In the Still of the Night

by Callie Hutton

  She wiped the tears from her cheeks, not even aware that she’d been crying.

  Moving from tree to tree, attempting to stay hidden, slowed her down, but there was no choice.

  “Why did you report me to HR, Hollyyyyyy? I thought you liked me.” Well, that confirmed what she had suspected. It was Albert. The creep. The man who worked on their shift for a while and could never keep his hands to himself. She finally had to report him when it became apparent he was not going to stop.

  She even had Brad come up to the zoo in his uniform and talk to him. Albert was surprised, confused, he’d told Brad. He had no idea that Holly thought he was harassing her. Two weeks later she was forced to report him when he cornered her in the ladies room and suggested she ditch her husband and she and Albert take a weekend away together.

  “Hollyyyyyyy. Answer me, Hollyyyyyy.”

  Should she answer him? Would talking to him give her more time to reach the office?

  Before she could change her mind, she pressed the button. “What do you want, Albert?”

  “Ah. But Hollyyyyy. You know what I want. I want you.”

  “We’ve been over this before, Albert. I’m a happily married woman.”

  “No matter. We will get rid of him.” He paused. “Don’t look so surprised, I haven’t done anything to him. Yet.”

  A new wave of terror rose up in her again. He knew she looked surprised? He was close enough to see her. Without thought, she took off running, racing toward the animal hospital. She didn’t have the keys for this part of the zoo, but she ran around the back of the building.

  Additional training from Brad had taught her to wear a set of joggers and sports bra under her uniform in case she ever had to strip because of blood, fire, chemical spray, or other reasons. She removed her shirt and covered her hand with it. With one solid punch, she broke the pane in the back-door window, put her hand through the shattered glass, and unlatched the door.

  Every building had a phone in it with an outside line. Once inside, she quickly drew on her shirt and felt her way around the small office at the front of the building. She dared not use her flashlight in case Albert was nearby. Stuck in the building, she was an easy target if he found her.

  The sound of her breathing scared her almost as much as the predicament she was in. If she didn’t calm down, she would expire of a heart attack here in the building, and there would be no need for Albert to kill her.

  Squatting in case Albert was looking at the building, she edged her way over to the desk. She reached up and felt around with her fingers until she touched the phone. She pulled it down and picked up the receiver.

  No tone. The line was dead.

  “Hollyyyyy. You can’t use any of the phones, Hollyyyy. I cut the lines on all the buildings. I’ve been busy, you see.”

  Dear God, not only had he cut the lines, but he knew where she was.

  Chapter 5

  A bright light shone through the smashed window. She dove to the floor and, using her elbows, crawled on her stomach to the front door. She reached up to unlatch the lock, shot to her feet, and ran from the building.

  “Hollyyyyy. Don’t hurry. I’ll let it take a while for me to find you. Maybe I’ll let a few of the Code Red animals out to help my search.” He ended with a very loud, very frightening laugh.

  The Code Red animals were the most dangerous in the zoo. At this point, Holly felt nothing was more dangerous to her than the madman in pursuit. She continued racing from hiding place to hiding place. The sound of the zoo cart coming in her direction threw her into a panic again.

  Maybe he could keep track of her, but she knew his general position by the sounds coming from the various animals he drove past. The screaming he did into the radio had upset some of the animals who were making plenty of noise.

  She ran along a footpath, avoiding the paved roadways since she knew Albert was in a cart. In her mind, she pictured the zoo, noting all the places he couldn’t take a cart that would eventually take her to the office.

  He’d said he cut the phone lines in all the buildings, but maybe he missed a couple. For the amount of work he’d done, cutting phone wires, stealing a cart and radio, killing Rebecca, and God knew what else he planned for her, he had to have been in the zoo for a while.

  She eventually came to the General Store, a short distance from the nocturnal barn. With no windows to break into the barn, since the creatures in there were kept in the dark, she was better off smashing her way into the store and trying their phone.

  She stopped to listen to the cries from some of the animals near the man-made river. If that was where he was driving, Albert was close, but she still had time to break into the store.

  Once again, she removed her shirt and wrapped her hand. This one took a few fists before the window broke. Once inside, she stopped to listen. No animal sounds, so she had no idea where he was.

  “Hollyyyyyy. The General Store won’t do you any good. I cut their phone line, too.”

  Holly slid down the door and sat on the floor, drew her knees up and tried, unsuccessfully, not to cry. After a few minutes of well-deserved self-pity, her fear turned to rage. She grabbed her radio. “What do you want from me, Albert?”

  Silence for a moment. Then, “How about we start with a kiss?”

  Her stomach clenched, and she feared anything left inside her would come up. “I’m married, Albert.”

  “I can take care of that.”

  She pressed the button on the radio so hard she was afraid she would break it. “Stay away from my husband!!”

  Silence for a minute again. “Tsk, tsk, my dear. So angry. Or is it fear?” Another loud and scary laugh.

  She had to get out of this building since he knew she was here anyway. She was a sitting duck. Was he planning to kill her? Rape her? Kidnap her? All of the above?

  The sounds coming from the aviary alerted her to Albert’s location. A path ran along river, parallel to the aviary, that she could take and get closer to the office.

  As she stepped out of the building, the sound of the cart had her racing to the river path. She stumbled a few times in her haste and arrived with a pain in her side and panting so loud she could probably be heard in the next town.

  Both pathways joined at the River Café. Even though it was probably a lost cause, she would break into that building through the back door and see if that phone worked. Riding in a cart, Albert would get there before her, but would arrive at the front.

  She could hear the cart motor as she approached the back door. Before breaking into the building, she looked on the outside, checking for the phone wire. Not really sure what she was looking for, and trying not to have to use her flashlight, she ran her hand over the building.

  “Hollyyyyy. What are you looking for? Can I help?”

  Holy shit, could he see through the building?

  She turned and raced through the wooded area of the cat forest, taking her to the zoo lake. She stood at the edge of the lake and pondered her chances of swimming across to the other side. She was a good swimmer, but the distance was daunting. She would have to take off her boots, pants, and shirt to keep from being weighed down in the water. Her radio would have to stay behind as well.

  She pictured herself swimming the lake and arriving at the other side in soaked sports bra and joggers, no shoes, and facing a highway after a short walk. She would probably be arrested. Although, that sounded like a good plan right now.

  Straining to listen behind her, she heard nothing except normal nighttime soft animal sounds. Comforting right now in her near-hysteria. No screeching or growling, telling her where Albert was. There was also no cart motor.

  Continuing to stare at the lake, she thought more and more that it was not a good idea. Although the air was not too cold, the lake water would be very cold. She might end up on the other side, frighteningly close to hypothermia.

  She was still quite a distance from the office, but there was nothing else to be done. She had to continue o
n her trek and get back to her desk and her phone.

  “Hollyyyyy. Please don’t try to swim, my darling. You will drown.” She jumped as the radio crackled and came alive with Albert’s voice.

  Trying her best not to succumb to hopelessness, she shook her head and walked along the lake, staying as far as she could from any pathways the bastard could reach with his cart.

  And prayed.

  Chapter 6

  Albert laid the radio on the seat alongside him. He wanted the game to be up. To grab Holly, take her away from the zoo, then strip her, force her to her knees to do things she probably never even imagined. Things her lame husband would never have his precious wife do for him.

  Albert would make her believe he was going to take her somewhere romantic. The lake. That fancy casino near the Red River. But once he was at his apartment, he would tie her to his bed. Take what she denied him. Over and over and over. It would take days to satisfy him.

  Then he would slit her throat…watch the warm blood seep down her naked body like small rivers. He would take pictures and send them to Officer Brad McCabe, the pig who had the nerve to tell Albert to leave his precious wife alone.

  No one got away with screwing Albert Anderson, and the bitch and her asshole husband wouldn’t be the first to receive his punishments.

  The hunt for Holly was too much fun to give it up just yet. He was far too excited thinking about her fear and horror. He could almost smell her terror.

  Let the game continue.

  Chapter 7

  “Hollyyyyyy. Do you know how sharp my knife is? I spent a lot of time slowly grinding it against the whetting stone. I’ll bet you never saw one, did you? It works so well.”

  Holly jumped as her radio crackled to life again. For the hundredth time, she considered turning off the blasted thing or tossing it into the lake. But if she did, she would lose all contact with the man who wanted to kill her and no way to know where he was.

  But she refused to respond to his taunts again. That’s what was probably giving him the enjoyment in this. He wanted to hear her fear. She would not give him that satisfaction.

  “Hollyyyyyy. Are you still there?” Creepy-nightmarish laughter. “Oh, yes of course you are. You’re still considering taking a dip in the lake. Too cold, you know. And all those clothes would drag you down. To the very bottom. Never to return. That would be a shame. I would lose you before I’ve had my pleasure.”

  She trudged along, trying her best to listen for the sound of the cart.

  “Unless you took all your clothes off. I would like that, Hollyyyyy. Why don’t you do that? Then I can meet you on the other side.” More laughter that made her skin crawl.

  She continued to move forward and resumed praying. She was thirty feet from the zoo’s carousel when the loud, eerie organ music from the children’s ride started up, and the thing began to spin.

  She stopped so suddenly she almost crashed to the ground. How the hell does he do that?

  “Want to take a ride, Hollyyyyyy?”

  “Leave me alone!!!” She screamed loud enough for the police at the station two miles away to hear her.

  If only.

  “Tsk, tsk, Hollyyyyyyyy. You’re losing your temper. That’s not good. Sweet young ladies don’t do that. It’s not proper.”

  “I am not a sweet young lady and, if given the chance, I will cut your balls off and stuff them down your throat.” The next building that she could try was only twenty feet away.

  “Hollyyyyyyy!!! How very crude. I’m so disappointed in you.”

  “Good.” She uselessly rattled the doorknob and slammed her fist on the brick wall, closing her eyes when the pain shot up her arm. “Now leave me alone.”

  “No, Hollyyyyyy. You will need to be punished. You know, Rebecca never knew what hit her. She was standing there one minute admiring the elephants and then she was on the ground, bleeding.” He laughed. “Maybe this time her ailment was real.”

  He laughed again, and Holly broke into a sweat at the vision he just tossed into her head. The thought of Rebecca being taken by surprise like that when it was Albert’s intention to kill her instead almost broke Holly’s heart. No one deserved that.

  The sound of the cart growing closer caused her to bolt from her spot and race away from the lake, around the herpetarium, and then back up to the cat forest, hoping Albert would not realize she’d backtracked since it was obvious she was trying to get to the office.

  She wound her way through, trying to avoid the paths and yet keep herself safe as much as she could. With a stitch in her side and out of breath, she stopped and bent over, listening for the sound of the cart.

  Nothing.

  Could it possibly be her plan had worked, and Albert had lost track of her?

  “Hollyyyyyy. Do you like the cats so much? Maybe when I finally decide to reach out and grab you, I will toss you over the fence so you can spend some time with the lions. How does that sound, Hollyyyyyy?”

  She grabbed her radio and pushed the button. “You will not get away with this, Albert. The police will hunt you down and, if you’re lucky, you’ll spend the rest of your life in prison. If you’re not lucky, you’ll be executed.”

  While she spoke, she continued to walk, taking the path on the other side of the zoo which would take her to the zoo train, and then eventually to the office.

  She came to an abrupt halt. My gun!

  Being so twisted up with fear and anger, she’d forgotten that, thanks to her husband, she carried her gun underneath the seat in her car. Getting to the car would be even better than the office. She could leave the area, drive to the police station and, if Albert came anywhere near her, she could shoot him.

  That stopped her. Could she put a bullet in someone?

  Damn right I could. Right between his effin’ eyes with no problem whatsoever.

  The radio came to life again. “But I won’t be caught, Hollyyyy. I have a plan, Hollyyyy. And a plane ticket. So you see, I get to pay you back for your meanness and rejection and then take a nice long vacation.”

  “I wasn’t mean, Albert. You refused to leave me alone.”

  “You had your brute of a husband harass me.” His voice changed from the taunting melodious frightening mode to anger. “I should have shot him.”

  She continued to walk, hoping he would be distracted by the conversation and lose track of her. “He loves me. He wanted me to feel safe on my job. That’s his job, to make people feel safe. Especially his wife.”

  “Holly, Holly, Hollyyyyy. You don’t understand, do you? I hate the idea of him touching you. Touching what’s mine. Don’t you know you belong to me?” His anger seemed to make him lose control.

  Ignoring him and focused on her goal, Holly continued around the train station, getting closer to the exit and parking lot.

  “Do you know my favorite song is “Every Breath You Take?” Do you know why? Because I’ve been watching you.”

  She had to turn her brain off. If she continued to listen to him, she would scream and probably pass out. She was stronger than that. Brad taught her to be strong, to take care of herself. She could do this.

  “Hollyyyyyy. I have a present for you. I’m sure you will enjoy it. Oh, I mean them.”

  Just then, Holly heard the sounds of screaming and screeching, seeming to come in her direction.

  Dear God, he’s released the chimpanzees!

  Chapter 8

  Anyone who has heard the blood-curling noise of chimpanzees in an excited mode would never, ever forget the sound. With the carousel still playing organ music and spinning, the chimps screeching, and Albert laughing over the radio, Holly felt as if she would lose her mind.

  Chimpanzees were one of the most dangerous animals to humans. By five years of age, they were stronger than most humans. They’d been known to rip off people’s faces and, even behind bars they could, and would, bite off a finger or two.

  With the two chimpanzees on the loose, Holly definitely had to get out of the zoo as
quickly as possible and forget about getting to her cell phone in the office. She took an abrupt turn to the left and headed for the barbed-wire fence surrounding the zoo.

  Forced to stop when she arrived at the fence, she bent over and placed her hands on her knees, trying desperately to gain enough air to climb over the fence. One thing this horrendous chase through the zoo had taught her was she needed to get into some sort of exercise program.

  The chimpanzees were going wild. There were five in the zoo, and she had no way of knowing how many Albert had released, and how he even managed to do it since those animals were behind electrified fences. Was it a sin to pray one of them got Albert?

  Holly studied the fence in front of her--a chance to escape. The barbed wire at the top was frightening. But not as scary as what was behind her, coming in her direction. She thought first of taking off her shirt and throwing it over the wire so she would avoid some injuries in the climb.

  Then she decided her cargo pants were much stronger and quickly undid her belt and removed them. If Albert had a pair of binoculars, which he probably did since he seemed to be able to see her from a distance, she would give him an eye-full with her tight joggers on, but at this point she would climb over naked if it got her out of the zoo and away from him and the chimpanzees.

  She climbed up and yelped as her hand hit the uncovered wire. A lone tear slid down her face as she sucked on the cut.

  “Hollyyyyyy. Why are you taking your pants off? I’m not quite ready yet for sex. We’ll do that right before I slit your throat.” Creepy laughter.

  “Oh God.” Cut or no cut, she was going over the fence. She took a deep breath and climbed over, attempting to keep her hands on the pants as much as she could. Her eyes teared at the cuts and stabs into her skin as she eased over the fence.

  She dropped down and tugged the pants off the fence, ripping them in parts, then raced toward the parking lot with them in her hand.