I took off again, and he paced alongside me, which wasn’t hard given my speed. “You know, this is typically the part where you tell me your name.”
“You don’t want to know me.” I grumbled, wondering if this was a new angle.
“I think I might.”
“I’m a mess.”
“I don’t mind messy.”
I stopped and looked at him. “You are very persistent, you know that?”
“Yeah, well.” He shrugged. “You’re really pretty.” I squinted against the sun, looking at him for a long while. What the hell did he want? “You thinking about letting me carry that bucket for you? It’s okay to ask for help, you know.”
“I didn’t ask.” I reminded him.
“Right.” He laughed. “I think that’s the point.”
“I have to do this, okay?” I put my hands on my hips, staring at him. “It’s important. I don’t know exactly why it’s important, but it is. I’m—I’m doing a process.” I explained.
“Okay.” He nodded, still not sold on the idea. “You’re doing a process.”
I was, and I wasn’t about to cheat, because I think I knew deep down there really was no cheating any of this.
Carter
I blinked my eyes open as something soft brushed against my mouth.
Meow.A cat was rubbing against my face. I didn’t own a cat.
A smattering of blood drops came into focus in front of me. I groaned, realizing my face was smashed against my kitchen floor, because I was still tied to a kitchen chair, but I was alive, so that was something.
Sharp pain dotted through my fingers as I tried to wiggle them. My hands were zip-tied so fucking tight I could hardly feel them at all.
The cat rubbed against me, and I groaned in disgust when it turned, nearly putting its butthole in my face. Despite my protests, he started purring and flopped over in front of me, blinking his giant bug eyes from upside down.
Then I realized how it’d gotten inside in the first place, my door was busted, hanging off the hinges. I opened my mouth to call for help, but my throat was dry as sandpaper and my voice came out barely louder than a whisper.
I attempted to push myself up, but my head slammed back against the floor, making my head pound even harder.
Straining my neck to look around, I realized the apartment was utterly trashed. Couch filling all over the place, broken glass all over the kitchen floor, every drawer, and cupboard was open. I shuffled towards the kitchen as best as I could, every heavemaking my shoulder scream with pain, but if I was lucky, maybe there was a steak knife on the floor. I hoped I didn’t pass out from the pain before I could get there.
I tensed when my front door groaned open. “Carter?” Tatum filled the doorway.
I swallowed, my voice coming out hoarse. “Get me out of this, would you?”
Tatum hurried through the living room towards me, taking in the mess with complete shock. “What the actual fuck.” Tatum hauled the chair upright, and I winced as the blood rushed from my head all too quickly. He quickly pulled out a pocketknife and bent to cut the zip ties at my ankles.
“How did you know to come find me?” I rasped, head pulsing.
“You didn’t show up for work.” He said, chest rising and falling rapidly. “You weren’t answering your phone. Now I see why.” His voice was full of question.
I stared at the ceiling as Tatum cut the rope around my chest and the zip ties on my hands. How was I going to explain this?
“Oh fuck. Your shoulder.” He came around the front of me.
I grimaced. “Pop it back in.” He didn’t hesitate. He grabbed my arm and did it fast, before I had the chance to tense.
I cried out, cursing every word under the sun as I gasped for breath. “Fuuuuck.” I couldn’t pull a breath in.
