I can’t help it, I can’t just let her go. I need an explanation. As I get closer to her apartment I feel that familiar, comforting anger welling up inside me. I let myself lean into it. I imagine her opening the door and what I’d say to her. How she’d feel when I told her that my grandfather died and she hadn’t even bothered to pick up the phone. I imagine with sick pleasure the way her face would fall.
I can’t help myself. Being mad is easy, it’s painless. If I’m mad at her I’m not thinking about Pop, or my life without him. Instead, I imagine Izzy stewing in her own guilt as I tell her she’s let me down. I’ll tell her exactly what I think of her and her family. She’s no better than the rest of them.
I’ll never speak to her again after tonight, not if I can help it. I’ll let the lawyers figure out the estate and the inheritance. Even if we have to show up somewhere together I’ll never even exchange pleasantries with her. She told me she’d be there, and she wasn’t. She proved to me that she doesn’t care about me, about Pop, about anyone. She lied to me and made me trust her and then abandoned me when I needed her most.
I can’t believe let her into my life.
I round the final corner towards her building and feel my heart start to pump. I start formulating what I’m going to say to her, coming up with a script for telling her every single way she’s hurt me and disappointed me and let me down. As I drive down the road I see some blue and red lights flashing in the distance. Instinctively, I slow down as I approach. As I get closer, my stomach starts to drop.
That little voice in my head starts screaming.
She didn’t abandon me, something’s happened. Still, I don’t let myself believe it. It’s not until I pull up to her building and see police officers moving in and out. There’s three police cruisers outside. My mouth goes dry and all of a sudden all I can hear is the pounding of my heartbeat in my ears. I park the car and get out, jogging towards the policemen.
“What’s going on? My girl- my wife lives here! I mean, we live here! I mean,” I shake my head try to compose myself as the police officer looks at me in confusion. I take a deep breath. “Officer, what’s going on? My girlfriend, Izzy Daniels, she lives here. Is she ok?”
“She’s your girlfriend?” He asks.
“Yeah, she was supposed to come to the hospital, my grandfather…” I trail off. “She never showed up. Is she ok?”
“There’s been an incident.”
My veins are burning and the panic starts to swell in my chest. Why won’t he tell me what’s going on!!
“What’s going on? Where is she? Is she ok? What kind of incident?”
“Sir, calm down. Do you know her sister?”
“Jess? I just met her today, the three of us went to see Cirque du Soleil together. Is Jess ok?”
The thought of it being Jess who’s hurt, and not Izzy makes me feel relieved. I immediately feel guilty at the thought, but thinking of Izzy in pain is too much to bear.
“Do you know Isabelle and Jess’s mother?”
I frown and almost take a step back out of shock when he asks the question.
“Their mother? I haven’t seen her in ten years. What does she have to do with this?”
“Where have you been for the past six hours?”
“I’ve been at the hospital, with my grandfather! I told you, Izzy was supposed to come!” Why won’t he listen! Why won’t he tell me what’s going on. He pulls out a small notebook and jots down a few notes.
“Jess has gone missing. Isabelle suffered a head wound and is being treated at the hospital.”
“WHAT.” I turn around towards my car and then back to the officer. “Which hospital?! I need to go!”
“Sir, please calm down. She’s being taken care of. We’ll need to take you into the station to make sure your story checks out, and to see if you know anything about this incident.”
“If my story checks out?!” I ask incredulously. “Are you arresting me?!”
“We just need to eliminate you from the investigation,” he says sternly. “Sir, a kidnapping is extremely serious, and time-“
“Kidnapping?! You said she’d gone missing!”
“If you’ll follow me, we’ll head to the station. Shouldn’t take long and then you will be free to go see Ms. Daniels.”
Reluctantly, I follow the officer. They put me in the back of the police cruiser and I lean back, taking a deep breath.
This whole time I’ve bene cursing her name. I’ve been blaming Izzy for not being there for me when it was me who wasn’t here for her! A head wound?! And Jess is gone!?
My head is spinning. I can’t see straight. Who would kidnap Jess? Is Izzy involved in something I don’t know about?
The police cruiser winds through the streets and I tap my foot impatiently, willing us to go faster. For some reason, my mind jumps back to the accident with my own family. Izzy’s family was involved. Her mother is the one who crashed the car! What if this is some sick twist of fate that just as I lose the last of my family, she’s losing hers.
I can’t let that happen. I can’t let her go through what I went through. Jess is the world to her. And Izzy is my world.
Suddenly, Pop’s words pass through my mind. She loves you, he said. I realise with gravity that those were the last words he spoke to me. The last words he spoke at all! He used his dying words to tell me to keep her close to me, to take care of her. And what did I do? I selfishly blamed her for not being there for me and ignored the possibility that she was in trouble. I could have checked on her hours ago. Maybe I could have stopped this whole thing from happening!
I think of the last text I sent her and the shame makes my cheeks burn. I hope she didn’t see it. If she saw it when she was going through that, right after Jess disappeared…
I close my eyes and lean back in the car. I’ll make this right. I have to. I have no one else left to live for.
Chapter 39 - Izzy
There are tubes sticking out of me in a dozen different places and my head is still splitting. A older friendly-looking nurse is checking the instruments beside the bed, jotting down some readings.
“Where am I?”
“You’re in the New York Presbyterian Hospital, dear. You’ve hurt your head, so just take it easy.”
The hospital. My head. The hit. Like a tidal wave, the memories of the events earlier start flooding my head. I try to sit up, grabbing at the tubes in my arm. I pull at them, trying to dislodge them from my arm. Jess! I need to find her. I need to get out of here. My heart starts beating like crazy and I feel my head spinning. I need to get out of here. Jess is with her. The most evil person I’ve ever known in my life. I need to get to her, to save her from our mother.
“I need to go, Jess, she needs me, she’s gone, I need to go -“ I keep talking frantically as the nurse rushes over and tries to restrain me. She calls for help and holds me down, pinning my arms by my side. I’m thrashing, kicking my legs as a scream rips through my throat. She’s yelling at me but I can’t make out the words. I need to get out of here! All I can feel are her strong arms holding me down and the sense of panic rising in my throat. Jess!
All of a sudden they’re injecting something into my IV. It travels up my arm like a cold stream and it immediately makes my body relax. I let my legs fall down on the bed and I feel my whole body sink into the mattress. My speech slows down and I can’t make words anymore.
“Jess… Jess…”
The nurse lets go of my arms. I glance over and try to focus on her but she’s just a fuzzy outline now. I’ve lost control of my own body. It looks like she has her hands on her hips as she looks at me.
“The police are looking for her, you need to focus on getting better, you hear me?” The nurse leans down to speak in my ear, patting my pillows and making sure all the medical equipment is still in place. Darkness starts creeping into the edges of my vision and I look over at her.
“My sister…”
“I know, dear. The police will come talk to you as soon as you wake up. Don’t go trying to run away on us again, ok? You just have a little rest now.”
“Jess…”
I keep saying her name over and over until the words mumble together and everything goes dark once again.
***
When I regain consciousness I’m alone. It’s bright out, too bright. My mouth is parched and my limbs feel like they’re made of lead. I try to move my head and my neck is stiff and aching. I groan.
The pain in my head has dulled to an ache. I squint and try to get used to the brightness of the room, licking my lips to try to get some moisture to them. Slowly, my eyes adjust to the light.
I’m in a hospital room. There’s a bed next to me with a snoring older man in it. I can see his stomach moving up and down as he sleeps. I squint, trying to make out his face but my eyes are still too sensitive. In front of me, on the wall, is an old TV and a framed picture of a vase of flowers. The window is to my right, with a small table and chairs underneath it. I can’t look directly at the window, the light sends shooting pain to the very centre of my head.
I try to lift myself up and groan. My whole body feels like it’s been run over by a truck. My hand touches something hard and plastic - a remote. I squint again and look at it, seeing controls for the bed. I press a button and the bed starts going up, getting me to a seated position. Someone’s left a small glass of water on the table next to me. I reach over and groan again as the movement sends an ache through my side.
The water hits my lips and fills my mouth and I almost moan. It feels so good. I swish it around and close my eyes as the moisture returns to my mouth. I swallow and relish the feeling of the liquid going down my throat.
Finally after what seems like an eternity, I can open my eyes completely and look around. I look down at my hand and see an IV tube stuck in it. I’m not restrained, which is good. I lean back and close my eyes.
Jess.
She’s taken Jess. Even the thought of it makes my head start to hurt. I take a deep breath and try to remember everything that happened. The apartment, my mother standing there, Jess behind me, the lamp. Slowly the memories start coming back, but I still don’t know where Jess would be.
Dave. He’s mad at me. I saw his text - what did it say? He won’t talk to me. The thought makes my heart ache even more. I’ve lost my sister and now the only other person that’s brought joy to my life won’t talk to me. Looking around the room, I can’t see my phone or my clothes or anything that belongs to me. I can’t contact him or try to call Jess or do anything except sit her and wait.
I feel empty, like the inside of my body has been scooped out and all that’s left are aches and pains. I don’t know if it’s exhaustion or the drugs or the head trauma or the knowledge that my little sister is gone, but I know that I feel numb. I can’t cry or scream or do anything except try to remember exactly what happened.
I hear the door open and I slowly open my eyes, turning my head to glance that way. A tall, burly-looking older man steps through.
“Miss Daniels,” he says slowly. “I’m Detective Jenkins and this is my partner, Detective Roberts.” He points to a woman who follows him in. She has dark hair, slicked back in a low pony tail. She nods at me.
Jenkins continues. “We’d like to ask you a few questions about your sister.”
I try to speak but all that comes out is a gurgle. I clear my throat and finally a hoarse raspy voice escapes my lips. “Of course, please,” I say, waving laboriously towards the chairs by the window.
The two officers nod but remain standing. I take a deep breath, knowing that I’ll have to relive every moment of the abduction again as I tell them everything I know. My stomach churns when I think of my mother’s contorted, snarling face when she swung the vase at me. I push the image aside and look at the two detectives.
“What do you want to know?”
Chapter 40 - Dave
“Well, it sounds like your story checks out,” the officer says as he closes a manilla folder and looks at me with a nod.
“Imagine that,” I respond sarcastically. He says nothing, only stands up and opens the door for me.
I’ve been stuck in that interrogation room for three hours. I told them everything I knew. I told them about my grandfather, gave them the names of the nurses, told them to check the CCTV. It’s killing me, being away from Izzy. I need to see her and to make sure she’s ok.
I hope she didn’t see my text. It would kill me to think that as she was going through that trauma she had the added stress of thinking I was mad at her. I shouldn’t have doubted her like that.
“Your girlfriend is at the New York Presbyterian Hospital,” the officer tells me. I nod.
“Thanks.”
I walk out of the station and breathe deeply once I’m outside. The dim light of early morning is just starting to break over the horizon. I’ve been questioned, interrogated, suspected for multiple hours. I wanted to throttle the officers, punch them in the face at the mere suggestion that I was involved. My mind is reeling. They told me Izzy’s mom took Jess, but how is that possible? I need to talk to Izzy. I pull out my phone and look at the address of the hospital.
Izzy’s house is on the way, so I’ll go pick up my car and drive to the hospital. With any luck I can take her home with me today. I grab a cab and within a few minutes we’re back at her apartment. I look at the tall building, its dark windows staring back at me like empty eyes. I look away from the house as a shiver run down my spine.
Within a few steps I’m at my car. I check the front windscreen - no parking ticket. The black Mercedes looks a little out of place sandwiched between a rusty old pickup and a worn sedan. I pull my keys out of my pocket and press the ‘unlock’ button, grabbing the handle and opening the door.
“So you must be her new mysterious benefactor,” a raspy female voice calls out from behind me. I turn slowly and my jaw drops.
Vera Daniels.
The woman who killed my family.
There she is, dressed in old baggy jeans and a faded jacket. Her hair is sticking out in every which direction, streaked wit grey and white. I can see Izzy’s features in her - the high cheekbones and fine nose - but it’s like they’ve been corrupted. Where the features are striking on Izzy’s face, balanced out by the softness of her eyes and the curve of her lips, in Vera they look harsh and unforgiving.
Her eyes are staring at me with fierce intensity. They’re not hazel-coloured like Izzy’s, although they have the same shape. They’re black. As she stares at me I see a flicker of recognition and all of a sudden she’s laughing.
“Well if it isn’t little David Langley,” she says with a snarl. Her lip curls up on one side to reveal her yellowing teeth.
I say nothing.
“How did you get involved with my daughter?” She asks.
“Are you still calling her your daughter? You haven’t been around in ten years.”
“That’s true,” she says with a nod, taking a step closer. I feel my whole body tense. My hand is still grabbing onto my car door, keeping it open beside me. “I left ten years ago right after that tragic accident.”
I bristle.
“Where’s Jess?” I bark. She laughs again and I feel a wave of cold fear wash over me. She doesn’t care about her daughters at all. I’m staring at pure evil personified.
“Jess is safe. For now,” she says. She nods to the car, then flips up the hem of her shirt. I see a glimpse of hard black metal. My blood runs cold as I realise it’s a handgun. I flick my eyes up to hers and she grins. “Let’s go for a drive. Haven’t been in a car this nice before.” She pauses and grins, staring at me with her dead black eyes. “I did crash into one once, though.”
The rage boils up inside me and I glance around, trying to assess my options. I should call the police, but how to do that without her knowing? She has a gun, and I have nothing. I don’t want to get in my car with h
er but I don’t see any other way. I need to help find Jess, and maybe she’ll take me to her. I need to help Izzy.
If it means sitting next to the woman who killed my family, then that’s what I need to do.
Nodding, I gesture to the passenger’s seat. She grins at me and stalks over to the other side of the car, slipping in and closing the door. I sit in the driver’s seat and try to control my breathing. She shifts and reaches for her waistband, pulling the handgun out and laying it casually across her lap.
“Where are we going?” I ask, trying to keep my voice steady. My thoughts are racing. How can I get to my phone and call the police without her seeing?
“For now we’re just driving,” she responds. I can sense her turning her head towards me. “Isn’t this ironic, us in a car together, after what happened. I couldn’t think of anything so perfect!”
Her laugh grates on my ears like nails on a chalkboard. ‘Perfect’ is the last word I’d use to describe this situation.
Chapter 41 - Izzy
“That’s the last thing I remember, Detective. The door closed and I passed out until I woke up again and called 9-1-1.”
“Do you have any idea why she would take Jess?”
“No idea whatsoever! She left us ten years ago and I haven’t seen her since. I’ve been taking care of Jess with my father ever since she left.” My throat tightens. “I wish I knew. I wish I could tell you.” I look at the detectives, pleading them with my eyes to understand. They need to find her!
“And your father, where is he?”
“Like I said, I spoke to him a couple weeks ago and he was in the Bahamas.”
Detective Jenkins grunts and jots a few notes down.
“Well if you think of anything else, make sure to give us a call.”
The two detectives leave the room and I feel a chill descend on me. They don’t know anything, I can tell. They have no leads, no clues. I’ve watched enough crime TV shows to know that the first 24 hours are crucial when someone goes missing, and the clock is ticking far, far too fast.
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