by Tina Maurine
“Okay, where are you?” I heard him muttering to himself in a strained voice. He had to be on his belly. I squeezed my eyes tightly shut and grabbed my knees for dear life. I was afraid he’d hear my watch ticking, my knees knocking, the beat of my heart; hell, I was for sure he could hear the blood rushing in my ears and my breathing. So, I stopped.
He shone the spotlight beam all around, the side of the light-beam hitting my toes a few times and the back wall of the vent next to my thigh. I had drawn myself back as
much as I possibly could and now could do nothing more than believe in prayer and hope for the best. A few seconds passed, a minute maybe, but in my world it felt like forever. Each second felt like the difference between life and death. I now knew what it felt like to be the prey; cuddled up, helpless and at the mercy of a predator.
Finally, the light left me. Alone.
Scared.
Immersed in dark.
Chapter
-8 Hours
Mercy was clever. He was the cat and I was the mouse. He lay in waiting several minutes, and at sporadic intervals would blast me with the light—blinding me. Terrifying me. Each time nearly stopping my heart. But each time I lucked out. Somehow he never discovered me. At long last I heard him grunt as he stood up and stalk off heavily down the classroom stairs. The door first opened then closed.
Am I alone?
I felt my phone vibrate and glanced into my purse, the screen read 11:22. Had it really only been two hours? I was exhausted and weak from the onslaught my body had taken from all the adrenaline that had slammed into my veins every time I’d had a scare. When would this end; when everyone was dead? When the cops came? When they gave the gunmen what they wanted?
A SHOT RANG OUT.
My body froze. Its ability to respond now to terror was astounding.
That’s number four. What do these guys want with us?
In spite of my best efforts, a barrage of tears erupted and I wept silently. It felt good, it was cathartic. I’d need that release and never would’ve allowed it had my body not just taken over and done what it needed. I’d have to thank it later—if I made it out of here alive.
Stop it right now! Stop acting like no one’s going to make it out alive. I’m hidden, Eli’s hidden…who knows how many more are hidden. The police will come, they’ll save us.
I sat in the dark unknowingly nodding to myself, convincing myself that despite the facts that stacked up against our getting out of this alive, we would make it out of here.
THE PHONE! I’d nearly forgotten that I’d seen the blue light blinking—an indication that I’d received either a text or an email. I quickly dug into my purse, excited to see who had gotten back to me. My fingers wrapped around it and I swiped at the screen pulling up my emails. Yes! There are TWO!
I rolled my neck easing the tension from my muscles, extended my legs while bouncing my knees, and rotated my ankles. I couldn’t believe how excited I was about seeing who had contacted me. It was as though I were sitting down in my deep leather chair with my favorite minky blanket, my all-time favorite book and a warm cup of Seattle’s Best. I laughed to myself.
You’re definitely losing it girl!
REAL
SUBJECT: JUST KEEPING IT
TO:
RheaVelvetKenzee@pacificlakescommunityc ollege.us.net
FROM:
EliValenSnohe@pacificlakescommunitycolle ge.us.net
RHEA,
YOU KNOW, I AM NOT TOO SURE WHAT TO SAY. I BOUNCE BETWEEN FEELING ALL ALONE AND REALIZING THAT YOU ARE IN THIS WITH ME. I GUESS THE GOOD NEWS IS THAT THE AD PROOF WE HAD DUE TODAY…WELL, I BET WE CAN GET AN EXTENSION ON IT. HAHA
I AM SITTING HERE IN THE DARK, SEQUESTERED AWAY WITH ONLY MY TABLET AND PRAY THE BATTERY LASTS ME LONGER THAN THIS WHOLE ORDEAL.
WHY DO YOU SUPPOSE THEY ARE DOING THIS? WHAT IS THEIR MOTIVE? THAT’S WHAT I KEEP COMING BACK TO. THANKS FOR THE INFORMATION EARLIER. I DIDN’T KNOW WHO OR HOW MANY WE ARE DEALING WITH. YOU MUST BE RIGHT THERE IN IT DEEP HUH?
WELL, SO ANYWAYS I FIGURED SINCE NEITHER OF US HAS ANYTHING BETTER TO DO, IT WOULDN’T HURT TO SAY ‘HI’ AND INTRODUCE MYSELF. HAHA.
SO ANYWAYS, IN CASE YOU HADN’T NOTICED, I’M ONE OF THE…LIKE TEN GUYS IN OUR CLASS WITH DARK HAIR, ONE OF LIKE…FIVE OF THOSE GUYS WITH A SORRY EXCUSE FOR FACIAL HAIR. HELL, WHO AM I KIDDING? IT’S MORE LIKE A FIVE-O’CLOCK SHADOW THAT JUST WON’T GROW IN.
MAN, AM I EVEN MAKING ANY SENSE? SOMEHOW TALKING TO YOU MAKES ME FEEL LESS ALONE. I’M PRAYING FOR YOU AND HOPE YOU’RE OKAY.
ELI.
Wow. I really wasn’t alone, and it was so reassuring that there was someone else who was going through the exact same thing as I was, who could emphasize with what I was feeling. Shit, he was probably even feeling the same things I was. It was nice to feel myself relax just the smallest amount while I read his note and I’d even found myself smiling.
Wow! What’s with that?
I quickly set about opening my second email.
SUBJECT: WHY WON’T YOU ANSWER ME?
TO:
RheaVelvetKenzee@pacificlakescommunityc ollege.us.net
FROM:
EliValenSnohe@pacificlakescommunitycolle ge.us.net
RHEA,
I HAVEN’T HEARD BACK FROM YOU AND I’M WORRIED. FUCK, IT’S MORE LIKE I’M SCARED SHITLESS. WHERE ARE YOU? YOU’D BETTER BE OKAY!
ELI.
Again, I caught myself smiling. More tension eased from my shoulders. I stretched my fingers and began to type.
SUBJECT: SLOW YOUR ROLL!
I’M FINE
TO:
EliValenSnohe@pacificlakescommunitycolle ge.us.net
FROM:
RheaVelvetKenzee@pacificlakescommunityc ollege.us.net
ELI,
I AM ALIVE AND KICKING. IT GOT PRETTY HAIRY THERE FOR AWHILE, THE MAIN BOSS ‘MERCY’ WAS SHINING A LIGHT IN MY HIDEY- HOLE. I VERY NEARLY CRAPPED MY PANTS. J/K. NO, BUT REALLY I ABOUT SUFFERED A HEART ATTACK AND HAD TO REMIND MYSELF TO BREATHE. AT LEAST NOW THAT HE’S LOOKED HERE, HE PROBABLY WON’T AGAIN. AT LEAST THAT’S SOMETHING TO BE THANKFUL FOR.
AS FAR AS OUR ASSIGNMENT GOES…OH CRAP! CAN YOU BELIEVE THAT I FORGOT? I SKETCHED IT OUT, WORKED ON THE COPY…BUT NEVER FINISHED MY PROOF. MAYBE I AM GLAD THIS ALL HAPPENED AFTERALL. HAHA. BIG J/K!!
SO AS FAR AS WHO YOU ARE…I BET YOU’RE NOT SURPRISED THAT YOU DIDN’T NARROW IT DOWN ENOUGH FOR ME, BUT DON’T FEEL TOO BADLY OUR CLASS HAS WHAT…SIXTY OR SO STUDENTS IN IT? BTW, EVERYONE SEEMS TO BE
GROWING A BEARD, SO THAT TIDBIT DIDN’T HELP. LOL
IF YOU WERE THE ONLY ONE WITHOUT ONE…MAYBE THEN I’D KNOW WHO YOU WERE. NAH, PROBABLY NOT. I’M NOT THAT OBSERVANT. HAHA
WOW. THIS IS GETTING REALLY LONG. I HAD NO IDEA I WAS SO LONG- WINDED.
SO, IT SEEMS LIKE YOU KNOW WHO I AM. I’D TRY TO DESCRIBE MYSELF BY TELLING YOU ABOUT MY MOUSEY BROWN HAIR OR THAT I’M LIKE 5’4 AND 110, BUT I’D BET THAT WOULDN’T NARROW ME DOWN. WHAT MIGHT HELP IS IF I TELL YOU I’M THE ONE WITH CLEAR BLUE EYES. IT SEEMS THAT IS SOMETHING EVERYONE NOTICES. WELL, I HOPE THAT HELPS.
BTW, I REALLY LIKE THE NAME ELI AND HOW UNUSUAL VALEN IS.
~RHEA~
I hit send and shifted my weight. Lately, say the last thirty or forty minutes or so, no matter how I moved or where I put my ass, my legs fell asleep. I slumped down a bit more searching for any position that would lessen the numbness in them. So far, it wasn’t working.
I stopped moving, thinking that maybe someone had entered the room, but only silence greeted me. I was beyond relieved. I sat in the darkness just thinking. I thought about
what if I continued having to stay hidden? I’d need to find a vending machine and at the very least a bathroom. I had a pretty good idea the ductwork’s layout and could guess where at least the first few vents up ahead went to. I was hoping that there was a ‘T’ up ahead that paralleled the hallway that ran just outside this classroom. If there was, then I’d know exactly where the bathroom was.
I
ran my hands along the ridged metal walls I was wedged between hoisting myself forward in small increments until I had the hip room to flip myself over. Once on my stomach, I pushed myself farther down the duct, stopping when my shoulders lined up with the corners of the ‘T’. I laid on my side with my head facing the vent, staring out of it, and the light that it let through with the leaves dancing in it—well, it created beautiful shadows that had me feeling like I was watching late-night TV’s shadows as they played on my living room wall. My eyes began to glaze and exhaustion threatened to overtake me.
Yay! My phone just vibrated. Whoo Hoo! I hope it’s
Eli.
I slid farther down the long-side of the duct until my
head was completely cloaked in darkness. I wanted to make sure that if Mercy or that other asshole Spider shone their lights through the vent again, that I was in no way visible. I pulled my phone out of the back pocket I had shoved it in before I changed positions and turned it on and swiped the screen all in one movement. I rolled onto my back and found myself getting mentally comfortable—hell, a smile had already shown up on my face and I hadn’t even confirmed the email was from Eli.
BooYa! I’m in the money…Whoo Hoo!
There looking at me was not one, not two, but three emails. I clicked on the first.
SUBJECT: WHAT A SHITTY FUCKING ATTEMPT
TO:
RheaVelvetKenzee@pacificlakescommunityc ollege.us.net
FROM:
EmmoryVanessaJane@pacificlakescommunit ycollege.us.net
NEED A LITTLE ATTENTION RHEA?
I THINK IT IS PRETTY BULLSHIT TO SEND ME A MESSAGE LIKE THAT WHILE I AM HERE ON ONE OF THE BIGGEST DAYS OF MY LIFE, MAKING THE RECORDING THAT I’VE ALWAYS DREAMT OF MAKING.
I EXTENDED AN INVITATION TO YOU THIS MORNING. I NEVER
FIGURED YOU FOR THE JEALOUS TYPE. GROW UP!
AND BTW, GO FUCK YOURSELF.
*EMM
My mouth hung open in total and utter shock. Emmory didn’t believe me? How could she not believe me…I had never given her any reason not to. The part of the email that wrecked me the most, was finding out that she had such a low opinion of me. She thought I could be petty and jealous, and intentionally mean. I mean, REALLY?
How is it that I didn’t already know this about her after living with her since our freshman year? I clicked reply before I could stop myself.
SUBJECT: CONTACT THE POLICE. NOW! YOU BITCH!
TO:
EmmoryVanessaJane@pacificlakescommunit ycollege.us.net
FROM:
RheaVelvetKenzee@pacificlakescommunityc ollege.us.net
THE ONLY, AND I MEAN ONLY REASON THAT I DON’T HATE YOU FOR SAYING THOSE THINGS IS BECAUSE I NEED FOR YOU TO CALL THE POLICE.
GIVE THEM THE DETAILS THAT I GAVE YOU IN THE EARLIER EMAIL BUT TELL THEM THERE’S BEEN FOUR SHOTS FIRED, NOT THREE LIKE I HAD INDICATED EARLIER.
~RHEA~
God, her email had totally ruined my mood. She was my best-friend, the yin to my yang, the salt to my pepper. I mean, she was the lyricist to my melodies. Fuck! Why’d she have to go and mess up such a good thing? I mean we’re sisters.
My eyes glistened with unshed tears and I rolled on my side facing away from the light. I glanced at the time on my homepage. 12:08.
Chapter
-6 Hours
My eyes flew open at the sound of voices in the room next to me. I shielded my phone from the vent and checked for notifications. I had six.
Oh fuck! Eli! I forgot to get back to him before I nodded off.
My phone read 1:17. Thank God, I was only out for about an hour, it wouldn’t be too hard for me to figure out what was going in the room next door…would it? I turned my phone off deciding that I needed to try to figure out what was going on so that I could really enjoy my messages. After stashing my phone in my rear pocket, I carefully, and very quietly pushed up onto all fours as best as the duct would allow. I walked my hands and knees forward all the while making sure that the voices I heard just kept right on talking. I did my 180 shift so that I found myself back on my ass, and scooted it back into my little dead-end cubby hole. I listened to the voices sparring and throwing insults, but none of it actually made me say hmm.
So, I focused my attention on my emails. I whipped out my phone that I had forgotten about and was now sitting on, turned it on and swiped the screen. EIGHT emails!?
SUBJECT: WHY WON’T YOU ANSWER ME?
TO:
RheaVelvetKenzee@pacificlakescommunityc ollege.us.net
FROM:
EliValenSnohe@pacificlakescommunitycolle ge.us.net
RHEA,
I LIKE THAT YOU’RE LONG WINDED. I REALLY LIKE HEARING WHAT YOU HAVE TO SAY. YOU MAKE ME SMILE. GOD, CAN I EVEN SAY THAT WITHOUT SOUNDING LIKE A DAMN PERVERT? WELL, JUST KNOW I DIDN’T MEAN ANYTHING FROM IT AND I KNOW WE JUST STARTED TALKING, BUT YOU MAKE ME FEEL LIKE ALL THIS ISN’T GOING ON WHEN I READ YOUR EMAIL.
ENOUGH OF THAT. YOU’LL FIND THAT THE MORE I TALK, THE WORSE I TEND TO MAKE THINGS.
I MEAN, I HOPE YOU GET THE CHANCE TO FIND THAT OUT.
I’M GLAD YOU LIKE MY NAME. MY PARENTS CHOOSE ELI, WELL…AS THE STORY GOES, THEY WANTED A STRONG NAME. IT MEANS DEFENDER OF MAN, THE HIGH AND ASCENDED OR ‘MY GOD’.
YOU MENTIONED VALEN, AND YOU’RE RIGHT IT IS UNCOMMON. IT IS LATIN AND MEANS ‘STRONG’. HAHA, I DID TELL YOU THAT THEY WANTED A NAME THAT WAS A STRONG ONE.
ENOUGH ABOUT ME.
SO SORRY TO HEAR YOU HAD SUCH A SCARY EXPERIENCE, BUT I’M SURE YOU’RE RIGHT THAT THEY WON’T LOOK FOR YOU AGAIN. I’M
GLAD YOU’RE OKAY…BUT WONDER IF YOU REALLY ARE?
ELI.
BTW, I KNOW EXACTLY WHO YOU ARE. I KNEW EVEN BEFORE YOU TOLD ME ABOUT YOUR EYES.
Still smiling, I clicked on the next email.
SUBJECT: RHEA? TO:
RheaVelvetKenzee@pacificlakescommunityc ollege.us.net
FROM:
EliValenSnohe@pacificlakescommunitycolle ge.us.net
RHEA,
I HAVEN’T HEARD BACK FROM YOU AND I’M REALLY STARTING TO WORRY.
ELI.
YOU?
SUBJECT: JEEZUS, WHERE ARE
TO:
RheaVelvetKenzee@pacificlakescommunityc ollege.us.net
FROM:
EliValenSnohe@pacificlakescommunitycolle ge.us.net
RHEA,
I KNOW I SHOULDN’T PANIC CAUSE YOU SAID YOU WERE WELL
HIDDEN, BUT HOW CAN I NOT? I HAVEN’T SMILED IN OVER AN HOUR. WHERE COULD YOU BE?
ELI.
SUBJECT: JUST LET ME KNOW YOU’RE OKAY
TO:
RheaVelvetKenzee@pacificlakescommunityc ollege.us.net
FROM:
EliValenSnohe@pacificlakescommunitycolle ge.us.net
PLEASE JUST LET ME KNOW YOU’RE OKAY RHEA VELVET.
ELI.
P.S. HOW’D YOUR PARENTS COME UP WITH YOUR NAME? I’VE BEEN WONDERING AS THER ISN’T TOO MUCH ELSE TO WONDER ABOUT.
SUBJECT: REALLY, I’M NOT A CRAZY STALKER PERSON
TO:
RheaVelvetKenzee@pacificlakescommunityc ollege.us.net
FROM:
EliValenSnohe@pacificlakescommunitycolle ge.us.net
RHEA,
RATIONAL THOUGHT TELLS ME THAT YOU’RE OKAY, BUT MY EMOTIONAL SIDE IS WORRIED.
PLEASE EMAIL ME WHEN YOU GET THIS. I REALLY HOPE THAT I AM NOT COMING OFF AS A WEIRDO—REALLY, I AM NOT NORMALLY THIS…WELL, ANYTHING. I NEVER WIGOUT LIKE THIS ON ANYONE. PLEASE JUST KNOW IT IS THE SITUATION WE’RE IN. I SEE YOU AS KIND OF THE ONLY OTHER PERSON IN THIS WITH ME.
ANYWAYS, I WON’T EMAIL YOU ANYMORE UNTIL I HEAR FROM YOU JUST SO YOU KNOW I’M NOT A PSYCHO.
ELI.
SUBJECT: ARE YOU SAFE TO:
RheaVelvetKenzee@pacificlakescommunityc ollege.us.net
FROM:
IsaacJoesephMatthews@pacificlakescommun itycollege.us.net
RHEA,
LET ME KNOW YOU’RE OKAY. ISAAC
SUBJECT: SORRY TO:
FROM:
EmmoryVanessaJane@pacificlakescommunit ycollege.us.net
RHEA,
YOU’RE FOR REAL HUH? SORRY TO WIG OUT ON YOU BUT YOU HAVE TO ADMIT THAT IF YOU WEREN’T REALLY THERE, THAT WOULD BE A SHITTY THING TO DO. RIGHT? COME ON GIRL…TELL ME YOU FORGIVE ME?
*EMM
SUBJECT: PO PO NOTIFIED TO:
RheaVelvetKenzee@pacificlakescommunityc ollege.us.net
FROM:
EmmoryVanessaJane@pacificlakescommunit ycollege.us.net
RHEA,
I CALLED THE COLLEGE AND ALL I GOT IN EVERY OFFICE WAS A BUSY SIGNAL. I CALLED THE POLICE AND I’M PRETTY SURE THEY TOOK IT AS A PRANK. THAT, OR THEY WERE SURPRISED THAT I KNEW ABOUT IT. JUST WANTED YOU TO KNOW I BELIEVE YOU.
*EMM
I took a deep breath, not really sure what I was feeling. So much for settling down with my favorite book and a good cup of coffee. I was the farthest thing from relaxed. Not only had I heard several more voices on the other side of the damn vent that I now needed to decipher, but I also had to worry about getting back to everyone before
they flipped out. All I really felt like doing was pulling the covers over my head and hiding. Ironic, I thought…considering that’s exactly what I was doing.
So, I pulled myself back farther from the light that seeped through the vent grates, rolled my neck and figured I’d get the most bothersome emails out of the way before I could settle in and visit with Eli. Although I was glad Emmory had called the police, she still had really pissed me off and I really didn’t feel like talking to her. Isaac—wow. He was a conundrum. A message from him signed Isaac any other time would’ve made me giddy, but when I read it today, well…it just seemed like another fucking task I had to deal with. The only good thing was that hearing from him meant that he was probably still alive since the email came after the first three shots and the chances the last one was meant for him was rather slim in my opinion. Especially since he had said he was still safe.
