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Chapter Four

He dragged a sweaty hand down my thigh as a smile appeared on his face. I immediately jerked back, trying to get as far away as possible. But this only made him tighten his grip.

"I told you not to move, sweetheart." His grin grew bigger. He was enjoying this, that bastard.

"Go to hell," I spat angrily, struggling to get his hand off of me. He chuckled as my chains clicked together.

"Come on, dear. You know the consequences." He trailed a finger down my cheek, mixing tears with blood.

"Take me, Tanner," A weak voice sounded from the corner of the dark basement. I growled, yanking the chains with me as I pushed forward.

"Stop it, Alana. Let me deal with him!" I screeched, wildly moving against the restraints. I knew that it was pointless. That it would only injure me more. But I didn't care. I needed to fight.

My cheek was suddenly met with something hard. My head whipped back into the solid wooden wall, a sharp crack resonated through the room.

"I said no talking back, remember? Rule number three, darling," His smile was gone. I felt my vision blurring as more blood seeped from the back of my skull.

He flinched. I knew what was coming next.

"Forgive me, please forgive me," He muttered, staring up at the ceiling. I could hear the sound of Kathryn's muffled sobs coming from my right. Sarah was passed out next to her.

Tanner grabbed one of the smaller blades from the table next to the door, the corners of his mouth turned up. He shuffled quickly back to me and let his eyes trail down my ragged form. His fingers twitched as I glared at him.

"No disrespect, lovely," He whispered into my ear, making me clench my jaw in disgust. He lightly trailed the knife down my forearm before digging it in deeper. I screamed in pain, tensing as blood trailed down my arm.

"Stop...please." I sobbed, pain shooting throughout my body. He pressed the blade further in, making a whimper escape from my mouth.

"Oh, Ariana. I love when you beg," I broke down even more at his words. At his pleasure. He was getting what he wanted.

He turned around and roughly pulled Alana up from the ground.

"Get your hands off her!" I screamed hoarsely. He chuckled again and twitched.

"Forgive me."

"Ariana! Dammit, wake the hell up!" I opened my eyes as sobs ran through me. I immediately threw a fist out.

"Leave me alone," I hissed venomously.

"Ariana, it's me. Listen to me...it's Taylor."

Taylor.

I slumped against the pillows and shook my head, hiccups still overcoming me. I wiped the blurriness away from my vision and found Taylor staring down at me, his face hard and concerned.

"I'm sorry. I'm so sorry," I whispered. The tears wouldn't let up, no matter how many times I wiped them away. They ran down my face, making me feel sticky and useless. And weak.

Taylor reached forward then thought better of it and dropped his hand. He hesitated, looking uncomfortable.

"Please don't take this the wrong way, but do you want me to stay with you? On here?" He patted the area next to me, his tone soft. I automatically shook my head and stared down at my leg, where Tanner's disgusting hand had been only seconds ago.

"No. Thanks, but no."

He nodded.

"Alright. If you need anything, don't hesitate to wake me up," He told me. I nodded, my head pounding.

"Do you, uh, do you always get these nightmares?" Taylor asked, the area between his eyebrows creasing together. I shook my head again.

"I've haven't had any nightmares since I got to that hospital room. I never dreamt until tonight. Sorry for waking you up."

"Don't worry about it. It's only twelve so we have plently of time to get more sleep." I nodded and sighed, sinking back into the pillows. Taylor slid off the bed and kneeled back down to his mattress.

"You sure you don't need anything?" He questioned, his gaze scanning me seemingly unsure.

"I'll be fine. Go back to sleep." He nodded and soon disappeared below the bed. Only seconds later did his snores fill the silence again.

My mind traveled back to the nightmare...the memory...without my permission. My time with Tanner seemed to have vanished from my memories, leaving me only with scraps. And that dream was one of them.

Alana...she always took my place. She volunteered herself so I wouldn't have to experience what she did.

Small tears slowly rolled down my cheeks as more pieces came back. It was Alana and Sarah. They were the ones he chose. God knows why, but he left me and Kathryn alone.

I buried my face into the nearest pillow and punched the cushioned mattress beneath me, attempting to get some of the bitterness out. Of course, it didn't help one bit. My heart felt like it was being pulled out of my chest.

Knowing that sleep was no longer an option, I got up from the bed and quietly stepped out of the bright room, and into the dark hallway. My eyes flickered around, making sure Tanner wasn't hiding somewhere in the black depths of the hallway. As soon as I figured it to be safe, I went into the office and switched the light on.

I pulled open one of the drawers in the wooden desk, searching for something to write on. I finally came across a small gray notebook; unused and just what I wanted. I traced the floral design on the smooth front cover.

As the sky got lighter and the next day came near, that journal was slowly being filled with the gruesome details of what little I remembered.