Chapter 51 - Trouble!!!

Mara clung to me, as the intruder walked around us in a circle breathing hard from the adrenaline pumping in their body, I stood clinging to Mara as tightly as she clung to me, forcing my brain to connect the voice to the person in the dark. the voice was familiar but I could not figure who it was, I stood silent praying that they would hurry up and do what they were here to do and leave. My heart was pumping at a thousand beats a second and I kept holding my breath then had to remind myself to breathe.
"I bet you thought you were so smart, didn't you?, I bet you took it all for granted that cause Dorothea was in jail you could live happily ever after with your bitch?, well?" I felt a violent prod to my side, it was obvious that the intruder had a sharp object as I could feel blood starting to ooze from where I had been jabbed, I guessed it was a knife. I did not move or touch the site of the wound for fear of provoking another jab. I stayed quiet.
"I'm talking to you assole, answer me or I'll stab you again."  I forced myself to answer,
"What do you want from me?"
"What do I want?, seriously? you fucking ruin my life and you ask what I want? well I'll tell you....." the intruder came right up to my face, I could feel and smell their breath, I turned my head, " Oh no look at me," my head was forced back and held in a voce like grip to look at the dark shadow spitting their venom, "I want revenge, and I'm taking it tonight, so what ya gotta say about that, eh pretty boy?"
I stood shaking, but somehow found my voice, "Look I don't know you, so how the fuck can you want revenge eh?"
Again the intruder sided right close to me, "Oh yes, you do know me, think hard Bongiovi... think real hard, Ill take a seat over here and smoke while you think, if ya aint got it by the time my smokes done, well.... lets just say a little pain my remind you..."
Cold ice fear ripped through my bones, Mara was trembling, my mind was fogged, yeah the voice was familiar but I could not picture the face. in my head the clock was ticking as I inhaled the smoke that had filtered into my direction.  I strained my eye's in the dark to make out the intruder sitting on a chair smoking their cigarette, hoping that the light at the end of the cigarette would illuminate just enough so I could figure who it was. it was no good, they were dressed in black, and had a hood on that covered everything but their eye's.

the cigarette smoke ended and left just the stale smell in the air, then the intruder was up out of the chair and back at my side.
"tick tock, tick tock, so what's your answer?"
"I -I-I don't know, look let Mara go please, she has done nothing to you, you have me, do what you want but leave her alone, I beg you?"
"ah, aint that sweet, maybe let me think about it? .... tick tock, tick tock?.... No, you both suffer, but she can watch, then you can watch, we are all here for a long night, pain and horror for you, pleasure and inflicting pain for me..."
the intruder laughed a cold sinnister laugh. moving in circles around us, I tired to watch and felt my head getting dizzy trying. then my arms were yanked off Mara, and she was taken by an accomplice that had stood quiet in the shadows until now. So if there was two, were there more lurking in the darkness?. I knew I should do something, but I did not know how, my brain would not work, it was frozen with fear, I just prayed they would not hurt Mara.

I stood, heart beating just waiting for the unknown, I didn't have to wait long as my hands were wrenched behind my back and secured tightly with cables ties, then my knees were kicked from behind so I fell forward onto my knees, shocked I tried to compose myself as I was punched across the face first left, then right, then up, then a kick to my stomach and a kick into my privates, I doubled over in pain, tears stinging my eye's, I groaned with the onslaught against me.
"Think Jon,"  I kept telling myself, but I could not place who this was, another kick this time to my back, I fell forward and hit my head on the wooden floor, then I felt my shirt being tugged, and it was rippled from my body.

The intruder spoke again " such a lovely body, smooth unblemished skin, mmmm now what can we do here, oh, I know, how about a flick knife tattoo, you like tattoo's don't you?" I remained silent, another kick to my side this time, " I said you like tattoo's don't you" somehow from the tears clogged in my throat in my eyes, I managed to answer, " yes" " good, well I look at myself as something as an artist, so I'm gonna give ya one for free, now hold still, I'd hate for the knife to slip and slice your throat." Another kick to my side and I was made to roll over on to my back, my chest exposed, the intruder knelt beside me and pushed their knee into my throat, I felt like I was choking, then the intense pain of a knife being dragged across my chest, first in one direction and then the other, slowly, it was like setting my skin on fire. I just wanted to black out, my body ached all over, but I knew I couldn't I needed to stay conscious to try to protect Mara, deeper and deeper the knife went into my chest, all the time the intruder spoke in a mocking tone about this being a true piece of art, my stamina was fading fast, "stay awake Jon, think of Mara," but my eye's were closing, "

oh no you don't" the knee was taken from my throat, immediately air started to fill my lungs, I gasped in big gulps as my body came back from being choked, I could hear sobbing coming from inside the room, Mara must be crying, I called out to her, and then realised I should'nt have, as another kick was delivered to my privates, I wanted to curl up in a ball but couldn't with the weight of the intruder on me, the searing pain to my chest continued as the intruder carried on marking me with the knife, " There, that's ones done, but as you are a couple and I think it would be so romantic for you both to have matching tattoo's don't you?" again another sinister laugh as Mara was brought and laid down on the floor next to me, this time the accomplice sat on me with a knife at my throat. I heard as Mara's blouse was ripped opened, and the pain of the knife being dragged on her skin began, she squirmed and kicked and called out, "You fucking low life bastard" "Ah such sweet terms of endearment, I'm touched." the intruder spoke in a mocking voice, "Ill remember you forever, now hold still bitch or I will kill you." Mara fell silent and accepted the torture.

Out the corner of my eye, I saw what I thought to be flashing lights, could it be?, I said nothing, but the accomplice had seen them too, he forgot where he was a spoke, "Chad, the cops man" "Assole, I told you never to speak, I'm near done, now shut the fuck up and use the guns if you have too, keep them away, NOW GO...... " the accomplice got off me and went off as he was told too.

the name Chad, again familiar to me, then like a bullet from a gun it hit me, Chad Bentley Dorothea's old Karate instructor, it all made sense, I found my voice and spoke, "Chad Bentley, eh?"
"Hush up Jon or your girlfriend here dies, you think cause you now figure who I am, things change, the cops maybe outside but I'm in here and I have guns, man you need to get it, I don't care if I die, I'm here for revenge for me and Dorothea, get it......" The tone of his voice told me he was speaking the truth, I prayed the cops had a port of action and could break in and rescues Mara and me, but since the flashing lights there's was nothing else.

Mara laid as still as she could but whimpered softly through the pain she was being put through.
I spoke again, "You know you wont get away with this, you will die Chad...."
He lent down real close to my face with the knife taken off Mara and pressed to my throat, "I said, shut the fuck up, or you die first" I swallowed hard and felt my adams apple hit the blade of the knife.

I decided no matter what, I could not remain silent, I had to keep goading trying to stop him from hurting Mara anymore than he had, right now. knowing who it was I was prepared to die to save Mara, the ties to my hands were so tight they were cutting off the blood supply, I wriggled gently and felt a ping, the ties were loosening a little, I wriggled again and another little ping was felt from the ties. I reasoned he had tied them so tight they were at breaking point, so I pulled against them with every ounce I possessed, ping, ping, ping, more ratchets on the ties loosened, enough now for me to slide my hand out of the tie.
My body was battered and bruised and bleeding, but I dragged my body to my knees and lunged at Chad sitting on top of Mara, he fell to the floor, just as I stumbled to my feet, with my hands now free I was ready for the fight.