In the Dark

[bay girl]

Hey guys. New chapter here.

CHAPTER ELEVEN

Martha looked down at the phone in Irene’s hand. Many thoughts were going through her head; call the police or even Jack.

Irene started smiling. “I told you everything would be okay,” she whispered.

“You should put the ring tone on silent, just in case someone tries to ring and Corey hears it,” Martha told her.

Irene nodded. “Good thinking. You know, I’m surprised no-one has already tried to ring me,” she said pressing a few buttons and setting the phone to silent.

Out of the corner of her eye Martha noticed Corey getting up from his chair at the kitchen bench. She started panicking.

“Quick, put it away. He’s coming,” she hissed.

Irene quickly shoved the phone down under the cushions and sat back trying to act like nothing had just gone on. Corey walked over towards them and sat down in a chair opposite them.

“Having fun?” he sneered, looking at Martha.

“Tons,” Martha said sarcastically, trying not to show him that she was frightened.

The way that he was looking at her made her skin crawl. But she was determined not to let him know that he was getting to her.

“Look Corey, people are going to come looking for us soon. So why don’t you just let us go,” Irene said.

“I’m going to say this one more time. No, I will not let you go. Do you understand what I am saying?” Corey snapped at them.

“Jack will be finishing his shift soon. And he’s going to wonder why I’m not home or answering my phone, and he’s going to come looking for me,” Martha told him.

Corey jumped up and strode over to Martha. He grabbed her arm and pulled her up so that they were face to face.

“Don’t you ever say his name around me again,” he growled at her, squeezing and digging his fingers into her arm tightly. She knew it was going to leave a bruise. He then roughly pushed her back down into her chair.

“Why? You jealous?” was Martha’s automatic response. She instantly regretted saying it, but she couldn’t help it. She knew it would **** him off.

And before she knew what was happening, Corey was swinging his open palm towards her face. Martha’s face snapped to the side when his hand connected to her cheek. The sharp slapping sound echoed through the house.

Irene gasped. “Oh my god,” she cried.

Martha immediately raised her hand to her stinging cheek and looked up at him, shocked.

“Got anything else to say?” he asked with a smug look on his face. Martha shook her head.

“Good girl,” he said and walked back over to the kitchen bench.

“Darl, are you okay?” Irene asked and ran her hand over Martha’s cheek, trying to soothe it.

“Yeah, but it still hurt like hell,” Martha replied.

Irene nodded. “I can tell,” she started. “You already have a red handprint coming up. And the skin around your cut is starting to bruise aswell. I just wish we could get you to hospital; I don’t want it to get infected,” she continued.

“I think it’s safe to say that he likes hitting me,” Martha sighed, rubbing her cheek. She looked over at Corey; he gave her a sly smile and then looked away and started looking at some photo again.

“It probably makes him feel powerful,” Irene told her.

“Yeah, I guess. But let’s forget about me for a second, let’s get back to the important stuff,” Martha began. “You should go the bathroom and use the phone to call the cops,” she told Irene. She nodded her agreement.

Irene reached her hand under the pillow and grabbed the phone; putting it into her pocket.

“Corey, may I go the bathroom please,” Irene called across the room.

Corey snapped his gaze onto Irene. “Fine, but make it quick. We’ll be leaving soon,” he said.

Irene stood up. “Where are we going?” she urged. “It’s a surprise,” he told her.

Martha looked at Irene, panic written on her face. “It’s okay,” Irene mouthed to Martha.

Irene slowly made her way to the bathroom; keeping an eye on Corey who was still sitting in his seat, but was giving Martha evil looks. Irene didn’t like the idea of leaving Martha alone with Corey, even if it was only for a few minutes. Irene walked into the bathroom and slowly closed the door behind her.

************************

Jack sat at his desk, going over some paper work. His boss still hadn’t completely forgiven him for the whole ear lie yet; so he still occasionally made him do the boring stuff.

Jack kind of liked this quiet time though. It gave him time to think about Martha and their reconciliation. He was so happy that she had decided to give him another chance. There was no way he was stuffing up again.

Jack had already planned a romantic dinner for the next night. He’d found out that his dad and brother were going to Yabbie Creek for a late night movie with Beth and Matilda; so he and Martha would have the house to themselves.

He was also wondering how Martha’s talk with Corey went. He wanted to know how Corey had reacted. He’d tried to call Martha, but her phone was off.

His thoughts were interrupted by the sound of the phone ringing. He stood up to go and answer it but stopped when he saw Sgt McGrath standing there already picking up the phone. Jack sat back down, but quickly looked up when his boss started to raise his voice.

“I’m sorry I can’t hear you. Can you speak up,” McGrath said. There was a women on the other end of the phone and she was whispering, so he couldn’t hear that well.

“Did you just say Irene Roberts?” McGrath asked.

When Jack heard his boss mention Irene’s name, he stood up immediately.

*************************************

“Yes, this is Irene Roberts. I’m being held hostage at my home by…,” Irene started, but was cut off by a banging on the door.

“What the hell are you doing in there?” Corey’s voice rang out. It startled her so much that she dropped the phone. She quickly snatched it up from the floor, but was devastated when she found that the phone would no longer work.

Damn it, she thought to herself. She just hoped that the officer that she spoke to had heard everything she said.

**************************

[bay girl]

Hey guys. New chapter here. Hope you enjoy. Tell me what you think.

CHAPTER TWELVE

“Hello! Hello! Ms Roberts, are you still there?” McGrath yelled into the phone.

Jack watched as his boss slammed down the phone and moved towards the door. “Holden, let’s go,” McGrath said.

Jack wondered what was going on. “Was that Irene? What’s wrong?” he asked, as they ran to the police car.

“Yes, it was Irene. I couldn’t hear very well, but it sounded like she said she was being held against her will at her home,” McGrath started. “Then I heard a man’s voice yelling and then the phone went dead. There was something about the man’s voice, but I just can’t figure it out,” he continued.

“Oh my god,” Jack said. He was worried for Irene’s safety.

“I hope Irene’s okay,” he told his boss.

*********************

Martha watched as Irene slowly made her way back towards the couch.

“What were you doing in there?” Corey demanded.

“I wasn’t feeling well. Blood makes me queasy,” Irene lied.

“Fine,” Corey huffed. He then walked into the kitchen and started removing food from the cupboards and placing them into plastic bags.

“What are you doing?” Irene asked.

“Just packing some food for our trip. Speaking of, were leaving in like two minutes,” he said, and continued packing more food.

Martha looked at Irene. “Did you call them?” she whispered.

Irene nodded. “Yeah, but I don’t know if they heard me or not. I got a fright and dropped the phone, and then it wouldn’t work,” she whispered back.

Martha went to speak back but was interrupted by Corey.

“Come on, let’s go. Here, take this,” he said, thrusting the bags at Irene so she could carry them.

“Come on Corey. You’re making a mistake. Just let us go,” Irene begged.

“Shut up, and just do as I say,” he yelled at her.

He looked at Martha who was still sitting on the couch. He then scruffed her by the arm and pulled her up. “Do you need a hearing aid? I said let’s go,” he snarled at her.

Martha started crying as Corey dragged her to door. “Please Corey, don’t do this. Let us go, it’s the right thing to do,” she cried.

Corey ignored her and slowly opened the front door and took a look around to check if anyone was passing by.

“Now, I want you both to listen carefully. You will both stay behind me and follow me towards the car. And if any of you do anything stupid to attract attention, I won’t hesitate in hurting you. Remember, I have a gun. Got it?” Corey said.

Martha and Irene both nodded their heads in agreement. “Good, now let’s go,” he said and pulled Martha out the door behind him, with Irene close behind them.

It was only then did Corey notice the police driving down the road towards Irene’s house.

“Get back inside now,” he yelled and started pushing them back inside the door.

Corey slammed the door and locked it behind him. He looked through the crack in the curtain and watched as they pulled into the driveway.

***************

The first thing Jack noticed was Martha’s car in Irene’s driveway. He started panicking. If Martha’s car was still there, then that meant she still was.

“Martha’s here,” he yelled at his boss.

“What?” McGrath asked.

“That’s Martha’s car. She was here earlier, and probably still is,” he said, as he pulled up into the driveway.

“Corey’s car is here too! If someone is holding them against there will, at least he’s there to protect them,” McGrath said, as he stepped out of the car.

“I have to get Martha out of there,” Jack said as he started running towards the house. McGrath grabbed him before he got any further.

“You can’t just go running in there Jack. You could make it even worse. We need to find out what the situation is first,” McGrath scolded him. “For all we know, this could all just be a big misunderstanding,” he continued.

Jack knew his boss was right. But that didn’t stop him from worrying about Martha. If anyone laid a hand on her; he’d kill them.

********************

“This was not supposed to happen. They were not supposed to come here,” Corey said, as he peeked through the curtains. “How did they know to come here?” he continued.

“How are we supposed to know?” Irene told him.

Irene looked at Martha; who was back on the couch and resting her head down on a pillow. She didn’t look too good. She was starting to look really pale, except for the gash and the dark purple bruise that was starting to appear on her fore-head. And not to mention the hand print from Corey’s latest slap. Irene was concerned for Martha’s health.

“Corey, Martha doesn’t look to good. She really need’s to get to the hospital,” Irene once again tried to reason with him.

“I don’t have time to worry about her right now. Come here,” Corey beckoned to Irene. Irene moved slowly towards him. “What do you want?” she asked.

“I want you to open the door slowly. Then I want you tell them that I have a gun and that I will use it if they come any closer to the house. Do not make any attempt to run and you will not tell them about me, do you understand?” Corey asked.

Irene nodded. She stepped towards the door, unlocked it and slowly opened it.

****************

Jack was looking towards the house when he noticed the front door opening.

“Boss, someone’s coming out,” Jack said.

McGrath and Jack watched as Irene stepped into view. She stood in the doorway and made no attempt to come out any farther.

“Irene, are you okay?” McGrath called out.

Irene nodded. “Yes, but he has a gun and he said if you come any closer he will hurt us,” she yelled out to them.

“Irene, is Martha with you?” Jack called. But before Irene could answer, she was pulled back inside and the door was slammed.

“Damn it,” he swore. Martha was in there with some crazy and he couldn’t do anything about it.

“I’m going to call for back-up,” McGrath told Jack.

Jack just nodded. He felt sick, just the thought of her being in there scared him. He just hoped that she was okay.

****************

COMING UP – What will be the reaction when everybody finds out that Corey’s the bad guy?

[bay girl]

Hey all. New chapter is here. Hope you like it.

CHAPTER THIRTEEN

Martha and Irene watched as Corey paced back and forth in front of the door. “This was not supposed to happen! This was not supposed to happen,” he kept muttering over and over.

“He’s really starting to freak me out,” Martha said to Irene.

Irene agreed. “Yeah, he keeps talking to himself. His mental state is worrying me,” she said.

Martha was scared. Before, it seemed like Corey was just an angry person who got a little too angry and killed his mother. But the more she watched him, the more she thought that he was actually crazy. That he did actually have some sort of psychiatric problem. He really did need some help.

But that didn’t mean she felt sorry for him. He had tried to kill her and she could never forgive him for that.

“What’s taking them so long?” Martha said. It had been half an hour since Jack and McGrath had arrived, and they had heard nothing more.

“We just need to be patient. I’m sure they need to make a plan of some sorts,” Irene started. “You heard what Corey said. He’ll hurt us if they come any closer, and the cops won’t risk us getting hurt,” she kept on.

“Hurt me? He’s already done that,” Martha scoffed.

Irene sighed. “How are you feeling? How’s the pain?” she asked.

“It hurts like hell and I feel like crap,” Martha said. “And I feel so tired. I just want to lye down and go to sleep,” she continued. She knew if she could just go to sleep, the pain would go away.

“I know, but you can’t go to sleep. If you have a concussion, which I’m pretty sure you do, you probably shouldn’t go to sleep. You know what the Doc’s say about that sort of thing,” Irene reminded her.

Martha smiled at Irene. “Don’t let me go to sleep,” she said.

Irene gave Martha a tight hug. “Don’t worry, I’ll look after you,” she promised

“I actually feel a bit safer knowing that Jack’s out there,” Martha told Irene.

“Something tells me that Jack is going to throttle Corey when he gets his hands on him. Especially when he finds out that Corey hit you. Twice,” Irene began. “And not to mention Alf; that man’s a machine when he wants to be, he’ll ring his neck,” she finished.

Martha let out a small laugh at Irene’s reference to her grandfather, but then got serious again.

“They don’t even know that Corey is the one keeping us here. How are we supposed to let them know that it’s him?” Martha asked.

Irene shrugged. “I don’t know love, but I’m sure we’ll figure out something”.

**********************

Jack sat on the grass with his head in his hands. Every few seconds he’d look towards the house, hoping to see some sort of movement.

He was worrying himself sick; he kept thinking about the creep, whoever he was, inside with Martha. Was he touching her? Was he hurting her?

He just wished he could see her and make sure that she was okay.

Jack looked over at his workmates; they were standing in a group going over some plans and trying to figure out what to do. Jack felt so helpless; he should be over there helping them. But McGrath had made him step down. He knew about Jack’s feelings towards Martha; so he didn’t think Jack should be involved.

McGrath even had the nerve to tell him to go back to the station or home. Jack had basically told him to get stuffed. He wasn’t going anywhere; he needed to be there for Martha.

Jack stood up quickly when he heard the screeching of some tyres coming around the corner. It was Alf. Jack had called him a few minutes earlier and told him about the situation. Jack couldn’t count the amount of expletive words that had come from the old man’s mouth. All he knew was that there were a lot and that Alf wasn’t very happy.

********************

Alf pulled up practically in the middle of the road. He didn’t care that he would probably be blocking the way for other cars to get through. He was out of the car in record time and was running towards the police with Ric a few paces ahead of him.

He strode up to Sgt McGrath. “What the flaming hell is going on? Where is my granddaughter?” he demanded.

Ric wanted to put in his five cents worth aswell. “Martha’s in there with some lunatic and you’re all sitting around doing nothing,” he spat out.

McGrath sighed. “Please just calm down. We’ve got people working on the situation right at this minute,” he started. “We are doing the best we can”.

“Who is the flamin mongrel? Wait till I get my hands on him,” Alf threatened.

“Unfortunately, we don’t know who he is yet. But we are hoping to find out soon,” McGrath tried to reassure him.

“I want my granddaughter out of there in one piece, you hear me? Same goes for Irene,” Alf said as McGrath walked back over to his men.

*****************

Jack waited until McGrath walked off before he approached Alf and Ric.

“Hey,” he said when he reached them.

“Why aren’t you over there helping them?” Alf asked.

“Boss won’t let me do anything. He say’s I can’t be involved because I have a personal connection with Martha,” Jack started. “Jerk even told me to go home and wait it off,” he continued.

“Did you see Martha at all?” Ric asked him.

Jack shook his head. “No, only Irene. But that was only for about ten seconds, and then she was pulled back into the house,” he told them.

“I should have flaming well knew something was going on earlier when I was here,” Alf scolded himself.

“Don’t blame yourself. None of us seen this coming,” Jack told him.

“The only person to blame is the nut-job that’s in there with them,” Ric said.

Alf nodded. “Yeah, but who is he?”

**************************

[bay girl]

New chapter. Hope you like.

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

Jack was starting to lose patience. He was going crazy with worry and was almost at the point where he just wanted to barge into the house and get Martha. And then it happened; his last nerve snapped. He stalked over to McGrath.

“What the hell are you doing? We’ve been here for over an hour, and you still haven’t done anything,” he yelled.

“Simmer down Holden,” McGrath warned, pointing his finger at Jack. “If you don’t lose that temper quick smart, I’ll remove you from the property myself. You got me?” he continued

“Simmer down? How am I supposed to do that when Martha is in there with some crazy lunatic?” Jack growled.

McGrath sighed. “Look Jack, I can see that you care a lot about the girl. But losing your temper is not going to help with the situation,” he said.

Jack bowed his head. “Sorry boss,” he said before walking off.

He headed off to the spot where he had left Alf and Ric; he then noticed that Barry Hyde had arrived and was deep in conversation with Alf.

“Yes, I called Kim and Hayley and told them what was going on. They’re still about an hours drive away,” Barry said. “I just hope this is over by the time they get back. Hayley doesn’t need this sort of stress; especially with the baby,” he continued.

Ric looked over towards Jack. “I noticed that you just psyched out at your boss,” Ric commented.

Jack nodded. “I’m just worried. I hate the thought of them being alone in there with a nutcase,” he said.

“At least Corey is in there with them. I’m sure he’ll make sure they’re okay,” Barry exclaimed.

For some reason Jack didn’t feel any better knowing that Corey was in there. He didn’t know what it was but something niggled at him every time someone mentioned Corey.

“Alf, you said that Corey was acting strange when you popped around this arvo. Tell me again what happened,” Jack asked.

“Well, I came around to drop off some fish for Irene,” he paused. “And like I said at the diner, Corey told me Martha and Irene had just left for a walk. Um, the house was completely locked up and the curtains were all closed, so it was pretty dark in there. Corey didn’t even invite me in, and it seemed like he was in a hurry for me to leave,” Alf continued.

“And you thought that was strange?” Jack questioned.

Alf nodded. “Yeah I did. He seemed quite on edge. Very unlike Corey,” he replied.

Jack scratched his chin, listening carefully to what Alf was telling him. “Did you notice anything else?” Jack pressured him.

Alf shook his head. “No. Where are you heading with this mate?” Alf asked curiously.

Jack went to speak but was cut off from a voice behind him. “Yoo Hoo,” it said.

Jack spun around and was surprised to see Colleen walking towards. “Colleen, you shouldn’t be here,” he said.

“I wanted to come and see if I could help with anything,” she said when she reached them.

“Oh for gods sakes women, how on gods green earth would you be able to help out?” Alf growled. “You’re just here for a sticky beak. In a few minutes you’ll be off telling Madge bloody Wilkins what’s going on,” he kept on.

“Well excuse me Alf Stewart,” Colleen huffed. “If you must know, I’m here with Dr Saunders. I thought it would be nice if I brought some Coffee down for the hard working officers, and he offered to help me,” she told them.

She then looked up at Jack. “Oh, you poor thing. It must be horrible knowing that Martha’s in there with a crazed gunman,” she said, patting his arm “I couldn’t help over hearing your conversation with Ric earlier at the diner. You told him that you and Martha had reconciled, yes?” she asked.

“Ah, yeah,” Jack said hesitantly.

“Hmm, no wonder I saw young Corey leaving Martha’s late last night in a strop. She must have broken the news to him then,” Colleen told him.

Did I just hear right, Jack thought to himself.

“Wait. What? You saw Corey leaving Martha’s last night,” Jack asked her.

“Yes, I was closing the diner late last night. It was probably just after ten pm,” she began. “He didn’t see me, but I saw him closing the door behind him. And then he stalked down the stairs muttering to himself. He didn’t look too happy. The he got into his car and speed away,” she continued.

Jack couldn’t believe what he was hearing. He and Martha had been in her room all night, so they hadn’t seen Corey. But Colleen said she actually saw him closing the door when he left the apartment. If Corey was there, it must have been when they were in bed. And then that would mean that Corey would have found out that they were back together before Martha got the chance to tell him herself.

“Oh my god,” Jack said out loud.

Alf noticed the worried look on Jack’s face. “What’s wrong mate?” he asked.

“I was with Martha last night. All night. And we didn’t see Corey, so that means that he snuck into the house when we were in bed,” Jack told the group.

“What are you getting at?” Ric said.

Jack started walking off. “I’ll be back in a sec. I need to talk about the boss about something,” he said.

“Jack, wait. What’s going on,” Alf demanded.

Jack ignored him and kept walking. So many thoughts were going through his head at the moment. This couldn’t be about Corey, could it? Jack thought to himself.

**************

[bay girl]

Hello. New chapter is here. Hope you like.

CHAPTER FIFTEEN

“Boss, I need to talk to you,” Jack said when he reached McGrath.

“What is it Holden?” McGrath asked, clearly not in the mood.

“When you were speaking to Irene earlier on the phone, you said you heard a male voice yelling at her,” Jack said.

“Yeah, what about it?” McGrath questioned.

“Well, you said that the voice sounded familiar to you,” Jack said to his boss.

McGrath nodded. “Yeah, it did sound familiar to me. But I just can’t think who it was,” he started. “But whoever it was, they didn’t sound very happy,” he continued.

Jack knew that what he was about to say to his boss was going to sound unbelievable. And he knew that McGrath was going to say that it was crazy.

“I think this has got something to do with Corey. And that it was his voice that you heard yelling at Irene,” Jack said simply.

McGrath looked at Jack like he had two heads. “You think that Corey is holding Martha and Irene hostage,” he laughed. “Don’t be ridiculous”.

“I’m serious. Things have come about that lead me to believe that it’s Corey,” Jack told his boss.

McGrath sighed. “Look Jack, I know that you and Corey haven’t been getting on well the last couple weeks. And it’s obvious that it’s because of Martha and because you think that Corey stole her away from you. Am I right?” he said.

“Yeah, but I stole her back,” Jack stated.

“What?” McGrath looked at Jack confused.

“Martha and I are back together,” Jack told him.

“Geez, you young people these days are always swapping and changing partners,” McGrath muttered shaking his head.

Ignoring his boss, Jack continued. “Anyways, I was at Martha’s last night from about 8pm until this morning. And I’ve just been told by someone that they saw Corey leaving Martha’s last night at around 10pm,” Jack started. “Martha and I were in bed by that time. And apparently Corey didn’t look very happy when he left,” he continued.

“What’s your point Holden,” McGrath asked.

“My point is that Corey must have broken into the house last night after we went to bed. He realized I was there with Martha and found out that she was seeing me behind his back. And now he’s pissed off,” Jack explained.

“Because Martha cheated on him?” McGrath said.

“Yes, and then Martha came around here today to break up with him and he probably flipped,” Jack tried to convince him.

McGrath didn’t know what to say. “You know how crazy that sounds, don’t you?” McGrath asked Jack.

Jack nodded. “Yeah, I know. But it fits, and we can’t ignore it. We have to at least look into it,” he urged.

“Fine, but I still want you to stay out of it,” McGrath warned.

“No,” Jack shook his head. “Let me call him. I’m pretty sure the only person he’ll talk to is me,” he said.

“We don’t even know for sure that it’s him yet,” McGrath spoke. “Do you know how embarrassing it will be if we accuse a member of our own team, and then find out we were wrong,” he kept on.

“Boss, I wouldn’t be saying it if I didn’t believe it. My gut feeling is telling me that it’s Corey and I’m not going to sit back and do nothing,” Jack began. “So let me make the call. Please,” he begged.

“Okay. I’ll fill the boys in on what’s going on and I’ll let you know when were ready for you to make contact with him,” McGrath finally agreed.

“Thank You,” Jack nodded at his boss.

You better watch out Corey, Jack said to himself. Because if you’ve even touched Martha, I’ll kill you.

******************

“Come on Corey. Just let us go,” Martha started. “The cops have the place surrounded, so why don’t you just give yourself up,” she pressured him.

Corey gave her an evil glare. “How many more times do I have to tell you to shut your mouth,” he snapped. “You’re giving me a headache”.

“You’ve got a headache?” Martha scoffed at him. “What about me? I have a hole in my head. Courtesy of you; incase you’d forgotten,” she said sarcastically.

“You just don’t know when to shut up, do you?” Corey snarled.

Irene grabbed Martha’s hand. “Come on darl, just leave him. You’ll only make him angrier,” she warned Martha.

“Sorry,” Martha said to Irene.

Martha closed her eyes and let her thoughts drift to Jack. She’d heard his voice earlier when he’d first arrived at the house, so she knew he was outside waiting for her. He was so close, yet so far away. She just wanted to touch him, and tell him that she loved him.

She wondered if her Grandad and Ric were outside aswell. She really wanted to see them too! And Rob and Tash. Hell, she wanted to see everyone. It was moments like these that made you really appreciate those closest to you; made you realise how important they are to you and how lucky you are to have them.

She wondered what everybody would say when they found out that she had been unfaithful in a relationship. Would they be disgusted and call her names behind her back. Because in all reality; Corey was right. There are names for girls like her. Girls who cheat. Irene didn’t hate her, and Rob and Tash were okay about it when they had busted her and Jack that morning. So that was a start.

But she didn’t really care what people thought about her. As long as she had Jack, everything would be okay.

She opened her eyes and found Corey watching her. She shuddered, he made her sick. And right now she didn’t care if he got angry; she was going to tell him what she thought about him.

“You’re disgusting and you make me sick,” she started. “You murdered your own mother. Only someone sick could do something like that. How do you live with yourself?” she continued.

Martha could see his face going red; like he was about to explode.

“Martha, stop it,” Irene begged.

But Martha wasn’t listening. She couldn’t help herself and she kept going.

“You’re a women beater and a nutcase. I really think you need professional help,” she told him.

Corey shot up like a flash of lightning. He was fuming.

“I thought I told you to shut the hell up,” he roared, and his voice echoed all throughout the house.

Martha smiled up at him. “Well done Corey. If the cops hadn’t of already figured out it was you, they should know by now. You’re voice was probably heard all the way down the street. I’m sure somebody out there will recognise it as you,” she smirked.

************************

Jack spun around and looked towards the house. Everybody had heard it. And there was no doubt about whose voice it was.

“That was Corey,” McGrath stated.

Jack nodded. “Now do you believe me?” he asked his boss.

“He didn’t sound very happy,” McGrath said.

“No, he didn’t. We need to do something quick. What if he’s already hurt them,” Jack told him.

“We can’t just bust in there Jack. He has a gun remember,” McGrath reminded Jack.

“Yeah, I know. But if he has hurt Martha in anyway, I won’t be held accountable for my actions,” Jack spat out.

“I’m going to send Fitzy to the station and see if she can find anything on the records about Corey. See if there’s anything from his past that could be important,” McGrath began. “Just hang in there Jack. We’ll get them out of there as soon as we can. Okay,” he promised and walked off to speak to Fitzy.

Jack looked back at the house. Its okay baby, I’m going to get you out of there. I promise, he thought to himself and walked off to tell Alf and the others about the progress that had just been made.

******************

[bay girl]

Hey all. New chapter here. I hope you like it.

WARNING – There is some stuff in this chapter that may not be suitable for younger people. Thankyou.

CHAPTER SIXTEEN

“You shouldn’t have done that,” Corey glared at Martha.

“I didn’t do anything. You were the one yelling,” Martha said innocently.

Martha was praying that someone outside had heard Corey and recognised it as his voice. Maybe if they knew it was him, they could get her and Irene out of their quicker.

“Don’t get smart with me,” Corey warned her.

Martha had to look away from him. The look on his face was scaring her.

“Look at me when I’m talking to you,” he snarled and grabbed her face, making her look at him.

“I’d prefer not too. The sight of you makes me sick,” Martha shot out.

Corey laughed and leaned over Martha. He pinned her to the couch and pressed his body closer to hers.

“Get off her,” Irene begged, standing up and moving towards Martha.

Corey snapped his gaze onto Irene. “Stay out of this,” he growled, and Irene shrunk back in fear. She knew what he was capable of; she’d seen what he did to Martha when he got angry.

He looked back at Martha. “Isn’t this a compromising position?” he smirked.

“Get off me,” Martha ordered, trying to push him away.

“I give the orders around here,” Corey told her, while running his hand up and down her thigh.

“What do you want?” Martha cried.

Corey raised his hand to the cheek that was clear of blood; to the cheek that now had a bright red hand print forming, from where he had slapped her before. He softly started caressing it.

“What is it about Jack Holden that turns you on so much?” he whispered. “Is he really that great in the sack? He must be doing something right. Especially for you to run back to him,” he continued.

Martha looked away from Corey. She felt sick. Corey had his hands all over her and there was nothing she could do to stop him.

She started sobbing. “Get away from me,” she said.

He paid no attention and kept on with his torment. “I heard you moaning his name last night. I broke into your apartment while you two were going at it. The two of you were so into it, that you didn’t even notice that someone had entered the house,” he told her truthfully.

Martha gasped. “So you’re a dirty pervert aswell,” she stated, squirming underneath him.

“Please Corey, leave her alone,” Irene begged again, her eyes filling with tears. She couldn’t stand seeing him treating Martha the way that he was. It was disgusting and degrading.

Corey turned his head to look at Irene again. “I thought I told you to mind your own business,” he snapped at her. “Just shut your mouth and I might let you out of here in one piece,” he kept on.

He turned back to Martha, still pinning her down. “You never even gave me the chance to make you moan. I’m sure I would have done the job just a good as Saint Jack,” he whispered in her ear.

He moved his face until his lips where touching hers. She pursed her lips together; trying to stop his tongue intruding into her mouth.

“Don’t fight it,” he ordered against her lips. He squeezed her cheeks, trying to get her to part her lips, but she wouldn’t budge.

“I want you to kiss me,” he demanded.

Martha shook her head. She wouldn’t give him the satisfaction. She closed her eyes and felt a single tear roll down her cheek.

Corey went to speak again but was disrupted by the sound of a phone ringing. He smirked at Martha. “Saved by the bell,” he said.

Martha’s heart was racing. She could feel herself trembling and her hands were shaking. She felt violated. Martha let out a sigh of relief when Corey pushed away from her. Irene immediately got up from her spot and moved towards Martha gathering her into a hug; comforting the crying girl.

They watched as Corey sauntered towards the kitchen bench and picked up his mobile phone. He looked over at them and smiled.

“Well, well, well. If it isn’t your precious lover boy now,” he commented. “May as well get the talk out of the way,” he said, and lifted the phone to his ear.

“Hello Jack,” he said smartly.

*********************

Jack held the phone against his ear; waiting patiently and hoping that Corey would answer his phone. Jack was surrounded by his boss and few other work colleagues. Alf and the others were standing a bit further away, trying to listen in aswell.

Jack was about to hang up, because he didn’t think Corey was going to answer, but then the familiar voice of the person he hated most could be heard.

“Hello Jack,” Corey said smartly.

“Corey,” Jack said simply.

“What do you want Jack?” Corey asked.

“So it is you holding Martha and Irene in there then?” Jack wanted to know.

Corey let out a lazy sigh. “Guess so. Took you moron’s long enough to figure it out,” he started. “Of course, if it wasn’t for your stupid girlfriend, I wouldn’t have yelled and you idiots would still be out there trying to figure it out,” he finished.

“Actually, I had already figured it out before you yelled,” Jack stated. “Turns out someone saw you leaving Martha’s apartment last night. Spying on us were you?” Jack questioned.

“I wouldn’t call it spying. It was more about me finding out if Martha was a dirty little bit….,” Corey started but was cut off by Jack.

“Don’t you dare call her that,” Jack growled at him.

Corey laughed. “Aww, Jack’s sticking up for his precious Martha. How sweet,” he said sarcastically.

“Is that why you’re doing this? Because Martha was seeing me behind your back and you found out?” Jack asked him.

Jack looked around at the people that were listening in. Jack could tell from the looks on their faces that they were shocked about what he had just said about him and Martha seeing each other behind Corey’s back. Alf shook his head and was muttering something under his breath; something about young people and their hormones. Jack didn’t care what they all thought of him and Martha. It was none of their business anyway.

“I wasn’t going to let her make a fool out of me,” Corey told Jack.

“What about me? This is my fault too! You can’t just blame Martha. Besides, how do you know it was even her fault? I could have seduced her or something,” Jack said, trying to take the blame off Martha.

“Do you think I’m stupid? It takes two to tango Jacky. She knew what she was doing,” Corey said. “But don’t worry. You’ll get what’s coming to you,” he exclaimed.

“Okay then. You can have me in exchange for Martha and Irene,” Jack tried to bargain with him. As soon as he said this, McGrath started shaking his head at him. He didn’t approve of Jack trying to trade himself in for the safety of the two women. But Jack would do anything to make sure that Martha was safe.

“No, I don’t think so,” Corey finally said. “Anyway’s, I’m not finished with Martha yet,” he said in a sleazy voice that Jack did not like.

Jack could feel his temper flaring. He tried to hold it in, but found that he couldn’t. “I swear to god, if you even touch her; I’ll kill you,” he threatened through the phone.

Corey started laughing. “Looks like I’m a dead man then, because I’ve already touched mate,” he tormented. “And I must say that even though her pretty face is a little bloody; she’s still beautiful,” he finished.

Jack felt his blood run cold. “What have you done to her?” he demanded.

Alf and Ric tried to move towards Jack but were held back by two officers. “What the hell is going on?” Alf yelled. He’d seen the look on Jack’s face and he knew something was up.

“Tell the old man to pipe down, will ya,” Jack heard Corey say over the top of Alf’s yelling.

“What have you done to Martha?” Jack demanded again.

“Don’t worry Jack, I’m taking real good care of her,” Corey began. “Hold on, I’ll put her on and she can tell you herself,” he said.

Jack was fuming. Corey had hurt Martha and he couldn’t get in there to help her. But he was about to talk to her, so that was better than nothing.

“Jack,” he heard Martha say into the phone. Her voice was low and she sounded tired.

“Martha, are you okay?” he asked in a soothing voice.

He then heard Corey’s voice in the background. “Go on, tell him what I did to you,” Corey urged her.

Martha started sobbing. “He hit me a couple times, and he knocked me out,” she told him.

Jack felt like his heart was breaking. She sounded scared, and she was probably in pain because of that bastard. He wanted to cry, but he knew that he needed to stay strong for Martha.

“Jack. Get me out of here. Please,” she begged.

“Don’t worry; it’s all going to be over soon. I promise,” he told her.

She started crying again. “Jack, I lo…..,” she started to say but was cut off by Corey.

“I don’t think so,” he snapped and snatched the phone off her.

“Martha? Martha?” Jack yelled.

“She’s gone now. I’m back,” Corey said smugly.

“Just don’t hurt her okay?” Jack said to Corey.

Corey let out an evil laugh. “Like I said, I’m not finished with her yet. She’s got a good body under those clothes, and she feels real good too. She may come in handy down the track,” he tormented Jack.

“You bastard. Don’t you dare touch her,” Jack yelled furiously.

“Jack, you really should learn to share. You can’t have her all to yourself,” Corey said with a sarcastic tone to his voice. “Anyway’s, it’s been nice talking to you, but I’m bored. So I’m gonna go now,” he said.

Jack didn’t want him to hang up, but he didn’t know how to keep him on the phone. “Wait, what about Irene? Is she okay?” he asked.

“Irene’s fine. Good bye Jack,” Corey sighed and hung up.

*****************

[bay girl]

Hey all. New chapter here. Not much action in this one.

CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

Corey stood at the window, peeking out the curtain. “Look at the idiots out there. They don’t even know what to do next,” he said.

“I don’t know why you’re getting excited. They know it’s you, so you’re a goner. Just let us go,” Martha glared at him.

Corey swung around to face her. “Aww. You’re not in a bad mood because I wouldn’t let you talk to your sweetie pie for longer, are you?” he asked sarcastically.

“Shut up,” she spat out, and looked away from him in disgust.

Corey laughed. “Or maybe it’s because you tried to tell him that you loved him, but I snatched the phone away before you got the chance,” he said.

Martha hated him. She couldn’t believe that she had once thought he was a good guy. God, how wrong she was.

She’d tried to tell Jack that she loved him, because honestly she didn’t know if she’d ever get another chance too. But Corey had heard her start to say it, and he had taken the phone from her. Now Jack would probably never know how she really felt.

“You okay?” Irene asked her.

Martha smiled at her; once again thanking god that she wasn’t alone. “Yeah. Still got a bit of a headache, but my face is starting to feel a bit numb. So I can’t really feel anything at the moment,” she told Irene. “Are you okay?” she asked back.

Irene nodded. “Yeah, I’m fine. I’m just worried about your injury. It’s still bleeding quite heavily. I wish he would just let us go so you could get to the hospital,” she replied.

“Me too,” Martha exclaimed. “I’m actually starting to feel a bit faint and light headed. I guess it’s because I’m losing blood,” she continued.

“We will get out of here. I know we will, and it’s going to be soon,” Irene reassured her.

*************

Jack was in a state of panic. He had to hide it though; if his boss thought that he was losing control, he’d remove him. But Jack needed to be there, he needed to be there for Martha. So he had to keep his feelings in check.

“Are you sure that Martha’s okay?” Alf asked again.

Jack nodded, trying his hardest to reassure him that everything was okay. “She sounded okay. Just a bit upset,” he told Alf, Ric and Barry. He knew he had to tell them about Corey hitting Martha. He knew it would upset them, but it had to be done.

“But, Martha did say that Corey had hit her a couple times,” he confessed. He saw the look on both Alf and Ric’s faces. They weren’t happy and Alf looked like he was about to explode.

“What!!!! I’m going to ring that flaming mongrel’s neck,” Alf roared.

“I’ll be in on that,” Ric added.

“I want my granddaughter out of there this instance. Do you hear me?” he yelled across the road to McGrath. “I’ll go in there my bloody self if I have too,” he kept on yelling, as he moved to walk across the street to the house.

“Alf, you need to calm down. I’m worried aswell, but there’s nothing we can do right now,” Jack said, holding Alf back.

“Yeah, come on Grandad. We need to let them do their job,” Ric begged. He hated seeing his grandad so upset.

Jack looked up and noticed Flynn walking across the road towards them. He’d managed to convince Colleen to go back to the diner, but he had returned himself after he had dropped her off.

“Any news?” Flynn asked when he reached them.

“He’s hurt Martha,” Alf told him.

“What? Is she okay?” Flynn asked shocked.

“Corey let me speak to Martha on the phone. She told me that he had hit her a couple times,” Jack began to tell him. “We’re not sure if there are any injuries yet,” he continued. Jack was praying that there wasn’t, although Corey had mentioned something about blood. But he wasn’t about to tell them that. Alf would completely flip.

“Well it’s a good thing I came back then. I’ve got my bag in the car, so if they need a Doctor, I’ll be on hand straight away,” Flynn told them.

“Thanks Doc,” Alf said, patting him on the back.

“Here comes Kim and Hayely,” Ric interrupted. Jack watched as Kim’s car screeched to halt. They both jumped out and ran towards them. Hayley quickly made a path towards Jack.

“What’s going on? Is Irene okay? What about Martha? Do they know who’s doing this?” she blabbered, trying to hold in her tears.

“Whoa, slow down. One question at a time,” Jack tried to calm her down.

“I’m sorry. I’m just really worried,” she apologised.

“It’s okay. Irene and Martha are fine. But we’re still working on a way to get them out,” Jack said honestly.

Hayley let out a sigh of relief. “Well as long as their okay. Wait, what about Corey? Is he okay?” she questioned.

Jack realised that Kim and Hayley hadn’t been told that Corey was the one behind this.

“He’s the flaming Mongrel who’s holding them in there,” Alf spat out. Hayley gasped. “Oh my god,” she said, holding her hand up to her mouth.

“Why on earth would he do something like this?” Kim asked.

“Don’t ask mate. It’s a long story,” Jack told him.

“Well, I’m up for a long story,” Kim said back. Jack sighed. He really didn’t want to explain it again.

“If Jack doesn’t want to tell all, I will,” Ric jumped in. “Let’s just say that Corey wasn’t to impressed when he found out that Jack and Martha were still going at it behind his back,” Ric said, trying not laugh.

“Hey. What?” Kim asked, clearly confused.

“Jack and Martha are back together,” Ric replied in a more simple sentence.

“You mean to say that he’s doing this because Martha wants to be with Jack and not him? What a loony,” Kim stated.

“You’re telling me,” Ric scoffed.

Jack could feel his anger rising. He needed to be alone. He didn’t want to break down in front of everyone. So he slowly walked across the road and sat down on a small patch of grass.

He thought about Martha and how scared she sounded on the phone. He wanted to see her so bad. Just to make sure that she was okay. It wasn’t fair. He should have been the one in there, not her. Jack could feel his eyes welling up with tears. If anything happened to Martha it would be his fault, and he’d never be able to forgive himself.

“Jack,” he heard a voice say. He looked up and saw his dad running across the road towards him. “I came as soon as I heard what was going on,” Tony said to his son.

“Hey dad,” Jack said, wiping away the stray tear that was sliding down his cheek.

Tony sat down next to him. “I can’t believe that this is all Corey’s doing,” he said. “Ric filled me in on why Corey was doing this. How come you never told me that you and Martha were working things out?” Tony asked.

Jack shrugged. “We wanted to wait until Martha had broken up with Corey,” he replied.

“So the last two nights when you didn’t come home; you were with Martha?” Tony questioned. It was really more of a statement than a question.

“Yep. Stupid idea that was. I should have stayed away until her and Corey was over,” Jack began. “If I had of, Martha and Irene wouldn’t be in this position. This is all my fault dad,” he finished.

“Jack this is not your fault, so stop blaming yourself,” Tony ordered.

“How can this not be my fault? I should have kept my hands to myself,” Jack said.

“Mate, you’re a Holden. And Holden’s can never keep their hands to themselves. It’s just the way we are, and who could resist that Holden charm anyway?” Tony teased his son.

Jack laughed at his dad. “Of course you would say that,” he said. “Just trying to cheer you up mate,” Tony said.

“Dad, if anything happens to her I’ll never be able to forgive my self,” he told his father.

Tony looked at his son. He could see the pain and sadness in his eyes. “You really care about her a lot, don’t you?” he questioned him.

Jack nodded. “Yeah, I do,” he replied. “I love her,” he said honestly.

Tony wrapped his arm around Jack. He was surprised by how honest his son was being. He never really spoke about his feelings, and this was the first time that Jack had ever told him that he loved a girl. Maybe it was because Jack had never really been in love before. Martha was probably the first girl he’d ever really let himself get close too. Close enough to fall in love that is.

“Martha’s going to be fine. I know she will,” Tony comforted him.

“I need her,” Jack said.

“I know mate,” Tony sighed. “I know.”

*****************

[bay girl]

Hey all. Here's a new chapter.

NOTE- I had a bit of trouble writing this chapter. I had the whole scene pictured in my head, but i found it really hard to write down. I really hope you like it.

WARNING- There is some material in this chapter that may not be suitable for younger people. Thank You

CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

Jack looked at his watch. It was almost 5:00pm and it would be getting dark soon. Martha and Irene had been in there for hours and Jack hoped it would be all over soon.

“Holden,” McGrath called out.

Jack looked up and saw McGrath standing with Fitzy. She must have just gotten back from the station. McGrath had sent her to see if she could find anything about Corey and his past.

Jack ran over to them. “Did you find anything?” he asked.

“Yes, she did,” McGrath nodded.

“Well?” Jack asked, sounding impatient.

“According to his records, yesterday was the two year anniversary of his father’s death,” Fitzy said.

“Yeah, I already knew that,” Jack told them.

“And tomorrow is the two year anniversary of his mother’s death,” Fitzy continued.

Jack was shocked. He didn’t realise that Corey’s mum was dead also. “Whoa. Both parents dead in the space of two day’s. That’s gotta be rough. How did they die?” Jack asked her.

Lara sighed. “His father took his own life. And two days later his mother’s body was found at the bottom of the stairs at the family home,” she began. “They never determined whether she took her own life or fell. But the interesting part is that in the father’s suicide note it said that he couldn’t live any longer because he found out his wife was having an affair,” she explained.

“Oh my god,” Jack gasped. “No wonder Corey is so angry at Martha. His mother had done the same thing to his father”.

Jack tried to process what Lara had just told him. And then suddenly a horrible thought occurred to him. “You don’t think there is a chance that Corey killed his own mother, do you?” he stated.

“It’s a possibility. If his reaction to you and Martha is anything to go by, I’d say it’s a huge possibility,” McGrath nodded.

“And the records say that Corey was at the house when the accident happened. He could have easily pushed her and made it look like an accident” Lara added.

Jack started panicking. “Oh my god. Martha and Irene are in there with a psychotic murderer. We need to get them out now,” he growled.

“I agree. We need to get a move on with this. We need to get them out before Corey flips and hurts them more than he probably already has,” McGrath agreed with Jack. “Fitzy, fill in the boys with the new info, and tell them we will be making a move soon,” he kept on.

McGrath looked back at Jack. “Nothing’s changed. You’re still sitting this out. You’re feeling’s for the girl could still get in the way of doing your job properly,” he said.

“Yes, Boss,” Jack obliged.

Jack let out a sigh. Soon Martha would be safe and back in his arms.

*******************

“Can we turn on a light? It’s getting dark in here,” Martha asked.

Corey looked at her. “Do what you want,” he said.

“If I could do what I wanted, I’d be walking out of here,” Martha scoffed.

“Well you can’t do what you want, can you?” he smirked.

“You just said I could do what I wanted. I wish you would make up your mind,” Martha said to him sarcastically.

“Don’t get smart with me,” he warned, while flicking on a few lights.

Martha had to close her eyes for a few seconds. The lights were bright and hurting her eyes. It didn’t help that her splitting headache was returning. She slowly opened her eyes; letting them get used to the light.

She then looked at Irene who was watching Corey like a hawk. “What’s taking them so long?” Martha cried.

Corey who had heard Martha’s question looked at her and gave an evil laugh. “Maybe they have realised how much of a little bitch you really are and have all decided to go home,” he sneered.

That was the last straw; Martha couldn’t stand it anymore. She was getting sick of him calling her names. Maybe he should take a look in the mirror; he was a murderer. What she had done was nothing compared to what he had done. She needed to do something; she couldn’t sit around anymore waiting for the cops to help her and Irene. Sometimes the only person you can count on for help is yourself. And that was exactly what she was going to do.

Martha moved forward; ready to stand. “Martha, what are you doing?” Irene asked. “Getting us out of here,” Martha stated. Irene gasped. “Don’t be stupid girlie. He’s dangerous,” she said in a worried voice. Martha ignored her.

“Hey,” she called out. Corey spun around to face her. “What?” he asked in a tone that suggested he clearly wasn’t in the mood.

“I just wanted to tell you that I never really liked you. I just went out with you to make Jack jealous,” she told him honestly.

“Martha, don’t,” Irene begged, standing up and moving a few steps closer to where Martha was standing with Corey.

Martha went to speak again, but stopped when she felt her head spin. She nearly fell down, but she regained her composure.

“What did you just say?” Corey snarled.

“You heard me. I used you to make Jack jealous. You were just a thing that I could use to my advantage,” she smirked at him.

On the outside Martha seemed cool and collected; very confident. But on the inside she was scared beyond belief. She felt sick and wanted to back down, but she had started something and she had no intention of stopping.

“If you’re trying to **** me off; it’s working,” Corey told her. “I suggest you stop now, before you say something you’ll regret,” he said.

“I’m so scared,” Martha sarcastically told him. By now Irene was standing just behind Martha; reaching a hand out and trying to pull her back. “Stop it Martha,” Irene scolded. Martha shook her off.

“You really are a stupid girl,” Corey said smugly. “I really don’t know what it was that I saw in you. I don’t see why Jack thinks you’re so great either,” he continued.

Martha knew what she was about to say next would really tip him over the edge, but if it meant getting out of there; she was willing to say it.

“I’m guessing it’s the great sex that I give him,” Martha said smartly. “I’m never one to brag, but my love-making skills are pretty good,” she kept on with the torment.

“Excuse me?” Corey said, not sounding too impressed.

“Oh, that’s right. You wouldn’t know, because I never let you touch me like that. Truth is; I would have never let you touch me like that. I needed a real man; like Jack,” Martha said in an overly sweet voice.

Irene watched on in shock; not knowing what to think. How on earth was this supposed to help their situation? The only thing it was going to do was proceed to **** Corey off even more. And from what Irene could see; Corey was pissed off.

“Shut up you little tart,” Corey snarled.

Martha smiled at him. “Speaking of Jack; I have to admit he’s pretty great in bed. The best I’ve ever had,” she said honestly. “He pleasures me greatly. Like last night he done this thing that made me feel so amazing. Just thinking about him turns me on,” she continued.

“Shut up,” Corey repeated, while moving a step closer to her.

Martha sighed. “My point is that Jack’s an amazing lover. And since we’re speaking truthfully to each other; I’ll tell you right now that you’ll never be as good as him. He’s more of a man…….,” Martha said, but was cut off by Corey yelling.

“I told you to shut up,” he roared, and lunged at her knocking her to the ground; with him falling on top of her.

Irene started screaming and tried to pull Corey off her. “Get off her,” she cried. Corey was too strong for Irene and managed to shove her away. Irene fell to floor crying. She didn’t know what to do; but then it suddenly came to her.

Martha looked up into Corey’s face and watched the anger on his face worsening. “I told you to shut up. You should have listened to me,” he hissed and slowly wrapped his hands around her neck.

Martha couldn’t breathe. He was strangling her and she was too weak to fight him off. She tried pushing him away, but he had her pinned down. His hold on her neck was getting tighter and tighter and she was starting to feel dizzy.

Out of the corner of her eye Martha saw Irene moving towards the door. She saw Irene flick open the lock and push open the door. She saw Irene turn back around to look at her. Corey who still had not realised that Irene had opened the door, kept on strangling Martha.

Martha’s vision was getting blurry, and everything now seemed like it was moving in slow motion. But she wasn’t about to give up yet. She moved her hands down Corey’s chest and that’s when she felt it.

His gun.

It was tucked down the front of his jeans. She gently wrapped her hands around it; pulling it out. Without even thinking and before Corey even knew what she doing; she pulled the trigger.

One single shot echoed through the air.

************************

[bay girl]

Here’s a short chapter. This chapter is quite boring and i don't like it much.

CHAPTER NINETEEN

Jack was standing at one of the police cars talking quietly with McGrath when he heard Corey yelling. He then heard a loud thud; followed by a scream.

“Oh my god. That was Irene,” Hayley gasped from the sidewalk.

Everybody went silent and kept their eyes glued to the house. They all held their breaths as they watched the front door open. Irene, who was clearly distraught, appeared a second later. Irene looked at them, but quickly turned back and looked into the house.

When Irene moved away from the door again, Jack could see straight into the house. He felt his temper start to flare as he noticed Martha lying on the floor by the stairs. Corey was leaning over her with his hands wrapped around her throat.

Jack broke away from the group and started running towards the house.

“Holden, get back here,” McGrath ordered and started running after Jack with a few other police officers in tow.

“He’s hurting her,” Jack yelled over his shoulder.

Before he got any further, a gun shot rang through the air.

“Martha,” Jack screamed.

***************

Martha gasped for air when she felt Corey’s hands slip away from her neck. His body went rigid, and he slumped on top of her. She could still feel the gun in her hand; pinned in between her body and Corey’s. And she could also feel Corey’s warm blood starting to seep through the material of her shirt.

“Martha,” she heard a voice call out.

Martha looked to the side and saw Jack running through the door towards her. Sgt McGrath and a few other officers ran in behind him. She also noticed Irene crouching by the door crying.

Realising that she was still pinned under Corey; she started screaming.

“Get him off me.” She screamed, trying to push him off. She didn’t want him anywhere near her; especially if he was dead.

Corey’s body fell to the side and she quickly slid away from him. She felt Jack kneel down beside; he wrapped his arms around her body and pulled her into his warm embrace. Martha buried her head into his chest and started sobbing.

“It’s okay. You’re safe now,” he soothed.

Jack then noticed that Martha still had the gun in her hand in a tight grasp. He gently pried it out of her fingers and placed it on the ground beside them.

He then cupped Martha’s cheeks in his hands and looked into her face. It was now that he actually noticed the damage that Corey had done to her.

“Look what he did to you,” he said softly. She had a deep gash on her fore-head that was still bleeding quite heavily, a bruise was forming on one of her cheeks, and handprint marks were starting to show around her throat.

Jack was angry. He was angry with Corey for hurting Martha; but he was also angry with himself for letting this happen to her. He should have been able to protect her. He felt so useless.

Jack soon felt his eyes starting to fill with tears. “I thought he was going to take you away from me,” he whispered to Martha.

“Me too,” Martha cried, and wrapped her arms around Jack again. Martha needed to feel Jack’s arms around her. He made her feel safe. He would protect her.

She then pulled away from him and turned her head to look at Corey. He was lying lifeless on the floor; surrounded by Sgt McGrath and a few other officers.

A few seconds later Flynn rushed through the door and was asked to check Corey. Martha watched as Flynn checked for a pulse.

“Is he dead?” Martha asked, with fear clearly in her voice.

Flynn shook his head. “No, he’s still alive. But only just,” he confirmed.

“An ambulance is on its way. And one for you too, Miss Mackenzie,” McGrath said, and kneeled down beside Martha and Jack.

“Did he do that to your face?” McGrath asked Martha.

“Yes,” Martha nodded.

“He sure is a nasty piece of work, isn’t he?” McGrath stated. “What did he use to hit you with?” he then asked.

“Um, I think it was Irene’s kettle that he hit me with first,” Martha started. She saw the look of shock on his and Jack’s face when she mentioned the kettle. “That’s what knocked me out. But the other time he just slapped me, and then he tried to strangle me,” she continued telling them.

McGrath turned around and called out Fitzy. “Can you bag up Ms Roberts’s kettle. That’s what he used to hit Martha with,” he said. He then looked back at Martha. “We’ll leave the rest of the questioning till after you’re wounds have been treated,” he told her.

Martha then looked back at Jack. “Can we wait outside for the ambulance? I can’t stand being anywhere near him,” she asked Jack, while looking back at Corey.

He smiled at her. “Of course. Alf and Ric are outside. I’m sure they’d love to see you,” Jack replied.

Jack stood up and carefully helped Martha onto her feet. He wrapped an arm around her waist and they slowly made their way outside. In the distance Martha could hear the wailing of the ambulance siren.

Martha could see Irene standing with Barry, Kim and Hayley. And she saw her grandad standing with Ric and Tony; they were being held back by two police officers. Nobody was allowed to enter the house.

Martha saw the look on Alf’s face when he seen how badly she was hurt. “Look at your face,” he gasped when her and Jack reached him.

Martha didn’t say anything; she just flung her arms around her grandad. “I’m fine,” she reassured him.

Martha then felt Ric’s arms wrap around her from behind; completing the family embrace.

**************

[bay girl]

WARNING-This chapter may contain some material not suitable for younger people.

CHAPTER TWENTY

Martha sat alone in her hospital room. She couldn’t help but feel nervous about being by herself. She hoped someone would come and sit with her soon. She’d had her face cleaned and stitched up, so she was feeling a bit better; but still quite sore. All she wanted now was to go home.

She heard a noise coming from the door and looked up. She smiled when she saw Jack enter the room; closing the door behind him.

“Hey. How are you feeling?” he asked, sitting down beside her.

“I’m okay,” she answered.

Jack picked up her hand and started caressing it softly with his own. Martha looked down at their conjoined hands and smiled softly. She then looked back up at Jack who was watching her intently.

“For a while there I didn’t think I‘d ever get to touch you again,” she told him.

“You can’t get rid of me that easily,” Jack said, leaning over to give Martha a kiss. But before their lips touched, a knock at the door interrupted them.

“Sorry if I’m interrupting, but I need to ask you a few questions,” McGrath said, sticking his head into the room.

“Come in,” Martha invited him in.

McGrath entered the room and stood next to the bed. “You’re looking much better,” he commented.

“Thanks,” Martha smiled lightly. “I feel better”.

“You probably don’t want to know, not that I blame you, but Corey is stable. For the time being anyway,” McGrath told them.

“What’s going to happen to me?” Martha asked. “I mean, I shot him. What if he dies? Will I be in trouble?” she continued, starting to get upset.

“Hey, calm down. You’re not in trouble,” Jack tried to comfort her. Jack then looked up at his boss. “Right?” he asked.

McGrath nodded. “We saw what he was doing to you. You we’re just protecting yourself. If you hadn’t of defended yourself, you’d probably be dead,” he began. “We’re looking at it as self-defence,” he finished.

Martha relaxed a bit; relieved that she wasn’t in any form of trouble or going to prison, for that matter.

“Look, I hate to do this now, but I need for you to tell me exactly what occurred today,” McGrath started speaking again. “I want you to start at the beginning. I need to know when and how many times he hit you, what sort of things he said. Especially what he told you about his mother’s death and how he was involved,” McGrath exclaimed.

Martha took a deep breath; preparing herself to explain the horrible events of that day.

**************

By the time Martha had finished her story, she was in tears again. It was hard having to relive everything. She just wanted it to be over.

“Will you lay with me?” Martha asked Jack, once McGrath had left the room.

Jack smiled at her and nodded. He sat down on the bed and pulled Martha into his arms; lying back onto the bed.

“The nurse told me I could go home. I don’t have to spend the night here,” Martha sniffed.

“That’s good,” Jack said, rubbing her back.

“Can I stay with you tonight?” Martha asked. She didn’t want to be alone. Sure, her grandad would be home, but she really wanted to be with Jack.

“Of course you can. I wouldn’t have it any other way,” Jack told her.

Martha smiled, and buried her face in Jack’s chest. She loved the feel of his arms around her; making her feel warm and safe.

They lay in silence for a few more minutes before Martha started speaking again. “I thought he was going to kill me Jack,” she said suddenly.

Jack didn’t even want to think about Martha being dead, or how close she could have come to be being killed. He wasn’t ready to talk about that yet. “Let’s not talk about that now. I just want you to forget about it and rest,” he began. “Alf should be here soon with some clean clothes. Then we can go home and you can get some sleep,” he finished.

Jack looked down at Martha; taking in the bruises on her face and neck. He even noticed that there were some bruises forming on her wrists and upper arms. They were probably from where Corey was grabbing her. She looked so innocent and fragile lying in his arms. How anyone could want to hurt her was beyond him.

Jack couldn’t wait to confront Corey. He couldn’t wait to tell him that he had lost. As much as Jack despised the guy, he was actually kind of glad that Corey was still alive. That way he would go to jail and would rot there for a very long time. It was what he deserved.

*********************

Martha lay curled up on Jacks’ bed; waiting for him to get out of the shower. She had already showered and was now wearing an over-sized shirt of Jack’s as PJ’s.

She rolled over onto her stomach and looked around his room. This was the first time she had been in there since they had gotten back together. She loved Jack’s room; it was so warm and comforting. It would be better if Jack was there with her. For some reason now she didn’t like being alone. God, she hoped that she didn’t turn into one of those clingy people who needed to be around someone all the time because they were scared. Everyone would get sick of her. Jack would probably get sick of her.

Martha buried her face into Jack’s pillow and started to cry. This is all Corey’s fault, she thought. Why did he do this to me?

After a few more minutes Martha finally heard Jack’s door open. She watched from the corner of her eye as Jack quietly crept into the room and closed the door. He must have thought that she was asleep.

“You don’t have to be quiet, I’m awake,” she said, sitting up into a cross-legged position.

“I thought you’d have been asleep by now,” he said, looking over at her as he pulled on a pair of track pants.

“I wanted to wait for you,” Martha told him; almost feeling shy.

Jack smiled and moved over to the bed, sitting down opposite her. They looked at each other for a few moments; neither really knowing what to say. They both felt what they wanted to say, but they didn’t know how to actually say it.

Martha, who was finding it hard to keep her emotions at bay, finally broke the silence. “I was so scared,” she dissolved into tears.

“Don’t cry,” Jack whispered, moving closer to her and taking her hand in his. “It’s all over now. You don’t have to worry anymore,” he soothed; raising her hand to his lips and placing a soft kiss on the inside of her palm.

Martha couldn’t stop the tears from falling. “I was afraid I’d never see you again,” she sobbed. “I don’t ever want to be alone and without you again”.

“Come here,” Jack said softly, and pulled Martha into his lap; wrapping his arms tightly around her waist. “We’re together now, and that’s all that matters,” he said.

Jack gently raised a hand to her cheek and ran his fingers over the bruise that had formed there; being careful not to hurt her. Then he softly ran his fingers down her face until they reached her throat; where more bruises were starting to get darker. He ran his fingers over them; gently caressing her neck.

“I’m sorry I let this happen. I should have been able to stop him from hurting you,” Jack whispered.

“You didn’t know what he was going to do. It’s not your fault,” Martha told him, cupping his face in her hands. “Don’t ever think that it is,” she continued.

“I don’t know what I would have done if I had of lost you,” Jack exclaimed.

“You didn’t lose me,” Martha smiled; despite the tears still rolling down her face.

“There was another thing that really scared me,” Martha said.

“What would that be?” Jack queried.

“I didn’t think I’d get the chance to tell you that I ……” Martha began. She paused and took a deep breath. “I love you,” she said in a hushed voice.

Jack smiled and lowered his lips closer to her own. His warm mouth gently closed over hers and she met him in a deep, lingering kiss.

Jack then slowly pulled away; looking deep into Martha’s eyes. “I love you too,” he whispered.

Martha smiled back at him; her eyes still glistening with tears. She was so happy that he felt the same way as she did. Then he was kissing her again, and she was kissing him back. It was as tender and tentative and as thrilling as a first kiss.

Martha placed her hands around Jack’s body and softly ran them over the expanse of his back; water droplets still clinging to his skin. Jack rested one of his hands on her bare upper thigh; which proceeded to shoot hot sparks throughout her body. Martha placed her hand on top of Jack’s; pushing it further up her thigh, wanting Jack to touch her even more.

Hesitantly at first, Jack pulled away from Martha’s embrace. “We probably shouldn’t be doing this right now. You really need some rest,” he said softly.

“I don’t want to rest,” she pouted. “I just want you,” she said honestly.

“Who am I to say no to you,” Jack smiled.

“Exactly. And besides, I got hurt today,” Martha smirked. “And I really need you to make me feel better,” she teased.

Jack let out a small laugh and pulled her back into his arms.

****************

Okay, so I’m thinking another two chapters and this fic will finally be complete.