by Riley Ashby
The light in the hallway clicked on.
When the door opened, I didn't raise my head at first. I didn't care to see the face of the man who was going to end my life. But at the sound of a soft gasp, my eyes flew open. It took a moment for my eyes to adjust to the change in light, but even before they recovered I knew who was standing in front of me.
Madeline stood in the doorway with the light shining from behind, like a golden halo around her head, looking for all the world like the most beautiful sight I’d seen in my life.
When I spoke, it was nothing more than a rasp. “Why didn’t you run?”
Maddie
I tried to crawl across the table, but the damn chain was still too short. I pulled at the collar, my blood slick on my hands. I’d finally broken the skin.
“Be a good girl and stay quiet for us, will you?” Conrad nodded at me, and Joshua released Meyer long enough to come around the table and yank me back to sitting. He pushed me back into my chair and slipped some sort of fabric between my lips, like a horse’s bridle, and tied it tight at the back of my head. I reached for the knot the moment he let me go, but it was pulled too tight for me to pull apart. I’d have to cut it, but I had nothing, not even a butter knife.
“Don’t make me tie your hands,” he muttered in my ear. Ignoring him, I leaned over the table again, not caring about the pain in my neck. If I couldn’t get out of here, none of this would matter. Meyer was on the ground on the other side of the table, looking up at Conrad with rage. But every time he tried to stand, Conrad kicked him, or shoved him in the chest with the bat, and he fell back to the floor.
There was so much yelling, I couldn’t keep track of it all. The only thing I could focus on was that bat, the one I suspected had been used to break Meyer’s arm so many years ago, and how close it was to his body now. Ready to break his spirit as well as his bones. All I wanted to do was reach out and destroy the damned thing and burn the splinters until they were nothing but ash. But I couldn’t, not while Conrad was threatening him with it, ready to beat him to death.
Meyer’s back was against Joshua’s front, trapped by his former friend and his father with nowhere to run. And still, he talked about me. “Just unlock her,” he pleaded with his father. He made his way to his feet, only to step back into Joshua a moment before the bat swung once more.
I was so busy staring at Meyer, I almost missed Joshua’s glance toward me.
Just unlock her.
The key!
I fumbled in my back pocket as Conrad stalked closer to Meyer, the bat pressing against his chest. I grabbed the key from my back pocket and nearly dropped it; there was too much blood on my fingers. Wiping my hands on my jeans, I got a firmer grip on the small metal piece and began fumbling with the lock.
“Why would I do that, when I can have you both?”
The hole for the key was too small, and between my panic and not being able to see what I was doing I thought I wasn’t going to be able to free myself. I almost lost it three times while I worked, but finally the key slipped in. I twisted, the collar fell away, and I was out. Reaching across the table, I grabbed the steak knife Conrad had been using and used it to slice away my gag, the serrated blade dragging through the smooth fabric with a menacing sound. My breath was ragged, but my voice didn’t shake a bit.
“STOP!” I yelled. Conrad looked at me, turned away, then snapped his head back as he realized I was no longer bound by his chain.
“How the fuck—”
“Let him go,” I said, brandishing the knife as if it were any threat to the man across the table.
Meyer gripped his arm as he stared at me. “Maddie, just run, it’s okay.”
“I’m not leaving you!” Despite my words, I jumped away from the table and backed toward the door, escaping Joshua as he turned slowly toward me. He was still on the other side of the table; if I sprinted, I might be able to make it out of the house. And if I could get out of the house, I could hide. But that meant Meyer would be left behind. Again.
“Let Meyer go,” I demanded, the blade shaking in my hand. What was I doing? Was this my plan? Demand his release with nothing to bargain? I had to run now, or Joshua would catch me before I even left the room. But whatever had pulled me to Meyer in the first place kept me rooted here now, despite the futility of my threats.
“You set that knife down and take your seat, and I’ll leave you enough skin on the bottom of your feet for you to be able to walk again tomorrow.” Conrad swung the bat toward me, keeping one hand around the back of Meyer’s neck to hold him in place. “But if you try to run out, you’ll get to experience every punishment your mother endured over four years in the course of one night.”
Pain scared me. Conrad scared me even more. But at the moment, I wasn’t afraid of Conrad. I was afraid of leaving Meyer. Leaving him like my mother did, leaving him like he left me.
“Meyer,” I whispered. Please tell me what to do.
“Just go.” He pushed his father away, and leaping for Joshua just as he screamed, “Madeline, RUN!”
With one last look at him, I turned and sprinted out the door.
I burst into the foyer and raced for the heavy doors leading outside, hauling one open with both hands and slipping into the night as soon as there was a large enough opening. The door clipped my heel as I hit the concrete; the cold ground reminded me I had no shoes.
The door swung open behind me, casting long shadows into the night. “Madeline,” Joshua roared, and I sprinted faster. I had to get into the trees before he caught up with me. There were woods here for acres; miles of brush and undergrowth that would conceal me in the dark. Even with a flashlight, Joshua would never find me as long as I stayed quiet. And I had to hope he wouldn’t be looking for me too closely, since he was the one who gave me the key in the first place.
Twenty more feet. The asphalt was nearly frozen; my feet burned with the familiar too-cold feeling. But the trees were growing closer by the second, and then it was ten feet, five, and finally I left the concrete and stumbled over the uneven earth before tumbling into the brush.
I didn’t slow, not even as branches caught at my clothes and scraped against my frigid skin. Joshua crashed into the underbrush noisily enough that I could hear him over all the sounds I was making, and I forced myself to dig deeper for the strength to get far enough into the dense trees that I could hide. I cut one way, then the other, trying to confuse my pursuer without completely losing myself. The lights of the house were still visible through the tops of the nearly bare trees, but only just. My skin stung where sharp branches had cut me; welts rose on my fingers as I pushed my way through the bushes.
“Madeline!” Joshua yelled again, and miraculously, his voice was farther away. I froze in place, listening to him crash through the undergrowth in the opposite direction I was going.
Finally! I ducked down and curled against a tree, gaining a little protection from the wind. My toes burrowed into the dead leaves on the ground, digging holes in the hard dirt to try and protect them from the air. Joshua continued to call my name, but each time I could hear him a little less, even as my breathing slowed and my pulse was no longer the dominant sound in my ears.
The unintended side effect of finding a quiet place to hide was that my blood slowed and the cold crept once more into my bones. As I ran my hands up and down my arms, tacky blood from my scratches spread across my fingers. And my neck! My hands flew to my throat, the blood from my cuts like a choker on my skin. I’d felt like a mad dog, pulling at the chain even knowing it gave me no leeway, and now I was likely to scar around my throat. If only I’d remembered the key earlier.
At least you had a key.
God, I couldn’t stand being cold like this. I was only a week removed from almost dying of hypothermia, and this time around I wouldn’t have Meyer to warm me back to life and keep me wrapped in blankets all night. I’d be lucky if I got any kind of warmth, assuming I was found and dragged screaming back to the house.
&nb
sp; I shifted my position, wincing at the noise it made, to stare at the building that had been my prison for the past several days. Most of the light came from inside; there were few lamps on the exterior of the home, as if no light could pierce the darkness that lay within. It would certainly be easy for a burglar to sneak up on the house, should anyone be so daring.
My back protested as I sat up straight too quickly, muscles whining at the sudden movement after growing cold in my cramped position. There were so many shadows around the big house. There had to be cameras, right? I couldn’t imagine that Conrad would allow his home to be defended by only a few lights. I strained my eyes looking as hard as I could, but even in the darkest corners, I saw no hint of any surveillance equipment. Could it really be that easy? No one would think I was dumb enough to go back to the house. They’d expect me to hide until Joshua caught up with me and dragged me back kicking and screaming. If I went back on my own, maybe I could catch Conrad off guard.
I bit my lip as I rubbed my arms again, trying to bring warmth back to my body. This had to be quick. I couldn’t stay out here too long, waiting to freeze to death or be discovered by Joshua or one of Conrad’s other lackeys. Heading back to the house and freeing Meyer was my best bet. It had to be.
Listening one last time for anything to indicate Joshua had made his way back to me, I began to creep toward the lights. Every snap of a twig beneath my bare feet was loud as a cannon shot. I couldn’t feel anything in them anymore. I needed to get inside, fast. Even moving slowly, branches still snapped against my face and arms with enough force to make me gasp aloud in pain. I finally emerged onto the manicured lawn and sighed in relief, then sucked in a deep breath before I started to sprint toward the house. I aimed for the shadows, hoping to avoid any notice. With every step I expected to suddenly fall dead from a shot to the head, or to look down to see the red dot of a sniper’s rifle on my chest. But I made it to the side of the house without incident. My hands pressed against the cold brick as I caught my breath, then looked around for a camera I may have missed. Nothing.
I closed my eyes and tried to think about the layout of Conrad’s house. I’d paid as much attention as I could in the short amount of time I spent outside my small room, but I’d seen only a small portion of his massive house. There was one door that led to an expansive patio, but that was flooded with light to facilitate outdoor entertaining. I would have to creep around the house until I found somewhere I could sneak in, be it a door or an unlocked window.
Feeling my way around the house, I found the windows were much more sparsely spaced than I would have liked. Most didn’t have a good place for me to grab and try to lift them, and my hands slid along the glass as I tried in vain to push them up. Even worse, my fingertips were numb, and attempts to pull at any hand holds caused more pain. And then, finally, one that was already cracked open. I held my breath as I peeked into the house, expecting a trap, but the window opened into a short hallway with no doors, not even a closet, where someone could be hiding for me. On the table near the window I could see a fine layer of dust—for some reason, the cleaning staff hadn’t been back to this area in some time, and as a result they must have missed the cracked window leaking cold air into the house.
I shut the window as far as I could without making any noise, then crouched with my hands against my body to try and bring back some warmth. My toes screamed at the sudden heat; I bit my lip and rocked on my heels to try and distract myself. Twice in a week, I was dealing with frost bite. This time might be worse. There was no fire, no hot bath to bring me back.
End this. Tonight.
Moving silently across the room, I willed the dark wood floor not to creak and betray me to the entire household. It was altogether too quiet. Where was Conrad? More importantly, where was Meyer? Was he even still breathing? Of course, Conrad wouldn’t kill him without more pomp and circumstance. And when would Joshua give up looking for me in the woods and come back to find me creeping through the house?
Think, Maddie, think. He wouldn’t put Meyer where he held me, I was sure of that. It was the first place I would think to look. And the other spaces of the house were too open. I crept from room to room, checking around corners and opening random doors, but none of the empty chambers seemed fit for a prisoner. Where would he keep him?
Where no one else is allowed to go.
Conrad would be a private man, someone who liked to retreat away from the staff he surrounded himself with to complement his lifestyle. He would want a place that no one else was allowed to enter.
Somewhere he could keep the girls he pulled away from the world and subjected to his invasions.
I continued to open doors around the house, looking for the entrance to his personal refuge. And finally, behind a door near the kitchen, was a dark staircase. I stared up the steps into the black, listening for any hint that a monster waited for me at the top. Something spoke to me, urging me forward, as if it knew Meyer was up there. How hurt was he? I couldn’t carry him out here if Conrad had broken his legs.
No use thinking about that now. I’d figure something out if it came to that.
I held my breath as I took the stairs one at a time. This part of the house had to be older; every other step seemed to creak no matter how quickly I moved or tested the wood before slowly easing my weight on. But I made it to the top of the staircase without issue. I stood panting in the dark, hand pressed over my mouth, hoping the breath coming through my nostrils wasn’t too loud.
My eyes had adjusted to the dark as I made my way up the stairs, and I could see only three doors along the short hallway. Light streamed out from beneath one of them; if I watched closely, I thought I could see a shadow cutting through from time to time. Someone was in there, and I had to guess that it was Conrad. There was no yelling, so I doubted Meyer was there with him. That left two doors for me to try.
The moment I stepped forward, the lights in the hallway turned on. I froze, grabbing my throat to trap the scream there, but no one came rushing up the stairs to grab me. There was no movement or sound from behind Conrad’s door. Looking over at the wall, I saw a motion sensor light switch installed directly to my left. No one knew I was here. It was just a silly piece of technology.
Returning to my task, I started toward the two doors that had to hold Meyer inside. I pulled on the first one, opening it to find a deep closet filled with boxes and linens. No one in there. Holding my breath, I shut the door quietly and tip-toed to the only door left. If Meyer wasn’t in here, I didn’t know where to go next.
Bracing myself for the worst, I turned the handle.
The door swung open silently, and I immediately heard the labored breath of a person in pain. I peered into the darkened room to see Meyer, curled on his side with a nasty black eye, but still whole. I when he looked at me, though, he didn’t look hopeful. He looked afraid.
“Why didn’t you run?” he croaked as a form behind me cast a shadow in the light streaming in from the hallway. My eyes closed as a heavy hand landed on my shoulder, reminding me that I never had a chance in hell of escaping anyway.
Conrad’s breath stank of gin as he lowered his mouth to my ear. “Whose idea do you think it was to give you the key?”
Maddie
At the sound of Conrad’s voice in my ear, I didn’t even turn my head. I lunged for Meyer. I only had a few moments, maybe less, before I never saw him again. He sat up, too slowly, but caught me in his arms all the same.
“Why didn’t you run?” he repeated, fingers tight in my shirt and around the back of my neck. I buried my face his shoulder.
“I couldn’t leave you here again.”
“Maddie.” He kissed my neck. “I would have found you.”
My entire body shook as I laughed and sobbed at the same time. “He never would have let you leave.”
Conrad’s voice was too loud in the small room. “Meyer said you wouldn’t come back, but I never had a doubt. You’re so much like your mother, and I don’t mean that a
s a compliment. You couldn’t let Meyer take his punishment like he deserved. You had to try to free him.”
We both ignored him. “Hold on tight.” Meyer crushed me against his chest, making it hard for me to breathe, but I didn’t care. I needed to be as close to him as I could. “I’ll get us out. I promise.”
I wished I could share his optimism. “Meyer,” I whispered, “we’re going to die here.”
“That’s enough,” Conrad barked, sounding offended that I would cling to the man I loved knowing it was likely the last time we’d ever be together. “It’s time to go.”
“No,” I sobbed, and clenched my fingers tighter. He was going to take me, I knew that, but it wouldn’t be without a fight. “I won’t go with you.”
“That choice was taken from you long ago, my girl.” He grabbed my hair and yanked, but Meyer’s hand on my neck held me close. He tried to twist his body to protect me from his father, despite both of us knowing it was useless. Conrad slid his hands between our bodies and pried us apart. The moment he had space, he wrapped his arms around my middle and yanked me toward the door.
“I’ll figure something out,” Meyer promised, but there was no hope in his eyes.
I stared at him as long as I could, until I was pulled into the hallway, strange hands pressing too deeply into my belly, and the door slammed between us, severing our last connection.
“Let me go,” I growled, twisting in his grip, but he didn’t have to pull me too far down the hallway to the room where I’d seen his shadow moving only a few minutes ago. I grabbed the door frame at the last second, fingers slipping on the smooth wood as he yanked me into the room with a final effort.
“You played right into my hand,” he said, glee evident in his voice, as he threw me on the ground and landed a kick to my spine that shook the breath out of me. It was long enough for him to slam shut yet another door separating me from Meyer. “It couldn’t have gone more perfectly. And now I have you both.”
