At All Costs

Sweat rolled down her forehead, Anya continued to toss and turn as a low moan escaped her lips; panic curdled in her stomach causing it race up her body. Ice blue eyes and a mocking sneer refused to allow her to escape him.

A bloodcurdling scream ripped free from her throat, her body snapped up from the mattress; Anya's eyes were wild with fear as she gasped for breath. It seemed that no matter what she did, Lincoln would always haunt her dreams. Sighing, Anya slipped from her bed and headed for the bathroom; as was her custom each night after her nightmares, she would shower to wake herself up and then write down the details just as her therapist suggested.

The hot water soothed away the remainders of the fear that had wracked her body only moments earlier. Her mind couldn't help but return to the frightening memory of Lincoln's death: Lincoln was screaming at her as he drove. The car was swerving dangerously as rain drenched the windshield making it impossible to see the road. Anya begged Lincoln to slow down. She felt his hand hard against her cheek...' she could still feel her skin stinging from the force of his hand, 'The car had taken the curve too fast just as Anya's left hand quietly unbuckled her seat belt, while her other hand rested on the door handle.

Anya turned her face up towards the shower head, allowing the hot water to run down her face, keeping her eyes closed as that night continued to play behind her eyelids: ' “Lincoln, please slow down!” sobbed Anya her heart pounding furiously against her chest

“Say it!” screamed Lincoln his knuckles bone white as he gripped the steering wheel, “Say that you belong to me!”

“I belong to you!” shrieked Anya her hands aching from holding onto the door handle so tightly

The car swerved dangerously close the guard rails, Lincoln didn't seem to notice the danger he was placing them both in. Suddenly he stomped on the brake causing Anya to slam against the jockey box, pain radiated from her chest. The car blocked both lanes of the high way.

Lincoln grabbed a handful of her dark brown hair and began to pull her towards him, fear engulfed her entirely! Twisting around, Anya opened her mouth and bit into his arm as hard as she could; he roared with pain and fury, his grip on her hair loosened and before he could do anything, Anya jumped out of the vehicle!

She began to run as fast as she could down the highway. Anya glanced back just as a truck crashed into Lincoln's car! The sound of crunching metal was sickening, she stood there shocked; Anya didn't know what to do. If Lincoln survived, there would be no chance for a second escape but she needed to know if the other driver was okay...'

Anya stood in front of the steam covered mirror, wrapped in a soft blue towel she wiped the mirror with one hand to reveal blood shot eyes, and skin that had paled with fear; the scene continued to play in her mind her body freezing with remembrance of the intense horror that she had felt that night. Her body broke out into a cold sweat.

'Cautiously, Anya walked over to the wreckage, her eyes glued to her boyfriends car in fear that he would suddenly jump out. She checked on the other driver and although he was out cold, Anya was relieved that he had a steady pulse. Inching her way towards the black sports car, she could see through the broken glass that Lincoln was slumped over the steering wheel. Blood ran from his forehead, Anya couldn't see any signs of breathing and she knew she didn't have the courage to place her fingers on his neck to check for a pulse.

Anya pulled her cell phone from her purse and dialed 9-1-1; after reporting the accident, she made her way down the high way. Despite the way her escape began, Anya was not going to throw away the opportunity to start a new life.

The accident was eight months ago, and Anya couldn't seem to escape the torture of the horrifically violent night; no matter what technique her therapist tried, Anya knew that when she closed her eyes his ice blue eyes would always find her. Even now as she lay in bed writing down her nightmare, she could hear his mocking laugh taunting her.

Her clock told her that it was three in the morning, and although she worked from home as a journalist, Anya knew she needed to try again to get some sleep. Reluctantly closing her journal, she pulled the blankets up to her chin; she left the lamp on and fell into a fitful sleep.

He saw the light turn on, just like it had every night for the last few nights; he smirked as the song 'Killing me softly' filled his room. She had always hated that song, he played it often just to see the look of fear in her eyes. Whistling, he sauntered back to his bed and turned the lamp off, 'Tomorrow's a big day!'

The next day...

8:00 am

Groaning, Anya rolled over and groggily glared at her alarm clock that started blaring 'The way you make me feel' by Michael Jackson. Sitting up, she tried to rub the gritty feeling from her eyes; 'What I wouldn't do for at least one night of uninterrupted sleep...' sighed Anya making her way back to the bathroom

A few minutes later, Anya decided she needed fresh air and food before she could finish her article. Grabbing her purse, she stepped outside. After locking her door, Anya closed her eyes briefly, relishing the warm sun on her face.

Anya made her way to her favourite cafe; when she started her new life, she made sure she chose a home that was close to a cafe, a grocery store and such that would be within walking distance. Being in a car triggered panic attacks, so Anya felt it was best to avoid being in a vehicle for awhile. Anya slowed her pace, a frown turned her lips upside down; she stopped and took a deep breath to calm her racing heart. 'It's okay Anya...you're safe.' she thought forcing her body to relax, and slowly turned around.

A sharp bitter laugh escaped her throat, 'Your such a fool...he's not here! He's dead!' Anya thought shaking her head slightly

A few moments later, Anya made her way back home with her hot chocolate in one hand and a bag of hot food in the other. Once she made it to her house, Anya sat on the steps and eagerly dug into her food. He observed her from his house, 'She looks peaceful...' he thought narrowing his icy blue eyes, 'however, it's time she remembers who she belongs to!'

He slipped his arms into his coat, his hand immediately found the gun in his pocket; he pulled his hat down low over his eyes and shut his door behind him. Once he stood directly across from her, he forced himself to stand still. He waited for her to notice him.

Draining her cup of it's sweet liquid, she began to clean up her mess. The hair on her arms stood straight up. Slowly, she raised her eyes to search for the cause of this panic attack; it didn't take long until her eyes found his! A slow grin lit up his face, though his eyes remained hard with the promise of violence! Her eyes widened in fear, her mouth dropped open in shock. Anya stood, her hands trembled violently, dropping her garbage to the ground, as they desperately tried to fish her keys out of her pants pocket.

“Impossible...” breathed Anya backing up with each step that he took closer to her

“What's impossible, sweetheart?” crooned Lincoln picking up his pace

Anya jumped when her back touched the front door to her home; 'I can't breathe!' Anya panicked gasping for air.

“Your dead! I saw you in the car, you weren't moving!” Anya whispered as her mind tried to think of a way to get inside to call the police before he could get to her

“Surprise!” laughed Lincoln mockingly, “Word of advice darling...in order to make sure someone is dead, you need to check their pulse!”

“Lincoln, please...” begged Anya holding the sharp end of her house key out in case he attacked, “Please leave me alone.”

Lincoln took another step closer, she could see the malice in his eyes, the sneer that made his lips curl. His cologne filled her nostrils, the smell making her nauseous; 'Anya, you can do this! You are strong,' breathed Anya as she focused on the calming techniques her therapist taught her, 'you are stronger than him...he can't hurt you anymore! Don't let him hurt you!'

“Say it!” growled Lincoln anger filling his body, “Say you belong to me and we can start fresh, right now.”

“N-no Lincoln, I won't say that,” stammered Anya taking another deep breath, “I do NOT belong to you! Now leave me alone!”

Lincoln raised an eyebrow, he had never heard her speak to him like that before and it infuriated him, “You know, when the paramedics pulled me from the car...my only thought was to find you, to remind you of our love. I thought you'd been hurt...when I was told that there wasn't a woman at the scene, I felt relieved.”

He took another step closer, Lincoln looked down at her and sneered, “I knew that you would never leave me, because you are not strong enough...you need me.” his hand lightly squeezed the back of her neck as he spoke to emphasize his words

“That's where your wrong, Lincoln,” whispered Anya closing her eyes, causing her tears to spill onto her cheeks, “A part of me will love you still for the next little while but that love will extinguish as I rebuild my life...goodbye Linc!”

Before he could say or do anything, she brought her knee up sharply into his groin! His eyes grew wide with surprise, his grip on her neck ended; when he stumbled a few steps backwards, she slammed the heel of her hand directly into his nose. A loud crack filled the air! Blood gushed from his nose, causing him to stumble down to his knees.

Jamming her key into her door, Anya quickly unlocked it and rushed inside. She had just locked the door when the doorknob began to jiggle; pulling her phone from her purse, Anya called 9-1-1 and alerted the police to her situation.

“Miss, stay on the phone with me until the police arrive at your residence. They should be there in five to seven minutes.”

“Please, tell them to hurry...” cried Anya as she checked the peephole

Her heart launched into her throat, “I-I don't see him anymore...”

As if in response her unspoken question, glass shattered in the living room! Before she could react, Lincoln stood in the doorway, blood staining his face and shirt. Pure hatred radiated from his eyes, Anya's eyes found the gun that was shaking in his hand.

“Put the phone down Anya!” snarled Lincoln staggering towards her unsteadily, “Now!”

Putting the phone on speaker, she lowered it to the floor, keeping her eyes on him as she did so; Anya held her hands up and took a step towards him.

“Lincoln, put the gun down,” whispered Anya softly, “We can work something out, I promise.”

Lincoln cocked the gun and aimed, his voice came out in a haggard growl, “Go pack your belongings Anya...you are coming with me!”

Slowly, Anya moved towards the staircase, acutely aware that he was following her. Once they'd made it to the first landing, Anya whirled around and shoved him; as Lincoln fell, he grabbed her arm and pulled her with him. The gun dropped to the floor.

He quickly got on top of her, one hand on her throat while the other stretched for the gun that had landed a short distance away. Adrenaline coursed through Anya as she dug her nails into his arm, sirens blaring in the distance became louder and louder as tires finally screeched to a stop outside her house.

The struggle for the gun intensified, as she tried to push him away from her; one wrong move and the gun would go off. The only question was: who would it kill?

She could hear the police pounding up the steps to her front door; Lincoln kept one hand on the weapon and drove his fist into her cheek over and over again. Anya refused to relinquish her hold on the gun however.

Just as the police burst through the door, a single gun shot sliced through the commotion...

The room went still.

Finally, Anya gasped for air, her eyes snapped open; her chest began to heave desperately. She felt a sticky wetness cover her chest, Lincoln's weight seemed to grow heavier with each passing second. A gurgling sound came from his lips, the sound was soon in her ear as she heard him whisper, “I will always love you, Anya...” his last gasp of air filled her mind as his head softly thudded against the wooden floor

As Anya could feel Lincoln's body being lifted off of her, relief flooded her body. 'I'm free...'

An officer helped her over to one of the living room couches to wait for paramedics once it was determined that she was not injured and could be moved. Anya felt numb and cold even as a blanket was wrapped around her shoulders, she could hear the officers speaking to her but it felt as though their voices were miles away.

She pulled her knees up to her chest and closed her eyes for a few moments; 'I can't believe it's finally over...' breathed Anya as she glanced towards the door

Lincoln's body was being rolled past on a gurney, a white sheet had been draped over his body; her eyes followed him until he was out of view.

“Miss, you seem to be alright,” informed one of the paramedics, “I recommend that you go see your doctor in the morning for a follow up.”

“Okay,” sighed Anya, “Thank you.”

She watched the paramedics leave as she assured the police officers she would give them a statement in the morning and soon watched them leave as well.

Later that night...

Anya lay in bed staring up at the ceiling, her mind going over the events earlier that day over and over again. She had called her boss and after promising to send in the article the next day, requested a stress leave. Anya felt like she needed time to piece her life back together, and that is exactly what she planned to do for the next few months.

Anya rolled over and turned off her alarm; a tiny smile lifted her lips as she thought, “I'm free!”. With that thought in her mind, she stretched her arm and turned off her lamp. A few minutes later, she fell into a peaceful sleep.