Total pages in book: 29
Estimated words: 27090 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 135(@200wpm)___ 108(@250wpm)___ 90(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 27090 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 135(@200wpm)___ 108(@250wpm)___ 90(@300wpm)
A strange smile appears on Bryan’s face, and he catches the man. He wraps his arms around him, nearly squeezing all of the air from his lungs then drops him to the ground.
In a desperate attempt to get the upper hand, the professor pulls a knife from his pocket. He grabs my ankle and pulls me to the ground. The sharp blade sparkles in the moonlight as he points it toward my chest, but Bryan grabs his wrist and drags him away from me.
Rage contorts Bryan’s face, and he strikes the man with an onslaught of lefts and rights. He’s like an animal who’s been drooling at the bars and is suddenly set free from his cage. I see his rage and think I should be horrified, but that’s the furthest thing from my mind. He came to my rescue. He saved me and that’s the only thing that matters. If he beats the tar out of this man, it’s nothing less than he deserves.
“She’s not yours. She never was and never will be. Now, you get to know what happens to anyone who touches what belongs to me,” Bryan says as the beating continues and the professor’s body heaves on the ground beneath him.
7
BRYAN
Beth should be settled into the lecture by the time my workday ends.
I consider going home to wait for her, but I haven’t eaten all day and I suspect she hasn’t had dinner either. I decide to surprise her when she comes out of the session. I grab some Chinese takeout and head for the campus. We can eat under the stars, and she can follow me back home.
I arrive on campus and see that the lecture hall lights have been dimmed. “Damn, I missed her,” I say aloud. I pull into the parking lot to turn around and see the Porsche parked under a street light.
It’s one of two cars still in the lot, and I pull up next to it. I hop out and peer through the window. Beth isn’t inside and the doors are unlocked. My pressure spikes and I scan the vacant lot for any sign of her.
“Beth!” I cry out. “Beth, where are you?”
She doesn’t answer, so I turn to check inside the building. The hall is empty and the doors are locked.
“Beth!” This time, I hear an answer. It’s faint but I follow the sound of her voice. She’s calling for help. She needs help! I extend my gait until I find myself running through the wet parking lot. I skid to a stop and turn to follow the path behind the building into the trees.
I see her pulling with all of her might, trying to escape the clutches of a man who’s dragging her. My panic morphs into rage as I think he's dragging her away from me. My first objective is to get Beth away from him and that’s easy enough, but he pulls a knife on her and I lose any self-control I may have been holding on to. I’m gonna beat this man senseless now and ask questions later. If he dies, he dies. I don’t have the will to stop myself.
My blood-covered hands begin to slide off his skin, but I keep on punching. It’s only when he loses consciousness and I hear Beth ask, “Is he dead?” that I come to my senses. I could kill this man right now, but I don’t want her to see me like this. “Beth, call the police. Are you hurt? Did he hurt you?”
“No. You got here in time. You saved me.”
This piece of shit isn’t going anywhere. I help my girl to her feet, take her in my arms, and kiss her sweet face.
“You’re okay now, baby girl. I’ve got you.”
She makes the call, and we wait for the police to arrive. It’s not until she gives the police her statement that I realize who this man is. If I had known before that he followed her here from California, I might have driven his knife into his heart. This is it. After this, there’s no way I’m letting this girl out of sight.
“I’m going to follow you to your place to collect some things. You’re gonna stay with me for a while.”
“Are you sure? I don’t want to just intrude on your life like that.”
“It’s not an intrusion. I insist. I can imagine that you’re shaken up right now, and I’m not going to let you be alone.”
“Okay.” She nods and stares at me for a moment then rushes to me and throws herself into my arms. I caress her and tell her that everything is going to be alright, but my guts are still churning over the thought of some other man putting his hands on her.
We arrive at her place, and I follow her up the stairs. The hall is so narrow that my shoulders almost touch the walls. The floor of the old building creaks under my feet, and I wonder just how safe this structure is with its cracking plaster walls and soggy floorboards.