by Laura Greene
Outside, the chill of dread is jolted by the chilling cold of the night. A fog is settling into the air. The temperature drops with each minute that nears the early morning hours. Tina is desperate to find Ella and Charlie is her one hope of finding her. Please, God, Tina prays in her heart, help her live through the night. Her only concern is finding Ella. She fears the night may also be targeting Ella. Even if she doesn’t take her life, the cold winds are enough to take her.
“Ella!” The wind intercepts her loud cry and carries it away with a menacing howl. Even the night is warning her to not draw near, but Tina ignores the threats of the night. “Ella!” She presses on covering her face and carefully following Charlie’s feet.
“Hey! Wait for me!” It’s Nick and he has joined them in time to help with the search.
“Charlie!” Tina shouts as she remembers where Anna went the night she died. Charlie is only a couple of feet away, but she is battling the winds to be heard. “The water tower! Hurry!”
Charlie raises his hand to acknowledge her and points forward. Tina is hoping they can get there before Ella, but more than that, she hopes they can find her, and soon. With Nick now walking behind her, Tina realizes she is being guarded from the full thrust of the wind by Charlie in front and Nick in the back. She is shielded from the strong whips of the winds that are tense enough to toss tree branches in the air. But who is guarding Ella? Please, God.
“Up...head, we’re alm... there!” Charlie signals and shouts as his words are devoured by the wind.
Tina gathers that they are close. The wind blows her hood off the top of her head. She covers her ears from the cold cuts which feel like knives slicing through her ear. She thought Boston was cold, but Newport’s ocean winds are unmatched. Tina lifts up the hood of her bubble coat and looks up to see the water tower standing unconquered by the winds. “There she is!” Tina actually hears herself this time. The howling winds are calming down and Tina takes this as a sign of her prayer being answered.
Already half-way up the water tower, Ella is shivering as she climbs up. Tina takes off to run and follow Ella, but Nick holds her back by her shoulder. “No, the winds are still strong and they could pick up again. You wait here and talk to her. I’ll go after her.” Nick sprints to the tower as he shouts, “Ella! Wait!”
Ella looks like she is in a trans. The violent winds do not howl more fiercely this time, they halt all together like an ensemble waiting to see the next act. The winds watch. Charlie and Tina watch. The night watches. And Nick races to the top.
Already standing at the top of the tower is Ella. She is uncharacteristically calm. She is muttering under her breath as she takes a step. Who is she talking to? Tina wonders, “Ella, listen to me. You do not have to do this. You have family and friends that love you that will be heartbroken. Please, don’t do this Ella.”
Ella stops. Tina hears what sounds like sobbing. “I have to do this. It’s the only way.”
“Only way for what, Ella?” Tina probes.
“It’s the only way I can pay for my sins.” Tina’s heart is jolted like an alarm to a car. Those words, she thinks, I read them in Anna’s letter to her parents.
Nick is nearing the top of the tower. He is just a few steps away from Ella. “Stop!” Ella shouts. She clings onto the bed sheet more tightly. “Don’t come any closer!” There are tears in her eyes and her voice is breaking as she says this. Tina knows in her heart that Ella does not want to take her life, she must feel she has no other choice.
“Ella, please. Listen to me. Anna felt she didn’t have any other choice. That’s why she took her life. But you and I both know that she had another choice and we know the pain it caused you. If Anna was here, do you think she would let you do this? Please think of her. I wanted to protect her, but I didn’t know. Please, give me a chance to protect you. I’m only asking for a chance.” Tina’s heart is breaking within her for Ella.
Ella falls to her knees, crying.
“Nick, now!” Nick rushes to pick Ella up and bring her safely down the tower.
Tina rushes to Ella and holds her tightly in her arms like a mother holds her child to protect her. She takes off her coat and places it on Ella, “Thank you, Ella. Thank you, for choosing to stay.” Tina rubs her arms around Ella as they walk back to the dorms.
“I heard them too.” Ella whispers low enough for only Tina to hear.
“Heard what, Ella?”
“They told me to do it.”
“What are you talking about, who told you to take your life?” Tina asks, staring at Ella and leaning closer to her.
“The voices.”
Chapter 3
The voices, Tina thinks. She finally slept a few hours and she’s refreshed. Boxes of clothes that she still needs to unpack are dotted about her room and she is grateful for some much needed rest. She looks outside her window; the two officers are on watch outside her home. She turns to look inside her bedroom; she is yet to unpack and make her house more of a home. She contemplates where she will put her grandma’s ornament collection and hang her pictures. Then she remembers, before she can entertain her house decorations, Tina has a phone call to make. She is happy to oblige the call because deep down she’s not yet ready to admit her roots are now in Newport.
Her mind reverts back to Ella. It’s not yet clear to Tina why she is so drawn to her. Thus far, at every step of her investigation, she has run into Ella and it’s as if their destinies are intertwined. Perhaps the two times she has saved her – first, from her perpetrator Dean, and second, from the water tower incident – have something to do with it. The very thought of the last words Ella said to her last night haunts Tina. She wonders what Ella meant when she said the voices told her to take her life. Will I have to save her from the voices too? As obscure as the details remain, this statement about the voices is the closest she has gotten so far to finding out who is behind these deaths.
Tina gets up from her bed and she calls Ella’s parents. She’s anxious to find out how Ella is doing.
After the water tower incident, Tina waited for Ella’s parents to arrive and take her home. Poor girl. The last week had been unforgiving to Ella; she had been through so much turmoil. The last thing she probably expected that night was a boat ride on her parents’ private ship to Martha’s Vineyard. Yet, being home with those she loves as both Tina and Amy agreed, will be the safest place for her while the investigation continues. Now, Ella will be safely tucked away from her tormentors.
Tina looks at her watch. By now they should be in Martha’s Vineyard, she thinks as someone picks up the phone. “Mrs Conwell, this is Detective Tina James,” she says. “I don’t want to take too much of your time. I just wanted to see how Ella is and if she’s maybe shared anything with you that could help with the investigation?”
“Detective James, thank you for calling. Ella is fine. Well, as much as can be expected. We arrived a few hours ago and she has barely exchanged two words with us.” Mrs Conwell seemed like a strong woman when Tina met her, but now, Tina can hear her voice quivering as she speaks.
“She may still be in shock. We’ll give her time to settle in. And Mrs Conwell, the next few days will not be easy, but we believe home is the best place for Ella to be right now. Would you please call me when she’s ready to talk?”
“Thank you, Detective. We will.” Mrs Conwell hangs up the phone. Tina is grateful to see Ella has a loving tribe surrounding her and expects her recovery to be smooth. She did not expect Ella to say anything about the case yet. Her call was out of genuine concern for the young girl. In her heart, she has a strong and rather strange sense that in helping Ella she is in turn helping herself also – in what way, she is yet to find out. She just knows that something is drawing her to Ella.
When Tina puts down her cellphone, she catches boxes staring at her from the corners of the room. Their poised stature practically taunts her for procrastinating to unpack. This is it, she thinks, what I do next will determine if I’m leaving or stay
ing in Newport. She settles in her mind that it’s time to go for it; the only way to solve a problem is to face it head on, so I’m staying. Then, with slight apprehension, she takes the first box and cuts it open.
This begins her journey to settling into her home one box at a time. With each box she unpacks, she stacks a box of joy in her heart. She is confident that she has made the right choice. However, each minute that she spends in Rhode Island is a minute that brings her closer to the most dangerous encounters yet, and her decision to stay is the deed that will prove to be her doom.
*
Tina is listening to her favorite playlist on Spotify as she breaks up boxes in the living room when she receives a call.
It’s Mrs Conwell again, but this time she sounds frantic.
“Detective, please come quickly.” A mere two hours have passed since they spoke and Mrs Conwell’s voice is higher pitched this time.
“What’s going on? Is Ella okay?” Tina sets the box in her hand aside and takes a seat next to her notepad and pen.
“Please you need to come here. We… we,” Mrs Conwell’s voice is trailing in and out of the phone as she walks in the house checking every window for signs of a mysterious assailant. She continues, “it’s Ella, she’s been receiving calls and messages from a number that we don’t know for the last hour. The caller is telling her to finish what she started. They even have her email address. Please, we just want this to stop.”
Instinctively, Tina jumps out of her chair with the phone to her ear before Mrs Conwell can even finish telling her that Ella is shaking with fear. She grabs a small bag and fills it with a few necessities, then she rushes out of the door when she pauses to tell Mrs Conwell, “You need to turn off her phone, sit tight and keep an eye on Ella. I’m coming now.”
Tina was hoping for Ella to start talking, but she did not expect Ella’s tormentors to follow her home. She requests that Mrs Conwell send her the number of the mysterious caller. If she can trace the number, it may lead her directly to the suspect.
The M.O. has changed, she thinks. First, they were voices, now Ella is receiving calls. Tina knows when an assailant changes their M.O., that is when they are most likely to make mistakes and she will be there when they do.
Within minutes of leaving her home, Tina arrives at Woods Hole. She parks her black SUV and hops on the ferry to Oak Bluffs, a small town on Martha’s Vineyard island. She takes a seat at the front of the ferry, but sits far enough from either edge. She does not trust her sea legs to support her on such short notice. Holding her bag close to her stomach, she opts to not take something to ease her sea sickness because the trip is only an hour and a half. Medication could make her drowsy and hinder her effectiveness in Oak Bluffs. She needs to be ready to step into the field the moment she arrives. Soon she finds something to take her mind off her sea legs when tourists in dark sunglasses and winter coats board the ferry in droves. Some have bags with airport tags and others are not even carrying a bag – those without a bag, must be on a day trip. As she takes in the smell of the salt water, she hears accents from various parts of the country and different languages. For a moment, she imagines that she is going to another country far from American soil – somewhere beautiful, somewhere far.
Her assignments on the force have kept her in America, apart from the odd trip across the Canadian border. But she would love to go to Europe. She would visit The Louvre in Paris and clop along the charming streets of Verona, re-living Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet before taking a ride on the gondola in Venice.
She often asked Tim to send her out of the country, but none of her assignments warranted her international travel. Tina remembers that she needs to notify Tim of her travels.
“Oh, excuse me.” A man with rather large feet almost knocks her phone out of her hand as he shuffles past and sits next to her.
Tina’s big toe is throbbing inside her shoe, however, she offers a polite smile as she sucks in air deeply through clenched teeth and curls all her toes in.
“Hi, Tim, I just wanted to let you know that there’s been some development in the case and I’m on my way to Martha’s Vineyard.”
“Thanks, I got your report on what happened last night so I understand. And hey! I ran into Dale earlier today. I was picking up coffee from Dunkin’ and he said you two aren’t together anymore?”
“Yeah, things just didn’t work out like we had planned. You of all people know how that is.” Tina’s wondering where Tim is going with this.
“Yeah, I’m the king of not working out alright.” Tim chuckles. “But listen, I know it’s none of my business and all.” He pauses and sighs before he says, “You’re a great agent, James. I have no doubt you’re doing excellent work there. But, you need to allow yourself to get close to people and love fully, you deserve that.”
“Thanks, Tim.” Tina is not sure what to make of Tim’s statement except that he’s always looked out for her like a father-figure, since she was just a rookie. He was even rooting for Dale and her to go far.
“I know I’m the last person to tell you about relationships, but I’ve seen you and you have the potential to be the best. Over the years, I’ve seen many agents come and go, and the best agents are those who have great technical skills like you and learn to join them with compassion. Look, I just think something is holding you back and you need to find out what that is.” Then his tone changes from more serious and caring to his usual joking self. “Well, there goes my rant for the day!” He laughs again and wishes her well before they hang up.
An ominous feeling slowly sets heavily on Tina as the ferry pulls out of the port. Tina does not address it at first though it is familiar to her. She thinks of Tim’s words of wisdom and how she values what he has to say. He’s one of the few people who know her well and their serious conversations only happen when something really needs to be said. She ponders, What could be holding me back?
As the ferry sails swiftly atop the deep blue waters, Tina grunts as if to shake off the ominous feeling that is now stifling the salty air. She knows it. She has sensed it before though she could not explain it. It is the gloomy realization that she is walking into her death.
Chapter 4
“She hasn’t left her room since I called you.” Mrs Conwell informs Tina. Seeing her daughter tormented has left poor Mrs Conwell feeling helpless. Her age which was a mystery when Tina first met her at the school is now evident in the wrinkles on her worried face.
Tina arrived moments ago at the grand Conwell estate. One look at the magnificent landscape and Roman-inspired exterior as she entered the estate in her rental car, made Tina’s new home appear more like a cottage. The interior is even more breath-taking, with themed rooms, paintings and sculptures from various eras. As Tina admires the Monet on one wall, she feels like she has arrived at The Louvre.
Mrs Conwell accompanies her to the study where they discuss the case. “Can you think of why someone would want to target your daughter Mrs Conwell?”
“Please, call me Becky. You’ve seen our home and we are incredibly privileged.” She says as she hands Tina a glass of fresh-squeezed lemonade. “Sure, we receive the odd threat here and there, but it is always aimed at me or my husband, Jason. Not our...” Becky sobs into a handkerchief. “We’ve always tried to shield our daughter from the public eye. We even placed her at Hartford, assured it was the best fit for her. And now we’re not so sure that was such a good idea.”
“Could someone be after your money or have something against you, your husband or Ella?”
“We have asked ourselves that question and we can’t think of anyone that would do this to us. Oh, Ella honey,” Becky springs to her feet and embraces Ella whose body is as stealth as her expression. “Detective James is here to help us.” She walks her to a seat between her and Tina. Ella remains silent.
“Ella, I know you’ve had a rough week. I’m sure you’re ready to have your life back and I want that for you. But, I need your help. You have to talk to me. P
lease tell me anything the caller told you.”
Ella’s eyes turning to look at Tina are the first sign of life that Tina’s seen in her since yesterday. Tina rubs her hand and encourages her to share. Her hand is cold, as if someone drained the blood out of it. Her mouth trembles at first. Then she says in a hushed, lifeless tone, “The first time the calls came in, I picked up. The area code was a Newport number and I thought it was one of my friends checking on me. I shouldn’t have picked up.” Her body does not move, she only opens her mouth, and barely, when she speaks. “All they said was I should finish what I started.” Tears fall down her tender, pale cheeks, but she does not wipe them off.
“Do you know who it was Ella?”
“No. The voice was muffled.”
“Is this the same voice you heard at the school?”
Ella purses her lips and turns her head away from Tina. She stares at the wall in front of her, but her eyes look lost and distant.
