Chapter 5

Through the fog in my head, I saw a huge man standing beside Freddy. His skin was dark, his frame was massive, and he looked like a walking executioner. I felt dizzy. My vision went blurry. My head felt foggy. I had no idea who had approached us. I only felt the heavy presence he carried with him. He did not come to help me. He walked right up to me and grabbed my collar before dragging me out like I was roadkill. That was when I realized it was Brandon. I passed out quickly. I had no idea how long I was out. When I woke up, I was in a dark room. The sky outside was pitch black. A foul smell filled the air. My body stung from the cuts made by gravel. Every scrape burned. The gash on my forehead had scabbed over, but the pain still hit so hard that I almost cried. I did not know where I was. The place looked like a dungeon. Fear crawled up my spine. I was also worried about Alana. Nothing had happened between us, but Freddy would never let her go. I limped to the door. The door was not even locked. I pushed it, and it opened at once. The moment I stepped out of the room, loud barking blasted through the air. Five or six huge guard dogs rushed at me with glowing red eyes. "Oh hell." My heart almost stopped. I jumped back into the room and slammed the door shut. That was when I knew where I was. This was Brandon's house. He was a loner. He drank all the time. His only hobby was raising vicious guard dogs. If I went out there in my state, those animals would tear me apart. My hands shook as I shoved the bolt in place. I never thought Freddy and the others would throw me into Brandon's house. I had no idea what they wanted. Fear sat heavy in my chest. I did not know how bad this could get. I sat in the room for almost an hour, but no one showed up. I snapped and yelled toward the door. All I got back was more wild barking. I did not dare go out. I must have yelled too hard because the cut on my head split open again. Warm blood streamed down my face. I felt cold and hungry. My head started to swim. Right then, I suddenly heard someone hit the wall next door. I had no idea if I had heard it right, because my head felt packed with lead, and I could barely tell what was real and what was not. I dragged myself toward the wall and looked through a tiny gap. There was another dark room. Moonlight slipped in just enough for me to see faint shapes. The sight knocked me right off my feet. A woman sat inside. Her hair hung wild over her face, and her right ankle was bound in chains. She looked like something from a nightmare. When she raised her head to look at me, I saw two glaring red eyes. Terror froze me. I had no idea what I was looking at. When I calmed down and tried to look again, sharp barking exploded outside the door. The door flew open, and Brandon stepped inside. He walked in without saying a word. He just curled a finger at me, and I shot to my feet at once and followed behind him. The dogs swarmed again when we stepped out, but Brandon barked, "Back off." They stopped at once and moved aside. As we walked past the yard, I glanced at the room next door. I swear I felt a pair of eyes on me. They clung to me until my skin crawled. We walked through the front gate. Dad stood there in the moonlight. His face looked pale, and his lip was swollen. A bruise sat on his forehead. Someone had hit him. "Dad." My chest tightened, and I rushed toward him. I tried to ask if someone had hit him, but he stopped me at once. He turned and walked off, and I had no choice but to follow him. We had only taken a few steps when Brandon's voice came from behind us. "Luca, if this happens again, it won't end this easily." It was a warning and a threat. Dad did not answer. He just kept walking. When we got home, I stepped into the front room and ran straight to him. I asked if Brandon and Freddy were the ones who had hit him. Dad did not answer. He slapped me across the face. "Dad." "On your knees." I dropped to the floor with a thud. He reached for his belt. He pulled it free and raised it like he was about to hit me. My heart sank. Pure fear rushed up inside me. The last time he hit me with a belt was back in fourth grade. My cousin and I stole a watermelon from someone's yard. When we got home, Dad beat me so badly with a belt that I hid under the table and refused to come out. I could feel the anger rolling off him. I stayed on my knees and waited for him to hit me. However, when he saw blood still running from my forehead, he stopped. He put the belt down and grabbed clean water and gauze. He started to clean the cut on my head. "When you came home, I told you over and over not to mess with Freddy. I told you not to get close to Alana. Why won't you listen?" "I'm sorry, Dad. But Freddy is a monster. He doesn't treat Alana like a person. You don't know this. He hurts her every day." My words struck a nerve in him, and his mood snapped in an instant. "Alana, Alana. You already blew up our lives because of her. Why are you still hung up on her?" "Dad, I'm not hung up on her. About what happened today, it's not what you think at all. Nothing happened between us. Dad, did you go to the Ford residence? Did Freddy do anything to Alana?" "What could he do to her? They get along fine." Dad suddenly threw the bowl of water aside. It splashed across the floor. "Luca, you walked right into a setup. Freddy and Alana dug this hole for you together. They waited for you to fall in. Do you get that?"