Girl in Trouble

by Stacy Claflin

  "I'm going to need your boss's contact information."

  Alex snorted. "Good luck getting anything from him, but sure." He reached for his phone and texted Nick the information. "Why do you think Flynn hurt Macy instead of me?"

  "Probably figured that would scare you more. I'm going to give Darren a call."

  Alex couldn't help but find a little humor in imagining his boss getting a call from a police captain about Alex.

  He grabbed his phone from the desk and headed out to the parking lot. He sat in the car and ran through everything in his mind for close to ten minutes before heading home. As soon as he got out of the car, he received a new text.

  If you did what I think you did, you're going to regret it.

  Broken

  Ariana watched as the Volvo disappeared from sight. Finally. She was beginning to think Lloyd would never leave.

  He had to go in to work, so he would be gone long enough for her to make her escape. She'd seen enough of the house to make her way to an exit quickly. Even if alarms blared, she would have plenty of time to get away. He would still have to drive back to the house, and by then, she'd be hiding in the woods.

  She watched for another few minutes to make sure he didn't return. It wouldn't have surprised her if he knew something was up, and he was testing her. He hadn't seemed to notice the door was unlocked before, but that didn't mean anything. Ariana knew enough to be prepared for the worst—she was already kidnapped. She knew about things getting worse.

  Finally, she was convinced Lloyd wasn't coming back soon. She went to the dollhouse and dug out the bobby pins and the knife. If only she knew exactly what she'd done to unlock the door last time. It had been more of an accident than anything. Either way, she would do it again.

  Ariana jimmied the knife into the door jam near the lock. She was pretty sure it had been like that when she managed to unlock the door. She put a bobby pin in, aiming it low. Then she grabbed the second one, and stuck it in, aiming that one higher.

  She wiggled and jiggled the top one, then the bottom, then both at the same time.

  Nothing happened.

  What had she done before?

  Heart racing, she moved everything around without any particular method. That was what had worked last time. It would have to do the job now, too. Somehow.

  After a few more minutes of playing around…

  Snap.

  She squealed and let go of everything. It had worked again!

  Wait? It wasn't supposed to snap. It was supposed to click.

  Ariana pulled the knife out. It was fine. She pulled out the top bobby pin. It was okay. Bent in a funny angle, maybe, but fine. She pulled on the other one, but it resisted. She tugged a little harder.

  It came out, but not all of it. Part of the lower half had broken off.

  She turned the knob and pulled. It didn't budge.

  Maybe she could still get it unlocked. Ariana put the two pins back into place and moved them up and down, back and forth.

  Nothing. Again.

  Would she need to get the broken piece out for it to work?

  Dread washed through her. Could she even do that? The piece was so tiny and she wouldn't know how to pull it out.

  What if that piece kept the lock from turning on Lloyd's end? Then he'd know she'd done something to it.

  Panic-stricken, she shoved one of the pins in, aiming it as low as she could, hoping to get under the broken piece. Then maybe she could bring it out. She had to.

  What would Lloyd do if he knew she was trying to escape?

  She couldn't let that happen—she didn't want to find out what he would do. It was already bad enough.

  Ariana kept working on the bobby pin, growing more tired and frantic as time passed. The light coming in through the window started to fade.

  Lloyd would be back soon.

  Tears blurred her vision. She'd really hoped that she'd have been long gone by the time he came home. Now it looked like that wouldn't even happen. She tried to get the pin out again, but her hands shook, and she couldn't see through the tears.

  She slumped to the ground and cried. Would she ever be able to get out? Was she stupid for trying? For hoping?

  Gravel crunched under tires outside.

  Careful

  Alex parked a block away from the library and walked, pretending to be involved in a texting conversation. In reality, he was glancing around for anyone who might be watching him—namely Flynn. But with as much as Flynn seemed to know, he couldn't be working alone. He had to have been getting help from someone. He certainly had enough money to hire a fleet of private investigators.

  That was the only thing that explained how he knew Alex's every move.

  He stopped in front of the library entrance and looked around, making a show of it. Nick's car was parked right in front. Good.

  Either Flynn or one of his men had to be following Alex. He'd made it more than clear that he was meeting Nick. He'd not only texted but emailed him.

  More than anything, Alex wanted to draw out the weasel. Unfortunately, he couldn't see anyone. As far as he could tell, all the vehicles in the parking lot were empty. A breeze blew by, the leaves rustling as they bumped across the parking lot.

  Everything was all too normal for the quiet, boring suburb.

  Alex waited a full minute before finally going inside. It was probably better that he speak with Nick first, anyway. He found the captain near the back, flipping through a stack of papers. Alex went over and sat next to him.

  Nick glanced up. "What couldn't you tell me over the phone that was so urgent it required a text and an email?"

  Alex pulled out his phone and showed him the text.

  "What did you do?" Nick asked.

  "You can't figure it out?"

  "He knows you told me?"

  "Apparently he put two and two together when I went to the station."

  Nick swore. A lady with two small kids at the next table glared at him.

  "Sorry," Nick said and turned back to Alex. "Did he give you a specific threat?"

  "Like saying he'd go after my sister? Nope. Just this one."

  "We're obviously getting close."

  "Not close enough," Alex muttered.

  "Too much for his comfort. That's good. It tells me to keep going down the path we're on. Any update on Macy?"

  Alex shook his head and sighed. It sickened him to think of her lying in the bed like a vegetable. "She's going to be there for a while."

  Nick's phone beeped. He checked it. "I have to get back to the station. If you get anymore threats, forward them immediately. Don't meet me, just tell me."

  "What should I—?"

  "Doesn't matter. I'll know what you mean." He shoved a couple files over to Alex. "Look these over and get them back to me."

  "What are they?"

  "Something I think you'll find interesting."

  Alex slid off his coat and slung it over the back of the chair. He stared at the faded tan file folder for a moment before opening it. Old, yellowing pages filled it.

  Curious, he flipped through the pages. He stopped at an old, faded picture of a girl that looked like Ariana—not that it was much of a surprise, given the thirty other missing girls who resembled her so closely.

  There was something different about this file, though.

  It wasn't a missing child case. The file was dated thirty-five years ago and the thirteen-year-old girl had been found in a lake in Montana by her mother on the evening of Halloween. She'd left the house without telling her parents and had run around the neighborhood with some older teens. Her brother had found her body and ran home to tell his parents.

  His name was blacked out, but hers wasn't: Janet Vassman.

  Alex flipped through the pages, trying to make a connection to missing girls and Janet. Nothing made sense. Unless…

  Could Nick be right about the other cases being copycats of this one?

  His head spun as he tried to make sense of it all.
>
  That had to be it. It was the only explanation. The missing girls had started five years later and continued for thirty years. Why else would Nick hand him the file?

  He went through each page, reading every painful detail. Not much was known about who Janet had been with on her final night. Only that she'd defied her parents and wound up dead. Nobody had ever been charged with any wrongdoing.

  Alex turned one more page and saw pictures of the bloated body. His stomach lurched. He turned and threw up on the library floor.

  Leak

  Alex held onto the file, eager to give it back to Nick, but first he needed to see if he could find the spy. He went outside and glanced around. Just as before, he saw no one. Either Flynn or the investigator was good at hiding, or Flynn was busy plotting his next evil move.

  Alex's stomach still felt weak. It was probably better he didn't have to confront a killer. He looked around again just to be sure and then headed down the street for his car. He expected the tires to be slashed or the windows broken, but it looked exactly as he'd left it.

  That was almost worse. It made him wonder what was coming. He walked around the car using his cell phone's flashlight, looking all around. Once he was fairly certain everything was fine, he slowly opened the driver's side door. It opened as usual, even creaking where it normally did.

  He climbed in and rubbed the back of his neck. It ached and radiated up to his head. He really wanted a drink, too, but that would have to wait. There was too much to do, and besides, once Ariana was back, he didn't want to be a drunk. Alex wanted to turn everything around in his life, including living here in town, even if that meant a higher rent or living with his parents for a while.

  Just as he was about to start the car, his phone buzzed with a text. There it was. His new threat.

  Actually, it was from Nick, telling him to get down to the station right away.

  Alex started the car and wondered what the problem was—had Flynn moved to threatening the police captain? Or was it something else altogether? Nick might just want the file back.

  He headed over, and as was becoming his custom, Alex walked by the desk straight to Nick's office.

  "What's going on?"

  Nick glanced up. His hair stuck out in different directions like he'd been pulling at it and his face was flushed.

  Alex dropped the file on the desk. "It's all here."

  "It's not that. Did you hear?"

  "What?" Alex exclaimed.

  Nick turned his laptop toward Alex. A livestream played with a reporter standing out in the wind outside the Ball Palace.

  Alex grasped the edge of the desk. "What? Did they find her?"

  Without a word, Nick turned up the volume.

  "…possibly the worst serial killer the nation has ever seen. Thirty victims over thirty years, and he's continuing to get away with it. Now he has Ariana Nakano, and Halloween's only a few days away." Nick muted the volume and turned to Alex.

  Alex's mouth dropped. "I thought we were going to keep this away from the media."

  "That's what I thought, too. Any idea how this was leaked?" Nick narrowed his eyes.

  "Wait a minute." Alex backed up. "You think I had anything to do with it?"

  "The only people who know about this are you and those of us on the case."

  "Macy was helping me look into it, but she wouldn't say anything. Neither would Zoey."

  Nick pulled on his hair. "Anyone else know about this? Before the media circus, I mean."

  "Just them."

  "Every advantage we have is out the window." Nick jumped from his chair. "I want to find out who leaked this and wring their neck!"

  "Well, it wasn't me. I was busy throwing up on the library floor."

  Nick gave him a double take.

  "I saw the picture of the first girl's body. It made me think of Ariana." Alex's stomach churned again. "I—" He grasped his middle.

  "Don't puke in here."

  Alex took a deep breath and focused on Nick. "I'll be okay. I just have to get that image out of my head."

  "We'll get her back. Any more threats?"

  "Nope."

  Nick sat back down. "I really wanted to have the element of surprise on our side. It's going to be a lot harder now that the killer knows what we know."

  "He doesn't necessarily know you know about the threats. We could use that."

  "It's not the same." Nick stared at the screen. "Everyone's talking about this. It's everywhere."

  "I'm sure it is," Alex muttered. That was also probably why Flynn didn't appear to have been following Alex when he met Nick.

  "Go get some sleep. You look like you need it. I'll call you if anything changes."

  Alex looked up and stared at him. "What's the plan now?"

  "I need to talk with Williams and the rest of the crew. They want to know if you leaked it. I knew you didn't, but I had to ask."

  "Was it a cop?"

  "I sure hope not, but I can't rule it out." He got up. "Look, like I said, get some rest. You're going to need it as Halloween comes closer. I'll call you if anything important comes up. In the meantime, support your sister and let me know if you get another threat."

  "Okay." Alex headed for the door.

  "And do yourself a favor—stay away from the media."

  "Why? Is there something you don't want me hearing?"

  "Nothing new. You just don't need the distraction."

  Nick gave a nod, closed the office door behind them, and went down the hall. Alex went in the other direction and headed for the parking lot. If Flynn wasn't glued to the news coverage, then he would know Alex had been talking with the cops.

  Alex waved to anyone who might be watching and then climbed into his car.

  Escape

  Ariana stared at the moon through the clouds. It seemed like every time the wind blew, it got covered up. She'd been standing by the window for what felt like hours. Her heart hadn't stopped racing since Lloyd got home. She thought for sure he would know she'd been playing with the lock.

  He didn't notice.

  When he unlocked the door, it worked just as it should. The broken bobby pin hadn't done anything. He'd also been harried from his job and hadn't noticed Ariana's stress. They'd had a quiet meal, and then he had her go back to the room.

  The house had been quiet for hours. Ariana wanted to try to get out another time. She thought Lloyd must be asleep, but couldn't know for sure. What if he was awake downstairs, and she just couldn't hear him?

  She watched the wind and the clouds for a little while longer, but couldn't relax. The woods seemed to call her, begging her to make her escape. She'd wanted to be long gone by now, but she was still locked in the room.

  Ariana went to the door and pressed her ear to it. Everything was quiet out there. She squatted and pressed her ear against the fuzzy carpet. She couldn't hear anything.

  Her heart raced. Maybe she should try one more time. She sat up and eyed the dollhouse that once more hid her escape tools.

  Did she dare? Lloyd was home, but then again, who knew when he would leave next? He'd mumbled something about working from home. She might not have another chance while he was out for some time.

  Ariana took a deep breath to try and calm her racing heart. She needed to at least try. Maybe the other bobby pin would break. If it did, she would take that as her sign to stop trying—at least for now. She might need to find some new bobby pins later, but she wouldn't ever quit trying.

  She tip-toed over to the dollhouse and lifted it, practically like an expert. Heart racing, she slid the items out and crept over to the door. She took another deep breath and got everything into position, extra-careful to be quiet. The pins seemed so loud next to her ear, but she knew Lloyd couldn't hear them from wherever he was.

  The bobby pins slid in easily, and Ariana adjusted them so one was up and the other down. She jiggled them just so, holding her breath.

  Click.

  She froze in place. Had she heard that right
?

  Ariana set the knife and pins down and rested her hand on the doorknob. Her pulse drummed in her ears.

  Was this it? Would it open?

  The room seemed to spin around her. She struggled to breathe normally—she needed to. If Lloyd was awake, she had to be able to hear him, but right now, all she could hear was the sounds of her own heart thundering like a pack of wild horses running through a field.

  Ariana forced a deep breath, then another and another until she could hear normally again. She pressed her ear against the door. Everything still sounded quiet. She listened to the floor, and couldn't hear a sound.

  This was her chance.

  She made sure the old sneakers were laced tightly and double-knotted the ties just to be sure. There would be no time for stumbling over those.

  Ariana grabbed the doorknob and twisted. It creaked a little as it turned, but it did turn. She pulled the door open, half-expecting to find Lloyd standing there, staring at her.

  The hall was empty and quiet. Dark, too, but at least her eyes were already adjusted.

  She stepped out of the room and tip-toed down the hall, aware of every magnified sound. A wall clock clicked as the minute changed. The heaters rumbled, pressing air out of old heater units. But there were no footsteps, voices, or doors opening.

  Ariana held her breath, reminding herself to breathe every so often. She came to the stairs leading down to the nice living areas.

  This might be the hardest part. With as nice as everything was down there, there had to be an alarm on the doors. It wouldn't have even surprised her if there were red lasers shooting out from every direction on the floor—but that was probably her overactive imagination.

  She crept to the top stair and glanced down. Everything was dark there, too. Hopefully, that meant Lloyd was sound asleep. She put her foot on the first step, testing it. It didn't creak, nor did sirens wail. She tried the next few just as carefully, finding them all to be safe.

  By the fourth one, she was relatively sure the staircase was safe. She hurried down the rest and stopped at the last step, looking around. Nothing seemed dangerous—she didn't see any blinking lights or cameras or anything suspicious.