by Mary Head
They separated after a minute, and Juliet smiled bracingly at him, rubbing her hand over his back once more. He gave her a small smile, and she squeezed his fingers gently before they left the room.
Eli was no longer in the living room, but the kitchen light was on, and when they stepped inside, he was pulling plates from the cabinet.
Juliet frowned at the pizza box before looking up at Eli. “You paid for this?”
“Yeah,” Eli replied, shrugging as he set the plates on the counter. “It’s no big deal.”
“Let me pay you back –” Juliet began, starting to move towards the living room.
Eli looked up quickly and shook his head. “No. It’s fine, really.”
“Eli –”
“Really, don’t worry about it. I want to help, even if it’s just paying for dinner.”
“All right,” Juliet conceded, stepping back towards the counter.
“You can pay next time,” Eli offered, the corner of his mouth rising in an uncertain smile.
Juliet rolled her eyes as she reached for a plate. “I’m floored by your generosity,” she said, her grin making him relax.
“There’s beer in the fridge,” David said, dropping a piece of pizza on his plate and licking a smear of grease off his thumb. “And soda. Diet, though, Han –” He paused abruptly, staring hard at his plate, and the moment seemed to crystallize as Eli and Juliet froze. Juliet’s eyes rose to David’s face, trying to gauge his expression.
David took a deep breath after a minute. “Um, soda, and – and water and ice in the door.”
They were settled in the living room several minutes later, each with a plate of pizza and a bottle of beer.
“Are you even old enough to drink that?” Juliet asked as Eli tossed back a swallow of his beer, a teasing grin on her face.
“I’m 26,” he said, giving her a look, and her grin widened.
They perused files as they ate, focusing on those who fit the profile they had discussed, those who were likely to seek revenge, but who also had used or were likely to use kidnapping as a means to that end. After an hour there were three piles of likely suspects to further review. The largest stack was full of your average violent offenders, guilty of murders, assaults, armed robbery and the like, but the thing that set each of them apart was that they had, on at least one occasion, made threats of vengeance against David.
The middle stack was for anyone tied to drug cartels, organized crime, or radical groups, as these were well known for kidnapping and ransom. The fact that they had received no ransom demands yet did not mean it was any less possible that it was one of these, only more possible that they cared more about exacting revenge than money. Juliet tried not to let herself think about what that meant for Hannah.
David eyed the last pile with some trepidation. It had been dubbed the others, and though it was the smallest, it gave him the most cause for worry. There were only five folders laid at that end of the coffee table, but they were fat, well worn, and full of evil. Two serial killers, one serial rapist, and two which David preferred to call serial freaks. He felt a chill as he closed the file he’d been reviewing and added it to the stack, swallowing thickly as he mentally tallied it as belonging to the serial freaks category.
They spent some time going over the files, enumerating crimes and charges and sentence lengths, who among them might have the most control over the outside world, and who could hate David enough to want to hurt his daughter.
It was both terrifying and tedious, and after a break, during which David and Eli fixed a piece of plywood over the broken window in the back door, David took a few files and excused himself to his office.
Eli and Juliet read in silence for a moment, and then Eli shifted in a little in his seat as he looked up at Juliet.
“Who was that at the door earlier?” he asked quietly. “Was that Hannah’s mom?”
Juliet sighed and nodded, closing the file in her hands and setting it on the coffee table.
“Yeah, that was Han’s mom.”
Eli frowned, working the corner of the file in his lap with his thumb, not sure if he should really ask more, and then Juliet sighed again.
“She left when Han was four,” she began quietly. “Moved to New York to take some job at a law firm that a friend had offered her, and didn’t even see Hannah again until she was eight. David didn’t ask for child support or anything, but she still sent money from time to time, so David could buy things for Hannah. I guess that’s maybe the one good thing she did for her.”
Juliet’s gaze flicked briefly to the bookshelves, looking at the pictures of Hannah that lined each shelf, and then lowered her eyes to her lap, idly scratching at a spot on her jeans.
“For a long time growing up, she still thought of her mother as her mom, you know? Karen would make promises, get Hannah’s hopes up, and then would invariably flake on her. When she did make good on them, more often than not, she and David would end up fighting, and that would upset Hannah. I think it was around when she turned 16 that she started to finally realize that Karen would never really be her mom, at least not in the way she wanted her to be.”
Juliet shook her head, a humorless smile curving her lips. “The last straw came at Hannah’s high school graduation. Karen had promised she would be at the ceremony, but flaked yet again, and it really hurt Hannah, though she tried not to show it. There was a party here that night, just a few of Hannah’s friends, her boyfriend, some family friends, and of course her dad and me, and that was when Karen decided to show up. It takes a lot to make Hannah angry, but when Karen waltzed in like it was no big deal, you could see how pissed Hannah was. She asked to speak to Karen outside, they fought, and she told her mother that she never wanted to see her again.”
“Wow,” Eli murmured, and Juliet nodded.
“I personally thought it was the right thing for her to do, and though David never told Hannah what she should do in regards to her mother, I think he agreed. She was upset about it for a little while, but she moved past it.”
“So earlier tonight –”
Juliet nodded. “That was the first time David or I had seen Karen in almost six years. If Han knew she was here –”
Juliet broke off abruptly, seeming to remember Karen’s reasoning for coming down in the first place, and stared intently at her hand, still rubbing over the invisible spot on her jeans.
“C’mon,” she said finally, shaking her head. “Let’s get back to work.”
Sometime later she pulled one of the boxes closer so she could refill it with the rejected suspects to clear a space on the coffee table. She glanced up at the clock on the wall as she dropped the last file into the box and frowned, realizing it’d been a while since David had disappeared into his office.
Pushing the box to the side, she stood and stretched, waving a hand at Eli when he asked if anything was wrong, and then walked back to David’s office. She carefully pushed open the door, and had to bite her lip to keep from laughing out loud when she saw David. He was sound asleep on the couch, his head turned towards the door as it rested against the back cushions. His mouth was open a little, soft snores slipping through his lips with every rise and fall of his chest, and his glasses were pushed askew, dangerously close to falling off.
There was an open file in his lap, and Juliet stepped forward quietly to ease it from under his hands. She closed it and set it on the table beside the couch before turning her attention to his glasses. She remembered a time, several years ago, when he fell asleep with them on. They’d fallen off and he’d ended up sitting on them, snapping them clean in two. She smirked and reached forward to gently remove his glasses, knowing he wouldn’t want a repeat of that. She folded them and set them on top of the file folder, then slipped carefully from the room, closing the door behind her with a soft click.
Chapter 19
Hannah paced around the basement, going slow and trying not to wince every time her foot throbbed. She was still sore, but years of playing
soccer in high school told her it’d be worse if she didn’t move, and she didn’t relish the thought of being in any more pain than she already was.
The small room was colder now that the sun had gone down, and Hannah rubbed her arms as she moved. She was wearing only her jeans and tank top, no socks or shoes, and was wishing she’d at least put on a different shirt when she changed her clothes.
“Not like you were planning on getting kidnapped,” she muttered to herself, reaching the wall and turning around.
The rattle of the door knob made her stop, and she tensed as her gaze rose to the door, arms tightening over her chest as she waited for it to open. When Jackie’s lean figure appeared on the steps, she relaxed, though only slightly, and watched him balance a plate and cup in one hand as he pushed the door shut with the other.
“I brought you something to eat,” he said as he started down the stairs. “I would’ve done it sooner, but you were asleep the last couple times I checked.”
She didn’t reply, and he looked up at her when he reached the basement floor.
“You should sit down,” he said softly.
Hannah remained silent, arms still crossed over her chest, and Jackie took a breath, glancing down at the plate in his hand before extending it to her.
“It’s peanut butter and jelly. Strawberry,” he added, “your favorite.”
A tight feeling seized Hannah’s chest. “How do you know that?”
A look of panic flashed in Jackie’s eyes and his mouth opened, then closed again.
“You were following me.” It wasn’t a question because it seemed so obvious to her now. She knew they must have picked her out a long time ago, when they had decided to use her in their vendetta against her dad.
Jackie looked at her another moment before finally giving a reluctant nod.
Hannah stared at him, her heart pounding faster as a shiver passed through her. She felt utterly violated, and ran an agitated hand through her hair, glancing away for a quick moment before turning her intense gaze back on Jackie.
“How long?” she asked, anger boiling within her.
Jackie remained silent, looking wary, and Hannah’s anger surged.
“How long?” It was shouted this time as she took an unsteady step forward.
Jackie hurried to set the plate and cup down on the workbench, and took a couple of steps towards Hannah, his hands held up in a placating manner.
“Keep your voice down, or my brother will come down here,” he said, his brow creasing.
Hannah’s gaze jerked towards the ceiling and she shivered again, thinking of her earlier encounter with Eddie. His threat ran through her mind and she took a breath, once again crossing her arms over her chest. She stared hard at Jackie, and her voice was lower when she spoke again.
“Just tell me how long.”
“A while,” he murmured.
The memory of Eddie in the hall at school all those weeks ago flashed through her mind again, and her shoulders slumped, her eyebrows knitting together as she looked at Jackie. “My school?”
He hesitated before nodding again.
Hannah closed her eyes, raising a hand to her forehead. She thought again about running into Eddie at school and remembered her assumption that he was with the construction crew. She opened her eyes and looked at Jackie again, her fingers pressed to her lips.
“The renovations on that house down the street from me?”
There was another hesitation, and then Jackie nodded a third time, looking miserable.
“Oh, God,” Hannah groaned, her breath leaving her in a whoosh.
Images of them following her to school, to the store, out running errands or visiting her dad at work or spending time with her friends, maybe even sitting outside of her house, ran through her mind, and a wave of nausea swept through her, so strong that she doubled over, clutching her stomach.
Jackie started towards her, concern flickering across his face, but she jerked upright, throwing out a hand to stop him.
“Get away from me,” she snapped, glaring at him. “You – I can’t believe – I can’t –”
A sudden wave of dizziness swept through her, and she stopped abruptly, pressing the heel of her hand against her forehead as she swayed alarmingly. She stumbled back a step and Jackie threw caution to the wind, rushing forward to wrap a steadying arm around her waist.
Hannah briefly contemplated pushing him away, still consumed by anger, but angry as she was, she didn’t want to fall again, and she allowed him to guide her over to the mattress.
Once she was settled, he stepped away, looking at her for a moment like he wanted to say something, and then he turned towards the workbench. He picked up the plate and cup and carried them across the room, extending them to her when he reached the edge of the mattress.
She ignored him, turning away and pressing against the wall, and he sighed quietly before kneeling and carefully setting the plate and cup on the floor.
“You should eat,” he said softly as he straightened.
Still she ignored him, and he looked at her a moment longer before turning and climbing the stairs out of the basement.
Hannah sat a moment, trying to ignore the gnawing feeling in her stomach. She was tempted to be stubborn and not touch the sandwiches Jackie had brought her, but knew she would only be hurting herself if she didn’t eat.
Finally, she shifted forward on the mattress and reached for one of the sandwiches, sighing as she tore off a corner and popped it into her mouth.
As she chewed, she realized that not only was it her favorite flavor of jam, it was also her favorite brand, and tears unexpectedly stung her eyes.
These two total strangers knew so much about her, and she hated that, hated the sense of being violated that swelled within her again. She dropped the rest of the sandwich back onto the plate, pulling her knees to her chest and wrapping her arms around her legs. She stared at the workbench in front of her until it blurred, and then leaned forward, resting her forehead against her knees as she cried.
Chapter 20
Eli opened his eyes and ran a hand through his hair, noticing it was dark outside and lifting his gaze to the clock on the wall. He groaned and let his head fall back against the couch as his hands dropped into his lap. He hadn’t meant to fall asleep, but it had been a long day, and after hours of poring over David’s files, his eyelids had begun to grow heavy.
He sat up, worried that Juliet would be upset with him for sleeping, but when he glanced over at her, he saw she was asleep too, curled in the corner of the couch with her legs tucked underneath her and her arms folded over her stomach. He closed the file in his lap and leaned forward to place it on the coffee table, and then stood, yawning and stretching as he ambled towards one of the bookshelves.
His eyes were on a framed picture of what looked like Hannah’s high school graduation, her gown open over a bright yellow dress, long blonde hair spilling over her shoulders. She had her arm around a shorter red-headed girl in a green dress, and both girls were smiling brilliantly. Eli found himself smiling too as he looked at the picture.
The living room was littered with more pictures of Hannah, some by herself and some with other people. Most of the ones of her with other people were with David and others Eli assumed were family. There were more of her with the red-headed girl, several of her and Juliet, and a couple of her with SAC Greene, including one of a very young Hannah, probably no more than five, settled comfortably in the larger man’s lap. Eli stifled a laugh when he came across one of her and Chris; it looked as though he was trying to tickle her and she was shoving him away, both of them laughing.
The love in this house was palpable, and Eli felt a brief wave of sadness as he thought about how much David must be hurting right now. He had heard most of the conversation with the woman at the door earlier that night, and it hadn’t taken much to figure out who she was. Though he didn’t know her at all, he’d been appalled at how quick she’d been to assume that Hannah was dead.
Clearly everyone was better off without her around.
It was obvious that David and Hannah were extremely close, and whatever Eli’s personal motives for wanting to help were, he wanted them to be reunited more than anything.
Eli took a breath and glanced at Juliet’s sleeping form before stepping around the couch, staring curiously around what he could see of the house.
It was bigger than he anticipated. He had expected something small and cozy, but he had quickly discovered that even with the house being as large as it was, it was still somehow warm and homey. Though he had noticed another room to the other side of the entry way – what his mother would call a family room – it had seemed cold and disused. The living room was clearly the center of the house, with the TV displayed prominently on the wall, and the bookshelves to either side that held DVDs closest to the TV, and then books further out. A fireplace was set in the corner, and Eli had a brief flash of Christmas with the Coles, a tree glittering in the window, stockings on the mantel, Hannah curled on the couch in pajamas, fluffy socks on her feet and maybe a mug of hot chocolate in her hands –
Eli took a quick breath, dashing that thought with a frown as he shook his head. He peered down the hall where David’s office was, and glanced back at Juliet again before stepping quietly forward. David’s closed office door was to his right, and there was another closed door on his left that he assumed led to the basement. Continuing on, he passed the small half bathroom, and then a laundry room, a small stack of folded clothes on top of the dryer. It smelled like soap and dryer sheets, and somehow, inexplicably, it also reminded him of Hannah, a vague warm floral scent.
Another frown creased his brow, and he turned from the small room, heading back towards the living room. He glanced up the stairs as he passed by towards the kitchen, figuring David and Hannah’s bedrooms were on the second floor, and though he wanted to explore more, he knew going up there uninvited would be inappropriate.
The kitchen was clearly just as well used as the living room. A bar separated the kitchen proper from the eating area, though there were stools under the bar, indicating that eating there was not out of the question. Beyond the kitchen table was what looked like a pair of sliding doors, and Eli imagined that on the other side lay a dining room, probably as little used as the darkened family room.
