by Roxy Gray
“Better now that he’s gone,” she says quietly. Her voice is raspy. Tears stain her freckled cheeks.
I hold Violet’s hand and sit beside her. Jasper holds my other hand tightly, bringing it up to his mouth every so often for a kiss.
As we pull out of the long driveway, I take a last look at the cabin through the round ambulance window. It looks the same as when I discovered it: old, dilapidated, and unthreatening. Funny how a place that looks so ordinary on the outside could be full of so many horrible secrets. Secrets that Clay has been holding onto for who knows how long.
The three of us are quiet on the way to the hospital. I look over at Jasper every once in a while, curious as to what’s going on inside of his head. His face is still swollen and bloody, as are the knuckles on his right hand.
Knowing what I know now, I can’t believe I ever suspected he was the one behind Violet’s disappearance. I was completely paranoid. Over the line. All of the time I spent following Jasper, going through his things had been for nothing.
Clay was hiding in plain sight the entire time.
* * *
“He kept calling me Amy,” Violet whispers.
The police had been asking her questions for the past thirty minutes at the hospital. Violet, looking frail and tired, sinks deeper into the bed with each response.
“Amy. Did he ever reveal the significance of the name?” Daniels asks.
“That was his sister’s name,” Jasper says quietly from his chair in the corner. “She passed away from a drug overdose last year.”
Daniels nods, typing up a few more notes onto his laptop.
“Right. That’s helpful. Violet, are you able to tell me from start to finish what happened? If you aren’t ready, that’s okay. But the faster we have the facts, the faster we can make sure Clay is charged for all of the crimes he committed.”
Violet intakes a shaky breath. She nods.
“I can tell you.”
“Okay. Whenever you’re ready.” Daniels leans back in his chair, his eyes focused on Violet as she speaks.
“Can you two please wait outside?” He asks Jasper and me.
“I want them here,” Violet says. “I’d rather them be in the room.”
“Well, alright then.”
She sits up in her bed, hugging a pillow to her stomach.
“I’d been having issues with…substance abuse since last semester,” she looks down, avoiding my eyes. “I was taking Adderall to get ahead in my classes. Then, I started taking cocaine to get even more energy.” Daniels types as she speaks.
“It didn’t help. I mean, I had more energy, but then I started getting all these weird side effects.”
“Like what, exactly?” Daniels asks.
“I was tired all of the time. I wasn’t sleeping well. I was angry and paranoid. It turned me into a different person. Clay knew.”
“Clay knew that you had a drug problem?”
“Yes,” Violet says. “Definitely. Well, maybe not at first, but as I got to know him better, for sure.”
“Did he ever tell you this before he abducted you?”
“Yes,” Violet nods. “He lied to me…he said that his family operated a rehab facility and that he could arrange for them to treat me for free.”
Daniels brow furrows. “Go on.”
“Right. I thought he was just being nice, and I told him I’d think about it. I didn’t expect…” she trails off, looking frightened.
“It’s okay, he’s not here. You can speak safely.”
“I didn’t expect him to lie,” she says with a big breath. “One night, we were planning to have a party at our place. Everything was fine until I received the note.”
“What did the note say?”
“I can’t remember exactly. Something along the lines of ‘things will get better, I’m going to help you’.”
“When did you receive the note exactly?” Daniels asks.
“A few hours before the party. I didn’t know what to do. I was scared that I was next. It didn’t occur to me that it would be Clay, so I decided to ignore it until I could go to the police. I wanted to have a fun night and put it out of my mind.”
Violet takes a big breath before continuing, and I see panic register behind her eyes.
“I wish I hadn’t waited,” she says, shaking her head in small, short movements. “Anyway, I didn’t really talk to Clay much during the party. I was trying to branch out and get to know some other people on our floor. But at the end of the night, when everyone else was… occupied, Clay said he wanted to show me something.”
“And did you let him?”
“Yeah. He said he was worried about me, and he said he knew I was on drugs.”
“How did he know?”
She shrugs. “He said he guessed. I’m not sure if that’s true. Anyway, he told me about the rehab facility, and it sounded really good.”
“What did he say about it?”
“That it was very private, secluded. That his family had been running it for years, and that no one would be able to find out that I went there. He said it would be a complete secret.”
“And you believed him?”
“I believed what I wanted to believe. I wasn’t in a very sound frame of mind. He told me that he’d bring me there and show it to me, and if I didn’t like it, we’d leave right away.”
“Okay. When did he bring you there?”
“At the end of the night, like I said. I was pretty drunk, and a little high. It didn’t take much convincing to get me to go with him.”
“How did you two get there?”
“He borrowed Jasper’s car.”
Jasper blinks, startled.
“He must have taken the key while I was gone that night. I didn’t, uh, sleep at home.”
I glare at him, recalling he was with Amanda.
“Right,” Daniels glances between the two of us before turning back to Violet.
“And what happened once you got there?”
Violet shudders.
“He kissed me. I told him to stop.”
Jasper lifts his head beside me, his jaw clenched in anger.
“Then what?”
“He forced me down onto a mattress. He tied me up and took off all of my clothes, except for my underwear and bra. And he…” Violet begins to cry. “He masturbated as he watched me.”
Daniels’ mouth flattens into a thin line.
“Did he touch you?”
“No,” Violet shakes her head. “He never raped me or anything like that…but I could tell he wanted to.”
“How could you tell?”
“On weekends, he would sleep beside me. I was tied up of course, so I couldn’t get away. He would cuddle me and I could feel that he was…excited.”
She holds back a gag, reaching for a drink of water. “I think he was restraining himself.”
“Do you think he’s done this before?” Daniels asks.
“No,” Violet says. “I don’t think so. He seemed like he was learning as he went. It seemed like he’d put a lot of thought into the whole thing.”
“Why do you think he abducted you instead of one of the other women?”
“Convenience, probably,” she says. “We were roommates, so he knew my schedule. He knew me,” she says quietly, looking down.
Suddenly, Violet starts to cry uncontrollably. Her breath quickens, and she buries her head in the pillow between her legs.
“I think we should continue this later,” Daniels says.
I go over to Violet, wrapping her in a hug. As I make contact with her, she flinches.
“Everything is going to be okay,” I say as she clings to me. “Your parents will be here soon.”
Jasper and I wait until they arrive before heading back to the station with Daniels to answer more questions.
“Call me if you need anything,” I say to Violet before we leave the hospital.
“Thanks, Ivy. I’ll be okay.” Violet says, barely able to keep her eyes open. “See you soon.”
* * *
By the time Jasper and I arrive back home, we’re both completely exhausted. Between spending time with Violet at the hospital and going to the police station afterward, the day felt like a marathon run.
The doctors insisted on keeping Violet at the hospital overnight to do testing on her. She had bruises and cuts on her body, she had lost over ten pounds, and her emotional state was fragile. They wanted to make sure she hadn’t been poisoned by all of the substances Clay was giving her. I’d been cleared ― apparently the pills he gave me were a mild hallucinogen.
The first thing I do at home is take a shower and get ready for bed. It’s only 8:00 PM, but my body is weary from lack of sleep and overuse of adrenaline.
In the bathroom, I brush my teeth as I survey myself in the mirror. Apart from the cut on my head, I look the same: dark hair, ivory skin. The twisting ink down my arm, and the small piercing in my nose. No one would know from the outside that I’ve just been through the most traumatic experience of my life.
“Hi.”
I start as Jasper appears behind me, wrapping his arms around my waist as I finish readying myself for bed. I turn around to face him, examining the state of his wounds. They look better now that they’ve been sanitized and bandaged at the hospital.
“Hi,” I reply. “How are you holding up through all this?” I ask. “I mean, Clay is…was like a brother to you.”
“I’m okay. Just angry at him. I wish he would have talked to me. I could have prevented this from happening.” Jasper’s eyes are full of guilt.
“I don’t think anything you could have done would have made much of a difference, Jasper.”
“Maybe,” he shrugs. “I just can’t believe what he did to Violet… and what he did to you. And that if the police hadn’t come when they did, he would have —”
I put my finger over his lips.
“He didn’t. I’m fine.”
Jasper lets out a huge sigh, pulling me tight to his chest. “I know. But he could have, and that’s what scares me to death.”
I press my lips to his, calming his fears.
“He didn’t. It’s over. We’re safe. It’s just you and me.”
And it was. The apartment had a completely different aura from the moment we walked in. Without Clay’s threatening presence, it wasn’t so scary anymore.
I take Jasper’s face between my hands, slowly kissing his lips again. I’m careful not to press on any of his bruising, which is beginning to darken his skin.
Jasper is first to deepen the kiss. He runs his hands down my body, gentler than normal, as he trails his lips down my neck.
“Mine,” he says as he squeezes my breasts.
“These too,” he says, hands lingering on my ass.
I nod, a sly smile on my lips.
“Well, this is mine,” I say, sliding my hand into his pants. Jasper grins as I palm him, his face looking happier than it has all day.
Our movements quickly become frantic. Jasper kisses me harder, threading his fingers into my hair. He hoists me up and lifts me onto the bathroom counter. Then he removes my pyjama pants and stands between my open legs.
“Hey there,” I smile as I press my body into his through our clothing. I reach down, tugging at Jasper’s sweats until I retrieve his swollen cock. I press it against my damp panties with a sigh.
“What?” Jasper asks, his breath hot in my ear.
“Oh, nothing,” I smile. “I’d almost forgotten how much I love this,” I say, sinking into an open-mouthed kiss.
“Yeah?” Jasper laughs, peeling my panties off. He lifts the stretchy material of my top just above my breasts, taking turns kissing each one.
“Mmmm,” I moan, the pressure of his cock against my centre getting me ready for him. Jasper reaches down with one hand, testing me with a finger. I close my eyes. My head goes back as I begin to finally relax after such a long day.
Jasper stops moving for a moment and pulls back to look at me.
“What’s wrong?” I ask.
He smiles. “Nothing.”
“Then why are you looking at me like that?”
Jasper’s piercing green eyes stare at me, and he lifts my chin with one hand.
“I love you, Ivy.”
I’m startled for a moment by his declaration, and I pull him to me, inhaling his scent.
“I love you too, Jasper.”
He kisses me tenderly.
“I don’t know what I would have done if you had been hurt,” he murmurs into my ear, tucking my hair back to gain access to my earlobe.
I feel his hot breath there, and the lightness of a kiss. His hands graze my nipples again, then trail down to my slippery folds.
I shift my gaze downward, watching as Jasper’s cock hovers there, ready to make its grand entrance.
“I missed you,” Jasper breathes, pressing inside with just the tip. My body forms to him immediately.
Unlike our other occasions together, Jasper does everything slowly. He kisses my lips softly. He touches me everywhere, caressing my curves with his strong hands. And finally, he brings his hands to gently hold my legs in the air as he guides himself inside.
“Yes,” I breathe.
He watches as my mouth falls open, as my eyes close briefly, surprised by his size. He waits patiently for my body to adjust before beginning to move in slow, deep strokes. Jasper works his timing perfectly. He thrusts patiently, exhibiting remarkable restrain as he reads my body for signs of orgasm.
“You feel so good,” I cry out as he increases his pace.
“Yeah?”
Jasper pulls out teasingly, lowering himself in front of my sex before he brings his mouth down on me.
I whimper as he makes contact with my swollen clitoris, licking and suckling as he inserts two fingers and pumps them inside of me vigorously. My sex aches for him. Juices coat each of his fingers as he works me.
Jasper brings me to the edge of orgasm, then wipes his mouth as he stands again. He slides inside easily, this time not holding back. In. Out. Long. Deep. He fucks me hard on the edge of the counter as if it were an Olympic sport. He brings one hand to stroke my sensitive bud and my pussy begins to convulse.
“Jasper!”
“Yeah, say my name, baby.”
“Jasper!”
I moan again as he sends me over the edge. My sex throbs with pleasure, contracting viciously around Jasper’s penis. I float out of my body as he stuffs his cock deep inside my opening. He continues as I go limp in ecstasy, pumping until a low moan escapes him.
“Yeah,” I say, clawing at his back. I feel him twitch.
“Yeah, baby.”
He goes deeper, faster, letting out a low groan as he climaxes.
“Fuck. Yeah.”
Jasper envelops me in his arms, planting a kiss on top of my head. It’s just the two of us in the stillness of the bathroom. It feels like we’re the only two people in the world.
And I know, by some inexplicable magic, that everything will be okay. Maybe not today, but it will be eventually. For both me and for Violet.
13
___
SIX MONTHS LATER
IVY
“We’re confident that he’ll be found guilty,” Officer Daniels says exactly one week before Clay’s trial. We’re at the police station, set up in one of their conference rooms to review the case. Violet insisted Jasper and I come along to her meeting for our own personal satisfaction.
“Very confident,” Violet’s lawyer adds. “Per our prior discussions, we have a mountain of evidence that implicates Clay directly. No one else.”
“You’re sure?” Violet asks, her voice shaky. She’s come a long way since the incident, but there are still moments when her trauma bubbles to the surface.
“Very,” Daniels says.
Jasper and I sit quietl
y, listening as the group reviews each item that will be presented at the trial. The evidence is overwhelming, especially now that I have the full picture of what Daniels and his team were collecting without my knowledge.
Video footage of Clay taking Jasper’s car from the parking lot. Prints from the scene and from the vehicle. They found Clay’s blood and DNA at the cabin. The police even consulted a handwriting expert to testify that his writing matches the text on the threatening notes. Among that, they found many drawings and sketches of other women to prove that Clay was dysfunctional. And that he had violent fantasies.
“I can’t believe that bastard had the balls to plead not guilty,” Jasper scoffs. “We all saw him with our own eyes.”
“He’s likely trying to get a lesser sentence,” Daniels says. “But he won’t. Judges don’t like liars, and neither do I.”
“We know,” I chuckle. “You thought I was one.”
“No, Ivy.” He laughs. “I thought you were a scared student who may have been jumping to conclusions. But don’t worry, you’ve grown on me,” he jokes.
I had stopped by the station a few times since the incident to say hello to Daniels. And lately, I had been seriously toying with the idea of pursuing a career in criminology. If he’ll let me, I want to nab Daniels as my mentor.
“Well, that about wraps things up. We can have one more session to review any last details before the big day,” Violet’s lawyer says, standing up.
“Sounds good,” she says. “I’m ready for this all to be over.”
“Me too,” Jasper and I say in unison.
“I think this case has been weighing on all our minds,” Daniels says, closing his laptop.
“See you next week, all.”
The court date came faster than any of us anticipated. The trial goes on for a week, but it feels like a day. And though nothing could have prepared us for the emotional roller coaster of watching a former friend be led up to the front of the courtroom, I’m glad that I’m not alone in this ordeal. Today, Clay will find out his fate.
The judge prepares to declare the case verdict, and my heart pounds out of my chest.
