The Search for Skylar

by J. R. Tate

  Larry did as he was told, crawling across the bedding. “Think about what you’re doing.”

  “I am. Get on your back.”

  Again, the junkie minded him and Charlie went to work, tying him up in the same fashion that Skylar had been in. He worried that Larry might escape, but the ropes were secure enough that nothing would get out of them. Standing back and admiring his work, Charlie clenched his jaw, his anger still heavy, unwilling to fade. The image of Skylar lying just like that would never fade from his memory, and Larry was going to pay for it.

  “I hope you’re comfortable.”

  Larry turned his head to face them. It was the only part of his body still able to move. “You’re not going to leave me here, are you?”

  “What’s the matter, Larry? Are you scared of the dark?” Charlie grabbed the set of keys from Larry’s pocket and made sure he didn’t have anything else in his possession to aid in escaping. He turned the light off and the only thing shining through was the light from the hallway. “Don’t you worry. Someone will come to get you.”

  “You son of a bitch! You don’t know who you’re messing with! You’re going to regret this!”

  Charlie couldn’t see Larry, but it sounded like he was trying to move around. His confidence in the restraints was low, so he had to move fast. Picking Skylar up, he cradled her in his arms and kicked the door shut with his foot. Sliding to the floor, he hugged her tight, burying his face in her neck as the tears continued to fall.

  “Skylar, you’re safe now. I’m going to take you to get some help.”

  She looked up at him, her green eyes dull, the light completely gone from them. “Dad…” she murmured and closed her eyes as one small tear escaped from underneath the lid.

  “I’m here, Skylar. You’re safe, I promise.”

  He locked the door to Larry’s room to add a little reassurance in keeping him there. Stopping at Phil’s body, he found the car keys in his pocket and scooped them up. Skylar showed no emotion toward her dead captor and Charlie wasn’t sure how he felt about that. Either she was extremely drugged up or she had grown numb to the whole situation.

  Sliding her in the backseat, he backed the car through the trees and onto the road that led back to town. His daughter was alive and safe. He had to make sure the rest of the girls would be saved as well, before anyone else involved caught wind of Phil’s death and Charlie’s rescue effort – and he had to make sure Larry had what was coming to him.

  Chapter Thirteen

  Charlie watched Skylar in the rear view mirror. She’d doze in and out and he wondered how bad her injuries were. Psychologically, how bad off was she? He couldn’t worry about that right now. He had to get her to the hospital and then get to the police. Time was not on his side for several reasons, and the constant fear of Larry escaping made him panic.

  He passed several cars along the highway, keeping a lookout for anything out of the ordinary. He had to make sure he wasn’t being followed. He also had to lookout for cops. If he got pulled over, it wouldn’t be the end of the world, in fact, it might be helpful, but there were none around.

  Pulling into the parking lot of the hospital, he parked right in front of the emergency room doors and avoided any warnings to move the vehicle. Pulling her from the back, he cradled her in his arms. She was like dead weight, her body tense as he pushed through the revolving doors, hoping to get someone’s attention.

  There was a line at the front desk check in and with her injuries unknown, he needed to hurry. A woman in scrubs came through the doors and noticed them, her eyebrows raised as she approached them.

  “Sir, were you in a wreck?” She looked up at him, pointing to his head. “You have a pretty bad gash on your forehead.”

  “No, we weren’t in a wreck. Forget about me. My daughter needs help.” He had forgotten about his injuries and that was good – they took the back burner to Skylar, regardless of how bad off he was.

  “What happened?”

  Charlie looked around the busy waiting room. “Can I explain somewhere private?”

  The lady followed his gaze, her brow creased in worry. Motioning to a man, she whispered something to him and nodded.

  “We do have a room available?”

  The man nodded and reached for Skylar. “We’ll take her back here.”

  Charlie followed. Should he call Cassie? Would she even register what was happening? She would likely cause a scene and blame him for this too, so for now, he was going to keep his mouth shut.

  Pulling them into a private room, the lady took him aside as the man checked Skylar’s vitals. Charlie watched on with anticipation, hoping to hear the status of his daughter.

  “What happened, sir?”

  “It’s a long story and I need to get to the police station.”

  She nodded. “We can call them here if you’d like.”

  Charlie nodded. “I’ve been dealing with Detective Garza and Detective Milson. They’ve been working the case. My daughter…” he stopped in midsentence, watching the man run a stethoscope down Skylar’s chest. “My daughter, she was missing.” It was hard to form a complete thought. It was a struggle to even talk.

  “I’m very familiar with this case. I will go get the police on the line for you. Kevin, go ahead and check him over too. He might have a concussion.” She pointed at Charlie, her worried face changing to pure concern.

  Charlie followed her to the door, glancing over his shoulder, his hands visibly shaking. “I want to talk to Detective Garza. Please. It’s urgent and there’s more shit… stuff happening.” He noticed her name on her badge. “Please, Susan… I’d call him from my cell phone but I can’t find it.” Phil had taken it and he forgot to grab it from him when they left.

  Nodding, she said, “Follow me to my office. We’ll get a doctor in here right away to check your daughter.”

  He followed her down the hallway, past several other patient rooms and nurse’s stations, and was thankful that it would be a phone in a private room. Sitting at the chair beside her desk, he tried to steady his hands from shaking as he dialed the police department’s phone number.

  “Police, how can I direct your call?”

  “Detective Garza please.” He glanced over at Susan, who backed toward the door.

  “I’ll give you some privacy, Mr. Wright.”

  He shook his head and heard the line click. “Detective Garza isn’t in yet. His shift doesn’t start until the morning around eight AM.”

  Charlie closed his eyes and tried to remain calm. He didn’t even take into consideration that it was late at night. All sense of time was gone.

  “This is an emergency. I need to talk to him right now. This is Charlie Wright and I found my daughter, Skylar. Give me his home phone or find out a way to get hold of him so I can talk to him. This is very urgent.”

  “I can’t give out his information, but I will have him call you. What’s a good callback number?”

  Shit! What was this woman’s phone number? The phone didn’t say and he looked around the room, but nothing was available. “I’m at the hospital. Call the ER and ask for me.”

  “I will get Detective Garza to call you immediately.”

  Charlie slammed the phone in the cradle and rubbed his eyes. This couldn’t be happening. Detective Garza always seemed to be in his face until he needed him. Exiting the office, he hurried down to the receptionist at the front of the ER and told her about the expected phone call. Before he could even finish his sentence, the phone rang and he had a feeling it would be Detective Garza on the other end.

  She handed him the phone.

  “Is there any way you could put this on hold and transfer it down to Susan’s office?”

  The woman nodded. There were too many people around and he didn’t want to run the risk of someone knowing Larry and Phil. Hurrying down the hallway, he went back inside and picked the line up.

  “It’s me, Charlie.”

  “Charlie Wright, where in the hell have you been? Y
ou sort of fell off the radar.”

  “Listen to me, Garza. I found Skylar. She’s here at the hospital being examined.”

  “You found her? Where in the hell did you find her?” There was skepticism in his voice.

  “There are more girls out there. It’s a barn off of route seventeen outside of town. Just past mile marker twenty-eight, you’ll turn down a dirt road. The barn is surrounded by tons of trees, but you’ll see it. You need to hurry.”

  The other end of the line was silent for a moment and Charlie looked at the phone as if it’d tell him the call dropped.

  “Holy shit, Charlie. How did you find this out?”

  “Don’t worry about that right now. I’ll explain later. But I need you to send some guys out there. I killed one of them, but the other is tied up and I’m not sure how long he’ll stay put.”

  “You killed one of them?”

  “Yes. Like I said, I’ll explain later. You won’t really care once you see the place.” Charlie bit his bottom lip and rested his head in his free hand, feeling woozy now that his adrenaline was fading. “I’m not sure what the hesitation is, Detective Garza. You should be half way down the highway by now. Those girls need help. Please.”

  “I’m on it, Charlie. I’ll come by the hospital after and clear things up.”

  Charlie hung the phone up and took a deep breath. Padding back to his daughter’s room, a nurse stopped him.

  “Sir, you need to have that looked at.”

  He ignored her and went into Skylar’s room. She was asleep and was hooked up to several IV’s. He noticed the bruising on her face, dark against her pale skin. She had lost a lot of weight and was practically skin and bones.

  The man in there earlier stood beside him, checking the IV’s and the port on the back of her hand. “The doctor put in these orders just based on the information I gave him. He hasn’t gotten in here to look at her yet. She’s severely dehydrated. I had a very hard time finding a vein to get the IV’s in.”

  Charlie swiped a tear away and held her hand. She was cold and didn’t respond to his touch. “What do you think is wrong with her?”

  “She’s malnourished. We are replenishing some of the nutrients through IV along with hydrating her with saline. She has been beaten some. She has new and old bruising which shows long term, consistent abuse. I don’t think anything is broken, but we will run x-rays and tests. And we will also do a rape kit on her.”

  Charlie closed his eyes and more tears streamed down his face. He didn’t even try to wipe them away. “When will the doctor be in?”

  “Soon. He had one other patient ahead of her and then he said he’d be in here. She’s resting comfortably right now. She seemed to be under the influence of something when she got here, and we are running a blood panel to find out exactly what is in her system. You found her just in time.” The nurse touched him on the arm. “I’m going to get my supplies together for the rape kit. It’d probably be best if you weren’t in here when we did it.”

  “Yeah, uhh…” Charlie licked his lips and tasted the salt from the tears on his tongue. “I gotta make a few phone calls, but I want to talk to the doctor.”

  “I’ll come get you when he comes in. Susan told me you’re using her office, so I know where to find you.” He patted Charlie’s arm again, his smile warm and comforting. “My name is Kevin. Please let me know if there is anything I can do to help you.”

  “Thanks, Kevin.”

  Charlie stared down at Skylar a few more seconds. A rape kit? They needed to know if she had been sexually assaulted. He feared what they’d find out, but it was necessary. Going back to Susan’s office, he called Mary first. He still didn’t want to notify Cassie. Everything needed to remain calm around Skylar.

  ***

  Mary was having a hard time sleeping. She’d check her phone every few minutes, hoping she’d eventually hear from Charlie. After calling him several times earlier, she had stopped. He wasn’t answering, he wasn’t home, and she was out of ideas on what to do. She hoped maybe he decided to get out of town and away, but her instincts told her otherwise. He was either up to something, or something horrible had happened to him.

  Burying her face in her pillow, she tried not to let it get the best of her, but her mind was going in a million different directions, and not worrying was about as stupid as her trying not to love the guy. It was impossible.

  Staring at the wall, her heart skipped a beat when she heard her phone buzz on the nightstand. The screen lit up her room and she sat up, immediately grabbing it. It was a number she didn’t recognize, but she answered anyway.

  “Hello?”

  “Hey Mary, it’s me, Charlie.”

  He sounded defeated, his voice low.

  “Charlie? Oh my God! Where are you?”

  “I’m at the hospital.”

  “Are you okay?”

  “Yeah. Skylar is here. I found her, Mary. I found her.” His voice quivered and Mary hoped this wasn’t a dream. Hopefully her exhaustion wasn’t making her hallucinate.

  “Is she okay?”

  “I’m not sure yet. They’re doing a rape kit on her and running some tests. They’re supposed to get me when the doctor sees her. She doesn’t look good. She’s all pale and skinny.”

  “I’m coming up there, Charlie. Give me twenty minutes and I’ll be there.” She slid off the side of the bed and pulled a pair of jeans and a shirt out of her closet. “You need anything?”

  “You don’t have to do that, Mary. Get some rest.”

  “Are you kidding me? Stay put. I’ll be there soon.”

  Hanging the phone up, she got dressed and pulled her hair back in a ponytail. When she got there, she finally found someone who knew where he was and took her back to the office. He sat in a chair, his posture slumped as he stared down at the floor.

  “Charlie?”

  Looking at her, he smiled, though there was pain behind it. She noticed the gash on his forehead and the black eye, and the thought of what he had gone through to get Skylar was admirable, but also worrisome.

  “What happened to you?”

  Waving it off, he rested his head on his hand. “I’m fine. This isn’t about me.”

  “You need to have that looked at, Charlie. I bet you need stitches.”

  “I’ll deal with it later. I want to make sure Skylar is okay.”

  “They won’t let you in there?”

  He shook his head no. “Not while they do the rape kit.” His eyes welled up and tears gathered in the corners of his eyes. His body shook and he buried his face in his hands, whimpering.

  Mary pulled him in for a hug, feeling his shoulders sag against her. She cried with him, holding him as tight as she could. She couldn’t imagine what he was going through – the ups and downs since this had started were enough to drive anyone crazy. Skylar had been found and that was great, but now was the complete moment of truth in finding out exactly what she had been through in the past month.

  “I haven’t called Cassie yet. I figure she’ll be too crazy to get involved right now.”

  Mary looked down at him. “That’s probably a good idea.”

  “I can’t believe what I saw, Mary. Skylar wasn’t the only one.”

  “The only one?” She sat in the chair across from him, holding his hand. He squeezed it so tight that Mary wasn’t sure if he’d ever let it go.

  “They had her in this barn, locked and tied up. There were several rooms. They were storing them there like livestock or something.”

  “Oh my God. What were they storing them for?” Mary pretty much knew why, but had to ask.

  “Sex trafficking. I’m lucky they hadn’t already shipped her off wherever she was gonna go.” He wiped his face with the collar of his shirt, his eyes red and swollen. “I called the detectives. Told them to get there and get those girls saved. And Mary…” Ducking his head, he gripped her hand tighter. “I killed a man tonight.”

  “For a good reason, Charlie. For a good reason. You sa
ved Skylar. You saved those other girls.”

  “I know.”

  The office door opened and a nurse said, “Mr. Wright, the doctor is seeing Skylar now.”

  Mary saw his shoulders slump, like he was preparing for bad news. At least she was found. At least she was alive. Mary couldn’t even comprehend what he might be feeling.

  ***

  Charlie’s legs had a hard time moving, but he forced himself up out of the chair. Grabbing Mary’s hand, he held it tight as they walked down the hallway to Skylar’s room. The doctor stood at the foot of the bed, a clipboard in hand, nodding at Charlie.

  “Charlie Wright?”

  “Yes sir, and this is Mary.”

  “Skylar’s mother?”

  “No sir. My girlfriend.”

  “We’ll have to ask her to leave due to the sensitive subject. Should be family only in here.”

  Charlie kept hold of Mary’s hand. “She can stay. She’s been in my family a lot longer than Skylar’s mother has been.”

  “No, it’s okay. I’ll go to the waiting room and wait. For Skylar, Charlie. She might not want me in here.”

  Charlie leaned in and pecked her on the cheek. “Thanks, babe. I appreciate you.”

  When she left, the doctor extended his hand for Charlie to shake. “I’m Dr. Pierce. I understand that your daughter has been missing for quite some time?”

  “Yes sir.” Charlie shook his hand, not wanting to go into the details of the past month. He just wanted to know what was going on with his daughter. “So how is she? Was she…” He motioned his hands in a circle, finding the question hard to say. “Was she raped?” It was a whisper, but the hospital staff in the room had heard him loud and clear.

  “I’m sorry to tell you this, but she was. There’s lacerations and tearing, and it happened more than once, but as recent as just a few hours ago. I found semen that we collected as well. We did a pregnancy test and she is not pregnant.”

  Charlie leaned against the wall, feeling as if his legs would give out at any minute. More than once? His poor daughter. He’d never be able to forgive himself. “I uhh…” He didn’t know what to say. Padding to her bedside, he sat in the chair and skimmed his hand through her hair. She was sound asleep. It was probably the most restful sleep she had gotten since the day she had disappeared.