Authors: Lucy Swing
My sweaty hands tightened around the leather steering wheel. I was holding my breath, as the slightest movement would be compromising. Fear had me frozen, and blood was pounding into my head. My insides kept screaming for me to get the hell away before it was too late.
The person looked to the side at the barking dogs. The beating of my heart quickened, and with a slow and cautious movement I lowered my hand to the shift box. His head crooked to the other side, and I took my chance. I set the car in drive and floored the gas pedal. The car bolted forward, throwing the cloaked person onto my windshield and then over the roof of the car. The rearview mirror showed the way his body hit the pavement. In the matter of a blink of the eye the street behind me was once again empty. No cloaked person lying on the ground. No trace of anything that just happened.
I kept my foot on the gas the whole way home, making it in a record time of twelve minutes. By the time I parked the car, it was nighttime and the porch lights were off, which meant Dad wasn‘t home yet.
I grabbed my phone and dialed Maggie, but all I got was her voicemail.
Great
. I would have to get out of the car sooner or later; whether it was dark or not and whether I was alone or not. I stole a glance backat Maggie‘s house, but the only light on was the porches.
Probably out for dinner
, I thought. As great as Mrs. S is, the woman could not cook even if it depended on her life. She would never get something as simple as mac ‗n‘ cheese cooked right.
I gathered my cell phone onto one hand and ran for the door, holding my key in position to open it at top speed. A loud noise came from the leaves of the bushes by the cherry tree, once again causing my whole being to freeze at the edge of the front steps. The leaves moved again, and I waited. I waited for him to come out and attack me, to carve his mark onto my skin.
Moe, Mrs. Harris‘ cat, strolled out from the bushes casually, stopping a few feet away from me shooting a bored look my way.
―
Stupid cat,”
I muttered to myself as I sighed in relief. I held the key out again and turned towards the door, only to find a large body blocking my way. I screamed, my phone and keys went flying in the air.
―Hey, hey. Relax! I thought you had seen me,‖ Chance was out of breath, too.
―I‘m sorry, it‘s just—it‘s dark—and, no, I hadn‘t seen you.‖ I tried to catch my breath as I leaned on him. The moment I felt like I could move again, we walked to the door and opened it; the jingle of the keys slamming against each other covered the sound of our ragged breaths.
Chance sat on the black leather chair in the kitchen, his chest rising and lowering at an incredible speed.
―Why are you so tired?‖ The scare he gave me had already begun to wean off. What was up with him?
―I went for a run, as you may have noticed.‖
I looked at him, ―What do you mean?‖
―Since my car is not in your driveway, I thought... Never mind, I saw you pull up and thought I‘d come to say hi.‖ I moved through the kitchen, the red blinking light on the phone was blinking. A quick voicemail later, my suspicion was correct; Dad would not be home for dinner. The late emergency meetings were becoming more of a common thing lately, and I was beginning to wonder if they were more of a
date thing
than anything else. He could just fess up and be open about it. But instead, he seemed to be content with the sneaking around.
My mother was gone well before I could retain memories, and Dad never spoke a whole lot about her. All I knew is that she was incredibly beautiful and sweet. The reasons for her leaving were still a mystery.
Dad has always been there for me. For the past seventeen years I have been the only girl in his life, and he deserved to be loved by someone else a little more appropriately. He had done a great job as a single parent; it was time he lived a little.
I had been so caught up in my own thoughts I had missed when Chance stood up and closed the space between us. He slid his muscular arm around my waist softly. My whole body and my senses went limp. When he was near me, everything faded away. He could take my will to think straight; there was nothing but him when he was around. Even in crowded spaces, like at school, I could only see him; the rest melts into nothingness.
His arms tightened around me and with a swift movement he propped me up on the counter, pulling my legs apart with his body. His fingers entangled themselves on my black hair. I wrapped my arms around his neck, pulling his body closer still. He smelled so darn good.
My heart began to beat like a drum, loud enough I felt he might just be able to hear it. That would be embarrassing. His lips met mine and they moved with purpose. We had only been dating for a couple of months, ever since the ordeal with Jude in the cafeteria, Chance seemed to have noticed me. As if he had been able to really see me from that day forth. We have been together ever since.
I pulled away, allowing the cold air in the room cover my scorching lips. I could think once again, and all I could see was Jude in my head.
What the hell is the matter with me?
How could I possibly be thinking such things when… My mind was filled with images of Jude and I kissing, being enclosed in his arms.
I felt sick to my stomach and tried to push those thoughts off my head.
Chance was kissing my cheek, my jaw, my neck.
―So, umm, did you study for tomorrow?‖ The voice inside my head didn‘t say a word this time, it simply laughed at how ridiculous I was being. Chance was one of the most popular boys in school. He was in the football and swimming team and had all the girls drooling over him. So why was I asking about school and thinking of the person who may be kidnapping and possibly killing the girls from school? Yeah, something was definitely wrong with me.
He chuckled and shook his head, eluding my question. ―Do you still have those chocolates your secret admirer left you?‖ His whole demeanor changed, and his muscles tensed up.
It was kind of sweet that he was getting all jealous about someone leaving me chocolates. He would definitely not be feeling that way if I told him what I thought was happening. That those same chocolates seemed to be somehow connected with the disappearances. My mouth flew open on its own accord, but I opted to keep quiet. It still seemed a little far-fetched for me; he would probably drive me to the crazy institution himself.
―Yeah, they are in my room.‖
If they haven’t moved on their own accord again
, I thought.
―Go get them; let‘s see what they are made of.‖ He gave me a weak smile and walked away toward the living room. He spent most afternoons hanging out here, so he knew his way around. He turned the T.V. on and began flipping through the channels.
―Okay, I guess I am getting the chocolates,‖ I mutter under my breath as I went up the stairs.
I searched high and low but could not find them anywhere. They truly had feet of their own. On my way out of the room, something caught my eye. From under the dark keyboard a white paper peeked out. I pulled on the paper until it was free and found a handwritten note.
I stole your chocolates. That‘s what happens when you try to be all mysterious and leave you best friend behind.
BTW, I will eat them all, make no mistake about it.
XOXO, Maggie
My stomach turned. I had to warn her about the chocolates. I looked out the window and toward her house, it was still dark. I pulled my cell phone and dialed her. Voicemail.
When I came back down empty-handed, his eyebrow shot up. ―What‘s up? You didn‘t leave one for me?‖ A hopeful smile crept into his face.
I showed him the note. A different side of him emerged, a Chance I had never seen before. He threw a fit! Claiming Maggie had no right to walk into my house and do with my property as she pleased. I watched him move across the room, boggled at his reaction, so I just nodded and pretended I understood where he was coming from. I just wanted him to get this very unusual burst of anger out of his system.
Maggie was like my sister. We met during freshman year in high school and had become, ever since, inseparable. Sleepovers happened almost on a daily basis, and for the past two years she had had a key to my house. She is welcomed in this house as if it were her own.
After letting some of the anger out in the open, Chance left my house, Leaving me behind, confused and partially deaf from the slam of the front door. I sat, still bewildered at his unusual behavior, and pulled my cell phone out of my back pocket to call Maggie again. The call went straight to voicemail. ―Hey Maggie, Call me when you get this. It‘s important. Whatever you do,do not eat the chocolates.‖ I slid the phone back in my pocket and stole another glance across the street. No sign of life at her house.
By the time I was done with dinner and doing the dishes it was late and I was tired, but the scholar in me knew I had to study if I wanted to keep my grades up. Besides, with the dance only a few days away, I didn‘t want to take a chance of Dad making me miss it as punishment. It was about eleven when I heard the front door close, and his careful steps followed soon up the stairs. Dad‘s head peeked in at my door.
―Well, get some rest; if you are tired during your test you won‘t do any better,‖ he said as he came over to the desk and kissed my forehead, closing the door behind him as he walked out.
My eyes were heavy. I got up and picked up my pajamas from the arm rest of my desk chair and made a mental note to remember to clean up the red mess from the floor before school. Once finished with my nighttime ritual, I walked over to the window to close the curtains, but, instead, I stared down into the darkness. Beneath the now darkened Cherry tree something moved.
Someone was leaning against the trunk of the narrow tree. The bright green eyes stared up from underneath the gray hoodie he wore, which in turn casted shadows over his face. He stood there motionless, not blinking once. He had found me after all. I swallowed hard. The adrenaline had my blood in frenzy, making my head swim in a confusing haze.
―Daddy,‖ I called between clenched teeth. When he didn‘t come I called for him louder. ―Daddy!‖ My voice came out as a loud shriek. The thud of his footsteps came closer until he reached my door. I dared a look back at him and pointed outside.
―He is here,‖ I whispered to him. ―He is outside.‖ Tears began to well in the corner of my eyes. He crossed the room and put one arm around my shoulders as he looked out the window, his eyes searching the ground.
―Who is, princess?‖ I looked at the tree and pointed again, but there was no one there. The yard was empty again. ―Honey?‖
―I -I saw someone there, by the tree.‖
―Did you recognize who it was?‖ He waited for me to answer, but I just kept staring outside, shaking my head in disbelief. Was I going crazy? Imagining things?
I toyed with the idea of the man in West Hollow following me home and now waiting for a way to get to me, but it couldn‘t be. The eyes were wrong. This one had green eyes like... Jude? Maybe his eyes changed color, depending on his mood?
Yeah, his eyes are exactly like a mood ring,
Bailey, I told myself.
―I will go outside and make sure there is no one there. Why don‘t you call the police? For all we know this guy could be the one kidnapping the girls.‖
I grabbed his arm and begged him not to go; who knew what that person would be capable of? He could get hurt. He kissed my forehead and was out of my room, taking two steps at a time down the stairs. I reached for the phone and dialed the sheriff‘s office. Dad‘s sweep of the grounds had been quite short and within two minutes from calling the police they arrived.
―That was fast,‖ Dad said when he opened the door, and two police officers stood under the yellow porch light, the sound of zapping mosquitoes in the background. He guided them into the kitchen, where he brewed a new pot of coffee.
―Dispatch said there was an intruder?‖ The officer with the red curly hair turned to me with his little notepad open, ready to take notes. I looked down at his name tag before I responded, Lt. Harris.
―Yes. He was leaning against the Cherry tree out back. Just standing there, staring up.‖ I shivered at the memory. Those green eyes were haunting me in the darkness every time I dared to blink.
―Did you recognize the perpetrator?‖ He was still writing on his notepad, not looking up as he questioned me.
―No, he had his hood on and he was far; I couldn‘t see too well.‖
He stared at me as if deciding whether I was lying or not. ―Do we even know
he
is a he?‖
I thought about it. I couldn‘t really be certain, but his built, just like in my dream, was masculine. ―I‘m pretty sure.‖
―Was he alone?‖
I nodded.
―What happened next?‖ The other officer, Pheitter, asked as he took the blue mug Dad was handing him.
―She called me,‖ Dad said as he stood behind me and put a reassuring hand on my shoulder. ―When I got to her room he was gone. I asked her to call you and I went outside to check if he was still around. But there was nothing, and then you were already at the door.‖ He took a sip of his own coffee and then looked at Lt. Harris. ―How come you got here so fast? Usually it takes about 15 minutes from the station here.‖
They both looked at each other, and then sized me up.
―There‘s been another girl reported missing.‖ Lt. Harris said.
I took a seat; my blood suddenly ran cold and a dry sweat covered the back of my neck.
Please don’t let it be her,
I said to myself. ―Wh—Who is missing?‖
―It‘s Maggie Simmons, from across the street.‖
―No,‖ I said shaking my head. ―You have it all wrong, I just saw her this afternoon. We went to the mall with her mom, and then she was outside in the porch just after six o‘clock. She also came into my house while I was out and left me a note.‖ They were mistaken. She was probably in her bed by now. My smile weakened as I took in their faces.
―May we see this note?‖ Officer Pheitter asked as he wrote something in his own notepad.
I rose from my chair slowly, feeling the weight of the news on me as I stumbled into the living room and grabbed the handwritten note off the glass coffee table. I gave it to Officer Pheitter. They both looked at it and exchanged looks.
―Mind if we keep this?‖ Lt. Harris asked, not giving me much choice once he had already placed it in his jackets inside pocket and stood up. He took a long sip of his coffee and gave Dad a slight nod.
What was
that
?
If I didn‘t know any better I would have thought they were communicating telepathically.
―We will look around and let you know if we find anything out of the ordinary.‖ With a quiet goodbye, they walked out through the back door.
Dad leaned against the kitchen counter, holding the hot cup of coffee close to his lips and lost in his own thoughts.
The table felt cold against my cheek. I didn‘t have the strength to hold myself up anymore. It couldn‘t be. She couldn‘t be missing. This confirmed it though, it
was
the chocolates! Dad approached me.
―Not right now, Daddy. I want to be alone.‖
I rushed into my bedroom and picked up my cell phone, dialing Maggie‘s number for the millionth time that night. Her voicemail came to life as her upbeat voice told me to ―leave a message, or not. Whatever.‖ I closed my eyes and the tears rolled down my face like waterfalls. I couldn‘t lose her, I wouldn‘t allow it. I would find her. The note she had left came to mind, and a sudden rush of heat found my cheeks. It was my entire fault! The chocolates were supposed to be for me and now… she had taken my place in these fateful events.
Sleep never came to me. I tossed and turned for hours; flashes of Maggie with the chains tightly wound around her body played in my head like a fast-forward movie. She could probably be in the same predicament as Carly had been in my dream, or vision. Whatever it was. I bolted up in bed, the darkness danced around me, taunting me. The air felt heavy, and my chest felt constricted.
I needed air.
I got out of bed and moved to the window, casting glances around the yard, making sure no one was there. Everything seemed peaceful, no one was visibly lurking around, so I opened the window, allowing the freezing cold of the night to wrap itself around me. It may not have been the smartest move, but whoever had been down there couldn‘t get to my window. Well, unless he had twenty foot ladder.
The tunnel
.
Something clicked in my mind. If I found the tunnel then I could probably find Maggie. I bolted to the desk and turned on the laptop, tapping my finger against its edge as I waited for it to load up. The room beamed with the blue light emanating from the screen. Once the browser was open, I typed what I was searching for and waited for the results. For the most part all that came up were miner tunnels, but none looked anything like the one in my dream.
I kept playing with the wording on my searches until I found a cave that, even though it was not a spitting image of the one I had seen, it came pretty darn close. I was not surprised when the map showed its location, West Hollow. It was about a mile or so into the deep forest, not too far from where the factory remains stood.
I stared at the screen for a little while longer, learning the way around the woods. If I was going to go on a mission to save my best friend, I couldn‘t risk getting lost; that would only get me killed too. I cringed at the thought of Maggie having her body carved into; having to forever carry that symbol on her.
No, I will get her out of there;
I thought as I snapped out of the sudden daze and started browsing for the symbol. It obviously has to have great meaning for it to be carved on each one of its victims. I searched for symbols on the web until my eyelids became too heavy. Without the strength to keep them open any longer, I slid into the cold sheets. My body trembled, and I threw my arms around myself tightly.