Cursed, Book One of The Devils Roses

by Tara Brown

  I smiled at her response but she bounced back taking a deep breath in and smiling softly, “You can keep him Aimee and the dress. Thank me later.” She batted her long false lashes at us and grabbed Blake by the belt buckle and dragged him through the crowd of people.

  “Can we go now?” Shane asked watching her walk away and be swallowed up by the crowd.

  I nodded taking my water and drinking it quickly.

  I looked over at Jaime, my sister’s friend. She held a glass in her hand leaning against the wall in the dining room. She was staring off into space and seemed to be swaying like she was on a boat and it wasn’t even ten o’clock yet.

  I felt my chest tighten as I recognized the look in her eyes, it was what I’d seen in the mirror after I’d been revived. She was either crazy drunk or she had been drugged. I looked at Shane who was talking with a guy named Murray. I tapped him lightly to interrupt and whispered, “I think the date rapist had struck again, does Jaime look like I did?”

  Shane looked around the room scanning for her, “Where is she?”

  I pointed to where she had been, “The dining room.”

  I didn’t see her anymore but I knew she couldn’t have gone very far.

  I walked though the foyer into the dining room and looked around. There were people everywhere, someone must have seen her leave.

  I asked a girl leaning against the wall Jaime had been leaning on, “Have you seen where Jaime went?” Her face grew perplexed as she looked around, “Was she in here?”

  “Yeah,” I sighed and walked back to Shane.

  He looked concerned, ‘is she okay?”

  I shrugged, “I couldn’t see her, I want to look around and see if she went out to the deck to throw up or something.” I walked away before he could talk me out of it. I held my breath as I entered the kitchen scowling at the idiots smoking on the deck as I peaked through the open doors. Jaime was nowhere to be found.

  I walked back to the dining room and went down the hallway I looked in each bedroom and bathroom but there wasn’t anyone around. I slipped down the stairs in the hallway to the basement almost literally as the stupid shoes caught on the carpet, which led to the garage and guest bathroom and bedroom.

  The hall was dark and the loud music made it impossible to hear anyone so I didn’t bother yelling for her.

  I peaked into the bathroom but it was empty, “Probably peeing outside, the dirty savages.” I muttered to myself.

  I opened the guest bedroom door to see struggling on the bed, I panicked flicking on the lights, “Get off her!” I shouted.

  Michelle Mitchell, the hostess and her boyfriend scowled at me, “Turn out the lights pervert.”

  I nodded flicking them off and locking the door from the inside before closing it.

  I took a deep breath as I stared at the closed wooden door, I would always be the girl who walked in on them. I nodded to myself and continued down the dark hallway. I felt like Nancy Drew but maybe a little sleazier looking in my red dress. I opened the door to the garage and reached my hand into the darkness feeling along side the wall until I found the light switch.

  “Aimee.” I jumped turning as the lights flicked on to see Aleks standing in the hall outside Michelle's guest room.

  He was frowning at me but his white blue eyes were all I noticed. I smiled at him, “Hey Aleks. What are you doing here?”

  “Worrying about you and the reckless things you do when I’m not around. What are you doing down the dark hallway of the house party full of drunk teenagers dressed like that?” He scolded me as he walked toward me.

  I laughed looking into the garage, “I’m fine but I will admit I’m glad you’re here, this garage is spooky. I’m sure Jaime, my sisters' friend, has been drugged so I’m looking for her. If she's not drugged she's drunk off her ass and that's probably not safe with a pervert on the loose.”

  The garage was empty but the door to outside on the far wall was opened just a sliver making a whistling sound.

  “Let me go first.” Aleks walked into the garage looking around at the tools and motorcycle. He grabbed a crowbar off of the bench where tools were scattered and crept through the open door. The cool night air was full of crickets and frogs singing. I looked around waiting for my eyes to adjust to the dark of the backyard. Aleks put his hand out for mine, I looked at it feeling guilty about Shane but took the hand. I felt the sizzle of our skin touching and wondered if he ever felt it too or if I was the only one falling. I rationalized holding his hand as a safety precaution and reminded myself he would be gone in a few short weeks where as Shane would be with me at least to the end of the summer.

  Our feet made little to no noise on the slightly damp grass as we looked around scanning the back yard.

  I heard a rustling and a muffled sound to my right down the grass a ways.

  Aleks looked at me, “Stay here,” I shook my head pleading with my eyes. I was terrified.

  He sighed resigning himself to the fact I needed to come. He let go of my hand put his pointer finger to his lips, I nodded.

  He walked with the crowbar in his hands toward the sound. I crept along behind him nearly peeing my pants, or panties rather, damned dress.

  We heard more trees and branches moving to the right of us in the small patch of bush next to Michelle’s house. It was more like brush in between the houses for privacy as apposed to a forest.

  I heard a crying sound and walked toward it as Aleks took off running after the other sound.

  I looked trying desperately to see but the moon had not come out to help out with the light.

  “Jaime is that you?” I whispered angry that Aleks had left me to wander alone through the brush but hoping he caught whoever had dragged Jaime into the bushes.

  She was on the ground in a small clearing with her shirt torn open. I could barely see in the dark but I reached for her, she was on her stomach and her face was covered in vomit.

  “Help us, someone help us please.” I called out into the night. I was scared giving away my location like that but I was even more scared that Jaime had been drugged with the bad batch of drugs I had been given. I was also certain she had been at least partially raped by the look of her pale legs parted and her skirt up to her waist. I pulled the skirt down tucking it around her naked bum and felt like throwing up again.

  “Please help me. Someone.” I started to cry I was so scared, I was not the right person to be handling this moment.

  “Jaime its okay, someone will come and help you.”

  The potheads started looking over the railing, “Hey you down there are you okay?” One stoner asked.

  I sobbed, “Call nine one one and tell them we need police and ambulance.”

  “Okay man. Is someone hurt?” He asked again, no one on the deck appeared to be moving.

  “JUST FUCKING PHONE.” I screamed.

  “Okay god, she’s kinda bitchy.” Pothead one spoke slowly.

  “Who is that?” Pothead two muttered.

  I sat on the grass certain my leg was brushing against her vomit but I turned her on her side and pulled her clothes around her more.

  Someone came running down the yard, “Aimee?” Shane cried out into the night panicked.

  “I’m here.” I spoke softly.

  “Oh my god Aimee are you okay?” his voice was stricken with grief.

  I nodded even though he couldn’t see me, “Yeah. Its Jaime.”

  He knelt on the ground beside me and touched my shoulder, “I was so scared when you left. I thought you were going to look in the kitchen I didn’t know you were leaving the house.”

  He took his shirt off and wrapped it around Jaime, he picked her up and carried her up to the house. I followed him around the side to the front yard. Kids were streaming from the house now, some running from the front door hoping not to be busted by the cops for underage drinking and others trying to figure out what was going on since the yard was filling with emergency lights.

  The ambulance was there f
irst, rolling into the driveway very slowly so as not to hit any of the kids mulling about.

  I had grabbed Jaime’s hand when her head went floppy against Shane’s bare chest. The outside lights flicked on and Michelle came running out in a panic, “What’s going on, who called the cops?” She seemed very angry shouting at the men getting out of the ambulance, “Get off my property. You need a warrant to come on here.” They ignored her completely as they walked to where Shane was holding Jaime.

  Michelle froze watching a stretcher be carried to where Jaime was and the men start to work on her. Shane put her down gingerly on the stretcher and stepped back as a blanket covered Jaime but I couldn’t get the vision of her two white legs stretched out behind her in the dark woods. I imagined it was going to take me sometime before I got past that moment. Shane spoke softly to the two paramedics no doubt explaining the situation with care so no one else would hear.

  He walked to me and put his arm around me, we both smelled of her vomit and were covered in dirt.

  We watched as they took Jaime away, the police had arrived and were asking questions of the paramedics who pointed in our direction.

  Constable Bindley and Corporal Williams made their way to us with grim looks on their faces.

  “Aimee and Shane want to come with me, the rest of the guys are going to stay here and take pictures and talk to what kids are left.” The corporal asked.

  I nodded as Shane spoke, “You want to see where we found her?”

  Williams nodded, “Yup and the exact path you took to get her here.”

  Shane pointed, “I came around the side of the house this way, and walked up the grass from the back yard.”

  Williams pulled out a huge long black flashlight that looked more like a baseball bat and clicked it on, he walked around where Shane told him. He looked down at the ground carefully the entire way down the back lawn.

  “Who found her?” He asked softly as we walked back to the spot slowly so he could look around.

  I cleared my throat, “I did. I saw her at the party, she looked bad. I just knew something was wrong. I ran around looking for her for about fifteen minutes and I ran into Aleks-“

  “He was here?” Shane asked roughly.

  I nodded, “Yeah I met up with him on my search for Jaime. He came with me. We were walking down here and when we got to about here,” I stopped and pointed to the bush, “We heard a noise there. Aleks ran after who ever it was with a crow bar-“ I stopped suddenly realizing he had never come back. I felt my eyes widen as I spoke, “He never came back. Do you think he’s okay?”

  Williams shook his head, “No, either way he’s in trouble now. He’s probably looking at an assault charge now. He probably never came back when he saw the lights. Who is this Aleks?”

  Shane crossed his bare arms looking at me defiantly, “Yes who is he?”

  I shrugged, “He’s a social worker of some sort from the city working here for a family he stays with to help.”

  Williams shook his head, “If he comes near you again Aimee you need to phone me right away. There is no such thing as a social worker from the city coming to a small town. We have our own here, they are a government worker like me. They work where they’re assigned. He’s a suspect right now and I want you to treat him as such. What’s he look like?”

  I gulped as Shane started spewing out the facts, “Tall like me, white like me, built like me, blue eyes, dark blond hair shorter than mine, clean cut. That’s what all the women in town say anyway.” He spoke through his teeth.

  Williams clicked on the radio at his collar, “Dispatch I need a BOLO put out on a young man early twenties late teens, Caucasian, dark blond hair, blue eyes, six foot two, muscular build, seen fleeing from 1942 Elder grove road-“

  “Black jacket and blue jeans.” My voice was hollow.

  “Seen wearing a black jacket and blue jeans.” I pointed to the woods as he finished, “It was right here.” I didn’t want to walk back in there, Shane put an arm around me as Williams walked very carefully into the brush. He stopped when he reached the spot.

  Bindley came down the yard, “Corporal you need anything?”

  “Yup I need some lights and some pictures.” His voice was solid and steady and I wondered how he did it. I was sickened just guessing what had happened, he was going to have to pick it all apart until he got a story from all the gory details.

  When Bindley and a few other police officers came down Williams looked at Shane and I, “Okay you two we are going to need some statements. You know how this works. Shane take her home and we will meet at her house in twenty minutes.”

  “Sounds good.”

  Home did sound good, retelling the disgusting story however did not.

  My dad rubbed my shoulders while my sister sat on the couch staring at me horrified as I told every moment of the party. I left nothing out including whom I had seen there. Counting Aleks who was now wanted in questioning. I had disputed his involvement in her attack as he had been with me while someone was obviously attacking her but the Corporal and Shane had both agreed he could have been an accomplice. I disagreed and asked if he had been an accomplice why would he have brought me right to the scene of the crime to which they both agreed he did it to clear his name. It did seem off that he had been at both paces when the drugging happened and it seemed even more off that the only person who saw him was I. He had lied to me about saving my life, I remembered that at the very least. I had assumed it was because he didn’t want me to know he had seen me naked but now I worried it was because he was what they said.

  I went to bed that night after taking the longest shower in recorded history and throwing the red dress out feeling no remorse for its untimely death. My head whirled around and around playing the same pictures and what ifs until finally I fell asleep.

  I woke feeling more tired than I had been when I fell asleep. I looked at the time and realized I had been asked to come down to the police detachment to look at some pictures of criminals at eleven, which it was six minutes to. I jumped out of bed feeling woozy as if I would black out. I sat back on my bed as the stars from eyes cleared and I almost got sick all over my floor. I took a few deep breaths and got up slowly to get dressed.

  My dad got a worried look on his face when he saw me, “You look funny kiddo. You really tired still?”

  I nodded yawning, “Yeah I am exhausted. What time did I go to bed?”

  He looked at the clock, “Twelve hours ago, this must be draining you all this craziness. You ready to go, Shane just pulled up?”

  I looked out the window to see his truck and walked over to my shoes, “Yeah. I really don’t want to do this. I know Aleks isn’t a bad guy. I have better instincts than that.”

  My dad smiled, it was weak and not even close to convincing, “You are a smart girl but I think some of the darker elements in our world can fool even the wisest of us all. When you get home its bed for a couple days okay?”

  I nodded.

  He passed me a banana as I walked out the door.

  I hadn’t been eating again and I could feel the weight falling off of me after only a few days. The stress was bad for my health.

  Shane got out and opened the door for me, “You look beat Aims. After this is over I think you need some serious rest. The big dance is on Friday.”

  I scowled not realizing so much time had past since the whole poisoning thing, “I think they should cancel it what with everything that’s going on don’t you?”

  He shook his head, “No normal is what we need right now. They just need to make sure the security is upped.”

  We didn’t really speak on the ride over, I was annoyed and feeling very sour. I flipped down the sun visor to look at the mirror on the back of it. I did look awful, huge bags under my eyes and puffy eyelids. My lips even looked a bit swollen.

  I glanced at Shane, I didn’t know what to do about my feelings for him, I didn’t know what they were anymore.

  We went inside the first door
of the small brown building to a waiting area surrounded by Plexiglas and watched as a woman about thirty five gave us the most fake smile ever, “Hi there what can I do for you?” She had straight brown hair and too much makeup on. She looked more like she was fishing for a cop than working for them. I wondered how many single women a year took that kind of job just to hook herself a cop. Her low cut sweater revealed her tan line from a string bikini and her dark lacy bra. I looked at Shane who was making a very serious effort at looking her deeply in the eyes as he spoke, “Shane Bagley and Aimee James to see the corporal.”

  She nodded smirking at him while picking up the phone, dirty cougar. I felt my hackles come up watching her eyeball him like he was a piece of meat. She saw my scowl as she hung up and pushed a button to release the lock on the second iron door.