A Cowboy's Love (Ford Brothers Book #3)

Chapter Twelve: Amelia

What happened to me? My head is pounding and my body feels like it weighs a ton. Light from a window allows me to see where I am. But, I do not know where I am. This place does not look familiar. It is cold, dark, and it smells terrible in here. The floor I am laying on is covered in dust and trash. Food wrappers, beer cans, and needles scattered around. Why am I here? Why am I laying on the floor?

Why can I not remember anything and why is my head hurting so much? I tried to rise my arms over my head to stretch, but it is pointless. My limbs are too weak to move an inch. All I want to do is sleep for days. I am tired and hurting everywhere; even my eye lids hurt. My wrists and ankles feels like there is weights tied to them. My mouth is dry; when was the last time I drank anything?

Trying to remember is making my head hurt more and making my eyes grow heavier. This is all too much for me to deal with. I cannot make heads or tails of this place. I have no clue to where I am at. Where are my girls? Where is Jackson? Why is nothing making sense? The longer I lay here the heavier my eye lids become. Sleep trying to take over my body. Maybe if I take a nap my headache would go away. I could think clearer when my head does not feel like a jackhammer on the loose. I gave in and let my eyes fall shut as everything turned black around me.

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Why is my head pounding? Why does it taste like I have been chewing on cotton? Prying my eyes open as the pounding in my skull increased. Tears built up in my eyes as everything came flooding back to me. Drew drugging and kidnapping me. Gazing around the dark room noticing that nothing looks familiar. How long have I been asleep? Has it been a day or a week? It feels like I have slept for hours with no results. My bones are still heavy and weak. It does not help that my ankles and hands are tied.

"I see that you're awake." Drew says from across the room. "Even gagged you still make too much noise. I'm going to have to give you another shot to sleep."

"NO!" I tried to scream out around the cloth in my mouth. Trying to sit up to get away from him. It does not work; I am too weak to pick myself up.

"Don't fight it, Ellie. All of this is your fault after all. If you would have stayed and kept your mouth shut we would not be here right now."

As he started to move closer to me, I rolled over searching for something I could use to distract him. Finding nothing helpful I felt defeated. He has me where he wants me without a way to escape. All the fight leaving my body as he pinned me down and pulling my head back by my hair. The pain from my hair being ripped out did not compare to the sharp sting of the needle entering my neck. What did I do to deserve this?

"There's no place for you to run. You are mine."

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Waking up groggy and weak for the third time is getting pretty old. Being held hostage is also getting old. I am losing all hope of getting out of here and back to my family. My girls, Jackson, and his family are somewhere losing hope too. I do not know when they found out that Drew took me or if they even know. Will they come find me or give up on me all together? I have to think positive, but it is getting harder to believe.

Finally, I let the tears fall; I cannot hold them back any longer. My life is over and I will never see my family again. Do they know how much I love them? I cannot imagine life without my favorite people. They are the reason I breathe. They are the reason I get up every morning. They are the ones I fight for, but I am tired of fighting. They will be better off without me.

Thinking about everything that I will miss out on. My girls graduating from high school, them getting married, and having a family of their own. I will never get to marry the love of my life. All the years laying ahead of us is gone now. All those hours sitting and day dreaming about finding Jackson again. We just found each other and it is already over in a blink of an eye.

"Ready to get out of here?" I hear a slurred voice from above me. I did not even hear him enter the room. The tears came faster as I tried to fight him off of me. Kicking him and doing my best to make some kind of noise. Hopefully I can draw someones attention.

"Fine. We will do this the hard way since you don't want to listen to me. Typical Ellie."

Climbing off of me, he stepped back and walked out of the room. My heart thudded faster in my chest with each second that he is gone. Is he going to drug me again? How much can my body take before it kills me? It would be better than whatever Drew has planned for me. It sounds like a peaceful way to go.

"Got it." He said walking into the room and making his way back to me. I did not want to be passed out again.

I have to fight at least one more time before I can give up. I have to do this for my girls and Jackson. I have to get back home to them. Rolling over the dirty floor and hitting something hard. Moving around until my feet are pushed up against the nightstand. It might not hurt him, but maybe someone would hear the noise. When Drew got closer I put all my strength into my legs as they pushed off the furniture. It crashed into him causing him to stumble backwards. It did not keep him away for long. He ran at me, jumping on top of me, and pinning me down to the floor.

"Stop moving!" Drew screams as spit flew from his mouth and covering my face.

I could not fight him any longer. I did not do enough to save me. Muscles going slack as I prepare myself for the pain. My tears running down my face as I realize my defeat as Drew stuck the needle deep in my neck. The last thing on my mind was hearing Jackson's voice. I am sorry for everything. Please, forgive me, Jackson.