“Max, get out of my fucking way right now!” Her voice was shaky, almost hysterical. Not stopping to make sure Alex was with him, Ben shot off at a startling pace in the direction of her voice. As he neared the end of the hallway he heard Max laughing.Rounding the corner at the end, her voice was louder now, but more worryingly Ben heard someone slapping at skin. He prayed to God that it was Izzie hitting Max and not the other way around or he may just do time for this. They took the stairs two at a time, both of them desperate to get to her now. As they neared the top Izzie came into view. She was pushing at Max who appeared to be standing guard outside a door. “Fucking move, you bastard!” she yelled as she pummelled his chest with her fists. The man remained sturdy, his legs spread, keeping his balance as the poor girl tried in vain to move him. Reaching out he grabbed Izzie in a bear hug, gripping her arms to her sides, immobilising her.
“Get your fucking hands off of her right now!” Ben roared as he ran full pelt towards them. Max dropped his arms instantly, holding them aloft in submission. Izzie, seizing the moment, stepped to the side just out of Max’s reach.
“Whoa, calm down. I’m just giving Jez some privacy. Nothing to worry about.” Max backed off, his eyes growing wide. Ben landed one almighty punch roughly on the stunned man’s jaw causing his head to snap sharply to the right.
“Ben, it’s Grace. He’s got Grace. I couldn’t stophim. Max wouldn’t let me past.” Izzie sobbed the words out.
The normally relaxed man growled in Max’s direction before pulling Izzie into his arms, holding her tightly.
Alex’s vision blurred, fury ran through his veins. Scanning Izzie quickly, making sure she was safe in Ben’s arms, he turned his attention to the door in front of him. Trying the door knob he wasn’t surprised to find it locked. Taking a step backwards he steadied himself before lifting his foot and ramming it into the door. It took two hefty blows before the door flew open. The sight that greeted Alex almost caused him to vomit from the anger surging through him now. Hearing the roar that escaped his mouth sent Ben cold.
“Wait here. Do. Not. Move.” Ben warned Izzie before he entered the room behind Alex just in time to take in exactly what was happening. He watched as Alex grabbed Jez yanking him away from Grace with such force he that he flew backwards across the room.
“Get her and Iz out of here. NOW!” Alex screamed, his focus now completely on the man that lay dazed on the floor with his jeans now around his knees. Gripping the shirt of his so called friend he dragged him upright prior to raising his fist andslamming it squarely into the face that would no longer taunt him.
Grace stood cowering in the corner like a naughty child. Her shirt hanging off of her shoulders revealing the lacy bra she had bought that morning. Bruises were beginning to bloom on her wrists where Jez had obviously gripped her tightly. Her breath came in heaving sobs, exhaustion from fighting against the huge man finally hitting her. Turning her into his arms, he saw the black streaks running down her face as the silent sobs wracked her body. The realisation that the ordeal was over enveloped her. Ben’s heart was filled with rage and sadness at the same time as he watched this delicate young girl tremble, her eyes wide in shock as though she had not registered what had actually happened.
Ben moved in front of her, blocking her view of Alex and Jez. Lifting his hand he gently repositioned her shirt back over her shoulder before steering her from the room, all the time putting his body between the terrified girl and the fight. As they emerged from the room he handed her over to Izzie. Removing his jacket he wrapped it around Grace as she continued to shake violently.
“There’s a car outside, Iz. Take Grace to Alex’s place, not his mum’s. I’ll come get you from there. Go.”He watched briefly as the girls, huddled together, walked down the stairs. Taking a deep breath he re-entered the room, although quite who he was going in to protect was unclear as he watched his friend pound his fists into Jez as he cried monstrous tears.
Perched on the edge of the colossal sofa, Grace’s head remained lowered, her gaze fixed on the wooden floor. Her hands, palms together, were wedged between her knees. She hadn’t spoken a word the whole time they had been in the car. Only the silent shuddering sobs continued. Izzie didn’t know what to do; nothing she did or said was getting through to the poor girl. Seizing the bottle of bourbon from her brother’s stash of booze she poured two hefty shots. Placing Grace’s on the glass table in front of her, Izzie sat next to her lifting her own glass to her lips. She threw the shot to the back of her throat. Gulping down the smoky liquid, she savoured the after burn.
Noticing the glass on the table remained untouched, Izzie placed it in the still silent girl’s hands, effectively helping to wrap her hands tightly around the glass. The silence in the room was deafening,suffocating even. Izzie moved to the window, peering out into the dark night, wondering where on earth her brother was. They had been back at the Notting Hill property for well over an hour waiting for the boys to arrive. But still there was no sign of them. She could only imagine what her enraged brother had done to Jez. It wouldn’t be pretty. Raising her eyes to the sky she offered a silent prayer that neither of them had been arrested.
The sound of shattering glass startled Izzie back to earth. Spinning around she took in the sight of Grace sat in the same position. The glass she had held in her hands now lay shattered around her feet. The sticky brown liquid that had filled it now covered her feet and legs. Grace sat motionless as Izzie rushed to kneel at her feet, picking up the pieces of glass that splintered around the room. “Okay, just stay where you are. I’ll get this cleaned up in no time.” Placing all the pieces she could find in the waste bin she began towelling off the poor girl’s drenched feet. Mopping up the liquid from the floor as she went. Grace was numb; she had completely shut down to the outside world.
In all the commotion of the glass smashing she had missed the sound of a car pulling up outside. The front door flew open with Alex dashing in, closely followed by Ben. Izzie dashed across the room to her brother.He looked a mess. He was ashen, his chest rising and falling in a fast rhythm, his whole being still shaking from the adrenalin that must have be surging through his body. His face sported the beginning of a black eye but his fists were another matter. His knuckles were swollen and red, cuts spread across them. The blood was drying now but still visible. Izzie couldn’t tell where her brother’s blood ended and Jez’s began. Horrified that he may be in more pain than he looked, her eyes implored Ben’s, begging for him to fill her in with some details.
“He’ll be okay. He just wants to see Grace. How are you?” Ben moved from behind Alex, holding out his arms for her to come to him now. Cradling her against him he ran his hand up and down her back. “Did either of them hurt you? Did that bastard hurt you?” Ben held her away from him, inspecting her arms where he had seen the scumbag grip her. She shook her head, squirming out of his grasp. She wanted to be back against his chest where she felt safe, not held away while he checked her over.
“You think he would dare hurt me? I want to kill that bastard. Christ, Jez was off his face, high on whatever it was, but Max? Max knew exactly what he was doing.” Nestled back against him, held tight in his arms, she watched her brother kneeling next to hisgirlfriend now. He spoke quietly to her before sitting down on the floor, his back rested against the sofa. Twisting around, he grasped her around the waist, pulling her down onto his lap. Grace lifted her stare from the fixed spot on the floor that had held her interest for the last two hours. She locked eyes with Alex, focused now completely on him. Scrutinising his hard features she checked every inch of his face for marks or bruising. Turning her attention to his hands she lifted one tenderly to her lips, kissing it gently as he kept his lips rested against her temple, his other hand still firmly wrapped around her back, cradling her to him.
Grace still didn’t speak. Alex appeared to be whispering to her but it was inaudible. He rocked her gently from side to side as she settled her head into the crook of his neck.
Ben and Izzie stood awkwardly in the corner of the room. Feeling like they were intruding on some intimate act Ben guided her towards the kitchen, wanting to give Alex some space. Once there he poured them both another shot from the now half empty bourbon bottle. Taking his place on a barstool, he settled Izzie between his legs, not willing to let her out of his grasp. He watched as she downed the drink before she spoketo him. “Did he...I mean please tell me he didn’t actually rape her, did he?”
Ben shuddered at the thought, shaking his head fractionally. “No, love. We got there just in time. A few more minutes and it would be a different story.”
“I only went to get us a beer. Those bloody champagne cocktails were shit. When I came back Grace had gone. It wasn’t until I heard Max laughing upstairs with Jez that I realised she hadn’t gone off with Alex.” Ben let her continue without questioning her. He sensed her need to talk through it. “I ran upstairs shouting at Max, begging him to let me in the room but he just laughed. Said Jez just needed a bit of alone time with her. I couldn’t fucking move the fat bastard. I couldn’t get to her, Ben. I could hear her screaming and crying but I couldn’t get past Max. I just couldn’t get to her.”
Forcing her head back to his shoulder he shushed her, halting her tirade. “Love, even if you’d gotten in there you couldn’t have stopped him. He had taken a shit load of who knows what. Then the alcohol on top. He could have hurt you too, Iz.” If he had hurt her Ben would have done time for him. The bastard wouldn’t be still breathing. As it was Ben knew he would take a long time to heal from the injuries Alex had inflicted on him. He had onlystopped when Ben physically pulled him from the room. Telling him that Grace needed him had been the only thing that had gotten through the red fog that had descended over Alex, blurring his thought and vision.
Izzie lifted her head; it was her turn now to examine Ben’s hands. They weren’t as bad as her brother’s but she could tell he was hurting now the adrenalin was wearing off.
“I think we should check on them, and then I’m taking you back to my place. Give them some space. You okay with that?” Ben questioned her, dipping his head to meet her gaze. Izzie nodded. She knew Grace would be fine now Alex was home. He would take care of her.
His sister had left a long time ago; he had since moved Grace from the floor to the sofa where he continued to cradle her in his lap. She was slowly becoming more animated now. He had managed to get her to tell him she was okay even though he knew she wasn’t. Kissing her forehead once more he grasped her around the waist, and placing his other arm under her knees, he lifted her in his arms. Not taking his eyes off of her for a second he walked them to the stairwell, carrying her upstairs and into the bathroom where he sat her down on the lone chair that was positioned in the corner of the room. As the bath filled he strippedoff his clothes. Turning off the taps he helped Grace to stand before he removed her clothes then lifted her into the tub. Once she was in he slipped in behind her, wrapping her in his arms and legs protectively as he washed her gently. Resting her head against his chest she finally spoke. “I’m so sorry, Alex.”
Alex squeezed his eyes tight shut. If he hadn’t left her alone none of this would have happened. It was entirely his fault and he couldn’t shake the feeling of guilt that rested in the pit of his stomach. “Why are you apologising? You have done nothing wrong. This is my fault. If I hadn’t left you alone you wouldn’t have been in that room with him. I should have been taking proper care of you.”
She placed her hand on top of the hands that were now wrapped tightly around her shoulders. “I love you.” Her voice was barely above a whisper.
“I love you too, Gracie. Forever and a day,” he breathed out on a sigh.
They sat together in the bath until the water got cold, taking turns at washing each other.
As she stood before him shivering, Alex towelled her dry, gently starting with each arm before moving down her body to her torso and legs. Helping her into his robe he tied it securely around her then embarked on wrapping a towel around his waist.
