Freedom Ranch

Chapter 31

 Dakota slowly opened her eyes and blinked as she stared at the popcorn ceiling above her. Her heart leapt to her throat as she realized where she was. She shot up from the bed so quickly her head spun. Grabbing her sore face as it pulsed with the sudden movement, she looked down to see a heavy metal cuff around her ankle. The chain wrapped around the bed and disappeared underneath it. She pulled at the metal, hoping to pry it open. It didn't budge. She pulled her foot, trying to slip out, but it was on too tightly. Dakota continued to quietly work on the metal cuff, hoping to remove it before he noticed she was awake. She didn't have to see him to know Colin was behind this. Who else would bring her back to their old house in Texas and chain her up?

"I see you're awake."

She looked up to see Colin standing in the doorway. A smirk playing on his face.

"You didn't think I would find you? You and that fucking cop really pinned me as an idiot," he scoffed.

Dakota opened her mouth to answer, but Colin's face turned into rage as he yelled, "QUIET!"

She shut her mouth, deciding the sarcastic response wasn't the answer. He must have expected it and didn't want to hear it either.

"You will only speak if you are spoken to. I wasn't hard on you before, but I won't make that mistake again. It was no picnic having to drug you and drive you all the way back here for you to disrespect me. And don't even think about trying to escape. I made some adjustments to the house so you can never leave again."

Dakota looked around the room to see he was right. There were bars on the window and she saw a lock on the bedroom door where Colin stood.

"Here. You reek. Clean yourself up," he said as he threw some baby wipes on the bed next to her.

He walked over to the closet and pulled out some clothes she had never seen before. He tossed a red skirt with a white button-down blouse next to her.

"Wear this."

She swallowed down a sarcastic response and instead asked quietly, "How am I supposed to put on the skirt with my ankle shackled?"

She watched as his hands grew into fists with ignoring his new rule of not speaking unless spoken to. She wondered if he was going to knock her out again. Instead, he pulled out a key from his pocket. He knelt down by the bed and hesitated with the lock in hand. He shoved the key back in his pocket, shaking his head in frustration.

"I don't trust you yet. I'm going to have to break you first to make sure you never leave me again."

Before she could process what he said, the back of his hand made contact with her face. She pulled back her fist to punch him, but wasn't fast enough. He was already back at the doorway, out of her reach.

"You are such a coward. Running away instead of having a fair fight," she spat.

"You better keep your mouth shut or I'll break your jaw to keep it shut."

"No, you won't because that would mean you would have to take me to the hospital for them to sew it shut for you."

She stared at his cold eyes, refusing to back down from his bluff. He slammed the door without another word. The sliding metal lock on the other side echoed as he shoved it in place before stomping away. A minute later, she heard a vehicle start outside and leave soon after. The house was quiet. She knew he must have left for the bar, since that is often what he did when he was furious over her. She wondered why he would he would take time to not only drive her back to Texas where he was a wanted man, but the very town and house it started in. Maybe he didn't know he was a fugitive. That could work out to her advantage unless he was arrested and no one looked for her here.

She stepped out of bed, finding an empty bucket she suspected was to be used as her toilet and nothing else besides the clothes he left out within reach. She grabbed the baby wipes and worked to make her foot as wet as possible, hoping to pull her foot through the small cuff. Even if it meant breaking some bones to pull it out, she was willing to do that. She just wasn't sure if that would be enough how small the hole was.

She pulled on the chain. It was heavy and new. He had it bolted on the floor to a beam he had installed under the bed. She grunted as she tried to dislodge the beam and pulled on the chain repeatedly. It was no use. Her fingers ached the longer she pulled on the cuff and chain, trying to break herself free. She wasn't sure how long she was trying to escape for, but it was long enough that she was breaking a sweat and grimacing in pain. Her foot and leg ached. Her fingers stung and two fingernails had ripped back from the attempts to break free. She stopped what she was doing when she heard the gravel crunch next to the window as a car pulled into the driveway. She quickly jumped back into bed just as the front door opened.

A woman's giggle surprised her. She heard Colin shushing the woman as they walked past her room and into the other bedroom where he stayed. Dakota couldn't believe it. The audacity to kidnap his "wife" and still bring home other women proved to her what she had suspected all along. It was about control. Nothing more. She debated on screaming for help or saying anything. As furious as she was at Colin's actions, she didn't want to put someone else's life in jeopardy.

The house had paper-thin walls, so it didn't take long for her to continue to hear the woman's giggles and soft laughter. She felt her blood boil the longer she heard the reaction between them.

"HELP!" she yelled at the top of her lungs.

The giggling stopped.

"PLEASE HELP ME!"

She heard the door shut in the other room, followed by large footsteps. The door unlocked, with Colin quickly stepping into the room. He marched over, his face inches from hers.

"If you don't want me to strangle the life out of you, you will keep your mouth shut," he seethed, the smell of alcohol as thick as his slurs.

Dakota opened her mouth again to scream when his large hand wrapped around her throat. She clawed at his hand and arm, digging her nails into his skin as deep as she could. Her eyes watered as she choked against his hand. She grabbed his face and buried her nails deep in his skin. He released her and stepped back. She knew he didn't want too many marks on him with another woman in the other room questioning where he got them from.

He stomped over to the closet before pulling out a syringe from the top shelf. She moved to kick him away. He shoved her on her side, covering her mouth roughly before injecting her neck.

"You will pay for that," he rumbled in her ear.

Dakota felt her body go limp as her vision faded to black. It was the same darkness that had consumed her before.