Ellise watched her husband as he paced back and forth in his room. He was so tense and frustrated. He cursed under his breath, and loosed his hair from it's bun. She watched him take out a hair clip-like device. He'd refused to eat earlier, telling her he wasn't hungry. She knew he had been having nightmares too but he had shut himself off. He was so determined to find the others. He glared at the device he'd taken out from his hair and walked to the window to throw it away but somehow, he changed his mind and placed it back in his hair.
"What's that?" She asked.
"It's-"
His phone rang and he picked the call, walking out of the room in a hurry. She sighed and sat down on the bed. She picked up her phone and called Amelia, asking her if she wanted to hang out. She agreed and they both went shopping.
She bumped into Elvis at the mall. He didn't look good at all. She guessed he hadn't gotten over his wife's death. "Hey" he rasped, giving her a small smile.
"Hey" she said.
"You're- uh- pregnant" he said.
"Yeah...."
"I guess things later worked out for you and your husband?"
She nodded.
He sighed.
"Are you okay?" She asked.
He sighed again, shaking his head. "I've been trying to move on, but it's so hard.... I really miss her. It hurts a lot" he said, his voice cracking up a little as his eyes turned glossy.
"Wanna talk about it?" She asked and he shrugged.
"It depends...if you want me to" he said.
"I want to"
"Okay, let's go to the park then" he said and they both headed to the park. When they'd settled down on the bench, he dropped his gaze. He looked so sad, it made her heart ache.
"Sara and I had an amazing love story. We met when we were still kids. I was five years old when her family moved in as our neighbor. We were never friends. We just knew that there was some sort of connection between us and when we were eight, I promised to make her my bride" he said, smiling dreamily.
"We weren't apart in any way. We attended the same prep school, same high school and same college. Shortly after college, we got engaged and then I started working late night shifts. Sara wasn't happy about it but I tried to pacify her. I just- Even though she can be so troublesome, I miss her. I miss everything about her" he said, a tear rolling down his left cheek. He cleared his throat, trying to push his emotions aside.
"When was the last time you let it out?" She asked. He looked at him with bloodshot eyes before saying, "On the day of her funeral" he whispered hoarsely.
"You've bottled it in for so long. You should let it out" she said.
He shook his head, his hands trembling. "It's always so overwhelming. I won't be able to stop. I tried to kill myself few weeks ago...." He said and she gasped.
"No, you didn't"
He sniffed, more tears escaping.
"I-I did. I was lucky that they found me on time" he sobbed, burying his head in his hands.
"She wouldn't want this for you. She won't be happy to see you in so much pain"
"I could've been a better husband. She was an awesome woman, but I didn't give her my all. I could've-"
He choked on his tears, letting out strangled wheezing sounds as he wept. Her heart broke for him. Elvis' wheezing worsened and he placed a shaky hand on his chest. "What's wrong?" She asked, worried.
He didn't say anything, he quickly brought out a bottle of pills from his jacket and swallowed a pill, dry.
After some minutes, he stopped wheezing.
"What was that?" She asked, terrified.
"I have a heart condition..... sorry I scared you like that" he croaked. She nodded in understanding.
"Can you please get me water? I'll pay you back" he said and she stood up.
"No, it's okay.... you don't have to pay me back" she said and headed towards the store. She was so close to it when someone placed a paper bag over her head and tightened it. She gasped for air, her knees buckling as she became weaker. She felt herself being carried into some sort of vehicle. She whimpered, tears filling her eyes as she thought of Dre.
'Oh God, please give my husband the strength to hold on' she thought as her eyelids grew heavy and she slowly sank into a spiralling darkness.
...
"Andre, you should calm down" Dmitri said, looking at Dre, concerned. He tightened his hold on his desk, anger simmering inside of him.
"Don't you dare tell me to calm down! Don't you dare! They fucking took her!"
"We'll find her. We're really close. Just a little bit more" Dmitri said. He gritted his teeth, still trying to process the fact that Ellie had been kidnapped. But how?
He was literally going out of his mind. He took deep breaths, trying to calm down but it wasn't working in any way.
"Bloody hell! What the hell am I doing? I need to-"
"Dre, you're going to get yourself killed. Trust me, Ellie wants her child to have his father. She needs you alive. So, before you do anything stupid, think about your unborn child" Dominic said, blocking the door.
Dre glared at him, wanting to punch the shit out of him.
"That insane woman has her! Ellie is pregnant, don't you understand? She's very fragile at the moment. She could be hurt badly!" Dre said, his heart pounding faster. He turned away sharply and his vision went black for a couple of seconds.
"Mate, you have to take it easy. You just practically passed out" Dom said, steadying him
"I don't care" he said, through gritted teeth.
"How are you supposed to save her if you can't even stand on both feet? You should sit down. Matteo is doing his best to track them"
Dre groaned and roughly shoved him off and stumbled towards a chair, dropping onto it. "Did you even take your meds?" Dmitri asked.
He leaned back and closed his eyes as he brought out the pill bottle from his pocket.
"Here" Dom said, tossing him a bottle of water. He opened his eyes in time to grab it. He was so disorganized. Dominic was not surprised that his friend was acting like an asshole.
"I think we've got something. I've found Xanthis' transmitter. It has been moved to another location though. There, I've identified two devices. Ellie's phone and Xanthis' transmitter" Matteo said and Dre's eyes widened. Matteo brought the laptop to him, showing him two blinking lights on the tracker.
"Where are they exactly?" He droned.
"Somewhere around Addison Highway. The 5th lane. They're in an abandoned crime site.....a three storey building. It's a large building but I think they're in the basement"
The door opened and Valentino stepped in.
"If you guys think you're going alone, you're wrong. I'm coming with you guys" he said and Dmitri grinned.
"I guess it's time to rescue the others"
...
"Hey, it's okay. Close your eyes. You should conserve your energy" Tasha said to Xanthis as she unbuttoned his shirt. He was too hot, his fever could be raging above 102F. He was trying to say something about some sort of device in his hair but she don't understand what he was trying to say. "N-no...." He coughed, gasping weakly.
"We'll get out of here soon" she said. He nodded.
"They'll find us soon" he slurred, his eyes slipping close.
The door opened and the psychopath walked in carrying a new born baby in her hands. The baby was so small and was wrapped with baby blankets. They watched her as she cooed softly, rocking him back and forth in her arms.
She looked so innocent like that. Her blue hospital gown looked so huge on her tiny looking frame. Cornelia's eyes turned cold when she saw Tasha.
"Gomez died because of you" she said, glaring at her. She placed her baby on the floor and came closer to her. She smirked when she saw Xanthis lying on the floor with his head on her lap.
"I see, what do we have here?" She said, grinning.
"Take him from her" she ordered and two men stepped inside and took Xanthis to the opposite direction. "Stop, please" Tasha pleaded.
"Now, you'll see how I felt when Gomez died in front of me. Don't worry I won't kill him yet" she said, restraining her with thick ropes.
She walked up to Xanthis who could barely stand. Her men were holding him up.
She yanked his hair backwards and he let out a weak groan, bringing tears to Tasha's eyes. She grabbed a steel rod and hit him in the stomach. He groaned, falling to his knees.
"Stop please! Stop hitting my brother!" Lilly cried, sobbing in Anne's arms.
Cecilia was sobbing quietly while Anne squeezed her eyes shut in agony.
"Stop hurting him!" Tasha cried, trying to get rid of the restraints holding her down.
She kept hitting him until he coughed up blood.
"No! I'll give you what you want, just leave him alone!" Tasha sobbed as he collapsed to the floor, wheezing. She smirked.
"Take him to her" she ordered.
They carried him and placed him beside her before removing the restraints. With shaky hands, she touched his face. He opened his eyes weakly. He gave her a smile and squeezed her hand gently. "We'll be okay" he rasped and she cried with relief.
Her Xanthis.
He would always be her anchor.
...
Ellise opened her eyes, groaning as a result of the pain in her lower back. She heaved a sigh when she realized that she was tied to a chair.
The door opened and Cornelia stepped in.
"Not so comfortable, are we?" She asked, moving towards Ellise with her sleeping child.
"What do you want with me?" Ellie said, sighing.
"You? I don't need you. I just want to use you to get Alex"
"What?"
"I won't kill any of you. The only person I want to kill is your husband. I'll kill him right before your eyes. It has been my aim all along, sweetheart" she said
"Why won't you stop all this for the sake of your child"
"My child? My child? I don't even want this pest. I want Gomez! This pest is nothing to me!" She yelled and threw her baby across the room. Blood pooled on the floor where the baby lay in a dead heap. It's face was partly crushed gruesomely.
Ellise gasped, tears filling her eyes. The woman standing in front of her was a monster.
A monster who would smash her baby to death without blinking.