Buried Sins

by Bolton, Karice

  Hannah.

  I watched him move like a machine. Every action was stealth-like as he worked his way down the corridor, making sure his face was never caught on film. Every move was executed with stealthy precision.

  “This is the point when Hannah went into the stairwell and down the stairs.”

  “All because of the “Out of Order” note the man placed,” I muttered in disbelief. Everything was so calculated.

  Sam nodded and brought up the next set of images.

  Hannah’s beautiful face lit up the screen as she walked into the vending machine room. Her radiant smile made my heart ache as I watched her slip the money into the snack machine. My pulse accelerated as I watched the scene unfold in front of me. It took all the reserve I had not to touch the screen and warn her. Sam was a friend, but if he found out how much I was cracking, all access would be shut down.

  I watched the man sneak up behind Hannah. Her smile was replaced with fear. Her eyes became glassy as she followed the man’s instructions and walked out of the room. Sam had to change the footage again. This time they were in front of the elevators, and I watched as the man’s mouth moved while he pointed the pistol at each of the nurses.

  I wanted to protect Hannah, shield her from what she was about to go through, but I couldn’t. I didn’t. I failed my team. I failed her. It felt as if my heart had broken into pieces and I’d never be able to collect them all. Within minutes, I’d become a broken man and there was nothing I could do to repair anything that mattered.

  “Are you doing okay?” Sam asked under his breath.

  I slowly nodded and watched as each of the nurses dropped to the floor. Hannah fell to her knees. It looked as if she were screaming. God! How could I not have been there for her. How did I not see this coming?

  Hannah’s body was shaking. I watched the man claw his fingers into Hannah and nearly drag her out of view. Sam quickly changed to another section of footage, and my head was spinning. It didn’t feel like I was in this world any longer. I wasn’t sure I wanted to be in a world that held this kind of evil so close to the surface.

  And then I saw it. The man looked squarely into the camera and then his fist connected with Hannah’s cheek, and my world went black. Only one thing mattered, and that was finding Hannah before it was too late.

  Hannah

  My head pounded like a freight train was pummeling through it, and I couldn’t open my eyes.

  Or maybe I was too afraid to open them.

  I skimmed my hands along the floor, and my fingers caught on pieces of gravel and other sharp objects. The room was cold and drafty. The musty smell was overwhelming every part of me, making it difficult to breathe. I could barely move my hands and feet before the chains clanked and stopped me from moving any farther. The only sound greeting me was the cars from outside. A dismal feeling sank my body deeper into the hard ground underneath me, and it took everything I had not to break down.

  No voices. No movement.

  My memories were disjointed. I recalled going to a vending machine and being shoved into a vehicle, but all other details were gone; all the specifics of what got me here completely obliterated. I let out a sigh, but what came with it was a tear that streaked down my cheek.

  How could I have let this happen? Why had I been so careless?

  Nothing would ever be right in my world until every single person from the community had been locked away forever. I used the back of my hand to wipe away the tear but more continued to slide down my face. My throat tightened even more when my mind wandered to Luke and Mia. They were probably worried sick. I rolled my head back and forth on the hard surface and convinced myself to open my eyes. I had to get out of this mess. One way or another, I had to get out of here. I needed to get back to Luke and Mia. I needed to warn the facility taking care of my mother.

  I shifted on the uncomfortable floor and slowly opened my eyes. The slight movement of my lids felt scratchy. I gasped as the pain from my cheekbones radiated along the bridge of my nose. The first memory of being hit pushed its way into my mind, and my pulse climbed as I glanced around the empty room. The worn wood floors had scraps of trash, pebbles, and broken glass from the window. Even with the missing window, the room smelled as if it hadn’t a drop of fresh air in it for decades. The smell of death hovered in the room surrounding me. The walls were dirty and the once white trim was dingy with neglect and stained with a history of abuse.

  I wanted out.

  I turned my head and stared at the ceiling. The mauve paint had peeled its way off in places, and the drywall was missing in patches, revealing timbers above. Numbness began swimming through my veins and it was a welcome relief. I didn’t belong here, and I would do anything to get out of here. I let out another slow breath and focused on listening to the sounds surrounding me, hopeful at least one would give me a clue on how to get out of here.

  But first I needed to know where here was.

  Not realizing I’d dozed off, my body awoke with a jump as a man’s voice bounced around the tiny room.

  “If we don’t hear anything by tomorrow morning, we’ll get rid of her.”

  My emotions were brittle with the declaration of my fate. The room had darkened as dusk approached, and all I saw were two shadows in the corner of the room. My blood thickened with fear as I watched one take a step closer to me and kneel down.

  “I’m not holding my breath that she’ll bring us what we want.” The man’s hand came toward my face, and I attempted to pull back quickly, but it was too late. His fingers stroked my forehead as he swiped away the hair that had fallen over my eye. He tucked the strands behind my ear and my body shuddered.

  “Come on, honey. I’m not that bad,” his voice cut through my soul as I commanded myself to stay still. Something told me he was more than willing to prove to me how great he was if I continued to show my disgust. His face was hidden just under the darkness, but I continued staring in the same direction, hoping I’d catch a glimpse of him.

  “Bring over the water, and we’ll get out of here,” he said, turning around quickly.

  The other man ambled over and set the glass of water barely in reach and retreated out the door to join his partner. My lips were so dry and my mouth parched, but I didn’t dare take a sip of the water.

  I slowly slid toward the wall and tried to sit up as I rearranged the chains that kept me tied to the building and people I desperately needed to escape. Laughter bounced down the hallway, and I recognized the laughter from one of the men. He hadn’t been in the room, but my kidnapper was here with the other two men. He had to be. Hearing the tone in his voice made the images from earlier slam into my mind with an unstoppable force of abhorrence. I began to shake uncontrollably as I remembered the feeling of the blade pressing against my skin. The images engulfed every thought I had even though I attempted to forget.

  The laughter subsided and their footsteps drifted down the hall as I commanded myself to take control. I couldn’t give someone else the power to destroy me. I had to remain in control. I tried sliding closer to the only window in the room, but I didn’t make it very far before the chains overextended. The metal dug into my wrists as I stretched my body toward the opening but not before I heard someone come back in the room.

  “You’re not gonna go anywhere with those chains on your ankles. You can thank me later for undoing your wrists,” my kidnapper’s voice tore through my spirit as I rolled away from him.

  The man reached for my wrists and quickly unlocked the cuffs and tossed the chains to the side of the room. Moonlight cut through the broken window, exposing his features. He looked no kinder than he had at the hospital.

  “Aren’t you going to thank me?” he asked.

  I kept my lips pressed together, not saying a word, as he took another step closer. His expression glowering as his eyes scanned the entirety of my body before meeting my gaze.

  “Even if Mr. Fletcher doesn’t think you’re worth coming for, I do.” He gave me a wink and tur
ned around, leaving me to wonder what his words meant.

  If it was me they were after, what did Luke have to do with anything? Why did they care?

  I attempted to lick my lips, but my mouth was so dry all that simple action did was make me wish I could have a sip of the water they’d left for me. I shifted my hand along the wood floor, avoiding splinters. My fingers grazed a small piece of paper. I picked it up and lifted it toward the moonlight and saw a tiny tow truck with a Ventura address printed on the glossy business card. I had no idea where I was, but I was more than willing to believe that I was in Ventura and close to the Pacific Coast Highway.

  I needed that hope.

  I needed to feel like I was somehow close to Luke. Like the only thing that was separating us was the distance of a connecting road, no matter how long and windy.

  I slid the card under my leg and glanced toward the window. If I was that close to Luke he would find me.

  Somehow I knew he would find me.

  I heard the men’s voices fluctuate down the hall as if they were walking in my direction again, and my chest tightened with fear. I didn’t know what they expected of me or what they planned on doing to me, but I couldn’t let myself fall apart. I’d been through too much to let my world crumble around me now.

  Our minds have the ability to create fairytales out of nightmares, and that was precisely what I intended to do. I needed to imagine a new outcome other than the one I was destined for.

  “I’m not sure Mr. Fletcher understands the seriousness of the situation,” the kidnapper said.

  The three men walked into the room and knelt around me in a half-circle as I continued imagining another place and time. I wasn’t here. They weren’t here. I was okay. They didn’t exist.

  Not realizing my eyes were clenched shut, I jumped when one of the men yelled at me to pay attention.

  My eyes flashed open, and I saw a cell phone shoved in front of my face.

  “You’re going to send a message for us... A clear, succinct message to go along with the video I’m going to take of you. Do you understand?”

  “What is it you want me to say?” I asked. My voice was hoarse as I stared at the shadowy figures in front of me.

  “Tell him how you’re doing. How you’re being treated. That you want him to do anything to get you out of here. Ask him how he would feel if something happened to you because of him…” My body stiffened with the realization that these men weren’t after me.

  They were after Luke.

  They weren’t after me.

  I was just a throwaway in whatever game they were playing, and I knew no matter what my message to Luke was, they had no plan to keep me around.

  The man’s teeth reflected against the darkness of the night, and I nodded, knowing exactly what I wanted to tell Luke.

  Luke

  “So you think she’s at that building or you know she’s at that building?” I asked Sam.

  He looked over my shoulder into the hall of the hospital, and then his gaze met mine as he let out a slow and steady breath. “We think she’s at that building. We’ll know for sure by morning.”

  “By morning, she’ll be dead.”

  “Luke, you don’t know that. The probability of them disposing of her that quickly is less than twenty percent.”

  “Disposing of her? Is that really the best term to use right now?” Rage filled every fiber of my being as I glared at Sam. “Would you be willing to bet on those odds if it was someone you loved, Sam?”

  Sam pinched his chin and shook his head. Dropping his gaze to the ground, he gave a simple and short answer. “No.”

  “I didn’t think so. Since you’re stuck behind the bureaucratic bullshit, I’ll have my team go in tonight.”

  Sam straightened his posture and his gaze connected with mine. “I really can’t let you do that.”

  “I’m not asking for permission. We’re going in after Hannah tonight. You can be in the vicinity of the address or you can choose to ignore this conversation.”

  “Luke, I’m not saying this as an agent. I’m saying this as your friend. Don’t go after her. Wait until we can go in. The place could be wired. She could be—” He stopped short.

  “She could be what, Sam? I thought there was less than a twenty percent chance.”

  “All I’m asking is that you wait until we’re cleared to go in.”

  “Can’t do that.” I grabbed my jacket off the chair and glanced at Mitch who gave me an understanding nod. He’d fill in Mia for me. “Now if you’ll excuse me, I have business to take care of while you go home to your family for the night.”

  I walked out of the room as my cellphone buzzed, signaling a new email. I pulled my phone out of my pocket and turned it on. Flipping my email to the inbox, my heart literally stopped as both the elevator and email opened in front of me.

  They had sent me an email with an attachment.

  A video from Hannah.

  I spun around on my heels and nearly pushed every person out of my way as I jogged back to Mitch’s room.

  “Change of heart?” Sam asked skeptically.

  “They sent me a video.”

  “Of Hannah?” Sam jumped out of his chair.

  “I’m assuming so.”

  “You haven’t clicked on the attachment yet…”

  “Of course not.”

  Sam opened his briefcase and pulled out his laptop and a connector. He snatched my phone directly out of my hand and began decrypting the video before transferring it to his hard drive. Whoever sent this, no doubt, had intended for it to be watched once before it would erase itself. I recognized the file type immediately.

  When the blue bar finished saving, Sam looked over at me and maximized the screen.

  “Ready?” he questioned.

  “Absolutely.”

  Sam hit play.

  I watched Hannah’s face come into focus, and my world began to spin. Her face was swollen and bruised. She had cuts along her cheek and across the bridge of her nose. It looked like she could barely keep her eyes open because of the pain, but she stared directly into the camera. I was looking into her eyes, searching for reassurance from her that I didn’t find.

  It was impossible to hide the pain that was thrumming through me as I watched her lips begin to move. They were dry and cracked. She was in need of water. She was in need of lots of things.

  I don’t need saving, Luke. I’d be upset if you tried. I’m not in a good place right now. They wanted me to tell you how horrible it is here, but I know you’re smart enough to have figured that out by the time you see this. I’ve been right about a lot of things in life, and I’ve been wrong even more. But one thing I’m certain of is how much I love you. You are my family. You and Mia mean more to me than anything so please do not, under any circumstance, do what these fools ask of you.

  The footage zoomed out as an arm swung out, his hand connected with Hannah’s cheek. She spit on him and a scuffle ensued off camera before the video zoomed back onto her. She raised her gaze to the lens, and it was as if I was in the room with her.

  We both know what’s going to happen to me no matter what. I venture to say that you’ve shown me what the world can be, and we’ll meet again someday. It’s already too late. Save yourself and protect Mia from these monsters.

  Without saying another word, she mouthed the words “I love you”, and I couldn’t handle it any more.

  None of it.

  I was crazed. Mitch saw it. Sam felt it. I stood up and attempted to keep my fist to myself.

  “She’s in Ventura,” I said. “It matches what you said.”

  “You can’t be sure of that,” Sam started.

  “Do you really think Hannah would begin a statement with I venture to say. Come on she was telling us where she was.”

  “She was also telling you not to come after her.” Sam was looking down at the computer. He’d messaged his team to track the IP Address of the email senders. It was probably a useless exercise.

/>   “She knows that’s not going to happen.” I almost laughed at the absurdity of Sam’s statement. “She knows.”

  “They used an anonymizer.”

  “No shit. Can I take my phone back?”

  Sam unplugged it and handed it back to me. “But we were able to break through and whoever sent this is in Ventura, which matches our other intel.”

  “Of course it does. Now if you’ll excuse me, I have a team to assemble and a place to be in less than an hour.”

  Sam nodded. “I’ll be sure to be in the vicinity, Luke. But this conversation never happened.”

  “They never do.”

  Hannah

  There weren’t many situations that made a person truly reflect on who they were and what they wanted to do with their life. This was one of those situations. I didn’t know if I had a future, but I imagined hard what I’d do with one if it were gifted to me. It kept my mind busy and my heart steady. I pressed my head against the wall and felt the chill of the floor run through my body as I waited.

  For what I didn’t know.

  The building had been deathly silent for what seemed like hours. I had no way to know if it were hours or just very long minutes. My gut told me minutes. I used the silence to close my eyes and drift to another place and time.

  I imagined myself walking on a beach. It didn’t matter which one, but I could hear the waves crashing on the shore. I smelled the ocean air and I saw Luke. Exhilaration ran through my body as I watched him carefully. Just being in his presence made my existence better, whether it was real or not.