Trapped

by Duncan, Lillian;

  “I’ll be praying for that. What can I do for you today?”

  She shook her head. “I…I’m not sure how to explain this, but Charlie insisted I come talk to you.”

  “About what?”

  “He’s worried about his Miss Angelina.”

  “Why?”

  “He says there are ghosts in her house, and he wants the good policeman, that’s you, to chase them out of her house. He says she’s not safe with the ghosts in her house.”

  Dumbfounded, Nate stared. “I’m not sure what to say to that. But, of course, to calm his fears, tell him I’ll go look for the ghosts. And if I find any, I’ll definitely chase them out of Miss Angelina’s apartment.”

  “I know it’s silly but he was so worried, I had to promise to talk to you before he would agree to go to school today.”

  “He’s back in school?”

  “I wanted to keep things as much the same as possible. The psychologist said it would be good for him. Angelina’s paying for that as well. Plus, she’s working on getting me a new job. She’s so kind and so amazing.”

  He couldn’t agree more about Angelina, but he wasn’t ready to share his feelings about her with others just yet. “So how’s the lawyer working out?”

  “She is so…so good. She promises everything is getting taken care of. That we will be able to live like normal people again. Angelina has been so good to us.”

  “That’s sounds just like Angelina.” Maybe, he’d call her up for another one of their doughnut dates. She’d been so anxious last night that she hadn’t spoken a word during the meeting except a little social chatting. She’d gone into the sanctuary afterward. He’d wanted to follow but felt it wasn’t the right time.

  He didn’t want to intrude on her spiritual journey. But he did want to make sure she was OK. Besides she’d enjoy the story about Charlie being worried about her and the ghosts in her apartment. It would make her smile.

  He wanted to be the one to make her smile. Even though she wasn’t quite ready for that sort of a relationship yet. Nate pushed the thought away and focused on Bonnie. “I’m glad things are working out so well for you.”

  She smiled. “Well, I must go. I’m on my break from the restaurant. I wanted to talk to you before I see Charlie again so I can put his mind at ease. A promise is a promise.”

  Her words made him think about his promise to Angelina. He’d wanted much more than the sweet kiss he’d given her. He smiled at Bonnie. “You do that. And you know what? Tell him to stop in to see me sometime. He seems like a nice kid.”

  The other officers were staring at her and then back at his office.

  He hoped they didn’t get the wrong idea about the two of them. After all, she was a very pretty woman. He picked up his phone and sent a text to Angelina asking if she was hungry for a doughnut. No response. Maybe she was busy.

  He picked up the next form that needed his attention. An hour later, the paperwork was finished and he still hadn’t heard from Angelina. He picked up the phone and called. No answer. That was unusual. She always answered his calls and texts.

  Maybe she was getting some much needed rest. She’d get back to him.

  “I want to see Chief Nate.” A small voice broke his concentration as he sorted through a computer database. He stood up and walked out to the main room.

  Charlie was in the squad room. His mother stood behind him.

  “Hey, Charlie.”

  Charlie waved and ran around the desk to him. “Hi.

  “How was school?”

  “It was OK.”

  “Want to see my office?”

  Charlie nodded and ran through the door.

  Bonnie walked into the station. “He insisted on coming to see you. Had to make sure you chased the ghosts out of Miss Angelina’s.”

  Charlie sat in the chair behind his desk.

  “Hey, that’s where the chief sits.”

  Charlie swallowed hard and started to get out of the chair.

  “Just kidding. You can sit there. How’s it feel? Think you might want to be a policeman one of these days?”

  “Yeah. Then I can help people, too. Did you help Miss Angelina? Did you chase the ghosts out of her house?” His eyes were wide and innocent.

  Instead of answering his question, Nate asked one of his own. “What makes you think there are ghosts in her house?”

  “Because I heard them.”

  “You heard them? When was that?”

  “That night we were at her house. Mama made me go to bed so she could talk to Miss Angelina. About adult things.”

  “And you heard the ghosts?”

  He nodded.

  “What did they say?”

  “The ghost kept saying, ‘Ange. Ange, do you want to play?’ And then it’d say ‘Come play a game with me, Ange.’”

  Nate’s gut twisted and his blood ran cold. No way Charlie could know those were the same words Luther Marks had used when he’d terrorized Angelina in the basement.

  Nate looked over at Bonnie. “Did he tell you that?”

  “No. He just told me she had ghosts in her house.”

  “Did you see anyone in the room, Charlie?”

  “No, silly. You can’t see ghosts. They’re in...in...you know you can’t see them.”

  “Did they say anything else?”

  “Yea…” He rubbed his little hands together as he thought. “Something about not getting away. He would always be around. I don’t know. Something like that.”

  Angelina had claimed she’d heard Luther’s voice the night she’d jumped out the window. Dr. Markley, Keren, even Nate had thought she’d been dreaming. Apparently, they were all wrong. Someone was still out to get Angelina.

  “I’m really glad you told me about these ghosts, Charlie. You did good. You’ll make a good policeman someday.”

  Charlie jumped up out of his chair. “You got to help her.”

  Nate stood. “You’re right. I do need to help her. And that’s exactly what I’ll do. Right now.”

  Fifteen minutes later, he drove up to Angelina’s garage. When he tried to enter it was locked. He pressed the doorbell then the intercom. No response from either of them. He looked up toward the main house. Angelina’s car was pulled up in front of it. On the sidewalk. Maybe she was in visiting with Keren.

  As Nate walked up the steps to the house, the door opened.

  Keren stood there, not smiling. “What do you want, Chief Goodman?”

  “I came to see Angelina.”

  “You’re always coming to see Angelina. What for this time?”

  “She’s not answering my phone calls or my texts.”

  “Maybe you should take a hint then. She’s not interested.”

  “Angelina and I are friends, Keren. Where is she? Why’s her car parked out front like that? I haven’t seen her do that before.”

  Keren rolled her eyes and shook her head. Her voice lowered a notch or two. “I don’t think I should be telling you anything. Angelina’s business is Angelina’s.”

  He refused to take her hint. “What’s that mean?”

  “It means what it means. I know you’re only trying to help, but Dr. Markley says we shouldn’t push her. She’ll heal on her own schedule. Trying to make her do more than she’s ready to do will only add stress, and she doesn’t need that.”

  “You think I add stress to her life?”

  “Yes. You got her involved with that kid, and then you made her go to that meeting last night when she was quite clearly not wanting to go. If you hadn’t shown up, she wouldn’t have gone.”

  “I was only trying to help her.”

  “Look, I know you’re just being nice but she doesn’t need that kind of stress.”

  “So where is she? I really need to talk to her. I’m not leaving until I make sure she’s OK.”

  She shook her head and moved aside.

  He walked inside.

  Keren motioned toward the stairs.

  He couldn’t help making
a comparison between this grand circular staircase and the simple stairs at Keren’s previous house.

  “She’s upstairs resting.”

  A woman walked down the steps. “I’m all done. And I was very quiet as you asked. I made sure I didn’t disturb her. See you next week.”

  “Thanks, Marta.” The woman left. Keren looked at him. “She’s the cleaner.”

  Angelina had told him she’d signed with a landscaping service and had hired Peter to take care of the house and the grounds since he’d lost his job. And now a housekeeper. So Keren and Peter got to live here for free and get paid. Perhaps they didn’t want to change the cushy life they’d come into.

  This is her family, Goodman. He hated being a suspicious cop at times. “So what’s going on? Why is Angelina here instead of her own apartment?”

  “She had a little episode last night so she stayed here. She was too afraid to go back to her apartment.”

  “Afraid of what?”

  “I really don’t think she’d want me telling you. But…Luther Marks. She was convinced that he was chasing her last night. That he was in the car with her. She was really freaking out.”

  “Is she OK now? What did Dr. Markley say?”

  “She wouldn’t let me call her. She’s been up in her room all day. I figured she’d come down when she was ready. She’d probably feel better after she got some sleep.”

  That’s what he’d thought, too. Until Carlos told him about the ghosts.

  “I’m going up to see her.” He started up the stairs and then turned back to Keren. “Unless that’s a problem?”

  She shrugged. “That’s fine. I know she trusts you. Hopefully, she won’t be mad at me for letting you in.” She walked past him and led the way. At the top of the steps, she pointed at a door. “That’s her room.”

  “Thanks.”

  “No problem. If she gets mad at me and kicks me out, I’ll come stay with you.” She laughed. “Just kidding. She wouldn’t do that. Angelina really has changed so much since…well, you know since that.” She walked down the steps.

  He knocked on the door.

  No answer. Was she sleeping? Maybe she was, but she might just be hiding out from the world. He opened the door. The room was empty. “Angelina. It’s Nate.”

  Nothing.

  He walked over to another door in the room and knocked, “Angelina, are you in there?”

  Nothing.

  “You’d better be decent because I’m coming in.” He opened the door to a lavish bathroom, complete with a separate shower and a spa-style tub. Empty. He walked back in the room and went to the windows. They were all locked. She hadn’t left that way. Feeling slightly silly, he checked under the bed, and then the closet, the largest one he’d ever seen. It was almost as large as his whole bedroom.

  No Angelina. He walked to the doorway and called down the steps. “Keren. She’s not here.”

  Keren ran up the steps. “What do you mean she’s not here? Of course, she is. Angelina. Angelina.” Keren repeated the action he’d just performed—except for looking under the bed. “I don’t understand. Where is she?”

  “When was the last time you saw her?”

  “Last night. She was so upset so I gave her something to calm her down, and then I helped her to bed. When she didn’t get up this morning, I just figured she was still asleep.”

  “But that was hours ago?”

  “I thought she was too embarrassed to come down and needed some time to get herself together. I didn’t want to bother her. I was trying to give her some space.”

  “And what? You thought she’d stay up here all day without anything to eat or drink?”

  She pointed outside the room. “I brought her up some breakfast. The tray’s right outside the door. I didn’t see a reason to bring up lunch since she hadn’t eaten breakfast yet. And it’s not like the room is tiny. It’s a suite of rooms, as you can see.”

  He bit his lip and counted to ten. There was logic in what Keren was saying. “Could she have gone back to her own apartment without you noticing?”

  “I suppose so. It’s a big house, and there’s more than one way out. And it’s not like she’s a prisoner. She’s even told me to stop hovering over her so much. That’s what I was trying to do. Give her some privacy.”

  “She didn’t answer when I was at the apartment a few minutes ago.” He thought of the ghosts Charlie had heard. Nate didn’t believe in ghosts, but he did believe in evil.

  26

  “Why are you doing this?” Angelina’s eyes were open. But it didn’t matter. She couldn’t see a thing. She was surrounded by complete darkness. How had this happened to her again?

  “I thought you might want to play a game with me.” The whispered response echoed around the room.

  This had to be a nightmare. Luther Marks was dead. Leslie had shot him. But her eyes were open. She wasn’t asleep. This was real. A sharp jab to the bottom of her foot proved that. She tried to move her foot away but couldn’t. It was tied to something. She was pretty sure it was a bedpost. Had she never left Luther’s basement?

  Maybe Nate rescuing her had been the dream—a fantasy. Could her mind have made that whole thing up? Dr. Markley, Charlie−Carlos, Rosie, and Fred wouldn’t be real either. She’d gone crazy and made up a bunch of people to keep her company. What was that called when one heard voices and had people inside their head? There was a name for it. And she was still a prisoner trapped in Luther’s basement, on top of her craziness.

  She screamed into the darkness. “Leave me alone.”

  “I want to play.” The whisper had moved. Now a sharp jab in her arm. A moment later one on her leg—the other side. “Don’t you like to play with me, Ange?”

  “My name is Angelina.” She yelled. Her grip on reality was slipping. If she lost it, she might never find herself again. She called out in the darkness. “God, help me.”

  “God can’t help you. Only I can.”

  Not true. God was real. The faith of a mustard seed. That’s all she needed. That’s it. Focus on God. I can do all things with Christ who strengthens me. One of the Bible verses from the group.

  The group had to be real. She hadn’t known that verse before the group. If the group was real, so was her rescue. And so was Nate, dear, sweet Nate. She remembered the warmth, the tenderness of Nate’s kiss—his promise.

  Nate was real.

  Charlie-Carlos was real.

  And if all that was real then Luther Marks was dead.

  And that meant someone else was doing this to her.

  “I want to play, Ange.”

  Another sharp jab and then the knife scraped down her left thigh. The sharp pain probably meant she was bleeding. Stay in reality. Don’t slip away. “Who are you? You are not Luther. He’s dead. Luther is dead.” She repeated it over and over, denying this person’s faking being Luther.

  Laughter, then the room was flooded with light.

  A man stood near her. He wore a hood and he had a knife in his hand. The one he’d been jabbing her with. Blood dripped on the blade. Her blood. “You’re right. Luther’s dead. I was just messing with you. I thought maybe you’d freak out and forget,” he still whispered.

  She’d been right. She was tied to a bed and still had her own clothes on from last night. Though his knife had obviously cut through the leg of her pants. She glared at him. “Who are you? What do you want? Why are you doing this to me?”

  “So many questions, but not to worry. I really don’t want much. Not much at all.” He held up a paper then whispered, “I just want you to sign this little paper, and then I’ll be on my merry way.”

  She must not have heard him correctly. Sign some paper? That didn’t make sense. “You were in my car last night, weren’t you?”

  He laughed. “Was I? Did you see me there, Ange? You told Luther he could have your money. I’m just holding you to your word. That’s all.” He waved the paper at her. “I get the money, and you get to live. I think it’s a good deal,
don’t you? Win-win.”

  Her gaze moved down from the paper to the hand that held it. And then she knew who the monster was.

  ~*~

  “I went to her apartment before I came here. She didn’t answer when I was there a few minutes ago,” Nate said as they walked outside.

  “Maybe she didn’t want to talk to you. I keep trying to tell you she’s not interested in you, but you won’t leave her alone. You keep pestering her.”

  Ignoring her statement, he pointed at her car. “Why is her car here?”

  “She was very upset last night. I already told you that.”

  “What upset her?”

  “She got very confused. Thought Luther was chasing her again. She was sure he was in her car with her.”

  “And you didn’t think that warranted a call to Dr. Markley.”

  “She told me not to. I was respecting her wishes.”

  “We need to check her apartment. See if she’s there.” His stomach clenched as he pictured what he might find there. This was his fault. He should have seen that the incident with Carlos had put her under too much stress. But she’d seemed fine. “What else did she say?”

  “She said Luther had been talking to her every night. Asking her to play his sick little games. I wanted her to talk to Dr. Markley about it, but she said it would go away soon. Just like yours did.” Her accusation was clear. Keren believed this was his fault.

  He stopped walking and stared at her. Those were the same words that Charlie’s ghosts had spoken. Someone was playing games with her mind. But who was it and what did they want?

  ~*~

  Angelina gasped as she saw the tip of the tattoo peeking out from his sleeve.

  “What’s wrong with you?”

  She knew who the man was. But if he knew she knew, he’d kill her. She quickly moved her gaze up to the masked face, not wanting him to know what she’d seen. She screamed at him. “I’m in pain. You hurt me, remember?”

  “Sorry. I didn’t want to hurt you, but I had to let you know I meant business.” He moved closer. “You do know that, right? This is not a game. It’s deadly serious. There’s no reason for you to have all that money. It’s not fair.”