Claimed by My Silent Protector

Two and a Half Years Ago Abbey’s POV The door to our two story home, slams open, seconds before my husband appears, but instead of his usual, happy go lucky demeanour, his eyes are wild as he grabs hold of my wrists. ‘Abs, you need to go and pack right now’ he orders desperately, his gaze flicking over his shoulder toward the front door behind him. ‘What? Why? What are you talking about?’ I ask in confusion. ‘Don’t ask questions Abs, just do as I say! Go and get Robyn and pack quickly!’ ‘I’m just serving dinner . . ‘ I argue, turning slightly as though I’m about to head back to the kitchen where the pasta is bubbling on the stove. ‘Abbey!’ Paul’s angry bark makes me jump and I turn back to him to find his eyes filled with fear. ‘Please baby, just . . just do what I tell you’ he begs, ‘I’ll explain when we are in the car, but we need to go right now.’ ‘O . . Ok’ I stammer, nodding quickly as he lets out a sigh of relief and releases me so I can head for the stairs. I don’t even make the first step before the sound of sirens fills the air. ‘F.uck!’ Paul yells, yanking at his short black hair as he turns toward the front door and strides over to lock it. ‘Paul . .’ I call out fearfully. ‘F.uck Abbey! I told you we had to leave! Why couldn’t you just do what I told you!’ he yells as he starts to pace back and forth in our small entryway. Doors slam as our house lights up with red and blue flashing lights that shine through our windows. ‘Paul Hobkirk, this is the police, you are surrounded, come out with your hands up’ a voice calls out through a megaphone. ‘F.UCK!’ Paul screams, balling his fists and slamming them into the front door, ‘F.UCK, F.UCK, F.UCK’ My eyes widen as he reaches behind him, pulling a gun out of the waistband of his trousers. My husband has a gun! Why does he have a gun? He’s a salesman! Paul grips the gun tightly, leaning against the edge of the door frame and peeking through the small sliver of glass that separates us from the outside world. ‘Paul Hobkirk! Can you pick up the phone so we can at least talk to you?’ the megaphone barks a second time, my husband freezing at the sound of his name as our landline starts to ring. ‘Mommy?’ A scared little voice calls out to me as I wrench my gaze from the man, I thought I knew like the back of my hand, and look over at my Eighteen month old daughter, her bright green eyes and red hair the image of my own. Those familiar eyes are filling with tears as she sits on the carpet, her tv show still playing behind her as she stares at me, terrified. ‘It’s OK baby’ I murmur quietly, not wanting to draw Paul’s attention to our little girl. ‘Don’t be scared, everything is fine’ I add, forcing a smile to my lips as she nods slowly. I try to inch around the wall, behind my husband who is muttering to himself, his eyes wild, but the moment I move, his gaze snaps to mine. ‘What are you doing?’ he demands harshly and I still under his intense gaze, my eyes dropping in fear to the barrel that is now aimed at me. ‘I . .I . .’ I stammer, my gaze flicking to our daughter and then back to him as his attention follows my own. ‘F.uck’ he growls, before smoothing out his face and smiling at Robyn, ‘it’s OK baby, Daddy is just having a bad day, but everything is fine’ he tells her. The phone starts to ring again, but Paul ignores it, his attention solely on our child who looks so scared and confused that my heart feels like it’s ripping in two. Robyn’s bottom lip trembles, her innocent eyes wide in fear. My husband crouches down, holding out the hand that doesn’t have the gun, beckoning her toward him. ‘Come here baby, come to Daddy, it’s OK’ he tells her, our toddler biting her lip as she continues to watch him with uncertainty. ‘Come on sweetheart’ Paul continues to coax as my heart thunders in my chest. I see my daughter waver, her eyes flicking to me as I try to silently tell her to stay put. I never thought I would ever see the day that I wouldn’t trust my husband with his own child but right now, I don’t want her anywhere near him. ‘It’s OK baby, Daddy is right here’ my husband murmurs, and I see her shift slightly, her little hands moving to the floor as though she’s about to stand up. ‘NO!’ I scream, launching myself from the first step of the stairs, my body tense, preparing for the loud bang, before a bullet ploughs into me but not caring. All that matters is getting to my baby, protecting her from whatever the hell is going on. I reach my daughter, scooping her up and cradling her to my chest as I keep my back to Paul, a sob ripping from my throat. ‘What the f.uck Abbey!’ my husband snaps angrily, and I force my gaze to him, finding him staring at me with shock. I keep my back to him, shielding our daughter as I see the comprehension dawn on his face. ‘For F.ucks sake! I wasn’t going to hurt her!’ he growls angrily, ‘I would never hurt her! Never hurt you! I love you!’ ‘You have a gun Paul’ I snap back, my terror mixing with my anger, ‘you have a f.ucking gun in your hand!’ My husband looks down at the weapon in mild surprise, as though he’d forgotten it was even there before looking back up at me, his face falling. ‘You . . you think I was going to shoot you?’ he asks, hurt lacing his voice. ‘You really think I would kill you? Kill my daughter?’ I shrug, still keeping my back to him, not willing to put my baby in his line of sight, if he’s going to hurt her, he’ll have to do it over my cold, dead body. ‘I don’t know what you would do’ I mutter, ‘I don’t even know who you are right now!’ ‘Paul Hobkirk, this is your last warning, if you do not comply, we will have no option but to force entry! We don’t want anyone to get hurt here, think about your family, they don’t deserve this, so come out with your hands above your head’ the loud voice from outside booms. ‘Why are they here Paul?’ I whisper, ‘why are the police on our lawn? What have you done?’ The man I married, tugs at his hair, his shoulders slumping as he shakes his head. ‘I . .’ he gives me a look, one full of regret that cuts through me. ‘I need to go out there’ he mutters, ‘I don’t want them storming in here, not with Robyn right here, she doesn’t need to see that . . ‘ ‘Paul . . ‘ I start, but the words are cut off as a crash sounds from the back of our house at the same time that the front door is kicked from its hinges. I scream in fear as Robyn clings to me, her wails of terror ingraining themselves into my mind. I watch my husband as he is sent crashing to the floor, two huge men in tactical gear pinning him as he’s disarmed and cuffed. A third man, hurries toward me, blocking my view of my husband as he tries to get my attention, but I can’t focus on him, everything around me is swimming. ‘Abbey!’ I can hear my husband screaming my name, ‘Abbey! Let me see my wife! Please! I just need to see my wife!’ I shake off the officer as he tries to touch me, shifting so I can see the man I thought was my end game as he’s dragged to his feet, his eyes landing on me instantly. His expression is filled with fear as he holds my gaze, refusing to put his head down, holding my gaze as he fights against his captors to stay where he is. I open my mouth to call out to him but he shakes his head at me, silencing me as his gaze pleads with me to do as he says. My eyes widen as I wait, knowing that I need to hear what he has to say, my heart stilling as he mouths one word. ‘RUN!’