Never Alone

Chapter 18

     Slinking silently along the hallway, Annie stayed as close to Trevor as possible. Even in the midst of this dangerous situation, the irony of the moment was not lost on her. Yet again, just after she steeled herself to keep him at a distance, she was placed in a situation where she needed to rely on him. First, was Tracy's death, then the shooting at the coffee shop, and now this. Every time she decided to push him away, she was forced to cling more tightly to him. Maybe it was a sign...maybe God was telling her to give him another chance.

As they neared the glass door leading to the parking lot, a rough hand clamped down on her wrist and her body was grabbed by a strong, unrelenting arm. Before she could let out the building scream in her throat, a hand covered her mouth and held her tightly. The pair of arms pulled her in the opposite direction down the carpeted hallway.

Digging her heels into the carpet, she struggled to loosen the vice-like grip holding her. Panic surged in her chest, and a whimper escaped through her mouth but was instantly stopped by the hand holding her captive. She prayed Trevor would notice she was no longer beside him and come to her aid. What would these men do to her? Tears burned her eyes, and she wriggled with every ounce of strength in her body. She would not be going down without a fight to the death.

Her squirming caused the hand over her mouth to slip and loosen slightly. Taking the opportunity, she bit down on his finger as hard as she could. Her captor cried out in pain. The brassy taste of blood filled her mouth, and she blinked past her tears to see Trevor's head whip around.

When his eyes fell on her, a glint of fire and steel hardened them. "Let her go!" His voice was cold as ice and sent a shiver slithering down her spine.

The hand over her mouth clamped down tighter, and the arm around her waist increased its death grip. Her body was jerked around to face the vending machine at the end of the hall opposite the exit. The arms holding her dragged her down the hall as quickly as her efforts to free herself would allow.

Suddenly, the man's body lurched to the ground. His hands fell limp, as he crashed on top of her. Trying to struggle to freedom, she found the man to be a giant, and her best efforts were rewarded with little progress.

In a moment the dead weight holding her down was lifted, and she scrambled to safety beside the ice maker along the wall. Cowering beside the humming machine, she drew her knees to her chest and watched the tangle of two bodies a few feet away. Trevor kneeled over the man and landed a solid punch to the jaw. The cracking of bone and moaning of the stranger taught her to hope the tussle was over.

However, the man on the floor soon managed to flip the script and was now on top. Several brutal blows to Trevor's face and blood pouring from his nose and mouth forced her to her feet. She remembered the pepper spray she kept in her purse and spotted the handbag twenty feet away near the exit. Urged on by the adrenaline coursing through her veins, she quickly grabbed the aerosol can from its pouch and returned to the heat of the battle.

The stranger was still on top of Trevor who was landing a few deadly punches even from his prone position. Aiming the pepper spray directly into the assailant's eyes, she pushed the button, and soon the man lay screaming in pain on the floor. His beefy hands covered his blood-shot, watering eyes.

Grabbing Trevor's arm, she helped him off the floor and together they hurried to the exit. Her own eyes burned from the spray hanging in the air.

"Not so fast," the words sliced through the air like a knife.

Turning to see the owner of the voice, Annie's mouth went dry when she saw another man holding a gun aimed at them. Grabbing her, Trevor moved her out of the line of fire. She watched as he slipped his hand behind his back and quickly slid his concealed weapon from the holster. Two shots rang in the air at almost the same moment. Annie closed her eyes tightly at the thunderous sound of gunshots in the narrow hallway.

Immediately after the shots were fired, a loud thump and deafening silence filled the space. With a throbbing heart and trembling hands, she kept her eyes closed a moment longer. Her worst fears of losing Trevor may well be materializing, and as long as she believed him to be alive....as long as her eyes were shut, he would still be living to her.

"Hey," the familiar voice brought tears to her stinging eyes.  "We have to make a run for it."

Taking his hand, they rand together out the door and toward his waiting pickup.   His face was swollen and cut in places, and his swollen eye was transitioning to a sickly shade of purple, but in her eyes, he had never looked better. When he opened the door for her, she took a quick moment to wrap her arms around his neck, and she cried against his chest. All the horror of the day finally caught up with her, and she dissolved into a puddle in his arms.

Gently, his arms circled her waist and held her for a moment. Understanding the seriousness of the situation, she released her hold on him and choked back a sob. "We need to get out of here," her voice quaked.

He nodded agreement and climbed into the driver's seat. With no further signs of their attackers, they sped out of the parking lot. As much as the idea of camping once bothered her, she was now thankful to leave the society she no longer trusted and get to a safe place. 

Since I wasn't able to post on Tuesday, I'm going to give you a double whammy today.  Have a great weekend, Friends!