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His fist pounded into my stomach and I screamed, thrashing out and raking my nails down his face. I was done. He may have stowed away my sons, but there was no way I was going to let him hurt this baby—my baby,Raf’s baby. I was done with Travis having all of the control.
“I hate you!” I screamed, throwing my arms out. My hand connected with the side of his face, and I knew instantly that I shouldn’t have done that. I’d made it worse, but then, it didn’t matter what I would have done at that stage, it was all going to blow up in my face anyway.
He grabbed my arms, yanked me from the wall, then threw me across the bathroom like I was a rag doll. My shoulder hit off the edge of the toilet, a crack reverberating through me, but I didn’t have time to process it because he was on top of me, pounding his fists down on my face, my chest, my stomach, any part of my body that he could make contact with.
Each hit felt harder. Each hit felt like he was trying to punchthroughme.
“Stop!” I screamed, but that just caused him to throw his fist at my mouth, then my nose. “No,” I gurgled, feeling him lift up off me. I thought he was done, the raging monster standing above me, blocking everything out, but one swift kick to the stomach followed him getting off of me.
I rolled onto my side, bringing my legs up to offer some kind of protection, but his heavy boot stamped on me again. Reaching out, I grasped his ankle, all of my strength gone, and as I let go, my hand fell to the floor.
“You created this,” he ground out, placing his boot on my hand. “You make me act like this.” He pushed his foot into my hand, the sensation of the small bones popping and crunching making me cry out in agony. “I’m this monster because ofyou. It’s allyourfault.”
I shook my head, the move making me even more dizzy than I already was, but then the pressure from his boot was gone. Everything was fuzzy, time moving in chunks as his outline moved a little to the left.
“I’ll make you pay for this,” he said, sauntering toward the door. “I’m gonna hit you where it hurts most.” He turned, grinning at me. “Your sons.”
And with those parting words, I heard his footsteps pound out of the bedroom and down the stairs. A door slammed shut, then another, then the unmistakable sound of a car engine roared to life and he was gone. I was alone again, just like I used to be every time he’d hurt me. He hadn’t done that since I’d been back—gotten into such a bad rage that he’d needed to escape afterward. Which told me that this entire time I’d been here with just him, he’d been in control of every hit, of every word, of every sexual assault. He hadn’t “seen red” or “blacked out” he was attempting to break me down.
But this…this had broken him. And now I was afraid it was going to be the end.
Your sons.
I heaved in a breath, willing my body to move, to do something to save my sons from his wrath, but…
My hand moved to my stomach as liquid poured from somewhere on my head, pooling around me. Wetness coated me almost everywhere, but I wasn’t sure what it was from, or where. I just knew that everything hurt. Everything ached. Everything was turning black.
My eyes fluttered closed, darkness threatening to take me away, but then I heard something…
Beeping bounced off the walls, over and over again. I didn’t know where it was coming from, but it was enough to have my eyes opening again. And as I turned my head, a flashing light on the wall drew my attention. It was rectangle, glowing with the sound of the beeps.
My cell! I’d forgotten about my cell.
Rolling over, I cried out, the agony darting through my ribs taking my breath away. I had to wait, count myself down, then shuffle my body across the floor. Reaching up, I ground my teeth together, telling myself that I could do this. I could make it to the cell. I could get out…
I clasped the edge of the counter, trying to haul in shallow breaths so it didn’t hurt so much. I groaned, the sharp pain mixed in with the throbbing almost too much to bear. My fingers slipped, blood fromsomewherecausing me to lose my grip. But I had to do this. I had to get help. And that cell was my last hope.
My hand connected with the rectangle piece of equipment, tears streaming down my face from pain but also relief. I knew I didn’t have much time. If he changed his mind and came back, there was no doubt that he would finish the job off.
I tugged on it, feeling something try to hold on to it—the charging cable—but then it pulled loose causing me and the cell to tumble to the floor. I grabbed for it, my breaths coming thick and fast at the possibilities. I didn’t read any of the messages that popped up. There were so many, all with the name “Rafael” at the top of them. But then I stopped on one, the one message that told my gut to callhimand not anyone else.
My eyes teared up as I read the words over and over again, looking at the time stamp and seeing that it was only from two days ago.
Rafael
I’ll never stop looking for you. Ever. Because I love you too, mama.
Mama.I could almost imagine him saying it in my ear. I wanted him here. I wanted him close by. I needed him, more than I needed my next breath.
So I hit the call button, realizing too late that I’d pressed the video and not voice. And then he was answering, his words muffled as my ears rang. I’d done too much, tried too hard to move, and now it was taking me away.
I opened my mouth, croaked out, “I love you, too,” then everything went black, darkness taking over, and for the first time in weeks, I was at peace.
CHAPTER 15
RAFAEL
I rolled my shoulders, hating how much the button-up shirt I was wearing clung to me. I’d been working out more in the last couple of months which meant that my clothes were getting a little tight across my biceps and shoulders. I wouldn’t have noticed if it hadn’t been for the fact that I practically lived in T-shirts and jeans over the last couple of weeks.
