I need you now.

Chapter 33

The sounds of muffled voices dragged me out of my unconscious nightmares. I squeezed my eyes shut and opened them again, trying to make them adjust to the darkness. Tight ropes were digging into my wrists and ankles, and when I tried to wriggle out, a sharp pain rippled through my arms. They were bound behind my back. I whined in terror, but no sound came out. I was gagged with a small, tatty cloth.

"So what are we going to do with her?"

I could barely hear the voices, but, slowly and carefully I shuffled over to the rotting wooden door, leaning my head against it.

A group of voices were talking at the same time.

"QUIET!" A deep voice yelled. "I will decide what happens to her. And for now, we must wait. The boys think Bella has left town, and with Shelley in hospital, this was our only opportunity to take her."

"Why dont we just kill her? That way George will just think she moved away, we get rid of her body, simple."

"Because, Seb, what about Russell and John and Adam and Tyler? What happens when she suddenly stops answering the phone to any of them? They will suspect something. No, it's best we keep her here. If we tell the boys that we have her and hold her ransom. He pays, or she dies. Horribly."

I couldn't believe what I was hearing. I'm being held hostage by some weirdos that I dont even know, with my life on the line. And my only hope of living is George.

Sometimes, I think the universe hates me. Really.

I shuffled back as fast as I could when I heard light footsteps climbing the stairs. Scrunching up my eyes and laying down, I hoped my heart wouldnt give away the fact that I was sick to my stomach with fear. I could feel the blood pulsing in my ears, in my wrists.

The footsteps creaked along the cold, hard floorboards until they were right behind me. I tried to steady my breathing, sweating slightly.

I dont want to die... Memories flashed through my mind. Me and mum on Boxing Day when I was three, and I was crying because everyone was pulling Christmas crackers and I hated the noise.

"Are you awake?" The voice whispered into my ear. My heart was hammering, making my body shake.

"Bella, I'm not here to hurt you. And I can tell you're awake. You're trembling." A soft hand was placed on my shoulders. "Sit up." He clicked a button and the dim room was lit up. Not very brightly, but enough for me to see.

I was still unsure, but I wriggled my shoulders slightly. Then I pushed myself off the dusty floor, looking up at the owner of the kind voice addressing me.

He was pretty. Very.

He had short blonde hair that was gelled up into cute little spikes. His eyes were a pale grey and he had a lopsided smile. His hands were stuffed into the pockets of his jeans. He was wearing a black shirt with a black tie. Yummy.

"Why am I tied up?" I asked, but because I was gagged it sounded more like "Wehumidiedop?"

"Huh?" He asked. "Oh yeah. The cloth." He knelt down to untie it, reaching behind my head and untangling the knot of cloth in my hair. While he was doing this, he kept staring at me. His gaze was so intense I had to look away.

The moment the gag was off, he slammed his hand against my mouth. "Dont you dare scream." He warned me. "If you do, I'll die. I'm supposed to be trying to kill you, not help you."

I rolled my eyes and nodded. He slowly lifted his hand away.

"Are you fucking crazy?!" I hissed. "What the hell am I doing here? What's going to happen to me?"

"Nothing, if you just do what I say. Oh, I'm Ivan by the way."

"Yeah ok, nice to meet you, yada yada yada. Now can you tell me why the hell I'm here?"

Ivan sighed. "Well, Liam, our gang leader, him and George had a little fight a few years ago because G Man owes him some cash but G cant pay him, and Liam has a plan. George.. he likes you."

"Yes, so I've been told."

"And Liam figures the only way to get what he wants, is to take what George wants. Threaten him with your life. It's the only way."

"Why doesn't Liam just kill me now, get it over with?"

Ivan avoided my gaze, scratching his neck. "Because..you're worth alot more to us alive than dead."