Are You Alone in the House

by Travis Szablewski

  “I promise,” Jessie said as she slowly stood up, releasing Lorraine’s hand. Jessie turned away and moved into the foyer. Jessie’s hand grabbed the cold, wooden banister as she slowly made her way up the stairs. She stepped into the second level hallway, her eyes locked onto Reese’s bedroom door ahead. Jessie stopped…the door right in front of her. She wasn’t ready…but she had to do this. Her life…or someone else’s life…depended on it. Jessie grabbed the cold handle…and turned.

  Jessie stepped into Reese’s bedroom and walked towards her desk in the corner. Where did she put it? Where would she even hide it? Jessie pulled open the top drawer of the desk…nothing. She turned, moving towards the side table beside Reese’s bed. She pulled the drawer open…nothing.

  Jessie’s eyes then drifted to the bed.

  Maybe she took some pointers from Riley? Jessie knelt onto the floor of Reese’s bedroom…and lifted the mattress up…

  To see Riley’s little black diary.

  ***

  Jessie walked into her bedroom, slamming her newly installed bedroom door shut. She turned the lock quickly and made her way towards her bed, Riley’s diary in her hand. She didn’t want her mother to know anything about this. She had to keep her safe. She didn’t want her involved.

  Jessie sat onto her bed as she placed the black diary in front of her. She pulled her side table drawer open…and pulled out a metal nail file. Jessie placed the diary in her lap as she stabbed the sharp, pointy tip of the file into the keyhole of the small lock. She twisted it, this way and that…waiting for it to click open.

  “Come on…” Jessie begged as she turned the file to the left and then to the right.

  CLICK!

  Jessie’s eyes widened as she smiled to herself. Success. Jessie slowly opened the diary…to see…

  Nothing.

  Jessie stared down at the diary in confusion as she flipped through the many pages; not a single entry. A small, square piece of paper then fell from inside the book and danced into the air. It gracefully tumbled through the air and onto the carpet below. Jessie leaned down, snatching the small square piece of paper. She turned the small, square piece of paper over.

  Jessie’s eyes widened as she stared down at the photograph in her hand. A million questions zipped through her head as she stared down at the black and white picture. Riley’s full name was printed on the side. A small, white circle was drawn around a tiny, white blob.

  It was a sonogram.

  Riley…was pregnant.

  DECEPTION

  Jessie marched through the hallway of Woodland Hills High School. Her eyes were glued to Burke who was standing at his locker a few feet ahead. Burke was the king of deception; he lied straight to Reese’s face for a year about how he hooked up with Riley before her. If he was lying about that, what else could he possibly be lying about? What if it wasn’t just once? What if he was trying to rid the world of this horrifying mistake…and the only way he could was to kill Riley?

  “Can we talk?” Jessie said sternly as she walked up to Burke. Burke turned towards her as he shook his head.

  “Jessie, I really just want to be alone right now,” Burke said sadly as he stared into his open locker.

  “Yeah, well, too fucking bad,” Jessie growled as she slammed his locker door shut. Burke sighed as he turned towards her.

  “What do you want?” Burke asked, his temper blazing inside of him.

  “All I want is the truth, which we all know is a real fucking struggle for you,” Jessie said coldly as she dug the sonogram from her pocket and lifted it up. “Do you know anything about this?”

  “What the hell is that?” Burke asked, confused, as he took it from her. His eyes scanned the image as it slowly registered. “Who the hell is pregnant?”

  “Look at the name, Burke,” Jessie said as she pointed to Riley’s name printed down the side of it. “Riley was pregnant when she was killed.”

  “Why the hell are you showing me this?”

  “I’m showing you this because I need you to tell the truth for once in your damn life, Burke. I want to know if you knew anything about this. Was this your baby?” Jessie snapped.

  “No, it wasn’t,” Burke said sternly. “We slept together once and that was, like, a year before she died. There’s no way that it was mine.” Burke said as he shook his head.

  “Then who the hell’s baby could it have been, Burke?”

  “I don’t know. I mean, Riley wasn’t an angel! She got around and everybody knew that! I mean, look at what she did with Ethan!” Burke said.

  “She just kissed him. It was just a stupid kiss,” Jessie said defensively.

  “Well, if I could lie to Reese for a year then he could lie to you. Maybe your grilling the wrong guy, here,” Burke said as he pushed passed Jessie. Jessie spun around, following close to his side.

  “Are you seriously throwing Ethan under the bus right now? You’re the one with the horrible track record,” Jessie snapped as she grabbed Burke’s arm, stopping him. Burke turned towards her.

  “Jessie, I just lost my best fucking friend. I just lost my girlfriend. Why in the fuck are you grilling me right now? Do you not think I’ve been through enough shit? Do you not think I already feel horrible about doing what I did to Reese? That’s the last thing we ever talked about, Jessie! That’s the last conversation me and Reese ever had! Do you know how that makes me feel? I feel disgusting! I feel sick to my stomach!” Burke cried. “I treated her awful and I’m never going to get the chance to make it up her. I’m never going to be able to hold her or kiss her or tell her that I love her ever again. So, if you don’t mind…just cut me some God damn slack,” Burke spat as he spun around…and disappeared into the crowded hallway.

  TRUST

  Jessie tried to control her breathing as her heart raced inside of her chest. After school, she asked if she could come over to Ethan’s to talk. She had to get this out in the open. She had to know for sure that Ethan was being honest about his relationship with Riley. Her eyes darted to the bedroom door as it opened.

  “Are you sure you don’t want something to drink?” Ethan asked politely as he sipped from the glass of water in his hand.

  “Yeah, I’m fine,” Jessie said as her voice quivered. Ethan placed his glass onto his computer desk and sat down onto his bed beside Jessie.

  “How are you?” Ethan asked. “You didn’t talk much at school today.”

  “I’m still in shock. I keep hearing her voice…her screams. I just keep thinking about all the things I did wrong,” Jessie said.

  “You didn’t do anything wrong, Jessie,” Ethan said softly as he wrapped his skinny arm around her. Jessie moved away from him slightly, his arm falling from her shoulder. “What’s wrong?” Ethan asked, confused.

  “I’m sorry. I just…I really need to ask you something. I need you to be totally and completely honest with me, Ethan,” Jessie said.

  “You know I’d never lie to you,” Ethan said as he shook his head. Jessie took a deep breath as she pulled out the sonogram from her pocket. It trembled in her hand as she passed it to Ethan. Ethan stared down at the sonogram…and his eyes lifted to Jessie.

  “Is there anything that I need to know? Is there anything you haven’t told me about you and Riley?” Jessie asked as she fought back her tears.

  “Are you being serious right now? How can you even ask that?” Ethan asked, offended as he stood up.

  “Ethan, please don’t be mad. I’m just trying to figure all of this out,” Jessie sobbed.

  “Do you not trust me? What’s the deal, Jessie? You know damn well that you’re the only person I’ve had sex with.”

  “I know, I know. I just wanted to be sure. I wanted to hear it again. I needed to know for sure.”

  “If you trusted me then one time should be enough, Jess,” Ethan said as he shook his head.

  “I do trust you, Ethan! I do! But…you kissed her,” Jessie said as she wiped her eyes.

  “Yeah, one time! And I told y
ou about that! SHE kissed ME! There was nothing else to tell you and if there was, I would have!” Ethan cried out.

  “I’m sorry…I’m so sorry,” Jessie said as she stood up and rushed towards the bedroom door. Ethan rushed towards her, his hand wrapping around her arm.

  “Wait…stop…stop,” Ethan begged. Tears ran down her face as she turned towards Ethan in front of her. He wrapped his arms around, hugging her tightly as she cried into his shoulder.

  “I’m sorry. I do trust you and I don’t ever want you to think any different. I just had to ask you. I wouldn’t even care if it was your baby. I just wanted to know the truth. I just wanted to hear it out loud,” Jessie said. “My mind is so fucked up and I just feel like I can’t trust anyone; and now I’m doing what I do best…and that’s fucking everything up.”

  “No, you’re not. You’re not fucking everything up. I know how you feel, Jessie. You’re scared…and confused…and you just want the truth. We all do. We all want to know what happened to Riley. We all want to know who killed Blake and Quinn and Reese. But the only way we can find that out is if we work together…and we have to trust each other,” Ethan said. Jessie looked up to Ethan as he stared down at her, his kind eyes connected to hers.

  “Maybe I’ve been going about this all wrong,” Jessie said as she backed away from Ethan, their arms still wrapped around each other’s waists.

  “What do you mean?” Ethan asked.

  “If anyone knew about the baby…it would have to be Lorraine. It would have to their mom.”

  SCREWED

  Jessie couldn’t wait any longer. She had to tell Lorraine what she had found out…that Riley was pregnant when she died. She made a promise to her and she had to keep it. Jessie sped all the way from Ethan’s house to the Tanner residence. Time was no longer on her side. The killer could strike at any moment. She had to fit the pieces of this deadly puzzle together…and fast.

  Jessie sat down at the small kitchen table inside of the Tanner house as Lorraine poured two cups of coffee at the counter.

  “I know you wanted me to keep you in the loop. I’m sorry that I came over so late,” Jessie apologized as she held the little black diary in her quivering hands.

  “Don’t apologize at all. I haven’t slept at all since…since Reese. You have nothing to be sorry about, Jessie,” Lorraine said as she carried the two cups of coffee to the table and sat down, placing the other cup in front of Jessie. Jessie cupped the warm mug in her hands as she sipped the steaming coffee slowly. The sweet smell of cinnamon filled her nostrils as the sweet, warm cream glided down her throat.

  “How is Ronald?” Jessie asked as she placed the mug down.

  “I don’t know. I haven’t really talked to him. He hasn’t been over,” Lorraine said as she sipped from her mug.

  “I’m so sorry about all of this.”

  “He’s a runner, Jessie. When things don’t go as planned…when things happen that are beyond his control…he runs. That’s why he left in the first place,” Lorraine said sadly.

  “The reason I came here…was because of this,” Jessie said as she pulled the sonogram from inside of the diary and pushed it across the table and to Lorraine. Lorraine swallowed hard as she grabbed the sonogram in her hands…and nodded.

  “She was six weeks,” Lorraine said as her lips quivered.

  “You knew?” Jessie asked, shocked and stunned.

  “I did; me and Ron both knew.”

  “Why did you not say anything? Why did you not tell Reese…or anyone?” Jessie asked.

  “Reese was a mess when Riley died. She just stayed in her room, day and night. She wouldn’t eat. She wouldn’t sleep. My heart broke every single time I saw her. She lost her best friend…her sister. She was already losing herself. She was already so depressed and…lost. We didn’t want to add any fuel to the fire. We didn’t want to push her more and more towards the edge. It would have killed her; to not only lose a sister…but a niece or a nephew,” Lorraine cried.

  “Did you know who the father was?” Jessie asked softly.

  “The earliest you can have a paternity test is nine weeks. She was almost there. We almost knew,” Lorraine said.

  “She didn’t tell you? She never said anything?”

  “We didn’t know about it until after she died. We found out during the autopsy. Every single day, I wonder why she never said anything. Did she feel like she couldn’t talk to me? Did she feel like she couldn’t confide in me?” Lorraine cried. “Those girls could have told me anything…and nothing would have ever changed how much I loved them both.”

  “They knew that. They both did, Lorraine,” Jessie said as she stood up, moved around the table, and hugged Lorraine tightly. Lorraine cried into Jessie’s shoulder as she squeezed her tightly.

  “I just wish I would have done more. I didn’t want to suffocate them after their father moved out. I didn’t want to push them. I wanted them to come to me on their own. Maybe I should have tried harder. Maybe I should have…been more involved or asked more questions. I just didn’t want them to resent me the way they resented their father. I wanted to fill every void that they had when he left,” Lorraine sobbed. Jessie sat down beside Lorraine as she grabbed her hand tightly.

  “I’m going to figure this out. I promise,” Jessie cried. “Whoever did this…I’m going to find them. I’m doing this for Reese, for Riley, and for us. They’re going to have to pay for what they did, Lorraine; one way or another. And I’m going to make sure that they do.”

  ***

  Lorraine secured the front door tightly as she pressed one hand against the wooden surface and turned the deadbolt with the other. She stared out through the tiny glass window as she watched Jessie walk towards her mother’s car parked along the curb. She knew about the baby…but seeing the sonogram…it brought back every emotion that she had tried to lock up tightly. The baby…that she’d never know; that she would never see grow up or blow out their candles at their first birthday. She lost so much. Her daughters…and a grandchild.

  Lorraine swallowed hard as she stormed through the foyer and into the kitchen. Her heart raced inside of her chest as she rushed to the fridge, pulled the door open, and grabbed a bottle of wine. Tears began to flood down her face as she placed the bottle onto the center island and pulled a drawer open. She wrapped her hand around the wooden handle of a corkscrew and pressed the sharp, twisted tip into the cork. Her hand gripped the bottle tightly as she turned the corkscrew with the other hand, her hands trembling. Her mouth was dry, her tongue sticking to the arid roof of her mouth. She needed it. She needed her fix…now.

  The cork popped off as she placed the corkscrew down onto the island and grabbed the wine bottle. She turned to the cabinet behind her and yanked a door open and snatched a wine glass from inside. She placed it onto the counter as she poured the red wine into the glass, filling it to the rim. She grabbed the glass with her trembling hand and brought it to her lips, ready to take that first euphoric sip…as she stared out through window above the kitchen sink in front of her.

  There it hanged…in the fenced-in back lawn. The small tire swing danced in the cold breeze. The thin, weathered rope moved to the left and the right as the swing swayed from the tree branch above. She could still hear their sweet laughter…as they pushed each other…taking their turns. Their little hands plastered with dirt. Their smiling faces staring back at her as she brought them two glasses of lemonade. It was a simpler time…before the madness took over. Before they grew up…before this harsh world swallowed them whole and spat them out.

  Lorraine brought the wine glass from her lips and placed it onto the counter. Her teary eyes darted to the wine bottle beside her…as her hand wrapped around the neck. She closed her eyes tightly, the warm tears trickling down her face. She turned the bottle over as the red wine gushed out from the opening and splattered into the empty sink. She licked her dry lips as she watched the red wine circle the drain. She couldn’t do this anymore. For once in her life, she ha
d to feel the pain. She had to come to terms. She couldn’t numb it anymore…not like this. Lorraine dropped the empty bottle into the sink as she dumped the remaining wine from her glass down the drain. She turned the sink on…the hot water rained from the faucet as it washed down the last remaining drops down the drain.

  Lorraine tilted her head back, staring up at the ceiling as she took a long, slow breath. She turned around towards the island…as she grabbed for the corkscrew.

  Where the hell was it?

  It was here a second ago…

  Lorraine then let out a scream of pain as she felt the twisted, sharp tip of the corkscrew stab into the left side of her neck.

  “Ah!” Lorraine cried out as she spun around, holding her gushing neck…the corkscrew still sticking out from the side of her throat. Blood trickle through her fingers as she stared at the cloaked figure in front of her…a pair of dark eyes staring back at her from behind the baby doll mask.

  Lorraine fell back, slamming onto the kitchen floor. She turned onto her stomach as the blood flowed from her neck, splattering all over the tile floor. Lorraine dragged herself forward, her legs behind her as she pulled herself around the island of the kitchen.

  “Somebody!” Lorraine cried out as she clawed at the floor with one hand, the other placed tightly against the corkscrew impaled into the side of her neck. The masked maniac then stepped over her, standing above her…their eyes staring down at her back from above. “Somebody please!” Lorraine cried out.

  The figure then leaned down…and grabbed the wooden handle of the corkscrew sticking out from the side of her neck.

  “Please!” Lorraine begged as blood trickled through her lips. The figure then pulled the corkscrew to the right, the sharp, twisted screw slicing along the entire front of her throat. Lorraine’s eyes widened as the figure pulled the corkscrew further. The figure pulled the corkscrew all the way to the right side of her throat, slicing open her entire throat. Lorraine choked on her own blood as the figure ripped the corkscrew from her neck…and stared down at her. Lorraine took her last, final breath…as the blood that flowed from her open throat slowly spread across the tile floor.