Kick, Punch, Dance?

Chapter 18-Break Me

~Declan~

"Really, man? That's your plan?" Tatum said, criticizing me. At this point I was curious just to see how many bones in the human body I could break before someone dies. I was willing to start with Tatum. 

"You got a better one? Because I don't see you coming up with anything." I asked slamming my hands down on my kitchen table. It had been about two hours sense we found out where Tess was and after rushing out into my front lawn, I realized we needed a plan. However every plan I came up with was shot down.

"Dude you can not just barge in there, and start kicking ass. granted you'd probably take down more than I care to admit, but they would still kill you the moment you showed up." He reasoned.

"That's what they want. So how about instead of rushing in with our heads stuck up our asses, why don't we go down there and stake it out." Tatum said, his arm slung around Grace's shoulder.

She hadn'd really said anything since she saw the video and it was killing me to know that she saw her best friend like that. 

"Yeah ok let's go." I said, already heading to the car. 

After scouting the building for a half an hour in the car from about a football field away, we decided that the guard traveled in shifts, and that there was a gap every twenty two minutes. at on of the gaps, we sprinted into the building. 

"Where do you thing she is?" I asked, looking around a corner only to duck when a goon rounded the corner and continued on into the elevator. 

"Well nobody had made their way upstairs, so i'm think here on the ground level or in the basement." Tatum replied. I was wondering how we were going to get down the basement when an air vent the size of a large cardboard box caught my attention. 

Pointed, we both began to climb into the air ducks, after popping the vents. 

We wiggled and squirmed are way until we came to a fork in the vent that led down. Carefully we lowered ourselves down until we fell up a grated vent that let us see into the room below. 

At first all I could see were about three guards playing poker at a table, then my gaze shifted to straight down where a figure was sitting on the floor, their arms held above their head by a chain and shackles held at the wrist.

"Tess," I breathed and pulled back. Jesus, she looked like hell. Her blonde hair was red and crusted, her skin was pale, and I couldn't tell it she was breathing. Her head was ducked to the ground. 

But before I could jump down and play superman, and another figure stepped into view and I had to hold my breath so I wouldn't reach down and rip his teeth out with my bare hands. 

"Aw Tess, baby, come on. Don't tell me you've had enough already. We were having so much fun you and I," his voice rang out and I bit my tongue to help restrain myself when I watched him cupped her face. But then Tess raised her head and I could see her forehead now, yet it was purple, like she had been hit repeatedly.

"You know, you are a persistent bastard aren't you?" Her voice rang out. It was thing as paper, but it was stubborn and defiant as ever. 

I watched as Carter's face contorted in anger.

"Atta baby." With that, as painful as it was, I turned away from the girl I loved and pulled my best friend behind me back up the vent. 

I now had a motive to kill every single son of a bitch in this building and I wasn't going to stop until I carried my girl the hell out of here. 

~Tess~

During the night, I had somehow become numb to the beatings. It was like I projected my soul out of my body and just watched rather than felt it. And then when I returned to my body, I still could not feel the damage that had been done. And I think that's what kept me alive

Since I refused to scream in spite of my attacks, I think I made a nice challenge for Mr. Diamond. 

"Aw Tess, baby, come on. Don't tell me you've had enough already. We were having so much fun you and I," He said, stooping in front of me, now. His long fingers reached out and gripped my chin hard. 

"You know, you are a persistent bastard aren't you?" I said, looking him in the eyes, 

"You should be careful about what you say to me, Tess Darling. I might become mean." He said standing back from me and rolling up his cuff links. I frrowed my eyebrows at him as much as I could.

"You call slashing various parts of my body with a broken piece of glass a saint like action?" I questioned. 

"In retrospect to what I could have done? Yes, I believe what has previously been done to was nothing compared to what I could do to you. At this point the only thing that has touched your soft skin is various blades and other human flesh.

"Granted that flesh was attached to two hundred pound murders, but you get the point. I have a whole trunk filled with various toys of decapitation that I have yet to play with. But I'm not sure if I want you to be my test dummy just yet." Carter said, his sleeved rolled up. 

"You can and will not break me. Not when I know Declan is around the corner and about to kick your ass." i sneered as best I could around the blood in my mouth.

"We shall see." Carter said and once again, his hand came across my cheek. Damn what is it with men and knowing just exactly where to hit a girl?