"We're looking at the CCTV footage of this street," one of them told me.
Whatever happened I needed to go with them to find Ella. I fished out my phone and called Ruby. I gave her a short explanation and before I could ask her to come be with Molly, she was already saying she was on the way.
I stayed with Molly until Ruby came and took over. Paul promised to stay in the house with them.
Outside, our house looked like a crime scene. There were policemen walking up and down the street, knocking on doors.
One of the policemen who had first responded came to me. “We have the car registration number," he said. "We just got a report from a man seeing a woman mouthing ‘help me’ to him from the passenger seat of a blue sedan. We have the location. He thought it was suspicious because the car turned off down a dirt track, leading to a derelict farmhouse."
"I’m going to come with you," I said to him.
"We'd rather you waited here," he said. “It could be dangerous."
"I'll stay out of your way."
He contemplated me, and then nodded.
Ten minutes later, we were on the way to a location outside the city. I was in the back seat of the third police car and kept my hands fisted, just praying we wouldn’t be too late.
I felt the kind of terror I had never experienced before as we drove down a rough road. Please. She has to be alive. She has to live. For us. For me.
I loved Ella with all of my heart. She had broken down all my barriers. Without her, my life would become empty and meaningless again.
“Please stay in the car,” one of the policemen said, parking the car a long way from the dilapidated house ahead.
When the two policemen started moving towards the house, I instantly got out of the car and ran along the tall grasses. I crept around the back and heard the sounds of scuffling. Then I heard Ella scream, and I burst into the house.
Stan was on top of Ella. He looked up in surprise then fired his gun wildly and missed me. I ran to him, grabbed him, and threw him off my baby. Then I was on him. Punching his head, his neck, his chest. I was like a mad man. I had lost control. I didn’t stop until I was roughly grabbed from the back and pulled away from him.
“Calm down,” one of the policemen yelled as he held my arms.
I was breathing so hard I was panting like an animal.
Stand had his hands twisted behind him and the other cop was handcuffing him.
I turned my head towards Ella.
She still laid on the floor half-naked in the same position I had found her when I came in. I took off my shirt and quickly wrapped her in it. Then I picked her up and carried her out of that stinking house.
Ella wrapped her hands around my neck and cried like her heart was breaking.
She was alive. That’s all that mattered.
“You’re okay now. You’re safe now. He’ll never hurt you again. I promise.”
Luke
I was haunted by thoughts of what would have happened if that driver hadn’t reported seeing Ella mouthing ‘help me’ just as they turned off onto the dirt road. What if Stan had succeeded in killing Ella?
Later that evening, I walked into Ella’s room, carrying a bowl of soup that Paul had made. I found both Ella and Molly curled together in bed asleep.
For a moment, I just leaned against the doorway staring at them both.
My heart swelled with gratitude. I hadn’t thought it possible to love a woman as much as I loved Ella. My gaze shifted to Molly. She lay in the crook of Ella’s arm, her face upturned to her. A stranger looking at them would think they were mother and daughter.
I wanted to stand here all night just looking at them while feeling this amazing love in my heart, but the soup would have gotten cold. So, I tiptoed into the room and placed the bowl on the bedside table. Then I went to Molly’s side and as gently as I could, I lifted her from the bed.
Ella’s eyes shot open, her head jerked up and she looked about her wildly.
It broke my heart to see her like this. I knew it would take a while to heal from the trauma she had been through, but I would be here to see her through it. “It’s okay,” I murmured. “It’s only me. I’m carrying Molly to her bedroom.”
She flopped back onto the bed as understanding dawned on her.
“I’ll be back. Start on your soup,” I said with a smile.
Then I carried Molly next door to her room. She didn’t wake up as I tucked her into bed and kissed her forehead. “My brave girl,” I murmured to myself while staring at her sweet, little face.
When Ella and I returned home, she had held on tight to Ella’s legs and wouldn’t let go. They’d both cried as Ella told her over and over again that she was fine and nothing bad had happened to her.
We’d gotten to Ella in time before Stan could do any real damage to her. I would make sure he wouldn’t be leaving prison in the next couple of decades. Besides, I intended to go all in with regards to security.
Suddenly, the world had become a more threatening place and I would not take any more chances where my girls’ safety was concerned. The first thing I intended to do was to consult a security company and get their recommendations on how to further secure the house.
When I returned to Ella’s room, she was propped up against the pillows eating her soup. “Thank you for this,” she said. “I was hungry.” She hadn’t been able to eat earlier, but the emergency room doctor had warned us that she was still in shock
