[kiasusam]

Chapter Ten

She appeared out of nowhere. Watching me with blank eyes, she didn't attempt to speak. 

"Oh, hey. You startled me." I was so disappointed. After not seeing her a few days I thought she was gone for good. Her expression never changed. Nervousness was starting to seep in, so I spoke again. "Are you okay?"

She darted towards me so quickly I didn't have time to react. I fell back hard and she was screaming at the top of her lungs. I hit the floor while she slammed the door. There was a loud crash just outside. The weight of whatever fell was so heavy, a cloud of dust lifted from the floor. A minute passed before I reacted to her assault. The door was obstructed by something and would only open a couple inches. 

"Isabelle?!" I yelled. I don't think she could not hear me over her screams and the sound of furniture crashing. I yelled louder. 

"No more Mr. Du Bois! No More." Her screams projected through sobs of emotion and hurt. Her voice was shaky and unstable. Deep in my gut I had a fear I had never felt before. Ashley was in danger and I had to protect her. "Isabelle!" I roared. "Please talk to me, Isabelle!" 

"I end this now. You lie to me!" She accused.

"No Isabelle, No. I didn't meant to hurt you I'm sorry. Please don't do this!"

I watched as best I could through the crack in the door. She appeared in my line of sight with a length of rope. She threw the rope into the rafters and it crashed back down to the floor. 

"No. No. No. Isabelle, please God don't do this." My fears gave way to panic and I felt the muscles of my body harden. My reactions became pure instinct and I crashed into the door with all my might. I was a caged beast trying to get free. The door wouldn't give not matter how hard I pushed. I stepped back and rammed it with my shoulder. Pain sliced through me but I didn't stop my pursuit. I cried out in anguish each time I hit the door. I feared my body would break down before my obstacle, but no matter how insurmountable, I was determined to get through.

Isabelle managed to hook the rope on a rafter and was struggling to tie a slip knot that would hold it in place. She was crying uncontrollably which made her task even more daunting. She kept fumbling the rope and had to start over. She would look in my direction each time I battered the door. The hits were so loud it sounded like the walls were crumbling around me. She figured out she could accomplish her objective by tying a simple loop in the rope and sliding the opposite end through it. She pulled the rope and watched the loop slide to the rafter until the length of rope no longer gave slack. 

Seeing how close she was getting to her objective, I completely lost my mind. My shoulder became a lifeless battering ram. I couldn't lift my arm or rotate my shoulder blades, but no matter what, I was determined to get free. I ran with all my might and collided with the door. My body didn't bounce back to the floor like it had in previous attempts; but instead fell forward as the top half of the door split. As I was trying to pick myself up from the wreckage, I glanced up to see Isabelle stepping on a chair and wrapping the rope around her neck.

I leaped through the shattered door ready to put an end to Isabelle's plans when all the sudden my leg sank into the back of the armoire that was wedged between the door and opposite wall. My body landed hard in an awkward position half-way on top of the armoire and the floor. As I pulled my leg out of its tangles my eyes shot up to Isabelle to see if my sister was still safe. Our eyes met. If not for the flow of tears running down her cheeks, she would have appeared calm.

Continuing Chapters on next New Thread entitled "ISABELLA"