The Butterfly with a Broken Wing Pt. 02

This is the second installment of the Butterfly with the Broken Wing. I appreciate all the feedback on the first chapter, and I'm excited to see where this story goes. Thanks for the support. xxx

The voices of X and the other men were retreating. Claire could hear them moving to the other side of the service bay from where she sat behind the parked Hellcat. She felt feverish. Her right ankle had begun to swell already and her hair stuck to her face where it had scraped along the wall.

But she knew now might be her last chance at survival. Claire had gained some energy back on the concrete floor. Ignoring the pain in her ankle, she slowly turned on the pretense of putting her back against the tire. Nobody was in her line of sight.

She got into a crouch, limping her way around the front of the car closest to the machinery and service bay wall. It was dimly lit in the bay, but she knew there was an emergency exit nearby. She'd have to cross in front of four more cars to get there though, and Claire had no idea where the men and X had gone. Her hands were still tight behind her back, throwing off her balance. Taking her chances, Claire inched forward slowly, trying to ignore the pain now radiating up her leg.

Looking ahead over the bumpers of the silent parked cars, the red neon glow of an exit sign was just visible behind the last car. She kept her ears out for the slightest noise in her direction, stood into a stooped position and moved quickly toward the exit. The glow of the sign grew brighter as she approached, and the door came into sharper view.

Her heart was beating fast again, this was her way out! Wasting no time, Claire wheeled herself around so her back faced the door, gripped the round knob with her still zip-tied hands and tugged hard on the door. Nothing happened.

She gripped it tighter, twisting and turning the knob in her slippery grip. She could feel the mechanism working,

"Why the fuck won't it open?!" she thought.

A shout went up behind her.

"The girl! She's gone!"

It was the voice she'd heard earlier in the small office, most likely that little brat helping X steal the Hellcat. Quick footsteps were heard approaching the car, and she knew the men would easily overcome her if she were found.

Claire was in full panic now, she felt like a caged animal. Turning back to face the door, she scanned it up and down, searching for the cause of the hold up. She spotted it at eye level. A door latch had been installed, a stupid bathroom-stall type metal latch that, right now, was all that prevented her from leaving this hell.

"Claire!" called X into the bay while the sounds of quick footsteps could be heard. "You can't hide in here for long. Don't make this harder than it needs to be."

Claire swore under her breath, she would have to try to bend her arms and reach the latch -- anything to escape. Putting her back against the door, she was able to see into the rest of the bay while she tried to reach the latch.

She was sweating, her hair falling in front of her face and her black dress rumpled oddly as she tried to unlatch the door. Her fingers were just pushing up on the metal bar when a man's head came into view over the cars.

Claire must have been illuminated perfectly in the red glow of the door. The man's eyes raked her up and down, taking in her ridiculous position at the door. He was older, with a thick black mustache and a sinister grin on his face as he called out, "I got her right here Xavi, come and see," he laughed. "She's trying to make an escape."

She was terrified now, her fate seemed laid out before her. Beaten, raped, left for dead. She felt backed into a corner in every sense. But instead of closing in, the man remained far from her and watched in a detached sort of way as she continued valiantly to try and unlock the exit door. X appeared seconds later behind him, clapping the man on the back as he walked forward toward Claire. She threw herself back against the door.

"Don't come near me!" she screamed at him. "Leave me alone, just let me stay here!"

There was a crowd forming next to the unknown man, maybe four or so people -- their faces shrouded in the darkness of the service bay. X acted as though he didn't hear Claire as calmly walked closer. She felt the urge to run, fight and freeze all at once.

"This has been enough for one night Claire," he told her, reaching out for her with his right hand as he closed the last few feet between them. Claire ducked, but it was no use. X grabbed her already sore upper arm and dragged her upright. Her feeble attempts to kick out at him were thwarted as he leaned down and grabbed her legs, throwing her over his shoulder easily. The men behind them laughed.

She was embarrassed at how easily she was overpowered, and dangled uselessly as he walked her back to where the Hellcat sat. From her position upside down, she could see the doors were already open. X tossed Claire into the passenger seat, her head thumping against the headrest with a muffled thud.

Inside the car, the seats were slick black fabric with red accents. The shift gear was a large red gemstone, and the dash looked freshly polished.

"Get her ankles for me," X directed at someone behind him as he ducked back out of the car. Claire could see him in the rear view walking around the Hellcat to the drivers side. She briefly thought of kicking the kid as he scurried forward with the zip ties, but thought better of it considering she was vastly outnumbered.

The kid awkwardly bent down and pulled the zip tie around her ankles. She cried out as he tightened it painfully around her sore ankle, and glared at him. He pretended not to notice, shutting the dark tinted car door in her face when he was done.

On the other side, X had slid smoothly into the driver's seat. Claire was pleased to see he finally looked a bit anxious.

She squirmed. She was so uncomfortable in the seat, her hands still behind her back and losing circulation. X reached suddenly across her, making her flinch, but he just grabbed her seat belt and buckled her in.

Nothing was going as expected. Why weren't the other men getting in? Where was he going to take her? Why was he bothering with her seat belt if he was going to kill her later?

Just as she opened her mouth to begin questioning him, X turned over the red and black keys and Claire's voice was lost in the roar of the Hellcat's powerful engine. X whipped the car out of the service bay with superior skill as Claire rolled around, but the seat's bucket shape held her in place. A two fingered salute out his rolled down window was all the acknowledgement X gave to his comrades, who now stood to one side as they pulled out of the garage and drove into the inky night.

X turned onto the street where, approximately 30 minutes ago, Claire's bus would have safely picked her up. But instead of turning right like they would have to get to Claire's apartment, X took a left and headed into the city. Golden yellow streetlights flashed by the windows as they drove in silence.

Claire wasn't sure what to do with herself. She looked around the car. Her door was locked, and she knew they were going too fast to try to open it and roll out into the street.

"X," she tried, tentatively. "What is going on? Why did you--"

"I can explain everything to you," he said bruskly, cutting her off. "But not now. If you listen to what I tell you to do and stop making life so damn difficult for yourself, you'll get out of this unharmed."

X's tanned hands gripped the black steering wheel tightly, causing his t-shirt sleeves to cling to his arms. His eyes remained fixed on the road as Claire leaned forward in her seat, looking at him incredulously. A bubble of anger rose in Claire.

He's acting like I chose to be kidnapped, she thought. I'd rather be listening to my roommate's shitty music.

"This all seems pretty self explanatory to me!" she said aggressively. "Your greedy ass thought you'd steal a car and were too stupid to plan it right."

X whipped the wheel suddenly to the left into the deserted parking lot of a Walmart. He pulled the Hellcat into a parking space and threw it into park before turning to glare at her.

It was the angriest he'd looked all night.

"You have absolutely no idea what you're talking about," X said through gritted teeth.

"Because you won't explain it to me!" she retorted hotly.

"I told you," X said, looking as though every word was painful. "I will tell you in due time. None of this was my choice. You shouldn't be here."

"Oh great," Claire said, rolling her eyes. "I'll just leave then, thanks for the ride!"

She acted as though she was going to open the door with her still zip-tied hands. In a flash X reached across her and held the door, putting his body close to Claire's and taking up the space in her seat.

"Enough," he said quietly, his face inches from hers. Claire felt a thrill of fear, and something else fluttering deep in her stomach.

Her eyes moved back and forth between each of his as he stared, daring her to move. Her gaze moved to his mouth. There was a seconds pause, and then X retreated back to his seat.

He ran his hands through his curly hair, thinking hard. Then he reached into the backseat and pulled a black backpack into his lap. Claire watched with apprehension as he pulled out a dropper bottle with an amber liquid inside.

He looked at it for a moment, turning it in his hands, then up at her. His hair was rumpled where he had run his hands through it.

"You need to take this," he said flatly.

"What, you mean like hold onto it?" Claire said hopefully.

"No, smartass," X said. "Open your mouth."

"Hell no," Claire said, pushing her back against the door again.

"Claire, I don't have time for this," X said exasperatedly, "I will force you if you don't. You have five seconds."

She let the silence hang between them, her light brown eyes staring into his green ones. He looked serious, but she wanted to call his bluff. A part of her still wanted to believe he wouldn't force her.

Instead, the moment five seconds of silence had passed, X acted. He moved up in his seat and his right hand reached for her throat.

Claire panicked, twisting in the seat and ducking her head to avoid him.

"Ok!' She said, her eyes burning with tears, "Ok I'll do it!!"

"Too late," X growled. His hand had found her throat, but instead of choking her, he moved his hand up to her jaw and gripped, forcing her to face him.

"Sit up," he directed her. She did so without breaking eye contact with him, hoping he'd release her. A tear rolled down her cheek.

He looked at her and there was pain in his eyes.

"Please, stop fighting me," he said sadly, using his thumb to brush her single tear away.

The bottle was sadly unscathed in the tussle and still in his lap. X used his left hand to unscrew the bottle while the other squished Claire's cheeks, forcing her lips to part. He brought the dropper to her lips and dropped several drops of the amber liquid into her mouth.

It tasted nasty.

He held her face for another minute, watching her to make sure she didn't spit any out. When he was sure she'd swallowed it, he let go. Claire sat still, exactly where he had left her in the passenger seat while X returned the bottle to his bag.

"It's over now," Claire thought, still tasting the nasty substance on her tongue. "Whatever he's given me is in my system."

Her body was in shock. X's voice seemed to come to her from a long way away.

"Alright, just relax," he said, "I'll make you more comfortable."

Claire was motionless while X pulled a small knife from his pocket and cut her numb wrists loose from behind her back. X handled her softly as he re-cuffed her wrists in front of her and linked them to the ruby red gear shift with a second zip tie. She was now able to sit back in her seat, but she was both trapped in the car and unable to reach the steering wheel.

"I have to grab a couple things but I'll be back," X said. "Be good while I'm gone."

X brushed Claire's chin lightly with his knuckle, irritating her, and exited the car. A few minutes of silence passed. Claire was on high alert, wondering what the drugs now coursing through her system were about to do to her.

It seemed impossible to comprehend that the same green eyed, handsome coworker she had flirted with through the service bay window now held her captive, with her life in his hands. X wasn't the same person anymore. Claire felt confused.

Her eyes found the clock on the dash, it was five minutes to midnight. The numbers swam before her, her vision doubling. It was getting harder to think straight. Claire felt weak, suggestible. Her mind slowed down, thoughts moving sluggishly in her mind as she slowly slumped back in her seat.

"How long has it been?" She thought. "Seconds? Minutes?"

The parking lot remained frustratingly deserted as time trickled past. Claire grew increasingly disoriented, starting to forget where she was and the horrible situation she had found herself in -- that is until she heard the car locks click.