by Powers, Jade
“Not to worry, my dear. I’m going to file the missing person’s report tomorrow first thing,” Drew leaned down, his fingers brushing the hair from Kendra’s temple. She felt sick to her stomach and wanted to punch him. “But tonight, we’re going to have so much fun.”
“They’ll find my body. They always do, and it will lead right back to you.” Kendra rolled away from Drew, coming face to face with the tire of her car. That gave her an idea. She kept rolling, until she was under her car. Drew grabbed at her but Kendra moved too fast. By the time Drew knew what was happening, Kendra was out of reach.
Now Drew was on his stomach looking under the car at Kendra, “If I have to drag you out of there, you’ll regret it.”
“I’m already gagged and tied. I’m not going to make anything you have planned for me easy.” Kendra hated the taste of the gag in her mouth. It was one of Drew’s ties. Cloth on the tongue was like nails on the chalkboard. It gave her a squidgy feeling.
“I like a challenge. Let’s see who can outlast the other.” Laughing hysterically, Drew opened the garage door. It was daylight now. Kendra must have been out all night.
She stared at the undercarriage of her car and thought through her next moves. Drew couldn’t watch her all day long, and he didn’t seem eager to crawl into close quarters and drag her out. He was chubby and out of shape, but obviously willing to hurt her.
He could shoot her, but then the garage would be full of evidence, and only real estate agents would have access, so it would be a quick matter for the police to tie Drew to Kendra’s murder. Not the smartest move, and Drew might be a jerk, but he had a modicum of intelligence.
Drew dragged a lawn chair into the garage. Setting it up in the corner, he lowered himself into it with an exaggerated sigh. “This is my favorite part.”
Kendra mumbled, “Of course it is.”
A stout fellow, Drew looked too lazy to be a serial killer. Kendra always imagined serial killers to be wiry guys with large glasses, the kind of too thin, emaciated, hungry predators that couldn’t stand themselves, let alone anyone else. She never trusted Drew. She should have followed her instincts and quit. Drew said, “I thought you were savvier. Driving alone to a house in the middle of nowhere? You’re just asking to get jumped.”
“I’m a real estate agent, what do you expect?” Kendra’s hands were going numb. She was laying on them wrong and needed to adjust. She rolled to her side.
“We could work out a deal. You come out from under the car, and I’ll let you go when we’re done. You’ll be paid very well for your time.” Drew stretched out on the seat like he was Don Juan. He bent down to watch Kendra’s reaction, and she knew from his weasel eyes that he really thought she would believe him.
“I’m not a whore. And I’m staying put.” Kendra said.
She thought she would be under that car for a few minutes. She thought that Drew would lose patience and drag her out or force the issue another way, but Drew just sat on the lawn chair. He went into the house and came out with a bag of chips and a box of store-made cupcakes, the kind with the gushy center.
Talking with his mouth full, Drew said, “You hungry? I’d be willing to share if you came out.”
Kendra hadn’t honestly thought about food until that moment. Now that Drew was eating three feet away from her, she was famished. And worse, thirsty. The car protected her. She didn’t bother to answer. Engaging in conversation seemed pointless.
Drew tried a few other topics of conversation, but Kendra remained silent. When she heard his chair scrape back, she closed her eyes. Every muscle in her body tensed, preparing for defense if Drew decided to come under the car and drag her out, or shoot at her. She could almost feel him watching her, and then she heard motion again and when she opened her eyes and turned her head, she was staring at Drew’s feet again.
With a sigh, Drew said, “I would have tied you to the bed upstairs. It’s more comfortable and better sleep, but if you won’t come out for food, you wouldn’t come out for blankets.”
Again, Kendra didn’t answer. She worked silently at the knots, stretching her arms, wriggling, trying to find a way out. Drew left the garage, taking his bag of chips and cupcakes with him. He’d demolished both. If she could get away, Drew would never be able to catch her, not in the shape he was in
Kendra waited in silence, listening for Drew. He never came back. She had to get free.
Chapter 11
KENDRA STRUGGLED AGAINST her bonds, coughing through the cloth in her mouth. Kendra rolled along the floor carefully, feeling with her body for something that might help. Drew wouldn’t give her long. He might have gone in to work to make an appearance, but Kendra knew he’d be back by dark.
Using the car as a prop, Kendra rocked back and forth, leaning against her hip until she was sitting, then using the bumper as a fulcrum and an aid, Kendra stood, wobbly and sore. Her feet were too tightly bound to walk, so she hopped forward.
She was parched. As soon as she got out of the ropes, she was going to find water.
Kendra lost her balance and fell on her butt.
Forcing herself to her knees again, Kendra didn’t have the strength to stand a second time, not without something to grab onto. She needed something sharp. With a cry of frustration, muffled by the gag, Kendra pulled her legs closer to her and scooted back so that her back was against the door of the garage.
She used the wall as support pushing herself little by little until again she stood. The light switch and the garage door opener were in reach. She leaned against the wall with her shoulder, awkward and unstable, but she found the garage door opener and pushed it.
The door opened into a forbidding dark sky. A heavy rain pounded the driveway, clearing the smell of gas from the garage, but also bringing a chill with it. While the light didn’t change, Kendra’s eyes adjusted to the dim shadows. Aside from her car, covered in a tarp, there was nothing in the garage, except a black garbage bag.
Ropes first.
Kendra knew she could get out.
She was alone in the house. That meant time, and time was all she needed. She just had to think and reason out how to get free. Pulling her hands apart and flexing her hands, Kendra strained against the ropes with a see-saw motion, hoping to loosen them. The rope on her left hand was looser than the one on her right. She flexed back and forth.
Kendra found the doorknob and with some struggle turned it, pushing it open. She did squats facing away from the frame with the ropes against the corner of the entryway. Kendra moved rapidly up and down until her legs ached and her breath came in gasps using the corner of the door to fray the ropes. It seemed hopeless. Still, she would not give up.
Tears gathered in the corners of Kendra’s eyes. They were angry tears. Time passed in that dark garage, but Kendra didn’t know how much, only that she had to keep working at her bonds. Drew didn’t have a wife and kids. His responsibilities were limited to work. As the son of the owner, he could show up whenever he wanted. Maybe he was establishing his alibi. Certainly that would take a while.
With persistence and rope burns, she freed herself. Once the ropes around her wrists were off, it was an easier thing to remove the ones around her feet and the gag. She opened the garbage bag and found her jacket and sneakers. She put her sneakers on first and then the jacket. She stuffed the gag into her jacket pocket, just in case the police needed it for evidence.
Zipping up her coat, Kendra stared into the yard where rain still poured.
Maybe her car was usable. Kendra’s arms ached as she lifted the tarp from the car. It would take a while to get over the numbness in her arms. The numbness slowly turned to a fierce burn as the blood circulated back through her arms. Her keys weren’t in the car. Somewhere Kendra needed to pick up a few skills, like hot-wiring a car.
When she didn’t find anything useful, Kendra went to the door that opened from the garage to the main part of the house. She listened at the door. It would be just her luck if Drew was waiting for h
er on the other side. When she didn’t hear anything, she stepped into the kitchen.
The water drew from a well. It ran cold and clear. Kendra cupped her hands and drank deeply. Kendra found Drew’s snack cabinet. It looked like he had been using the house for a while. The cupboard was stocked with cookies, chips, and other junk food. If only she had a backpack, Kendra would take them all. Kendra found something just as useful. Drew had 45 gallon garbage bags in the same cupboard.
Pulling one out, she emptied the cupboard into the garbage bag. As she dropped them in, Kendra’s stomach growled and she planner her first dinner, a box of cheese and cracker snacks, cupcakes, and a bag of chips. She needed to escape first, get some distance between herself and this house. If help was close, she wouldn’t need the food, but Kendra wasn’t about to take the risk.
Plus, it satisfied her anger to steal from Drew.
Swinging the bag over her shoulder, Kendra checked the window to the driveway. No cars. Feeling more hopeful than she had in hours, Kendra stepped into the driving rain. Her hair was immediately soaked and plastered to her face. Breathing deeply of pine and water, Kendra laughed. She beat Drew. She would be home soon.
With a spring in her step, she walked down the driveway, staying at the edge in case she had to dash off into the woods. Drew had moved the huge branch blocking the driveway. If Kendra knew more about cars, she would have tried to get her car running, but this was survival and her best chance was to put distance between herself and that house. Where the driveway met the road, she turned toward town. She could walk all night and still have miles to go. At the main road, Kendra walked along the shoulder. She tried to remember where the nearest neighbors lived. Unfortunately, the house was out in the middle of nowhere. It was at least ten miles to town.
A small gravel road branched off from the highway. Kendra hoped that meant a house at the end. She left the main road. It was going to be dark soon. Hopefully, she would find help.
ON TUESDAY SCOTT GOT a call from the police regarding a missing person’s case. That was how he found out that Kendra had disappeared. The police questioned him intensely. Where was Scott last night? When did he last talk to Kendra? What was the nature of their relationship? Why did he stop by Kendra’s work? Apparently Drew had called the police when Kendra didn’t show on Tuesday and mentioned Scott by name several times. By the time the grilling was over, Scott was relieved to leave.
He felt a sour coldness in the pit of his stomach. He would never forgive himself if anything happened to Kendra. He should have made amends months ago.
Scott had no idea where to look. But he couldn’t stay at home. He paced the house, worried. One thing he knew about Kendra, she had a stellar work ethic. She did not skip town. Something was wrong. The police wouldn’t tell him where she was last seen, nor if they’d found her car. They wouldn’t tell him anything, except that she was missing.
Late on Tuesday Scott called his boss at home, told him the situation and that he needed a few days off. Kendra had mentioned something in her voicemail about Drew engineering the whole humiliation at the restaurant. Maybe Drew was behind Kendra’s disappearance. The police would have to answer that question. Scott told them what he knew. He drove to Kendra’s work, parking across the street in an insurance company’s parking lot. He watched and waited. When Drew left the office, Scott followed him at a discreet distance.
Drew took the back roads to the Orting-Kapowsin Highway, down through Orting and into the mountainous woods beyond. The rain fell heavy, making visibility difficult. Scott lost Drew a few times.
Scott had the misfortune of giving Drew too much distance. A motorist turned onto the road, separating Scott from Drew. Scott caught Drew once more in the straight stretches, finally able to pass the slower car, but he lost Drew at the next curve. He took the curves, thinking Drew was further ahead, but didn’t see Drew’s car again. It was a while before Scott came to the conclusion that Drew had probably taken a turn-off.
The windshield wipers were on full speed, swish-swishing the rain away. His heart thumped fear. Maybe Kendra was stuck somewhere, unable to call for help. He found a place to turn around. His drive back was slow and methodical. He watched for signs of Drew’s car, for Kendra’s car. When he got to the place where he’d last seen Drew’s car, he memorized the cross-road nearest the spot.
He drove home, intent on research. Scott decided to check Kendra’s real estate company first, hoping to find some information on Drew and his family. It was a long shot, but Scott had nothing else to go on.
None of the public records for that family had Orting addresses. Grumbling Scott visited the company website. The most expensive house on the list was an Orting address selling for a hefty sum.
“Damn it.” Scott swore out loud, jabbing the button to shut down his computer without bothering to close the browser first. He was too annoyed. Drew wasn’t going to Orting to chase after Kendra. He was showing the house.
Staring at the blank monitor, Scott was overwhelmed with a sense of helplessness. He was the kind of guy who acted, but he had nothing to act on. If he knew where the trouble lay, he could rescue Kendra. Without information, he was just floating.
He remembered Drew’s offer to pass along a message, how wrong that conversation felt. Scott trusted his instincts, and right now they were screaming that Drew was behind Kendra’s disappearance. Drew was too smug when he stepped out of his office the day before. He was too full of himself, as if he had a secret no one else shared.
Turning the computer back on, Scott scribbled down the five listings in the area where he had been driving earlier, including the house that prompted him to shut off the computer. That would be his first stop.
It might take all night, but Scott wasn’t about to give up yet. Scott stopped for a couple of burgers and fries, eating while he drove. He felt guilty about the delay. The rain let up, now a steady pitter-patter. Maybe nothing would come of this investigation, but at least Scott wouldn’t be stuck at home, waiting.
Chapter 12
DREW STORMED THROUGH the house, slamming closet doors and checking every nook and cranny. Kendra wouldn’t wait around the house. After the other women, he’d gotten complacent. No one had ever escaped the bonds before. Drew had to remove the evidence, make it her word against his. He could say she must have had a nightmare after wrecking her car.
The garage door was already open. Drew reconnected the battery. It was a small thing, but it kept Kendra from taking her car. Drew backed the car out of the garage and drove back up the driveway. He didn’t dare drive too far from the house. He’d have to walk the distance.
When he found a gentle slope down to couple of trees, he set up the accident, letting the car hit one of the stumps. He ran back to the house, wheezing. He carried the gun in his pocket, insurance. None of his plans ever included using the gun. He liked hands-on. Right now, he was glad for it, because as he ran up the driveway, he noticed that Scott Belfore’s car was sitting in front of the house.
Scott was already inside. Drew thought back to his cleanup of the house. Had he cleared all the evidence? He didn’t know. He’d counted on a final check before he left. His shoes were covered in mud. His hair was wet. Scott wouldn’t believe he was just out for a walk. Maybe he could put Scott’s body in the trunk of Kendra’s car. That might work.
Drew was not a criminal mastermind. He was too full of his own self delusions to realize how many mistakes he had already made. He hated Scott, and his focus was on removing Scott from the world.
Taking position at the side of the house in sight of the door nearest Scott’s car, Drew waited. Once Kendra found out what happened to her precious lover boy, it wouldn’t be hard to convince anyone that she had lost her mind. He would make them think she killed Scott.
SCOTT FOUND ROPES AND Kendra’s purse in a garbage bag inside the garage door. Between that and the tire tracks in the yard, he knew that she was in trouble. His heart sank. He had to keep hoping. He had to keep going, if on
ly to bring Kendra’s murderer to justice. Scott tried to bury the word from his mind. But it kept springing up. How could he think of anything else? If the ropes were in the bag, it was because they were not needed anymore. The only reason was that it was too late.
He would go home and call the police. There was nothing here that he could do for Kendra. Introspection can be a great thing when a person is sitting in front of a fire safe at home. In a dangerous situation with trouble lurking, it’s usually better to keep one’s eyes open and alert.
If Scott felt the slightest uneasiness as he opened the door, it was buried under pain and regret. He ignored his intuition, walking straight into Drew’s ambush.
Drew waited until Scott was nearly to the car before shooting. He shot Scott in the back twice. Scott pitched forward. He dropped to the ground and crawled around the car, climbing into the driver’s seat. As soon as Scott heard the sound, he knew what had happened. He didn’t feel pain, only the force of the bullet propelling him forward. From there it was just instinct.
Scott turned the key in the ignition, glancing in the mirrors at Drew who still held the gun up and approached from the grass. Putting the car in reverse, Scott turned the wheel. Driving cars was something he did well. He was going to put Drew out of commission...if he didn’t get shot again.
Slamming down on the accelerator, Scott took the car in reverse straight at Drew. This time Drew wasn’t fast enough to jump out of the way. Scott hit him and kept going backward. From the relative safety of the driver’s seat, Scott could see Drew moving, struggling to get up. Scott felt blood trickle down his back. He might be dying, but he could do one more thing for Kendra.
This time when he ran over Drew, his aim was better. Drew would never hurt anyone else again. Scott leaned back in his seat. He should drive to the main road. Maybe someone would see him and go for help.
