Hold Tight |Jason McCann|

Chapter 38

| Savanna |

I felt my heavy eyes slowly open. They felt puffy and sore from crying and finally being able sleep without flinching, the feeling felt unnatural.

I sat up seeing Jason no longer in the seat next to me. For a second, my heart dropped and I felt all alone in such a big room. Any moment now, I'd be back in that horrible place.

That's when I remembered Eva.

Where was she? Was she still in that terrible place? Had she escaped? I couldn't believe how selfish I could be as I slept so comfortably knowing she was still out there. With them. And so I made it my first goal to speak to Jason and ensure she was safe, somehow. I knew how many people Jason had in gang, more than anyone would imagine. Which meant they were everywhere, I'm sure it'd be easy for them to find an innocent girl in a place I'm sure everybody knew off.

I didn't know where Jason had gone but the only thing I could think about was taking a shower. I felt disgusting. And so I swung my legs over the bed- careful to not scrape me leg once again, and made my way to the mirror which hung on the wall. I hesitantly pulled the hospital gown up from my legs. My eyes fell on them in the mirror, decorated with bruises and cuts, I looked like an animal who had just been in a fight and lost. The bruises were all a deep purple colour, scattered around like paint splatters. How could Jason still look at me with such love and adoration in his eyes when I looked like this.

Quickly, the images flashed in to my mind. The men who watched me, the men who tortured me, the men who took me. All came flooding back like a memory book. I covered my face with my hands as I sobbed in to them. I couldn't stop thinking about the worst, what if Jason never came? What if I was left there for the rest of my life along with the girls who's lives had ended before they even got a chance to live. What if I ended up like them?

A thousand thoughts flooded my mind and it was almost impossible to break out of them. I didn't know when this fear was going to end but I hoped soon.

I pulled myself together as I was cut short as the door opened and Jason appeared with a bag in his hand. He closed the door and turned to look at me, tiredness in his eyes. I had no clue when he had woken up and left, I was in that deep of a sleep.

"You've been crying?" He asked as I turned to look at him. I shook my head a no but he knew me too well and as a single tear escaped my eye, he came straight to me to pull me in to his embrace. He ran his hand through my hair as he held me close, "I can't stand seeing you cry, Savanna" He spoke as I sighed.

"I'm sorry" I whispered as I wiped my tears pulling back.

He shook his head, cupping my cheeks in his hands, "Don't apologise sweetheart, I got you" he said making me slowly nod. 

"Jason" I spoke up "Hm?" He responded as he led me back to the bed and I sat down at its edge.

"I need you to do something for me" He paused, looking down at me, frowning as he stood in front of me "Of course sweetheart, what do you need?" He asked, thinking I needed something for myself.

"When I um, when I was in there, I met a couple of girls..." I trailed off, thinking about Maria and Carolina and the other two who had been shot to death.

"Only one survived with me... her name was Eva and we escaped together. Sh-she was with me when I called you until we were found and um... your- your dad took me with him an-and they took her away" It was so hard to get my words out and tell him the story without crying but the crack in my voice showed him how much I was struggling.

"I don't know where she is... she could be back at that- that place, they might have taken her somewhere else, I don't know... but I can't move on knowing she is still back there, with them" I ended looking up from my hands and at Jason.

He didn't say anything.

"Jason, are you even listening?" I asked as he began busying himself with the bag he brought in with him.

"Yes sweetheart, I am. I can't leave you right now... we're going home today. You'll feel better once you're home, I promise you" I couldn't believe how inconsiderate and selfish he was being. He didn't even care that this was something I cared about and needed to be done in order to move on with my life.

"Are you being serious Jase? How am I supposed to feel better knowing she is still being treated like that. You weren't there, okay. You don't know what they do, if you wouldn't want that off me, why are you letting it happen to someone else" It was more of a statement, and it was all the truth.

He shook his head "Its not about morals Savannah. It's about doing what is right. This is there lives. This is how Brazil works, human trafficking and prostitution is a fucking joke over here. I open that up, I'll have to spend days here ending it all" His voice raised and his eyes darkened, I could see the angry side to Jason coming out.

"But I know where she could be... I remember it all. Why can't you just listen to me for once" I told him, my voice cracking in between as I hadn't raised my voice in such a long time, stepping off of the bed carefully.

"You wanna go back there? Are you fucking stupid Savanna? Do you think I'd let you go back to that place knowing full well what it did you to you?" I fell quiet, of course I didn't want to go back there, but this was about doing what was right.

"This conversation is ending here. I'm not arguing with you now out of all times Savanna," he paused as I looked down at my feet. "Don't you care about what I want? I saw what happened to the girls who escaped with us. They shot them, they didn't care that they were only young and had done nothing to them. I can't let them do that to Eva, she helped me."

I looked over at Jason who wasn't even looking at me. I walked over to him, standing in front of him,

"Please do this for me Jason... I wouldn't ask for this if it wasn't important" I told him, tears in my eyes. He sighed, shaking his head as he wrapped his arms around me, pulling me in for a hug as he captivated me in his strong yet comfortable embrace. Jason's arms were my favourite place to be in, I could spend forever in them and not worry about a single thing.

He kissed my head before speaking,

"I'll try my best princess, but you're my main priority, remember that."