18 Months

by Samantha Boyette

  Nodding, he let me go. I backed away, waving to Mom where she still sat on the couch looking stunned. Her face glistened with tears. Wearily, I climbed the stairs to my bedroom. I took off my pants and climbed into bed before pulling out the journal entry.

  I don’t know what day it is, or even what month. It seems like I’ve been here for years. I’m sure everyone has forgotten me. I don’t think my parents paid. If they did, it didn’t matter because he’ll never let me go. Maybe if they had paid right away things would have been different. He keeps telling me he is the only one who loves me enough to save me. I think that means he will kill me and I don’t even care.

  I’d give anything for just one day of freedom. The whole summer passed without an ounce of sunlight for me. There was heat and now it’s cooling off so I assume it’s fall, but I don’t know. Maybe it’s just a cloudy day. My room seems to be getting smaller, but I’ve stopped noticing how it smells. I try not to notice anything. When he’s here, I shut down. I almost don’t feel his hands on me anymore.

  If anyone ever finds this journal, know that I wanted to live. I wanted a life full of happiness, love, and a million other things. I never wanted to die like this. I wanted to live free and for that I was caged.

  Tears streamed down my face as I finished the journal entry and I knew in my gut that this part of the game was over. I would never hold another page that Lana filled with her thoughts. I wiped my eyes with the back of my hand, but the tears kept falling. I held the note to my chest and closed my eyes. Sleep was slow to come.

  Chapter Thirty-six

  I woke with the thick taste of tears in my throat. I had to force myself out of bed and as soon as I did, my head started pounding. I felt hungover from whatever had been in the vial. I headed for the shower, hoping the pounding of the water would clear my head.

  I considered what would happen next. I was convinced I’d found the last journal entry, but what would the next step be? Would he ask for ransom? If so, I was screwed because I had no way to get any money. Something told me that wasn’t going to be what he asked for though. Maybe he would ask me to trade myself for Hannah.

  The thought set a knot turning in my stomach. I loved Hannah, but did I love her enough to give my life for her? I thought maybe I did; that’s what scared me so much. I tried to imagine walking into the room where he was keeping Hannah and watching her walk out. It would be hard, but I thought I could do it. I had to do it.

  I still had no clue who this guy was or what I had done to deserve any of this. It seemed like he knew everything about me. How long had he been watching me? What drew him to me in the first place?

  I dressed, feeling barely more with it than I had before the shower. It would be another long day of pointless classes I wasn’t prepared for.

  Mom gave me a weak smile as I entered the kitchen. I forced one in return and poured a glass of juice. I didn’t think I could stomach food yet.

  “How are you feeling?” Concern filled Mom’s face as I sank into the chair across from her. “You look tired. Maybe you should stay home again.”

  “I’m okay.” I yawned and rubbed my eyes, trying to bring some life to them. “I just didn’t sleep well.”

  “Maybe you should change,” Mom said hesitantly. “A nice outfit always makes me feel better about the day.”

  I shrugged. I hadn’t put much thought into my outfit, just throwing on a pair of jeans and a faded Atari T-shirt of Hannah’s under a thin zip-up jacket. To Mom, I knew it looked horrible, but I liked wearing something that belonged to Hannah.

  I finished my juice in one long gulp and stood. “I need to get going.”

  “Okay.” Mom forced another smile. It was killing her to keep her mouth shut about my outfit and it was something she couldn’t have managed even a day ago. I loved her a little more for that.

  I leaned down to hug her. “I love you, Mom.”

  “I love you too, sweetie.” Her hands fluttered against my arms. When I pulled away, her smile was real.

  I headed to my car. My sneakers scuffed against the blacktop because I was too tired to lift them properly. I’d just tossed my backpack into the car when I heard a horn beep. My heart leaped into my throat, but when I looked up Nick’s truck idled at the curb. Relief flooded me and jogged over.

  I opened the door and leaned in. “Hey.”

  “Hey, yourself.” Nick grinned. We were silent a moment and Nick squinted, absently tapping his fingers on the steering wheel. “Your mom say anything about yesterday?”

  “Nope. She thinks I was home all day like a good kid.”

  “That’s good.” Nick’s grin faded a little.

  I shifted. “I’m sorry about yesterday. You know it really was just about Mom thinking I’d faked being sick, right?”

  “Yeah, I know.” Nick fiddled with his key chain. “Sorry for being weird.”

  “I don’t know if we could be friends if you were normal.” When Nick looked up at me, I smiled and he smiled in return.

  “See you in school?”

  “Yep. I have to tell you what happened last night. Meet at lunch?”

  “Sure.”

  I stepped back and shut Nick’s door. I watched him drive away before hurrying to my car so I wouldn’t be late.

  *

  I muddled my way through my morning classes, each one feeling more endless than the next. By the time the bell rang for lunch, I felt brain dead. Nick met me by my locker and we waited until most everyone would be in the cafeteria before walking out the front door to his truck. Leaving school for lunch was perfectly fine, but we didn’t want to get caught by one of his friends.

  Without asking, he started the car and pulled out of the parking lot. We sped down back streets before he headed up to the pizza place on Main Street.

  “Pizza?” I asked as Nick climbed out of the truck.

  “A man’s got to eat, doesn’t he?”

  “I guess.” I unbuckled my seat belt. Nick held up a hand to stop me.

  “I’ll get you something. You still a black olive girl?”

  “Yeah.” I couldn’t help but smile that he remembered that. “Sounds good.”

  “Just a minute.”

  The truck door slammed shut and I was alone with my thoughts once again. He returned a few minutes later, balancing two sodas on two personal pizza boxes. The mouthwatering scents of melted cheese and tomato sauce filled the truck as soon as he got the door open.

  “Black olive slice and a Diet Coke.” Nick handed me one box and a soda before climbing in. “How’d I do?”

  “Perfect.” I opened the lid to see he’d even remembered to sprinkle crushed red pepper over the top of the slice. “What do I owe you?”

  Nick waved me off. “Don’t worry about it.” He lifted one of two cheese slices from his box and bit off about a quarter of it. “So tell me about last night.” The words were garbled around the food.

  I took a bite of my slice and let out a happy groan as I chewed. It was the first thing that tasted good in days. “Thank you so much, Nick.” I set down the slice. “Okay, last night. So I get a text from an unknown number that tells me to go to the park.”

  “A text? This guy just stepped into our century. How did he get your number?”

  “No clue, it’s creepy as hell.”

  “How come you didn’t get me to come along?”

  “It said to come alone.” I took another bite of pizza.

  “And you went? Alissa.” He gave me a disappointed look.

  “I know. Trust me, I know, but he has Hannah. I have to do everything he says. Look what happened to Lana when her parents didn’t pay the ransom right away. Anyway, so I get there and I remember Lana had this hiding place on the playground. So I go there and I find a vial of clear liquid that says drink me.”

  “No way. You did not drink it.” Nick watched me, pizza held halfway to his mouth.

  “I did.”

  “He could have killed you.” Nick dropped his slice into the box and re
ached over to grab my arm, almost too hard. “Alissa, are you crazy? Are you okay?”

  I pulled my arm free, rubbing the red mark his grip left. “I’m here aren’t I? It was some sort of drug though because next thing I know I’m hallucinating that this person dressed all in black is running around the playground and giggling like a horror movie kid.” I shuddered at the memory and took another bite. “Then I passed out for a few hours and when I woke up I had another journal entry.”

  “What does it say?”

  I bent, digging in my bag until I found the entry and handed it to him. He read while we finished our pizza.

  “I think it’s gonna be the last one,” I said when I sensed him nearing the end of the entry.

  Nick nodded absently as he handed me back the paper. He wiped his greasy hands on a napkin and shoved his trash into the small space behind his seat. Fidgeting, he adjusted himself in the seat and then lifted his hat to scratch the back of his head.

  “You okay?” I asked.

  “It’s just really messed up.” Nick rubbed his mouth and turned away. He shook his head. “If that was the last one, then what’s next?”

  “I don’t know.” I didn’t want to tell him what I thought it would be. “But I don’t care what it is. I’m doing it.”

  “Alissa.” Nick turned on the seat to face me. “You need to think this through.”

  “I have. I need to get Hannah back.” I shook my head. “Nothing else matters.”

  “Alissa.”

  “No.” I shot Nick a look. “Nothing else matters to me but her. Okay?”

  He was silent a moment and our eyes locked. His dark gaze always felt so intense when he wasn’t smiling. Finally, he nodded and started the car. “I wish someone cared about me like that.”

  We drove back to school in silence. Nick slouched as he drove, brooding and playing with his lower lip. I stared straight ahead, arms crossed over my chest as if that would help keep everything I was feeling inside.

  As I climbed out of his car, I glanced at my car parked just a few spaces away. I considered getting into it and driving away from the school. But what would I do at home all afternoon besides drive myself crazy?

  We entered the crush of students heading from lunch to their next class and hadn’t even made it to the main hallway before my name was called over the loudspeaker. I stopped, tilting my head to be sure I’d heard it right.

  “They’re calling you to the office.” Nick confirmed what I heard. “Any idea why?”

  “Maybe from being absent yesterday?” I shrugged. People were glancing my way. “I don’t know.”

  “Want me to come with you?” Nick took a couple steps toward me as I backed away.

  “No, they’ll give me a pass if they keep me past the bell, but they might not give you one. I’ll see you later.”

  He waved and I turned to push back through everyone toward the main office. The administrative assistant looked up as I entered and she smiled at me.

  “Hey, Mrs. Harris.”

  “Alissa, how are you doing today?”

  “Good. I heard my name?”

  “Oh, yes, you have a phone call.”

  “A phone call?” I frowned. “Is it my parents?” I wondered why they wouldn’t just call my cell.

  Mrs. Harris shook her head and leaned closer to whisper. “It’s a policeman.”

  That sent a chill through me, but I took the receiver when she handed it to me. “Hello?”

  “Alissa?”

  For a moment I was confused as I processed the voice, then relief filled me. I’d half-expected the kidnapper to be on the phone pretending to be a cop. Instead, it was Jake.

  “Jake?”

  “Hi. I didn’t know how to reach you on your cell phone and I figured this might be a little less imposing than calling your home line.”

  “Sure. Um, what’s up?” I was glad he’d called the school. Who knew if the guy who had Hannah had somehow tapped my cell and the home phone?

  “I was worried about you last night. You looked like you’d seen a ghost.”

  I thought of the figure running around the playground. He wasn’t that far off. “No ghosts.”

  There was a pause on the other end of the line and when Jake spoke again, it sounded like he had his hand wrapped around the mouthpiece. “Look, I want to talk to you. I think you might be right about Hannah. Things aren’t adding up, but no one else around here wants to admit it.”

  My heart froze at his words, adrenaline spiking. I glanced around the room and through the plate glass into the hallway. Mrs. Harris was the only one around and she smiled as our eyes met.

  “Can you meet me in Yates later?” I scrambled to form a plan. “At College Coffee?” It would be full of college students. “Come like a normal guy.”

  “No uniform?” I thought I heard a smile in his voice, but his next words were serious. “You know something else about Hannah, don’t you? And you’re scared.”

  “Yeah. Just meet me there around three-thirty. Okay?”

  “Okay. I’ll see you then. Watch your back.”

  I smirked. “Trust me, that’s all I’ve been doing.” I handed the receiver back to Mrs. Harris.

  “Is everything okay?” Her face wrinkled in concern.

  “Yeah. He’s kind of a friend.”

  I hoped that was the case because I was about to risk everything by telling him the truth.

  Chapter Thirty-seven

  I hurried toward my car at the end of the day, not daring to think too much about what I was about to do. I was banking on Jake believing me, and the kidnapper not following me. I thought I had a plan that would keep the kidnapper from following me, but if I was wrong, I could be killing Hannah.

  I pushed that thought away and climbed into my car. Nick stepped out of the school just as I pulled out of the parking lot and I hesitated for a moment, but I didn’t stop. He might talk me out of my plan and I would let him because he would be partly right, but something in my gut was telling me to talk to Jake.

  The half hour drive over to Yates felt like it took forever. Dad drove the route every day and I had no idea how he could stand it. Rolling hills, trees, and farms were all that filled the space between Walnut Grove and Yates. With my nerves threatening to overwhelm me, it felt far too lonely.

  The only good thing about the middle of nowhere drive was that I was able to make sure no one followed me. Every few minutes, I glanced in the rearview mirror. The few cars I saw either turned off before I reached Yates or pulled onto the road partway through. Even so, I wasn’t going to take any chances.

  Instead of heading right to the coffee shop, I headed for the campus and Dad’s office. If anyone followed me, they would think I was visiting him.

  I walked into the four story building that held Dad’s office and went right out the back door. My plan wasn’t foolproof, but it was the best I had. I hurried through the busy grounds, heading for College Coffee, just off campus.

  Jake was already there when I walked in, though I almost didn’t recognize him without his uniform. Dressed in jeans and a button down, he looked just like all the other guys there. He waved to me from the coffee line and I joined him.

  “You okay?” Concern was evident in his eyes.

  “I think so.” I glanced back toward the door. No one stood out from the crowd. I had to believe I hadn’t been followed. Jake ordered a large black coffee and motioned for me to order. “Uh, green tea, please.” I smiled my thanks to Jake as he paid.

  We stood silently waiting for our drinks. I shifted uneasily from foot to foot and Jake watched me, eyes narrowing each time I glanced at the door. When we got our drinks, I led the way to a table in a back corner. We were far from alone, but the crowd around us made me feel safe.

  “Okay, what’s going on?” Jake leaned forward. “You look ready to rabbit out that door any second.”

  “I’m just making sure no one followed me.” I glanced at the door once more.

  “Followed you
?” Jake frowned. “Alissa, you need to fill me in here.”

  “Why did you want to talk? What changed to make you think someone did take Hannah?”

  Jake took a sip of his coffee, watching me over the rim. He set the cup down and wiped his mouth with the back of his hand. “Okay, Hannah’s been calling her parents daily, but she isn’t using her phone. Instead, she’s using a prepaid cell and the phone calls never last long enough for us to locate her.”

  “So you’ve been trying to locate her?” That was interesting since I figured they’d given up on the idea of her being missing.

  “Her parents called a couple days ago and asked if we could just to ease their minds. Woodley got all bent out of shape about it, but he had to do it.”

  “What did he say when he found out the phone calls were too short?”

  Jake smirked, one dimple almost appearing. “That kids these days watch so much television they know all the tricks. Obviously, she doesn’t want to be found. Her parents seem to accept that answer, but it stinks of too much convenience for me. Especially paired with what you’ve said.”

  “Someone definitely has her.” I wrapped my hands around my cup, taking a deep breath as I prepared to tell him everything. “I need you to believe everything I’m about to tell you and then I need you to keep it quiet until you can do something about it because I was told not to come to the police.”

  “Told by whom?” Jake leaned far enough across the table that our hands almost touched.

  “I’ve been getting notes from Lana’s kidnapper. They’ve been leading me to entries from her journal. Entries that were written after he took her.” Jake opened his mouth, but I pressed on. “We found out she met the guy on a gay and lesbian youth support chat board and so I got on one. He found me there and directed me to a website with live video of Hannah chained up in a room.”

  “Alissa, why didn’t you come to us? That would be more than enough evidence.”

  “Because the website fried my computer and he said if I went to the cops Hannah would die. He said Lana’s parents didn’t do enough to save her, but if I played along I could save Hannah.”