Free Falling

by Lisa Gerkey

  I see a shadow at the far end of the hall when I walk out of the room. Several people move around in the darkened hallway. It’s like rats scurrying to and fro, but it’s the dark shadow that holds my attention. Something familiar I can’t place. Before I can move closer to see who it is, the boss lady appears before me.

  “Excuse me. I need to get to the stage.”

  “Stage? Oh, no, honey. One of the other girls will handle the stage. Seems someone recognized you. Let’s go. He’s waiting in the other room.”

  Her long fingernails dig in when she clasps her hand around my arm and pushes me down the hallway. I stumble a little over the tall heels I’m wearing. Old familiar feelings set in. I’m terrified to see what I’ve gotten myself into. There’s another room, separate from the main floor with the stage. Why is this all too familiar? But, it’s not. When she shoves me forward, through a door, it all becomes clear.

  “Well, if this isn’t my lucky fucking day I don’t know what is. I knew you couldn’t resist coming back. That’s it, isn’t it? You came back to fill the spot you left behind? Huh?”

  The moment I’ve waited for since I walked through the door of this disgusting place has arrived. It’s either play the part and do everything I came here to do or go home. No. There’s no turning back now. I won’t have the opportunity to go home. If I turn around now and try to leave, I would be signing my own death warrant.

  “Jayson.” I’m surprised my voice stays steady. My heart is pounding, and I’m terrified, but I refuse to let him see.

  “Well isn’t this sweet.”

  Even Jayson flinches a little when the woman speaks. I still don’t know her name or what role she plays in all of this.

  “Who are you?”

  “It doesn’t matter who I am. Usually, I stay behind the scenes, but lately, there have been a lot of mistakes. I don’t like mistakes. All I care about is that my employees can do the fucking jobs they're hired to do.”

  She looks at Jayson the whole time she talks. Who the hell is she?

  “I…I don’t understand.” I wring my hands together. It’s odd seeing Jayson act nervous, but it doesn’t make me hate him any less.

  I need to figure out what’s going on.

  “No, you don’t understand. You won’t ever understand if this moron can do his job. He has a history of fucking up. He managed to hide out a few years with his uncle’s power behind him, but Malcolm isn’t here now.”

  “Malcolm?”

  “Let it go! Just fucking let it go. No need to fill anyone in on the details. Let me get her out of here. It’s just a matter of time before someone comes looking for her.” Jayson pleads with the woman.

  “Danny’s got a car waiting.” Jayson pushes me past the woman.

  “What have you done, Jayson? Tell me! What’s going on? Who is that woman?”

  “I didn’t do a goddamn thing! You’re the little bitch that didn’t die when she was supposed to. I’m going to get all the loose ends tied up so I can get things back to the way they were before. I’m going to make Uncle proud of me. I’m going to carry on the family name and run the business. You better fucking pray for any motherfucker who tries to stop me. I’m unstoppable, bitch! You got that?”

  He doesn’t bother blindfolding me when he puts me in the car. Danny climbs into the driver’s seat. I should’ve known he was working with Jayson. They’re two peas in a pod.

  “Drive, dickhead!” Jayson slaps him hard on the back of the head.

  “I got it! Calm the hell down! We don’t want someone to call the damn cops!”

  He drives for a while before I realize where we’re headed. They’re taking me to the spot where Jayson failed to do the job the first time. Is this what happened to Lindsey? What if she’s out there? What if Lindsey’s somewhere in those woods alone, hurt or dead?

  Danny parks in the lot beside the church. I’d try to run and get away from them, but me against the two of them, I don’t stand a chance. Maybe if I can get one of them alone…

  The church looks small from the outside. It’s just a simple little white church that’s been around for years. The preacher’s house sits on the other side. Isn’t Jayson worried he’ll hear something, see something, and call the police? I pray the old man makes that call.

  “Here’s the deal, Kennedy. You’ve got two choices, you can work with me, or against me right now. The choice is yours. If you’re a good girl, I’ve got a special treat for you. Remember how we used to do things?”

  I could handle all this easier if I had a little something…just this once. I rub my hands down each arm where my skin crawls just a little. My palms shake slightly.

  “I’ll do whatever you want.”

  Jayson pushes me to walk a step in front of him and Danny. I see something shiny in his hand. A knife, perhaps. Not as deadly as a gun, so maybe I’ll have a chance. I consider the possibility until Danny pushes the backdoor open. He pulls a gun from behind him and points it at me, motioning for me to walk inside.

  “You ready for your surprise? It’s down in the basement. There isn’t much light. You might want to take it easy down the steps. Wouldn’t want you to fall and break your neck.” Danny chuckles. He pushes another door open. It creaks when it drags against the floor. I walk down each step slowly, carefully. After several steps, I see a faint light and hear the noise.

  Two more steps and I see everything.

  “Jayson! No! You can’t…”

  He draws his hand back and slaps me across the face. The naked woman lying on the dirty and soiled mattress cries out.

  Danny grabs me around the waist when I try to run to her. There’s something stuffed in her mouth with a piece of tape holding it in place. Bruises and cuts on her face. She’s tied up with extension cords.

  Danny lifts me like a sack of garbage and tosses me on the filthy mattress beside her.

  “Lindsey!” I roll toward her and reach my hand out to her, but a fist around my ankle pulls me out of reach.

  “Don’t fucking touch her! She’s mine! Danny can have you. I have Lindsey back now, and not a single motherfucker is going to take her from me!”

  I jump back up, so I can stand on my feet to face the monsters. “No. No. Please, Jayson. Please. I…I have money now. Did you know that? I have my inheritance. Just…let her go and take me! I’ll go with you. I’ll give you every penny and then…then you can kill me. You can finish what you tried to do before. Okay? Please! You don’t even have to let her go! Just…just…lets you and me leave.”

  Jayson won’t listen to anything I say. He hits me again. My head snaps to the side from the impact. I don’t have skills like my sister to fight back. I kick my foot out, but instead of it connecting, Jayson grabs my ankle, and I fall down again. He straddles me and rips at my clothes. Danny gets down and helps him tear the denim jacket off. Next, he strips the shorts away, leaving me in only the bra and g-string.

  “You gonna behave yourself? Huh?” Jayson beams down at me with cold, cruel eyes. “Be a good girl, Kennedy. You can be Danny’s girl for a while. I already got my own bitch. She missed me. You missed me didn’t you, Linds?” He crawls off me and moves a few feet to my right, to where Lindsey lies.

  I can’t look at her.

  I don’t want to fall apart when I see how he treats her. Hearing her painful cries is terrible enough. It’s too much.

  Chapter Twenty-Five

  JOSH

  “Let me go! I told you I was headed to the restroom. I got turned around and went the wrong way.” I shrug my shoulders and try to pull away from the two bastards who caught me snooping around in one of the hallways; the one with the dressing rooms. I managed to get in one and look around, but I saw nothing that belonged to Kennedy. Not that I’d know what the fuck she’s even wearing right now.

  “Been watching you on the cameras, you’re looking for something. We know someone sent you here. We just gotta figure out who it is.”

  “Guess that means you’ve got something to hide,
huh? If you’re following all the rules, wouldn’t be anything to see, would it?”

  They take me into an office and push me down in a chair.

  Coming here alone was a bad idea. I get that now. Thank fuck, a few people know where I am. If I find the right moment to make a move, I can get away from these assholes, but who the hell knows how many there are waiting? Maybe the best I can do is keep quiet and try to learn all I can. When people show up to help, I can point them in the right direction.

  There’s a single light bulb in a fixture hanging from the ceiling. Dust on everything. It doesn’t look like the office gets used a lot.

  “We’ll hang tight until the boss gets here. Must be a full moon tonight. A lot of shit going on around here.” He’s not talking to me. The punks are having the conversation among themselves like I’m not in the room.

  “The chick was a hell of a lot prettier than this cocksucker. Bet Danny and Jay’s having one hell of a time right now.”

  My ears perk up instantly when they mention a pretty woman. I didn’t miss hearing him call someone “Jay” either. Is it possible he’s talking about the same motherfucker we all want to get our hands on?

  I’d ask, but I don’t have time. The door opens, and someone else comes into the room.

  “You fucking bitch!” I try to stand, but I’m shoved back down by the large hand on my shoulder. “What’s going on here? What the hell are you doing here?”

  It’s been years since I’ve seen her.

  I don’t think she recognizes me at first. In fact, I know the exact moment it all dawns on her, by the look on the bitch’s ugly face. She’s not ugly. Far from it. For a woman her age, she’s actually quite stunning. No wonder my father fell hard for her all those years ago and then nearly died when he spent years trying to drown the fucking memories in the bottom of a bottle.

  I don’t hate my father. I’ve forgiven him, but there’s no way in hell I’ll offer an ounce of forgiveness to Paula, the bitch who gave birth to me, and then ditched my brother and me, as if we were nothing to her.

  “Hello… Son. I must say, this is quite a surprise. When I got a call that someone was messing around, I didn’t expect to find you here. To what do I owe the pleasure? Oh, and how’s Clayton? It’s been a long time…”

  “Shut up! Don’t mention Dad’s name. He finally has his life together. No thanks to you.”

  I doubt anyone can ever truly understand what makes someone crazy. Makes them do terrible shit. I wish someone could help me understand the reason why a woman could turn her back on a loving, devoted husband and two little boys for… for what?

  This?

  “You want to tell me what you were looking for? I don’t want to hurt my own flesh and blood, Joshua, but you shouldn’t be messing around here. Tell me exactly why you are here.”

  “I’m looking for my girlfriend.”

  “Oh, well, she must be a lovely girl to have you running off to a place like this. Are you attracted to bad girls, son? Maybe you’re more like me than I thought.”

  “Go to hell! I don’t care if you are my goddamn egg donor, I’ll see that you get caught and locked up. Shit like you shouldn’t be running around out here with the rest of the world. I know Kennedy was here. I tracked her phone earlier to this exact spot. I’m going to fucking end you, Paula. Where’s Kennedy?”

  “Kennedy? Let’s see. Is she about five three? Pretty, long caramel hair with blonde highlights. Can’t walk in heels for nothing? Does that sound like your girlfriend?”

  “What the hell have you done?”

  “Not me. Calm down, Joshua. Stop trying to blame everything on me. I may have something to do with what happened to the other little tramp…Maggie’s girl, but you’ll have to talk to somebody else about Kennedy. She showed up earlier today. Nosing around… A little like you were doing earlier. One of my employees recognized her.”

  I stare at her for a few minutes. No matter how much I deny it, there’s a little boy deep inside me that wants to know why. Yeah, I hear the things she says. I just don’t understand why. I love Kennedy with my whole heart, and I plan to work toward spending the rest of my life with her, but now more than ever, I know I must reinforce it with Staci that I want to be a part of my baby’s life every single step of the way. I can’t imagine not loving my own child. This woman standing before me feels absolutely nothing for me. How did this happen? She has to be sick. There must be a sickness inside her that no one can see, that’s never been diagnosed. Either that, or she was born evil.

  After meeting my grandfather, I don’t know how that’s possible.

  “Just tell me, Paula. Is Kennedy here?”

  “No. You shouldn’t let that girl concern you so much, son.”

  “Don’t ever fucking call me son!”

  The bitch snaps her fingers, and two more goons come into the room to join the first two. I can tell right away this is some shit I’m probably not going to get away from without help. All four of the bastards close in on me with a purpose in their step and determined looks on their faces.

  Paula watches everything with an evil, bitch sneer on her face that only she’s capable of. I’ve only seen this woman a handful of times in my life. It’s been years since the last time. I had forgotten most of those brief encounters. Seeing her again though, I remember. I remember all the times as a child that I wished I had a mother. I wanted a father, too. The only difference was he tried. He fucking tried a little sometimes. He would have done much more had she not ruined his life.

  “Here’s what’s going to happen, Josh. You are going with my men. When you get to your destination, you’ll understand what’s going on. Someone will fill you in on what’s happening with your precious little crack whore. You can try to fight, of course. Just know you won’t win. Plans have already been made. In fact, I’ve been working on these plans for quite some time now. You’ll find out more, later. Let’s go.”

  “Get your dirty hands off me! Fuck! Don’t you realize people know I’m here? Huh? Do you honestly think you’re going to get away with this?”

  “Oh, son, I already have. This is just one little loose string left to tie up. Trust me, baby. I know how to disappear when the need arises. Now, shut your fucking mouth, or you can take a nice long nap until we get there. It’s up to you.”

  Fuck. The tall, dark bastard to my right pulls something from his pocket. When I see a syringe, I know there’s no way out of this shit. If I let them drug me, who knows what valuable information I’ll miss. As hard as it is, I know I must keep my mouth shut and make them think I’m giving up. I’m not giving anything up. I’m confident someone will figure out what’s going on and find me… I just hope they locate Kennedy first. I don’t give a damn what happens to me as long as they get to my girl and keep her safe.

  Chapter Twenty-Six

  Kennedy

  I wake up suddenly when I hear a noise. I can’t see much through the darkness, so I listen. When I hear footsteps on the stairs, I know the loud racket was the door closing. A light comes on, blinding me. I close my eyes briefly and blink a few times to see. A woman stands a few feet from the mattress where I’m lying with my arms tied behind my back and my legs and ankles bound. I try to speak, but the piece of tape over my mouth muffles the sound. I recognize the woman. She’s the one from the strip club. Why is she here?

  Two large men stand a few feet behind her. I don’t see Danny or Jayson anywhere. They must have disappeared while I was asleep. I feel movement behind me, so I know Lindsey is still here.

  I pray someone finds us soon because Lindsey is only a thread away from breaking to the point where no one can save her. I hope I’m wrong. Perhaps she’s merely biding her time until she finds the right opportunity to fight, but I don’t believe that’s the case.

  I look up at the woman. A couple of minutes pass while she looks at me. She turns around and whispers something to the two goons behind her before she turns to me once more.

  “You must be Kennedy.”r />
  I wriggle my body around and grunt a reply. The words don’t come out. Only garbled sounds.

  “I’ve heard a lot about you, Kennedy. I won’t rehash the whole thing, so I’ll be blunt. You’re the little bitch my son wants to save.”

  Her son? I’m confused. I can’t make any sense of what she says. Her son? She’s Josh’s mother? Why is she here?

  “I’m unsure what to do with you. I could leave you for the boys and let them decide. In the end, that might be what I do, but you’ll help me out a little bit first. See, we need to convince Joshua to move on with Staci. He needs to get married and get ready for his son. It’s going to take a little time to get everything in place, but I’ll be back.”

  I keep my eyes on the woman and her two massive bodyguards until they’re out of sight. Jayson and Danny don’t appear to be anywhere around, but I don’t expect them to leave Lindsey and me alone for long. I suppose since we’re both tied up, they don’t expect us to get away.

  When David kidnapped Jaycee and me, my sister was quick to come up with a plan to set us free. I need to do the same thing now.

  I tug and twist my hands and wrists to loosen the cord. I’m rubbing my skin raw, but I can’t let the pain stop me. I pull as hard as I can until I feel it slip. A few more times and my hands are free. The first thing I do is rip the tape away that’s covering my mouth, and then I tear away the rest of my bindings.

  “Lindsey! I know you can hear me. Listen to me. We have to get out of here. I don’t know where Jayson and Danny went, but I’m sure they’ll come back soon. I don’t want to leave without you. Please.”

  My chest aches when I look at her. The poor girl has been put through hell. It’s evident from looking at her battered body. It makes my stomach weak to look at her, but I don’t have time to let it slow me down. I get to work untying her and removing the tape from her mouth. Once that’s done, I get up and scour the place for clothes, anything I can use to cover her body. I’m not much better in only a bra and a scrap of silk between my legs, but I’ll worry about me later. I locate the jacket and shorts I had on when Danny and Jayson brought me here.