A Tied That Binds Pt. 03

Instead, she headed into the bathroom where Callie opened the cabinets in there. At least everything in here seemed to be bathroom related and usable. There were extra bars of soap, shampoo bottles, extra towels, tampons, toilet paper, Band-Aids, and other odds and ends that most people kept in a bathroom.

"Shit," Callie exclaimed suddenly as she moved too quickly and felt pain shooting up her bruised back. Looking in the full-length mirror she lifted her shirt up and turned her back to the mirror so as to look at the bruise, then as her eyes traveled up further to look again at her battered face, which revealed her eye to be a little less swollen then before, though just as black and blue.

There was movement, a shadow in the mirror drawing her eyes beyond her reflection into the depths of the mirror and the unknown behind her. Callie's eyes made contact with a man standing framed in the bathroom doorway, and it wasn't Jake.

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Taking in his appearance, Callie noticed that he had an unmistakable air of danger about him. He was Jake's height or perhaps an inch shorter, though he must have been about 6'2. His eyes were a storm cloud gray color, and his hair was brown. It was just as messy and intriguing as Jake's, as it seemed to naturally stick up and out in places that most guys styled their hair for hours to achieve. His nose had a small crook to it as though it had been broken. He had a scar through his eyebrow, a light layer of stubble, and somewhat hooded eyebrows giving him a bit of a rugged look. However, his gray eyes were framed with full thick lashes that took away from some of his intensity, and gave him an almost pretty look. Overall, he had the face of a celebrity or a model at the very least. The guy was also stylishly dressed with a leather jacket, blue jeans and a nice shirt. While the jacket added a bit of width to his shoulders, they were clearly not as broad as Jake's.

As Callie assessed him, he stood there propped against the bathroom doorframe smiling at her with all the air of someone who was extremely comfortable.

"I must say, Callie, that color blue is amazing with your eyes. You do look spectacular," he said gesturing to the blue button-up shirt she had thrown on.

Callie noticed she had been holding her breath the whole time and slowly released it trying to calm her racing heart. However, she chose not to speak to this man, as she had absolutely no clue as to who he was.

He seemed to read her thoughts however, and said, "Silly me, I forgot my manners. Last time we met, you were sedated and being put in the front seat of my brother's car." He pushed away from the wall and held out his hand for a handshake. "I'm Kade."

Callie tried to keep calm, and hide the fear and panic now rising up inside of her. Touching him seemed to be the wrong thing to do. The panic, however, served her as an anodyne; the pain faded and her mind sharpened. She counterattacked.

"Where's Bridgett?" Callie asked with a touch of asperity in her voice.

Kade smiled sweetly at her in such a way that allowed him to flash his puppy dog eyes at her and said, "Well Callie, she's still here, but I wouldn't recommend seeing her at the moment. She's not looking her best, to be honest."

Callie felt a wave of nausea overtake her at the calmness with which Kade had said this. Jesus, the guy must be a sociopath He seemed to be void of all emotion, except anger. She could feel it boiling just under the surface as if it was waiting to bubble out of his pores and unleash itself on her.

Still smiling at her calmly, Kade tried to read her thoughts. He had seen the fear flash into her face, which was a reaction he was well accustomed to, but he couldn't quite put his finger on the meaning of the expression she was wearing now. He had come in her room with the full intent of breaking her in as his father instructed him to, but something was holding him back.

Perhaps it was the novelty of her in general. All the women here, aside from the old whore Holly, were women who fit a certain profile, and had particular personalities. Callie was one of those girls that would have never given him a second look.

Unlike other girls who would never have given him a second glance, though, Kade didn't think Callie would have waltzed by with her nose in the air, acting superior to him. She was...unusual. New.

Kade could hardly believe the next thing he said, "I was wondering if you wanted to go for a walk around the grounds with me?"

Whatever Callie had been expecting, it certainly wasn't that. Kade had completely thrown her off guard; he could tell by the bewildered look she was giving him. She was adorable and Kade was thoroughly pleased with how this whole thing was turning out.

Kade strode over to the door and opened it for her as Callie watched in amazement. Was he playing with her? She didn't know. This wasn't the Kade that Jake had described, but Jake wasn't here and she didn't even know if she'd ever see him again. Deciding that it would be unwise to take any more time in deciding, Callie headed out of the door, and into the brightly lit stone hallway that Jake had been framed in the previous night.

All along the hall, Call could see more heavy doors like hers and could only assume that the other women inhabited them. She wondered which door Bridgett was behind as she followed Kade, who was now leading the way past the doors and up a stone staircase. Callie could tell that even though Kade was in the lead he was watching her actions very carefully out of the corner of his eye, as if waiting for her to try to attack him or escape.

The stairs leading upward seemed to go on forever, but after several minutes of steady climbing, they came to a heavy steel door with a keypad lock. Kade shifted his body to block Callie's view of the keypad and punched in a six digit code. The door then hissed and slowly creaked open into a grand looking room that seemed to be some type of library. Kade ushered Callie through the door and slid it closed again.

Turning to look as the door closed behind her, she noticed that this side of it was a bookshelf that slid back into place and blended in perfectly with the other shelves. What the hell? Were they in a Sherlock Holmes' book or something?

Without speaking, Callie followed Kade as he walked the length of the room and opened a door on the other side of it. Callie now found herself in a massive looking front room with high ceilings. Doors littered the left, right, and back of the room, along with several animal heads that took up most of the wall space. The room was clearly masculine, and a bit cold with dark hardwood floors and a long dark staircase in the middle of the room that led up to a floor above, which Callie could not see. The lighting along with the color scheme was both dark and foreboding and although Callie had no doubt that she was in a grand mansion, she couldn't help it as a chill ran down her spine looking at the ominous décor.

"This way," Kade instructed, speaking for the first time since leaving her room. Callie turned around and noticed the only door on the front side of the wall. She hadn't seen it before, but this was no doubt the door that led outside the mansion. Callie followed as Kade opened it, and together they stepped outside. It must have been some time in the afternoon, but the sun was still shining brightly which helped to warm what would have otherwise been a chilly fall day.

Callie took in the landscape around her. She could make a break for it, but then what? Could she really outrun Kade? It seemed as if they were enclosed in thick trees and were somewhere deep in a wooded area, without any indication of where they were. Due to her sedation, she had no idea how far she had traveled. There were, of course, the mountains and national forests on the western slopes of North Carolina, not far from the Tennessee border, but had she been unconscious long enough to make that kind of trip? Had they headed north into Virginia?

More to the point, could she survive in this terrain by herself? If she could get away and find civilization, Callie could expose this place and help the other women. If she could get away.

It was clear, however, that few women ever exited those dungeon cells. She had made it this far. The rest of the women needed her help. She had to try.

Callie waited for the perfect opening.

Somewhere in the back of her mind, Callie registered that Kade had been talking to her. She had no idea what he had said, since her mind was fixed on finding the best escape route. Just then, Kade turned away, gesturing to something, and Callie realized the situation was in her grasp. When he turned back toward her, he would be off-balance.

He turned.

Mustering all the power and courage she could, Callie pulled her fist back and punched Kade as hard as she could before he knew what was happening, and then took off for the shelter of the woods. She didn't look back to see how the blow had affected Kade, but she hoped it was sufficient to the point that she could disappear. Callie did however, curse herself for deciding to wear her high heeled boots again; they were going to be a nightmare in the woods.

Her boots however, were the least of her worries. She had barely gained the edge of the woods, two hundred feet away, before she was sent crashing once more to earth. A small brook trickled past her a few feet away from her nose as the air was forced from her lungs by a large form landing atop her. The pain in her body flared anew.

'Shit Callie, that was stupid,'she thought as she looked up into the murderous expression twisting Kade's face.

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