“No…” she whispered, “no….”
She slammed the window then, making Paris yelp.
“No! FUCK! NO! NO!” she tried to get to the door, but he pulled her back down as she sobbed. “No! Stop it! Stop it! That was my dad’s house! THAT WAS MY DAD’S HOUSE! NO!”
“Riley, calm down,” he tried to reason.
“LET ME GO! LET ME THE FUCK GO!”
“Riley,” he warned, “listen.”
“LET ME GO!” she screamed. “LET ME THE FUCK GO! NOW!”
Paris cradled her against him when she started screaming, kicking out her legs despite the pain burning inside her.
“NO!” she cried. “Stop this from happening! WHAT’S HAPPENING? STOP THIS FROM HAPPENING!”
“Veo,” Paris told the driver.
“Yes?” he said.
“I need the kit,” he said. “Now.”
The man named Veo tossed him a fabric zip-able box, but Riley didn’t pay much attention, just fought Paris as she watched her childhood home burn down.
Paris unzipped the box and pulled out a syringe filled with some kind of liquid, but Riley clearly hadn’t seen it because she was kicking and scratching and pushing against him.
He quickly ripped off a bag of alcohol wipes and wiped her shoulder, and she tried to fight the wet substance off because it was distracting her, clearly not smelling it.
He then pulled her down against him and pierced the needle into her arm, making her cry out.
“What are you doing?” she cried. “What are you doing?”
He held her to him, pressing the fluid into her veins as she exhaled a whimper. “Don’t be afraid, alright? It’s just going to calm you down. If you want, I can keep you awake. I just can’t have you freaking out like this. You’re going to kill yourself if you jump out the door, Riley.”
She weakened against him. ”Please… take it out.”
He took the needle out after her plead, but all the fluid was in her muscles anyway, so he just put the syringe back in the kit and threw it to the floor.
She started sobbing silently, and Paris held her tighter.
“I know…” he said. “I know… I’m really sorry. But I needed you to calm down, you’re going to be fine, I promise.”
She continued to sob.
“Shhh…” he murmured, “what do you want? To look out the window or something?”
“Yes…” she whispered.
“Okay,” he said, “I’ll move you.” And he lifted her limp body in his arms, positioning her head on his shoulder so she could see outside the back-seat window. “You’ll be okay,” he said again, “I promise.”
A single tear slipped down her cheek, and he brushed it away with his thumb.
“Just relax,” he said, “we’ll be there in a little.”
“What did you inject me with…?” she whispered somberly.
“It’s just a sedative,” he told her gently. “It’ll help with your aching muscles, too. But it’s not lethal, alright? It’s going to help you. You’ll be alright.”
She was silent.
“If you’re afraid to go to sleep because of it,” he told her, “then tell me to keep you awake, okay? I’ll happily keep you up so you don’t feel scared to sleep and never wake up.”
Another tear slipped down her cheek.
“Please,” he said, brushing it away, “don’t cry, okay? You’re safe, Riley.” He circled his arms around her. “You’re safe now. I promise. You, Claire, and your mother are safe.”
Why did they never mention Ryan? Did they just hate him or something?
