“That egotistical, uncaring, rude, brute of a woman” I seethe, stomping my way down the sidewalk.
“She’s just worried about you,” Owen says, trying to keep up with my angry pace.
“She only cares about herself. She wants to leave you to the wolves” I reply.
“I think she does care.”
“Why are you on her side?” I snap, stopping to face him.
Owen holds up his hands in surrender, “I’m not on her side. I’d risk others' safety to protect you. I think she’s the same.”
I let out a heavy sigh. “I’m just a convenient tool for her.”
“I don’t think she’d be that pissed over a simple ‘tool’.” Owen grabs my hand and pulls me along. “But I don't want you around those people. Even if they do want you safe it doesn’t change the fact that they’re criminals and murderers. Everyone knows what their type is like.”
“You don’t know them” I say defensively. I may hate Leah but I'm fond of many of them. “Some of them are my friends.”
“Friends? How can you be so stupid? They’re not your friends. Like you said, they’re just using you.”
“Not all of them, they’re just following Leah’s orders.”
“And that’s okay with you? They’re only your friends cause they’ve been told to be.”
“That’s not true…” I begin.
“It is and you know it. You’re not this naive. I just want to protect you. Let me keep you safe.”
“What are you getting at?” I ask, pulling out of his grasp but he grabs me by the shoulders.
“Come with me. I can protect you.”
“How? As much as I hate to admit it, I'm safest with the Tiger’s. They can protect me.”
“As a prisoner!”
“They’ve never hurt me.” I withdraw from his grasp.
“Because you’re valuable goods to them. But you mean more to me than you do to them. I’ve cared about you for years. You trust those people over me?”
“I haven’t even seen you in months! You weren’t here” I argue.
“You know why I can't stay here.”
“Yes, because your family’s business is more important than the person you claim to ‘love.’ you know what? This is not the time to be having this conversation. We always end up having this same fight. The fact of the matter is they saved me from the kidnappers when you weren’t here. I would be most likely dead if they hadn’t showed up, so don’t you dare start badmouthing them when you don’t even know them!”
Owen lets out a heavy sigh,“Okay, I'm sorry. I didn’t mean to upset you. I just want you safe.”
“And I want you safe. That’s why I need to convince Leah to let you stay.”
“You know she won't,” Owen says, wiping his face. “Just come with me. I promise we will work something out. I can take you back home. We can go to the cops.”
“The cops are covering Brooke’s murder. They covered mum’s too.”
“What are you talking about? Brooke’s family said it was a burglary gone wrong.”
“Both? And they just went after Brooke and I’s apartment only?”
“Valerie, those people have been filling your head with conspiracies,” Owen shakes his head, as if i’m the one who’s becoming delusional.
“I have proof, the police files..” I begin.
“Police files? Jesus, Valerie, did you steal police documents?”
I scratch the back of my head, “technically it wasn’t me.” 

Owen lets out a long sigh and I suddenly feel defensive. “Don’t act like that.”
“Like what?”
“Like you know everything. You haven’t been here so don’t make me feel like I'm an idiot for trying to figure out what’s going on.”
Owen grabs my hand, “can we continue this conversation in private? We’re being watched. I’ll take you to where I’m staying.”
“I don’t think that’s a good idea. They’re only here to protect me.”
“Just trust me, please. I can’t calm down while they hover.”
“Owen…”
“Please, I just care about you so much.”
My heart throbs a little and I grip his hand tighter. “Ok.”
“Follow me, we’ll be able to lose them.”

I’m suddenly being pulled forward at a rapid pace, Owen dragging me down the sidewalk, turning this way and that. I look behind me but I can't find Croc or Walt anywhere near us as I stumble after him. We turn left down a side street bustling with people and enter a small Russian bakery with a light ding from the bell above the door, the scent of sweet bread filling my nostrils. We dash past the customers and around the back into the kitchen, people yelling at us as we weave around them. 

“Owen, where are we going?” I gasp out.
He doesn’t reply as we barge through the kitchen area and shove open the back door, my feet tripping over themselves on the few stairs down to the back alley, the door slamming shut behind us.
“The Hell, Owen?!” I shout, my heart racing. 
I cry as a sudden pain ripples from my back, knocking me to the ground on all fours.
“Grab her” an unfamiliar voice orders.
Hands grab me and hoist me to my knees, tying my hands in front of me with plastic zip ties, the ripples  in the ties already cutting into my skin as I haphazardly try to get to my feet. I open my mouth to scream but my mouth is taped over before I can let out a sound, the scream muted into a muffled yelp.

“Good job, Owen. I have to say I’m impressed you managed to trick her” a man says and i look at him, my blood going still. I remember him, he was one of the men with Brandon when they tried to kidnap me.
I look to Owen but he won’t meet my gaze. The man leans against a car while two men hold me, another next to Owen.
“And I get my money, Steve. Just like Brandon promised” Owen says, shifting on his feet.
Steve chuckles, pushing his dark hair back, “of course. Brandon will send the money as soon as she’s delivered to him.”

I can’t believe this. Owen gave me up for money? He wasn’t even threatened? The person who’d been by my side for over ten years? The person who shared my bed and told me he loved me? The person I pawed over for years, hoping one day he would realise I was worth it? All those memories and I was betrayed for simply money?

“Aww, poor thing is crying because of you, Owen,” Steve mocks, bending down to wipe the tears from either one of my cheeks. “Must be quite upsetting for you, Valerie. To know your man betrayed you.”
“I had no choice” Owen says, his voice high an octave. “My family was going to go bankrupt. You have to believe me, Valerie.”
I stare daggers at him, lifting my hands up to flip him off. I try to rip the tape off but hands push down on my forearms to stop me.
“She’s as feisty as I remember. Brandon will like that” Steve says, “get her in the car.”
“You promised not to hurt her, right?”
“Of course mate, don’t worry” Steve says, patting Owen’s shoulder reassuringly. “She’ll be fine and you’ll get paid. Now get outta here before the Tiger's show up.”
Owen comes over to me and I try to pull away, disgusted by his very presence, even as I start to cry harder, my vision beginning to blur through the tears. “I am sorry, but they won’t hurt you.”
Idiot. He has no idea what he’s gotten himself into. I hope he rots in hell.
He kisses my forehead and in return I headbutt him, relishing in his surprised and hurt face, despite the now throbbing pain in my head.
“Get her in” Steve commands, shoving Owen out of the way and towards the street. “Now, get lost.”
Owen holds his bleeding nose, staring at me for a moment before running off, leaving me behind. The last straw of our relationship snapping violently before my eyes. 

I struggle as they pull me to my feet and shove me in the black car, squished between them with Steve taking the passenger seat.
“Been waiting for you longer than i’d like sweetie. Hawkins has not been happy with Brandon. That means Brandon takes it out on me.” Steve caresses his chin as if feeling for an old wound. “But now everything will be better and we’ll be richer.”
Richer? How am I meant to make them richer?At least I know now why they're so desperate to get me, their greed for cash pushing them forward.

Are they wanting to hold me for ransom? I don’t know anyone who would pay a lot of money for me. Hell, someone I considered family just sold me out for money.

“I recommend not trying to fight us, unless you want bruises” the man beside me whispers in my ear, making my skin crawl as he touches my thigh, skimming his fingers over it. “But it could be fun, if you did.”
I try to shuffle away from him but I'm shoved back by the other man, sandwiched between their large bodies.
I try to look out the window, seeing if I can notice any familiar landmarks or road signs but the streets blur beside me as the car gains momentum, taking me towards god knows where.
Minutes pass by and my hope of being rescued is diminishing. Maybe we did manage to lose Walt and Croc and they have no idea where I am, running around trying to find me, only for me to be long gone by the time they figure out what happened. 

“Son of a bitch!” the driver shouts, the car suddenly skidding, throwing me sideways momentarily.
“On our tail” one of the men beside me says, looking behind us.
I try to peer over but they hold me too tightly, pushing me against the leather seats with their forearms, so hard it constricts my breathing slightly. 

“How did they find us so fast?” Steve growls angrily, unsheathing a gun. “Shoot them out.”
The men beside me grab their weapons and wind down the windows, leaning out precariously to shoot.
I take the opportunity to rip the tape off my mouth, wincing with the sting.
“Don’t!” I cry, trying to grip one of the men by the elbow and pull him back in.
“Get off me” the man shoves me back, smacking me in the face with the back of his hand.
I freeze, momentarily stunned by the stinging hit but then try again, tugging his shirt to pull him back in as gunshots pop through the air like fireworks.
I shriek as the back window blows out, glass shattering all around me as I cower. I scramble for safety at the bottom of the front seats, shrinking in on myself as much as possible. I cover my ears as I curl into the foot area of the backseat, being thrown around as the car struggles to keep upright. 

“Get them!!” Steve screams over the ringing in my ears. I can barely hear anything, my own thudding heartbeat mixing in with the sounds of chaos.
“Watch out!” someone cries before I’m suddenly thrown sideways, mid air for a moment before smacking into the rear back seat wall, barely cushioning the blow, my head smacking against some hard object.
I try to cry out as pain blossoms on my temple, the fire of pain almost blistering. Black dots start to fill my vision as gravity pulls me down, bringing my weightless body to a halt. I try to breathe but my chest struggles to expand enough to get air in. 

I can’t breathe.