“Anna?” I called out.
“Yeah?”
“Are you looking at what I’m looking at?”
“Uh-huh.”
“Who was that, you guys?” I asked, walking over and gathering the food, water, and clothing, and taking it back over to the mattress.
“I don’t know,” Kandace replied. “That was the first time I’ve ever heard this guy.”
I didn’t know if I should be nervous or not. There were now two of these assholes up there.
Twenty-Three Days Missing
—Richard
Thomas hadn’t left his house in three days. After Luke went to the university and asked, in a very nonchalant way, where he was, he found out that Thomas had called in sick with the flu. I didn’t buy it for a second.
Noah was back in town, so I asked Luke to take over watch while I talked to Noah. Adam called to say that he was going to take the women grocery shopping, and I was glad that Noah and I would be alone. When I reached the apartment, I found him out on the patio, smoking. I whipped out a cigarette and stood next to him.
“Heard anything?” I asked, lighting my smoke.
“Nothing you want to hear,” he grumbled. Noah agreed that Thomas was someone to keep tabs on, but not in the way I was doing it.
“Seriously, isn’t there any news?” I pushed.
He shook his head. “No, bro, I’m sorry.”
A minute later Lee and Emma’s home phone rang, and Noah flicked out his cigarette and jogged over to answer it. I stood there staring out at the scenery, thinking of nothing else but my beautiful girl. Anytime I got tired, or found myself not paying attention, I would dial Lee’s cell phone, just to hear the sound of her voice on the voice mail greeting. In the beginning, I needed to be alone when I called her cell. I wanted to be able to cry without having to worry about people seeing, but now it didn’t matter. Hearing her voice was my wake-up call. Her voice would pulsate through me like a shot of caffeine.
“No . . . no, thank you,” Noah said, writing something down on a nearby notepad. He hung up the phone, and then took his cell out of his pocket, dialed a number, and started talking. I couldn’t tell what he was saying, but when he saw me watching him he hung up the phone, ripped off the piece of paper, and grabbed his coat. “I gotta run.”
“What’s going on?” I asked. I found myself asking him that a lot lately, and it was starting to piss me off. I was tired of playing catch-up to Noah’s constant phone calls.
“Just something I have to verify. Keep your cell on you,” he said in a rush as he ran out the door.
I stood there in a daze, wondering what the hell just happened. I went over to the notepad, picked it up, and took it into the kitchen. I turned the stove light on and held the paper below it, hoping to make out what he had written. The one thing I could make out was the name David.
Who the hell was David?
Chapter 11
Day Twenty-Five
—Lillian
I woke up crying again. I had been dreaming of Richard a lot, and it seemed that every time I did I’d wake up thinking that he was next to me. I would reach over, assuming I would feel him, but there was nothing there. There was never anything but the cold, dirty mattress that lay beneath me. Some nights I knew that I was dreaming. It was always the same dream: we were lying in bed, facing each other, and we would just stare at one another. When I would start to wake up, I would watch him fade away, and I would just cry. I wanted to reach out for him, to yell out his name, but I never did. I knew there was no point. I curled myself around the large flannel shirt that was given to me by the guy we now called ‘Number Two’, and bit my lip to hush my tears.
Number Two seemed nice. He never once hurt us or yelled, but came down every day to bring us food and empty our buckets. I didn’t know what to make of it. We were never allowed to look at him, or even speak, but there was just something about him—something familiar.
I was pulled out of my thoughts by the sound of footsteps above us. They were loud and heavy, and I knew it was him. He was back.
“Wake up,” I yelled, pounding on the wall. “He’s back.”
Before anyone had the chance to say anything, the soft voice of Patsy Cline that had filtered through the air nonstop for days was cut off. I looked over at the plaque against the wall and gave that last bolt the evil eye as I heard his footsteps come down the stairs. I stood up when I heard the jingle of the keys unlocking the door. When he opened the heavy metal door that led to our hallway of cells, I almost had to cover my ears with how bad the echo of the hinges squeaked, and I couldn’t help but jump when he slammed it behind him. He didn’t make a sound, which made me anxious because he always had some stupid quip to throw at us.
He walked down the hall, and opened one of the other girl’s doors before closing it behind him. If he spoke anything, it must have been in a whisper, but I knew he was with one of the girls when I heard a chain clang against the floor. Normally I welcomed some form of silence against the screams and cries, having to cover my ears and hum just to block it out, but this was different. I’d never heard such silence down here, and it scared the shit out of me.
A sharp gasp sliced through the air, followed by a grunt, and then nothing. What also scared me was how quick he was. I could guess how long he had been in the cell, but compared to his other visits, there was no way he had come down here for his normal business.
I didn’t realize I was holding my breath until the door slammed open again. I couldn’t help the shudder of breath that escaped my throat when I heard something being dragged across the floor. I fell to my knees and wrapped my arms around my bruised body, letting warm tears fall from my eyes as thump after thump after thump echoed up the stairwell.
It was the sound of a head hitting the stairs. He had murdered another girl.
My body shook with rage when I heard his footsteps on the stairs again before he shut the main door and locked it. I was breathing heavily by that point and almost screamed when Kandace’s shaky voice spoke out.
“It was Linda.”
“She didn’t do anything!” Sara yelled. “She never fought back or cried. She was his favorite.”
It was true. Linda, out of all of us, was treated better in the sense that he didn’t beat or torture her the way he did us.
“He’s going to kill us all,” Sara said, on the verge of hysteria. “We’re not gonna make it out. We’re not gonna make it out. We’re not gonna make it out.”
“Will you just shut up, for fuck’s sake?” Kandace screamed. “We don’t need you to state the obvious.”
But there was no use trying to calm Sara. It was as if her spirit, and sanity, had been broken. I couldn’t blame her; if I wasn’t so angry I’d be a wreck, too, but I didn’t have time to let my sadness take over. I had to get that damn bolt off. I used my newfound anger as my strength and motivation while I pulled against my chain. With the three freed bolts kept in my pocket, I lifted my foot up against the wall and, with all the strength I could muster, started to pull. Visions of Ruth’s face and Linda’s voice played over and over as I tightened my sore hand around the chain. I tried to maintain my focus on the job at hand, but my mind wandered to the night Richard and I began dating.
I took a sip of my drink and bobbed my head to the music. Gavin from the track team stood next to me, but for the life of me I had no idea why I had agreed to go out with him. He was such a freak, and not in a good way. The only reason I had agreed to the date was because I knew Richard would be at the party, and I wanted to make him jealous. I’d grown so sick and tired of the awkward tension between the two of us that I had now stooped to belittling myself into accepting dates from mouth breathers.
“Hey, Lee, why don’t we get out of here? Don’t you think it’s a little loud?” Gavin asked, plugging his ears and leaning toward me.
“Um, no thanks.” I smiled. “I’m good.”
“Well, how about we go outside? Just to get a little air?” he suggeste
d.
I thought about it for a second and decided that I could handle that.
I hadn’t realized how smoky it was in there until we stepped out onto the front porch. It was slightly chilly outside, and I crossed my arms over my bare shoulders to keep them warm. Why, oh why, did I have to wear a halter top in September?
“Isn’t that a little better?” Gavin asked. “Now I can hear what you’re saying.”
‘Yeah, as if you even give a shit. You were looking at my boobs the whole time. You’re still looking at my boobs,’ I thought. In reality, I had been ready to end the date the second I got out of the car. I hadn’t seen Richard all night, and my ass and I were growing incredibly annoyed with Gavin’s wandering hands.
“Yeah, I guess,” was all I could muster.
For the next hour, all I could do was smile and nod occasionally as Gavin blabbered on about politics and philosophy. I excused the yawn that I couldn’t hold back, explaining that I had gotten up early that morning for track practice. I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t relieved when he asked if I wanted to go home. All I wanted to do was take a hot shower and dive into a pint of Cherry Garcia ice cream.
When we got back to my place, Gavin walked me to my apartment. I repeatedly assured him it wasn’t necessary, but still found us both in front of my door anyway. I unlocked it and put on the fakest smile possible. “I had a nice time, Gavin. Thank you for inviting me to the party.”
“Me, too, Lee.” He smiled, rubbing the back of his neck with his hand. “Maybe we can go see a movie or something?”
Oh crap. “Maybe.” I smiled, giving a small nod. “Well good night, Gavin.” I turned to go in but was stopped when he took my wrist in his hand.
“Lee, I was wondering . . . I mean, what I wanted to ask was . . .” I kept looking down at his hand on my wrist as he stuttered with his words. “Would it be okay if . . .”
“Gavin, let go of my wrist,” I asked nicely.
“It’s just that I really like you and . . .”
“Let go of my wrist,” I said firmly, feeling a little nervous.
“I was thinking maybe you might want . . .”
What the fuck was this guy’s problem? I couldn’t even comprehend anything that he was saying because all I knew was that his grip, for some reason, was becoming tighter around my wrist. My heart started to pound in my chest, and my stomach started to feel heavy.
“Gavin, let go of my damn wrist,” I yelled.
“What?” he asked, looking surprised by my outburst.
Suddenly Gavin was pulled away from me and thrown to the ground. “The lady said to let go,” Richard growled. He went at Gavin in two strides and picked him up by his collar. “And when a lady says let go, you fucking let go. Got that, bro?” he yelled, causing Gavin to shiver and nod in agreement. “If I see you so much as look at her the wrong way, I will break your neck. Understand?” Gavin just nodded again and ran for his car when Richard let him go.
I stood there in shock, holding my wrist to my chest with my other hand. It would bruise, but I’d be fine. Richard stood there for a long time; his breathing was labored, and he looked as stiff as a board. It took a few tries, but by the third time I called his name he finally turned and looked at me. He saw me holding my wrist and immediately came to my side to look at it.
“We should put ice on that,” he whispered.
Richard waited on the patio while I washed my face and changed. I wanted to shower, but I didn’t want to keep him waiting. Normally I would have reveled in the chance to wear something a little . . . smaller, but for some reason I felt the need to cover up. So I put on a pair of loose-fitting pajamas and followed the familiar smell of smoke that led outside.
“Hey.” I smiled, running my fingers through my wet hair.
“How’s your wrist?” he asked, flicking his cigarette to the ground.
I lifted my ice-packed wrist, which Richard had taped, and sighed. “Sore, but I’ll live.”
“Promise me you’ll never go out with him again, Lee,” he muttered, taking my wrist gently into his hands and checking the tape again.
“I won’t,” I whispered back.
There was an awkward silence between us again, an awkwardness I unfortunately had grown accustomed to, but thankfully he spoke. “Why did you?”
“Why did I what?”
He sighed, taking a step back from me, and ran his hand through his hair. “Why did you even go out with that guy?”
“Well, it’s not like I have guys breaking down my door, Richard.” I chuckled. “It felt nice to be wanted for once.”
“Is that how you feel? Like you’re not wanted?”
I shifted my weight from one foot to the other. I bit my lip and looked down, nodding slowly. I felt him move toward me and I couldn’t help but feel my heart start to race.
“Lee, I . . .”
I looked up at him and saw it in his eyes. He wanted me; I knew it. His need for me radiated off his body like electricity. He raised his right hand slowly toward my face, and I closed my eyes in preparation for the feeling I was about to experience. A feeling I’d been waiting for far too long.
“I have to go.”
By the time I opened my eyes, I was watching him as he gathered up his jacket and headed for the door. He wouldn’t even look at me as he exited the apartment, shutting the door softly behind him. I just stood there dumbfounded. ‘Why won’t he kiss me? Was I wrong? Was I reading signs that weren’t there?’ I wondered to myself.
I went over and sat at the small patio table, letting my head rest on top of my arms. I couldn’t help the tears that seeped from my eyes as I cried at my idiocy. I cried because I felt stupid, I cried because I felt lonely, and I cried because at that moment I gave up on ever having Richard Haines.
“Lee?”
My heart stopped when I heard him whisper my name. I slowly turned to see Richard standing behind me looking just as pained as I felt. He let his jacket fall to the ground and took my face in his warm hands. He wiped my tears away with his thumbs and leaned his forehead against mine. “I want you,” he whispered, pressing his soft lips against mine.
“Lee!”
I was pulled away from my thoughts when Anna yelled my name.
“I’m here. Sorry, I just kinda spaced out for a minute.” I grunted, continuing to pull at my chain.
“Okay,” she simply answered.
Thinking of Richard calmed me down, but at the same time pissed me off. I needed that anger, that extra boost of energy that seemed to fuel my fire. “God fucking dammit!” I screamed, slamming my chain on the floor.
“Still no luck?” Kandace asked.
“No, I just like taking the Lord’s name in vain for the hell of it,” I said, leaning against the wall and sliding down. I pulled my knees to my chest and wrapped my arms around them. I needed to focus on something, anything but the dull, aching pain in my chest. I was letting my mind wander on too many things, and all it was doing was causing me to become overwhelmed.
When kids at school were overwhelmed with exams or projects, they mostly drank to calm down and then crammed at the last minute. That had never worked for me. Running had always been my go-to for decompressing. So I decided to focus on running. I closed my eyes and rested my forehead on my knees. I could almost hear my feet pounding against the ground, feel my ponytail swishing back and forth, and the steady rush of wind blowing past me. This was my safe zone, my sanctuary.
“I’ll make it so you’ll be pushed around your precious track in a wheelchair for the rest of your life.”
For some reason those words echoed through my head like a high-pitched scream, but with this scream came a realization.
He knows me.
It was starting to make sense now.
“Anna, do you play any sports?”
“I play softball.”
“At school?”
“Yeah, why?”
I stood up and started pacing.
“Kandace, what about you?
” I yelled.
“Soccer,” she replied in awe. “And you run track. That son of a bitch.” I was grateful that Kandace was catching on. “Sara, what sport do you play?”
“Lacrosse,” she whispered.
“Linda and Nina must have played sports, too,” I said, mainly to myself, but knew the other girls heard me.
“So you think he’s someone that works at the school? Maybe in the athletic department?” Anna asked.
“No, not him, but I think Number Two does,” I concluded.
“Why do you think it’s him?” Sara asked.
“Because every time he comes down here, I smell something familiar about him. Something I couldn’t place until just now.” I smiled, feeling relieved that I had finally found a main piece of the puzzle. “He smells like . . .”
“Chalk,” the four of us said simultaneously.
“Holy shit, I know him,” Kandace yelled excitedly. “He chalks the practice field every morning. I used to see him all the time. Connie, our captain, kinda had a thing for him. Damn, what is his name?”
At that moment, I couldn’t care less what Number Two’s name was. I wanted to know his name. That was going to be my card to get him in here when I got that final bolt loose. My previous assumption of him killing me off next was wrong, but it made me realize that if he was going to start killing us off one by one, he was probably going to leave me for last.
Twenty-Five Days Missing
—Richard
“Who the fuck is David?” Adam asked.
“There isn’t one David on the list.” Luke sighed, tossing the sheet across the table.
After Noah left the other night, I started focusing my attention on him and not Thomas. Noah seemed to be on a different track than the rest of us, spending more and more time around Agent Chase and the police station, and I couldn’t help but be annoyed at his secretiveness. I called Chase and asked him if there were any leads, but he just said they were doing the best that they could, and that he would call if anything came up. I knew I was being blown off, so I concluded that I had to keep doing this on my own.
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