BELLA opened the door and noticed that Cole was laying against the wall sleeping, and Elliot was curled up beside him, his head on Cole's lap. She tried not to make too much noise as she closed the door and took a deep breath, running her fingers through her hair.

"They caught you?" she heard Cole whisper.

Bella jumped and looked over to find his grey eyes looking up at her. She noticed dark stubble beginning to grow around his jawline, and his hair was messy, several strands falling into his eyes.

She furrowed her eyebrows and lowered herself slowly to sit beside him, eyeing him in confusion.

"How do you know that I tried to escape?" she asked him, and he tried to shift his posture as best as he could without waking Elliot.

"I knew you would figure it out," Cole said, leaning his back against the wall and flinching immediately.

Bella stared at him, "I'm confused..."

Cole took a deep breath. "When they first took me out of this room, her boyfriend left the door to the basement open."

Bella pulled her lips into a straight line and listened, still not understanding.

"The bitch started yelling at him," Cole continued, "telling him he left it open every single time he would go downstairs, but, I couldn't try anything because I was tied up and they were holding on to me," he explained. "I knew he most likely left it open again, and I knew she would throw you out of the room because she hates you so much, so that's why I tried my best to buy you some time."

Bella's eyes widened as she played with her fingers. "That's... really smart, I thought you were just being dumb," she praised.

Cole exhaled. "I wish it would have worked out, though."

Burning frustration suddenly sprouted from the depths of Bella's chest, as she realized the danger he put himself in. "Actually, no, that was stupid, Cole! You could have died, and- what... what did they even do to you?" Bella asked, scouring her eyes over him and noticing there were no fresh marks on his bare chest.

Cole seemed alarmed by her instant change in attitude. "Nothing," he dismissed, looking down at Elliot.

"You don't realize how dangerous it is to talk back to that woman. She could very easily kill you," Bella explained, pulling the sandwich out and unwrapping it.

Cole stared at her. "How'd you get that?"

"She let me go and gave me this," she whispered, breaking off a piece and feeding it to Cole since his hands were still tied. "She was about to kill me, she had a long knife and... it was so scary!" She trembled at the recollection.

They were both extremely hungry and ate their pieces of the sandwich in seconds.

Bella touched Elliot's shoulder to wake him. When Elliot stirred and lifted his head from Cole's lap, Bella noticed a purple and black contusion darkening the flesh of his left eyelid and cheekbone, and his eye was almost swollen shut. Her heart dropped and her mouth fell open as she stared at him.

"Oh, God! What did they do to you?" Bella asked, her heart in her stomach.

Elliot's eyes welled up with tears.

"She punched me," Elliot said, his small voice filled with sorrow.

Bella's eyes widened. "She... she punched you?" she repeated, reaching her fingers out to gently stroke the bruised portion of Elliot's cheek bone. "Why did she do that, Sweetie?"

Elliot shrugged his shoulders. "I was scared, they were hurting Cole and he was bleeding! I tried to ask them to please stop, but they didn't! She really doesn't like me," Elliot whined. Bella pouted and kissed his forehead, before she turned to Cole with her eyes narrowed.

"Cole, what did they do to you?" Bella asked again, and Cole exhaled and closed his eyes, his dark eyelashes fanning across his cheekbones.

"They were hurting him with a black thing," Elliot answered for him. "On his back!"

Bella's hand flew up to her mouth. "Did they whip you?"

"I knew you'd get worried," Cole laughed, but his laughter wasn't filled with amusement. It was clearly threaded with pain, and Bella still couldn't believe that they were stuck in such a twisted situation.

"Let me see your back," Bella demanded, but Cole shook his head.

"Don't worry about it, Bella," Cole told her. "It's nothing I'm not used to. Growing up with an Italian father, if you even looked at him the wrong way you were whipped."

"Why do you like the idea of getting yourself killed?" Bella shouted in vexation, her fingers threading through her hair as she watched him. "You could die, do you understand?"

Cole lifted one shoulder in a shrug.

"I don't need a lecture, Mom," Cole responded. "Whatever happens, happens, and I was willing to take that risk if you were able to escape and tell somebody about us."

Bella handed Elliot the last portion of the sandwich while her eyes locked on Cole's.

"Stop doing that," Bella requested quietly, and Cole leaned his head against the wall, his electric eyes watching her intently.

"Doing what?" he asked.

Bella licked her lips and looked at the spots of blood on the wall that definitely weren't there before. Her stomach churned and she felt as if she could throw up the sandwich that second.

"Acting like you couldn't care less what happens to you. We don't need a martyr, we need somebody who can work with us to get out. You need to control yourself with her and her boyfriend, they are extremely messed up and-"

"Bella, please-" Cole tried, his eyes closing in exhaustion, but Bella cut him off.

"Why can't you just cooperate? Why do you have to talk back to her all the time?" Bella cried out. "Maybe she wouldn't hurt you so bad if you didn't."

"Bella, you don't fucking get it. She will hurt me no matter what I do. You don't know the half of it," he said, and Bella didn't understand what he meant.

"Then tell me, Cole! Stop keeping stuff from me," Bella said, her voice low as she tried not to bother Elliot, but she was beyond frustrated.

"Gesù Cristo, ti prego, aiutami," Cole mumbled to himself under his breath, and Bella's fist clenched in anger.

"I don't know what you said, but fine, Cole. Do whatever you want, I don't care anymore!" she exclaimed, her words breaking.

"Stop fighting!" Elliot's tiny voice suddenly filled the room, quieting the both of them. Once he caught their attention, his small shoulders relaxed and he rubbed his non-bruised eye. "I am tired. And you guys need to stop being mean to each other, it hurts my head."

Bella folded her arms over her stomach as she began to feel light cramping in her lower abdomen. She leaned her head against the wall and closed her eyes, listening to the steady breathing that filled the room.

She groaned a little bit at the pain that filled her stomach. She always had the worst cramps when she got her period.

"Are you okay?" Cole asked her suddenly.

"I- no, I'm fine," Bella responded, clenching her stomach slightly. "I just... have cramps."

Bella shook her head and laughed at her own expense.

"I'm over here whining about cramps while you were just brutally beaten," she whispered, tears filling her eyes as she stared at the wall ahead of her. "I deserve the beatings, not you, not Elliot."

"Don't say shit like that," Cole said quietly, his voice breaking. "Don't."

Bella closed her eyes and felt a hot tear slide down her cheek. What she would give to be rescued from this misery.

"People have to be looking for us like crazy," Bella said, her voice filled with hope, "I- I mean, you saw the news broadcast she played for us. They won't give up, they- they're going to find us."

Bella wasn't sure she believed her own words. She squeezed her eyes shut and tried to stop herself from crying.

When she opened her eyes, she saw Cole staring at her, his eyes tiredly closing shut for a few seconds before he exposed his breathtaking, light irises again.

"Bella," Cole whispered, his voice cracking.

Bella shook her head, no longer having the strength to feel embarrassed about the dried blood on the inside of her thighs.

"We don't deserve this," Bella said quietly, feeling a heavy, aching lump form in her throat.

Cole stared down at Elliot who was asleep on his lap again, facing the other way.

"I know," Cole said.

Bella's heart ached. Elliot didn't belong in such a life-threatening situation, he was just an innocent child. She felt absolutely sick at the fact that Mommy had the audacity to put her hands on him, and the anger she felt was something she had never felt before.

Bella moved over beside Cole, her bare arms feeling cold as she then leaned her head on his chest. She listened to his steady heart beat and felt calmed by the way his chest would rise and fall beneath her. His bare torso felt cold but she still felt warm comfort from being beside him and Elliot.

Tears flew from her eyes and landed on his chest, as her body began to rack with quiet cries. She couldn't control this sudden onset of sadness, but she imagined what her father was doing and how he was coping without her, and she imagined the thought of any of them dying without returning to their families.

"Stop crying," Cole pleaded, his voice gentle and hoarse. "Please."

Bella sniffled and shook her head, wiping her tears off his ribs. "I can't," she told him. "I want to get us out of here, but she despises me. She thinks I'm a slut for some reason - it makes me wonder what her actual daughter was like."

She heard Cole inhale a shaky breath. "Just relax, you have this under control," he whispered tiredly.

Bella pressed her hand against his chest and bit her lip. The room was silent for a few minutes as she continued listening to his heartbeat, her eyes closing and opening drearily every few minutes.

"I will not touch my brothers ever again, either..." She remembered saying to Mommy.

So when Bella suddenly noticed Mommy's eyes peering from the doorway, watching silently as Bella cuddled beside Cole and Elliot, her heart immediately dropped.

_

so maybe cole's not as dumb as you all thought he was!!! was that a good plan or a bad plan???

& bella will never be able to catch a break

thank you for reading!