by E A Lake
“I don’t know what was wrong with Three today,” Liv stated, playing with the food on her plate. “But she was in a nasty mood. At one point, she pinned me up against the wall and pulled on my hair. Asked me who I thought I was, showing up to work without pinning my hair up. Heck, I’ve been up there all week and my hair has been the same. Now today…”
Her words trailed off as she sighed and dropped her fork.
“She’s just a bitch who hates us all,” Morgan quipped, reaching to rub Liv’s hands.
“I know,” Liv whispered. “She just doesn’t need to be so mean. She was asking me if I thought Charolette was healthy enough to get back to her duties yet. I told her I didn’t know if Charolette was ever going to be able to walk right again. She just laughed and laughed. Said she’d drag Charolette out of bed herself next week if she wanted to. Claimed she wasn’t fooled by some little girl faking it. What a jerk.”
The five of us picked at our plates. We needed something to lift our spirits. Me getting my memory back would have done the trick, but it was still absent. So, I decided to go with the next best thing.
“I got an idea for a plan for our escape,” I said, watching three of four faces light up. Morgan simply rolled her eyes. I rose from my chair and began to pace. “And Morgan hasn’t found a hole in the plan yet, so maybe if we—”
A funny pain pushed against the side of my head where I’d taken the blow. I lifted a hand to push it away as though it were a rock or something.
“Are you alright, Quinn?” Sara asking, rising quickly from her spot to come to my aide.
“I’m…fine,” I stammered as the pressure turned to pain. “I think I just stood up to fast.”
“Sit him down!” Morgan shouted as she too rose. “He’s starting to shake.”
I felt someone’s hand grip my arms, but then they slipped away as I stumbled forward, trying to regain my balance. The world spun around me as I tried to find something to lean against. My body began to waver and then I fell forward, feeling something firm striking my head.
“Help,” I muttered, feeling the wood floor strike my right cheek. “Help me…please.”
And then the world went black.
CHAPTER FORTY
I know I came to once or twice during the next few days. At least I think I did. It was usually foggy or blurry and happened when someone pressed a cool rag against my head. I think I remember Morgan, or maybe Sasha, changing the dressing on the wounds in my upper leg and chest. But that was about all.
Late one night, I awoke to darkness. For a moment, I thought I was dead. I was enveloped in black and all was devoid of light. And there wasn’t a sound to be heard anywhere.
And then, ever so faintly, something reached my ears. The sound of light snoring.
I felt beside me and discovered a bedmate. That was probably a good sign. At least if I was dead, I had a friend. But if I was alive, I was…
Where the hell was I?
I felt a breeze drift across my naked chest. Inching my fingers southward, I discovered I was naked. Bare naked. I wasn’t cold, but something to cover me would have been nice.
I tried to recall the last thing I remembered, but nothing came to mind. It was as if I were a newborn baby without any memories to recall.
I felt a stirring beside me; just one person, not two like before. I had an idea, a happy one at that. It had all been a dream.
There was no Sara, Sasha, Liv or Morgan in my world. Sure, they existed somewhere, but not where I was. Because I was home.
Everything I’d seen was just a dream, a nightmare perhaps. But now I was awakening and it all became clear.
Tony Shaklin may have stole a business from me, but he wasn’t an unscrupulous farmer who kept slaves down by Hymera. There were no cabins, no 12 women.
Most importantly, there was nothing to be done. I wasn’t expected to come up with a solution for anyone’s troubles. I wasn’t a savior and I wasn’t a goat. I was just Quinn Reynolds of Terre Haute, lying in bed next to my wife.
Her name evaded me for a moment, so I went onto another thought. What did I drive? A dark blue Subaru hatchback came to mind. Yes, that was it. I drove to work every day in a car I’d always wanted, always admired.
And what did I do for a living? Let’s see; I was a businessman of some sort. After all, I had studied business at IU. That much I knew.
I turned and slid in behind my wife, snuggling her naked body close to mine. Just to be sure, I felt in the dark on the other side of the bed and found no one beside me. That was perfect. It was all perfect and made sense. I became aroused.
“Someone’s all excited,” a smoky voice next to me said quietly. I detected a hint of a grin when she spoke. If I could only remember her name. Maybe I’d try a few soft attempts at extracting information while the nightmare faded and reality returned.
“I’m not sure about you,” I whispered into her ear, pushing her long hair away. “But I don’t think we’re going to make it into work today. We’re going to both have to call in sick.” I kissed the back of her neck and felt a hand on my head.
“Oh, that’s what you think?” she replied. It sounded as if I’d read her mind. “Maybe I could, but you won’t have to.”
That didn’t help, so I started a new approach.
“I say we take the Subaru and take a little drive after we get up,” I said, kissing the cheek she offered me.
“Whose Subaru?” my wife asked, sounding confused.
“One of us has one, right?” Something wasn’t adding up, and it wasn’t just because it was dark.
“You’ve always driven a truck,” she replied, rolling over as I ran my hand across her bare stomach. I felt her breath come in and out as my hands roamed higher.
“And I’ve only ever had that one crappy Malibu I got from my dad,” she continued. “You know, the green one.”
I didn’t recall a truck and I certainly couldn’t remember a green car anywhere in my life. Maybe I was just foggy from sleeping so hard.
“What’s my name, Quinn?” she asked quietly. “Say my name out loud and kiss me.”
Okay, I thought I had it after a few minutes of conversation. “Good morning, Carrie.” I went to kiss my wife, but instead was stopped by a hand planted against my face.
“Try again, think harder. You’re tired…it’ll come to you.”
“Connie…no, ah, Diane. No wait, that’s not right. I got it.” I snapped my fingers. “Ginny. Virginia Reynolds.” I leaned in for my kiss and received my reward. That was it; I was home safe and sound with Ginny.
Our lips parted and I felt something strange. The breast in my left hand seemed smaller than I remembered. And Ginny’s ribcage was extremely pronounced, as though she’d been starving herself.
“Almost, lover boy,” the woman replied glumly. “But how about you try Morgan.”
CHAPTER FORTY-ONE
We laid there quietly until the first hint of pink tinged the eastern sky. We were still naked — no sense in covering up at that point — and Morgan had her arm and leg over one of mine.
“I thought at first you were having a seizure,” she said. “You were shaking so bad. That would have been the worst-case scenario. Then I saw you were bleeding again, but this time from both wounds. You lost a lot of blood that I hadn’t noticed. Sorry; my bad.”
I sighed and hugged the woman. She tried her best to help me mend, and all my movements did were rip open my wounds time and time again.
“So, I lost two and a half days?” I felt her nod against my chest. “And you put me back in your bed because you were worried about me bleeding out?”
“Yep,” she replied. “I don’t know how much blood you’ve lost over the time you’ve been here. But it dawned on me after you went down that you hadn’t taken in anywhere enough liquids to replace what was gone. And yes, I took your clothes off because it’s still so damned hot and I figured you’d understand.”
I did. She wasn’t trying to seduce me. No; that was my j
ob it seemed. Confused and alone in a dark room, I did my best to try and give her what she seemed to need, even if I had failed. But the lost days had a domino effect on our escape.
“How long before you think it’s safe for me to travel without passing out again?” I asked.
I felt her stir as she rolled onto the far side of the bed. Morgan rose, facing away from me, stretching and reaching for a thin t-shirt and loose athletic shorts.
“Probably another couple of weeks,” she replied when she turned to face me again.
“And where’s Sasha? Already at work?”
She grinned and tossed me a pair of shorts to put on. “She couldn’t take your snoring. And she didn’t want to wake up next to a dead man if you bled out. So, she chose the couch.”
Making her way to the door, she paused before leaving.
“I’m glad it wasn’t a seizure, Quinn. That would have meant bad things for that brain of yours. Now, I’d better go get breakfast started.”
Just before she left, I slipped shorts on and chased after her. She looked at me, puzzled as I approached. When I opened my arms, she fell against me and got the hug she so rightly deserved.
“Thank you,” I said, softly, kissing her forehead. “Thank you for making sure I didn’t die. Thank you for all you’ve done. Thank you for taking such good care of me, even if I don’t deserve it somehow.”
She squeezed me tightly and let go after only a few seconds of closeness. With her arms still wrapped around my waist, she looked up at me with large, wide-opened eyes.
“You still don’t have any idea of who you really are, do you?” she asked. She let go and wandered off into the other room.
No, I didn’t have any idea who Quinn Reynolds really was. And I was beginning to wonder if I ever would remember my past. Fortunately, I wouldn’t have to wait much longer for another clue.
CHAPTER FORTY-TWO
“Something’s going on in the last day or so,” Liv announced as we ate breakfast together. “I don’t know what exactly, but there’s something big in the wind.”
She nodded absentmindedly as I played with the edges of the new gauze Morgan had placed over my wounds while I slept…or should I say, while I was passed out.
“Any ideas?” I asked, glancing around the table.
“Our guards are walking us halfway up to the house now,” Sasha replied, pulling on the ends of her hair. “Then we’re met by two of Shaklin’s guards and walked up the rest of the way. He’s even got two men circling the house all day long now.”
I stared nervously at Morgan. “Do you think he’s gotten wind that there’s a man down here?”
She shook her head and poured me another glass of water, signaling me to drink it all down. “Nah, he’d have done something right away. It’s not his style to play coy and wait a thing like that out. He’d come in with guns a blazing right away.”
“Whatever it is,” Sara said, taking her dirty dishes to the sink, “we’ll find out soon enough. I think he’s just waiting on confirmation of some kind of information. At least that’s what I heard Three saying to Two yesterday. Something about him hoping to hear some news soon.”
Liv, Sasha and Sara left, leaving Morgan and me alone with our thoughts. Thoughts and plans. I wasn’t waiting around to find out if my old pal Tony was onto me. We needed to move ahead with our escape whether it killed me or not.
We didn’t have to wait long for news. That evening, just after dinner, one of the guards announced that Mr. Shaklin was coming down for a chat. And by chat, Morgan said, that meant Tony would do all the talking and the 12 helpers would do the listening.
I watched from behind the living room curtain as my group descended the steps and waited for his arrival. On the left, I noticed someone helping Charolette down their wooden stairs. On her right foot, she wore a black walking boot. I guess her benevolent boss had come through for her.
Shaklin and four guards marched into the area a minute later. All wore tight expressions, so I knew whatever was coming wasn’t good. The boss stepped forward and removed his black cowboy hat.
“I know you all been wondering what’s been going on with the tightened security over the past few days,” he began, rooting his hat in his hands. “Well, I just received confirmation of what I was waiting on and I wanted to come share it with all of you right away.”
I watched his men closely. Instead of looking at the women, each of them faced a different direction. All eyes scanned outwards, as if on guard for an attack of some sort.
“There’s a man coming this way,” Shaklin continued. “He’s a nasty man. A man who doesn’t have any morals. He’s a killer, ladies. A cold-blooded killer. I’m not sure exactly what he’s after. But my first priority is to protect my wives and family. After that comes you.”
He paused and shifted his eyes from woman to woman, letting his words sink in. “Because of this unfortunate circumstance, I feel it’s necessary to double the guards around your area. If I have to triple them later, I will. So, from now until we can hunt this man down, you’ll have your regular guard and two of my best circling the perimeter of your cabins day and night.
“Please rest assured that I will not let this man harm any of you. I promise to protect each one of you as though you were my own blood. That’s how much you all mean to me.”
He sounded sincere. I wasn’t sure he really was, but he made a good show of it. For the life of me, I couldn’t imagine who would have it in for an innocent woman serving as a slave for a man like him though. Shaklin? Sure, he probably had a big bullseye on his back. I’m sure his reputation was well known and I was equally as sure he’d screwed more than one angry person out of something.
But who would want to hurt his family or take it out on his work force? That part didn’t make sense.
“Now you can all get back to enjoying yourselves,” he continued with a false smile. “And try not to worry. We’ll catch this bastard and we’ll make sure he gets punished for thinking he could come here and threaten any of my people.”
He turned and took two steps before I heard one of the women from Cabin One call out his name.
“Mr. Shaklin,” she said. “Do you know the man who’s coming? Is it a name we might recognize from our pasts? We all come from such a small area, you know.”
Shaklin came back and stood in front of the group. He nodded politely at the middle-aged woman.
“Yes, Irma,” he replied in a deep voice. “I know him and I suspect most of you have heard of him as well.”
His gaze floated around the 12 while he scratched his chin beneath his full beard. “He’s killed more than 50 men I’m told. And while I don’t buy into a lot of rumors, Carla has told me that she has that number on good accord. So, when I say he’s a killer, I don’t say it lightly.”
His pause gave me concern. It almost appeared as if his eyes had found me in the dark cabin behind the curtain. He looked away quickly and back to Irma.
“Keep your eyes and ears open, ladies,” he said. “If you see Quinn Reynolds, or hear his name uttered, you’d better find a place to hide. Or else he just might make you number 51.”
CHAPTER FORTY-THREE
I paced back and forth in front of the four women as they took spots on the couch and chairs. Four steps one direction, a sharp turn, followed by four precise steps back from where I came. On my fourth lap, Morgan cleared her throat. When I dared peek at her, she was smiling apologetically.
“Are you mad about something?” Liv asked innocently. “Because you seem kind of mad.”
I stopped and pointed at my chest. “Me?” I gasped. “Am I mad? Why would I be mad?” Morgan’s smile had faded.
Slowly, I approached Sara. “Did we do something?” she stammered as I knelt before her. “Because if we did, we’re sorry.”
I shook my head at her. It seemed like only Morgan understood their sin of omission.
“This was kind of a big thing to conveniently forgot to tell me,” I said, being sure I had a
ll of their attention.
Liv had a nice smile still — she was too sweet to hurt. Sara’s face fell as she realized what it was that may have upset me. Sasha amused me with a new nervous tick: chewing on the end of a large wad of hair. Morgan simply rolled her eyes and fell back on the couch.
“Like you were ever gonna believe us if we told you that,” Morgan said with a chuckle. “You can’t even remember your wife’s name or what kind of car you drove. You act like you’ve never heard of Pimento, and you’ve lived there four or five years. So, you’ve killed a few people. Big deal. It’s bad out there; even you should have figured that out by now.”
I opened my mouth to chastise the resident smart aleck, but Sara grabbed my hands.
“They were all bad people, Quinn,” Sara cried. “They all had it coming. At least that’s what we’ve heard.”
“Killing road scum isn’t illegal,” Liv added, trying to put a positive spin on it. “And you’re a good man is what we’ve heard, if the rumors can be believed.”
I rose again and resumed pacing. “I was in business with Shaklin and got screwed out of 10 million dollars. I had an affair with a minor, but broke it off.”
“I was 19,” Sara inserted. “I wasn’t a minor.”
I wagged a finger at her. “Not really helping, but thanks. To continue, I was married, but my wife left me. Those were big things; things that make me wonder what kind of a person I was — am. But killing 50 people?”
“I heard it was only around 40,” Liv stated.
“I heard it was closer to a hundred,” Morgan added. “Not that it makes a difference now. You don’t remember killing anyone, do you?”
I shrugged and opened my palms. It was all news to me. Nowhere in my past did I see dead bodies, especially dead bodies that had died by my hand.
“So, what am I? Some kind of vigilante?”
Three faces turned towards the fourth: Morgan’s. I had to give them that. They had this dance memorized right down to the last move.
