by Robert Brumm
Keegan still watched from the window. Kelly had no idea how she would explain this to him, but she didn’t care. She was just glad that nobody was spying on her. She didn’t have a logical answer for the distant crying or the figure across the river, but it didn’t matter. It was in the past.
Kelly spotted some rocks that might provide a better path across to the other side and decided to head that way. Her feet were getting colder by the second and falling in the water a second time didn’t sound like fun.
She walked a few feet up the bank toward the rocks and froze in mid-step. Directly in front of Kelly were footprints next to a large oak tree. She spun around, scanning the trees behind her, suddenly feeling like she wasn’t alone.
The footprints looked like Paul’s back at the house. The snow beneath them had already melted away completely, not like her own which were merely depressions in the snow. Like Paul’s footprints, they had to be from last night.
Kelly looked over at her cottage. It couldn’t be the right spot. She could have sworn she saw the person farther up the river than this. But now in the light of day, could she be so sure? Panic gripped her and she dashed for the river bank, trying to understand how there could be no other tracks leading to or from the tree. It was if the person had simply vanished.
Chapter 17
A lull in customers finally gave Kelly a chance to deal with the growing stack of trade-in paperbacks behind the counter. She scooped up an armful and tucked the new editions on the shelves among their peers alphabetically and by genre. The stack in her arm headed for the mystery shelf. Two more stacks on the counter were set aside for the sci-fi and young adult section. The rest for general fiction.
Kelly found comfort in the quiet moments surrounded by her books. The somewhat modest collection from the hoarder donation had at least doubled in the past few months and she was starting to have a hard time finding room on the shelves. Just the other day Ed built another shelving unit for the non-fiction section and it was already full. Fortunately, business was good and books left the store almost as quickly as they came in on trade.
She walked back to the counter for more books, feeling relieved to be back at work after a couple of days off at home. She enjoyed spending time alone with Keegan but hated to admit to herself that she felt uneasy in the cottage. Ever since the night of the lurking figure across the river and the mysterious crying, things had been quiet. Sort of. She continued to have nightmares and could never shake the feeling of being watched. Of not being alone in the house. She found herself analyzing every creak and groan the house emitted, constantly chasing movement out of the corner of her eye that she swore she saw.
“Here.” Kelly was startled to notice Paul standing next to her, holding a cardboard box. “We’ve got a few strands of lights left and plenty of garland. Think it’s enough to make it look festive on this side of the store?”
“I’ll put it up only if you promise to get some more Christmas CDs.” She placed the last book on the shelf and crossed her arms. “If I hear Alvin and the Chipmunks again I’m going to go nuts.”
Paul handed her the box of decorations. “Jeez, nobody told me I hired Scrooge.” He walked back through the opening to the other side of the store, singing his longing for a hula-hoop in a falsetto chipmunk voice.
Kelly laughed and took the box to the counter, glad to see Paul in such a good mood. The last couple months at the store had been good. Thanks to the book sales, general revenue had been going up and business seemed to be picking up every day. He hired another part-time employee named Charlotte, made Kelly the book department manager, and even gave her a modest raise.
They never spoke of the rejected kiss at the door again but Kelly couldn’t help feel it was on both of their minds every time they were alone together in the store. It was with her, anyway. Kelly had intended to ride out her crush on Paul and wait for the infatuation to fade as she got to know him better. Unfortunately, the more time she spent with him, the stronger her feelings became.
Cheryl rounded the corner, a smile on her face and a stack of romance novels in her arms. “Tell anybody I read this trash and I’ll never forgive you.”
Kelly smirked and helped her up to the checkout. “Hey, there’s nothing to be ashamed of. These babies make up almost half of our business.”
“Well, I’m just loving this place.” Cheryl dug in her purse for her wallet. “The library is so stale I feel like I’ve read everything in there. And Gracie just loves the little kid corner.” Cheryl turned and smiled at her daughter sitting in the sea of bean bag chairs in the corner of the store. She was busy stacking a pile of blocks while a little boy next to her worked on a puzzle.
Kelly started ringing up Cheryl’s books while another customer walked up behind her. Kelly glanced up and was about to comment on one of the paperbacks when she dropped the book on the counter and shrieked. Cheryl jumped as Kelly ran around the counter and practically tackled the woman standing behind her. Both women wrapped their arms around each other.
Kelly wiped a tear from her cheek and turned to Cheryl. “This is my best friend, Tammy.”
“Hi,” Cheryl said. “I had a feeling you two knew each other.”
Kelly released her friend and grabbed her shoulders. “What in the world are you doing here?”
“I had to come to you since you abandoned me.” Tammy wiped tears of her own from her eyes. “Surprise.”
“Nice to meet you, Hon,” Cheryl said. “I gotta get going, Kelly.”
Kelly finished ringing up the books and asked Paul if she could take a break after she introduced Tammy to him. They went next door and sat at a window table with a couple of lattes.
“How in the world did you track me down?” Kelly asked.
“You should be apologizing first for making me do it. Why in the world haven’t you called me? It’s been months!”
“I know, I know. I’m so sorry. I got a new cell phone number and I’ve just been really busy and…” Kelly glanced at her friend in the eye and then back down to the table. “I just wanted to distance myself from everything back home.”
Tammy didn’t try to hide the hurt in her eyes. “Even me?”
Kelly sighed and reached across the table for Tammy’s hand. “I know, it sounds terrible. It’s not your fault, I’m really sorry. I’m just paranoid. If Don knew that you knew where I was I’d be afraid he’d hurt you.”
Tammy sat back and grunted. “You don’t have to worry about that tub of shit. I’ve only seen him a couple of times and he was either drunk off his ass or tweaked out of his mind both times. I’m pretty sure he turned things up a notch after you left and hasn’t been sober since. He probably can’t even find his way out the front door.”
Kelly squirmed in her seat, anxious to turn the conversation away from her ex. “So you still haven’t told me, Sherlock. How’d you find me?”
“I had a little conversation with Jimmy down at the diner.” She batted her eyelashes at Kelly. “He told me all about your last paycheck Nancy had him mail to your new job.”
“All it took was your bedroom eyes to get him talking, huh?”
“Eyes, nothing. He didn’t stop staring at my tits the whole time.”
Kelly laughed, enjoying the feeling of talking to her friend and not realizing how much she missed her. Tammy glanced out the window and Kelly noticed for the first time how tired she looked.
“You doing okay? No offense, but you don’t look too hot. You’ve lost weight since I last saw you.”
“Huh?” Tammy glanced down at her watch. “Nah, I’m okay. Just tired I guess. I’ve been pulling a lot of extra shifts at the store lately.” She looked at her watch again and took a drink of her coffee. “I actually have to work tonight, so I better take off.”
“What? You just got here!”
“Sorry, I can’t get out of it. I just wanted to run up here real quick and track you down.”
“I thought you could maybe stay the night, see my new place,” Kelly
said. “Keegan would love to see you too.”
“How about I come back after Christmas for a weekend or something? I really gotta get going or I’m going to be late.”
“Okay, if you have to.” Kelly wrote down her address and new phone number on a napkin. “I really am sorry, you know. For not calling you.”
“Hey, knock it off.” Tammy grabbed the napkin, looking almost relieved to be getting up. “Who loves you more than me?”
They stood up. “I’ll walk you to your car,” Kelly said.
“That’s okay, get back you work before you get in trouble.”
“It’s no problem.”
“I’m down the street anyway. I messed up the address and parked like three blocks away.” Tammy turned and put her hand on the door. “Really, it’s fine. Call you later?”
“Um, okay.”
Tammy gave her a quick hug and she was gone.
*****
Tammy stepped out onto the sidewalk and took a deep breath, relieved to be out of the stuffy coffee shop and into the cold air. The nagging pain behind her eye that had been lingering all day suddenly felt like a hot nail digging into her skull. She rummaged through her purse and pulled out the crumpled pack of Marb Lights, annoyed to realize there were only three left. Fuck. Two left, the third broke off at the filter. She lit up the smoke and hurried down the sidewalk.
Tammy passed an old man walking some kind of hound dog. He tipped his hat and said good evening. She gave him the evil eye and ignored him, exhaling smoke in his direction instead. God, why would Kelly choose to live in Hicksville, USA? It was depressing. Their shitty holiday lights hanging from the street lamps only made it worse.
She finished the three block walk to the car. At least that part hadn’t been a lie. The hell with Kelly. She was done feeling guilty. Tammy wasn’t the one who took off and abandoned her friend at the worst possible time in her life. Tammy found herself scratching her forearm again and pulled her hand away. Every inch of her body felt like it was crawling with ants. God, her fucking head hurt.
She finally reached her Cavalier and was greeted by hot air and thick cigarette smoke as she got in. “What the hell, it’s like a million degrees in here.” She turned down the heater and cracked the window.
“Well? She in there?”
“Yeah, she’s really working there. Some crummy little place with computers and used books.” Tammy turned to the passenger. “Okay, I drove us all the way here and did your little spy mission. Can I get some now or what? I’m dying over here.”
Don finished the last swallow and crumpled the beer can before tossing it into the back seat. “Yeah, yeah.” He pulled a baggy out of his jacket pocket and handed it to her. “You’re gonna turn into a junkie if you don’t slow down on that shit.”
Tammy snatched the bag and punched him in the arm. “I told, you I’m not a fucking junkie!”
“Woah, whoa.” Don held up his hands and started laughing. “Take it easy.”
“Come on, stop being a dick and give me a hand.”
Don picked up a CD case from the floor of the car and held it out as Tammy sprinkled a generous amount from the bag onto it. She reached for the cut-down drinking straw in the ashtray.
A grin spread across Don’s face as he watched her. “All better?”
She rubbed her nose with the back of her hand and sat back with a sigh. “So better.”
Don cracked open another beer and squinted through the windshield in the direction of the store. “So we know where she works, at least. Did you get her address or anything or do we have to follow her home after work?”
“Got it all, baby. She wrote down her address and number. I didn’t even have to ask.” Tammy picked up the CD case and set up another hit.
“Awesome. Bitch thinks she can take a cheap shot at me and get away with it? I don’t fuckin’ think so.” Don drained half the can in one swallow and belched.
Tammy scowled. “You still have a thing for her, don’t you?”
“I told you a million times, it ain’t like that. She took my goddamn kid away from me. All I want is to get him back.”
“Pull-eeze. What makes you father of the year all of a sudden? All you want to do is get revenge.”
Don smirked. “Maybe I do. Maybe I want to get my kid back and teach that bitch a lesson at the same time.”
“It would be nice if you put that much effort towards me. I drive you all the way up here to bumfuck and what do I get?”
Don leaned over and slid his hand up her thigh. “Come on baby, don’t get all uppity. Tell ya what.” He reached into his pocket and pulled out another smaller baggy filled with brown powder and a syringe. “Let’s get a room at that little motel we saw coming into town. We’ll both do some more of that booger sugar you love some much, try our best to break the bed, and come down with a little of this.”
Tammy’s eyes widened and she swallowed. “Where did you get that?”
“Mike set me up. It’s the good shit, too. We’ll be floating all night.
“Let’s go.” Tammy started up the car and shifted into gear.
“By the way,” Don said. “Do you have enough cash to cover the room? I’m all tapped out this week.”
She glared at him before pulling into traffic.
Chapter 18
Something keeps brushing against her bare toes. A sharp pain from the side of her foot, like a hot needle piercing her skin, finally wakes her. Her legs flail and her foot hits something soft and furry. A short high pitched squeal followed by the frantic sound of claws scurrying across dirt fill the room.
She screams and scrambles to her feet, slamming up against the crumbling brick wall in the darkness. Panic grips her as she blindly gropes the wall in the dark and brushes up against cobwebs. Her foot feels like it’s on fire. Finally, she notices the dim light through the slot in the door and lunges for it.
“Help me!” She pounds on the door, barely making a sound on the thick wooden planks. “Let me out of here!”
Footsteps hurry down the hallway and a woman appears, shushing the whole way and holding a finger to her lips. “What are you doing? Be quiet, be quiet!” Her silver hair is pulled back into a bun, a good portion of it escaping from the hair tie and brushing up against the side of her face. A dark purple bruise one on cheek. A large and discolored growth on the other.
Kelly pounds on the door again, terrified the woman will leave her. “Please, let me out. I don’t belong here.”
“Calm down, now. Everyting is fine. Ye probably just had a bad dream.”
“I don’t understand. Where am I am?”
“That’s enough!” The woman slaps her side of the door and her eyes narrow to slits. “He’s not here right now but ye need to learn, regardless. Never make a sound. It only makes it harder.”
“He who?”
The woman glances down the hallway. “I don’t have time for your silly questions. As a matter of fact, I was in the process of fixing your breakfast before ye started carrying on. We need to get ye cleaned up today.” She starts down the hall.
“No! Please don’t leave.” Kelly thrusts her fingers through the slot. “There’s a rat in here. Let me out, please.”
The woman returns. “Ye know there’s no eating upstairs. It’s practically rule number one.”
“Please.” The tears blur her vision but Kelly sees the woman’s internal debate on her face. She glances to the ceiling and down the hall again before looking down. Sighs. Jingling of keys.
The door swings open on wailing hinges and Kelly steps down slightly onto the wooden planks of the floor. The woman takes her hand and pulls her along, telling her they have to hurry. She passes other doors along the way and thinks she hears whimpering from behind one of them. Can’t be sure.
The woman unlocks a door at the end of the hall and climbs a narrow stairway, telling Kelly to hurry again. They stop at the top of the stairs and stand in the tight confines as the woman sorts through her keys to unlock yet another d
oor.
“Ye better be grateful for this,” she says. “If he comes early and finds ye upstairs he’ll take it out on the both of us.” The door unlocks and the woman pulls her though.
Kelly steps out and shields her eyes at the brilliant light. She looks down at her feet, squinting past the filthy nightgown to her bloody foot, caked with dirt.
“Just a quick breakfast and it’s into the tub.” Clanging of cookware and utensils from across the room. “It’ll take every minute we have to scrub ye clean. Don’t tink I’ve forgotten ye refused to take a bath last time. Where do ye suppose this bruise come from?”
Eyes adjusted, Kelly finally looks up and takes in her surroundings. She’s in the living room of her cottage. A piano where the television and VCR should have been. She’s practically standing in the spot where Keegan likes to watch TV. Oil paintings on the wall. An overstuffed sofa behind her.
“If you’re just going to just stand there ye could at least give me a hand.” The woman stirs a pot on a big black wood burning stove where her electric stove should have been.
Kelly looks out the living room window at the river and trees beyond, takes a little comfort in seeing something unchanged but can’t ignore the bars on other side of the glass.
The woman slams an iron pot onto the massive butcher block table dominating the kitchen and ladles out what looks like porridge into a bowl. “Come and eat so I can feed the rest of the girls.”
Kelly shuffles for the table, wincing from her sore foot. She passes a large mirror on the wall and stops to look. The girl in the mirror is young, can’t be a day over fifteen. Pale skin, bright red hair. Kelly screams, causing the woman in the kitchen to drop one of the bowls. Kelly screams again, the girl in the mirror matching her breath for breath.
Chapter 19
Kelly looked up and realized Sue had said something to her. “What?”
