Fight for Love (12 page)

“Even with a bat
he could still overpower you. Just let him go.”

Janice dropped the bat and ran to Ryan, who
was lying on the floor absolutely still.

I went to the door then locked it, making sure the killer couldn’t come back.

“How is he?” I asked.

She was sobbing hysterically. “Ryan, please say something. Ryan!” She shook him.

“Is he bleeding?” I said calmly. I couldn’t believe I wasn’t freaking out right now.

“I can’t find anything,” she said as she tore his clothes away.

I turned on the lights then came next to her. “Can you see anything?”

She pulled his clothes away, not protecting his privacy. Right now I didn’t care what part of his body I saw.

“I don’t see anything.”

She breathed a sigh of relief. “He must just
be knocked out.”

I turned to Mike and looked at his body. “Mike, come on,” I said as I shook him. I pulled his clothes away but didn’t see any gunshots. “He wasn’t hit either.”

Janice didn’t care. She was still checking Ryan everywhere, feeling his heartbeat and listening to his lungs.

“Mike, can you hear me?”

He moaned.

I wiped the b
lood from his face. “Come on. Open your eyes.”

“Is he gone?” he whispered.

“You’re safe, you’re safe.”

He opened his eyes. “Are you okay?”

“Everyone is fine. No one is seriously injured.”

He took a deep breath. “Thank god.” He reached up and touched my nose. “You’re bleeding.”

“I’m okay.”

“Ryan?”

“He hasn’t woken up but he’s not bleeding. I think he’s okay.”

“Ryan, wake up, baby,” Janice said into his ear. “Please wake up for me. Please.”

Ryan groaned then opened his eyes. “What the hell happened? Baby, are you okay?”

“Everyone is safe,” she said through her tears.

“Scarlet, where is she? Where’s my sister?”

“I’m right here, Ryan.”

He didn’t look at me, not moving his head. “Are you okay?”

“Everyone is fine.”

Mike sat up then rubbed his head. “What happened to the guy?”

“He got away.”

“Did he take the gun?”

“Yeah.”

“That was so fucking close.”

Ryan sat up and Janice helped him. “Baby, are you okay? You’re sure?”

“I’m not hurt,” Janice said. “Only you and Mike seemed to be injured.”

“What happened?” he asked.

I looked at him. “Basically, he knocked you both out then he took a few shots at me. When he was going to kill me, Janice chased him with a bat and beat him a few times. But he escaped out the door.”

Ryan looked at Janice. “So you saved our lives?”

“Scarlet did too.”

He said nothing.

“You better not be mad,” she said quietly.

“Of course not,” he said. “I’m just happy everyone is okay. I hope no one was caught in the crossfire.”

“Me too,” I whispered.

Mike rested his heads in his hands.

“The police and paramedics will be here soon,” I said as I rubbed his back.

“I need some painkillers,” he mumbled.

“Me too,” Ryan groaned.

16

When the police arrived we gave them every detail possible. I even told them my theory of how it was related to Carl Rogers. They wrote everything down then observed the scene of the crime. Since we all had an injury we were required to go to the hospital. Janice and I were relieved when we found that neither of the guys had any serious brain trauma. After we were examined we were allowed to leave. Without anywhere else to stay, we went to a hotel.

We didn’t tell Sean or his parents because we were still in shock over what happened. Everyone was quiet when we got to the hotel. We were all thinking the same thing. Would he come back? Would it be the same guy or a different one? It was obvious he knew a great deal about us. That made me uneasy.

No one slept that night. Anytime I tried I just had a nightmare. Ryan wasn’t affectionate with Janice at all, sitting in solitude. Mike kept glancing at the door every few minutes, paranoid that something would happen at any moment. I really missed Sean. I needed him right now.

Now I knew without a doubt that Carl wanted revenge for what happened. He hired someone to kill me and Janice and his plan had almost succeeded. If Mike wasn’t there we would have all been killed.

When I told the police my suspicions, their response was pretty vague. They said they would investigate all suspects, but they didn’t mention Carl. I was starting to feel helpless. It didn’t seem like they had any leads. None of us could give a description of the man because it was so dark. I’m pretty sure it was the same creepy man in the hallway, but the police didn’t seem to be too interested in his appearance. The experience reminded me of my tenure at R and R. Carl harassed everyone in the office
but there was nothing anyone could do. If we called the police he would just come after us. If we went to human resources we would be fired. The situation was the same as now. The police didn’t seem to take my claim seriously. I didn’t feel safe. When I told them the guy would be back, they said one cop would monitor the outside of their hotel for a few days, but that was all they offered. It was unacceptable. I was scared and I knew everyone was just as frightened. The man would return eventually and he wouldn’t stop until the job was done. There was nothing to do but wait. The fear and anticipation was the worst part.

The trauma had affected us all in an irrevocable way. We were scarred and emotionally disturbed. The memory of that night would linger inside me until the day I died. It was an experience that made my heart beat at a quicker pace indefinitely. The fact that it wasn’t over made it a million times worse. Our fate was already destined. The men could a
bandon Janice and I and save their own skin, but they refused to do that. There was nothing we could do, and nothing anyone could do for us. We were screwed.

When I was staring outside the window, I came up with a few ideas, but none of them were viable. Everything led to a dead end. But there was no idea that stood out the most. It was unlikely to work. If anything, it might make the situation worse. But I didn’t have choice. I was fighting for my life.

No one slept the following night. We all agreed to stay in the same hotel room because we were too scared to be apart. Being together is what saved us last time. It was a lot harder to kill four people instead of just one or two.

The next morning I made my decision. We got ready then got inside the cab. No one spoke on the drive. There was nothing to stay. We argued in circles about this decision, but we eventually agreed that we didn’t have any other option.

When the view of the prison came into view I felt my heart accelerate. My hands tied together, nervous and spastic. The car stopped and we all got out. My family walked inside then reached the counter.

“Can I help you?”

“I’m here for visiting hours.”

The officer looked at the list. “Scarlet?”

“Yeah.”

The officer will escort you in the speaking room.”

“Can we be in the same room together?”

“We don’t recommend that.”

“Please.”

“Okay. An officer will stand outside the door and watch.”

“Thank you.” I hugged my family goodbye then walked down the hallway. The officer led me into a plain room with a table in the middle. There were two chairs glued to the floor. The walls were made of cement. The door was made of pure glass so I could see into the hallway. I took a seat and waited.

A few minutes later, the door opened and I saw the face I despised most. It was greasy and chubby, stretched tight. His hair was short and messy like he hadn’t bathed and washed himself in a very long time. He was still fat. The ha
ir on his knuckles still grossed me out. The officer placed him in the chair with his handcuffs still on. He walked outside the door and stood in front of it, staring directly at us. His eyes never left us, watching us carefully. His presence made me feel better.

I looked at Carl, who was staring at me with equal fascination.

“You are even more beautiful than I remember.”

I didn’t react to his comment. I wanted to slap him then knee him in the groin but I kept a stoic appearance. I had to force myself to be pleasant. “Thank you.”

If he was surprised by my cooperation, he didn’t show it.

“How are they treating you here?”

“It’s prison. How do you think they are treating me?”

“I’m sorry to hear that.” I tried to seem as compassionate and sincere as possible. I took one acting class in college to fulfill my t
heatre requirement so I hoped my education would help me in this moment. “I didn’t want this.”

“It seemed that way.”

“No.”

“So, what is the purpose of your visit, Scarlet?”

I hated hearing him say my name. It got under my skin. “I wanted to see you. See how you were doing.”

“To gloat?”

“Definitely not.”

“You are the reason why I’m in here. You and that friend of yours.”

I shook my head. “Janice and I had nothing to do with what happened.”

“You expect me to believe that?”

“It’s the truth.”

“Then who was that man who attacked me?”

“What man?” I lied.

“The one who tackled me after I was trying to talk to Janice.”

It irritated me that he used “talked” and “assaulted” interchangeably.

“It was probably her boyfriend and he didn’t appreciate the way you were treating his girlfriend.”

“Then how did it get on camera?”

“They put them in the office recently.”

“I would have known about that.”

She shrugged. “Maybe the notice was filed into your spam folder. I really don’t know Carl. I came here to visit. I had nothing to do with your arrest and neither did Janice. We aren’t stupid enough to rat you out to anyone.”

“Then how did the video get on the servers?”

“I don’t know. It could have been a glitch in the security department. If it came from Janice’s computer, the company would have known. And she and I know nothing about technology other than how to use word and check our email. You are assuming that we planned this heist. She and I didn’t even testify against you in court. Why do you assume that she and I had anything to do with it?”

He leaned forward and rested his hands on the table, the metal of the handcuffs clanking against the surface. The officer continued to stare at us through the window. “I thought I saw you.”

“When?”

“When I was lying on the floor in the office.”

“It wasn’t me,” I lied. “I don’t know who you saw.”

He stared at me for a long time, examining every inch of my skin. It seemed like I was doing a good job of convincing him. I didn’t mention the assault so he would think that my visit and interest in his well-being was genuine.

“I saw you standing outside when the police escorted me out.”

“I was showing my friends where I used to work. It was an odd coincidence.”

“You didn’t seem surprised.”

“I would be lying if I said I was.”

He leaned back. “So you had nothing to do with it?”

“No. I left the city, found another job, and moved on with my life. When the prosecutor asked Janice and I to testify, we refused.”

“Why?”

“I think what you did was wrong, but you didn’t deserve to go to jail for it.” The words coming out my mouth made me want to vomit. I concentrated on the goal so I could keep going. “I did respect you as a human being and a talented editor. We just had our differences at times.” Actually and Janice and I did testify, but we gave our statements as a group with the other girls and kept our identity a secret. Now I was thankful that Sean insisted on it.

He twirled his thumbs together while he looked at me. “So you care about me?”

“Of course. I feel bad for your family. You must miss them.”

“I don’t have a family.”

“I’m sorry.”

“You care about me?” he repeated.

“Of course I do. Aren’t we friends?”

“Why are you coming to me now?”

“I’m in the city because of Sean.”

“That’s the reason why you are here. I’m not stupid. I won’t drop the charges against him.”

“I’m not asking you to. The allegations won’t reach the court because it wasn’t him. You have the wrong person.”

“No, I don’t.”

“Yes, you do. And I’m not asking you to drop the charges. Perhaps you should spend more time searching for the right suspect, not waste your time on the wrong man. I’m sorry that someone assaulted you like that. That’s horrible.” I wanted to gag as I listened to myself.

He stared at me through his large glasses. “So you are saying you didn’t set me up and Sean
isn’t the man who assaulted me?”

“That’s exactly what I’m saying.”

He looked away. “And you’re here just to see how I’m doing?”

“I’m not asking anything more of you.”

“Will you visit me again?”

“Since I don’t live in New York anymore, probably not. Although. I wish you the best. Your sentence won’t last forever and you’ll probably get out
a few years earlier. It’s not so bad. You might even be able to appeal it.”

“My lawyer and I are working on it.”

“I hope it goes well.”

He stared at me for a long time. “I’m sorry that I falsely blamed you.”

I could cry I was so happy. I was getting somewhere with this psycho. I’m so glad I took three psychology classes. I took the blame from myself, pretended that I cared about him, and treated him with respect. “It’s okay. I’m sorry this happened to you.”

He nodded. “What happened to your lip?”

My face was still slightly blue from the attack in the apartment. I knew what he was really asking. He was trying to determine if the hit already happened or if I understood that’s what it was. I touched my lip. “A burglar broke into our apartment with a gun. We took a few hits but he got away. We don’t have leads or any suspects. He didn’t take anything.”

“I’m sorry that happened to you.”

“No one got hurt. That’s all the matters.”

The officer opened the door. “Your time is up, Carl.” He came inside then stood next to Carl’s seat. I stood up and approached Carl. His eyes widened in fear, unsure what I was going to do. I wrapped my arms around him and gave him a hug. I felt so disgusted with myself. I was practically a hook
er, giving myself to him. I held the hug for five seconds to make it seem genuine before I pulled away with a smile on my face.

“It was nice seeing you. I’m sorry about everything.”

For the first time, he smiled at me. It wasn’t attractive, appealing, or normal, but I knew it was genuine. “Thanks for coming to visit me. I get lonely here.”

“Of course. That’s what friends do.”

“We’re friends?”

“Yeah. We worked together for so long
, we’re practically family.”

“Family?”

“Yeah. I don’t have a biological family so I make my friends my family. You can be my family.”

He was speechless for a moment. “Thank you.”

“Yeah.”

“Scarlet?”

“Yeah?”

“I’m really sorry for the way I treated you.”

I was not expecting that, for him to apologize for everything he did to me. I thought I would do all the apologizing. It caught me off guard. Perhaps he exerted his power over women to molest them because all he wanted was to be loved, to be understood. Maybe he just needed a friend. “I forgive you, Carl.”

The officer grabbed him and pulled from the room. I smiled at him the entire time, the first genuine smile I had since I walked inside.