by Gina LaManna
Tearing out a blank sheet, I plopped on the bed and began to write. I wrote, and I wrote, and I wrote, and I never once lifted up my pen until I’d detailed every ounce of information I’d learned about this case from the second I’d learned about the girls’ disappearance to my looming deadline this evening.
I copied, word for word, as much as I could remember from Adriana’s testimony, including my theory about The Fish setting her up with a nursing job at Bessie’s in order to pin the blame on her. Should things go south, I wanted a written record leading straight to The Fish. I wrote down the information I’d learned from my father, and I included any addresses and phone numbers that might be relevant. Finally, I copied the message – word for word, letter for letter, stroke for stroke – from the note The Fish had left for me.
I’d decided to play along with The Fish’s games and show up alone tonight, but that didn’t mean I had a death wish. In fact, I wanted to live more than ever. I wanted to get the girls back and put this man behind bars – for good. If I had thought The Fish was a reasonable person, I would’ve talked to Anthony and Carlos immediately about the note and figured out a plan that wouldn’t end with me at that meeting alone. But that’s the thing: The Fish wasn’t reasonable, and no matter how many times I circled around the idea, I always came back to the same truth. The Fish would hurt Marissa if I didn’t cooperate, and I couldn’t live with myself if that happened.
I wanted more than anything to get out of this mess alive. I wanted to see Marissa and her mother re-united. I wanted to see Meg and Clay develop their quirky, awkward, and somehow sweet relationship in their own unique way. I wanted to live with Anthony, to do my laundry at his house and not worry about stocking up on cotton underwear that were labeled with the days of the week just so I could pack my purse accordingly.
Because of all those reasons, I wanted help. But The Fish had requested me to show up alone.
I’d show up alone, alright. But I planned to have an army right behind me.
CHAPTER 42
“Bye,” I hollered to Meg and Clay at seven-thirty on the dot. “I’m headed out.”
Whether it was luck or fate, the two of them hadn’t once knocked on my bedroom door the entire time I’d been inside. While I’d been detailing every inch of my knowledge about The Fish in that little diary, they’d kept up an animated conversation in the living room. Discussing what, I had no clue – I’d been too distracted planning out my own escape to eavesdrop.
However, sometime over the past hour or so, the apartment had gone completely quiet. Suspiciously silent. I hadn’t noticed until now that all signs of my cousin and Meg had completely vanished.
“Meg?” I knocked on my cousin’s door, which was closed now, though it’d been open earlier. “Clay? I’m heading out, okay?”
I should have just slipped out the front door. That’s what I’d been hoping for, after all. But something about heading straight into a meeting with the most dangerous man I knew had me wanting to say goodbye…to someone.
“Alright, I’ll leave you two cats be,” I called back, humming All By Myself on repeat. When they didn’t answer, my shoulders fell a little bit, and I whispered goodbye to an empty apartment.
I locked up, which was probably an unnecessary gesture seeing how this door hadn’t kept anyone out who wanted to get in for the past three years. Except maybe me, on the occasion I’d forget my keys in the car. Still, I fumbled the key in the door, unwilling to admit aloud that I wanted to say goodbye to someone. Anyone, really. Somebody who would know I was missing if I didn’t come back.
Luck was not with me today, so instead of saying goodbye, I continued serenading my own ears. All by myself…
By the time I reached the trusty Lumina, parked just behind Clay’s creep van, I’d given up singing and was thinking more about the meeting ahead. I took a second to glance at the big white beast taking up all of the curb space in front of the fire hydrant. The dent in the back of his van was slightly less noticeable, as if he’d started to fix it but hadn’t had time to finish the job.
Sliding into my own car, I ran over the plan in my head. It was a simple one, but it was the best I could do with limited time and resources. My heart pounded as I sat in the driver’s seat and took a second to collect my nerves.
Back in my room, I’d left all of my detailed notes in a file. The file sat on top of my desk in plain sight, marked with Anthony’s name on the front and organized in an easy to read format. He’d be able to inhale the information in three seconds flat as soon as he found it; which, if all went according to plan, would be at the exact moment I was pulling up to meet with The Fish.
The plan was to phone Anthony when I was halfway to the Stone Arch Bridge and instruct him to show up at my apartment. If I told him about the meeting on the phone, he’d come straight to the rendezvous point, and I couldn’t risk The Fish believing that I’d brought company. By directing him to my apartment, that’d stall him for the right amount of time, provide him all the information he needed, and give me enough time to make the swap: me for Marissa and Clarissa.
By the time Marissa was free, Anthony would be there to bring her to safety. And hopefully, I’d be able to find a way to wiggle out of The Fish’s grasp again. Since I didn’t know what he wanted, it was hard to predict what his next move would be. If nothing else, Anthony would be hot on his tail, and I trusted my boyfriend to keep me alive.
There was another piece of good news that I didn’t discount. The nature of Clay’s job denoted that he’d installed all shapes, sizes, and colors of tracking devices in my car, probably in my purse, and who knows where else. As long as I kept my phone on me and drove my car, he or Anthony could find me. They could track my signal to the bridge, and from there, Anthony would know what to do. Part of me wanted to call him this very second and explain everything, but he’d never agree to let me go alone. So for now, radio silence was the key.
I looked in the mirror, trying to decide if I looked like a valuable ransom, if I’d be considered a worthy trade for Marissa and Clarissa. Blinking, I wished I’d put on a little bit of mascara, but then I immediately threw away the idea. Mascara wouldn’t help me if I was dead. I smacked my lips together, still wishing that either Clay or Meg had been around to say goodbye. Leaving without a goodbye made things feel unfinished, even if I hadn’t technically left yet, since my car was still parked at the curb.
The ringing of a phone cut the fluffing of my eyelashes short. I frowned, glancing at the blocked number. “Hello?”
“Leave everything in your car.”
“Who is this?” My heart sank and my blood froze at the sound of the voice. “Why are you calling me?”
“You’re going to follow my directions,” The Fish said, his voice as smooth and silky as I’d remembered. “You’ve done good. I’ve been monitoring your phone. If you’d called that man of yours, or your grandfather; if you’d so much as whispered a word to your cousin, I would’ve known. It was smart of you to remind Adriana, sweet Adriana, to keep quiet about the whole matter. It’s important you follow my rules. So far, so good, Lacey. Don’t test me.”
I swallowed.
“In case you’re wondering…if you hadn’t warned Adriana to keep quiet, I would have had to quiet her myself, and that’s a lot messier,” he said. “I don’t like messy. So, nice work; you’ve saved one life today, now let’s see if you can make it two more.”
“What do you want with me?”
“One step at a time…sugar.”
He’d been watching. He must have been watching, listening, and snooping. The invasion of my personal boundaries sent shivers through my already icy veins.
“You don’t like that, do you?” The Fish murmured softly. “If I remember right, you didn’t have manners the last time we talked, so I figured I didn’t need manners, either. You don’t mind me watching, do you? That really looked like a fun cooking class today; it’s a shame I couldn’t join. Though if that grandmother of yours has any l
eftovers, I could use a little snack.”
“Where are Marissa and Clarissa?”
“With me. They’re safe. And they’ll be released once you join me here this evening, I promise you. If nothing else, I’m a man of my word.” He paused, the beat of silence growing longer, more tense with each breath. “On the same note, I give you my word that you – and your loved ones – will be sorry if you don’t cooperate.”
“What do you want from me?”
“Leave everything in your car. This phone, your purse, your mascara, everything.”
“But I won’t have transportation to the Stone Arch Bridge. You asked me to meet you there,” I reminded him, feeling helpless at the higher tone of my voice. “I was planning to come meet you.”
“I’ve prepared a ride for you. That pervert van in front of you, the one that has convicted ice cream man practically stamped on the side, is yours for now. You’ll find keys in the front seat.”
“That’s my cousin’s van,” I said. “How did you get the keys? Why does everyone have Clay’s keys?”
“Everyone?”
“Never mind,” I mumbled. “But what if…” I was about to warn The Fish that the van had more GPS and tracking devices than a satellite headed to Mars, but at the last minute, I bit my tongue. Clay had so many alarms on his baby that surely one of them would be able to track my movements.
“Don’t worry, I’ve disabled all GPS tracking and jammed the wireless signals,” The Fish said. “None of your lovely cousin’s special inventions are working.”
My blood slowly melted, turning more to a boiling temperature. “Stop talking about my family.”
He laughed. “I feel like I know you all so well after these past few months.”
“You’re a…turd,” I said. I couldn’t think of anything better, not while I was trying to figure out how to keep my phone on me while climbing out of the car. I had no way of knowing if he had people nearby watching me, or if he was already in Minneapolis awaiting my arrival.
“Leave the phone.” His voice was devoid of any previous laughter this time. “I asked you to listen carefully. This isn’t listening carefully.”
I looked around, up and down the street, but I couldn’t see anyone. That’s not to say someone hadn’t set up shop inside one of the nearby apartments, or even behind one of the trees lining the shaded street. I weighed the pros and cons of trying to be sneaky, eventually settling on not. I held out hope that Clay would be able to track me with the van. The biggest problem now was how to get ahold of Anthony without The Fish hearing…
“Fine,” I said. “I’m hanging up and leaving my phone here. I’ll be in the van in a minute. How do you want me to let you know I’m coming without a phone?”
“I’ll call you in one hundred and twenty seconds. I’ll know if you dial anyone else for help, so forget about it. I’ve left you a new phone in the van, which you’d better answer.”
I hung up as soon as the words left his mouth, and immediately hit the number one speed dial on call log. The Fish had said he was watching my phone, but I had to let Anthony know to go to my apartment, or else everything was ruined. Maybe he was bluffing…
Twenty seconds later, I slammed my phone down on the passenger seat. No answer.
My fingers fumbled, hands shaking as I hit redial three, four, five times. I eventually left a message, asking him to help me move boxes from my room to his house, ASAP. I glanced at the car clock. I had a minute left. I dialed my father.
Another no answer.
Thirty seconds.
I tossed the phone in plain sight on top of the cup holder and tucked my purse under the seat. People in this neighborhood would break into a car for leftover McDonald’s fries. A purse sitting on the front seat was just too tempting, and I couldn’t have someone stealing my hints to Anthony. As for the phone, mine was so old and so cracked that I doubted anyone would want to steal it even if I left my doors wide open. However, it’d be a sign to Anthony if he thought to look in my car. If he found my phone, he’d know why I wasn’t answering his calls, and hopefully, he’d realize that I was in trouble.
I slid out of my car and jogged towards Clay’s van. Testing the handle, I found the door to the front seat unlocked as promised. Clay never left his car unlocked. He’d even installed a padlock on the gas cap so nobody could remove fluids without his permission. An unlocked front door meant only one thing: The Fish had been here, and he’d left a phone as promised on the passenger’s seat. I lunged for it as the third ring began to chime.
“Hello?” My voice came out choppy as I sucked in as much O2 as possible. The sprint from my car to the van had been a short one, but the adrenaline must have interfered with my respiratory system. I couldn’t seem to catch my breath. “I’m here, I’m here.”
“Just in time,” The Fish said, his voice oozing across the line. “I’m almost disappointed. You kept me waiting until the last ring. Things were just about to get interesting.”
“I’m here,” I said again. “What should I do next?”
“Drive to our meeting place, of course. Stone Arch Bridge. Instructions will follow.”
“You’re not going to stay on the line with me?” I cranked the car into gear. I had no particular desire to get into a real heart-to-heart with the man terrorizing my family, but if I could keep him talking, I might be able to get a leg up. Some sort of edge, at least, or insight into the why behind all of this. “Bummer. I was just starting to like your company.”
“Bad manners and sarcasm. A dangerous combination.”
“Seems to me, plenty of people like it. I have friends. Family. A boyfriend.”
“I’m disappointed. I didn’t think you were the type to get sappy on me.” The Fish spoke with a hint of amusement. “Tell me, how do I go about getting myself a boyfriend like Anthony?”
“I don’t think you need one,” I said. “Seeing as how you tried to pass yourself off as him to Adriana.”
“I wasn’t trying to pass myself off, I was merely sending a message.”
“Imitation is flattery,” I said. “I’ll pass on your admiration to my Anthony, the real man, when I see him.”
“Don’t interrupt me.” The cold voice sent fingers of fear slithering down my spine.
This time, instead of backing off, I shivered. The sensation washed over me as iciness gripped my insides, and for a brief moment, I wondered if this was how Meg always felt, frostbitten intestines and all. In the midst of all the terror, nerves, and fear, I couldn’t help it. I snorted.
“Do you think I’m funny?” I recognized the light tone of his voice for what it was – a cover. He was getting angry; I could sense it in the urgency of his words, the slight lisp that came out as he tsked. “I don’t feel very funny right now, Lacey. Which leads me to think you’re laughing at me.”
“No, I’m not.” I tried to keep my voice matter of fact, but it wobbled. I debated playing the tough-girl card…not that I owned a “tough-girl” card, but a woman could try. Maybe duress would give me the courage to become a real badass. Unfortunately, I was a terrible liar and badassery didn’t run in my veins, so I opted for the truth.
“I’m nervous,” I admitted, my legs shaking in my knock-off Uggs. “That’s all. I’m not laughing at you. I’m laughing because I don’t want to start crying. You’ve been watching me, so you know I’m doing this alone. I’m not meant to work alone; I’m one of a pack. So you putting those girls’ safety in my hands alone is terrifying. You’ll have to excuse me if I act strangely because I’m not sure how to act under these circumstances. Kidnapping doesn’t come with a manual, though if I may say so myself, I’m almost qualified to write the manual.”
“This isn’t a kidnapping. You’re coming willingly.”
“The girls didn’t come to you willingly.”
“Oh? Lacey, don’t try to fool me. It’s not for lack of trying that you ended up alone.”
My heart thumped.
“I heard your phone calls. I
heard the no answer. Who’d you call, your boyfriend? Your father? Yes, I know about him and still, no answer on all fronts. Where are they when you need them? Shame, isn’t it? Maybe we’re more like each other than you thought. As a matter of fact, we all are, eventually. Because in our final moments…we end up alone.”
My cheeks burned, and I was glad he couldn’t see me through the speaker. I guided Clay’s van across town, not bothering to respond. Anthony always answered the phone, unless…unless he was in the middle of an assignment. And my father – he knew what was at stake. Why didn’t he answer?
As the car left the suburbs and approached the Cities, I wondered if either my father or Anthony had tried to call me back. If they had, I’d never know.
CHAPTER 43
If there was a way to use Clay’s fancy, decked-out van to get a leg up against The Fish, I hadn’t figured it out. After hanging up the phone, I’d twisted every knob and dial on the dashboard that I could reach while still driving straight on the freeway.
However, the only thing I’d succeeded in turning on was a “mister” that did nothing but douse my face with water. It wasn’t a “light, airy mist” as Clay had described, meant to cool a person down in the hot summer months; no, it was a more like a shower. Or a tsunami. Or a hurricane. I shot myself with so much water on accident that my hair hung limp and the top of my shirt needed to be wrung out. My mascara gave off a slightly “raccoon-ish” appearance, so it was a good thing I didn’t have anyone to impress at my destination.
Besides the internal tornado, I couldn’t find a particularly useful knob or gauge. None of the radio functionalities worked, and I had no way of finding the tracking or GPS devices that I knew Clay had installed in here. But if The Fish had said they were disabled, he meant it. Even if I found out how to turn some of the trackers on, it wouldn’t be useful if their signals were jammed.