Page 32 of Fighting Shadows
“We failed her, Sebastian, and now she’s going through hell at the hands of her monster the last two weeks while we sat around moping in our feelings.”
“We did what we could. It’s not like in books when they find her straight away and rescue her; this is real life. We don’t know what’s happened the last two weeks, but we’ll be there for her regardless.”
“But what if she’s unreachable? What if we get her home and she’s too far gone to her demons because of him that we never get her back?”
I’ve never seen my friend like this before. He’s the strong and reliable one, but now he looks broken.
“We’ll get her through it. No matter what,” I say, grasping his hand and pulling him to stand, “let’s go back in; we need to make a solid plan and then get our girl.”
Chapter 17
Atlas
‘A Storm is Coming – Tommee Profit & Liv Ash’
My friends are all broken around me, their faces mirroring my own as we plan on how best to approach the cabin that has become her prison. I don’t care what it takes; we are getting her back today and will be far away from him forever.
Eventually, the sun has set, and we are covered in darkness. Perfect for getting close without being seen.
“Are you ready?” I ask everyone.
We are all wearing our ballistic vests, wanting to avoid taking any chances in case he tries to fight back. We have no clue as to what we are walking into, and we should cover ourselves this way rather than have to worry about Autumn and someone else.
“I’m ready,” Tobias says, checking his ammo and holstering his gun.
We all mimic his actions, double-checking to make sure that nothing can go wrong. Once we’re sure that we are good to go, we climb into our cars to get as close as we can before making the rest of the way on foot.
Darkness coats the forest, and we can barely see in front of us as we stalk toward the cabin, weapons poised and ready to fire at the first sight of him.
We have no intention to kill him, only to hinder him. I want him to suffer for a long time for everything he’s done to her.
The cabin comes into view. The wooden building would have been Autumn's dream—a place to escape from everything and be surrounded by nature. Now, it’s become her prison.
“Are we read-” Tobias starts to say but is cut off by the door to the cabin opening. A man no taller than 5’9 with ginger hair steps out, holding our girl in his arms.
“Oh hell no,” Dominic mutters, stepping forward, but Zander beats him to it. Storming through the tree line, we all follow as he races towards the unknown man and grabs Autumn’s very still form from his arms.
Sebastian surprises us all; the moment Zander has Autumn, he swings his fist into the man’s face, knocking him to the ground.
“What did you fucking do to her?” He screams at him, grabbing his gun and aiming it at his head.
Zander holds Autumn to his chest tightly while Tobias runs his hands over her, checking for injuries.
His eyes swing to meet mine, worry evident as they try to rouse Autumn.
“Answer him!” Dominic shouts, his gun holstered, but his knife now rests against the man’s throat.
“I was breaking her out. She’s dying and needs the hospital,” he says, “I’m a doctor, and I’ve kept her alive this long. You’re welcome, by the way.”
“He’s telling the truth. Her breathing is labored,” Tobias says, directing all of our attention away from the man on the ground to Autumn.
“Where’s Charlie? We aren’t leaving without him,” I order.
“Chained to the bed,” the guy on the ground says, wincing as he sits up, “Did you have to hit me so hard?”
“Yes,” Sebastian replies without hesitation, shocking us all. He’s normally more reserved and laid-back, not one to throw punches first and then ask questions.
“We need to get her to the hospital. Can we hurry this up?” Zander grouches from behind us. He’s not looking at us, though, his eyes solely fixated on the prized possession in his arms.
