Reunited Ch. 06

Passing an alley, Ellie heard scuffling and wondered if there could be rats or something. Shuddering, she hurried forward, though she looked behind her a few times to ascertain that Alec hadn't followed somehow. Finally, she let out a sigh of relief. She had actually evaded a cop! She could laugh at the ridiculousness of it all.

Then suddenly she heard footsteps rushing up from behind, then felt the cold metal of a knife at her throat as she was yanked into an alley. No! She kicked out behind her, connecting with someone's knee and hearing a satisfying grunt from the knife wielder as he released her. Quickly, she ran back toward the alley's entrance, only a man came running around the corner and threw her to the ground. Her head slammed backward and she saw stars, but she forced herself back up. Now there were two and one had a knife. She was screwed.

Remembering basic self-defense, she looked for an opening to run away or do quick damage. A knee or foot to the groin, perhaps, or going for the knees again.

"Stay away from me," she warned as she tried to back away from both. The alley was too narrow and she quickly felt the wall behind her.

"You hurt my knee, you bitch! Plus Mendon wants you. You're coming with us whether you want it or not." That came from the knife guy. The other seemed like the hulking silent type.

"Let me go. I'm not who you want. I don't know who that person even is."

This garnered her a pause as the two henchmen glanced at one another. It was now or never, so she quickly tried to dodge between them, but the silent one grabbed her arm and brought her back against the wall, where he held her. The talker sidled over.

"It's no use resisting. Larry here is stronger and quicker than you'll ever be."

"But I'm not the person you want. Let me go!"

"You might not be the girl Mendon wants, but now that we have you, we might as well have some fun with you." To Larry he said, "Let her go, Lar."

Unhanded, she looked from Knife to Larry and back. Larry backed up, still standing between her and the alley entrance, but not as close to her as before. Knife seemed to be waiting for her to make her move. He tossed his weapon from hand to hand, biding his time. Hesitating, Ellie waited for the weapon to be in the air before feinting toward Knife, turning, and running toward the alley. She would have made it, but she tripped over an uneven portion and went sprawling forward. No! She let out a scream of terror and frustration as she felt the men run up beside her.

Quickly, she regained her footing and tried to run again, but Knife was too close. He swiped at her, and from the sting on her back, he must have been successful at least once. Then she was yanked back by her shirt. Larry had grabbed it. Kicking and flailing, she made contact with both a few times, but also felt the sting of small slices along her arms and torso. Larry released her again, but Knife kept swiping as she backed up, successfully making contact several times.

Ellie dodged right, then tried running left, but Larry had anticipated her move this time, and he threw her to the ground. Her head bounced again and darkness overwhelmed her.

*****

Alec paced on the sidewalk in front of the apartment, thoughts frantic as he dialed the number to Ellie's cell phone yet again. He had no clue how long she'd been gone, or why she thought it was a good idea to go run errands after dark. Why hadn't she left a note or called? He hung up and placed the phone back in his pocket. He knew he needed to calm down and approach the situation logically. His first step would be to walk around the neighborhoods nearby. Maybe she had walked to one of the all-night diners to get some grub. She'd always loved pancakes. Maybe she just wanted to walk around and enjoy the fresh air and her phone had died. Or maybe she didn't call or leave a note because she's taken off. He hated to admit it, but that possibility was better than others he could fathom.

As he strode purposefully through the streets, he was amazed at how still everything was. For a bustling city, this neighborhood was fairly quiet after dark. He was just about to turn back when he heard a scream. His blood chilled at the sound, for he knew Ellie's voice better than almost anyone else's and this was clearly her screaming, a sound he'd heard only twice before, both when she was overcome with terror. The scream had echoed, so she had to be in an alley somewhere ahead. He ran toward the noise as quietly and quickly as possible, but his thoughts remained in the past for a few moments longer.

Ellie had always been a fan of pranks, and once she'd gotten to know him, she had turned her attention toward this new prey. For a straight week she had done every trick in the book, culminating in stealing his car key, throwing it in a bowl of water, and freezing it into a block of ice. He'd known that any prank he pulled would need to top hers, so he had bribed the RA on El's floor to let him into her room. Then he hid in the closet and waited for her to return from class. After she'd been working on homework for ten minutes, he had jumped out and grabbed her. Poor Ellie had been completely unprepared for the attack; she jumped out of her seat screaming and fell backwards before curling into a ball and crying. He had her sleep at his place that night so he could snuggle her while she slept and hopefully make her feel safe. He'd felt so guilty afterward that he brought her flowers and a little stuffed bear the next day. Hearing that terrified scream again twice this week was agonizing. He hadn't kept her safe at all.

He was approaching an alley now, so he slowed and listened. He'd heard no more screams in the past thirty seconds, but he'd also been running and breathing harder. Through the silence, he heard some rustling noises but not from this alleyway. It had to be the next one. As he came to the corner of the alley, he stopped and wished he was on duty so he could have his gun, then peered around the edge. This was the right alley. He could see two men standing over something on the ground. Shit. That something could only be Ellie.

Hoping the element of surprise would be enough for him to win this fight, he barreled down the alley and tackled the closest thug, crashing into the wall with him. The man put up no resistance and seemed dazed as he slid to the ground, so he focused on the other, who was kicking the woman at his feet. Infuriated, Alec ran over.

"Get away from her, you worthless sack of shit!" The man turned and Alec punched him harder than he'd ever punched a man in his life. The thug's nose started spewing blood and he slumped to the ground unconscious, a metallic clanging noise accompanying his hollow thump as a knife clattered down with him. Returning his gaze to the other guy, Alec noticed he was still shaking his head, confused. Maybe he'd hit the wall head-first and had a concussion. No matter what the diagnosis, Alec had just gotten extremely lucky. Bending down, he grabbed the knife and a duffle bag from the ground, threw the knife in the bag, then scooped up Ellie as carefully as possible. He knew moving her was risky, but staying in the alley with those goons was a higher risk.

He rushed back toward the apartment and his car, praying all the while that Ellie was not too badly hurt.

*****

Alec carried an unconscious Ellie into the building of Jake's new condo. Since it was in Jake's name, Davidson would have no way to trace it to Ellie, but the next day he would need to go purchase some additional locks and other security devices for the place. After what he had just witnessed, there was no way in hell either of them could return to her apartment or even that neighborhood.

How the hell did she become involved with that asshole? The question continually pounded through his mind. The Ellie he had known would never date someone so foul; he couldn't fathom what had changed that would cause her to do so. I mean, what type of man would send people to do this to a defenseless woman?

The apartment itself was a two bedroom on the fifth floor and the elevator now had a sign declaring it was out of order. Of course. Alec remembered a similar situation in college. Ellie had lived on the top floor of one of the older dorms then, and although they had a shared group of friends, they hadn't talked to each other very often, though he had often enjoyed teasing her to make her blush.

One night as their group of friends was leaving the bleachers after a basketball game, she'd slipped on a spilled soda, fallen down a few steps, and couldn't rise to her feet.

"Need help, darlin'?" he'd asked her when he noticed her struggles to get up.

"No, I'm fine. Thanks though." She'd tried to smile nonchalantly at him but her eyes had tears in them and her chin quivered a bit. She tried again to stand up, using the railing and putting all her weight on one foot. This time she managed to get upright.

"You don't have to wait. I'm sure I can manage."

"Oh I'm sure you can, but my dad would be awfully angry with me if I left a damsel in distress."

At that, she'd put a hand on her hip, careful to keep a tight grip on the railing with the other hand. "I am not in distress. I just slipped. I'll be perfectly fine in a minute."

"Uh huh. Whatever you say."

With a stubborn look in her eyes, Ellie had put the foot she'd been favoring down on the next step, but as she put her weight on it, she'd grimaced then gasped as first the pain hit her and then her ankle started to give out. She had lurched forward, clearly falling again, when Alec caught her around the waist.

"Now can I help you?" he'd asked as sarcastically as possible.

"Yes, thank you," she'd said primly. "But I only need help getting down the bleachers. I'm sure I'll be fine once I'm on even ground."

Rolling his eyes, Alec had offered her his arm, which she accepted. With his help, she made it to the bottom of the bleachers without sustaining any further damage, but when she tried to shrug him off, he'd protested.

"Look, I know you think you're fine, but I'd feel a lot better if you just accepted my help. At least you'll get back to your dorm more quickly. It's cold out; do you really want to spend three times as long in the icy wind?" With that, he'd placed his arm around her waist to give her the added support she needed to walk.

Keeping her eyes trained on the ground, Ellie had shaken her head and relented, allowing him to assist her on the entire walk back to her dorm. Alec had always enjoyed teasing the girl and he had found her attractive for quite a while; therefore having his arm around her was quite a pleasant sensation to him. She was thin, but still had some fantastic curves, and she was soft, not muscular and hardened like the female athletes he'd dated previously.

Lost in the sensation of actually being in contact with her, he hardly noticed the time it took to reach her dorm. Once there, she tried to pull away from him yet again, but he stopped her. "Ellie. There's no elevator in this building, so unless you live on the first floor, you're going to need help getting to your room. Which floor is your room on?"

"The top," she'd mumbled, flushing with embarrassment at her weakness and at how the close proximity of Alec had felt. Though Alec hadn't known it until later, she had been very attracted to him at the time and the nearness of him had made her all flustered, particularly since she felt so foolish for hurting herself and so guilty for keeping him from his own activities.

He'd chuckled. "Well let's get you on up there, darlin'." He helped her through the lobby doors and to the staircase before pausing for a moment, then he quickly yet gently swept her up in his arms. Ellie had protested slightly but she'd quickly realized that he seemed capable of carrying her. Once they'd gotten to her floor, he didn't set her down but rather walked to her room.

"It's unlocked," she'd said quietly, so he had been able to walk right in and carefully put her down on her bed.

"Thank you. You didn't have to do that."

"I'm not finished yet."

"What do you mean?" She'd finally lifted her head and met his eyes.

"I want to make sure you'll be alright, ok?" She nodded slowly. "Good. Can we take a look at your ankle? Is that what you hurt?" She'd nodded again.

He sighed. "Not very talkative are you? Okay, well do you need help changing into pajamas?"

She'd flushed the deepest red he'd ever seen on her, prompting him to immediately apologize.

"I'm sorry, Ellie. I didn't mean that in a perverted way. But if you need to ice or wrap your ankle it might be better if you're already in your pajamas. That's all I meant. I'll step outside and let you change. Just call me back in once you're changed, please."

With that, he'd stepped outside the room and closed the door behind him. In a minute he'd heard her call his name.

"Okay. I'm ready now."

He had walked back in and noticed her sitting on the bed in a t-shirt and sweatpants. She'd removed her socks and shoes and had let her hair down from its ponytail as well. Alec had inspected her ankle, found an ice pack in her freezer, and made her use it.

"It's definitely swelling. Did you really think you could make it back here and up the stairs by yourself?"

She'd flushed again, though not as deeply, shaking her head. "No, but I didn't want to inconvenience anybody."

"Ellie, we're your friends. You getting hurt worse would be far more of an inconvenience than having us help you for a few minutes. Do you need anything else?"

She shook head yet again.

He'd turned to walk out then, and she'd quietly thanked him.

The next morning she had texted him, "Thanks again for helping me. Sorry you had to carry me up all the stairs."

He'd responded, "No problem. Just make sure you tell all your friends how I literally swept you off of your feet! ;)" That text led to more, and the two had quickly realized their growing attraction for one another and had begun dating. He remembered her as she was then: not nearly as shy and embarrassed as she'd originally seemed, Ellie had been a bit of a talker and often challenged or teased him right back once she'd gotten to trust him. She didn't take herself too seriously, either. Instead she would crack jokes about her own imperfections, others' experiences, and life in general, always looking for a chance to make her friends smile.

Alec smiled as he remembered it. This situation was strangely similar to their first encounter, except this time she was unconscious and likely injured beyond a slightly sprained ankle. That thought quickly removed his smile and caused him to take the stairs more quickly. Finally he arrived at the apartment door. Carefully juggling Ellie, he was able to grab the key from his pocket and unlock the door without jarring her too much.

Taking her inside, Alec carried Ellie to the closest bedroom, where a bed was ready, complete with sheets and spare blankets at the foot. Alec paused. He wanted to lay her on the bed, but she was in bad shape and he didn't want to ruin the sheets. Oh hell, he decided, Jake won't mind if the sheets are ruined if it means that she's alright.

He pulled back the covers, set her down, went to the bathroom, and began running water for a bath. Returning to the room, he grabbed sweats from the dresser that looked Jake's size, then got a towel from the linen closet and went back to the bathroom, where he grabbed a rag and rested it on the edge of the tub before turning the water off.

Back in the bedroom, he now faced a challenge: he needed her clothing removed so he could assess her injuries, but he felt like a prick taking an unconscious girl's clothing off. It's not like you've never seen her naked before, he told himself. Just think of her like you would a fellow officer hurt in the line of duty.

Now that he was in the right mindset, he carefully cut her clothes off using his pocketknife. Though he knew she would likely be upset at their ruin, the armed thug had sliced through them with his knife already, plus Alec figured he had jostled her enough by carrying her, running, and driving to get her away. If she were more seriously injured than he anticipated, their escape could have harmed her further.

He slit through her jeans, shirt, and under-clothing before examining her body with a clinical eye. Bruises were already blossoming on her legs, which otherwise looked fine. Her arms were pretty scraped up and also had some bruising and a couple shallow cuts, but nothing was swollen. As he assessed her torso, however, a sudden urge to punch her attackers again came over him. He breathed in deeply to steady himself.

The asshole had gotten a few good swipes at Ellie with that knife he'd dropped, so she was covered with drying blood. Luckily none of the cuts looked particularly deep; she likely wouldn't require any stitches. There were extensive bruises to her midsection forming, and he would bet money that she had at least three broken ribs from that guy kicking her. Seeing her laid out without clothing revealed to him how thin she'd gotten. He could count her ribs and her hipbones were protruding.

Her hair was also caked with blood. Alec remembered seeing her on the ground, so maybe she'd hit her head, but he couldn't see an obvious injury under all of her hair. He'd have to rinse it prior to inspecting it, but she didn't seem to be bleeding anymore, which was a good sign. He rolled her over onto her stomach to check for any more cuts on her back.

The guy had done more damage to her back than to her front. Her shoulder blades were covered in the blood of at least two deeper cuts, some of which were still bleeding. Those might require stitches if the bleeding doesn't stop soon. I only hope Jake's parents stocked a decent first aid kit. Alec could perform basic stitches: his father had been a doctor and had showed his son some of the tricks of the trade. He'd instilled in Alec that one could never learn too much and that knowledge could save a man's life. Thank goodness he taught me some emergency skills. If I took her to a hospital, those men would find her again. Or if not them, others would. Somehow, he knew this fact in his gut. Ellie was safer with him than she would be in a hospital, and he was hoping that she was in better shape than he had originally anticipated.

Good God she's so skinny now, he thought yet again as he looked down on her. He remembered how beautifully sexy her soft curves had been before; now he could see far too many bones for his taste. Her shoulder blades protruded, he could see her spine. She'd never been anywhere near overweight, but back then he'd only been able to see her ribs when she'd been arching her back in pleasure.

"What have you done to yourself, Ellie Burns?" he whispered. Forcing himself back into the impersonal mindset, he rolled her back over on her back and carefully picked her up, taking her to the bathroom. He started to place her in the tub but realized that she wouldn't be able to sit up since she was unconscious. Should she be waking up soon? He was starting to worry that she'd been out too long. Her breathing was regular, though, and he could feel her pulse, which was neither excessively fast nor super slow. He couldn't check for internal injuries and bleeding though, which worried him.

Calm down and focus on getting her cleaned up. He kicked his shoes off and got into the tub, clothes and all, bringing Ellie with him. Fortunately he hadn't run the water too long, so the tub didn't overflow. He rested her back against his chest, grabbed a washcloth, dunked it in the water, and started to rinse her arms gently. After a few moments, he felt her stirring, so he stopped washing her. He didn't want to be touching her when she woke up.