Silent Night 2 (17 page)

R
eva saw Pres freeze by the door. Danny continued to lean over Pam, breathing heavily through his open mouth.

“Hey. Sit up,” Danny ordered Pam. He turned back to Pres. “I didn't hit her that hard.”

“You did too!” Reva insisted. She couldn't get the loud snap out of her mind. Again she saw Danny's backhanded slap, saw the chair nearly tilt over backward, saw Pam's head fly back.

Snap.

“Sit up,” Danny repeated angrily.

Pam groaned. Slowly she raised her head.

Reva breathed a loud sigh of relief. “Pam—you're okay?”

Pam nodded groggily. She had a bright red circle on her cheek, the spot where the slap had landed.

“I knew I didn't hit her that hard,” Danny told Pres, beads of perspiration glistening on his wide forehead. “I just knocked her breath out.”

Pres started to reply, but Diane burst back into the room. “What's going on in here?” she demanded, eyeing Reva and Pam.

“Not much,” Pres replied quickly.

“Pretty quiet,” Danny said.

“How'd it go? Did you reach Dalby?” Pres asked.

The smile on Diane's face indicated that she had. She threw her arms around Pres and gave him a jubilant hug. “We're going to be rich, honey!” They kissed.

“Did you tell him the drop-off?” Danny demanded excitedly. “When's he getting us the money?”

Diane turned away from Pres. Her smile faded. “Not in front of them,” she said, gesturing at the two girls. “Come on. Let's talk outside.”

They turned off the single bulb, leaving Reva and Pam in darkness. Then Pres and Danny followed Diane out into the hall. The storage-room door closed behind them. Reva heard them walk a short way down the hall.

“I'm sorry, Reva,” Pam said in a tiny voice. She was still groggy, Reva realized.

“I'm really sorry,” Pam repeated.

“I'm sorry too,” Reva replied sincerely.

“I was so stupid,” Pam said, tears rolling down her cheeks. “How could I have believed them? How could I have trusted them?”

“You were angry,” Reva said softly. “And desperate. They might have killed you.”

“Now what?” Pam whispered.

Reva swallowed hard. Her throat felt dry as cotton. “I don't know.” She groaned in pain. “My arm—it's completely numb. But it still hurts every time I move.”

“We have to get out of here,” Pam muttered, gazing toward the closed door.

“Huh?” Reva stared through the darkness at her.

“They're crazy,” Pam said. “Danny especially. They say they're just going to leave us here. They say they're not going to harm us. But—”

“You think—?” Reva started.

“You heard Danny,” Pam continued, her voice trembling. “He wants to kill us. We've seen them. We know their names. Danny doesn't want any witnesses.”

“I can hear him out in the hall,” Reva said, feeling a tremor of fear.

“He's arguing with them,” Pam said, listening too. “Probably trying to convince Pres and Diane. To—to kill us.”

“Maybe he won't win the argument,” Reva said.

“Maybe he will,” Pam replied grimly. “Reva, we have to get out of here.”

Reva let out a hopeless sigh. “Get out of here? How? Do you know any magic words?”

“I'm not tied very tightly,” Pam revealed. “I think Pres went easy on me because I was cooperating with them. Or maybe he just messed up.”

Her shoulders rolled up and down as she began to work her hands behind the chair. “The cord's very loose,” she said, trying to tug herself free.

“You really think you can untie it?” Reva asked.

Pam nodded. “I . . . think . . . so . . . .”

“But even if we get untied—then what?” Reva demanded, panic slipping into her voice.

“I guess we make a run for it,” Pam said. “Maybe we can surprise them. You know, catch them off guard.”

“Run right past them?” Reva asked, staring at the closed door.

“It's worth a try,” Pam murmured darkly.

“I guess,” Reva replied. “There's
got
to be a security guard on this floor. Maybe we can find him before—”

Pam interrupted with a frustrated cry. “This is taking longer than I thought.” She continued to struggle, leaning forward, then leaning back, her shoulders moving as her hands worked behind her.

“Hurry,” Reva urged. She could hear Danny and the others still arguing out in the hall.

“Almost got it,” Pam said, breathing hard.

“This is the fifth floor. I know this floor pretty well,” Reva told her. “We must be right behind Santa's World. There are a lot of tall shelves of toys. Lots of places to hide.”

“Yes!” Pam whispered triumphantly. She swung her hands in front of her and tossed away the loosened cord. Then she began working furiously at the cord around her waist, the cord that held her to the chair.

A few seconds later she tossed that cord aside too. Climbing to her feet, she stretched her arms over her head. “Ooh, I'm so stiff.”

“Hurry. Untie me,” Reva urged. “It got very quiet out in the hall. They'll be back any second.”

“Hope you can run,” Pam whispered, her hands tugging frantically at a knot in the cord that held Reva's hands. “I mean, I hope the pain isn't too bad. From your arm.”

“I can run,” Reva assured her, eyes on the storage-room door.

Working frantically in the dark, Pam tugged away Reva's cords. Reva climbed quickly to her feet. She cried out from a stab of pain in her arm, then quickly covered her mouth to stifle the sound.

The two girls stood awkwardly in the center of the room.

“Now what?” Reva whispered.

Pam's swollen cheek blazed. Her eyes widened in fear. “I—I don't know. I guess we should hide against the wall beside the door. When they come in, maybe they'll walk right past us—and we can make a run for it.”

“Good!” Reva cried, her heart thudding in her chest. Each heartbeat seemed to send a throbbing wave of pain up from her broken arm. The arm hung lifelessly at her left side. She bit down hard on her lower lip, trying to force away the pain.

Both girls started toward the wall—but stopped short when the door was opened.

“I'll take care of them,” they heard Pres say.

We're caught,
Reva realized, frozen in helpless horror.

T
he door was standing halfway open. A pale triangle of light slanted into the room.

Reva stared open-mouthed, standing awkwardly, swallowing hard. Pam stood just ahead of her, also frozen in fear.

“I
said
I'll take care of them,” Pres called irritably to his two partners.

Take care of them.
What did that mean? Reva wondered.

She heard Diane's voice out in the hall. She was asking Pres something.

“Okay,” he muttered.

The door was pushed shut.

He didn't come in.

Reva gaped at Pam. Giddy laughter escaped her throat. “We're safe.”

“For now,” Pam said, sobering quickly.

Reva crept along the wall, stopping just short of the doorway. Pam followed right behind.

“As soon as the door opens again, we run out,” Reva whispered, cringing in pain. She had leaned against the wall with her broken arm, and the pain roared out like a raging fire.

Pam nodded solemnly, listening to the conversation between the three kidnappers on the other side of the wall. “Which way do we run?”

“Right,” Reva whispered. “Toward Santa's World. And scream as loud as you can. Maybe we can wake up the guard.”

Pam touched the swollen welt on her cheek. “Shhhh. They're coming.”

She took a deep breath.

The walls seemed to shimmer and shake for Reva. The whole room grew brighter, glowing until she had to shut her eyes. The floor tilted first one way, then the other.

Don't freak, Reva, she scolded herself. You'll never get away if you totally lose it.

She heard footsteps in the hall.

The door started to open.

This is it,
she thought.

Pres entered the room. He took several steps, staring straight ahead at the two empty folding chairs.

Reva just had time to see his mouth drop open in shock. She heard his astonished gasp.

Then she and Pam took off.

Out the door. Into the narrow passageway.

“Hey—” Danny's startled cry echoed in the hallway. He and Diane were against the wall several yards away. They seemed to freeze, startled by the unexpected sight of the two girls fleeing.

Reva's sneakers squeaked over the hard linoleum floor. Her broken arm flopped painfully against her side. She kept her good arm stretched out in front of her, as if poised to stiff-arm tacklers.

“Help!”
she screamed.
“Hellllp!”

Pain cut through her body as she ran. Turned right. Hurtled herself past dark, empty storage rooms.

She could hear Pam right behind her.

“Hey—stop!” Danny's angry shout.

She turned her head without slowing her pace. Danny and Diane were close behind, Pres a few yards behind them.

“Ow!” she cried out as she collided with a large metal trash basket. “Oh!” She spun off it. The trash can rolled noisily back into her pursuers.

Reva lurched onto the selling floor.

So bright. Christmas decorations sparkling in the night light. Gold and silver tinsel everywhere. Shimmering Christmas balls.

Like a fairyland, she thought.

Only this is no fairy tale.

“Help! Help us—please!”

“They're going to catch us!” Pam shrieked breathlessly.

“Split up!” Reva cried. “Split up! Go!”

She saw Pam turn, stumble, quickly regain her balance, and push herself off a display case of
children's boots. Reva kept going, running straight, gasping noisily for breath, her chest about to explode.

She turned. Then turned again. She ducked low, turning and twisting through the maze of display counters and aisles.

She couldn't see her pursuers. Had she lost them?

Into Santa's World. All red and green, silver and gold. Past the enormous wooden sleigh. Past the reindeers staring glassy-eyed at her as she ran. Past the elves lined up as if waiting for Santa to ascend his gold throne.

“Help! Please—help!” Reva tried to scream, but her voice came out a hushed whisper.

Where was the stupid security guard? Maybe there
wasn't
one on this floor. Maybe that's why the kidnappers chose this floor.

I can't run much farther, Reva realized.

She reached a wall, a dead end. With a gasp she took a step back. Then another.

Which way? Which way?

A hand touched her back.

“No!”

She spun around.

Santa Claus grinned at her.

She had backed into a Santa mannequin.

Just like in my dream, she thought, gasping for breath.

She started to run again. Around a display of children's sweaters. Into the toy department.

“Where did she go?” Danny's voice, in a distant aisle, sounded confused as he chased after Pam.

Maybe Pam is getting away, Reva thought.

She bumped an enormous lifesize Ninja Turtle stuffed animal that guarded an aisle in silent menace. Its head bounced angrily.

She glanced back. And saw Pres behind her, his dark eyes burning furiously into her back.

Diane and Danny must have gone after Pam, Reva figured. Got to lose Pres. But how?

“You can't get away, Reva! There's nowhere to run!” He sounded as breathless as she did. She saw that he was holding his side. He must have had a pain in it from running.

With a powerful heave of her one good arm, Reva shoved the big stuffed animal into his path.

She heard Pres cry out and stumble.

Then she made a sharp left, staying low behind a tall display of Lego blocks, ducked behind a long glass display case of slot cars, and flung herself out into the aisle beyond the toy department.

“Help me! Won't
someone
help me?”

She was hurtling down a long, twisting aisle of budget clothes.

I—I can't breathe, she thought. I can't take another step. I—

She could hear Pres somewhere behind her. She knew she couldn't give up.

With a desperate burst of speed she turned a corner—and ran headlong into someone.

“Oh!”

No. Not someone.

A mannequin. Another mannequin. Not Santa this time.

A wide-eyed woman with bright red hair, dressed in red and blue ski clothes. Reva cried out as pain
shot up her shoulder. The mannequin toppled backward onto another mannequin, which fell onto another.

A whole row of mannequins, Reva saw.

All toppling over backward.

Like bodies, she thought, her chest heaving, her temples throbbing.