Taken Chapter 4

Chapter 4


A sudden burst of noise brought her round from the daze she had slipped into once again. It had been light before, now once again she was surrounded by darkness. A freezing burst of cold air brought her immediately to her senses the door to the container was being opened. She heard that ear shattering high pitched creak of rusted hinges as it swung sharply open then closed again. That’s when she heard them two men talking. She tried to push some noise out through the tape that was on her mouth and managed only a pathetic muffled sound.
         Out of the darkness two stocky figures appeared. Anna blinked furiously to make her eyes adjust so she could make out their faces. A voice spoke to her. “Hello sweetheart” The voice was deep and husky like a man who smoked far too may cigarettes and was getting on in life she didn’t recognize the voice and was now very sure that this was not going to be her savior she was now meeting the man who put her in her tomb. The hate in her body filled up and she burst into tears. Not of sadness but of sheer frustration and anger.
         “Hey don’t cry, now if I take that tape off your mouth so you can have some food your not going to make a noise are you?” Anna shook her head so violently it made her dizzy. She knew in her heart of hearts that she should scream the minute the tape came off her face, however the mention of food had shaken off that option as she was so hungry she would do anything this man told her to do if it was for food. Her eyes were slowly getting used to the darkness and she was starting to make some of this mans features out. He was small probably around 5ft 6 and was old he had graying hair and the tell tale signs of age were creeping on to his face Anna braced herself to look into the mans eyes and as she did bitterly regretted it. They were dead eyes like in the old war documentary’s she had seen. This man had seen death close up there was no emotion portrayed through those eyes nothing but blackness and it scared her. What scared her even more was knowing that there was another man lingering in the darkness whom she had not yet seen was there a reason he was staying out of sight? Or was he merely there in case something went wrong.
         As he removed the tape from her mouth, his face came uncomfortably close to her own and she smelt a mixture of old spice and mints. As the tape ripped across her face it stung and she once again welled up but refused to cry this time.
         As the hot soup was lifted to her mouth she gratefully took it, it warmed her mouth and soothed her sore throat. She couldn’t hold it anymore she started to cry again.
         The warm tears rolled down her face and the soup became sticky in her mouth but she kept eating. “Shhh it’s going to be ok sweetheart.” The man did his best to calm and sooth her but the fear of him did nothing more than make her cry more.
         Anna gratefully finished the soup and accepted the tea and water that was offered to her. The shuffle that she heard behind the old man made her stop crying immediately. It was if some primal instinct had kicked in and told her that she had to stay silent where this illusive figure was concerned. The shuffling seemed to move around her in a large circle like a wild animal circling around its prey waiting for that final moment before it pounced.
         “Move” a simple command but said with so much authority it made Anna flinch. The small man who had given her the food scuttled away into the blackness. Her instinct had proved right she knew instantly not to mess with this guy. She could hear his footsteps getting closer to her and she forced herself to keep her eyes open and face him. As he approached her heart started pounding in her ears as blood raced around her body. He stopped behind her not wanting Anna to see his face.
“What have you done to yours arms?” he asked quite calmly slowly bending down and pulling her sleeves up. She said nothing.
“You, go to the car and get some bandages and the gun.” The door screamed open and shut once again and she was alone with this man in the darkness. That single word, gun, made Anna freeze why did he need a gun? Was she going to be shot? And why provide bandages for her sore arms if he was going to kill her. Her mind buzzed back the man was un-tying her feet and arms removing the coarse heavy rope from around her body. As he did so she flinched at every touch. She had to say something beg this man not to kill her, hope that he had a reasonable side. Judging from what she had seen so far she knew he must care a little but was probably as dead as the old mans eyes looked.
“P, p, please don’t kill me” Anna stammered as much through the cold as with fear.
“Don’t worry your far too valuable for us to kill you yet. I merely thought you might want to stretch your legs maybe go to the toilet? Don’t want you ruining those nice designer clothes that daddy bought you getting spoilt do we?” She didn’t know what it was but there was a brutal honesty about the man’s voice that made her relax and accept that what he was saying was the truth. He wasn’t going to kill her, well not yet and now she thought of it all that liquid had made her need the loo. Or was that fear.
         He grabbed her carefully by her upper arms and stood her up this made her feel dizzy and ache all over he held her in place for a moment to make sure she was steady the rose his hand and wiped the tears from her face. His touch was gentle and almost caring then he felt the hand run down her face and down her neck and body. Her heart pumped faster. “Please don’t. “ 
“Your forgetting who’s in charge your mine and I can do what I want with you.” Again that brutal sense of calm and truth came through in his voice and Anna was starting to wish she was going to be shot.
         The container opened again and the old man emerged holding two packages. He handed the gun over. “Come on then lets go for a walk.” All three of them made to move towards the door when the lead man shouted back over his shoulder the word that petrified Anna ‘Alone’
         Now outside in the darkness of the docks the freezing cold air whipped round her face making her shudder. It stabbed into her cheeks like shards of glass instinctively making her raise her hands to her face. “You must be cold” uttered the man taking of his coat and wrapping it round her the warmth of his coat relaxed Anna slightly as she pulled it close and tight round her upper body.
         “Here you go.” The man was pointing towards a clearing in the trees to which she was supposed to go and do what she had to do. “Just remember,” he said coldly raising the gun and pushing the barrel against her head. The coldness of the metal made her flinch it was a subtle reminder to forget any ideas of escaping if she tried she would be killed.
         When she returned the man looked at her in what could have been seen as an almost sympathetic look. For the first time Anna looked at his face. He was a young man tall stocky but very good looking. They began to walk back to the prison in which she was kept, in complete silence.
Upon returning Anna was pushed back into the chair and re-tied. The old man wrapped the bandages carefully around her sore-blooded wrists making her flinch and cringe. A blanket was produced and wrapped around her shivering body. Then without any words being spoken they left. The dull thud on the outside of the container told Anna that she had been sealed in. Alone again.
         She cried an uncontrollable wave of emotion came over her and she could not stop the warm tears rolling down her cheeks. She just wanted to go home, and was very quickly losing hope and faith that she was going to be saved. She once again looked around the iron container and wondered if she would die here. Weather she would ever see her family or Danny or the outside world ever again. She knew deep down in her heart not to give up but her brain was telling her that no-one was coming. She cried for what seemed an eternity until there were no more tears to come she was exhausted feeling weak and tired she fell asleep trying to remember every detail of the people she loved faces in her head.