End Point

Chapter 4

Flashback (Five Years Ago):

"How long have I been here?" the girl asked when she finally regained enough strength to be conscious for more than a few minutes at a time.

"You've been out of it for nearly three days, but your fever finally broke last night." Adam answered, keeping his voice gentle but impersonal.

"I... I have to go..." the girl mumbled and started to get out of bed only to fall back due to weakness.

"Right now, you are too weak to even get out of bed. Tell me what's going on, and I will help you." Adam said sincerely but she shook her head empathetically. He could see that she did not trust him, not completely, and he could not even make himself fault her for that. The girl had obviously been through hell. Once he knew she was safe, he was going to visit the same hell on the bastards who had hurt her.

"Very well, but you are not going anywhere until you're better." he told her before leaving the room. He would give her as much space as he could, and maybe she would start trusting him at least a little. He needed her trust if he was going to get the monsters who had harmed her. Somehow, without him realizing it, she had become very important to him.

Her impact had hit him like a ton of bricks since the first moment he had laid eyes on her and had only increased since then. God! but the girl was brave, and smart. She had not even told him what her name was yet. But he would wait her out. With some time, and more recovery, she would trust him. At least a little, and then he would move forward with that. It was all he had, and he had to start somewhere.

She lay there and tried to think after Adam left, but she was too weak to even stay awake for long, and very soon she drifted off into a deep dreamless sleep brought on by complete exhaustion, her last thoughts focussed on her saviour.

...

Present:

"I don't think this is a good idea." Ellis said, even as she lay down on her stomach on the quilt Adam had spread on the kitchen counter.

"It's a good way to relax." Adam offered from the living room. They had chosen the kitchen because it was the brightest room in the house, not to mention her favorite.

"So say you." She grumbled.

"Can I come in?" he asked.

"Yes."

Adam walked into the kitchen and it took a lot of effort for him to not smile. Ellis was laying face down on a quilt on her kitchen counter wearing a pair of denim shorts, and a mid riff baring strapless top. It made for a very interesting view.

Adam picked up a towel and placed it over her clothes.

"I'm wearing clothes."

"Yeah but this makes me feel like you trust me enough to strip and  it'll save your clothes from the lotion. Two things at once, imagine that. " He retorted, sarcasm dripping from his tone.

Ellis took a breath to yell at him when he laid his warm hands on her shoulders and started the massage. His hands stroked and pushed into her body, rubbing away all the tension from each muscle they touched. She sighed in pleasure when he stroked his thumbs down her spine while his palms fanned out over her back.