Confidential

by Jack Parker

  I paced my room and looked out the window, seeing a police car parked not far from my house. I watched as the young woman shifted in her seat and it gave me comfort, knowing there was someone there. Soon it started getting light out; that, with a combination of exhaustion, finally put me to sleep.

  "Heidi." My mother's arm shook my shoulder. "Heidi!" I rolled over and grumbled, looking at my alarm clock. Great. Three hours of sleep. Love it. "Heidi get up, we have a meeting at the police station. They want to ask you more questions."

  "Can't they just come here?" I mumbled, cuddling closer to my pillow, only to have the covers thrown back by my mother.

  "You look awful. Are you getting sick?" I rolled over and stared at her.

  "I'm tired."

  "Your hair is a mess." She sat down next to me on my bed, and began brushing through it with her fingers. "When was the last time you got it deep conditioned? I'm going to call Theresa, what you need is a good trim, maybe some highlights."

  "I don't want highlights." I was barely awake and she was picking at my hair. I liked my hair. It was strawberry blonde. No one I knew had a color quite like it. It looked like some blonde variation of Strawberry Shortcake's. Mine was long, and naturally straight. But it held curls really well, so I didn't mind.

  She sighed. "Honey, you really need to get cleaned up. I will not let you walk out in public looking this way."

  "Mommmm." I sat up. "I literally just woke up. Will you give me twenty minutes?"

  "Fine. Be downstairs, we leave in an hour." She walked out of my room, heels clicking.

  "Ughhhhhhhhh," I let out, completely tired. I don't know how I dragged my ass out of bed. I kept my messy hair, and opened up my closet only to have my eyes glaze over at my wardrobe. It was a good thing I used to preplan outfits; I wandered over to a hanger and put on a pretty cream colored dress with ruffles and pale pink ballet flats. I was pale, having never really accomplished getting tan at all, but it worked with the outfit.

  When I walked downstairs, my mother smiled approvingly. "That's so much better dear."

  I didn't even bother to acknowledge it. I felt like the walking dead I was so exhausted.

  And it definitely showed. Once we were in a room with Detectives Kaiser and O'Connor, Joan Johnson, my parents, and myself, I was practically falling asleep, but Joan nudged me. I snapped my head back up only to see everyone staring at me expectantly.

  "Yes?" I asked, more rudely than I should have, but I needed sleep.

  Detective O'Connor got up and walked a little bit closer to me, resting his arm on the table. "Thank you for coming out again Heidi."

  "No problem." I yawned.

  "Before we ask you anymore questions, Detective Kaiser and I would like to know if you have any yourself."

  I looked over at Kaiser whose aging face looked ragged and overworked. I guess I wasn't the only one who had a rough night.

  "A couple." I looked over at my dad, who was staring at me expectedly. "Do you have any idea why they were in our house?"

  "Actually, we do. We have recently discovered a likely motive, and thanks to your information, wrapped up some details that there were mere speculation."

  "Ah," I said, "I see. And um, what might this grand discovery be? Does this mean that there is no chance that I would have to leave?"

  "Unfortunately, it must remain confidential. And not necessarily, in fact, your testimony is part of the foundation of this case. It's crucial, and you need to be protected."

  "Wait-" my mom cut in. Oh Jesus. "My daughter has to go into hiding?"

  We all stared at her. There was no mistaking the excitement her voice held. She sounded…eager. Great.

  "No. I'm not going. I refuse to go." I turned to my dad. "You promised me I could finish high school. Here. In Phoenix."

  "Honey." My mom inched closer to me, lowering her voice to a whisper. "It won't be too long, I bet it won't be that bad. Plus, you're needed."

  I rolled my eyes, while my dad actually acted like a parent should and started asking questions. "Is this really that dangerous? First it was just a mugging, then it was a decoy. What exactly is going on? And shouldn't you be having someone protecting my daughter at all times if someone tries to harm her again?"

  I felt my heart swell a little. Aw. Daddy.

  "There is only so much we can tell you," Kaiser stated. "The less that you know the better. Clearly." He pointedly stared at my mother.

  "This meeting is more a briefing than anything else, and since Heidi is seventeen, she is old enough to decide whether or not she wants these answers explained. However, if the time comes when she needs to go somewhere safer for a couple days, we can get a court order from the judge, if necessary," Detective O'Connor explained.

  "Without our consent?" My dad frowned.

  "It's for her own safety, I'm sure you would have consented," O'Connor assured, continuing to stare at me. "Now, Heidi, the information you know." He turned to look at everyone else. "And anything the rest of you know, must remain a complete secret. No one should know anything. If any information, any at all, leaks out, it could jeopardize our entire investigation and you will be held in contempt of court."

  At this point, both detectives stared at us with hard eyes, and I felt like an elementary student in the principal's office over a cheating scandal.

  "Is that understood?" Kaiser said stone cold.

  I nodded, and everyone acknowledged their understanding.

  "Great," Detective O'Connor said, his attitude changing immediately to a more cheerful tone. "Now, I know how hard it is for Heidi to speak about some of these things and it's important to just tie up some loose ends. I think my partner and I would appreciate some one-on-one time with her."

  He gave them a flash of his pearly whites, and I could see my mother and Joan staring into is blue-green eyes, glazing over his Patrick Dempsey hair and nodding dumbly. My father just patted my hand. "Would it make you more comfortable if we left?"

  I nodded and gave him a little smile. My parents got up to leave and Detective O'Connor/Dr. Dreamy look-alike turned his attention to Joan Johnson. "A lawyer won't be needed. Don't worry; we'll call you in if it gets to a questioning point." And she was ushered out the door.

  As soon as it shut the entire atmosphere in the room changed.

  "I know you're only seventeen," Detective O'Connor began, "but it's important to us," Kaiser smirked at that, stating his thoughts on the matter, "that you know a little bit about what you're getting into."

  "These are very dangerous people," Kaiser spoke up. "They're not your typical drug dealers or crime bosses. There's a huge shipment coming in and they're under a lot of stress, which explains why they were so sloppy when it came to keeping you alive."

  Ever the charmer, that one.

  "Why were they in my parents' bathroom? How did they get into my house?" I wanted to know if I was safe in my home.

  "They broke in and were looking through some of your dad's files."

  "My dad?" I asked shocked. "What on earth would they want with my dad?"

  "There is a lot at stake here for them. We believe that they have a large shipment coming in from Mexico, but due to the recent increase of security at the border, the trucks are being searched, thoroughly." Kaiser looked at me.

  "Where you aware that a bank was recently broken into?"

  I thought back. I didn't really watch the news "Oh! My school went into lockdown that day. Yeah I remember, it was the same day I was attacked." My mind started to wander but Kaiser brought me back.

  "They are unable to access their accounts, which were frozen when they skipped out on bail. They took large sums of money, that with the collection Mickey is believed to have, the deal is worth over fifty million dollars."

  "Fifty million dollars? Of what?" I asked in disbelief.

  "Crystal Meth. Our sources let us know they have tampered with the drug and modified it, but it needs to be kept at a certain temperature. Coincidentally, so do photovoltaic panels
that will be shipped from Mexico to Arizona as part of the new solar plant being built."

  "I'm still… confused. Why where they interested in my dad?"

  Kaiser looked at me like I was stupid. "There are several solar companies in Arizona, and more fighting to move here. In order to ensure the success of the shipment of the photovoltaic panels, in which the meth is hidden in the containers of monocrystalline silicon-"

  "Mono what?" I asked.

  "It's part of the solar panel," O'Connor explained.

  "That has to be kept at the certain temperature?" I guessed.

  "Exactly." He smiled, while Kaiser let out frustrated breath.

  "They broke into your home, to make sure your father was supporting the company. If he was, then it was almost guaranteed to be a success. You're lucky he had already approved it and could stay in the dark. I wouldn't have put it past them to take you as blackmail."

  "Anyway," O'Connor cleared his throat, "it is important that you keep this completely confidential. We are letting you know the basics of this case so that you can see the severity of it. We will do everything in our power to keep you safe, but this is a two-way street here. You can't do the same things you normally would. People could be after you, although we've done a good job at keeping this a secret." Detective O'Connor took a sip from his coffee mug. "As far as Mickey knows, your assault has been pinned on their fall-back guy."

  "So what do I do now?" I asked, a little frustrated. Was I just supposed to wait there with my fingers crossed hoping that a bunch of angry criminals don't find out that I was the reason they were going to be put behind bars?

  "Lay low." Kaiser shrugged. "We'll give you both of our direct numbers, please call if you have an emergency or see anything suspicious. Or even if you get a funny feeling about someone, you can never be too careful."

  I nodded, feeling even more exhausted.

  "Also," O'Connor put in, "our officer who was outside of your house told us that you were up quite late last night."

  I made a face, they both looked at me. Detective O'Connor spoke up, "It's very common for victims to feel scared of being alone, or being in the dark, it's part of the fear of the unknown. It becomes escalated-"

  "Please," I interrupted, a little embarrassed that he had even guessed, "I just couldn't sleep."

  "I will actually be suggesting a counselor to your parents; I think it's a good idea."

  I shook my head. "I'm fine, really. Thank you for your concern, but the last thing you should do is put the idea into my parents' heads that I've gone crazy."

  Detective Kaiser frowned. "It doesn't mean you're crazy, it means you're dealing with trauma."

  "I really don't feel comfortable talking about this," I said in the most stern, bitchy voice I could muster.

  Kaiser shrugged, giving Detective O' Connor a look, "You're free to go, please send your parents our regards." Kaiser motioned towards the door, and I hightailed it out of there, throwing open the door, only to face my parents and our lawyer looking at me oddly.

  "Can we go home?" I wanted to sleep. I went and sat in between my parents, resting my head on my mom's shoulders. I didn't think I could handle this. It was too much.

  My alarm woke me early in the morning, my mom forced me to her hot yoga class, insisting that I get back into a routine, because I would be going back to school later that day.

  When I got home , I shuffled into my room and stared at myself in the mirror, sighing, I put my hair up into a ponytail, not really sure what to do with it. I slipped on some clothes and stumbled downstairs.

  "Heidi…" I turned to face my mother.

  "Hmmm?" I mumbled walking past her and pouring myself a bowl of cereal.

  "Didn't you wear that a couple days ago?" She frowned, her voice sounded puzzled.

  I looked down at my clothes. I just wore a flowy top and a jean skirt. "Maybe… I don't know. Did I?"

  My mom looked at me funny. "Well, Heidi, why would you wear that again?"

  I grabbed my keys and dumped the rest of my Captain Crunch down the drain. "I'll be home later." I ignored her, and walked out the door, shaking my head. Things were different now, I could feel it.

  The things I used to care about seemed trivial. I would listen to my friends talk about Andrew Donohue, or make plans to go to the mall, and it just didn't seem important anymore. It didn't have the same value it once did. It wasn't even interesting. It was even a struggle to hang out with them, hearing them drone on about things that just weren't… worth it.

  "Heidi?" Emma said, pulling me from my thoughts.

  "Yeah?" I asked.

  "Um… I don't want to freak you out or anything, because I know you just went through some weird stuff, but that guy is really giving me the creeps."

  I whipped my head up from my lunch. "What guy?" I practically shouted, my voice hitting higher octaves than normal.

  People had been staring at me all day. The bruises had yet to fade completely from my face, and no amount of make-up could hide the cuts and bruises that ended up randomly on my arms and legs.

  "People have been staring, but this one is different. He's a total weirdo."

  Lauren turned around. "That one? The fat one with the greasy hair?"

  Katie smacked her arm. "Be nice."

  "About some creep staring at us? I don't think so," she joked.

  But I didn't think it was very funny. He was by himself and I had never seen him before. Our school was a public school, not heavily guarded. I guess someone could walk in there; it wasn't that hard. We all carried our school ID's on lanyards and he definitely didn't have one.

  He hovered close to our table, leaning against a wall. The cafeteria was so busy that I was surprised Emma had even noticed him. I took out my cell phone and stood up, already dialing Detective O'Connor.

  "Where are you going?" Katie asked.

  "I gotta ask my mom to get me something, I'll be right back." I put the phone to my ear and walked outside, my heart started racing when the guy followed me moments after.

  "Hello?" I heard the detective's familiar voice.

  "Hi," I said, my breathing starting to become shaky and rapid as I quickened my pace. "It's Heidi Van Dauson. And there is definitely someone at my school that is not a student and is following me."

  There was a slight pause before his calm commanding voice informed me, "We're on our way now. I need you to make sure you stay in a crowded place, do not go off on your own, or into a classroom, you don't want to get caught somewhere."

  I tried to keep my composure as much as possible; despite the fact that I was doing everything he had just said I shouldn't do. I looked back and the guy wasn't there anymore. "That's weird; I thought he was behind me a second ago." As I turned back around, he was right in front of me and I screamed in surprise. While he lunged at me, I smacked him as hard as I could. He stood there, a little shocked, but I took my chance and sprinted back towards the cafeteria with him at my heels. He reached me first, grabbed my shirt and spun me around.

  "I have a message for you," he whispered close to my face, his breath smelled disgusting. "They have connections everywhere. And if you even think about saying a word, we'll find you, your friends, your family; we'll make sure they all regret your… choice," he said the last word with a grin and shoved me back into the loud, noisy cafeteria.

  I watched him walk away and my hands shook violently as I answered my vibrating cell phone. "H-hello?"

  "Heidi?" the detective's worried voice over the phone was kind of comforting.

  "I'm okay. He didn't hurt me."

  "We are going to come and get you. Phoenix isn't safe for you anymore." And with that, he hung up the phone.

  Chapter 5

  I stood frozen in place while people walked by me, chatting, laughing, and yelling. My life used to be wonderful. What had happened? I couldn't sleep at night. I couldn't be alone. I couldn't even go to school, the only normal thing I had left. What had happened? I didn't know how long I stood there,
but eventually Detective Kaiser and O'Connor walked up to me.

  "You need to come with me right now; we will take care of everything with your school," Kaiser said, pulling me lightly forward.

  I nodded numbly, feeling like those two men were the only people that I could trust. "Why do they do this?" I asked my voice breaking a little; fat tears falling silently down my face.

  "You can destroy them. They're scared of you."

  I scoffed. "No." I shook my head. "No they're not. The only the reason they haven't killed me… is because they don't know I'm helping you." My lip started trembling. "I really, really don't want to die," I said in a small voice.

  "We're not going to let that happen," Detective O'Connor assured me. "We have someone arranging a place for you to go right now. We will take care of everything. All we need you to do is to stay safe."

  I found myself at the police station, with the two detectives explaining to me what was going to happen to my life.

  "It's going to completely change," Detective Kaiser said. Thanks…don't try to sugar coat it or anything.

  Detective O'Connor shot him a look, apparently thinking the same thing. "Your first name will stay the same, but we have given you the last name Risler, since you are Swiss. We don't want to make any change too drastic, just in case you need to talk about your background."

  "How did you know I was Swiss?" I asked, a little surprised.

  "Ah… your file" He tapped a folder. I didn't know how he found out all of that info and I wasn't sure I wanted to know.

  "We have decided to move you to Franklin, Iowa, and while we continue our investigation here, we will have someone stationed there to watch over you, an agent of ours." He pulled out a sheet. "So your story is, because it is nearing the end of fall, which is an odd time to move, your parents are going on a sabbatical, and want you to visit your aunt, a women named Anna Michaels, who you will be staying with."