The Read And Weep Bundle: Anonymous, Perfectly Hopeless, Run

by Holly Hood

“I’m just the doorman,” he said short.

  I knew he was full of crap. It was written all over him. I knew he would kill me in a heartbeat and not bat an eye. People who wouldn’t become defensive, he was used to it. And I was doomed. I knew now I had to find a way out or I was in danger of whatever this man was capable of, which seemed like anything.

  “What are you about eighteen?” he asked. I nodded my head agreeing with him even if he was wrong, it didn’t matter.

  “That’s when a person is the most naïve. You make a lot of mistakes at that age. Probably like the one you made today.” He came closer, his eyes staring me down. I wondered if he was debating what it was he was going to do with me. His blue eyes didn’t remind me of a sleazy man. He didn’t look like the kind of man willing to kill a girl like me. I never realized there were so many kinds of awful people in the world.

  “I like to think I am furthest thing from naïve,” I said, my voice so low I barely heard my voice.

  He pulled the gun from his waist, running it along my cheek and back down to my lips. I blinked back the tears at his sick game. He finally stopped the gun at my temple, my pulse fighting against the pressure of the cold metal.

  “Do you think you are a good person, Kendall?”

  “No, not at all,” I said, swallowing down the misery of my honest answer.

  “Really?” he asked, one eyebrow lifting in confusion. “Are you afraid to die?”

  I wished I could spit in his face for making everything so hard. I wished he would just pull the trigger and end it already. But a small part of me was begging and pleading internally that he wouldn’t shoot me.

  “No, I’m not afraid to die,” I admitted, I closed my eyes and the tears fell quickly. “I’m not afraid of much in life. I’ve seen too much to be scared.”

  He let out a sigh. I opened my eyes. He pulled the gun away from me.

  “Well, damn. How the hell am I supposed to kill someone so miserable?”

  I looked away. Even in death I was pitiful.

  He moved to the door, turning his back to me. I hurried to the boxes behind me and pulled out a dumbbell. I quickly hid it behind me in a hurry before Mark caught me. He was none the wiser.

  “Well Kendall, we got two options,” he said, staring around the garage. I nodded, my heart pounding erratically in my chest as he came closer. I squeezed the barbell tighter so it wouldn’t fall to the ground. My fingernails dug into the skin of my palm.

  I no longer heard anything he was saying. The adrenaline in my body took over and I focused on his head. I took a deep breath and swung before I had time to chicken out. I connected with the side of his head, dropping the barbell, his features pinched together in anger and the moment he tried to make sense of what happened was the moment I got out of the door.

  My heart sped up even faster, fresh air filled my nose surfing down into my lungs and giving me the courage to run.

  “You didn’t even get to hear my options,” he yelled after me, starting to pick up speed. I ran back toward the trailer and came to a quick stop. With all the guns inside I would have been dead as soon as I hit the door.

  My insides shook as the memory of the two guns Mark had flashed in my vision. I turned in a circle frantic. I didn’t know what to do next. Dust swirled around my feet.

  “Mason!” I screamed. I wondered if he was alright, if he could hear me or if I was too late to do anything.

  My feet hit the ground hard and pushed me forward. It felt like I was stepping on every rocks and nail that laid sprinkled around the junk yard. My body froze as a single gunshot rang out. My shoulders drew up in defense mode and I dove to the ground behind a big heap of metal, my breath fast. It hurt to breathe but I couldn’t stop myself.

  I had been in many situations but never one where the person was actually trying to kill me. I wanted to scream, my whole world felt like it was crumbling around me. Payton and Wanda had gone off the deep end. If I knew Aunt Wanda, I knew she would have stopped me from going if she didn’t agree with the plan.

  And now as I sat behind the metal I wondered if Mason and I even had a chance to get out of this mess alive. Maybe he was right. Maybe we were sitting ducks.

  “Peek a boo!” Mark yelled, jumping out of nowhere as if it was all a game to him. I jumped to my feet and kicked him in the shin. I tore across the junk yard like lightning, fear nipping at my heels as I tried to lose him again.

  Another gunshot echoed the junk yard. I wished for the cops. I might have done a lot of messed up things, but I didn’t deserve to be taken out for no reason, just because this man was deranged.

  I landed on my face at the back of the trailer. I hurried up the steps, the door was boarded up. I tried looking in the window to get a glimpse of Mason or that giant ogre of a man. I couldn’t see anything. I pulled at the board with my nails trying to pry the board loose, but only manage to break my nails.

  I jumped down just as Mark found me again. He ran faster until he caught me by the arm. I screamed as my body slammed against the trailer. He grabbed me by the hair jerking my head sideways and sent me flying to the ground. I clawed at his legs as his big boot pressed down on the side of my head pinning me in place. The rubber sole dug into my skin.

  “You’re not very smart are you?” He pushed his boot down harder making my skull ache. I pulled at his foot and finally his foot slid off of me. I crawled across the dirt scrambling to my feet, the fear of being shot sending me into panic mode. I ran behind a tree. Mark took his time to find me. He twirled the gun around his finger, walking around me slowly. It really was a sick game to him.

  “Now Kendall, are you ready to hear my options?” he asked out of breath. I leaned against the tree my chest on fire.

  “Sure, why not?” I breathed, closing my eyes.

  “In no way did I ever say I was going to kill you. It’s not my job to end lives,” he said stalking around me like a lion about to devour a deer. One arm neatly behind his back, a faint sign of blood showed on his forehead from the blow he suffered in the garage.

  “Have a little faith in your fellow man. You never know what he can do for you,” he said.

  I pushed off the tree standing up straight, confused. “What?” It wasn’t often I was wrong about people. But this man was proving to be rather hard to gauge.

  “You both are young kids. He only wants to show your friend the meaning of respect. And to make Payton feel like she got what she wanted. You see, everyone’s happy. You understand?” He came closer to me. I flinched, waiting for a fist or something violent, anything to prove I was right. But I got nothing.

  “Mason’s a good kid. You should be teaching Payton a lesson not him,” I said, letting out a relieved sigh. I was still alive. All the fear and agitation settled in my stomach, I felt like I had won the lottery.

  Mark took me by the arm and we headed back into the trailer. I was apprehensive, but after the cat and mouse game I knew he could have killed me a long time ago and he didn’t.

  “Are you sure you’re not going to kill me?” I asked, just to make sure.

  “Will you calm down? I am not going to kill you. I told you,” Mark said. I hurried through the door eager to lay eyes on Mason so I knew this was all a big misunderstanding.

  “Kendall,” Mason said, happy to see me. He was sitting, and as I took all of him I noticed his face. The grizzly looking man had worked Mason over good. His face looked awful. I held back the anger I had for these men for roughing Mason up.

  Mason held it together too. He dropped his gaze back down to his feet. My heart ached for him and what he probably felt like. I noticed his hands were tied.

  “What kind of people are you?” I blurted. The giant ogre moved across the room toward me, his body looming over me. He lifted my chin, surveying my eyes, every detail of me he took in.

  “I am a man of my word,” he said, “a man of my word.”

  I didn’t move a single muscle. His dirty hand held my face in place. The realization of what we h
ad survived finally hit me.

  “Mason understands. Now I want both of you to go. And not speak a single word of any of this. The job is done and Payton will be none the wiser.” He released me and untied Mason’s hands helping him to his feet. He rubbed his wrist, standing next to me. Mark opened the door offering us a way out.

  “You kids take care. Stay away from that nut job. See where she got you already?” he asked, looking at Mason. Mason nodded. I was confused and shocked, but somehow I managed to get down the steps. Mason pulled me toward the gates and then through them.

  I no longer heard the vicious dogs as we made our way out of the gate.

  Silence loomed as we headed back into town, neither one of us speaking about what happened.

  I squeezed Mason’s hand tightly as we moved passed the crowds of people on the sidewalk. Their expressions were filled with shock as they caught sight of Mason’s wounds. Some of them even pulled out their cell phones. We didn’t care we just wanted to get back to our hotel.

  Mason opened the door for me, gritting his teeth in pain as I passed him.

  “So what now?” I asked as he hit the elevator button.

  July 7th

  It was nearing morning. I lay in bed staring at the ceiling. The only sound was Mason’s light breathing next to my head. I locked my hands together underneath the covers afraid to make a noise, afraid to breathe.

  I knew Mason would have yelled at me if he knew I hadn’t slept at all, but I was too stressed to sleep. My stomach hurt so bad it was hard to fight the urge to throw up.

  We hadn’t said a thing to Wanda or Payton since we came back. We were waiting for what I wasn’t sure. I just knew it was all a big game. There was a couple knocks here and there in two days. Mason ignored them, falling back asleep each time. And I was too stressed out to answer them myself.

  Mason never answered me when I asked him what we were going to do. He was in denial that his mom would have him beaten up. The bruises and cuts on his face showed a different story.

  We were just about out of money, which meant soon we were going to be out of a place to stay. I closed my eyes, begging sleep to take over; my heart was in my throat. I squeezed my stomach as a rush of nausea rushed over me again.

  The bathroom door came open with a thud, it hit the wall and let out a squeal of pain. Mason towered over me as I hugged the toilet bowl.

  “You’re always letting your nerves get the best of you,” he said from above. He stroked my hair, his fingers soothing me with every light caress they made down the back of my head.

  I closed my eyes enjoying his touch.

  “What are we going to do, Mason?” I asked, waiting for anything to come out of me, so this sick feeling could just go away. The sad dark place I always went to when reality consumed me wasn’t a place I wanted to be anymore.

  “What do you want me to do, Kendall? Say anything and I’ll do it,” Mason said. He pushed my hair off my neck, his lips grazing my cheek. I sighed, holding tight to the side of his head.

  “I really don’t know. I just wish things could be simpler,” I said.

  Silence fell over the room again.

  I wasn’t certain of much. I didn’t know if we even had a small chance of making it out alive. There really was no out. There was no hope for normal. Maybe we needed to just give up on hope. Hope brought us back to the same place over and over again.

  There was a knock on the door. Mason jumped up, my arms pricked with a thousand goose bumps. I wasn’t stupid; whoever was on the other side wasn’t happy.

  There was no more time to be sick. Even if I wanted to puke it had to wait. I collected our things quickly being very careful not to make any noise. He pressed himself against the door and peered through the peephole. I snagged the last thing off the floor—his favorite t-shirt, and was ready.

  Mason looked at me. I knew the look all too well. He was worried. And that wasn’t something that happened often.

  “Now what?” I asked, afraid to ask if it were the police.

  “We got to hope they give up and leave. And then we sneak out,” he said in a whisper.

  “What about the money Roger gave me?” I asked, that was enough money to buy us more time in Virginia. But from the shake of Mason’s head I knew he wasn’t going to use it.

  “That’s the only money we have in case of an emergency. If we are out of money so are they. You don’t think they will figure out we been holding out on them?” He raised an eyebrow. Of course he was right.

  “What about the window?” I asked, my mind shifting back to escape. I felt like a caged dog. My heart was racing again and my mouth felt like it was filled with cotton.

  “We will kill ourselves, Kendall. Don’t be silly,” he said looking out the peephole again.

  “What about Wanda?” I squeaked. She was all I ever knew, my dysfunctional form of security. And in times like these I was willing to let her kill something if it gave me freedom.

  “What do you think Wanda is going to do for us?” Mason asked almost yelling at me.

  I bit my lip. I had no answer to give. For all I knew she might have sent people to our room to scare us even further.

  Minutes later all was silent and my heart was slowing back down to a slower rhythm. Mason threw on his shirt and shoes. I held tight to our backpack as he slowly unlocked the door. A crazy scenario went off in my mind. I wondered how hard my face would hit the carpet when I was slammed down like a criminal.

  I felt worse every inch the door opened. It felt as if our freedom was slipping away little by little. He motioned me to hurry up and we slipped into the hallway.

  I held tight to Mason as we slipped undetected through the hallway. Nobody was around.

  “If it were cops they would have just came in right?” I asked. My mind wasn’t willing to calm down, it was doing the opposite and freaking me out.

  “Exactly, the cops could get a key from the staff to get inside if they wanted to. It was probably housekeeping or something,” Mason said low. Mason nodded politely at the passing couple. His shoulder collided with another guy that was rounding the corner that was around our age. I concentrated on my feet, afraid a simple bump in the hallway was enough to ruin our escape.

  “Should we?” I asked, hoping he knew what I meant.

  “I don’t know. I don’t know,” he mumbled nervously under his breath. He tugged me faster so we could squeeze into the elevator before it shut and left us out in the hallway. We stumbled inside, the woman waiting for her stop looked startled to see us at the last minute. She studied Mason’s battered face, pulling her arms closer to her body; she hugged her wrist, one finger draped across her silver watch, probably hoping we didn’t mug her. Stealing was the last thing on our minds—if only she knew that.

  I wanted to say something, but I knew better. My heart thudded in my chest making everything seem surreal that it was even happening. The elevator doors parted, blinding my vision momentarily as we entered the lobby.

  “Come on,” Mason said, yanking me across the sleek marble floor. I finally could focus my eyes and they landed right on Aunt Wanda and Payton. Payton dropped the magazine she was reading as soon as she caught sight of us trying to make our escape. But Mason kept moving right out the revolving doors.

  As we hit the fresh air reality kicked me in the stomach.

  “If we leave them its final, it’s done. You know as well as I do,” I said, trying to get Mason to stop walking.

  “I don’t care about them. We need to save ourselves,” he said, his feet moving still.

  I pulled back just as Wanda snatched me by the arm, her claws sinking into my flesh.

  “You’re free to do what you want, but Kendall stays,” she said, her lips making a perfect line. Her eyes filled with silent venom, threatening Mason. This was the moment I was waiting for. For Wanda to stop me and decide my next step in life like she always had for years.

  “I’ll give you two options, Wanda,” Mason said standing tall and unmoved by
her glare. He held onto my hand not backing down. He didn’t care about the people passing by either who seemed confused.

  “Mason, you have no options to give me,” Wanda tossed back still calm.

  “Either you get the fuck away from us!” Mason said, raising his voice to levels Wanda wasn’t used to in public. Bystanders immediately zoned in on our confrontation. My heart sunk at the realization that everyone was looking at us now. This was what I didn’t want.

  “Or I go back and tell the hotel staff the whole story. The truth. And we all can go to jail,” he said, even this didn’t bring his words to a whisper. He didn’t care who heard. He just wanted to get us away from Wanda. His words echoed in my ears over and over, my cheeks grew warm. Reality was leaving me and I realized there was nothing I could do about it, but wait.

  I managed to look at Wanda. Her face was beat red. Her eyes were nearly popping from the sockets. Her grip loosened as she stumbled for words, something to say to stay the alpha dog.

  “Don’t go back to Joy-Ann,” she said, she kept her gaze locked on mine and did something I never thought she would do—she let me go.

  “Why would I do that?” I asked softly, tears forming in my eyes. This felt like goodbye, like Aunt Wanda had been conquered.

  “If you want to be stupid fine, but don’t go back there. Get out of here,” she said, and she turned on her heels. She was gone. I watched her grow smaller and smaller as she walked away from me.

  I was ready to run to her. My one person I counted on my whole life practically. Even if she did nothing but ruin my life. She was my somebody, my blood.

  “Come on, Kendall!” Mason yelled at me. I swatted at him annoyed he was still yelling at me and I started running. We turned down the first alley we saw and finally stopped to catch our breath.

  July 8th

  The sun still hadn’t rose. Mason and I were on a never ending road full of dust. The only thing after all the miles we walked was the gas station we finally came across. We used five bucks to feed the two of us, splitting a beef jerky and buying two slurpees to quench our thirst. It was by far the worst meal ever when you hadn’t eaten anything reasonable in such a long time.