Leticia (22 page)

“We’re
OK
, we’re up here
,
” Jackson called back to her
.

Both of them came running into the room, Nancy looked at my top and saw the blood stains from the bullets and the knife.

“
Oh
my god!” she cried, making her way over to me
.

“I’m fine
don’t worry
.
”

“What happened?” Tristan asked
.

Jackson filled him in on the events of the last hour and what
a
close call I’d had. He looked furious.

“We need to get rid of the bodies
,
” Nancy said
while
still fussing over me
.

“I
’ll
take care of it
,
” Tristan told her, before exiting the room.

Jackson said he was going to help him so I could get washed and changed. Nancy stayed with me just in case I needed her.

I went into the en-suite and removed my top, when I looked in the mirror the only mark
left on my body
was that from the blade. It was definitely healing, but not as fast as I’d like, at least it wasn’t bleeding though. I got changed and walked back into the bedroom. Nancy
was sitting
on the end of the bed waiting for me.

“We need to do something about all this, we need to hunt them down and pick them off one by one
,
” she raged
.
“
This
is ridiculous
.
”

I didn't respond at first
;
just as I was about to speak we heard the phone ringing. Jackson walked in the room a minute or so later.

“It’s for you
,
” he said handing me the phone
.

“For me?” I asked
.
“I haven’t given this number to anyone, I don’t know it myself
.
”

I took the phone from him and put it to my ear.

“Hello
,
” I said warily
.

“Hello Leticia
,
” the male voice replied
.

“Oh
piss
off will you
?
You’re
pathetic
.
”

“I see you’re still alive and kicking, that’s a bit of a disappointment
.
”

“Yeah
,
yeah
,
” I sighed
.

“Am I boring you?”

“As a matter of fact yes! Yes you are!”

“Well I promise you
sweet-cheeks
you won’t be bored for long
.
”

He hung up. I felt sick to my stomach, my hands started shaking
and my
heart was racing.

Jackson took the phone off me and put his hand on my shoulder.

“What is it? Who was it?” he asked me
.

“I know who this
is;
I know who’s doing it
.
”

“What!”

“
Can
we go
downstairs;
I need to
finish
telling you what happened eight years ago
.
”

February
13
th
200
1

After the attack and being left th
e
threatening note, I moved.
I was no
w
staying at a hotel
in Cardiff, and hadn’t moved out of the room since I checked in. I
planned
on staying just long enough to work out where I was going to settle next and what I was going to do with myself. I
’d
done nothing but cry and get annoyed and cry some more lately. Now I was getting annoyed with
myself
for thinking about it and
letting
myself get upset.

I hadn’t heard from Luke, not even so much as a text message. On the other hand, I’d had no nastiness either, nobody foll
owing me or leaving me horrible
threatening messages under my door.
So maybe, even though not speaking to him hurt, it
was
actually a blessing in disguise.
I’d decided to stay in again today and look on the internet at
houses;
nowhere in particular, I
just
thought I’d see if anything caught my eye. After a couple of hours searching I found a lovely little cottage in
Colchester;
it was done as a private advert.
The owners were renting it out
and weren’t asking
an outrageous amount
for it. I called them and arranged to view it the following morning, they said if I liked it, I could move in within 3-4 weeks, which was great.

So the following morning I set off, met the owners and had a good look around. The cottage was beautiful and I told them I’d take it. I checked in to a
local
hotel feeling a lot happier. I booked in for a week but told the staff I may need to stay longer and they were more than happy with that
.
I spent the week getting to know the area, I
talked
to a few people who seemed really nice, and even went for a drink one night with one of the guys who worked at the hotel. There was no romance
because
he was gay, but we got on really well and had a great time together. It came at the right time really, I needed something to lift my mood and that really helped.

21
st
February 2001
– around 8pm

I’d ordered room service, I was starving
and I’d
been
out this morning getting my finances in check and buying a few things for when I moved in the house. It was fully furnished, but I wanted things in there that would make it feel more like home. Some little pictures on the wall and a few trinkets. I was
sitting
on the bed reading when there was a knock at the door. I jumped up
quickly;
I couldn’t wait for the food.

When I opened the door a few men stood there, they pushed their way into the room. Two of them grabbed me, restraining me,
while
the other closed the door quickly behind them.

“Stop, please, wait, who are you? What do you want?” I shouted frantically
.

The man who had shut the door walked up to me and punched me in my stomach. The two restraining me let go as I dropped to the floor, in pain and gasping for breath. I looked up at the man who’d struck me.

“I have a present from Luke
,
” he g
r
inned
,
before punching me in the face
.
“I hope you like it
.
”

I cried out, spitting blood on the carpet.

“Don’t cry, we have more presents for you
,
” he laughed
.

The two
restraining me
threw me onto the bed. They tore at my clothes ripping my jeans and shirt off me and throwing them to the other side of the room. The man who struck me stood
there
smirking as the other two, between them, pinned my arms above my head and prised my legs open.

“No!!” I scream
ed
, “Oh god no
!”

The
man who’d hit me
started to undo his trousers. I fought the two men as much as I could, but they were too strong, I could
n’t
get them away from me.
Fear
and anger built up inside me and I couldn’t control myself any longer. Just a
s
the man
who was
assault
ing
me climbed on to the bed, he noticed my eyes, now no longer human. Wolf eyes. He watched as my teeth became slightly longer
,
jagged
and
sharp.

He scrambled back off the bed, falling to the floor. I was stronger now
and
I could take them. I pulled my arms free. I grabbed one of the
men who had held me
by his collar and threw him across the room. I kicked the other man in his ribs so hard that I actually heard them snap. He fell to the floor, clutching his chest and coughing up blood. The man who had
tried to get between my legs
was now on his feet.

“What the hell are you?” he almost shrieked
.

“I’m your worst nightmare come true
.
”

I was about to attack him when I got a searing pain in the back o
f
my head. I fell into the table by the end of the bed. I felt it again, and again, and then...

I sat on the sofa watching the expressions on their faces as I finished my story. Nancy had tears in her eyes, Tristan look confused, angry and upset
.
As
for Jackson, he looked livid. His whole face had changed, his jaw had tightened
and
his eyes were darker than normal. If
it
had been possible, I’m sure steam would have come bursting out of his ears.

“That’s what a man who claimed to love you... want you forever... that’s what he got people to do to you
.
” Nancy eventually managed to get out
.

“Yeah
,
” I sighed sadly
.

“I want a few minutes alone with this
Luke
,
” Jackson barked
.
“
H
e’d think he’d been to hell by the time I was done with him
.
”

“I haven’t seen him since I left for Cardiff, or spoken to him. The men that attacked me must have thought I was dead
.
”

“Scumbag!”

“What happened after that?” Nancy asked me
.

I woke up a few hours after, I didn't know where I was, what had happened or anything
,
” I started to explain.
“
I finally managed to get of
f
the floor, using the bed post to drag myself to my feet. I looked in the mirror
and
saw the state
I was in
, bruised, covered in dry blood, especially around the back of my head, my hair was matted with it. I got in the shower, cleaned myself up, packed my things and left
.
”

“Then what?”

“I’d driven most of the night, my eyes were stinging, my stomach was rumbling like crazy, my mouth was so dry. I’d basically thrown all my belongings in my car, left the hotel room and drove, not looking behind me and certainly not stopping. My
gas
light was flashing, I just hoped I would make it to a fuel station before I completely ran out of juice. Thankfully, l
uc
k was on my side and I came across a 24hour Tesco
,
complete with an empty
gas
station. I filled the tank, paying on my card at the pump, and drove off again quickly. I didn’t know where I was, I hadn’t paid much attention to where I was going, I just knew I had to get as far away from Colchester as possible
.
”

“
Where
did you end up?” Tristan asked
.

“I eventually stopped when I reached Longdendale. I’d moved and he found me
;
I knew if I simply moved again, it would only be a matter of time before he found me again. I knew I had to disappear. It was just before tea time, I’d spotted a charity shop on my way through Glossop and so I took all but the clothes I was wearing inside and donated them. I went into the bank and paid every penny I had on me into one of my accounts
.
”

“
What
then?”

“Then I headed to Woodhead Pass. I pulled onto a side road that, if you followed it all the way, would have lead you back into Glossop. I stopped just past a point known to the locals as ‘The
Devil’s
Elbow’. I trashed the car then set it alight. The only thing I had on me now was my bag with my essentials
.
You
know, passport, bank cards, and so on. It was dusk
and
there
was no one around, so I started walking into the hills. I was crying all the way, heartbroken, frightened, not of being attacked, but knowing I was about to spend a long time in complete isolation, nobody to speak to, laugh with... nothing
.
”