Free A Proscriptive Relationship by Jordan Lynde Page A

with Mr. Heywood at first, then went off his own way. I tried to say something, but his strong hand muffled my words. The man yanked me away from the tree. My fingernails scraped against the bark, getting it stuck between the nail and skin as I tried to keep my grasp on the tree. I winced in pain.
    “ It would really be bad if I let you loose and you told someone about what was going on here,” the thug commented, resting his chin on my shoulder. “We wouldn’t want that.”
    I tried to bite his hand, but only managed to lick it. I made a face as he chuckled. “How did you know I enjoyed that kind of thing?”
    I almost gagged. His hand moved to my stomach and my muscles tightened as he rubbed it gently. “You have such a flat stomach. And you’re pretty good looking too,” the thug commented in a thoughtful voice. “I bet we could have some fun with you.”
    That’s when I snapped. I brought my head back as hard as I could, smashing it into his. He groaned in pain and I quickly shoved my legs against the ground, throwing us both off balance. The thug toppled over backwards and I fell with him. To save himself from hitting the ground full force, he let go of me, and I quickly rolled to the side and was on my feet in a matter of seconds. Thank god for adrenaline.
    The thug flung out his arm, aiming for my feet, but I quickly dodged him. I made to run through the woods and back to the fair, but my eyes roamed to the clearing and I gasped. The bald man was creeping up behind Mr. Heywood, a bat raised high in his hand. The other two men were holding onto Mr. Heywood’s arms, keeping him faced away from the man with the baseball bat.
    “ Mr. Heywood!” I screamed.
    All four men in the clearing turned to me. My eyes met Mr. Heywood’s. He stared at me, half in horror and half in shock. The bald man moved in again.
    “ Behind y—ah!” Something hard slammed into my side, cutting me off, and knocking me to the ground. I fell hard, and my breath was knocked out of me. My head landed on its side, facing towards the clearing. I watched as Mr. Heywood avoided the bat by an inch. I exhaled in relief, but it turned into a grunt as I suddenly felt pressure on my head.
    “ Next time you try that, I’ll break your neck,” the brunet whispered. His body sat heavily on top of mine and his hand pressed my head into the ground.
    Mr. Heywood looked at me for a split second, his face in a tight line. The thug with the bat raised it again while Mr. Heywood was still focused on me.
    “ Mr. Heywood!” I screamed again, half in panic and half in annoyance at how he kept looking away from the enemy. He couldn’t be that stupid.
    The pressure on my head increased and a groan escaped my lips. My vision went black for a moment, but before I could panic it returned. Mr. Heywood ripped his arms out of the two gangsters’ grasps, thrusting his elbow into the bald man. The thug dropped the bat and raised his hands to his face, swearing loudly. Mr. Heywood turned and swung his right fist at his head, striking him down.
    My head throbbed as I watched Mr. Heywood turn to the other two gangsters, who were in fighting stances. Mr. Heywood swung towards the one on the right, who avoided it with a block and then the one on the left swung at Mr. Heywood, who dodged it, spinning, and sending his fist into the right one’s face. I watched, slightly impressed, slightly awed, and slightly afraid as Mr. Heywood proceeded to pummel the two gangsters.
    The man pinning me to the ground clicked his tongue and loosened his grasp on me, starting to push himself onto his feet. I turned the moment to my advantage. With my head still slightly spinning, I rolled out from under him, and swung my leg out hitting him where the sun didn’t shine. He groaned and fell back to the ground. I kicked him in the side hard.
    “ That’s for punching a girl!” I told him, and turned to Mr. Heywood.
    Only one gangster was still standing. I watched incredulously as the