Sins of Aiden

10

CHAPTER 10

The wind brushes my heated skin, hair shielding my eyes.

The pebbles underneath my chest scrape my clothed skin, digging into and burning holes in my dress. The man's hold gets impossibly strong around my leg—twisting my skin into a thousand piercing needles, yanking my leg to the point I can almost feel it snap off.

He flips me over and comes crunching down over me. I gasp, terrified. Eyes rimmed with unshed tears.

He comes over me like sizzling lava—without warning or permission burning holes into my skin. His arms extend over me and I take every last power and will in me to thrash in his hold. Trying desperately to escape his vicious grabbing hands.

I slap his hands away, disoriented and uncontrolled. Each attempt brings a solid frustrated grunt from my capture—and although I can't see his face due to the black bandana and covering sunglasses, I imagine the frustrated grunt matches his expression.

After a couple of failed attempts to catch my flying hands—he twists them into a strong cruel hold. I let out a pleading cry, pushing to free my hands, feeling too fragile to escape his hold.

He yanks me up to my feet.

"No," I cry, despite me being a complete mess.

And the stranger begins to drag me to the edge of the balcony.

Fear crushes down on me like a fresh wave, urging me in panic to do whatever I can to set myself free. I plant my heels on the concrete, groaning every so at his grip—skin turning glowing red.

"Mia!"

My heels scrape against the solid ground as I wiggle into the stranger's hold, praying that I'll be able to stop us from moving. But with the force caused one of my heels to break and it snaps right of my shoe.

I tumble down, taking the guy with me. Panic rises again as he hauls me up with my arms, setting aglow of his plans anew.

Just then, as I find my gaze looking down the concrete staircase leading to the dense midnight rattling forest, feeling shame and dread of not being able to hold against my will to stay put. The weakness covered me whole.

It hit me like a flying canon ball—the strange man will take me and I will not be able to come back. I'll not be able to stop this.

The defeat hits me with cooling shame, my knees tremble and give out from exhaustion.

"Mia!"

The worrying frantic voice penetrates my blood-rushing ears, gushing away with the wind.

I open my eyes before my world gets awry again.

It takes one solid blow—a knockout force from behind that causes my lungs to seize. I strangle a disoriented moan, feeling whatever hit my side doing enough damage to make me stop breathing. The strange guy loses his hold on me and with a last stilling untouched air around us—we both go flying in the air.

I spin in the air, with no clue of which side is the ground. My hair, clothes, purse, and limbs go in all directions, trashing together with the oncoming breeze. I hit a jagged end and began rolling down the concrete stairs, feeling the sharp edges cut through my skin with each step I landed.