Bittersweet

5| Apple Crumb Cake

I knew they were there. I could feel them. Watching. Waiting. Ready to rip me away and place me back in that horrid place. With that in mind, I gripped the straps on my purse tighter and quickened my pace down the busy street. I didn't want to draw any attention to the others around me, so I pretended like I wasn't being followed. Regardless of my racing heart, regardless of my uneven, quick breaths, I pushed forward hoping to at least add some distance.

With my head down I took a sharp left turn at a nearby corner trying to throw them off their tracks, but when I did I only ran into a burly chest.

"Alexandria," the sound of a gruff voice made my heart drop to my stomach. "Playtime is over now."

Ever so slowly I looked up to see a man dressed in a fine suite with his cold, steely eyes on me. I knew those eyes all too well. And I knew the way they looked at a prey before making their move. Just like they are right now. So I did the only thing I could

I ran.

Of course, I should have known that was pointless because the second I turned around I was flanked by two other burly men. Each grabbed my arm regardless of my feeble attempt to pry loose. Their grip was like iron that tightened with every effort I made to escape.

"The more you fight, the more it hurts," a thick accent promised. Still, I had to try. I wasn't going back.

"Help!" I called out. "Please! Someone please hel--!"

A cloth-like material was suddenly tied around my mouth muffling my screams. Clearly I was at a disadvantage and my arms felt like they were going to be ripped off at any moment, but still I had the will to fight. I used my legs to try and kick my captors but it was pointless. Instead, they kicked my feet out from under me and forced me to my knees. I could feel my skin tear from the rough contact with the concrete.

The man with steel eyes pulled out a cigarette and placed it in his mouth. "Such a bothersome one," he lit his cigarette giving it a few puffs. "And Malcolm made you sound so submissive. But it has been so long since he's last seen you."

I was about to show him just how submissive I was when suddenly a cold hand was gripping my throat cutting off my air supply. My lungs worked overtime trying to pull in anything that would ease the pain but my mouth was currently closed off. It was useless.

"He misses you, you know."

I wanted to tear his hands off of me but the men kept them firmly in place. I wanted to scream, I wanted to run, I wanted to fight, but it was all useless. Like a broken machine that was no longer functioning, all I could do was cry.

"Alexandria," he blew a puff of cigarette smoke in my face and smiled, showing his yellow teeth. "Let's not keep him waiting."

With a mighty cry, I lurched forward from where I was laying, nearly falling off. My breathing came out in rapid pants and sweat rolled down my neck. It was as if I had just finished a long run the way my chest was tight and my face flushed, but I knew better than that. Every time I blinked I could see it. Those yellow teeth grinning at me with a promise of making my life a living hell. Again.