Her kidnapper talked about the women that had come before her.He called her a freak because she refused to beg.She stayed silent, waiting for the inevitable.Ava had known there was no way out.In her world, there was no hero.No savior.
Until Knox.
He burst into that basement and killed her attacker.He saved her.He became her hero.No one ever did that for her, and she knew witnessing him kill a man should have affected her, but it didn’t.That night, she had fallen in love with him, and over the past three years, that love had bloomed in a way she didn’t think was possible.
Now, as she stood, adding some Italian seasoning to her pot of onions and garlic, she couldn’t help but think about a future with him.
Just as she grabbed the cans of tomatoes she knew were the best part of the sauce, Ava heard a noise.It sounded like a grunt, or was it movement?She put the cans down and turned off the stove.No one was home.Neither Marshal nor Knox had arrived.She had been in this house for a short time now, and she had never heard a single strange noise.
She grabbed a knife from the butcher block, then kicked off her shoes so she didn’t make any noise.
There was that sound again.Feet moving.She held onto the knife as tightly as she could.All the time, her stomach began to twist.
Her cell phone was upstairs, and Marshal kept a landline in his office.She had to get to his office, but to do that, she had to pass the stairs.Ava didn’t know if anyone was in the home.If Marshal had left a window open, maybe a stray cat had come in.
Ava went to the doorway of the dining room.Straight across the hall was Marshal’s office.She could even see one of the ugly chairs he insisted were comfortable, but for her, it was never so.He had tried to get her to sit in it and relax, and she hated it with a fiery passion.There was more movement, and Ava looked around the dining room, trying to see if there was anything out of place.
Marshal had left random stuff lying around, and on one of the cabinets, she saw a mirror which his third wife had insisted on him getting.She had to listen to one of his wife’s tales about how she had to have a mirror in every room.
He had actually smashed most of them, but this one he kept as a reminder of the shallowness of his wife.Marshal had said he needed token reminders so he didn’t fuck up and marry a poisonous viper.His whole house should be covered with mementos of the women he’d been with, and who had fucked with his life.It was sad.
She knew it hurt him that he’d not found a person to love.The truth was, she had a feeling he hadn’t gone looking for someone to love, but someone to take care of him.He was looking for all the wrong reasons.She didn’t tell him that.
Picking up the mirror gently, she walked back to the doorway and crouched down.She had seen Knox do this many times.Her heart raced and she felt sick to her stomach, but she pushed the mirror out and then pointed it up toward the stairs.
She hoped she was just hearing things, or there might be a cat that had somehow made its way over and was treating the place as if he owned it.Why didn’t dogs ever do that?She was not a cat person, but she loved dogs.Maybe she should ask Knox if they could get a dog.A nice big, lovable dog.
Someone was in the fucking house.
Ava pulled the mirror back inside the dining room.They were coming downstairs.She stepped away from the dining room and went back into the kitchen.There was only one exit, the back door.She went to it, but the only problem with the fucking back door was, it made noise.Marshal had said he’d been meaning to get it fixed.In Marshal language, he didn’t know how to, and Ava hadn’t made it a priority.
If she opened this door, they would know.
“Fuck.Fuck.Fuck.Fuck.Fuck.Fuck,” she said.
The only other place to hide was the pantry.Holding the knife, she took a deep breath, and then made the decision, and twisted the doorknob.She opened the door only to come face to face with a man with slicked back hair, evil looking eyes, and a smirk that instantly irritated.
“Well, hello.I have to say, I was expecting you to make this a little harder.”
He grabbed her around the throat, and his grip was tight.Ava didn’t recognize him.
“So, you’re the person Knox is protecting.”He tutted.“He should have known I would find a way of getting to him.”
“What do you want?”Ava asked.
“Oh, it’s simple, I want Knox’s head, and I think I have found the perfect way of getting it.”
She didn’t get a chance to dispute him, as he drew back his fist and connected it with her face, making everything go dark.
****
“Do you think we couldstop and grab a couple of burgers?”Marshal asked.
“No.”
“But I’m hungry.”
“That’s why Ava’s making you dinner.”
