pulling Raquelle down when she tries to step away from him. “It’s me, Simon. Your beloved man. The one to be brought to you by destiny…”
“Stop, Simon, please!” Raquelle begs with despair and tears in her eyes. “You don’t understand what you’re doing!”
“I want you, Lizzy… I want to make a baby with you… I want you to be mine… M-m-m…”
Definitely losing the rest of his mind and seriously starting to believe Raquelle is her mother, Elizabeth, who was really very similar to the girl, Simon slowly runs his free hand over her belly.
“No, Simon, NO!” Raquelle exclaims with her widely open eyes and full of horror. “STOP!”
“You know what, let’s go to have some fun…” Simon says thoughtfully with a sly smirk. “There are too many people here. They would not let you and me make love and make a baby that both of us want so badly.”
“What?” Raquelle gets frightened. “No! You went out of your mind!”
“Follow me, Elizabeth, I know where nobody would stop us…”
Simon, putting the pistol against Raquelle’s temple, sharply drags her somewhere with him. While the girl tries to resist with a deafening shout and break free.
“NO, LET ME GO!” Raquelle screams loudly. “LET ME GO! Simon! I WILL GO NOWHERE WITH YOU!”
“LET HER GO NOW!” Terrence demands at the top of his lungs, sharply moving off.
“HELP ME, SOMEBODY! PLEASE! HELP ME!”
“Now, Lizzy, now,” Simon smiles widely. “Follow me.”
“LET HER GO RIGHT NOW, RINGER!” Terrence shouts. “STOP, I SAID!”
“SHE IS MINE, JACKSON!” Simon shouts at the top of his lungs. “YOU LOST THIS BATTLE! ELIZABETH BELONGS TO ME!”
“I SAID, LET HER GO! RAQUELLE WILL GO NOWHERE WITH YOU!”
“SHUT UP THERE, BASTARD!”
Holding Raquelle tightly by the hair, Simon points the pistol sharply at Terrence, who is chasing him, and takes the first shot in a while, along with the defeating shout of the girl. Luckily, the man manages to jump aside just in time, even if he loses his balance and falls to the floor. However, the policemen do not stand aside and start a chase.
“Simon Ringer!” Hunter pronounces loudly. “Stop here now! This is an order!”
Hunter takes a warning shot from his pistol up, points at Simon along with another policeman, and shoots at him unsuccessfully two times. Ringer answers them back with a loud growl, shooting at the policemen several times, while they try to close the way for him. He hurts nobody because they manage to dodge, and he uses the moment when he has a chance to run away.
“YOU WILL NOT BRING ME DOWN!” Simon says at the top of his lungs. “AND I SHALL NOT GIVE THE GAL TO YOU!”
Simon gives a start sharply and starts running very fast in the unknown direction, shooting at everybody he sees and taking away Raquelle, who is resisting him unsuccessfully.
“HELP ME!” Raquelle screams with despair. “HELP ME! A-A-A-A-A! DON’T LET HIM KILL ME! NO-O-O-O-O-O! HELP ME!”
“Stay there!” Hunter orders loudly and shoots at the ceiling multiple times.
Regardless of Raquelle’s loud shouts and hard resistance, Simon runs away from the room full of the policemen and takes away the pale girl, who is crying bitterly and turns out to be too weak to get out of the tight enough grip of the man, who went insane.
“NO, SIMON, DON’T DO THIS!” Raquelle begs in despair. “LET ME GO! NO! I DON’T WANT IT! LET ME GO!”
Not wasting time, Terrence, Hunter, James, and the other policemen give a start immediately and start running after Simon, who shoots at any one of them or puts the pistol against the head of the crying girl, whom he considers the woman, who hurt his heart one day. After looking around quickly, Ringer runs some distance down the long walls, barely seeing piles of concrete and boards, over which anyone can easily step. Just like it happens to Raquelle a couple of times when she tries to use the moment and run away, but she screams in a heartbreaking way when the criminal grabs her by the hair painfully and takes her with him by force, ignoring all the pleases of doing nothing bad to her.
“SHUT UP, BITCH!” Simon explodes and slaps Raquelle strongly in the face
“DON’T DO THIS!” Raquelle shouts, grabbing her cheek. “PLEASE!”
“YOU WILL NOT HIDE FROM ME!” Simon grabs Raquelle rudely by the arm and gets her up. “MY REVENGE WILL COME TRUE!”
Simon sharply turns to the other side and runs somewhere else, slamming the door in front of Terrence, who is running much faster than all the policemen. However, it does not become a barrier to him because he opens it quickly and keeps chasing the offender of Raquelle, who is begging for help so hard and crying so bitterly. Every second, the man gets more obsessed with evil and hate for this man, whom he wants to strangle with his own hands to take revenge on him for all the sufferings of the girl, who is no longer able to pretend to be sassy and tough and needs some protection. Even from the one, who hurt her so much.
All this time, Simon has been looking for a place where he could lock himself in with Raquelle, but there are no rooms with doors or something to block them with. Then the man runs shortly to the stairs and goes up to the third floor along with the girl, who starts feeling a strong pain in her knees and elbows after she loses her balance and falls to one of the stairs. Then, her offender punches her in the face strongly again, gets her up rudely, and takes her with him by force, running from one room to another to find something good. By this moment, he manages to leave the policemen behind, while they are shooting at him, as well as Terrence, who shows brilliant skills at running but is not able to get closer to his opponent, who is unsuccessfully trying to kill him.
Simon runs somewhere down long, wide and literally endless halls for a long time, preventing any of Raquelle’s attempts to run away from him and not being shy about giving her painful hits on her whole body to shut her up at least for a while. And the fact that his actions are unpredictable, the policemen and Terrence lose their tracks at some moment and do not know where to find the criminal in the large building where there are so many rooms and floors. It’s especially hard to do it now, when it’s getting dark outside, and not so much light gets into it through small windows.
“Fuck!” Terrence jabs excitedly, breathing heavily enough and shirting his weight from one foot to another. “We’ve lost them!”
“Don’t panic, Terrence,” James pronounces quietly. “We will find them. That man will not run away from us.”
“That bastard wants to keep mocking her. What she has experienced is not enough for him!”
“Calm down, Terrence. It’s going to be alright.”
“How can I the fuck calm down?” Terrence shouts irritably. “That girl is about to die because of that sick bastard, who believes she is the dead woman that he killed!”
“Stop having hysterics, MacClife! Put yourself together! You can do nothing by screaming and being a psycho! If you really want to save that girl, you must keep calm.”
“Keep calm…” Terrence simpers nervously, glancing aside. “I am ready to kill this bastard! And bury him not to let him hurt her!”
“MacClife!”
“This scumbag made me too mad and turned me into an animal that crawls to kill him.”
“We completely understand everything, but stop acting like a hysterical girl!” James raises his voice a little, grabbing Terrence under his arm and shakes him to make him come to himself. “Stop having hysteria and brace the fuck yourself!”
“What do you suggest doing? WHAT? TELL ME!”
“Listen, I’m also worried about Raquelle and afraid that man might do something to her,” Hunter says confidently. “But you will really do nothing if you scream and wave your hands.”
“What are you talking about?”
“Persuading him does not give us any results. So, he will not give up at his will.”
“So, give me the gun, so I can kill him to the fuck personally.”
“We do not have a goal of killing him.”
“I do have! I want to see that bastard dead. Let me murder that bastard quickly, and then you will do everything you need.”
“Mr. MacClife!” Hunter raises his voice a little.
“What? I am offering you the easiest way!”
“We will deal with Ringer. You need to think about how to take Raquelle far from him.”
“As if I am not trying to do it!”
“We took a great risk trying to shoot him down. It’s a miracle that we did not wound Raquelle.”
“Exactly, miracle!” Terrence jabs excitedly. “I am surprised that Ringer did not push her under the bullets when you were shooting at him.”
“That’s why we must save Raquelle before we start shooting at Simon.”
“Mr. Lynwood is right, Terrence,” James says quietly. “Your main goal is to take Raquelle far away from that stinker.”
“Oh…” Terrence sighs tiredly, running his hands over his face and crossing his arms over his chest. “I think it would be easier to kill that bastard. Or we will be chasing him until late night.”
“No, we are going to kill nobody,” one of the policemen replies confidently.
“I am serious, gentlemen. If you gave me a gun, I would make your mission thousands of times easier.”
“Don’t go to extremes, MacClife,” James says confidently. “Remember, your goal is to save Raquelle, not to beat Simon’s face or kill him.”
“If that asshole touches her with a finger, I swear I will bury him here.”
“Mr. Whitley is right,” Hunter agrees. “You should worry only about Raquelle and how to save her. We will do with Ringer by ourselves.”
“But…” Terrence wants to say.
“Trust us, Terrence! Do what we tell you. If we are following the plan, we will save Raquelle and get Simon arrested.”
Terrence says nothing for a few seconds and thinks of something, and then he looks at all the policemen, pronouncing quietly:
“Alright… Let’s follow your plan.”
“That’s great!” James exclaims.
“This place is large. I guess we should get separated. Simon may be anywhere.”
“That’s right!” James turns on the other policemen, who are standing near him. “Listen to me! Louis and Henry, you go with Terrence, Mr. Lynwood, and me. The others should get separated into couples and look for every corner of this place. We must find Simon and Raquelle as soon as possible.”
“We will do!” Louis nods confidently.
“The order is accepted!” Henry exclaims.
“And yeah, your four, go to find Richard Stalker and his company immediately. They are supposed to be not far from here. Catch them and put them in the car. If you need it, call for help.”
“Come on, men!” one of the policemen exclaims, making a calling gesture. “I saw where that guy and his pals went.”
“Faster!” James orders loudly. “Do not let them go! Look for Simon and his accomplices!”
“Hey, I can hear Raquelle’s scream!” Hunter exclaims, listening to the sounds and catching a very quiet, heartbreaking scream from Raquelle, who is begging for help so hard and asking Simon not to beat her anymore. “That asshole is probably beating her there!”
“I shall get the guts of that bastard when I see him in front of me!” Terrence threatens in a low voice with a heavy breath.
“Let’s not waste time!” James says confidently. “We’ve gotta find her before that man decides to do something terrible.”
“I think I know where to go!” Terrence turns his head somewhere aside and points his finger at it. “Quick! Over there!”
Terrence gives a start sharply and starts running down the long halls, while Hunter, James, Louis, and Henry follow him, being less able to hear the screams from Raquelle, who is kind of taken away further and further. Who is so far from here that the police will need a lot of time to find her and save her from Simon, whose shouts they can also hear at times.
***
Meanwhile, Simon takes Raquelle to the darkest place in this place, where nobody can hear them. At some moment, he stops his eyes on the closed, shabby, door painted with graffiti. Not thinking too much, the man runs to it, opens it, and runs into the small room with two window frames, in which pieces of glasses are stuck. The cracked walls are painted with different drawings, among which there are some vulgar ones, and there are lots of pieces of concrete, pieces of boards, and colorful packets of food that are covered with dirt. There are thick enough boards with some rotten areas in one corner and a ripped dark red armchair covered with a thick layer of dust and dirt. Only some desperate people could decide to sit on it.
Thinking that this room is perfect for him, Simon throws Raquelle sharply to the floor, while she shouts loudly with tears in her eyes and starts breathing too heavily and loudly. Her widely open eyes are red and tear-stained, her heart is beating like crazy, and her mind is full of terrible thoughts about what this man wants to do to her. Fear paralyzes her absolutely like a bitter cold and does not let her get up and run away from here, while Simon comes to the bunch of thick boards to block the door, also uses heavy bricks just in case, and gets something that he puts in the gap.
And when the man comes to her slowly with a smile from the winner, Raquelle starts creeping away sharply, setting her widely open eyes full of tears on this man. His evil look is slowly sliding over her whole body and literally undressing the pale girl, who is breathing heavily and feeling much more frightened at the realization of the fact that she is locked in this room with this man, and her cry for help is kind of heard by nobody.
“So, you and I are alone, Elizabeth…” Simon pronounces with a sly smile in a low, nauseous voice, squeezing the charged gun in his hand. “Now nobody will stop us… Nobody will hear us…”
Raquelle says nothing and keeps looking at Simon closely, with a plea in her eyes.
“You’re back to me, sweetheart…” Simon pronounces in a low voice with half-closed eyes, looking filthily at Raquelle from head to feet with a wide smile and imagining her being absolutely naked. “Back to make me the happiest man…”
“You’re crazy…” Raquelle says in a strongly shaking voice. “Sick…”
“I was waiting for this moment… Waiting for the moment when you would belong to me…”
“You are crazy! Wake up!”
“I will be very happy if you start with the most delicious dessert and make love with me right here…”
“N-no, Simon, don’t do that…” Raquelle begs with tears in a shaking voice.
“So what, baby, let’s remember the old times when we were obsessed with a crazy passion? When we were young and stupid…”
“For God’s sake, wake up…”
“Drive me crazy, Lizzy… Do your best for me to be happy. And I will forgive you for everything… Oh, babe…”
Simon sharply throws aside the pistol that falls to the floor with a loud crush with a sly smile.
“What do you want to do to me?” Raquelle wonders with a scare in her eyes.
“I want you, Elizabeth!” Simon pronounces in a low voice, getting closer and closer to Raquelle with a wide smile and getting ready to lie on her. “I want to make a baby with you… Make a daughter with you… As gorgeous as you are…”
“Are you out of your mind? Wake up!”
“I love you, Lizzy…”
“What? What kind of love? What are you talking about?”
“Elizabeth… My baby…”
Simon runs his hands over Raquelle’s legs while she sharply creeps away from him with a loud squeak.
“NO!” Raquelle exclaims. “Don’t touch me!”
“I want you…” Simon pronounces with enjoyment. “Want to feel your smell… Kiss your soft lips and tender neck…”
Simon runs his hands over Raquelle’s legs again and reaches the inside of her thighs.
“STOP!” Raquelle shouts with despair. “DO NOT DO THIS!”
“I want to touch you,” Simon smiles widely. “Want to love you… Get obsessed with you… Take off your clothes to the fuck… To admire your gorgeous body…”
“You went insane!” Raquelle gets horrified with tears in her eyes. “Lost the rest of your mind!”
“Yes, I did! Because you’re driving me crazy.”
“Stop, Simon, for God’s sake!”
“You are still gorgeous and sexy… You still can get me excited by doing nothing.”
“SHUT UP!” Raquelle shouts with despair. “SHUT UP!”
“Scream, honey, scream…” Simon replies in a nauseous, disgusting voice, caressing the ankles of Raquelle with both hands. “You get me much more excited when you scream.”
“NO!” Raquelle sharply gets her legs out of Simon’s grip. “STOP! ENOUGH!”
“Come on, my sweet baby, keep doing the same.” Simon licks his lips and takes his black coat off. “If you try hard and become a good girl, I shall make you scream and moan from pleasure. You will know everything your beloved man can do…”
“What…” Raquelle rounds her eyes, which are wet from tears, with a heavy breath. “What are you doing? No, no, no! Simon, don’t do this! NO! STOP! I’M BEGGING YOU!”
“M-m-m, I feel like my body is getting tense and looking forward to tasting such an incredible fruit that finally got into my hands…”
Simon starts caressing Raquelle’s legs again while she starts shaking and understands that she gets obsessed with coldness.
“Help me…” Raquelle begs with despair, glancing at the blocked door. “Someone… HELP ME, PLEASE!”
“Scream, baby, scream,” Simon pronounces with a wide smile. “Keep getting me excited…”
“Terrence! Terrence, PLEASE, HELP ME! SAVE ME FROM THIS SICK MAN… HE WANTS TO RAPE ME!”
“A-A-A-A, DO IT AGAIN, BABE! LOUDER, DO NOT BE SHY!”
“PLEASE, TERRENCE, DON’T LEAVE ME! HELP ME! I NEED YOU! PLEASE! A-A-A-A!”
“AH, HOW MUCH YOU GET ME EXCITED!” Simon makes a loud moan full of pleasure. “KEEP DOING THIS, LIZZY, KEEP DOING!”
“SIMON, DON’T DO IT, I’M BEGGING YOU! WAKE UP!”
“Sweetheart… My beloved Lizzy…”
“I am not the one you think I am.”
“No, babe, you are… The one that is finally back to me…”
“NO-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O!”
Raquelle’s shouts do not stop Simon and do encourage him to go further and mock the poor girl, who feels absolutely unprotected as nobody can hear her.
“Damn, if you’re getting me so excited in clothes, what’s going to happen to me when I see you absolutely naked?” Simon asks himself. “I’m even afraid to imagine… M-m-m…”
Simon runs his hands slowly over Raquelle’s long, slim legs with a wide smile and quickly reaches her crotch with a wish to caress it. But she beats him in the arms with deafening shouts and sharply creeps aside.
“NO, DO NOT TOUCH ME!” Raquelle screams with despair. “NO!”
“Aw, Lizzy, you are waking up a bad boy inside me,” Simon growls quietly with enjoyment. “You used to be sweeter and more obedient… What happened to you? Or is that a consequence of reincarnation?”
“I am not Elizabeth!” Raquelle exclaims with her widely open eyes. “I am Raquelle! Her daughter…”
“I am ready to accept you, even with the baby. I will love your daughter like my own one. Even when we make a child, I promise I will not deprive the baby Raquelle of my attention.”
“I am Raquelle! You confuse me with my mother, who died many years ago!”
“Oh, damn, how sexy you are…” Simon makes a quiet moan, tenderly squeezing Raquelle’s breasts with both hands. “Damn, I did even feel dizzy! From such a great pleasure…”
“Wake up, Simon! You are out of your mind!”
“Oh, yeah, I like what you are doing,” Simon says quietly in a disgusting voice, holding Raquelle by the waist and letting his hand slowly slide over her belly and breast. “M-m-m, I cannot wait to tame you and obey me, my wild cat.”
Simon lets his hands slide underneath Raquelle’s t-shirt and runs his hands over the soft skin on her belly, making her feel the dry and rough skin of them and resist as hard as possible with tears.
“Alright, it’s time to start to undress you slowly,” Simon says with a sly smile. “It’s easier for a naked girl to get excited than a dressed one.”
Simon moves his hands to Raquelle’s denim jacket to take it off, but she creeps away from the man again.
“SIMON, STOP!” Raquelle shouts loudly.
“Quiet, babe, quiet,” Simon pronounces softly. “Don’t be so nervous…”
Simon gets closer to Raquelle again and takes her denim jacket off her by force, wishing to start this game with a great passion and obey “the love of his whole life” to him.
“Please, Simon, don’t make everything worse,” Raquelle begs with despair and tears in her eyes, silently saying goodbye to those she loved and has never stopped loving as she is losing hope for salvation every second. “You have made my life worse.”
“No, honey, it just seems to you,” Simon protests with a sly smile. “You know I can give you everything you want.”
“No!”
“Just tell me you want it, and all your dreams will come true instantly. I shall become a personal wizard of yours that would do anything you want.”
“Simon…”
“You’re going to feel very good with you.”
Simon fixes Raquelle’s disheveled hair slightly and caresses her cheek softly while, she does not stop crying bitterly and tries to resist somehow.
“We will be happy together,” Simon adds in a low, quiet voice. “Very happy…”
“You don’t understand what you’re talking about,” Raquelle shakes her head and sniffs quietly. “You went out of your mind…”
“Oh, no, I understand everything…”
By this moment, nothing is left of the neat ponytail of Raquelle. Now, her hair is disheveled, matted, and almost loose. Moreover, the girl does not even try to run and get out of here because she is starting to believe in the hopelessness of this situation. Believe that Terrence and the policemen will not find her and save her from Simon.
“M-m-m, Elizabeth…” Simon pronounces with enjoyment, covering Raquelle’s neck with disgusting kisses and running his tongue and her collarbones that he opens slightly for himself. “My sweet girl…”
“Please, stop…” Raquelle winces strongly, stepping back from Simon sharply, and sniffs quietly.
“Damn, you smell so deliciously… Smell like her… Like my Elizabeth…”
Simon breathes in the smell that Raquelle spreads and smiles widely, being more sure that he really sees the late Elizabeth Thompson.
“No, Simon, please, let me go…” Raquelle begs with pity in her eyes, trying to resist in all the ways, shaking sharply because of Simon’s kisses, and feeling a great disgust when she feels his tongue on her skin, while he licks her neck and collarbones slowly. “Don’t do this…”
“You are mine…” Simon pronounces with enjoyment, leaves a couple of kisses on a curve of Raquelle’s neck, and runs his tongue over some parts of it. “Lizzy is only mine… Oh, yeah…”
“I feel disgust…” Raquelle winces strongly. “I’m getting sick… Don’t do this…”
“Don’t get so tense, baby…” Simon slowly takes a sleeve of the t-shirt off Raquelle’s fragile shoulders and runs his lips and tongue over them. “It’s okay…”
“I don’t want this…” Raquelle pronounces in a strongly shaking voice. “I don’t want…”
“I will be doing everything you liked before… And make you feel new emotions. Show you how much you could have lost if you had chosen that idiot, Jackson.”
“Please, someone, help me!” Raquelle shouts in despair. “Help me! For God’s sake, help! PLEASE!”
At this moment, Simon raises Raquelle’s t-shirt and starts to caress and smoother her belly with kisses, giving much more attention to the bottom of it. While she gets sick and feels great disgust because she feels the lips and tongue of this man on her body.
“HELP ME!” Raquelle screams at the top of her lungs. “HELP ME! SAVE ME FROM THIS MAN! PLEASE! HE WANTS TO RAPE ME! HELP ME…”
“Ah, how sexy and delicious you are…” Simon pronounces with enjoyment, leaving a few more kisses on Raquelle’s belly and slowly getting up to her neck, which he covers with terribly disgusting, wet kisses. “Damn… Why are shy girls always such sexual chicks? M-m-m…”
Simon kisses Raquelle’s breasts through the t-shirt that he squeezes in his hands tightly but tenderly.
“Oh, Lizzy, I go crazy from your smell…” Simon makes a quiet, sensual moan. “Damn, why did I not feel the same before?”
“Stop…” Raquelle makes a quiet sob.
“Your body is just gorgeous… Freaking sexual…”
“Why do you hate me so much?” Raquelle wonders with tears. “Why are you revenging me for not getting love from my mother? Why did you plan to take revenge in the past years and choose me, my family, and my friends as victims?”
“No, I don’t hate you, Lizzy,” Simon protests quietly, smoothing Raquelle’s hands with the same disgusting, wet kisses, which makes her freeze and shake strongly from fear. “I love you… And I want to live all my life with you.”
“Why do I have to get over all of it, Simon? Why could you not accept her choice and meet another woman, who would make you happy? Why did you do that to my mother?”
“I have never loved anyone stronger… I did not even try to meet another woman. Because I truly believed we would be together someday.”
“You did not love her! You were obsessed with her!”
“I love you, Elizabeth…” Simon leaves a couple of kisses on the front of Raquelle’s neck. “You are my light at the end of the tunnel… You are my life, my treasure… My everything…”
“I am not Elizabeth…” Raquelle pronounces in a shaking voice. “My name is Raquelle… I am her daughter. My mother died many years ago because of you. She is not alive anymore. Just like my father…”
“No, you are Elizabeth… My beloved Lizzy that I will give to nobody.”
“Wake up, Simon! It’s a mistake! You confused me with my mother…”
“Sweetheart… M-m-m…”
Simon leaves a few short, dry kisses on Raquelle’s face, massaging her breasts tightly with both hands.
“Please, let’s forget everything,” Raquelle begs with despair. “Let’s forget everything as if nothing happened.”
“No, babe, I cannot forget you so easily,” Simon shakes his head with a sly smile. “After so many years of a separation, I realized how much I missed you.”
“Simon, please…”
“I want you, Elizabeth. I want you right here, right now.”
“No…”
“Let me give you pleasure. Let me make a baby with you… Our baby that we would be raising together.”
“Simon… Simon, what are you doing?”
Simon being out of his mind moves close to Raquelle and starts to hug the girl much more confidently and touch her belly, waist, and breasts, which he especially likes.
“Simon, stop, hear me!” Raquelle shouts at the top of her lungs. “STOP! I DO NOT WANT TO BE RAPED! I DO NOT WANT!”
“Do not be afraid of me, my love,” Simon says with a wide smile, caressing Raquelle’s thighs with both hands, not missing a chance to caress her crotch and paying no attention to the girl’s hysteria and shouts that nobody can hear. “I shall help you relax and get used to me… You just need to trust your beloved man.”
“PLEASE, HELP ME! SAVE ME FROM THAT MAN!”
“Relax, babe, relax…”
“TERRENCE, HELP ME! PLEASE! IF YOU HEAR ME, HELP ME! PLEASE! I DON’T WANT TO DIE!”
“Ah, Lizzy…”
“TE-E-E-E-E-E-EREE-E-E-E-ENCE!” Raquelle screams at the top of her lungs. “DON’T LEAVE ME ALONE! I NEED YOU! HELP ME! HE-E-E-E-E-E-E-E-E-E-E-ELP!”
“I want you, babe… I want to feel mad…”
Simon brings his face closer to Raquelle’s face slowly but confidently to give her a short, tender kiss. At first, the girl opens her eyes widely, but then, when she feels the cold, cracked lips of her offender on her lips, starts beating the man on his arms with a painful moan and tries to push him off herself. But it does not impact Ringer at all. Vice versa, he hugs the girl tightly by the waist, presses her very close to himself and tries to get his tongue into her mouth by force. It makes her feel a much stronger panic, which makes her heart beat much faster.
“Oh, Lizzy, my babe…” Simon pronounces with enjoyment and leaves a couple of short kisses on the curve of Raquelle’s neck. “You’re so beautiful…”
“A-A-A-A, HELP ME, PLEASE!” Raquelle begs in despair. “PLEASE! DON’T LEAVE ME ALONE! PLEASE!”
“Nobody else has made me as excited as you.” Simon runs his hands confidently underneath Raquelle’s t-shirt and lets them slide over her naked back and flat belly, which she sucks in unconsciously. “Nobody else has made me so wild…”
“NO! GET OFF ME! NO-O-O-O-O!” Raquelle starts beating Simon on his chest and arms as strongly as she can. “DON’T TOUCH ME! NO!”
“Hey, Lizzy, c’mon? It’s me, Simon!” Simon grabs Raquelle’s face and sets his eyes on her red and wet eyes full of true fear. “Your first and biggest love. Can’t you remember me?”
“I AM NOT ELIZABETH!”
“C’mon, baby, relax. Focus on your feelings, so you can remember me soon.”
Simon gets Raquelle involved in a continuous kiss on the lips, during which she starts beating him with her hands on everything she sees with widely open eyes and pushing off the man, whose tongue is working actively in her mouth, so that she feels a strong feeling of sickness.
“M-M-M-M!” Raquelle moans painfully, giving Simon a couple of weak slaps on the face and hitting him on the chest with a fist. “M-M-M-M!”
“Don’t be afraid, my sweetie, I will be doing everything very slowly, without a rush,” Simon promises with a sly smile and puts Raquelle on the floor. “I am not a beast and don’t want to hurt you. We will do it when you are ready.”
“Please, Simon, let me go…”
“Don’t worry, nobody will bother us here. We are so far away… Just you and me…”
“TE-E-E-E-E-E-E-E-E-E-E-ERENCE!” Raquelle screams at the top of her lungs when Simon starts biting the skin on her neck painfully and squeezing her breasts rudely. “HE-E-E-E-E-E-E-ELP! A-A-A-A!”
“Oh, yay, babe! Scream! Scream if you want to make me excited! Oh, yeah!”
“SOMEONE! DON’T LEAVE ME HERE! I DON’T WANT TO DIE! I DON’T WANT TO BE RAPED! I DON’T!”
At this moment, Simon runs his rough tongue slowly over the tender skin on Raquelle’s collarbones, while his hand caresses the curves of the lady’s slim waist and her thighs. But when the man runs his fingertips over her crotch and wants to get his hand into her jeans, the girl starts pushing him off much harder and giving him strong hits on his whole body. But even though Ringer does not have such a good physical data, Cameron is too weak against him anyway. Not only because of that. But also because she has less strength to resist. She is holding on just because she is under the influence of the adrenaline that keeps living because of her fear of becoming a victim of this man.
That’s why Raquelle braces herself somehow and pushes Simon off herself with a loud shout so strongly that he gets thrown aside. Then she gets up on her feet sharply and, not caring about weakness in her legs, rushes to the door and tries to move all the bricks and boards that block it. But the man getting enraged catches her quickly, grabs her by the waist from behind and throws her on the floor so rudely that she hits her elbows strongly and screams loudly from the extreme pain that gets throughout her whole body.
“No, babe, you will not hide from me,” Simon says confidently.
“Please, Simon!” Raquelle begs in despair.
“Until you agree to give birth to a baby from me and say you love me and want to be with me, I will not let you go!”
“STOP IT!”
“Do not make me wild, bitch!” Simon beats Raquelle strongly in the face, making her scream painfully. “DO NOT THE FUCK DO THIS!”
“PLEASE, STOP!”
“I SAID, DO NOT MAKE ME WILD!” Simon throws rudely and grabs Raquelle painfully by the hair, while she is crying and breathing heavily. “EITHER YOU FUCK ME, OR I BURY YOU!”
“NO! DON’T DO THIS!”
“YOU WILL NOT HIDE FROM ME, BITCH!”
Simon grabs Raquelle by the legs, while she is creeping away, and presses her sharply against himself. Then he gives the girl a strong slap in the face again and kisses her on the lips by force, squeezing her jaw tightly with his fingers. While she keeps fighting off him so hard with her hands and feet, as she feels how her body rejects any of his caresses with his cracked, cold lips and dry and rough hands. However, she starts losing her strength fast. And she is losing her voice from screaming. Trying to save herself on her own does not lead to any good result, and nobody kind of hears her cry for help and rushes to rescue her. It’s like the girl was left here to be eaten by this horrible man, who is shamelessly feeling his victim up on everything he sees and covering every part of her body with kisses.
So, at some moment, Raquelle falls into silence and just keeps crying bitterly, giving up on this fight with the thought that this is probably her punishment for all the bad things she has done toward her close people. While Simon enjoys kissing her whole body, which keeps giving a negative reaction and caressing it in search of the most sensitive areas, noticing that the girl stopped resisting him and being happy with his little victory with a smug smile.
“Yeah, my sweetie…” Simon pronounces confidently in a low voice, running his hands over Raquelle’s belly. “Yeah… You’ve finally stopped resisting…”
“Please, Terrence…” Raquelle begs in a quiet, shaking whisper, setting her wet eyes on the door. “Help me… Don’t leave me… I need you…”
Raquelle starts crying bitterly as she is lying powerlessly on the cold, concrete floor in a lot of dirt and dust, understanding that there is no point in fighting, and letting Simon win. It lasts for some time before she hears very muted sounds. It seems like someone is getting closer so determinedly. At first, the girl thinks she is just going crazy, and it seems so to her. But she gets rid of all the doubts when she hears someone furiously try to open the blocked door of the room where Simon locked himself with her.
“Terrence…” Raquelle whispers with a shake, moving her eyes full of hope to the door.
Raquelle shakes slightly when someone shakes the door handle sharply and tries to push it off, but cannot do this because of the bricks and boards that prevent them from it. A smile full of hope shows up on the pale, tired face of the girl at the thought that she has been found and is about to be saved from Simon. Who, however, does not care about it and keeps kissing her whole body with pleasure with a strong wish to take the clothes off her and make love with her.
“I’m here…” Raquelle pronounces powerlessly. “Here… Save me…”
“Simon Ringer, open the door now!” James’ loud and demanding voice orders. “This is an order!”
“RINGER, YOU, FUCKING ASSHOLE, OPEN THE DOOR NOW!” Terrence makes a deafening, bass roar and hits the door with his hand strongly. “OPEN IT, THE FUCK!”
“I’m here, Terrence!” Raquelle gives a voice much louder, tearing her head off the floor. “Please, do something!”
“Hold on, Raquelle!” Hunter exclaims excitedly. “We’re here! It’s gonna be okay! We will save you!”
“You’re trying for nothing, gentlemen,” Simon says with a blissful smile and covers Raquelle’s neck with dry kisses. “You will not get into here. And I shall not give the girl to you.”
“WHAT ARE YOU DOING TO HER THERE, BASTARD?” Terrence roars. “GET OFF HER NOW! I swear, I WILL KILL YOU IF SOMETHING HAPPENS TO RAQUELLE!”
“You’ve lost this time, Jackson.” Simon runs his tongue slowly over the front of the neck of Raquelle crying bitterly. “Elizabeth belongs to me now.”
“Please, someone, help me!” Raquelle begs in despair. “He wanna rape me! I don’t want it! I don’t want!”
“It’s gonna be okay, friend, nothing will happen to you,” Hunter assures. “The guys and I are trying to break the door.”
“Simon blocked it with boards and bricks!”
“Don’t worry, Ms. Cameron, we will break it!” James replies.
“Please, do it faster! Please, take this man away from me! Please! Please! Ple-a-A-A-A-A-A!”
“Close your mouth, slut!” Simon explodes in a bass voice and punches Raquelle strongly in the face.
“NO! STOP IT!”
“If you want me to get into you without warming you up, IT WILL HAPPEN!” Simon gives Raquelle a painful hit right in her stomach. “IT WILL HAPPEN, BITCH!”
“A-A-A-A, PLEASE, STOP IT!” Raquelle screams hysterically, doubling over immediately and grabbing her stomach.
“LEAVE HER ALONE, FUCKING ANIMAL!” Terrence explodes, while all the policemen try to break the door with their hands and feet by one.
“IF YOU DO NOT WANT TO DO THIS AT YOUR WISH, I WILL FORCE YOU TO DO IT!” Simon screams, getting literally red from anger. “BY FORCE AND RUDENESS!”
“DON’T DO THIS!” Raquelle shouts when Simon hits the back of her head against the floor and gives her multiple strong hits on her arms with his fist. “STOP, SIMON! DON’T DO THIS!”
“Is that asshole beating her?” Hunter wonders with a heavy breath.
“I guess so,” James assumes thoughtfully.
“PLEASE, SAVE ME!” Raquelle wrecks her vocal cords. “HELP ME! TERRENCE! HUNTER! SOMEONE!”
“Alright, snake, if you don’t want to be mine, YOU WILL HAVE TO DIE AGAIN!” Simon screams. “I SHALL KILL YOU, WHORE!”
“NO, STOP IT!” Raquelle closes her face with both hands after Simon gives her a couple of strong slaps. “STOP IT!”
“Close your mouth, bitch!”
“SIMON!”
“SPREAD YOUR LEGS NOW BEFORE I BEAT YOU!” Simon tries to spread Raquelle’s legs and sit between them by force. “SPREAD YOUR LEGS, I SAID!”
“PLEASE, STOP!”
“You will not hide from me. These people will be able to do nothing.”
“NO-O-O-O-O-O-O!”
“FUCK, SHUT UP, AT LAST!” Simon hits Raquelle against the floor with her head. “SHUT UP! STOP CRYING! STOP!”
Simon closes Raquelle’s mouth tightly with his hand and keeps beating her strongly, not giving up on trying to get into her jeans and making her much more frightened with his burning look full of hate. Every single shout from her is like a knife in the heart of Terrence, who starts breathing too heavily from excitement and gets mad at himself because he cannot reach for her and save her from the man, who went insane. All the attempts by the policemen to open the door do not lead to any result. It’s blocked with the boards and bricks too tightly. That’s why everybody has to hear heartbreaking shouts from the girl, who starts losing any hope of salvation again after she barely gets it.
“Damn, how do we open this fucking door?” Henry wonders. “Nothing works on it!”
“Yeah, this cad worked on it well…” Louis throws gloomily.
“Don’t stop, guys!” James orders. “Break it! Break!”
“What are you doing there?” Terrence throws irritably. “Open this fucking door! Before that asshole kills her there!”
“We are trying to!” Hunter exclaims, trying to push the door off so hard. “But no… Something is wrong… Not only boards… It’s like something is stuck in the locker.”
“Let me try it!”
After standing in front of the door, striking a pose and exhaling sharply, Terrence hits the door strongly with his leg, but it just shakes slightly. And when Raquelle screams again, he tries to hit it much more cruelly multiple times, understanding that it kind of moves off the dead point. The policemen also help him and let him take a little break, giving each other an order not to give up and to keep doing this and not doubting that they can do this. While Raquelle is no longer so optimistic, as she is lying powerless on the floor with pain and bruises on her whole body after being beaten strongly by Simon. He kisses her shamelessly on everything he sees with an evil smirk and a loud laugh, feels up her breasts, runs his tongue over the curves of her neck, and caresses her belly, getting underneath the lady’s t-shirt after raising it much more. He sees an attractive black bra, through which he grabs every single nipple with his mouth, covering her breasts with wet kisses and running his tongue over it, while she is crying bitterly and literally dreaming of dying not to overcome this unbearable, kind of endless torture.
Some time goes by before Terrence manages to open the door with the last, furious and strong hit of his foot, breaking it into many pieces. They fall to the floor, as well as the broken locker and broken boards that could not endure this pressure. The man easily throws aside all the bricks that also blocked the door and runs into the room along with the policemen, who point their pistols determinedly at Simon. Who, however, ignores it, striking Raquelle on the floor, while she stops resisting but still keeps crying bitterly, raises himself upon her, raises her hands above her head, and kisses her greedily on the lips, getting his tongue into her throat quickly enough and still giving the girl pain with strong bites on the most sensitive areas of her neck.
Not thinking about the consequences for a second and getting obsessed with anger, Terrence gives a start sharply and runs to Simon shortly, while the criminal wants to tear apart Raquelle’s t-shirt and bra, and she moves her dead eyes with no hope to her savior. The man grabs Ringer rudely by the hair along with the girl’s loud sobs, slaps him in the face two times along, drags him aside sharply, strikes him down to the floor without problems, and attacks him with fists, raising himself above him at some moment and heartlessly starting to give him offender painful hits that could easily break something and provoke bleeding.
Raquelle breathing heavily watches what’s happening surprisingly as she is still lying on the floor powerlessly with a feeling of a strong pain in her whole weak body and asking herself if everything is real or if she just tries to calm herself down with her own fantasies. She does not resist when Hunter runs up to her shortly and helps his friend sit up.
“Hey, Raquelle, how are you doing?” Hunter expresses anxiety. “Are you okay?”
“I t-think s-so…” Raquelle replies quietly in a shaking voice, setting her widely open eyes to Hunter.
“Did this man do nothing to you?”
“No, thank God… He didn’t do…”
“Damn, he beat you…” Hunter looks at Raquelle from head to feet with a horror in his eyes, noticing some bruises on her shoulders and a couple of bleeding scars on her face. “And you’ve got scars on your face…”
“He almost killed me…” Raquelle sniffs quietly, shaking strongly from fear and breathing heavily enough. “I thought I’d die…”
“Calm down, sweetie, it’s okay,” Hunter says in a soft, quiet voice, pressing the exhausted Raquelle to his chest and caressing her head tenderly. “We’re here…”
“You’ve come just in time,” Raquelle adds tiredly. “Or he would have taken off his pants in front of me… And he would’ve raped me right here.”
“Don’t worry, honey, he will no longer hurt you,” Hunter promises quietly, caressing Raquelle’s cheek and kissing her cutely on the forehead.
“He’ll turn my life into hell… Simon’s gonna kill me… As well as he killed my parents.”
“He will not, I promise.”
“Please, Hunter, do something,” Raquelle sniffs quietly, putting her arms tightly around Hunter’s neck. “I don’t wanna die… I don’t want Simon to do something to me.”
“Your nightmare will end very soon,” Hunter says confidently. “We will not let him hurt you.”
“Promise?”
“Trust us, Raquelle.” Hunter takes Raquelle’s hands softly and looks at her with a slight, encouraging smile. “I swear I will save you from this stinker at any cost.”
“Please, friend, don’t leave me! I need you. I need you like nobody else.”
“I will not leave you, my girl. I swear on my life.”
Raquelle looks at Hunter with hope, while he takes her in his tight hug for a few seconds and caresses her head tenderly. While the girl presses herself close to her friend, crying bitterly. At some moment, she moves her tired eyes slowly aside and opens them widely when she sees Terrence and Simon, who are fighting furiously and giving each other strong slaps and painful hits in the yawl, on legs and arms, and in their most sensitive areas with no shame. Now, Terrence is as furious as he has never been before. The way he was when fighting with Raquelle seems to be nothing. Because now the girl does not recognize the man, who looks like a furious lion that is about to attack a human and bite the victim to death. Right before her eyes, MacClife strikes Ringer down rudely, gives him a few very strong slaps, drags him by the hair, beats him with his legs and arms, and even breaks his lip, which starts bleeding slightly. And at some moment, the man grabs his enemy by the collar and sets his bloodshot, widely open eyes on his small eyes, starting to wreck his vocal cords:
“What did you want to do with her? WHAT DID YOU THE FUCK WANT TO DO TO HER?”
After getting no answer, Terrence starts shaking Simon strongly and looking at him with widely open eyes.
“ANSWER, SCUMBAG!” Terrence screams at the top of his lungs, as his nostrils inflate from anger. “OR I WILL KILL YOU PERSONALLY!”
Terrence gives Simon a very strong slap in the face and smashes his fist against his yawl.
“YOU, BASTARD, WILL PAY ME FOR FEELING HER UP INSOLENTLY AND LICKING HER EVERYWHERE!” Terrence threatens at the top of his lungs with a heavy breath. “AND ALMOST TOOK YOUR FUCKING PANTS OFF!”
“So, did you watch me caressing your girlfriend and get jealous?” Simon laughs evilly.
“If you touch her with a finger again, I WILL BURY YOU HERE ALIVE! YOU GOT IT?”
“You know, now I understand why you lost your mind because of her.” Simon smiles slyly. “I understand why all men go insane from her. At first sight, she is such a homely girl. I used to think so. But as it turned out, Raquelle is a very sexy babe.”
“Do not make me wild, Ringer,” Terrence hisses through his teeth. “I WILL NOT STAND THESE THINGS ABOUT THIS GIRL!”
“If she got me so excited when I was just caressing and kissing her, I am sure that this chic would not be worse in bed. When I imagine her absolutely naked, I feel that my body gets much tenser. I understand I can do a lot at the age of more than forty.”
Simon gets a much stronger hit in the yawl from the furious Terrence, who literally gets kind of green from evil and tension.
“If I hear something like this from you again, you will be dead,” Terrence threatens in a low, rude voice. “I WILL NOT PITY YOU!”
“This gal is an image of her mommy,” Simon says confidently. “She is the reason why I forget Elizabeth is dead. I think she is in front of me. Alive. She is back to me. Though, this dolly must get a little tamed because she is too sassy and makes me beat her in the face.”
“Shut up, scumbag… JUST SHUT UP!” Terrence grabs Simon’s shirt so tightly that he is about to rip it. “SHUT UP! OR YOU WILL BE DEAD!”
“By the way, I have a great chance to get her,” Simon replies confidently. “And I could change my plans. If she pleases me in a sexual way, I will not kill her and will call her my beloved Elizabeth Thompson. No Raquelle will exist… There will be only my beloved Lizzy. Lizzy that will undoubtedly make me happy.”
“Remember, you, jerkoff, this girl belongs to ME! ONLY ME! And nobody but me has a right to feel her up.”
“She is no longer yours, my dear,” Simon smiles slyly. “Better go to the blonde girl and have fun with her. Your ex-girlfriend will be mine.”
“NEVER! I WILL GIVE HER TO NOBODY!”
“We will see it.” Simon glances aside and sees how tenderly Hunter is hugging and caressing the crying Raquelle, who can sit now just because her friend is pressing her to himself. “Look at the idyll they are having! I was so right when I told you the gal had an affair with another man. That policeman is hugging her and literally kissing her on the lips, but she does not resist at all.”
“I wish you died, asshole…” Terrence hisses with bloodshot eyes, barely holding himself down not to succumb to Simon’s provocation and attack Hunter with fists. “I HATE YOU, RINGER! I HATE YOU!”
“Now you’ve seen everything personally and have to believe me. You see that this whore is ready to snuggle with anyone, who calls her with a finger. Elizabeth doesn’t belong to you and me, Jackson. She’s got so many fans, for whom she is ready to shake her naked boobs, except for you and me.”
“SHUT UP, CAD!” Terrence explodes, smashing his fist against Simon’s jaw. “SHUT UP!”
“However, that bitch gets me excited anyway. In the case of Lizzy, I am ready to close my eyes to all the bad things she does. The affairs with hundreds of men and a child, whom she gave birth to.”
“I will destroy you, scumbag…” Terrence grabs Simon strongly by the throat and squeezes it tightly, setting his icy look in the eyes of his opponent. “I will do my best to put you in prison. YOU WILL SPEND YOUR TIME THERE UNTIL YOU DIE OF TORTURE! I SHALL MAKE YOU FEEL ALL THE PAIN THAT SHE HAS FELT ALL THIS TIME BECAUSE OF YOUR FUCKING FAULT.”
“And I shall put you in a mental hospital!” Simon throws rudely, while his nostrils inflate from anger. “Where you, fucking psycho bastard, will spend the rest of your life! AND YOU WILL NO LONGER STAND IN MY WAY!”
Simon pushes Terrence off rudely, strikes him down sharply, and does not refuse to give him a few strong slaps in the face. Though, MacClife is not confused, is protecting himself furiously, and beating him so hard that the man gets tracks of blood on some parts of his face. Ringer hits his enemy on his legs, arms, and face with his legs and hands. But later, he gives him a very painful hit in the abdomen that makes him cry quietly, twist from the pain for some time, and set his teeth from the pain that gets instantly obsessed with his body. While Raquelle is watching the cruel fight between her ex-boyfriend and their common enemy, who got her exhausted with all these terrible tortures with pain in her heart. She is still lying on the floor in the arms of Hunter, who does not leave his friend alone. However, at some moment, he insists that they get up, holding the girl by the waist, helps her shake the dirt and dust off her, and presses her to himself.
The fight between Terrence and Simon lasts for some time before Ringer gives his opponent a strong hit on his spine, making him scream, wince strongly, and bend sharply backward from pain that gets throughout his body and deprives him of the ability to move for some time. Using the moment, Simon gets up quickly on his feet and comes to Raquelle determinedly, but the policemen close the way to her immediately.
“Get back!” James throws rudely, pointing the pistol at Simon. “Don’t dare to get closer to her!”
“Give me the gal!” Simon demands. “NOW!”
“Do not dare to touch her with a finger if you want to live!” Hunter says determinedly, closing Raquelle with his body with no fear.
“SHE MUST DIE! AND SHE WILL DIE! I WILL NOT LET HER LIVE AS IF NOTHING HAPPENED!”
When Simon gives a start, the policemen shoot at him multiple times, but he dodges the bullets skillfully all the time.
“Give up, Ringer,” Hunter encourages confidently, pointing his gun at Simon. “You have no place to run.”
“NEVER!” Simon roars.
“Give up, stinker!” James insists confidently. “Stop torturing the poor girl. You wanted to rape her, and you also beat her.”
“No matter how hard you protect Raquelle, I shall reach her anyway. SHE WILL BE MINE! AND I WILL DO ANYTHING I WANT TO HER!”
When Simon takes a step forward, James shoots at him again, but Ringer gets to avoid the bullet again. At this moment, Ringer gets time to run to his pistol, grab it, and shoot at all the policemen, who answer him back. Meanwhile, Terrence comes back to normal, gets up on his feet quickly enough, and strikes his opponent down again, throwing the gun as far as possible, pressing him tightly to the ground, hitting him in the abdomen, and raising his head proudly when hearing his quiet squeak of pain.
“That’s all, scumbag, you have no place to go,” Terrence says confidently. “You will go to prison today and die right there.”
“We will see it, pathetic actor,” Simon throws rudely. “You will not bring me down! I SHALL DESTROY YOU! THIS GAL WILL BE MINE!”
Simon grabs Terrence by the leg and pulls it so strongly that he falls immediately to the ground. Then Ringer shames his fist against his yawl very strongly, gets up quickly, and grabs his pistol again. He easily pushes all the policemen aside and avoids getting all the bullets from them, getting struck down and having handcuffs put on him. The man runs up to the pale Raquelle still crying bitterly from fear grabs her by the hand sharply. While she shouts loudly, Simon puts the pistol against her head again, grabbing her neck with an arm, pressing her to himself, and bringing her closer to the exit from the room by force. And when the policemen and Terrence try to come closer to him, Ringer starts threatening all of them with his gun.
“STOP, EVERYBODY!” Simon screams at the top of his lungs and puts the pistol sharply against the temple of Raquelle. “STOP, I SAID! OR I SHALL KILL THIS GIRL!”
“PLEASE, STOP!” Raquelle begs in despair. “STOP! DO NOT DO THIS!”
“Let this girl go now, Ringer,” Hunter demands quietly. “Stop torturing her!”
“NEVER!” Simon roars. “SHE IS MINE! AND SHE WILL GO WITH ME!”
“SHE WILL NEVER BE YOURS!” Terrence screams loudly.
“Your plan of saving her failed, MacClife. Accept your loss and take all these people with you away.”
“I will leave only with Raquelle!”
“Simon Ringer, throw the gun aside and let the girl go,” James says in an icy voice, looking at Simon confidently and keeping his pistol pointed at him.
“NEVER!” Simon roars.
“You have no place to run. You are surrounded from all sides and will get arrested anyway. Our colleagues are waiting for you outside. They are watching every single exit that we found here. If you show up, you will be caught.”
“Ha, do you really think I will give up so easily?” Simon smirks loudly. “No, do not dream about it!”
“Do not make it worse for you, Mr. Ringer,” Louis encourages quietly. “It would be better if you and all your accomplices gave up at your wish.”
“No, you do not make it worse. You better get out at your wish before I kill all of you.”
“We will leave only if you let the girl go,” Hunter replies confidently.
“THIS GAL WILL NOT GO WITH YOU!” Simon puts the pistol much tighter to Raquelle’s temple. “DO NOT EVEN TRY TO SAVE HER!”
“Let her go now, you, dirty animal!” Terrence demands irritably. “Or I swear you will regret being born in the world.”
“Stop pretending to be a brave hero and hoping that I will give her to you. YOU WILL ONLY SEE HER IN A COFFIN!”
“Do you want to make me much more enraged? DO YOU WANT TO MAKE ME KILL YOU? STRANGLE YOU WITH MY OWN HANDS? SHOOT AT YOU FROM THIS FUCKING PISTOL?”
“I would be very happy if you died here of anger. Nobody would at least stop me from fucking this sexy cutie.”
Not holding his anger down, Terrence moves off sharply with a wish to attack Simon with fists, even if it might cost his life. But Ringer prevents it immediately, pointing the pistol at him again and pressing Raquelle, who is shaking strongly and looking terribly pale, much closer to himself.
“STAY THERE, BASTARD!” Simon screams at the top of his lungs.
“Please, don’t do this…” Raquelle begs.
“LET RAQUELLE GO RIGHT NOW!” Terrence demands loudly. “LOOK AT WHAT YOU HAVE THE FUCK DONE TO HER! SHE CAN BARELY STAND ON HER FEET!”
“You will do nothing to me! As well as these people.”
Terrence moves off again to hit Simon as strongly as possible, but has to stop as the pistol is pointed at him again. While the policemen continue to look at Simon confidently and coldly and keep their guns charged.
“Hey, six-foot-tall psycho, if you try to attack me again, I will shoot your head down to the fuck,” Simon threatens in a rude, low voice. “YOU WILL DIE BEFORE THE EYES OF YOUR EX-GIRLFRIEND!”
“No…” Raquelle pronounces in a quiet, hoarse voice with horror in her eyes. “Don’t do this…”
“ALRIGHT, ENOUGH! I WILL NO LONGER PITY ANYONE! I SHALL SHOOT DOWN THE HEAD OF ANYONE TO WISH TO SAVE THIS GAL!”
“No, Simon, please… Don’t shoot at anyone of them… I don’t want anyone’s death…”
“Don’t’ worry, my sweetie, these people cannot stop us,” Simon smirks evilly, fixing Raquelle’s hair with the muzzle of the pistol. “We will run away sooner than they will do something.”
“You were told this whole building was surrounded!” Terrence reminds. “You will not hide from us!”
“We will see it, my dear.”
“S-simon, I’m b-begging y-you, stop…” Raquelle begs with despair and tears in a shaking voice.
“You and I will live happily after. Just like we dreamed many years ago.”
“For God’s sake, let me be free and leave all my close people and me alone. I’m begging you…”
“No, babe, I can’t let you go,” Simon replies in a low voice and kisses the shaking and crying Raquelle on the temple. “Because you drive me crazy…”
“Please, Simon…” Raquelle sniffs quietly, looking at Simon with tear-stained eyes full of horror and the feeling that her heart is about to jump out of her chest and perform a flip three times. “How long do I have to take it all? When will I finally get peace?”
“Soon, my baby,” Simon pronounces confidently. “You will be very happy soon.”
“Please, don’t kill me… Don’t do what you did to my parents many years ago.”
“If you’re a good girl, I will probably not deprive you of your life. You just need to love me. And become Elizabeth Thompson. The girl that I met and fell in love with at first sight.”
“No…”
“And if you make me happy… Please me in a bed… Do your best for me to dream of having your gorgeous body.”
“I am not Elizabeth…”
“I don’t care… The important thing is that you are similar to her. Similar to my beloved Lizzy.”
Starting to lose his mind, Simon lets his hands caress Raquelle’s belly, get underneath her t-shirt, and feel up her breasts, thighs, and buttocks, runs his tongue over open areas of her body, and gets down to the lady’s crotch. Because the girl is resisting too hard and trying to get out of his grip with quiet squeaks, he pulls her down sharply and insolently continues to touch the body that he considers so attractive and sexual.
Terrence gets obsessed with attacks of jealousy and madness again and cannot watch this scene quietly, feeling tension in every single muscle of his body, clenching his hands into fists so tightly that his chuckles get white, and breathing too heavily. At some moment, he takes the gun from Hunter’s hands in anger and points it at Simon determinedly.
“Get your hands off her, cockroach,” Terrence demands in a low, rude voice. “Or I will shoot at your head.”
“Mr. MacClife, do not do stupid things!” Hunter advises confidently. “Move the gun down!”
“Exactly!” Simon agrees. “Give the gun to the uncle policeman, boy.”
“SHUT UP, BASTARD!” Terrence explodes and gives a start sharply.
“GET BACK!” Simon moves the pistol sharply at Terrence. “GET BACK, I SAID!”
“Move the gun down, Terrence,” James insists and shakes Terrence by the shoulder. “Hear me? Let it down!”
“I will not calm until this asshole is burning in hell for everything he has done!” Terrence says.
Terrence wants to give a start sharply and run to Simon, but at this moment, James pulls him down sharply, and Hunter takes the pistol from him by force, despite the hard resistance from the man being obsessed with anger.
“Ha!” Simon smirks evilly. “You are a brave man, Terrence! You would tear anyone for your beloved girl! And you would even go to prison!”
“I swear I will shoot you down if you do not stop feeling her up and licking her BEFORE MY EYES,” Terrence threatens coldly.
“Wow, as it turned out, you are jealous… M-m-m… My gosh… But some time ago, you hated this girl and wanted to leave her… After believing she was cheating on you. And realizing that she did not need you. But now you woke up and decided to become a hero and save your second half.”
“YES, I AM THE FUCK JEALOUS!” Terrence breaks into a cry. “AND I GET WILD BECAUSE YOU DARE TO FEEL THIS GIRL UP INSOLENTLY!”
“I already saw it! Seeing how excited and enraged you get when I kiss and hug your ex-girlfriend.”
“I wish some heavy shit fell over you from the top and crushed you to the fuck,” Terrence hisses through his teeth, while his nostrils inflate from anger. “I WISH YOU, BASTARD, DIED! DIE! DIE! DIE!”
“And I must confess that I like making you burn from anger and jealousy… Though, I actually love to get you wild and give you a reason to make you look like a psycho man.”
“Yeah, nobody else has made me as mad as you do.”
“Who knows… Maybe, I will not have to kill you because you will die yourself by choking from jealousy and anger.”
“Do not dream! I will not die to make you mad!”
“It’s alright, Terry, if you are too alive, I will not let you grieve for a long time. I will do my best for you and this beauty to die on the same day, at the same hour. And you will meet somewhere in heaven. But I can’t promise it.”
Simon puts the pistol tightly against Raquelle's temple.
“This gal will meet her mommy and daddy if she does not want to be mine and become the late Elizabeth for me,” Simon says confidently.
“YOU WILL DO NOTHING TO HER!” Terrence screams at the top of his lungs.
“CLOSE YOUR FUCKING MOUTH!”
Simon points the pistol sharply at Terrence, while Raquelle being exhausted by all these tortures opens her eyes widely, while she has lost all the strength to fight and has her voice sound strongly hoarse because of her shouts.
“Please, Simon…” Raquelle pronounces in a little shaking voice with tears in her eyes. “Don’t kill anyone… Nobody should die… Nobody should suffer because of me… Nobody…”
“If nobody leaves, ALL OF THEM WILL DIE!” Simon says confidently.
“I am ready to go anywhere with you and let you do anything you want to me. But I am begging you, don’t hurt anyone of these people. They took a risk for me. But I will not handle this burden.”
“What?” Terrence rounds his eyes full of horror widely.
“So, would you go with me at your wish?” Simon smiles slyly.
“Anywhere…” Raquelle sobs quietly. “But don’t kill these people. I am ready to sacrifice myself for the salvation of them.”
“No, Raquelle, no!” Terrence begs loudly and excitedly. “Don’t dare to do this! Don’t dare to go anywhere with him!”
“I’d do anything…” Raquelle sniffs quietly. “Not to let anyone suffer…”
“DON’T DARE! HE WILL KILL YOU! KILL!”
“If you want to kill, kill me. I am ready for this… Ready to die right now.”
“NO! SHUT UP!”
“I do not believe you!” Simon throws rudely, putting the pistol tightly to Raquelle’s temple. “You are just playing time and do not want to die.”
“I don’t care…” Raquelle replies in a desperate voice and sniffs quietly. “Do anything you want to me. I do not have the strength to fight.”
“Mr. Ringer, let’s stop all of this?” Henry suggests quietly. “Just tell us about your requirements for setting this girl free.”
“I need nothing from you!” Simon exclaims. “And nobody will be able to save this gal!”
“You just look at her!” Henry glances at the pale Raquelle, who is crying quietly and shaking strongly. “Look how scared and exhausted she is! Look at what you have done to her! The girl can barely stand and is about to fall if nobody holds her!”
“I am giving you the last chance to leave at your wish,” Simon says with his head proudly raised. “If you leave now, you will stay alive.”
“We will not leave until we get you arrested,” Hunter says confidently.
“Please, go away…” Raquelle begs in despair. “Leave me… Let him do anything he wants.”
“Are you the fuck crazy?” Terrence resents in a loud, high voice. “What do you the fuck mean leave?”
“Please, Terrence, go away! Take all these people away and leave… You can do nothing now.”
“You noticed it right,” Simon smiles slyly. “Nothing. MacClife will not manage to whitewash himself again after all of his terrible actions.”
“Give up, stinker!” James exclaims, while Simon thinks about standing with his back turned to the exit from the room. “Do not make it worse for you, this girl, and us!”
“If you want to get me, catch me! I WILL NOT GIVE UP ON YOU!”
Simon shoots at all the policemen and Terrence along with Raquelle’s shouts. All of them manage to hide from the bullets, but some of them lose their balance and fall to the floor. Using the moment, the man puts the pistol against the temple of the sobbing girl and takes her out of the room by force, keeping his arm tightly wrapped around his neck. And when Terrence gives a start first, Ringer turns around and starts running away again, grabbing his victim under an arm and starting to take her with him by force. This time, she does not almost resist, even if she keeps crying bitterly and wants to fall to the floor due to weakness. MacClife starts chasing the criminal shortly, while the policemen just leave the room and want to catch him.
Not thinking too much, Simon gets one floor up on the stairs covered with dust and dirt and starts running down the wide, kind of endless halls, through which he can go to the same half-ruined rooms as those there are in this building. On the way, he tries to shoot at Terrence, who avoids the wound at the cost of getting separated from his opponent by hiding behind the walls, falling to the floor, and jumping aside. When the girl falls to the floor from tiredness or steps over something, Ringer punches her in the face strongly and just starts dragging her after himself, while she spends the rest of her strength screaming with despair and horror and barely thinks about having her clothes covered with dirty spots.
Thus, Simon later ends up on the latest floor, where there are much fewer rooms. He runs in circles for some time, not knowing where to go or where to hide from Terrence and the policemen, who are chasing him, are not going to give up so easily, and are determined to catch him. But later, he stops his eyes on the closed metallic door with a lot of dents and colorful graffiti. Ringer runs up to it shortly, pulls the handle, and opens it easily, seeing that there is a narrow room with concrete half-rounded stairs, on which he gets up without thinking, growling irritably because Cameron falls constantly and skins her knees to the blood by this time. Judging by the specific spots on her jeans and the little holes in them. Also, the girl hits her forehead against the railing a couple of times and gets small bruises on it, feeling uncomfortable pain in her foot because it gets twisted badly at some moment.
After opening one more unlocked door, Simon ends up on the roof, where a strong enough wind is blowing. Thick woods, some multi-story buildings, television towers, and cellular towels can be seen from here. By this moment, it got dark enough outside, and the sky got covered with thick gray clouds, though which even a small shoot of the sun cannot show up. The edges of the roof are not framed with anything. If someone comes to it, they may easily fall off from the height of the five-story building and get serious traumas. After looking around, Simon decides to come closer to it and understands that he did not hear a lie about the building being surrounded by the policemen. He gets nervous enough at the thought that he has literally been caught in a trap and is not able to run away from here and take Raquelle, who falls to her knees powerlessly.
“Fuck it…” Simon throws gloomily. “Scumbags… They’ve pressed me to the wall…”
Simon does not manage to think about it better because Terrence runs on the roof first, and then the policemen show up.
“Give up, bastard!” Terrence roars. “This is your final stop!”
“Your time of running is over!” Hunter exclaims, pointing his pistol at Simon.
“It’s your time to pay for all your bad tricks,” James adds, keeping Simon under the gun.
“Oh, no!” Simon smiles slyly. “You will not catch me so easily!”
Simon grabs Raquelle rudely by the hair, gets her up, and, putting his pistol against her head, brings her to the edge of the roof by force. While the girl starts to scream loudly at the realization that the situation gets much worse than before.
“GET BACK!” Simon explodes. “GET BACK, I SAID! OR I WILL THROW THIS GAL OFF THE ROOF!”
“NO-O-O-O-O!” Raquelle screams hysterically. “DON’T DO THIS! PLEASE!”
“If you dare to push her, I will throw you off the roof with pleasure!” Terrence threatens.
“I’ve been waiting for this moment for several years,” Simon smiles slyly. “For the moment to take revenge for everything I have experienced. For suffering so much. For getting rejected. I can end all of this with just one push. Just one falling from the fifth floor can make me the happiest man in the world.”
“N-n-no, S-s-simon…” Raquelle pronounces in a strongly shaking voice as she looks down scarily and panics at just the thought that she may fall from this height. “P-p-please…”
“WHERE ARE YOU GOING?” Simon points the pistol sharply at Terrence when he tries to run to Raquelle to help her out. “STAY THERE!”
“STOP TORTURING HER!” Terrence breaks into a cry. “HOW LONG WILL YOU MAKE RAQUELLE SUFFER?”
“Claims are for her mommy, not me. She did not make the right choice one day. And she eventually paid for it with her life, killed her hubby, and is about to send her daughter to another world.”
“You have no place to run!” James exclaims and glances at two policemen, who closed the way, which helped them end up on the roof. “Nobody will let you leave this place, and more and more policemen are coming here.”
“SIMON RINGER NEVER GIVES UP!”
“Your pals have probably been caught and sent to the police station,” Terrence assumes. “And the doctors and nurses have prepared a place for you in a mental hospital.”
“I hope you will take it someday.”
“Don’t make me enraged, bastard. GIVE THE FUCK UP! AND LET RAQUELLE GO!”
“I WILL NOT GIVE THE GAL TO YOU!” Simon, grabbing Raquelle tightly by the hair, brings her sharply to the edge of the roof.
“NO, PLEASE, DON’T DO THIS!” Raquelle screams in a heartbreaking way. “I DON’T WANT TO DIE!”
“Look at all these people for the last time, dolly,” Simon says and turns Raquelle’s head to those who are trying to save her. “LOOK! AND SAY GOODBYE TO THEM!”
“I’m not so bad…” Raquelle pronounces with pity in her eyes and makes a quiet sob. “I didn’t deserve it all…”
“Don’t worry, my sweetie, your death will be instant. When you fall from this height, you have no chance to survive. You will not understand anything. You will not feel how all your bones break into little pieces.”
“Please, Simon, don’t do this…” Raquelle looks down scarily and feels a little dizzy because of this height. “I’m scared…”
“Your mother was also afraid to die. But she did not suffer long. Just like your dad.”
“I don’t want to die…”
“Tomorrow, everyone will be talking about your tragic death. About how you feel from the height of five floors and got traumas that were not comparable with life. But only fewer folks will be grieving for you.”
“If you don’t let her go now, I swear I will shoot you down for sure,” Hunter threatens in a low, rude voice, keeping the pistol pointed at Simon. “I will bury you if something happens to my friend.”
“M-m-m… The friend, for whom you have a one-sided love?”
“None of your fucking business, asshole!”
“End this senseless show, Ringer!” James demands confidently. “You have two choices: letting the girl go, putting the gun on the floor, and raising your hands, or just forcing us to start the fire.”
“I agree with none of them.” Simon glances down and, using a chokehold on Raquelle, puts the pistol against the head of the girl being powerless and crying bitterly. “If you, cads, decided to surround me from all the sides, you will have to deal with my corpse.”
Simon sharply brings Raquelle much closer to the edge of the roof and literally brings her to hysteria when he pretends that he wants to push the girl.
“A-A-A-A, DON’T DO THIS!” Raquelle screams hysterically. “PLEASE, STOP!”
“Elizabeth and I will die together!” Simon says with his head proudly raised. “No matter how much I want to kill her, life will not be good for me without my beloved woman. Without the one, with whom I wanted to live my whole life.”
“My God, why?” Raquelle wonders in a whisper and sobs with a shake. “Why?”
“I will not give my enemies pleasure to be happy with victory over me.” Simon smiles slyly, while Raquelle is literally choking from a lack of air with a feeling of a fast heartbeat. “Simon Gordon Ringer will leave this world uncaught! As well as an ultimate fighter retires unbeatable!”
Simon starts laughing loudly and evilly with a widely open mouth, getting closer to the edge of the roof slowly and getting ready to make a jump along with Raquelle, who is ready to kill herself not to experience this nightmare.
“He gives us no choice,” James says confidently. “It’s time to move on.”
“If he does not want to give up at his wish, we will make him do it by force,” Hunter raises his head proudly.
“Go,” Terrence pronounces in a low, little hoarse voice, setting his burning look on Simon. “Shoot this bastard down. And I will take Raquelle aside.”
“Ready… Fire!”
After pointing at the goal, James shoots from the pistol first to wound Simon. But the criminal avoids it along with Raquelle’s shouts by bending aside. Then two more policemen shoot at him, but the man manages to dodge, even if he slips on the slippery metallic borders that are installed on the edges of the roof.
“Too alive asshole!” Louis blunts under his nose.
“Don’t wound Raquelle!” Hunter orders.
“Run, Raquelle!” Terrence exclaims loudly. “Run! Now! Go!”
After glancing at Simon with a scar in her eyes, Raquelle tries to run aside from the last forces. But the man grabs her rudely by the hair with an irritated growl, brings her sharply to the edge of the roof, and takes multiple shots at the policemen, who manage to dodge the bullets.
“Oh, no, bitch, you will not go anywhere,” Simon says in a rude, low voice.
“A-A-A-A, NO!” Raquelle screams when she barely dodges the bullet that flies by her.
“WHY ARE YOU FAILING IT?” Terrence gets wild. “YOU CANNOT SHOOT THE ONLY ONE BASTARD DOWN!”
“Come on, come on, shoot!” Simon laughs evilly and takes a couple of more shots. “Until your patrons are gone.”
“Give up, bastard!” Hunter shouts and takes a shot determinedly.
“Never!”
This shooting lasts for some time, during which Simon dodges the bullets easily enough and tries to frame Raquelle two or three times, but she jumps aside like crazy under the influence of the adrenaline. By the order of Terrence, the girl tries to run away again, but she always gets caught by Ringer and gets a few strong slaps in the face from him when the guns need to be recharged.
“Fuck, why cannot you just do this?” Terrence resents, clenching his hands into fists with a heavy breath. “COME ON, BRING THIS COCKROACH DOWN! BRING HIM DOWN!”
“So, MacClife, did nobody give you a pistol?” Simon smirks evilly and takes a shot at Terrence, who rolls aside just in time. “Nobody trusts the psycho with a gun?”
“SHUT THE FUCK UP!”
“You work with your mouth less.” Simon sharply dodges another bullet again. “You talk too much, but you have done almost nothing during this whole time. You have not gotten closer to me yet.”
“WE WILL SEE IT, BASTARD!”
Terrence looks at what’s happening around him with a look full of evil, runs to Hunter with a heavy breath, takes the pistol from him, and, holding it tightly with both hands, points it at Simon sharply.
“If these people cannot get rid of you, I shall do this,” Terrence says rudely. “I WILL SHOOT YOUR HEAD DOWN! SO, YOU, BASTARD, DIE!”
Not thinking too much, Terrence takes a shot determinedly at Simon, who dodges it again.
“NO, TERRENCE, PLEASE, DON’T DO THIS!” Raquelle begs in despair with tears in her eyes.
“You are a worthless hero, Terry,” Simon laughs with mockery. “A hero brings their opponent down for the first five seconds. But you cannot even kill me with a gun. And you cannot reach for the gal.”
Being obsessed with the anger that makes literally all of his muscles shake, Terrence shoots at Simon multiple times with an irritated growl, while Ringer just chuckles at the unsuccessful attempts of the man and the policemen to neutralize him.
“Terrence, stop!” Raquelle begs in despair and gives a start sharply to run to Terrence. “Don’t do this!”
“You were the fuck told to STAY HERE!” Simon explodes, grabbing Raquelle under an arm and giving her a strong slap in the face, after which she falls to her knees.
“Please, Simon…”
“DON’T DARE TO RUN AWAY FROM ME!” Simon gets Raquelle up on her feet rudely, grabbing her under her arm, and puts his pistol against the area between the girl’s chin and neck. “DO NOT DARE!”
“It’s alright, asshole, it’s okay,” Terrence throws rudely. “Nothing in this world can last forever. People die. And their luck can’t last forever. Early or late, all the cockroaches and rats die. SO, YOU WILL NOT BE ABLE TO AVOID PAYING FOR MURDERING TWO PEOPLE AND TRYING TO KILL THE THIRD ONE! I WILL NOT LET IT HAPPEN!”
Pointing at Simon with his head proudly raised, Terrence presses the trigger much more determinedly. The bullet gets immediately out of the barrel and flies straightly, aiming to get into what it was supposed to get. But again, Ringer manages to avoid the fatal wound by bending aside. Though, at this moment, he slides on the metallic borders and starts losing his balance fast as he is standing very close to the edge of the roof. And no matter how hard he waves his hands, gravity drags him down anyway, and his feet twist, so that it’s impossible to hold on. That’s why the man understands that he starts falling. However, at the last moment, he manages to grab Raquelle under an arm and drags her with him. The girl can do nothing with it and just starts screaming loudly, and the others do not have time to react to it, even if they see that she and the criminal are about to fall from the fifth floor.
“NO-O-O-O-O!” Terrence screams in a heartbreaking way with widely open eyes.
“RAQUELLE!” Hunter breaks into a desperate shout full of fear, breathing heavily enough.
Terrence and Hunter give a start at the same time and rush to the edge of the roof, but they can do nothing because Raquelle and Simon are both in free fall, while they feel how the strong wind is blowing in their ears, and their limbs shake in the air frantically. The men can clearly hear the lady’s hysterical scream, which is much louder than the scream of the criminal. And when they run to the edge, they, taking their breaths away, get horrified when they look down and see that the man’s body is lying on the ground in an unnatural pose motionlessly, and a small pool of bright red blood shows up near him. They do not understand it instantly because there are too many trees around the back of the building. Thick foliage is the reason why they can see what’s happening down only when the wind starts shaking it.
However, they care about Simon’s accident much less. They are much more excited because of Raquelle, who fell off the height, but whom they cannot see anywhere.
“Raquelle!” Terrence screams at the top of his lungs, looking down with widely open eyes and trying to see something through the thick foliage. “Raquelle!”
“It can’t be the truth…” Hunter pronounces in a shaking voice as he shakes his head. “It can’t be…”
Starting to choke from excitement, literally hearing a fast heartbeat in his temples, and not caring about the strong wind that is blowing his hair and clothes, Terrence lets go of the pistol that falls to the floor with a crush, falls to his knees powerlessly, and sets his dumbfounded eyes into the distance. While James, Louis, and Henry just come to the edge of the roof and look down hesitantly, not believing that everything has really ended in such a tragic way.
“No…” Terrence mumbles, barely moving his lips and choking from a lack of air. “No, don’t let it happen… Please, don’t let it happen…”
“Did…” James pronounces in a shaking voice. “Did… Did she die? As well as Ringer?”
“When falling from this height, there is no chance to survive,” Henry notices.
“And if you’re lucky, you will one hundred percent be disabled,” Louis adds.
“Why, Raquelle?” Hunter wonders, clenching his hands into fists. “Why was it you? Why?”
“Raquelle, please!” Terrence screams with despair, leaning on the floor with his hands and still standing on his knees. “Please, give us a sign!”
“Does someone see something?” James asks, seeing how some policemen stop watching the whole territory and run to the unconscious and motionless Simon. “Ringer’s body is there, but I can’t see the girl.”
“Nothing, so far,” Henry replies. “Leaves prevent me from it… Everything is seen from that side, but I can’t see anything here. She has probably fallen where we cannot see her.”
“I will contact the guys, find out what’s happening down, and tell them to search for the girl’s body,” Louis says and goes aside to talk to someone on the ration.
It seems like nobody cares about Simon lying on the dirty ground unconscious after quite a cruel fall probably with a lot of serious traumas. Everybody only cares about Raquelle. They really want to believe that a miracle has happened and that the girl is alive now. But as realists, they completely understand that they can only dream about it. If the girl is now lying where they cannot see her from here, she has a very small chance to survive and come back to a normal life.
“Please, Raquelle, I wish you were okay,” Hunter begs quietly, without hope. “Don’t die… Please… I don’t know how I will live if you die. Please, sweetie, please…”
“No…” Terrence pronounces in a shaking voice, barely holding the tears down, and inclines his head. “No, Raquelle, please… Please…”
Terrence looks at what’s happening down with his wet eyes, seeing that more and more people surround the unconscious Simon, start running, fuming, and talking about something to each other.
“Fucking asshole…” Terrence hisses through his teeth, clenching his hands into fists tightly and starting to breathe heavily enough. “Nasty scumbag… I wish you died… If Raquelle is dead, I swear I will kill you. I WILL NOT FORGIVE YOU FOR HER DEATH, HEAR ME! THIS IS GOING TO BE THE LAST DROP!”
Terrence smashes his fist furiously against the metallic border, immediately feeling extreme pain in his hand, but he does not care about it, though.
“RAQUE-E-E-E-E-ELE!” Terrence wrecks his vocal cords, so that even those, who are trying to give Simon first aid, pay attention to him.
Terrence inclines his head slowly, feeling that he terribly lacks air because something is squeezing his chest. Every single breath is an impossible test for him. Every beat of his heart wounds him like a knife and gives him discomfort. Tears get out of his eyes and roll down his cheeks slowly. Just one thought about Raquelle’s death makes him close to hysteria and deprives him of any wish to live in this world. The world without this girl does not make sense. Just like it does not for Hunter, who grabs his hair tightly and looks around himself with widely open eyes, standing in the same place as a column and not being able to do anything at the thought that he has lost the girl, whom he has always been in love with, even if she has never shown mutual sympathy to him.
Meanwhile, James, Henry, and Louis look at these men with sympathy in their eyes, seeing that they love the same girl so much and do not want to believe that they have lost her. Even if they understand that they can do nothing in case Raquelle did not really survive the falling and died. This thought makes them feel guilty. Because their mission was to save her, but they have completely failed it. As the conscientious policemen, it’s hard for every one of them to accept this fail and consider the case with the girl a personal tragedy that makes them briefly doubt themselves.
They spend some time in absolute silence, during which Hunter keeps looking into the distance with a feeling of strong tension in his whole body, Terrence mumbles something about his wish for Simon to die and has tears in his eyes when he says he will never forgive him for Raquelle’s death, and James, Henry, and Louis share a couple of words quickly, doing their best to brace themselves and remember about their responsibilities. The cold wind literally strikes them down, and it’s getting darker outside because time is getting closer to evening. Every one of them tries to accept what happened in their own way, while someone puts a hand on the metallic border not far from them at some moment. Henry pays attention to this and immediately lets the others know it, pointing to the side when he says:
“Look! Look! Someone’s there! I see someone’s hand!”
Everybody moves their eyes shortly to where Henry shows and gets confirmation of his words because they see someone’s hand trying to grab something and climb up to the roof.
“Raquelle…” Terrence whispers with a heavy breath and hope in his eyes and opens his eyes widely. “Raquelle!”
Terrence gets up on his feet shortly, runs to the place that he needs and feels that his heart starts beating much faster when he sees Raquelle, who is holding by the metallic beam from the last forces and trying to climb up so badly, not knowing how long she can hang on like this and not to fall after Simon.
“Raquelle, thank God!” Terrence pronounces excitedly and falls to his knees at the edge of the roof.
“Terrence…” Raquelle pronounces faintly in a whisper. “Please, help me… Please… I don’t want to die…”
“Grab it!”
When Terrence gives his hand to her, Raquelle grabs it shortly, still holding by the beam with her second hand. Then the man tries to pull her up. Through, it turns out to be not such an easy thing because the girl does not have the strength to help him a little in this way.
“Climb up!” Terrence exclaims. “You’ve gotta help me a little!”
“I can’t!” Raquelle moans with pity. “I have no strength!”
“You can!”
“I can barely hold on to this beam…”
“It’s gonna be okay, I will not let you go!”
“I’m about to fall…”
“C’mon, Raquelle, step on it! C’mon!”
Raquelle makes a scream full of scare when the metallic beam breaks under her weight and falls with a crush on a very untrustworthy construction from mental that is rotten and shakes slightly.
“It’s okay, I’m holding you!” Terrence says much quieter and more confidently.
“I’m scared…” Raquelle pronounces with tears in her eyes. “I don’t want to die… I don’t want to die!”
“Hold on, sweetie, hold on, I will pull you up! Just help me a little!”
“I can’t!”
“Hey, Raquelle, gimme a hand!” Hunter jabs excitedly and gives his hand to Raquelle after he just runs to help her out. “C’mon! Grab it!”
Raquelle barely finds the strength to grab the hand of Hunter, who tries to pull her down alongside Terrence.
“Please, help me!” Raquelle begs in despair and moves her scared look down, while her legs are shaking feely in the air, feeling dizzy at this moment. “It’s too high here!”
“Don’t look down!” Hunter insists. “Look at us! No, don’t look! Don’t do this!”
“I’m losing my strength!”
“Hold on, friend, we will get you out! Try to pull up a little! Do your best!”
“I can’t!”
“C'mon, Mr. Lynwood, pull up!” Terrence orders. “Don’t let her hand go!”
“Please, do it faster!”
“Don’t let our hands go!” Hunter exclaims. “Grab them tighter!”
“They’re slipping!” Raquelle jabs in a high, loud voice.
“Grab it tighter!” Terrence insists.
Raquelle moves her widely open eyes down again and screams when her sweaty hand almost lets go of Terrence's wrist, which she tries to hold. Then Hunter and he grab her with their second hands and do their best to pull the girl up. Together, they manage to pull the brunette up and grab her under her arms. She does not resist them at all and starts making quiet sobs when her legs barely touch the metallic borders. And when Hunter and Terrence finally pull her up to the roof, Raquelle falls to the floor powerlessly and starts screaming in a heartbreaking way, not even thinking about holding her emotions down, which the girl gets obsessed with.
While Hunter gets up on his feet and goes aside to say something to his colleagues, Terrence creeps to Raquelle, sits her up, and takes her in a tight hug, caressing her head with a heavy breath, while tears still roll down his cheeks. The girl keeps crying bitterly with a feeling that she is shaking strongly from the tension that she had to experience, putting her nose in the man’s chest and not even thinking about pushing off the one, who did so much to save her life.
“It’s over, guys, stop searching,” Louis says on the ration. “The girl has been found. She is alive. Yeah…”
“How are you, Mr. Lynwood?” James asks.
“It’s alright,” Hunter replies with a heavy breath.
“Unbelievable!” Henry exclaims. “How did this girl survive? How didn’t she crush?”
“I don’t understand it, either. Ringer fell off from a high height and dragged Raquelle after him. Both of them were supposed to crush! But he is the only one to suffer.”
“I thought she was dead!” James confesses. “I thought nothing would save her!”
“We all thought so, colleague,” Louis replies thoughtfully after finishing talking on the ration.
“Yeah, what about Simon?” Hunter asks. “He is kind of lying unconscious.”
“Yeah, the guys said he was barely breathing. They are afraid to touch him because he may have a lot of fractures. Moreover, his clothes are in blood.”
“Did you call an ambulance?”
“Yes, the doctors are on the way. And the guys are doing what they were told by the operator. Supporting his life. But even if he survives in a magical way, he may be disabled for life.”
“It would be fair,” Hunter throws gloomily. “After everything he has done.”
“Anyway, everything has finally ended.”
“Yes, thanks, God!” James raises his hands. “Any other operation to get a criminal arrested was as hard as the arrest of this man.”
“Yeah…” Louis exhales sharply. “We had to make an effort to save this girl.”
“Hey, do you know something about Richard Stalker and his gang?” James asks. “Have they been caught?”
“I asked the guys about that kid, but they know nothing yet. They said they would specify it and contact us on the ration again.”
“Anyway, they will not run away too far,” Hunter says confidently. “If they’re all somewhere in this building.”
“That’s right,” Henry agrees. “We have completed our mission.”
“It was hard, but that’s good everything has ended,” James replies. “The risk was colossal.”
“Anyway, we are a good team,” Hunter says confidently and grabs his pistol that Terrence let go after Raquelle felt off the roof. “We made a lot of efforts to save that girl…”
With these words, Hunter moves his eyes to Raquelle, who is still crying bitterly in the tight hug of Terrence and shouts at times, having a terribly strong weakness after everything that happened and feeling how every single muscle of her body is shaking from tension.
“Calm down, sweetie, calm down,” Terrence pronounces quietly in a shaking voice, caressing Raquelle’s head and back tenderly. “It’s over. It’s all over.”
“I’m alive…” Raquelle whispers and makes a sob with a shake. “Alive…”
“Yeah, alive.” Terrence kisses Raquelle on the top of her head and closes his eyes for a second, understanding that he is shaking strongly and can barely breathe. “I almost went crazy… When he dragged you after him.”
“I can’t believe it…” Raquelle squeezes Terrence’s t-shirt weakly. “You’ve c-come… You’ve come to save me.”
“I couldn’t leave you. I couldn’t give you to that bastard to be killed.”
“I feel so bad… I’m powerless. I can’t sit… Can’t walk…”
“It’s okay, my girl, breathe deeper.” Terrence helps Raquelle take a half-lying position and starts holding her head on his elbow suspended. “You’re alive, with me, and Simon will no longer touch you with a finger.”
“I feel like I’m dying…” Raquelle confesses faintly and barely bumps air into her lungs. “I feel like these minutes… These are the last minutes of my life.”
“No, no, don’t say that!” Terrence begs excitedly, caresses Raquelle’s cheek softly, and wipes the tears under her eyes with his thumb. “You will not die! I will not handle it!”
“I feel dizzy… My whole body hurts…”
“Wait for a while. An ambulance will come here, and the doctors will help you. And if everything is okay, I will drive you to your close people.”
“So close… Death was so close… I thought I’d crush myself. And… I don’t know how… How it didn’t happen. How I ended up here… Alive…”
“Trust me, I’m shocked, too,” Terrence smiles to encourage.
“I was so scared…” Raquelle confesses with tears in her eyes and sniffs with a shake. “Like never ever in my life… I almost died. Simon almost killed me… He wanted to kill me…”
“Don’t think about it, honey.” Terrence presses Raquelle’s head to his chest and runs his fingers through her matted hair on the top of her head. “You’ve got no reason to be afraid anymore.”
“It’s like a nightmare…” Raquelle starts crying bitterly and quietly. “I’m kind of living in a dream and can’t wake up. Nobody wants to take me out of this hell.”
“Quiet, quiet, don’t cry. It’s all over.”
“Did I really deserve it all? Why? Am I really so bad? Have I done so many bad things?”
“No, Raquelle, you’re not bad.”
“So, did I deserve forgiveness? If you came here to help me. If I didn’t deserve it, I… You wouldn’t be here.”
“I would be here anyway,” Terrence says confidently and starts holding Raquelle by the nape of her neck suspended, caressing her head with a free hand. “I would’ve found you anywhere. Wherever Simon wanted to take you.”
“Terrence…”
“I heard all your begs for help and did my best to find you soon.” Terrence swallows up nervously. “And… I’m sorry about not saving you from falling.”
“You’re not guilty of it, sweetheart,” Raquelle smiles tiredly, puts her hand on Terrence’s cheek, and caresses it tenderly, looking closely at his anxious pale face with her half-wet eyes with a feeling of a strong dizziness. “You did everything you could do. And I appreciate it.”
“You’re alive, and it’s important,” Terrence notices in a much quieter and lower voice and touches Raquelle’s forehead with his forehead. “Other things don’t matter.”
“I was waiting for your appearance,” Raquelle confesses in a whisper, caresses Terrence’s cheeks with both hands, and runs her fingers through his hair as she looks into his eyes, feeling how the hot breath burns her skin and warns her up, while the strong wind is blowing outside. “I was dreaming of you coming and saving me.”
“It’s nice to hear it.”
“You… You met my expectations… My dreams, which I told nobody about.”
“After everything I’ve done?”
“I didn’t think about it.” Raquelle starts to breathe too heavily with a feeling that her dizziness is getting stronger. “I just wanted to be next to the one, with whom… With whom I felt safe.”
“Quiet, quiet, sweetie, it’s okay.” Terrence caresses Raquelle’s cheek tenderly, still holding her head suspended and noticing silently that the girl’s face is now much whiter than it usually is. “Relax.”
“T-thanks for coming…” Raquelle pronounces faintly and swallows up nervously with a feeling of sickness, while every single muscle of hers is shaking from tension, and having the midges before the eyes. “Thanks a lot for… Not pushing me deeper into this hell… Not letting me… Not letting to keep… Suffering…”
“It’s okay, baby, don’t worry, I’m here,” Terrence says softly and presses the exhausted and powerless Raquelle closer to himself, caressing the girl’s shoulders and head, while she looks at what’s happening around her and understands that the world before her eyes becomes a blur picture, and the sounds are getting more muted. “My gosh, you’re so cold and pale…”
“I’m alive thanks to you…” Raquelle sniffs quietly and caresses Terrence’s cheek tenderly, while tears get out of her eyes and roll down her cheeks. “I didn’t die… You… You saved my life…”
Raquelle looks closely at Terrence’s anxious face for two more seconds before she closes her eyes slowly with a feeling that she is dragged into the thick darkness, and all the sounds have been paused. Her head turns on the side sharply, her whole body gets immediately limp, her hand that is caressing the man’s cheek falls powerlessly to her belly and then to the floor, and her skin gets much paler and colder.
“Raquelle?!” Terrence opens his eyes widely and shakes Raquelle slightly by the cheek. “Raquelle, c’mon? Talk to me! Don’t be silent! Raquelle! Hey!”
Terrence claps Raquelle on the cheek with a heavy breath, turning her head on himself.
“Don’t lose consciousness! Hear me? Raquelle! Raquelle, please, don’t scare me! Answer me!”
But no matter how hard Terrence tries to get a reaction from her, Raquelle does not answer him and does not react to his actions, lying in his arms unconscious.
“Please, sweetheart, please…” Terrence begs desperately in a whisper, pressing Raquelle’s head to his chest, hugging her tightly with both arms, and snuggling his nose in the top of her head. “Don’t leave me…”
Terrence kisses Raquelle tenderly on the forehead.
“I won’t be able to live quietly if something happens to you…” Terrence winces slightly as he feels how his heart squeezes, and someone kind of squeezes his throat, not letting him breathe and giving him strong discomfort. “Please, Raquelle, please…”
Terrence keeps embracing Raquelle tightly and trying to bring her back to life by clapping her slightly on the cheek as he breathes heavily enough with a feeling of a shake in his whole body and a fast heartbeat, and barely holds down his tears of despair that show up in the corners of his eyes. Meanwhile, Hunter moves his eyes aside at some moment after saying something to James, Louis, and Henry, who leave the roof and go to help their colleagues. He sees the unconscious girl in the arms of the man and opens his eyes widely with a feeling that his heart misses a beat.
“Oh, my gosh…” Hunter pronounces in a shaking voice. “Raquelle? Raquelle!”
Hunter gives a start sharply, runs to Terrence, gets down on his knees besides the deathly pale and cold Raquelle.
“Hey, Raquelle?” Hunter jabs excitedly, shaking Raquelle by the shoulder and clapping her on the cheek. “Raquelle, can you hear me? Raquelle?! Say something! Raquelle!”
Hunter looks at Raquelle quickly from head to foot, getting horrified at how bad she looks.
“What happened to her?” Hunter moves his eyes full of horror to Terrence.
“I don’t know, we were talking, and then she closed her eyes and stopped answering!” Terrence explains in a high voice as he is choking. “I’m trying to bring Raquelle back to life, but it doesn’t work. She doesn’t wake up.”
“Oh, shit, she’s so cold and pale.” Hunter takes the hand of Raquelle that fell near her and checks out her pulse. “The heartbeat is too weak… I can barely feel it…”
“Oh, she’s breathing, thank God…” Terrence exhales sharply when he bends to Raquelle’s face and feels a little warmth on his skin that is caused by her shallow breath. “It’s slow, but I can feel it…”
“We’ve gotta take her to the doctor.”
“Do you have ammonia or something like this?”
“Nope, nothing like that.”
“Damn, what do we do, then?”
“It would be great to carry her somewhere. She may get cold here due to the strong wind. Raquelle is wearing too light clothes.”
“But where?”
“It seems like there was a little sofa in one of the rooms. Yes, it’s in dust, but it doesn’t matter now.”
“An ambulance will spend a lot of time coming here.”
“No, they are on the way. But for Ringer.”
“Is that asshole still alive? After falling from that height?”
“Yes, he is alive, but he is in a critical condition. The guys are supporting his life and doing everything they were told by the operator.”
“I wish that bastard didn’t survive until the doctors’ arrival,” Terrence throws gloomily in a low voice.
“Don't worry about him. There is someone to watch him. You and I should help Raquelle.”
“To be honest, I am not surprised that she fainted.”
“Do you think the reason is a strong shock? Or she got some traumas that we couldn’t see after she fell off the roof?”
“I don't know…” Terrence shakes his head and moves his eyes to Raquelle, whose head is lying on his elbow. “But her relatives told me she didn’t almost eat anything and was only lying and sleeping all day before today. And before the story of Simon started, she had worked literally non-stop.”
“If it’s true, I am not surprised, too. At first, she brought herself to exhaustion. And now the poor girl experienced strong stress.” Hunter caresses Raquelle’s cheek with the back of his hand. “It’s not amazing that she couldn’t eventually handle it. Even a healthy person cannot do this.”
“Anyway, if she lost consciousness due to stress, she is supposed to wake up before the doctors’ arrival. I… I want to believe that her faint was not caused by many traumas.”
“We will ask them to examine her anyway. And if they have to, they will take her to the hospital. Moreover, that bastard beat her a little, judging by the bruises on her body and bloody wounds on her face.”
“I will tell her relatives about it if it happens.”
“Let’s do something: you will carry Raquelle to the room with the sofa, watch her, and try to wake her up, and I will contact the guys on the ration and ask them if they have some medicines.”
“Alright,” Terrence exhales with a shake. “We will do what you are talking about.”
“Alright, leave. It’s cold here, and the wind is strong. She is literally icy now.”
“I will try to warm her up, while you are looking for help. I will give her my coat. Or… We will find a blanket…”
“Follow me. I will show you where the room with the sofa is.”
Hunter gets up on his feet and watches Raquelle with sadness and anxiety in his eyes, while she is still unconscious. At first, Terrence nods confidently, places the girl carefully on the floor, gets up, takes her soft, amazing light body in his arms in the same way, and comes to the exit from the roof along with the policeman, looking at his beloved person at times with pity in his eyes. While the girl’s head, arms, and legs are shaking powerlessly in the air, and there are not any signs of the fact that she is about to come back to life.
***
Meanwhile, Alicia and Frederick are still waiting for any piece of news from Raquelle or Terrence, who promised to keep him and the woman aware of what would happen. The pain in the chest still bothers the man, and he feels some breathing issues. But Frederick is doing his best not to show that he feels very bad and needs a doctor’s help. Now his own health is not as important to him as what might happen to his beloved granddaughter, whom he has known nothing about for almost three hours.
“Who was it, Alicia?” Frederick asks excitedly after Alicia finishes talking to someone. “It’s Raquelle? Or Terrence?”
“Nope, it was Anna, Raquelle’s friend,” Alicia explains quietly. “She wanted to talk to her, but I said Raquelle wasn’t home and went to the meeting with Simon. I explained everything shortly.”
“Oh, gosh, I’m starting to be worried more and more. Raquelle and Terrence have said nothing to us for almost three hours… Is everything so bad that it all lasts for so much time?”
“Believe me, Mr. Cameron, I also feel like I am on pins and needles and am terribly afraid to hear something bad from one of them. Just like yours, my heart is bleeding when thinking of our sweet girl, whom that sick man can do anything with.”
“Do you think that bastard would get caught and pay for everything he has done to my granddaughter?”
“Of course, he will! The police really focused on this case! Moreover, Terrence has a friend that is working there and ruling this operation with his colleagues and Hunter Lynwood.”
“Thank God, Terrence has a familiar person in the police… I feel much easier knowing that this case will not go unnoticed. Nobody would let Ringer keep mocking Raquelle.”
“Ringer has done too much that he shall get a harsh sentence for. And he had done before he stood in Raquelle’s way.”
“My God, some people are too rotten and are ready for anything for their goal…” Frederick shakes his head.
“I agree…”
“I wonder, what hurt that stinker so much that he decided to take it out on my girl and bring her to despair?”
“Who knows, Mr. Cameron…” Alicia sighs heavily. “I cannot even imagine what could hurt the dignity of that bastard if he did all of those terrible things.”
“Honestly, me too… Although I understand there must be a reason for his actions, I cannot find a reason that made him do that. It could not happen if he did that just because of the scandal with that man, who slandered Raquelle.”
“You know, I would be really surprised if it was true. It would mean that’s the most disgusting stinker of those we have ever known. But Ringer is actually a shameless bastard. who ruined the life of my girl.”
“Oh, I can’t stop praying that she is fine after this meeting…” Frederick sighs heavily with sadness in his eyes and runs his hands over his face. “My poor Raquelle… What does she have to get through now? And what did that stinker want to do to her at the place where nobody usually went?”
“Gosh, don’t remind me of that…” Alicia jabs, shaking her head sharply. “My heart does hurt when I think she went to the meeting at that place.”
“If you knew how much my heart hurts… I have never been as worried about my granddaughter as I am now, when that scumbag might kill her.”
“Don’t say it, Mr. Cameron, I’m begging you! I’m sure Terrence would not let that happen. He would rather sacrifice himself than let Ringer deal with Raquelle.”
“You know, Alicia, although Terrence organized that operation, I still cannot be absolutely sure about him. Yes, that man may use a chance that we gave him, but we can’t exclude that he just wants to pretend to be good.”
“No, no, I don’t think Terrence would betray us. And I don’t think he was pretending. That man was very determined to personally control everything from start to end.”
“Although he is the only hope for us, we can’t fully count on him.”
“Of course, I don’t also believe him at all, but I see he is proving that he is truly regretting. And his actions say that Terrence is not a coward and is ready to pay for his actions and words.”
“Yeah, but I don’t want to trust him completely.”
“Believe me, if he did nothing and decided to wait for my niece to come to him and start to beg to come back to her, I would do my best for Raquelle not to be with him. I would easily become bad for her and separate her from him. But I see Terrence is truly sorry. And he is proving it by doing something, not saying empty words.”
“Oh, I don’t know, Alicia, I don’t…” Frederick sighs heavily. “Moreover, I still don’t know the reason why Raquelle left him.”
“Don’t think about it, Mr. Cameron.”
“She doesn’t want to talk about it and believes I should know nothing about it. If my granddaughter says nothing, Terrence did something that could make me hate him very much and do my best not to let her come back to him.”
“For God’s sake, get these thoughts out of your mind. Now we need to pray that our girl is fine, not think about what happened between them. Pray that Ringer gets what he deserves.”
“I know… But… I…”
“Please, stop torturing yourself and try to calm down a little,” Alicia says softly. “You don’t look very good…”
“No… Erm…”
Frederick says something that Alicia does not understand. Besides, she notices that the man suddenly gets much worse than before. And she is surprised that his speech becomes quite slow and unclear, even if it has always been fast and clear enough.
“You have gotten yourself too exhausted by worrying,” Alicia expresses anxiety.
“I can’t…” Frederick pronounces quietly, sometimes starting to keep a hand on his heart that starts beating very fast. “No…”
“Listen, maybe, you better lie down and drink some water?” Alicia suggests a little excitedly. “I’m getting scared by the way you look. You are literally green!”
“No, Alicia, I am fine…” Frederick pronounces very quietly and a little unclearly. “I’m just nervous and worried about my Raquelle and…”
Then Frederick starts feeling a much stronger pain in his chest that echoes in his neck and shoulders. He cannot take this anymore and winces strongly, grabbing his heart, which is beating very strongly and realizing that he almost cannot breathe. Alicia watches the old man and gets obsessed with panic when she sees that Raquelle’s grandfather is getting worse right before her eyes.
“Mr. Cameron…” Alicia pronounces with horror in her eyes, putting a hand on Frederick’s shoulder. “Mr. Cameron, are you alright? Do you feel bad?”
But this time, it’s very hard for Frederick to speak, and he is literally twisting from the pain that gets obsessed with him and suddenly becomes just unbearable.
“My God, don’t scare me…” Alicia frightens. “What happened to you?”
“H-h-h…” Frederick tries to pronounce. “Erm…”
“Heart? Does your heart hurt?”
Frederick cannot say anything again and would not do this even if he really wanted to try to say he was alright because his condition is getting worse and worse.
“Jesus Christ…” Alicia sighs heavily. “If you had a heart attack, it would be too much…”
Alicia has to make an effort to brace herself and not to succumb to the panic when Frederick needs her help.
“Alright, alright, it’s alright,” Alicia says softly, grabs Frederick under an arm, and slowly leads him to the sofa while he still holds his heart. “Lie down, please… Breathe deeper.”
Alicia helps Frederick lie on the sofa carefully and puts a little pillow placed not far from her under his head.
“Try to calm down…” Alicia says quietly. “Or you will get much worse.”
Alicia quickly unbuttons a few buttons on Frederick’s shirt and opens one of the windows in the living room. At some moment, the woman glances at the small table placed in the corner and sees a pack of nitroglycerin, which makes her understand that the man has already taken at least a couple of tablets.
“Oh, seems like he took nitroglycerin…” Alicia says thoughtfully. “Not once…”
Alicia sighs heavily.
“Oh, my God…” Alicia shakes her head. “I did tell him not to be so nervous. But he was torturing himself so much… Here’s one more problem… God…”
Alicia gets a little confused from the excitement for two moments, but later braces herself and understands she should do something very quickly because every second is now important, and Frederick’s life is probably in great danger. Wasting no time, the woman comes to the wired phone, types the number of an ambulance with shaking hands, and waits for an answer that she, fortunately, gets quickly.
“Hello, ambulance?” Alicia specifies. “Please, call doctors as soon as possible. The old man at the age of sixteen got a heart attack. He has strong pain in his chest and problems with his breath and speech. He had taken a few tablets of nitroglycerin before, but it did not help him.”
The operator asks Alicia a couple of questions, and then the woman calls the address of Frederick’s apartment, where doctors from an ambulance should come. After letting them know she is waiting for them, she ends the call, puts the phone where it was before, nervously walks into the whole apartment for a few seconds, but then comes to Frederick, sits next to him, and takes his hand, looking at him with pity in her eyes.
Alicia is even afraid to imagine what is going to happen to Raquelle when she knows what happened to Frederick. Although the woman completely understands she must tell her niece about her grandfather, she is afraid it is going to be one more strong hit for her. But no matter how hard the situation is, Alicia tries to believe Frederick would avoid the worst, and doctors would make his condition, which is getting worse and worse every second, much better.
***
Some time later, an ambulance came to the abandoned building where the meeting between Simon and Raquelle took place. When one of the policemen sees it, he meets and leads the doctors, who quickly get out of the car, to Simon, who is now unconscious after the cruel falling from the height of the fifth floor. While the criminal man is getting first aid, the policemen are talking about something, filling out some papers, and sometimes asking the doctors about the suffered man’s condition.
Raquelle just woke up after she managed to save herself from falling off the root after Simon and lost consciousness in the arms of Terrence. The girl is now sitting all alone on the dirty sofa that is ripped in some place in the half-ruined room with multiple window frames and squeezing tightly the blanket that is placed on her shoulders and helps her warm up more or less. Due to the strong stress, a part of the memories of what happened have been erased from her mind, and now she barely understands what’s happening, thinking that it something like a nightmare. Her hair is disheveled, her eyes are red and dry, and she is still shaking strongly and looks terribly white. Tears roll down her cheeks slowly when the girl thinks about all the tortures that she had to experience because of Simon.
Raquelle does not really care about what’s happening around her. She does not notice the doctors working on Simon's traumas too hard. The policemen filling papers and running from one side to another. Terrence, who is not less tired and pale, James, and Hunter are talking about something with each other while standing not far from her and keeping her in their view. But at some moment, Lynwood glances at the girl, apologizes to the men, and says he wants to come to the girl and find out if she is alright.
“Raquelle, are you alright?” Hunter expresses anxiety.
Raquelle does not react to Hunter's question and keeps thinking of something. That’s why the man has to ask his question two or three times before the girl wakes up from the trance.
“Raquelle!” Hunter exclaims a little louder.
Raquelle shakes slightly and moves her eyes slowly to Hunter.
“Ah, Hunter, it’s you…” Raquelle pronounces thoughtfully and sniffs quietly. “Sorry… I was just thinking…”
“Are you okay, sweetheart?” Hunter asks. “How are you feeling?”
“Much better now.”
“Are you sure?”
“Yes, I will sit a little before I feel okay.”
“Don’t you feel dizzy? Does nothing hurt?” Hunter, looking at Raquelle with sadness in his eyes, sits on the sofa next to her and hugs her around the shoulders. “Maybe, you should go to the hospital to get examined?”
“No, thanks, don’t need,” Raquelle shakes her head without emotions. “The doctors gave me help. Yes, they asked me if I wanted to go with them, but I refused.”
“Simon beat you.”
“I only have a couple bruises and scars.”
“Maybe… Do you want to talk?”
“Nope… I don’t wanna talk… Honestly. I don’t know what to say… And I have no strength…”
“I’m ready to listen to you as much as you need.”
“Thanks, Hunter, but I’m really okay. I can handle it somehow.”
“I’m your close person. You can fully trust me and cry on my shoulder.” Hunter takes Raquelle’s hand softly and caresses it with both hands. “If you feel bad, don’t keep it inside.”
“Don’t worry about me, Hunter,” Raquelle smiles a little falsely. “I’m fine. Just got very scared and too exhausted.”
“But I see that you’re not fine.”
“It’s okay, I’ll go home now and have a rest and will be okay tomorrow.”
“If you need something, just tell me. I would do everything for you immediately.”
“Thanks for the care, buddy, but I need nothing.”
“Oh, okay, as you wish…” Hunter caresses Raquelle’s cheek tenderly and tucks a strand of hair behind her ear, while she inclines her head. “Anyway, you can exhale with relief. Simon Ringer is no longer a threat to you.”
“Any news on his condition?”
“The doctors said they diagnosed him with multiple severe fractures and brain damage. His back suffered much more.”
“He will survive?” Raquelle rounds her eyes.
“Nobody knows it yet. But if he is lucky, he will be absolutely disabled for sure. The falling was too cruel, and he fell off from a high height.”
“Gosh…”
“However, it’s just an assumption. But after he got some problems with his spine, that man will hardly be able to walk.”
“I see…”
“Anyway, I can say something: from now on, this man will no longer bother you and your family,” Hunter says confidently. “Because even if Simon is a disabled man, he will not avoid a punishment that is waiting for him.”
“And what is going to happen to him? He will go to prison?”
“Do not worry about his fate. He has done too many bad things. I can’t exclude that he might go to prison forever.”
“He committed much more crimes?”
“Yes, the grand cheating, the murder of your parents, the attempt on your life,” Hunter says quietly. “Ringer is going to get a great sentence. He will not get a suspended punishment.”
“Ah, yeah…” Raquelle pronounces quietly. “He said something about his schemes of fraud…”
“His victims reported him a long time ago. And now the criminal is going to get caught. They would hardly get their money back, but Ringer will no longer kill and rob anyone.”
“You’re right…”
Raquelle sighs heavily.
“I can’t believe he killed my parents…” Raquelle pronounces in a low voice. “I became an orphan because of that man.”
“I’m really sorry about what happened,” Hunter expresses sympathy, taking Raquelle’s hands with both hands. “Sorry that your parents became victims of that man. I didn’t think the car accident you told me about was provoked.”
“I always thought that was an accident. My family thought so! We were told the car accident happened because of my parents. They did not allegedly watch the road and crashed a truck. The police didn’t even want to investigate this case and closed it, making the wrong conclusions.”
“Anyway, Ringer admitted everything. There are many witnesses. So, he would not take his words back.”
“Nobody even wanted to investigate that case and find out the real reason for the car accident. Instead of that, my parents were called irresponsible people.”
“Sadly, I don’t know the materials for that case. But I will request the information from my colleagues and try to find out everything. Moreover, we will need it now.”
“I wonder, did the police not want to investigate that case because Simon had to do with it? Or did irresponsible policemen come to the accident place?”
“I would not be surprised if it was true, to be honest,” Hunter shrugs. “He could have an acquaintance in the police, who would agree about closing a case or giving some false information… Who knows…”
“Me too…” Raquelle sighs heavily. “Anyway, it doesn’t matter. The important thing is that he will get what he deserves. And pay for what he did to my parents and my whole life…”
“Of course, he will,” Hunter says softly and caresses Raquelle’s shoulders tenderly. “I promise I will do my best for Simon to be put in prison for a long time.”
“Thank you so much, Hunter,” Raquelle thanks with a slight smile. “Thank you for everything you have done for me.”
“I could not refuse to help you.” Hunter caresses Raquelle’s head. “How could I leave you? How could I not do what I promised? Even if I wasn’t in the city, I began to take measures shortly after your call and found out as much about Ringer as possible.”
“Sounds good…”
“Listen, Raquelle, I’m really very sorry about what happened,” Hunter apologizes with sadness in his eyes, taking Raquelle’s hands. “I know you were waiting for my help, but I betrayed you like that.”
“It’s okay, buddy,” Raquelle smiles shyly. “I know you had many things to do and couldn’t leave everything just for me.”
“No, honey, for you, I would leave any business. I would give my everything to help you.”
“I know.”
“Moreover, the problem was not only about my work. The problem was about the fact that I disappeared and didn’t call you for the reason.”
“My God… Do you want to say that the problem was…”
“Yes, Raquelle,” Hunter nods. “Simon also had to do with that. I mean, I am not quite sure about it. But I wouldn't be surprised if it was true.”
“But how?”
“I had to change my number as I was receiving tons of calls from robots and spam in messages.”
“Do you think it was Simon’s work?”
“Who knows! Maybe, he found a hacker, who provoked that attack on my mobile phone. Or maybe, I wasn’t just lucky. Maybe, it was just a coincidence. Many people have my phone numbers. And they are used literally everywhere.”
“Does it have to do with the fact that he hacked my iCloud account and got some information?”
“Maybe. There are many hackers, who could quickly hack someone’s phone and do anything with any information they get.”
“Yeah… I should’ve probably picked up a much harder password. My password was too simple and easy to guess.”
“It is punishable by law and severely punished. So, if Simon betrays the one to hack your account, we shall quickly get that one caught.”
“As I understand, do you know similar cases?”
“Yes, we know a few similar cases. But the criminal has not been caught yet.”
“I see…”
“But now you know Simon could easily use all the information you had on your account.”
“Oh, I’m worried about it much less, to be honest… I will solve the problem with my account somehow later… I care only about one thing – Simon must be put in prison and pay for everything as hard as possible.”
“As I have said, don’t worry about it. Now Simon will no longer be a threat to you and your close people. You can relax and live a quiet life.”
“Good…” Raquelle pronounces with a slight smile. “Thank you so much for your help again.”
“Ah, yeah, Ringer will be taken to the hospital, so the doctors can work on his traumas,” Hunter says quietly. “If I know something about his condition, I shall let you know.”
“Okay,” Raquelle nods.
“And yeah, since I changed my number, I want to give it to you in case you need my help.” Hunter takes a little card from the pocket of his coat and gives it to Raquelle. “Call me at any time, beautiful. Even at night. “For you, I’d leave any business and come to you shorty.”
“Thanks, Hunter,” Raquelle thanks with a slight smile, not paying attention to the blanket that falls off her shoulders. “You’re very nice to me.”
“Remember that I’d always be by your side.” Hunter caresses Raquelle’s cheek softly, while she puts the card in the pocket of her denim jacket. “Whatever happens, you can always count on my help.”
“I know… You’ve always been near when I had to get through hard moments of my life.”
“Maybe, we should go somewhere someday? You and I would talk, eat something, watch something…”
“I dunno, we will see. Now I’m not in a good enough condition to go somewhere and have fun.”
“I understand, but you should forget what happened as soon as possible. You got yourself too exhausted because of that bastard. You even fainted.” Hunter looks at Raquelle quickly and shakes his head. “I’m looking at you and getting overwhelmed! You were never as exhausted and unhappy as you are.”
“You’re right,” Raquelle agrees quietly. “Simon has gotten me really exhausted in the past two months. Exhausted morally. All his actions made my mental health much worse. And now I feel madly scared. Because he… He wanted to rape me and… I almost crushed myself because of him.”
“So, I wanna help you. I want you to tell me everything you’re worried about. You should let everything go to get much better.”
“Honestly, I don’t know what I want now.”
“First, just go home. Eat enough, sleep enough, talk to your family… I can’t promise you will get much better tomorrow, but the pain will be gone somehow later.”
“Nothing lasts forever, as my aunt says. Someday I shall get better.”
“Anyway, don’t forget you have me. The one that would never turn his back on such a wonderful girl like you, even if the whole world was against her.”
“It’s so nice to me that you’re treating me so touchingly,” Raquelle smiles shyly.
“Because you mean very much to me. I almost went insane when we all thought you fell from the roof and died.”
“I know.”
“Hey, how did you actually climb up on the roof?”
“Honestly, I can’t remember that now. I… I forgot half of everything that happened. There are some flashes and short moments, but… Everything is in daze… I can’t say how I saved myself. And now I… I feel like everything is not happening to me.”
“The reason is stress. Maybe, you will remember something later.”
“Who knows. But I say for sure that I clearly remember you screaming when falling off the root. Remember you screaming with despair…”
“I was madly afraid that I would lose you. The girl, who takes a special place in my heart.”
“Hunter…”
“I still love you, Raquelle. I love you madly much.”
“You know that I can be nothing but a friend to you.”
“I know,” Hunter pronounces with sadness in his eyes, caressing Raquelle’s hand. “But I haven’t met a girl that would be much better than you.”
“Oh, Hunter…”
“Although I’m not waiting for you to answer me back, I’ve got a little hope that you will… See me more than just a friend.”
“I don’t wanna lie to you and play with your feelings. It would be a terrible act of mine if I gave you false hope. Or used you to… For example… Get my ex mad…”
“I appreciate it.” Hunter tucks a strand of Raquelle’s hair behind her ear with a slight smile, looking at her with special tenderness in his eyes. “Anyway, you will always have a special place in my heart.”
“You mean very much to me, too,” Raquelle smiles shyly. “And I’m grateful to you for always being by my side.”
Hunter says nothing and just smiles shyly with sadness in his eyes. And two seconds later, he takes Raquelle in his tight, touching hug, to which she answers with pleasure, while he caresses her head tenderly and does his best to help her come to himself after everything Simon wanted to do.
Meanwhile, Terrence is talking to James about something, being madly grateful to him for agreeing to help him and not leaving him at a hard time when he needed the help of the trustworthy person so much.
“Thank you so much, James!” Terrence thanks with a slight, but exhausting smile. “Without you and your pals, it would’ve been hard for me to imagine how this story would’ve ended.”
“This is our job, buddy,” James replies amicably, holding some papers in his hands. “Moreover, we were looking for Simon for a long time. I already told you how many crimes he did.”
“I know… But that cad will no longer hide from anyone.”
“That’s right, his game is over. This time, Simon will be on a trial and go to prison for a long time. Even if his traumas are too serious, it will not help him avoid the sentence for violating many laws.”
“By the end of it, that man mad me so mad that I wanted to kill him with my own hands. And if only Raquelle had fallen off the roof, I would’ve shoot at him and pushed him.”
“I get it.”
“That man gave us too much pain and so many sufferings. I really wanted to revenge on him for the time, for which he was poisoning the lives of my close people. For making me believe in the death of my beloved girl for a few minutes.”
“I completely understand you, Terrence,” James says confidently. “I would’ve also taken a shot at him if my girlfriend were instead of Raquelle.”
“If I had to kill someone to let Raquelle live a quiet life, I would do that.”
“Anyway, you’re a fine fellow, man! You decided not to sit and to do just something. You did not wait for something. You went and did what you should have done.”
“I used the chance when I got it.”
“Fine, MacClife!” James smiles slightly. “I think this girl would highly appreciate your act. Maybe, not at once, but it will not stay unnoticed.”
“I don’t know, buddy…” Terrence pronounces with sadness in his eyes. “I think after what we got through, she will never forgive me… It’s not the case when the guilty one can be forgiven…”
Saying the last words, Terrence glances aside and notices how cutely Raquelle is talking to Hunter while sitting on the sofa in the room. At some moment, the girl smiles shyly when her friend from the police caresses her cheek tenderly and kisses her on the forehead. It makes MacClife a little tense and do his best to struggle with a sense of jealousy that is about to cloud his mind and make him attack the policeman, against whom Simon turned him.
“Don't lose hope, friend!” James pronounces to encourage, clapping Terrence on the shoulder. “Hope always dies last.”
“It’s not my case,” Terrence pronounces thoughtfully, clenching his hands into fists and breathing heavier than usual.
“You did your business and should wait for a while. Wait for everybody to calm down and come to themselves. Now, you shouldn't expect any kind of miracle.”
“I dunno…” Terrence moves his eyes to James and slaps him on the shoulder. “Anyway, thank you so much for not turning your back on me and agreeing to help me.”
“But I won’t deny that I judged you at first.”
“I know, but thanks anyway. I had nobody to count on. Sadly, everybody turned their backs on me. I had nobody to ask for help.”
“At least, you’re regretting. And I clearly see it. I see that you are not talking to the wind, working your tongue for nothing, and are doing nothing.”
“Glad to hear it,” Terrence smiles slightly.
“Good job, buddy! I respect those, who do something and do not just talk.”
“I will never forget everything you’ve done to me.”
“You can always count on me.”
“Thanks a lot.”
“If you want, we can meet someday and just talk. Drink a glass of beer and spend a good time.”
“I don’t mind!” Terrence shrugs with a slight smile. “When you’re ready, call me!”
“Deal!” James hugs Terrence amicably and shares a slight clap on the back with him before they step away from each other. “Alright, I have to go. I’ve gotta help the men. What if they confuse something there.”
“Yeah, good luck!” Terrence exclaims.
“Bye, Terrence! See you soon.”
“Sure, we will…” Terrence nods with a shy smile.
James turns around and goes quickly somewhere, while Terrence watches his friend leave and thanks him silently for putting an end to this story and doing his best for the criminal to get the punishment that he deserves. However, he does not have to stay alone for a long time because Hunter comes to him a few seconds later. Although MacClife is still struggling with a sense of jealousy, he tries to keep calm and does not take it out on this man because he hugs Raquelle, caresses her, and even kisses her amicably.
“Simon is going to be taken to the hospital,” Hunter says. “The doctors are finishing doing what they need.”
“I know,” Terrence nods.
“Someone from the policemen will go with the doctors to find out about his condition.”
“What’s going to happen to him?”
“He will get the sentence that he deserves.”
“What if the traumas are not very serious?”
“No, Terrence, the doctors say his traumas are very serious,” Hunter shakes his head. “There is a high possibility that he might become disabled.”
“Not death, of course, but it’s good, too.”
“Anyway, no matter what happens to him after falling off, Simon is under the police’s control now. He is charged for many things, and we have the proof of it. So, we will have no problems with it.”
“How long will he stay in prison?”
“Knowing the fact that Simon has committed more than one criminal, the judge could definitely give him a life sentence.”
“I hope it will happen…” Terrence expresses hope. “Ringer must pay for everything he has done. For… Murdering two innocent people…”
“By the way, Richard Stalker and his gang have been caught, too.”
“They are Simon’s accomplices?”
“Yes, my colleagues just told me about it. They said they didn’t have to look for them for a long time. Those deadbeats were hiding somewhere in this building and doing some of Ringer’s orders.”
“They resisted?”
“Nope, when they were pressed to the wall, that boy and his friends didn’t almost resist.”
“Aren’t they as tough as Ringer?” Terrence frowns slightly.
“Sort of. But one of them refused to give up at first. Though, he has been caught anyway.”
“And where is that gang now?”
“They are about to be taken to the station. All of them.”
“That’s how!”
“And yeah, the guys said that they called for help because two people could not deal with them, and the pals of Stalker were tough enough guys.”
“I got it…”
“Anyway, I promise I shall do my best to put Simon and his gang in prison for a long time. That man will not be free and stay unpunished for what he has done.”
“Thank you so much, Hunter,” Terrence smiles slightly. “Thank you for everything. I do not know what would have happened without you and your help.”
“I was glad to help you,” Hunter pronounces amicably. “If you need my help, call me at any time. You’ve got my number. I would always tell you something and help you with something.”
“Alright, thank you so much again.” Terrence shakes Hunter by the hand.
“Good luck to you!” Hunter says goodbye gently. “All the best.”
Hunter turns around and confidently goes to the police car, while Terrence watches him a little gloomily for a few seconds. Now he stays absolutely alone and watches what’s happening without emotions on his face, barely realizing the nightmare is over, and life is supposed to become quiet and happy again. The man keeps looking at everything he sees for some time and thinks of everything that might happen in the future with a sense of anxiety. But then he feels his phone starts vibrating in the pocket of his coat. Terrence takes it quickly and answers the call, not looking at the screen.
“Hello,” Terrence pronounces quietly.
“Terrence, it’s Alicia,” Alicia says excitedly. “Thank God, you answered me!”
“Hello again. I’m sorry about disappearing. It all lasted for a long time.”
“So, how are you doing? Do you have some pieces of news?”
“It’s all over, Alicia,” Terrence says confidently. “You can relax.”
“It’s all over?”
“Yes. Simon will no longer hurt Raquelle or anyone else.”
“My God…” Alicia sighs heavily and closes her mouth with a hand. “Is everything really over?”
“It’s over, Alicia, it’s over,” Terrence nods.
“And how is my Raquelle? Is she fine?”
“Yes, Raquelle is fine. Coming to herself.”
“Hide nothing from me, Terrence. If something happened to her, tell me now.”
“Please, Alicia, don’t be so nervous. Your niece is fine. Yes, she is frightened and shocked after what happened. But Raquelle is safe now.”
“Aren’t you lying to me?”
“No, I am not. I would not lie to you.”
“Oh, gosh…” Alicia sighs heavily, putting a hand on her forehead. “At least one good piece of news… That’s good! At least, my girl is fine…”
“Don’t worry, Alicia, there is no threat now,” Terrence says softly. “Your niece is fine. She will be back home very soon, and you will finally calm down. I will drive her if she doesn’t mind.”
“I know, but…”
“You can relax now. There is no reason to worry. Simon will never hurt Raquelle.”
“Oh, I don’t mean it…”
“What?”
“Trouble, Terrence…” Alicia pronounces with pity in her eyes in a shaking voice. “Something terrible happened…”
“What?” Terrence rounds his eyes. “What do you mean?”
“My God, I don’t know how I would tell Raquelle everything. She will not take it when she hears it…”
“But what happened? The problem is about Mr. Cameron?”
“Yes, Terrence… The problem is about him.”
“What’s wrong?”
“He got a heart attack.”
“What?” Terrence rounds his eyes full of horror. “Mr. Cameron got a heart attack?”
“He's already felt bad since this morning. But two or three hours later after Raquelle left, he grabbed his heart and started literally twisting from pain in the chest. And he could not explain anything.”
“Oh, my gosh…”
“Mr. Cameron has lately been so worried about my girl that he made his health worse,” Alicia replies with pity in her eyes. “But I was begging him to take care of him and think of himself. But no…”
“Raquelle will not take it…” Terrence puts his hand on his forehead. “She’s suffered enough all this time, but she might go insane if she knew about his heart attack.”
“To be honest, Mr. Cameron felt bad for a long time. But today’s morning, he got strong tingling in his chest.”
“He told you?”
“Nope, I saw him grabbing his heart very often and looking white and exhausted… And I also found an open pack of nitroglycerin that he has taken several times today.”
“Damn…”
“Mr. Cameron was silent and pretending that everything was fine…”
“Did you call an ambulance?”
“Yes, I called an ambulance shortly after he grabbed his heart and stopped talking clearly.”
“Did the doctors come? Or are they on the way?”
“Thank God, they are here.”
“What do they say?”
“They told me he would have to be taken to the hospital. Mr. Cameron’s condition is critical. All the sighs of the heart attack. Besides, his blood pressure got sharply stronger.”
“So strong?”
“It’s too strong! Even if he never had high blood pressure.”
“My gosh…” Terrence exhales tiredly.
“I completely understand it’s not the best time for something like that. But unfortunately, I could do nothing and had to say that.”
“Haven’t you told Raquelle what happened to Mr. Cameron?”
At this moment, Terrence glances at Raquelle setting her dead eyes into the distance and sitting on the sofa all alone.
“Not yet,” Alicia shakes her head and sniffs quietly. “But I have to say that right now. And I am terribly afraid to imagine what would happen to my niece…”
“Do you want me to tell her what happened and try to calm her down? Or will you do this?”
“No, let me talk to her. And if you have a chance, please, drive her to the central hospital where Mr. Cameron is going to be taken. Or ask one of the policemen to drive her if she does not want to go with you.”
“Will you come?”
“Yes, I will go with the doctors and join you after we come there.”
“Erm, alright, then talk to her…” Terrence nods. “Maybe, you can find a way to talk to her and tell her that terrible piece of news.”
“Sure. If you can do this, do your best to calm her down.”
“Don’t worry. Even if Raquelle wants to snap at me, I will go to the hospital with her. Because she can’t drive a car and stay alone. She is shocked. And the news about the heart attack of her grandfather will defeat that girl.”
“Thanks a lot, Terrence.”
“Do I say a couple of words about what happened?”
“No, not now. You will tell me everything when we are in the hospital. I am going there along with the doctors.”
“Alright, we will meet you there.”
“I’m begging you, don’t leave Raquelle alone. And I will try to tell her that news as softly as possible and calm her down.”
“Alright, Alicia. See you in the hospital.”
Terrence ends the talk and puts the phone in his pocket, being shocked by the news about the heart attack of Frederick. The man gets shocked by understanding that this piece of news may do a bad thing to Raquelle, who is shocked and exhausted and cannot come to herself after what happened to her for two-three hours.
By this time, the doctors finish giving the first aid kit to Simon and carry him carefully on the gurney in an ambulance car. The policemen are finishing their business and going to leave, along with Richard and his accomplices, who are quietly sitting in the car with a handcuff on their hands and not even trying to run away. Stalker watches gloomily everything that’s happening from afar, not hiding how disappointed he is by the end of this story.
“It’s all over,” Richard says gloomily, almost in a whisper. “I did not get the fuck anything. I just wasted my time…”
Richard sighs tiredly.
“Holy shit! Why did I listen to that old jerkoff Simon and trusted him? Why didn’t I guess that bastard decided to leave me and give me nothing from what he promised me? He thought I would be kissing his legs just for a ‘thank you’ and doing everything he wanted. I did not actually want to chase that model and her people! I give a fuck about what’s happening to her! Die or not – I don’t care about it at all.”
Richard closes his eyes for two seconds.
“Oh…” Richard moans quietly. “I am an idiot… Shouldn’t have stood in that old man’s way… I could’ve kept robbing someone and living somehow. No, fuck! Now I am going to be put in jail! At least for twenty years! Ar-r-r-r…”
Richard runs his hands over his face and looks at two friends of his with sadness in his eyes, who are sitting with him in the car and looking at him gloomily with handcuffs in their hands. They are also not happy they got arrested and did not definitely think something like this would happen when agreeing to help the young guy and Simon, who was not actually going to give them anything from what he promised to give. Some time later, one of the policemen gets into the car, in which these guys are, starts the motor, and presses the gas pedal. It moves off and goes on the road. And one more car follows them, taking a few more friends of Richard to the police station to charge them for all their crimes and put them in jail.
Meanwhile, Raquelle still being shocked decides to get up and starts walking slowly in circles around the whole room, embracing herself tightly with both arms. She comes to one of the windows and sets her dead eyes into the distance, thinking about what happened to her again and again. What she would like to forget once and forever with the thought that it was just a bad dream. The girl does not want to talk to anyone and silently begs that nobody bothers her, at least now. The others completely understands it, but they are worried that this kind of isolation may lead to some bad consequences. But at some moment, Raquelle’s phone starts vibrating in the pocket of her denim jacket. The girl exhales tiredly but she decides to answer the call, despite a wish just to sit and say nothing, taking her smartphone, running her finger over the screen, and putting it to her ear.
“Hello…” Raquelle pronounces without emotions.
“Raquelle, my girl!” Alicia exclaims excitedly. “Thank God, you answered me!”
“Aunt Alicia?”
“Thank you, God! I was like on needles while waiting for your call!”
“I’m sorry about not calling you for a long time. The situation was too hard…”
“How are you doing there, my sweet?”
“More or less.”
“How everything was?”
“Thank God, the story of Simon is over…” Raquelle says quietly. “He will no longer hurt anyone and will get what he deserves.”
“Really?”
“Yes. One hundred percent.”
“Did that stinker do something to you? Didn’t he hurt you? Didn’t he give much more pain?”
“No, no, don’t worry, Auntie, Simon did nothing to me, and I’m, fortunately, safe and sound.”
“Hide nothing from your auntie. Tell me everything.”
“I’m not hiding. I’m fine. I’m just scared… And I can’t come to myself after what happened.”
“Oh, Raquelle, my sweet girl…” Alicia sighs heavily.
“I shall tell you everything when I’m back home. I promise.”
“My God, I w-was so w-worried about you… Your grandfather and I were so worried about you that we almost went insane.”
“It’s alright, Aunt Alicia, you can calm down,” Raquelle replies quietly. “I will be back home soon, and we will talk about everything.”
“Yeah… Sure…”
“You’ve got no reason to worry, ‘cause I’m alive, thank God. Please, calm down and exhale with relief.”
“I know, my girl… I kn-n-now…”
“Erm…” Raquelle frowns slightly and listens to Alicia’s little shaking and excited voice closer. “Excuse me, Aunt, why is your voice so exciting?”
“Erm…” Alicia stutters. “You see, Raquelle…”
“And yeah, why does Grandpa Frederick say nothing? Is he not with you?”
“Listen, honey…” Alicia pronounces hesitantly. “I… Know you feel very bad now and shocked… But you see…”
“My God, something happened to my grandfather?” Raquelle assumes with her widely open eyes, deciding to come to the sofa just in case.
“Just don’t worry and don’t get nervous.”
“Please, Aunt Alicia, tell me what happened to him! Why isn’t he with you? Why doesn’t Grandpa say anything?”
“Listen, honey, it’s very hurtful for me to tell you that. And… I really worry about your condition, which might get worse if you hear it… But… I’m sorry you have to hear it.”
“What happened to him, Aunt?” Raquelle asks a little louder, excitedly. “Please, tell me!”
“I… Erm…”
“Please, don’t be silent! You make me nervous! Tell me something!”
“Pump much air into your lungs and hold on, Raquelle… If you have an opportunity, sit down.”
Alicia makes a short pause to let Raquelle get ready for what she is going to hear.
“Some time ago, your grandfather got much worse,” Alicia says quietly with sadness in her eyes. “And… I had to call an ambulance.”
Raquelle barely holds down a wish to scream from horror, tightly closing her mouth with a hand and understanding she is about to have hysteria, and her eyes are getting wet with tears. However, the girl quickly realized that something had happened to her grandfather when Alicia got much more excited, and her voice began to shake. Frederick’s health got much worse after being worried about her and literally not sleeping at nights.
“No…” Raquelle shakes her head with tears. “It can’t be the truth… No… No… No…”
“I’m sorry, sunshine…” Alicia pronounces guiltily. “It was very hurtful for me to tell you that, but I should’ve done…”
“But what happened to him? Why did he get worse?”
“The doctors diagnosed him with a heart attack and high blood pressure.”
“Oh, no!”
“They said his condition was so critical that they would take him to the hospital.”
“No, Aunt, I don’t believe it, I don’t…”
“Sorry, but it’s the truth. I can’t lie to you and say everything is okay.”
“My God…” Raquelle makes a quiet sob and falls to the sofa powerlessly, making Terrence, who is watching her, a little tense. “Why? Why? Grandpa was okay this morning!”
“As it turned, he was not…” Alicia confesses quietly. “He didn’t feel very good, but he was afraid to tell that and scare you and me.”
“No…”
“Mr. Cameron was taking the pain in the chest that got just unbearable some time ago. And he was secretly taking some tablets that I found after I had called an ambulance.”
“No… No, no, no, no…”
Raquelle gets up sharply from the sofa and starts to walk in circles nervously, grabbing her hair with a free hand, looking into the distance with her dumbfounded eyes, and not holding down the tears that are rolling over her cheeks slowly.
“Raquelle, my girl, please, calm down,” Alicia says softly.
“How?” Raquelle wonders loudly. “How could I calm down when my grandfather is in the hospital?”
“The doctors say everything is not so bad. Even if your grandfather’s state is critical.”
“Why? Why? How long will I suffer? When will everything end?”
“Everything’s gonna be fine, my sweetie. God shall help Mr. Cameron get over that. Your grandfather does know you need him and will be fighting for you.”
“I won’t handle it if something happens to Grandfather…” Raquelle says with despair. “I won’t do…”
“He is strong, Raquelle. Mr. Cameron will surely get well.”
“God shouldn’t let him die… Should not… I wouldn’t take this loss…”
“He will not die, sweetie. Trust me.”
“I don’t wanna lose him, Aunt… I don’t want…”
“Please, my girl, don’t be so nervous,” Alicia begs with pity in her eyes. “Or you will end up in the hospital, too.”
“I don’t care about me. The important thing is that he is alright.”
“It’s gonna be okay, honey. Believe that’s gonna happen.”
“Which hospital did they take him, Aunt?” Raquelle asks in a little shaking voice. “Where do they want to take Grandpa Frederick? I will immediately come there and wait for news about him!”
“They’re going to take him to the central hospital.”
“Will you come?”
“Yes, I’m going there, too, and will be waiting for news from you. The doctors are going on the road and doing everything they should do.”
“Fine! I’m coming, too. I will be there soon. We will meet somewhere near the entrance.”
“Just don't tell me you’re going to drive.”
“Of course, I will!”
“But, Raquelle… How are you going to go there in such bad condition? What if you lose control of your car?”
“Don’t worry, Aunt, I can do this,” Raquelle replies as confidently as possible and sits on the sofa. “I will be at the hospital soon.”
“But…”
“And you, please, don’t leave Grandfather alone. And call me shortly if you know something earlier me.”
“Okay, sweetie, I will surely call. But I’m begging you, be careful and don’t stop watching the road. Or it would be better if you found someone to drive you.”
“I will go to the hospital, Aunt. Don’t worry.”
“But…”
“We will meet there.”
Raquelle does not let Alicia say something and ends the talk first, turning off the phone and putting it in the pocket of her denim jacket. What she just heard is a great shock for her, which is the reason why she starts shaking much stronger. The girl is terribly afraid that Frederick might not survive the heart attack and die. She knows he will leave this world someday. But Raquelle does not want to lose that man right now when she needs his support and love. She does not want to get over many more shocking things and go crazy from grieving at such a hard time.
Raquelle falls into her darkest thoughts so deeply, running her fingers through her hair that she does not notice how Terrence comes to her slowly at some moment. Before doing this, he quickly discussed something with the policeman that came to him and then watched the girl, whose condition makes him feel truly anxious. Especially after she lost consciousness in his arms and woke up a long time later.
“The police and the ambulance are going to leave,” Terrence says quietly, not too confidently. “Someone already left to drive the gang of that stinker to the police station. There is no meaning in staying here. You can… Go home.”
It’s amazing, but Raquelle quickly reacts to the pretense of Terrence, who does not have to repeat all the same several times to reach for her. But it’s not what surprises him, he is surprised by the fact that the girl does not try to snap and reproach him for something. And the fact that it’s kind of hard for them to talk now. Much harder than it was when they were at the roof.
“Yeah, I know…” Raquelle pronounces quietly, still looking down.
Although Terrence feels well some tension that causes some awkwardness between him and Raquelle, he tries not to notice it and to talk to the girl as quietly as possible.
“Don’t think about Simon,” Terrence says hesitantly and sits on the sofa, leaving a long enough distance between Raquelle and him. “He is now under the control of the police. Lynwood promised to do his best for him to get a great sentence.”
“I’d be happy if it happened…” Raquelle replies quietly. “I’d go crazy if he was free…”
“He will not be, don’t worry.”
“I prefer believing you.”
Raquelle sighs too heavily.
“Believing everything is really over,” Raquelle adds in a much lower voice, feeling a little nervous because of what’s happening or the fact that Terrence is near her.
“I know it’s hard to believe it,” Terrence says hesitantly. “But… It’s the truth.”
“Yeah…”
Maybe, Raquelle, who is still mad at Terrence, would love to start sorting out her relationship with him. But she does not have the wish or the strength to do it. She is now thinking only of Frederick, who ended up in the hospital after being worried about her too much. Silence settles in the air for a few seconds, during which Terrence looks at Raquelle with pity in his eyes and holds down a wish to hug her and let her know that she could count on him. But then he breaks the pause, fingering over nervously, and decides to try to persuade the girl to let someone drive her to the hospital or carefully express a wish to do it and go with her. Because he understands that he should not leave her alone and especially let her drive a car in such terrible condition.
“You know…” Terrence pronounces hesitantly. “I think you… You should not drive a car… You… You are too tense.”
“Yeah…” Raquelle pronounces very quietly.
“Ask someone from the policemen to drive you home. And drive the car. You aren’t able to do this now. You might crush another car or a tree…”
“Not home, the hospital…” Raquelle moves her eyes to Terrence for the first time in a while. “I need to go to the hospital.”
“Hospital?” Terrence rounds his eyes. “But why? Do you… Feel bad? Something hurts?”
“Nope… Because of Grandfather Frederick.”
“What happened to him?”
“Aunt Alicia just called me and told me he had a heart attack.”
“Come on?” Terrence pretends to be surprised, not wishing to betray himself and let her know that he already knows about Frederick’s heart attack.
“I don’t have the strength. I would be happy to go home now. But I’ve gotta go there. I must be with him.”
“Alright…” Terrence shrugs. “Then ask someone of the policemen to sit in the driver’s seat or accompany you to make sure nothing bad happens.”
Terrence glances aside.
“Ask Lynwood to do this. I think he will not refuse and will drive you. You can show him the way, and he will go where you need.”
“No…” Raquelle pronounces quietly.
“What? But, Raquelle…”
“I want you to drive me.”
Raquelle looks at Terrence with sadness in her eyes, as if she is begging him not to leave her right now. Somewhere at the bottom of her heart, she wants this man to be next to her. She wants to have a chance to come to herself in his hugs. Moreover, by his appearance, he made her a little softer. Though, she does not want to show it.
“Me?” Terrence pronounces surprisingly.
“Please, Terrence, drive me to the central hospital,” Raquelle begs with pity in her eyes. “I… I can’t really drive the car now. I wouldn’t be able to focus on the road. All my thoughts are about my grandfather… About what happened…”
“Erm…” Terrence bites his lip slightly. “Alright… I… I will drive you there… If you want.”
“Thanks…”
“Alright, let’s leave this place. We have nothing to do here.”
Raquelle says nothing, nods, gets up from the sofa, turns around, and, embracing herself with her arms, goes slowly to the exit from the room. Terrence follows her, embraces the girl around the shoulders a little hesitantly, and presses her to himself. While she does not resist it at all. Even more, she presses herself against him with the hope that she will get much better, unconsciously calling the memories about how he was comforting her at the root. When he let her cry on his chest and scream, not leaving her alone and letting her know that everything would be alright.
Some time later, Raquelle and Terrence leave the building, immediately feeling how the cold wind is blowing their faces. They quickly come to one of the police cars, near which they see a few policemen that are going to leave this place. One of them sees the couple and calls them to him, slightly raising his hand up and coming closer to them.
“Excuse me, are you leaving?” the policeman asks gently.
“Yes, we are leaving,” Terrence nods. “I think we have nothing to do here.”
“So, alright then. We are leaving, too. Two of us went to the hospital along with Ringer, some of us took Stalker and his pals to the station, and we are just going to leave.”
“We know.”
“If we need something, we will let you know it.”
“Alright, thanks a lot…” Raquelle pronounces very quietly.
“Stay happy and take care of yourself. We will contact you if we need something.”
While Terrence and Raquelle nod, the policeman turns his back on them, continues to talk to his colleagues about something, and is going to get into the police car. The ambulance doctors are also going to leave this place and drive Simon to the hospital along with a couple of policemen, who will go with them to provide safety for them.
“Excuse me, who is going to go to the hospital with us?” one of the doctors asks the policemen.
“Yes, two of us will go with you,” one of the policemen replies. “They will closely watch him.”
“Alright, I got it.”
The doctor quickly closes the ambulance car and gets into it while his colleagues are closely working on the traumas of Simon, using some medicine and trying to stop the severe bleeding with everything they have. Of course, they manage to control this flow and support the life of the man, who is unconscious at the moment, but it’s not enough to make his condition a little better.
By this moment, Terrence and Raquelle reach the car of the girl, which is parked on the empty road, and get into the one after the girl gives the keys to the man by his plea. She decides to sit in the back seat while her ex-boyfriend sits in the driver’s seat and starts the motor. When the ambulance car goes on the road first, and then the policemen follow them, Terrence leaves this place and starts to go after all these people, feeling happy that everything has finally ended but not having a wish to show it too loudly. It seems like all the worst things are finally over, and they will stop suffering. But nobody actually gets better. What happened got Raquelle and Terrence so shocked that they will keep the memories of this day for a long time and see nightmares about today many, many times.
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