Eva Rae Thomas Mystery Box Set

by Willow Rose

  I was screaming and pulling the chains. My mom came running out to me, and as I yelled at her to call 911 and keep the kids inside, she ran back in to find a phone.

  My hands were moving frantically back and forth on the poor girl’s hands as I tried to liberate them from the swing set, which she had been chained to, and was hanging from. Blood was smeared on her face and seemed to be coming from her eyes, I realized as I tried to look at her. I reached up and felt her neck for a pulse and found one. The girl wasn’t conscious, but she was alive.

  Oh, dear God, what’s wrong with her eyes?

  I stared at the girl, who looked like a bug caught in a spider’s web, the way she was displayed with her arms and legs stretched out. The chains were attached to each corner of the swing set, stretching the girl’s body out. Her head hung slumped down on her chest.

  “I called 911; they’re coming,” my mom yelled behind me. “What else can I do?”

  “Get the bolt cutter in the garage. I need to get her down,” I yelled.

  My mom took off. She came back a few seconds later, holding up her long skirt as she rushed across the lawn, the bolt cutter in her hand, her usually impeccable hair standing out in all directions.

  “Here. I hope it’s the right one.”

  “It is,” I said and took it. I rushed to the girl’s leg, then used all my strength to cut through the chain till it snapped and her leg dangled freely. I hurried to the second leg, then put the bolt cutters on the chain, my hands shaking in shock and terror, then closed it around the chain and cut through. The second leg got loose, and my mom ran to the girl and held both of her legs, trying to lift the girl, so her arms wouldn’t be strained so terribly. I sent her a grateful look, then crawled up on the swing and stood on it, while placing the bolt cutters on the chain holding the right arm and cut it loose. My mom shrieked as the body became heavier. She managed to hold her still, while I climbed onto the next swing and reached the second corner, then cut through the chain, sending my mom a look before I finished it to make sure she was ready to grab her. I could hear the neighbors gasp on the other side of the canal as the girl came loose and my mom balanced her, stumbling from the weight. I jumped down and managed to grab the girl in my arms before my mom fell with her. Shaking, I held her tight, pressing back my tears, when I heard Matt’s voice coming from behind me.

  “I came as soon as I heard your address mentioned over the radio. What’s going on? Here…let me help you.”

  He grabbed the girl’s legs, and we managed to put her down on the grass. Matt was sweating and panting as he looked down at her.

  “Oh, dear God,” he said and clasped his mouth.

  I did the same as the hair was removed from her face and I realized who this was. My stomach churned, and I felt like throwing up.

  “Oh, dear God, oh, dear Lord, no, no, no.”

  He looked up, tears springing to his eyes. “What did they do to her; what did they do to Molly?”

  I swallowed anxiously as I spotted the paramedics running into the yard, carrying a stretcher, and I backed up to let them have their space to work. I stared at the girl while they assessed her condition, then got her hooked up on oxygen and soon rushed her away. I couldn’t stop wondering what the heck was going on. Molly had been the only girl in that group of friends who had made it home, the one we had assumed had been safe.

  Chapter 18

  I went back inside to check on the children. Christine was sitting by the counter in the kitchen, Olivia holding her arm around her, while Alex was drawing on the floor, getting crayon smeared all over the tiles.

  “Are you all right?” I asked and approached them.

  Christine didn’t look up. My eyes met Olivia’s.

  “She saw it,” she said. “Through the window upstairs. After you screamed, she looked out; we both did. Alex didn’t see anything. We kept him from the windows and closed all the blinds.”

  I swallowed hard. “I…I am so sorry you had to see that. Come here.”

  I grabbed both of them and pulled them into a hug. I held them for a few minutes, kissing the top of their heads. Christine was sobbing, her small body shaking.

  “I know her,” Olivia finally said as she broke out of the hug. She sniffled and wiped her eyes dry. “She’s from my school, right? A senior.”

  I nodded and touched her hair gently. My beautiful daughter, who almost seemed too good for this world.

  “Yes. Molly Carson. She’s my good friend Melissa’s daughter.” I choked up as I said her name and stopped talking.

  “Is she…is she dead?” Olivia asked, eyes worried. She looked so much like her father in this second, and I was briefly reminded of how deeply I had loved Chad once.

  I shook my head, thinking about Melissa and how hard this was going to hit her.

  “She was still alive when we took her down. She’s on her way to the hospital now. I’m sure they’ll take good care of her.”

  “So, she’ll live,” Christine said.

  I bit my lip not to cry. “I…we don’t know yet.”

  I held my girls tight while Matt entered through the sliding doors. Outside, our yard was crawling with uniforms, and soon the crime scene techs would arrive and would be combing through the yard and probably also the canal looking for evidence.

  I let go of the girls and told them to go to the living room, where they wouldn’t be able to look out at the window and see what was going on out there. They did, arm in arm, and took Alex with them. Matt pulled me into a hug and held me while I tried hard not to cry.

  “How?” I asked him almost in a whisper. “How did someone manage to chain a girl in our backyard without us noticing anything?”

  He shrugged. “If he did it at night. It was dark; we were sleeping.”

  “We were in the house all morning. And we didn’t see it?”

  “The curtains were closed, so were the blinds upstairs.”

  “But…If we had found her earlier, then maybe she’d have a better chance. What if she doesn’t make it, Matt? This is Melissa’s daughter. This is my best friend’s daughter. Why? Why her? And why my backyard?”

  Matt shook his head slowly, looking pensive.

  “You think it’s related to the disappeared girls, don’t you?” I asked.

  He shrugged again. “How can I not think that? They were a group of four friends. They were supposed to have walked home together, all four of them together, but one went home earlier.”

  I sucked in a deep breath between my teeth while thinking like crazy about all of this. One thought kept coming back to me:

  Why my yard? Of all the houses this guy could have chosen, he chose my backyard, why?

  Matt looked into my eyes. “I have to go,” he said. “I have to go tell Melissa and take her to the hospital.”

  I nodded, feeling a knot in my stomach and throat. “I know. I’m coming with you.”

  He sighed gratefully. “I had hoped you’d say that.”

  Chapter 19

  Matt parked the car on the street in front of Melissa’s house and killed the engine. We shared a look, and both took in a deep breath.

  At least the girl isn’t dead. We’re not here to tell her that her daughter is dead.

  It wasn’t much of a comfort. I had known Melissa since we were in preschool. Matt and I both had. Her husband had recently been diagnosed with MS, and they were fighting bravely to keep their heads above water. Melissa had recently taken a job at Surfnista, a local café to help out with the medical bills that were piling up. With the rate Steve was going, he wouldn’t be able to work more than a few years, if even that, and then where would that leave them? Just last week, she was sitting in my kitchen telling me this. And I had told her everything would be okay; they would figure it out, and we would all help as much as we could. I knew Dawn and I would, at least, and Matt, of course. Dawn had no children and was back to dating Phillip, the captain at the fire station who lived on my street. She had also been a part of our friend group sinc
e we were children and we looked out for one another when it was needed.

  But now, I was coming to her house to tell her this? It was going to break Melissa’s heart. It felt like kicking her when she was already down.

  I got out of the car, and Matt followed me up to the door. I felt his hand touch mine briefly before I rang the doorbell. Melissa came to the door, still in her PJs, hair tousled, slippers on her feet, and a coffee in her hand.

  “Eva Rae? Matt? What are you doing here at this hour on a Sunday? Did I forget something? Were we supposed to meet up? Wait, why do you look so serious, Eva Rae…you’re…what’s going on here, guys?”

  I took a deep breath and pressed back my tears. “It’s Molly. You need to come with us to the hospital.”

  She almost dropped the cup in her hand, but Matt caught it from her. “Molly? What do you mean? She’s…she went to a friend’s house last night; did…did something happen to her?”

  Melissa’s voice grew shrill as she spoke, and her face went pale.

  “Tell me what happened, Eva Rae; is she… is she okay?”

  “We don’t know,” Matt said. “It’s too early to say. She was unconscious when she was found and taken to the hospital in an ambulance. We’re here to take you there.”

  Melissa looked at me like she was waiting for me to tell her it was a joke, that we had been pulling her leg in a cruel prank.

  “It’s true, sweetie. You have to come with us. Now.”

  “But…Steve…Steve had an attack last night. He can’t get out of bed; he’s heavily sedated.”

  “We can drop the kids off at my place,” I said. “They’re too young to understand what’s going on. My mom and Olivia can look after them. I’ll help you get them ready, and then we’ll leave.”

  Melissa nodded, her nostrils flaring. She was keeping it together, but only barely. She made room for me to enter and I rushed inside where three young children, two boys and one girl were scattered across the living room, jumping on the couch, screaming, and two of them fighting over a sword.

  Chapter 20

  “I almost envy Steve, that he gets to sleep through all of this.”

  Melissa spoke with a scoff. We were sitting in the waiting room where they had told us to stay until they had news on Molly’s condition. I was holding her hand while Matt had gone to find coffee. Dawn had arrived too and was sitting on the other side of Melissa. So far, we hadn’t spoken to any doctor and had no idea how Molly was doing. I had told Melissa about how I had found Molly in my backyard and she had listened, shaking her head in disbelief.

  The wait and uncertainty made me sick to my stomach. I felt so terrible for Melissa and wanted so badly to do something to help her out, to remove this pain.

  “It’s mostly all the scenarios that you constantly go through in your mind, you know?” she continued. “What if she doesn’t make it out of there. What if she dies? How will I get past this? How will I ever live without my firstborn? How am I supposed to do that, Eva Rae?”

  Melissa turned her face to look at me. The despair in her eyes made me want to scream. As a mom, I knew exactly how she felt.

  Please, let her live, God. I’ll do anything, anything!

  I parted my lips and wanted to say something to soothe her pain, but the words I could think of didn’t seem sufficient at all. I wanted to tell her it was going to be all right, that I was sure the doctors were doing everything they could, but it was all just clichés and meaninglessness.

  Matt returned with our coffees, and we took them. I sent him a grateful glance and saw the sadness in his eyes as well.

  “Why don’t they tell me anything?” Melissa asked when she had taken her first sip. “We’ve been here two hours, and we have heard nothing. How come they haven’t told us anything, Eva Rae?”

  “I don’t know.”

  I took her hand in mine and squeezed it. Melissa exhaled and shook her head while a tear rolled down her cheek.

  “I’m sure they’re doing everything they can,” Dawn said and sipped her cup.

  “Can’t they just tell me if she’s alive or not? Everything else we can deal with as it comes along, but I need to know if she’s alive.”

  “I’m sure they’ll be…”

  I paused when I saw a doctor come through the door, dressed in green scrubs. My heart ached when seeing the serious look on his face. He rubbed his stubble and looked at Melissa, who rose to her feet, still holding my hand tightly.

  “Mrs. Carson?”

  Melissa nodded, her skin turning paler by the second. “Yes, that’s me. How is she, Doctor?”

  “She…I’m afraid that her eyes are gone.”

  “Gone?” I said. “What do you mean gone?”

  “I’m afraid they have been removed.”

  Removed? How?

  Melissa’s body began to shake. “She’s…she’s blind?”

  The doctor nodded.

  “But she’s alive?” Melissa added.

  “Yes.”

  Melissa breathed, her chest heaving up and down rapidly. “But she can’t see?”

  He shook his head. “No. And I’m afraid we believe she has also been raped.”

  Chapter 21

  After the last sentence, it was obvious that Melissa didn’t hear any more of what was being said. Her knees went soft, and I felt her collapsing, so I reached over and grabbed her in my arms. Dawn and I helped her get to a chair and sit down, while Matt finished talking to the doctor. The doctor told him they were taking blood samples to check for diseases and infections that could be transmitted through sexual contact and, of course, for pregnancy.

  Melissa was shaking all over, and we just sat there while she gathered herself. As the tears finally started to roll, I pulled her close to me and into a hug. We sat there for quite a while, Melissa’s body trembling between my arms until Matt returned and sat down next to her.

  “There will be a sexual assault nurse examiner, a SANE, who will make sure to do a forensic exam,” he said and looked at Melissa, eyes wet, biting his lips, his nostrils flaring. Matt fought his tears, then spoke through gritted teeth.

  “I will get this guy, Melissa, you hear me? He’s not getting away with this.”

  Matt got up and crumpled his empty coffee cup, then threw it in the trash with a loud groan. He then kicked a chair in anger and held a fist up to his mouth. I couldn’t blame him. He was just displaying how I felt.

  Frustrated, helpless, angry.

  Melissa sniffled and wiped her eyes. “Well, at least she’s alive, right? I mean, I ought to be happy about that, shouldn’t I? Why aren’t I?”

  “It’s a lot to take in right now,” I said.

  She swallowed and tried to hold it back, but more tears sprang from her eyes, and she broke down again. I reached over and held her in my arms while she sobbed.

  “My baby was raped?”

  “I am so sorry,” I said.

  “My baby was attacked, raped, and now she’s blind,” she said. “My baby will never be able to look me in the eyes again. I will never see hers again, ever. She had the most gorgeous eyes. They were beautiful and would sparkle when she smiled. She won’t see her siblings as they grow up, and she’ll never see the stars at night anymore. She always loved watching the stars. Why…why would anyone take that from her? What has she ever done to them? Why would they take her sight from her? I don’t understand, Eva Rae. Who could be so cruel to do this? Who? And why? Her life is ruined. It’s completely destroyed.”

  “Lots of kids live good lives even when blind,” I said, but the words felt so empty. I was so frustrated in this second. I could feel her despair; it was unbearable not to be able to fix this for her. She was my friend, going through the pain of her life. And I just sat there, doing nothing but coming up with empty phrases and clichés that meant nothing.

  Then I said what I really wanted to say all along. I lifted her face and looked into her eyes, while I spoke the words that I could put meaning behind. Words that I knew weren’t e
mpty and indifferent.

  “I will catch this guy, Melissa, do you hear me? I will do everything in my power to get this one. Matt and I will do it together. He will not get away with what he did to Molly. I promise you this here and now. Do you understand what I’m saying?”

  Melissa sobbed, then smiled and nodded behind a curtain of tears. “Thank you, Eva Rae, thank you so much.”

  Chapter 22

  “It’s so hot in here; I can’t stand it!”

  Ava squirmed on her mattress, and her chain clanked against the bar behind her.

  “I feel so disgusting and clammy, and the air we breathe is so heavy; it feels like I’m suffocating.”

  Carina looked at the wall next to her. She had scratched a mark in the foam for every time she believed a day had started, right after their captor had been to change their bucket and give them fresh water and food. Fifteen scratches on the wall told her they had been down there for a long time, too long. The stench of their bodies brought tears to their eyes, and Ava was right, the air was almost unbreathable. The chain around Carina’s neck was hurting her and had gnawed into her skin, leaving sores that were painful to the touch. She felt like crying every day she opened her eyes inside of this hell, and sometimes she gave into it and let the tears roll down her cheeks while wondering if they would ever make it out of there. But she didn’t do it while her friends were looking. She had long ago decided that she was going to be the strong one. In a place like this, they needed one, and she knew she was able to be that. The two others panicked several times a day and screamed and cried, and sometimes even yelled at her for not panicking, but Carina kept her composure.

  One of them had to.

  “I can’t stand it here!” Tara said, lying on her side on her mattress. “I can’t take the smell; I can’t take the air, and I can’t stand the sight of these brown walls.”

  “I know,” Carina said to both of them, trying to cheer them up. “But today, we’ll try the thing we talked about, okay?”