Will quickly got his phone out of the pocket, and saw ten missed calls from Fabian, so he quickly called him back.
“Mr. Jacobs!”
“Where the fuck is he!?”
“He went out this afternoon and went to an apartment complex. He stayed there for a couple of hours and then came out with a large suitcase. My guy tracked him down to some house in the Brooklyn and he is still there.”
“Send me the address right now and meet me there! That son of a bitch has Aria. And Fabian don't forget the gun.”
The rescue
Aria was walking through a dark hallway, looking at the beautifully carved maroon doors stretched out on each side as far as her eyes could see.
She deliberated in opening the first one, scared of what was waiting for her on the other side since her dreams rarely held good things. Making a quick decision she threw one open and stood at the doorway, watching the scene unfold.
A memory, she thought, watching as her younger self sat on the swing alone, in the almost deserted schoolyard. Aria knew what was coming next, and she wanted to turn around and close the door but something held her in place.
The older girls came after a while, shouting insults and barbs at her as soon as they saw her, just like they did so many years ago.
“Little Ari, scared little pussy! Are you going to cry!? Look, guys, she is going to cry! Quick someone call her mommy!” the biggest of them taunted, pulling on her hair, while her younger version drew in on herself and silently wept.
The door closed with a soft click and the one across it opened.
This memory was a more recent one, Aria’s last year of high school. She saw herself standing by her locker and holding a picture of her dad and her, the last one they took before the man died.
She saw Mindy and her gang coming closer and started shouting at her younger self to hide the picture and run away, but her cries fell on deaf ears.
Unable to watch anymore she closed her eyes, not wanting to experience that again, as the sound of paper being ripped and her younger self pleading for them to stop, broke her heart all over again.
And so, it went, door after door, memory after memory, the worst and the most painful events of Aria’s whole life, replaying in front of her eyes as she was forced to watch without being able to change anything.
She didn't know how much time passed, as she watched her whole, miserable life unfurl.
During a particularly bad memory of David and that house, Aria was shaking and crying until a thought crossed her mind.
In almost every one of these moments, she had just stood there. She didn't fight back; she didn't speak up even when she could have. She just took it all and that made her angry. She felt furious with herself.
Was she really such a coward, so afraid of everything that she had allowed them to do whatever the hell they wanted to her!? The answer was a sobering yes; she was, but not anymore.
As soon as that thought crossed Aria’s mind the doors and the hallway disappeared. The sudden light caught her off guard, so it took her a couple of moments to collect her bearings.
She looked around and saw that she was on the meadow with the little wooden bridge so she walked toward it.
“Baby, I've been waiting for you.” she heard a voice whisper in her ear, which made her smile and turn around. Will was standing there, a beaming smile on his beautiful face as his green eyes glowed with happiness. Aria smiled in return and wrapped her hands around the man’s neck, pulling them closer together.
“I am here now, and I am never going away again.”
~
Aria’s eyes flew open making her wince. Her head was still hurting and judging by the soreness of her throat, her neck was in a not much better condition.
She looked around and saw that she was still on the bed, restrained, and her eyes immediately filled with tears.
The image of Will and the meadow was still so clear in her mind, that all Aria wanted at that moment was to curl up in a ball and cry, but she knew that that was not an option. If she wanted to see the love of her life again, she will have to be smart and brave; a concept so new to her, that Aria wasn't sure if it was possible.
No! Don't think like that! she berated herself quickly.
Steeling her jaw, Aria made herself calm down and think. There must be a way out of this whole mess and she will find it. Aria may have been a coward her whole life, but she was not stupid. With a plan slowly forming in her mind, Aria smirked and closed her eyes. It was payback time.
~
“I see that you are finally awake.” David said, entering the room and closing the door behind him while Aria remained silent with her eyes downcast.
“What, no backtalk?” the man sneered at her, but she just shook her head softly which made the man chuckle and come closer. One of his fingers touched Aria’s chin, which made her sick but she managed to keep her face blank and look at the man submissively.
“Did you learn your lesson, pet?”
“Yes, Master.” Aria said quietly, the words leaving a foul taste in her mouth. She felt like she was betraying herself by saying them, but she also
