My heart stops beating in my chest.
I need them to be okay.
Fuck, I need them to be okay.
Penny
I wrench at my bindings, screaming at Jack. He remains too still as he watches the flames lick around him on the floor.
“Get her out of here you monster!” I bellow. “Go!”
All too slowly, he turns to head for the bathroom. He pulls a sobbing Zella into his arms. My heart breaks into a thousand pieces as I realize this is the last time I’ll ever see her. I failed. I was supposed to be her knight and I couldn’t save the little princess.
“I love you, princess,” I choke out. “Daddy will find you. Don’t worry.”
“Penny!” she screams, reaching for me. “Penny!”
He drags her over to the door and opens it. I can hear sirens nearby.
“Fuck,” he snarls, darting off toward the right where the forest is rather than the parking lot.
I don’t waste any time tugging and pulling at my bindings. The skin feels as though it’s being torn off, but I manage to slide one hand free of the rope. I cry out in relief as I quickly yank the other one free. The flames burn bright, blocking my path. I yank the covers off the bed and use them to shield me as I run through them. Flames singe my hair. All I can think about is catching up to Jack. I run toward the woods where I can hear Zella’s screams.
As fast as my legs will go, I sprint through the forest, ignoring the slaps of branches. I may not be as strong as Jack, but I’m younger and fitter.
I have to save her.
I have to.
Terrence is probably still at home, clueless that we’re in trouble. My heart aches for him. He’ll be devastated if something happens to Zella. I can’t bear to imagine what his life would be like if he lost us both. It’s not fair. Terrence is a good man who loves with his whole heart. Yet, life keeps throwing him the short end of the stick.
He deserves everything.
Not Jack terrorizing the ones he loves.
If I can get her away from Jack, I can save her. I just need to get to them. For a moment, I don’t hear her screams. Panic surges up through me, making me dizzy and sick to my stomach.
Focus.
I need to focus.
All I hear are the wails of the sirens that seem so loud.
Wailing and wailing.
Wailing and wailing.
It’s maddening. The more I try to listen for Jack and Zella, the louder the sirens seem to get. Defeat overwhelms me as tears threaten.
I can’t do this.
I won’t reach her.
She’s going to get stolen away forever because of me or worse yet he’ll kill her. I can’t let him do that.
Focus, Penny.
Ignore the sirens.
Listen.
I’ve been practicing lately with drowning out sounds that bother me. There were many therapies to try, but the one that helps me is singing a nursery rhyme Mom used to sing to us when we were babies and now sings to Hope.
It’s a soothing song.
Hush, little baby, don’t say a word.
I manage to get through a few lines of the song before I hear her. A sharp cry. Changing from my original direction, I head toward the rushing sounds of Hood River. More branches slap at me, one snagging my arm and tearing the flesh, but I’m not deterred.
I finally burst from the woods, nearly spraining my ankle on the sandy beach area. Jack is carrying Zella toward a dock where a boat is tied.
No.
If he gets her in that boat and manages to untie it, they’ll be down the river before I can stop them.
“Stop!” I bellow when I reach the dock.
He spins around, fury twisting his features. “You fucking slippery bitch!”
“Let her go, asshole.” I bend to pick up a fist sized rock. “Now.”
“What are you going to do? Hit me with your little rock?” he sneers. “Sorry, little girl, but that’s not happening.”
“Give me Zella,” I demand. “She belongs with her real father. I won’t let you take her. Soon, they’ll find us. You won’t succeed.”
His eyes narrow when I take a step forward. “She’s mine.”
“No, she’s Terrence’s. And Lacey’s. You’re just a monster who steals from good people. You stole Lacey’s happiness and her life. I’ll be damned if you steal her daughter too.”
“I’m not giving her up. That motherfucker will never have her,” he growls. “Never.”
“Too late. Hear the sirens? They’ll be here soon. You’re trapped, Jack.” I take another step forward. “You’ll go to prison for a very long time.”
He grits his teeth. “If I can’t have her, he sure as fuck can’t.”
With those words, he tosses Zella into the river without warning. I heave the rock at him, taking sick satisfaction when it smacks him right in the forehead. As I sprint past him, I shove him. He crashes into the boat. I reach the end of the dock, searching for her.
Oh my God.
She’s gone.
She’s gone.
“Zella!” I yell. “Zella!”
An arm. I see an arm. I dive into the water toward where I saw it last flailing. The current is strong here since it’s deeper here than where the beach areas are and where a lot of boats dock. I know I only have a few moments before I lose her.
I can’t lose her.
I can’t.
My eyes burn as I keep them open beneath the dark, murky water, searching for her. The current pushes me, so I swim with it, knowing wherever it takes her, it’ll take me. I just have to get there faster.
I surface, sucking in a deep breath of air, before dipping down again swimming hard. I’m thankful for having pushed myself so hard in basketball as it’s giving me the strength and endurance to swim like her life depends on it.
Because it does.
I have to find her.
The water is rushing so fast, I almost fly right past where she’s tangled in some limbs. I manage to snag her shirt, yanking her with me as I pass. She breaks loose from the limbs and I curl an arm around her as I break the surface again. I spit out water and choke as I try to keep her head above the surface. Her eyes are closed and her mouth hangs open.
Oh my God.
She’s not breathing.
“Zella,” I sob. “Stay with me.”
Desperately, I kick against the current, swimming with one arm toward the shore. I nearly lose her from my grip when a log smacks into me. We go under the surface, but when my foot touches sand, I use it for leverage, pushing off it toward the shore. My feet have found solid ground.
Thank God.
“Zella,” I scream. “Zella! Wake up. We’re safe.”
She’s unmoving as I drag her to the bank of the river, barely pulling us from the water before I’m lying her down, trying to remember how to do CPR.
I made fun of Hollis so many times when he was training to be an EMT. He had a dummy he practiced on. Now, I’m thankful he practiced in front of me. I remember some of what he was learning.
The chest compressions feel like I’m going to hurt her, but I remember how hard Hollis had to press on the dummy. I count as I compress and then I break to blow breath into her. Everything is a blur as I run through the cycles of what I remember, hoping like hell I’m doing it right.