by S J Sargent
Usually a night owl that watched TV into the odd hours of the morning, this day had drained her energy. The snow-that-now-turned-to-rain created a peaceful metronome on her window. Christine was conked out just minutes into the first episode of her anticipated binge-watching session. Soon enough, she was snoring.
And just like that, Christine’s chaotic and emotional Saturday came to a peaceful end.
But only for a few minutes.
Bang. Bang. Bang.
Christine shot up. The loudest knock her door had ever felt. The sudden wave of noise caused her heartbeat to shoot off the charts. Had she just dreamed that? She dared not move to find out. If she stayed still, maybe it would go away. The only light in the room was from the TV screen, that read “Are you still watching?” She checked her phone. 10:10.
Bang. Bang. Bang.
Even louder. Yep. Definitely not a dream. She immediately dialed 9-1-1, her finger resting above the send button but waited. She didn’t want to be another one of the crazies calling the cops for no reason right now.
“Who is it?” she yelled.
No response. Of course.
“I’m calling the cops!”
Nothing.
Her heart raced. She closed out her phone app and texted Peter. “Are you still up?”
She stared at her phone, waiting for a reply. Terrified to move. Hoping Peter would reply. The typing icon appeared. Just as she was about to call him, a huge bang came from the door. So loud that Christine thought it was a gunshot. She jumped on the ground, covering her head. Hiding in front of the couch, she dialed 9-1-1 and pressed send this time.
“9-1-1. What is your emergency?”
“This is Christine Brandt. I live at 504 West Center Street. There is someone banging on my-”
Christine stopped herself when she peeked around the couch. The bang wasn’t a gunshot. It was the door’s lock being kicked off the hinge. And now her door was flung open wide. The ugly hallway light poured into the room, outlining the silhouette of a person standing completely still in her door. But completely dark, too. All she could see from the backlight was the outline.
“...please...send someone!” she screamed into her phone. “He’s in my apartment! He’s in my apartment!”
The figure was motionless. Christine cried into the phone. “What do you want?!? Someone help me! He’s in my apartment!” She just laid on the floor in front of the couch, shouting into her phone. “Get out! The cops are on their way! They are on their way!”
The still figure stayed just like that. Completely still in the doorway. Christine tried to get up and run but was paralyzed. All she could do was clutch her phone and yell into it.
“Help me! He’s here! He’s coming for me!”
But then she stopped herself, knowing there was no way that this slow-paced police department would be there in time anyway. It was too late. She was the next victim. Her paranoia had proven to be true.
Her cries would do nothing at this point.
The police had arrested the wrong subject.
15
Business Is Booming
Sunday, December 19 – 9:40 A.M.
Ah, Sunday morning.
Windows down. An old Incubus album playing through the twelve-year-old speakers. And Peter cruising to his favorite shift of the week. It was the only slot that he worked alone, so the introvert in him loved it. He was in no rush that morning, stopping by Better Brew and picking up his chai latte. Since Billy and Leslie also owned the coffee shop, Movie Madness employees got half off as a little perk.
Entering Movie Madness a little bit later than usual, he downed his last sip and tossed the cup in the trash. Picking up the inventory clipboard, he saw a big orange sticky note left for him from Christine the night before.
Please double check this time. Lol! xoxo –c
Peter smiled, folding up the note and putting it into his pocket. It didn’t take much for him to blush. Especially considering Christine was the closest he’d ever had to a girlfriend. And with the way things had been progressing with them over the last few weeks, he was on the verge of trying to make it official.
Peter had already talked to Leslie to see if she would be comfortable with two employees dating. His father had always taught him to follow the rules.
“You are good boy,” his dad yelled in his thick, Iranian accent. “Why would you go find movie store job when you could work for my dealership? I’ll start you as manager. You are just being foolish now.”
And that’s exactly why Peter didn’t want to work for his dad. He wanted to build a life on his own, apart from his dad’s empire of luxury automotive dealerships scattered throughout the state. Being in the last year of his MBA program, he was ready to find a real career. His own career. One that was far away from cars.
Losing track of time as his mind wandered, Peter checked the store clock. 10:04. Time to open up. He walked to the front of the store, surprised to find a few customers waiting outside in the chilly Sunday morning air.
“Hey. Good morning! Sorry, we’re opening a few minutes late. Come on in…”
“I was wondering if you would be open at all.” the old lady barked. Her only gear was complaining. “Half this town is still shut down with the curfew and all. The last time Pecos went this crazy was the blizzard that knocked out power for a week back in 2003. I’ll tell you, they went nuts.”
Peter tucked his hands in his pockets. “Well…hopefully the curfew gets lifted today. You heard the news about them finding the suspect, right?”
The lady smirked at him as she walked past him toward the classics section. “Yeah. Still doesn’t give me any trust in this police department. These guys couldn’t find my shoes if they were on my feet!” She wandered off with her grouchy attitude.
Peter smiled, glad to see things start to get back to normal. Two customers waited at the register for him. He checked them out quickly, skipping over the sales pitch for the pre-viewed movies. Checking the sales reports the day before, Peter realized he was the only one who hadn’t sold a single one. So just two days in, he was calling it quits and pulling his name out of the competition. As if he ever had a chance in the first place. Selling was not his forte.
Looking up at the empty counter, Peter pulled out his phone to shoot Christine a text. “Nice note. I made sure to check it twice. Just like Santa. Lol!” Peter reread it, then deleted it. He tried again. “Good morning! Thanks for reminding me about the inventory. All is good.”
Text sent.
Peter kept the text thread open, wondering if he would see her type back. She was usually pretty quick to respond. After a minute of gazing at a lifeless text thread, he put his phone back into his pocket. Looking up, he saw two more customers that had sneaked in and were ready to check out while he was zoned into his phone.
The first customer was too old to be renting Anime, but Peter tried not to judge. The guy - probably in his forties - didn’t make eye contact. He knew he wasn’t the target audience. He didn’t care. Neither did Peter.
The second of the two was Jonathan from two doors down. “Hey, Pete,” Jonathan said with his all-American smile. “Man, look whose business is booming!”
“I know, man! People are emerging from the snow hibernation I guess,” Peter said as he picked up Jonathan’s selections. The Hangover and The Proposal. “Diverse selections here, huh?”
“One for me. One for the lady.”
“Oh, yeah. What’s her name?”
“Not sure yet.” Jonathan smiled. “It’s just a matter of finding her at Walt’s tonight. I plan ahead.” Walt’s was a local bar on the other side of town. Peter had been once. All he remembers was the sound his shoes made when they lifted off the sticky floors.
“You have a $3.90 late fee,” Peter said. “But I’ll waive it if you buy any of the previously viewed five-dollar movies. We’re trying to get rid of them.”
Jonathan looked at him. “Seriously?”
Peter shrugged and wiped away th
e late fee anyway. “Are you open today?”
“Not usually on Sundays. But on a week like this, absolutely. I’ve had new customers coming in like crazy. It’s been amazing. That’s what tragedy does for my clients.”
Peter stopped and stared at him. “Really?”
“Insurance plays by its own rules, friend.” Jonathan nodded and walked back out toward his store.
Peter looked down at his phone. Still no response. He pulled up a group text thread with Christine, Molly, Alex, and Ken. He was halfway through typing a text before he remembered to delete Ken.
“Hey, guys! Who’s coming in today? Any of you? I know Ken is off the schedule for now.”
A few minutes later, Alex texted back. “I’m not back on until Monday, but I can come in if needed.”
Then Molly. “I’m coming in from 4-8. Who is there now?”
Peter responded. “Just me.” He
raced back to the break room to look at the schedule Christine had made earlier that week. Ken’s name was scratched out with a thick sharpie. Sunday: Peter 10-4. Christine 12-10. Molly 4-10. With a note on the side written by Christine: Closing shifts go until 8 p.m. until curfew is over.
Peter checked his watch. 11:53. So he had some relief staff coming soon. His favorite relief staff. He went back to the front of the store and waited, ready to have an official conversation with Christine. One of those conversations to define their future together. He’d thought through everything he wanted to say. He even jotted it down in his notebook the night before. Now he was
excited to see Christine soon and define the future of their relationship together. He clutched his notebook and watched the clock.
“Any minute now...” He said.
16
Short-Staffed
Sunday, December 19 – 3:15 P.M.
Peter checked his watch again. 3:15. Then his text thread with Christine. Six straight texts from him, dating back to last night. The first was from the night before in response to Christine’s text sent out of terror. The most recent sent just twenty minutes ago.
Yes, I’m up. You? (Sat. at 10:28 pm)
Lol. I guess you must be up if you texted me. (10:31)
Christine? I guess you fell asleep. (10:48)
Good morning! Thanks for reminding me about the inventory. All is good. (Sun. at 10:09 am)
You still coming in? (1:02 pm)
Christine. What’s up? Please respond. (2:25 pm)
Peter clutched his phone in his hand, barely able to focus on anything else. With each minute that passed, his mind went to a darker place. What if she got in a wreck in the middle of nowhere? Would anyone know? He had to do something. So he did all he could think to do. Call Alex.
Alex answered on the third ring. “Hey, bro.”
“Alex. Can you do me a favor?”
“What’s up? You okay?”
“I don’t know.” Peter rubbed his neck as he paced behind the registers with wobbly legs. “Christine was supposed to come in a few hours ago and she’s a no show. Which is not like her. I haven’t heard from her since last night.”
“…last night?” Alex questioned. Peter didn’t know what to say. “Oh. That’s right. You closed together.” Peter let out a silent sigh of relief.
“Yeah…” Peter said. “I’ve texted her a bunch and she hasn’t responded. I’m just…a little worried. I mean…” Peter stopped for a second. “I mean, I know…they got…the guy…but…” Peter stopped again. “I’m just freaked out, man.”
“I gotcha,” Alex reassured him. “What do you want me to do? Check on her? I don’t know where she lives.”
“I do.” Peter stopped himself again. He really needed to be more careful with his words. “Um…I can look it up, I mean.” Alex agreed and Peter gave him the address, then hung up. Thankfully, there was another mini rush that kept his mind preoccupied for the next twenty minutes. Every chance he got, he looked down at his phone.
“She didn’t answer.” Alex texted. Then he called.
Peter answered on the first ring as he checked out another customer. “Hey, man.” The customer was noticeably annoyed, but Peter didn’t care at this point.
“No answer, man. I knocked like four times. Even asked the neighbors.” Alex paused for a second. “But Pete. Her car. It’s still here…” There was silence on both sides of the phone for a few moments.
“I think we need to call the cops,” Peter said, loud enough for the whole line to hear him. His face turned white. They stared back in horror. One of the customers clutched her daughter’s arm and they headed right for the exit. Peter put his hand over the receiver.
“Everything is okay here, folks.” Then he whispered back on the phone. “How quickly can you be here, Alex?”
“Seven minutes. I’m on my way.”
Peter worked through the rest of the line, refusing eye contact with each of them. But that didn’t stop them from glaring. The last customer left, and the store was empty for the first time in an hour. Alex came in shortly after.
“Hey, man. What do we do?”
Peter shook his head. “I’m scared. I’m just…I don’t know…” Tears started to come down Peter’s face, which took Alex back a bit. He didn’t think anyone would cry over Christine.
Was that too cold of a thought for him to have?
“It’s okay. I’m sure she’s fine.” Alex wasn’t sure though. “Her phone’s probably just dead. That’s happened to me a ton of times in the past.”
“That’s not like her,” Peter argued. “She’s too…organized for that to happen.”
“Okay. Then we cut to the chase. Let’s calls the cops.”
“The cops?
Both guys stopped when they realized a third person had joined their conversation. Molly, standing in her Movie Madness shirt and ready for her shift. She stepped back and looked outside the door.
“Alex.” She whispered. “Why are you calling the cops?”
17
Look Who’s Back
Sunday, December 19 – 5:52 P.M.
Detective Bolin finished writing down everything they said and closed up his notebook. The snow had turned to rain again over the past few hours, which had caused the customer rush to die down. Now with it being nearly six, Peter was exhausted.
“Okay. I’m going to go over to her apartment and see what I can find,” he said. “At this rate, we have to take any situation seriously. Especially if it’s involving another missing person. I’ll keep you in the loop.” Bolin promptly made his way for the door, wasting no time.
“Detective.” Alex looked anxious. Or maybe it was eager. “Are you going to release the name of the suspect tonight? Is that the plan?”
Bolin paused, putting his hands on his hips. “I was. We have the guy. He gave a confession last night. And there’s evidence that ties him to it.” He paused, kicking a scuff mark on the ground. “But if we really do have another missing person story developing, I’m not releasing anything yet.” He paused for a moment, debating if he should try to say something more hopeful. “We’ll be in touch.” Bolin saluted and exited.
Peter turned to the others. “We’re closing the store for the night. We have to.”
“Don’t we need to get permission to do that?” Molly asked.
“Yes. From the store manager.” Peter crossed his arms. A rare tense tone from him. He went over to the ‘open’ sign and flipped it around. Then locked the door.
“Yeah. I think that’s a good call.” Alex agreed. “There’s no one in here anyway. A few hours early, under these circumstances, is the best idea.” He looked over at Molly to offer some reassurance. “To be honest, we shouldn’t open back up until they find Christine. Right?”
Molly disregarded his notion. “I’m not going home right now. The thought of being alone…” She looked down. “I’d rather be here. Around other people.”
“I would too.” Peter clarified. “I just…don’t think we need to have people coming in and out of the store rig
ht now…” Peter stopped. A cold quiet sat between the three of them. They were all thinking the same thing as they stared out the window, but no one was bold enough to verbalize it.
The customers. How well do they know any of them? How were they to know who was really walking in the doors?
On the one hand, it was comforting to know that the suspect had been caught. That the town was safe again. That the lunatic was in custody.
But on the other hand…was he?
“Here’s what we’re going to do.” Alex took charge. “We’re gonna get some food and stay here together until Bolin gives us the word that it’s okay to go home after he checks things out at Christine’s place. He can get a warrant to go into her apartment. She’s probably just sleeping or left her phone at home or…I don’t know. Maybe she’s sick. There’s a ton of possibilities. And I just don’t want us to panic. Like he said, they have the suspect. It’s not like there are two different susp…”
Alex trailed off. He’d said too much. Molly’s eyes got big. He tried to shift, but the idea had been planted.
“Bruno’s for dinner?” Alex smiled. Fake, of course.
Peter nodded.
A few minutes later, they were sitting among a sparse crowd at the restaurant next door. They tried to talk about anything other than…everything. Molly challenged them to guess which movies had been rented out the most in the past month and which of the regular customers had the highest late fee. When she was bored, she always looked up those kinds of stats. Sometimes, she played the game with herself.
“Alright. I have a question for both of you,” Peter said as he sipped his wine. He was the only one at the table that could legally drink, and it was apparent from their gazes that Alex and Molly were a bit jealous of that fact. “What would you guys do if Movie Madness closed? I mean, for a job. Where would you look first? If you could go anywhere.”