“Where the fuck is she?” Blaine’s voice was harsh and icy as he stormed into the apartment. He had thrust Charity to the side and now she was pasted with her back to the wall as he lunged towards me.
I screamed, with only a split second to react as he grabbed my arm and squeezed, pulling me off the couch.
“Blaine! You’re hurting me!” I screamed as he shook me wildly.
“Did you think you could hide from me forever?” he barked, and some spittle flew from his mouth on my face. My eyes were widened, fixed on his enraged face. I could see that he was drunk, I could smell the beer on his breath. His face had turned red with anger and for the first time in my life, I was scared of dying. He was bigger and stronger than me and he could very easily kill me.
“Blaine, please. Just let me go and let me explain,” I pleaded with him and I felt the pressure of his grip on my arm. He was tightening it, squeezing my flesh and a sharp pain zapped up and down my arm. He was holding me just below my elbow, keeping me in position, just inches from his face.
“Where is it?” he barked, spittle flying everywhere.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about, please just let me go. You’re hurting me,” I begged. I could hear Charity behind him, sobbing. I had dragged her into this, and now she had to watch her best friend being beaten up.
“Where is the money?” Blaine brought his face closer to me. He was baring his teeth like a wild animal and in that moment, I knew that he was capable of anything. I couldn’t move, my feet were frozen, I was dangling from his grip on my arm…trying to pull myself away.
“I don’t have your money, Blaine, I promise,” I cried, hot tears rolling down my cheeks.
How had he turned into this? This was not the guy I thought I had fallen in love with. But maybe, I hadn’t known him at all. His nostrils were flared, he was flying high in a drunken rage and I had no idea how he had found me. I thought he didn’t know where Charity lived.
“There’s money missin
g and I know you took it!” he barked again and shook me by my arm. His fingers were digging into my flesh and the pain was growing more intense. I was afraid of another punch, of a harder punch than the last time. I didn’t want Charity to be hurt, I didn’t want her to see what he was capable of doing to me.
“I didn’t take anything, Blaine, I have no idea what you’re talking about,” I cried, trying to get the words out of my throat. Charity was still sobbing by the door, sometimes picking up the guts to scream at Blaine to let me go.
“You lying bitch. Tell me where you’ve hidden it!” he yelled and with his free hand, he pushed all the books and papers off the coffee table and they went flying to the floor. He didn’t let go of my arm though, and I could feel my strength weakening. Something had changed in Blaine. This wasn’t just about some little cash, he was desperate about this money and I thought he was making enough at work.
“I promise I don’t have it. Please, Blaine, believe me,” I cried, sobbing wildly now. I tried to wriggle out of his grip again, which only made him tighten his grip on me. He yanked me to himself and I squealed with horror. His face was close to mine again, and I could see the rage dripping from his bloodshot eyes. He was capable of anything for that money. Why was it so important to him?
“Tell me where it is before I bash your face in,” he threatened with a hissing voice through gritted teeth. I was crying, my body shaking with horror. He had bunched up his other fist, about to bring it crashing down on my face.
“I’m calling the cops!” Charity yelled and Blaine and I both looked at her. She was holding her cellphone up in the air and we could see she had dialed 911 on the screen. Blaine’s grip on my arm weakened, giving me the chance to wriggle out. I backed away from him, stumbling on my books and I fell to the floor.
“Leave now or I’m calling the cops!” Charity screamed again and I looked up to see that Blaine was glaring down at me, his shoulders heaving with fury.
“I am not done with you,” he growled, in a lower voice and just when I thought he was going to kick me, he turned around and walked away. When he got to the door, Charity cowered. He looked her straight in the eye and I could see that she was trying to glare back at him, to put up a show of confidence.
When Blaine stepped out, Charity slammed the door shut behind him, turned the lock and pulled the chain.
My sobbing grew louder and she ran to me, kneeling down on the floor beside me.
“Oh, honey, are you okay?” she asked and reached for my arm. Blaine had left a bruise on my arm. My skin was bright pink and I could feel it throbbing with ache where he had dug into my flesh.
Charity ran her fingers over the spot and I winced.
“We need to put some ice on it,” she said and I tried to control my cries.
“I’m so sorry, Charity, I shouldn’t have dragged this to your doorstep,” I said, my body quivering from the pain and shock.
She got up to get a pack of ice from the freezer and returned with it and sat back down on the floor.
“Are you hurt anywhere else, honey?” she asked in a cooing voice and I shook my head.
“Charity…I’m so sorry,” all I could do was apologize and cry. More than feeling afraid for myself, I felt responsible for putting my friend’s life in danger. She looked up at me and dragged me close to herself in a tight hug.
“We can’t stay here anymore, you heard him, he’s going to come back,” she said.
“Where are we going to go?” I asked her, sniffing and trying to stop the tremors in my arms.