The Psychopath's Prisoner

Chapter 37

Cheyenne was being shaken awake. "Chey, Chey. Wake up."

"Huh?"

"Wake up."

She raised her head. "What?"

"I wanted to let you know that I'm going out for a little while. All you need to know is that I'm leaving for a few hours." His voice was soft and gentle as he stroked her hair. "Here, I brought you some ice for your eye. It'll ease the pain."

Cheyenne gawked at him and wondered what he was up to. She wasn't going to ask, for fear of another beating. Besides, she was grateful for the ice.

"Thank you," she said as she took the bag of ice and placed it on her eye.

"I'll see you later." He kissed the top of her head before he left and locked the door behind him.

After she was sure he was gone, she slowly stood and began to survey her surroundings. He had brought her to a warehouse.

Cheyenne noticed the large windows, typical of old warehouses. They were broken and poorly boarded. There was one window that wasn't boarded. She wondered how she was going to reach it since it was high above her head, even out of jumping distance-if she could have jumped. Something skittered across her feet. She screamed and fell back onto the sleeping bag.

She lay on her back and cried, an arm across her ribs to hold them in place. "Oh God! Oh God! Help me please. Please."

~

She cried herself to sleep. When she woke up, she gasped. She slowly pushed herself up from the sleeping bag and moaned. On her knees, she held her ribs with one hand and reached for the ice pack with the other hand. Though the ice was completely melted, she placed it on her eye to help the pain and throbbing. She put a lot of effort into standing and even more into maintaining her balance. When she finally got up, Cheyenne noticed a few crates in the corner opposite the unbarred window. Once she was healed enough, she would try to move them. Of course, she knew she had to have a backup plan in case this didn't work out. But what? What else did she have available? Until she was healed, there was nothing she could do to find out. It hurt her to move.

Too much pain. She fell to her knees, hoping there weren't any more rats. The though sent a shiver down her body.

A noise. The door was being unlocked. Her breathing increased and raced. The hope that it was someone coming to her rescue quickly subsided when she saw Daniel come through the door.

"Hey." He flashed a lopsided smile at her.

Daniel approached. Cheyenne tensed. God only knew what he was going to do now. She didn't realize she was holding her breath. His mood could change at any moment. She looked up at him and shuddered.

"Hey you," he started as he kneeled in front of her. He raised her head with his finger under her chin so she could look him in the eye. "Do you need more ice?" She nodded and he kissed her forehead. "The cooler is in the car. Do you think you can behave for a few minutes?"

Cheyenne nervously whispered, "Yes."

"Then I'll be right back." He looked down at her menacingly and shook his finger. "Don't do anything stupid." He walked away.

She noticed he left the door open and hesitated. Should she risk it? With one swollen eye and what she was sure were broken ribs, there was no guarantee she would make it, but she had to try.

The chances of her healing and recovering weren't guaranteed if she remained with him. She slowly pushed herself up with one hand. Once she was up, her stomach tightened as she cautiously made her way to the door. It felt like an eternity to get there. She leaned against the door and glanced around the corner. Not seeing Daniel, she stepped outside. Oh, the fresh air. It was so nice. She quickly snapped out of her moment when she heard a noise behind her. She quickly went and hid around the corner.

The footsteps sounded like Daniel's. He was going to be enraged when he realized she was gone. All the more reason to run. She heard him go inside and ran around the building toward the street. Of course it was a dead end street with no cars in sight. When she heard Daniel screaming her name, she panicked and searched around for a place to hide. The only real hiding place was behind a dumpster.

"Cheyenne! Cheyenne! Where are you"? He screamed in fury. "If you don't show yourself, you will regret it."

Cheyenne's body shook so badly she couldn't move. There was no way she was going back-especially for another beating. No way! He was laughing. Her breathing got heavier, more labored. She covered her mouth with her hand and cried.

"Cheyenne... come out, come out, wherever you are." Daniel's sing-songy voice was nauseating.

She peaked around the corner of the dumpster. He moved toward her with his hands in in his pockets.

"Come on, Chey. I won't hurt you. I promise. But...," He took his hands out of his pockets and held them out. "I will hurt your sister and those three kids of hers. What are their names? Michael, Laird, and the girl, Alaina. Then you really won't have anyone left." He laughed. Cheyenne felt goose bumps on her arms. "You know I'll do it," he added.

She stepped from her hiding spot. "No! Leave them alone."

He saw her and charged her, sending them flying to the ground. He shoved his face in hers and said with gritted teeth. "You will never get away from me. You have no idea what you've done." He dragged her back to the warehouse. After the beating, he handcuffed her to the pole. She wondered when this nightmare would be over. Probably when death came. Right now it would be more than welcome because she could endure no more.

"God help me," she whispered.