You Better Run

by Rowan Hanlon

  He came over and hunkered down in front of them. Hadley could tell he was smiling beneath his mask. “How I’ve missed you two. My two pretties, my two little, scared animals. My two little escapees.”

  Hadley and Clara just stared at him. Hadley had a hard time believing what was happening and she thought he had to be a copycat killer. There was no way… There was no way… There was no way Jeremy Clemmons could be alive. He’d died in prison. It had just happened. It was all over the news. Everyone knew. It was a fact.

  “I believe your girl Sloan is too smart for her own good,” he said. “But she always was. I loved that about her. I’m reluctant to tell you two this, mainly ’cause I don’t want you two to get jealous, but she was always my favorite. How sweet her cries were when I could break her down. How sweet to see tears running out of her eyes. How sweet to see her give up and then rise to the challenge.”

  His words sent shivers of fright and panic up and down her spine. No way… This person couldn’t be her captor, could it? Who was he? Was he…? No. No! No! No! No! Hadley suddenly felt herself go a little crazy as thoughts began to stampede through her mind, telling her this was it, this person, whoever he was, he was going to kill her and Clara and then he’d dump their bodies somewhere where no one would ever find them. Other thoughts, even more gruesome than that began to toy with her, make her want to lose it. The thoughts told her the things he had in store for them and she remembered some of the things that had been done to her before. But, if she had even a minuscule chance at survival, she had to shut these thoughts off. She had to! But she couldn’t and one terrible scenario after another filled her mind. For a moment or two, she felt as though she were actually going to lose it. She couldn’t get control of her emotions. But then, she did. She forced herself to take a deep breath and somehow abated the anxiety he was causing. However, she just wished she could have somehow avoided this, her worst nightmare. She would have given anything to just get up and run. That’s all she wanted to do. She just wanted to run, run away!

  He stood back up and then said, “Now, don’t get too excited but I don’t believe we’ve ever been properly introduced.”

  Hadley’s eyes nearly popped out of her head when he pulled back his hoodie, then he took off his sunglasses, then he slid off the mask. It was Jeremy Clemmons, or, at the very least, the spitting image of Jeremy Clemmons. But then there was something slightly amiss. He wasn’t exactly like Jeremy, but enough that someone could easily mistake him for Jeremy. They were of the same build; they had the same skin tone, the same pale blue eyes. And their eyelashes were pale, as well. However, the nails on his fingers were not chewed to the quick. They were almost manicured looking, just the way she remembered them from the house so long ago.

  Oh, God, oh, God, oh, God, oh, God, she thought, feeling herself start to fall apart, start to sink. She remembered the road she’d been on, how she thought she’d never get off it, and now she was back right where she started.

  He laughed all of a sudden, slapping his knee. “You two dumbasses don’t get it, do you? You just don’t fucking get it! Never did! Never one time, even when you were ‘following’ me, you never got it. Even when you put that dumbass Jeremy Clemmons in prison, you didn’t get it. And he begged, didn’t he? I saw that on the TV. He begged like a little bitch. And neither one of you bitches could see it even though it’s plain as fucking day.”

  Hadley and Clara turned to each other, each comprehending exactly what was going on. Neither could believe it, but they knew it was true. He was no copycat killer. He was their original abductor. He was alive and he was kicking. He looked no worse for wear and tear. And he seemed so happy to see her and Clara once again.

  “And you killed him,” he said. “You might not have pulled the trigger, or in this case, the skull crush, but you killed him.”

  They turned back to him. Yes. It was him. Right there. Plain as day. But the who, what, when and where of it all was still unknown.

  He hunkered down again and said, “Now this is what we’re going to do.”

  Something Was Amiss

  Once she’d entered her house, Clara knew something was amiss. She didn’t exactly know why she felt this way and only went on previous feelings of unease to guide her. She stepped inside and once she turned to close the door, catching a glimpse of Hadley on the phone to her husband, she felt a chill in the air. The chill was coming from her, from a premonition.

  Since her abduction, Clara had developed some odd habits. Or, maybe, she had developed some self-preservation tactics. Nevertheless, whenever she would come back to her house after being away, she would immediately go to the built-in entertainment center in the living room and pull out a gun from a drawer, a .38 revolver that had belonged to Ray. She’d do this even though she already had a gun in her purse. Armed, she would go through the entire house, room by room and check to make sure no one was there. Once she was finished, she’d go back to the front door, lock it, deadbolt it, then pull on the door handle to make sure it didn’t give. She’d then rearm the alarm. Then she’d go to all exterior doors—the French doors that led to the backyard and the garage door off the kitchen—and do the same. Once she was satisfied that no one was in her house and that it was secure, she’d put the gun back and she’d go about her business.

  On that day, she decided not to do this. She felt that if Hadley saw her, she’d think she was crazy. And she felt crazy for doing it, but it was a compulsion that she could never rid herself of. She felt a nominal amount of anxiety over not giving into her compulsion, but decided that if she kept feeling it, she’d tell Hadley she had to do it. And then she’d just let her judge her, even though she knew Hadley would not think anything bad of her for doing it. But she wanted to feel more secure and with the news of Jeremy Clemmons’ death, she felt like she needed to take a step in that direction, that it was only right that she did.

  When she had entered the house, nothing was amiss. But she felt a slight chill. But that’s all and she decided to not let it concern her. So, without thought, she threw her bag and keys down on the foyer table and was about to go back outside and see if the mail had run. But, instead of that, she decided to go into the kitchen and set the cheesecake out so it could acclimate a little before they ate it.

  She stopped off at the powder room, which was under the stairs and then headed to the kitchen. And, as she headed to the kitchen, she felt someone behind her. Thinking it was Hadley, she turned with a smile and was about to say something when he grabbed her around the neck and put her down. She awoke in her living room next to Hadley, bound and gagged. Once his big reveal was finished, she realized they’d all been had.

  Now she didn’t exactly know his plans, though she was sure it most likely consisted of throwing them into some old, dilapidated building out in the middle of nowhere and doing some major torture, but she knew her plan. Her plan was to attack as soon as he let her out of her confinement. And he would. He always had.

  Just looking at him made her so angry. But she wasn’t about to show that. She wanted him to think she was even weaker than she had been in the barn. She wanted him to think she was scared. She didn’t want him to suspect even for a moment that she’d been planning on this day since she’d been rescued.

  Her gut told her all along that Jeremy Clemmons wasn’t her abductor. However, her brain told her to forget it, to move on. That’s where she got tripped up. And for Jeremy Clemmons, she felt really bad. He was the fall guy in all this and the red herring. He was collateral damage. But there was no one to blame but this monster, who was standing right in front of her, grinning like he’d just been told the best news of his life and teeming to get his dirty hands on her.

  She’d just go along with him. For now. She didn’t protest when he told them what he planned on doing, telling them he just wanted to walk down memory lane with them, have some fun at their expense. She didn’t even fight when he took off her gag, slipped a pill into her mouth, then pushed a bot
tle of water over her mouth, forcing her to drink and to swallow the pill. She tried not to but he kept the water to her lips until she did. He did the same to Hadley and, in a matter of minutes, they both succumbed to unconsciousness.

  Well, You Three

  Hadley awoke in the back of Clara’s car. Clara was sitting right next to her, still asleep. They were both in their seatbelts and were covered with a wool blanket. But, as far as she could tell, neither one of them was bound. Her hands and feet were free. She realized he had to untie them from the chairs to get them into the car and, for whatever reason, he hadn’t tied them back up. This gave her a slight glimmer of hope.

  He was driving. Well, he was ordering from a fast-food drive-thru. Hadley peered at him, then at the restaurant, wondering if what she was seeing was real. It was. He was actually ordering food. She shook her head for a moment, wondering if he was just that stupid or if was pure ego that made him do something like this. But then, she let it go. She felt very, very tired and still sleepy.

  He’d told them to be smart and to not scream or make a big deal out of this. He had Clara’s gun he’d found in the drawer and he said he wasn’t afraid to use it. “I will blow your brains out,” he said. “So, just go along and, who knows? Maybe your two will survive this one as well.”

  Maybe.

  He was having trouble with his order and kept telling the clerk that he didn’t want mustard on his burger. They went back and forth for a minute or so, then he just yelled, “Just do it! I can’t continue on with this!”

  “Sir,” she said over the speaker. “I just want to get your order right.”

  “Then don’t put mustard on my burger,” he hissed. “Got it?”

  Hadley eyed him, hoping that whoever was preparing that burger would spit on it. He glanced in the rear-view mirror at her then smiled slightly.

  “So, you’re awake,” he said and pulled forward to the window. “I should have dosed you better.” He stopped then said, “Now you know not to make a fuss, don’t you?”

  Hadley didn’t respond and stared out the window, noticing it was really dark. She glanced around him towards the dash and saw the clock, which told her it was after ten. How long had they been out?

  “I know you won’t,” he said. “I bet you can’t even talk right now.”

  Hadley suddenly realized she couldn’t. Her lips felt like she’d just gone to the dentist for some major dental surgery, like she’d been pumped full of Novocain. In fact, her entire body felt like that. What kind of drug had he given them? Apparently enough to put down a small horse. She couldn’t even really open her mouth or move her arms at that point. So, that was that. How could she gesture at someone and tell them she and Clara were in trouble if she couldn’t even speak? As usual, he had every detail planned out. The sick bastard.

  He laughed harshly. “That’s what I thought,” he said, before asking, “Hey, do you want anything? They have good food here.”

  He laughed again, knowing full well she couldn’t reply. Hadley ignored him and just turned and stared out the window. She didn’t really know what to think or feel. She felt numb and the panic she’d experienced earlier just wasn’t there and all she felt was agitation and anger, almost as though she was having particularly bad PMS. She couldn’t ever remember being this angry before in her life. Ever! She wondered why that was, then she reasoned it was probably a side effect of the drug doing it to her. Well, at least I have that, she thought grimly, but then chastised herself for being in this position again. She just couldn’t believe it. This just really pissed her off. Here she was in his control again! Even though most of her body was numb, but slowly waking up and starting to tingle, she managed to feel the small knife in her pocket, her little good luck charm. She didn’t know if it was possible, but she hoped she could somehow manage to thwart him with the knife. It was her only defense.

  “More for me,” he said and retrieved his food from the clerk, who said something to him. “What was that?” he asked her.

  “Do they want anything?” she asked and stuck her head out of the window and stared at Clara and Hadley.

  “Oh, no, they’re fine,” he said. “Just drunk. I’m taking them home.”

  “Well, be careful,” she said and closed the window.

  “I most certainly will,” he said and winked at Hadley.

  Suddenly, her whole body began to tingle as the drug wore off and she began to come fully awake. It was almost too much to take. It felt like she had a few thousand tiny insects inside of her skin scurrying around, irritating her, agitating her. She almost cried out with the pain, but held it in. She wouldn’t give him the pleasure. But, soon enough, the drugs would wear off and she’d be able to defend herself. She hoped.

  She glared at him, feeling such a strong sense of hate she wanted to spit at him. The bastard was such an egomaniac. He thought he had both of them right where he wanted them. And, maybe, he did. She shuddered, thinking about that, but refused to allow her mind to go haywire. She had to stay strong, formulate a plan and then execute it. But what was she really going to do? All she had was her little knife. Could she save herself and Clara with it?

  “You know, I’ve never had any money,” he said as he pulled out of the restaurant parking lot and headed down the road and back to the interstate. “But then again, my hobby takes up way too much of my time.”

  Hadley narrowed her eyes at him as he laughed harshly. While he was the spitting image of Jeremy Clemmons, it was now easy for her to tell them apart and it came off in his demeanor. While Jeremy had been pleading for empathy from anyone who would listen, this man, whatever his name might be, was oddly confident. She remembered that about him. She remembered he’d just sort of swagger in before he’d begin his torture and he’d never hesitate, not even for a second would he reconsider what he was doing.

  As he chewed on his food, he said, “Want to hear my story? I can tell that you’re curious.”

  Hadley didn’t answer.

  “I can see you’re pissed,” he said and slurped at his milkshake, then shook his head. “Damn brain freeze! But I need to carb load, you know?” He winked at her through the rearview mirror.

  Hadley stared at him thinking that if she didn’t know him like she did, she’d think he was a complete idiot.

  “I just think it’s funny how you got that asshole Jeremy arrested,” he said. “Oh. Yeah. I dye my hair, you know, ’because he’s got darker hair, more of a dirty blonde. I’m more of a light blonde.” He stared at her again. “But you like a darker haired man, am I right?”

  Hadley thought about Huck and nearly snarled at him. He had no right to even mention him. She could just throttle him for that alone.

  “You got any questions you want to ask me?” he asked. “I mean, this is it for you, Hadley. You won’t be getting out of this alive. We can lay everything on the table. At least you can go to your grave knowing the truth about everything.”

  He had an ego, she’d give him that. And the arrogance of someone who should have been much, much cleverer. Though her lips still felt like they were ballooned up, she could talk now. So, she decided to do just that. “Yeah,” she managed to say. “I got a question. What was the deal with the drill?”

  He threw his head back and laughed loudly. He couldn’t stop, either. Finally, he calmed down and was able to say, though he was still laughing, “Just something I did to fuck with you. I found that old drill in the house. It didn’t even have a bit and it barely ran. Anyway, I turned it on one day and it freaked you out, I could tell. So, I kept doing it. I did it to fuck with you, just like I fucked with Clara by playing jazz music all the time.”

  Hadley glared at him. How she wanted to do him harm then, to hurt him, to seek revenge. That drill sound had nearly driven her crazy but, of course, that had been the entire point of it. What an asshole thing to do, she thought to herself. What a complete asshole he is. She was beyond enraged. She vowed to get him. She didn’t know how, bu
t she knew she had to figure out a way.

  “That’s such a weird thing to ask,” he said, shaking his head, his laughter subsiding. “I mean, come on. You can ask me anything and you ask me about the drill. Don’t waste your shot! Ask me something else! We never really got a chance to communicate. We can do that now.”

  “Fine,” she replied, the anger making her feel an odd sense of calm and vindication. “Why?”

  “Why what?”

  “Why do you do what you do?” she asked.

  “Oh, come on,” he said, shaking his head again, this time with irritation. “You’re smarter than that. I know you are!”

  She eyed him but didn’t respond.

  “Okay, fine,” he said and dug some French fries out of the bag and stuffed them into his mouth. As he chewed, he said, “I’ll tell you. It’s just I like beautiful women. That’s the secret. And me? A guy like me? A guy who is me? Well, I don’t stand a chance with women like you. That one beside you? Those legs? My God! I’d never get someone like her. She’s a genetic anomaly. I’d have to be a rich bastard to have her sleep with me.”

  Hadley wondered briefly if this was all bullshit. His reasoning? It sounded almost absurd. She glowered at him, thinking he was just a dumb fuck.

  “I could get a pretty girl, sure,” he said. “But one of you? Nah. Never. I ain’t got an English accent and a million-dollar smile like yours does.”

  Hadley turned and gave him a sharp look. Again, he was bringing up Huck. What nerve he had.

  “You think I don’t know all about him?” he asked. “I know everything. I know how he travels and all the places he’s been. I know how you two met, all that storybook romance shit. I look at all those sites on the internet that allow people to connect and communicate freely. It gives me lots of valuable information. I follow people. Well, I don’t follow them. I stalk them. It’s not as bad as it sounds.”