by Sara Schoen
He continued to kiss me softly as my mind attempted to process what had just occurred. Could he really love me? Why did I care? I needed to get out, go home, and live as close to a normal life as I could have now. But how could I possibly get Garrett killed? He was the safe haven in a home of horror. I couldn't leave him to get hurt while I ran around hopelessly lost in the woods.
Yes, we fought and argued, but it always seemed to be a show for Steve's benefit. We were cold in front of Steve, but close when we were alone. I could see now he tried to take care of me and that's all I could ask for when I could be killed or taken advantage of at any moment.
He gave me advice to prevent the abuse, and while it didn't always work, he tried. Garrett had been there to comfort me. He was the closest thing I had to a normal relationship, but it's not right.
I was taken and forced to live here. It's not fair to me; my life was taken from me! My innocence and naivety, gone, the second Steve called me Kelly. It's not fair that Garrett loves me. We shouldn't be together, but I kissed him back anyway.
He was the only hope I had left— it was barely there, but I had hope I'd get through this. Now I just had to find a way to get both of us out of here without either of us dying. I couldn't live without him, he was everything I needed and even more of what I wanted. My plan was risky, but it would get worse when we both had to escape. We had to escape because we couldn't live here together; it was too dangerous for us.
"I couldn't tell you before because I was afraid you'd pull away and tell my father. I was taken by you and I wanted to keep you for myself. All I wanted to do was protect you, even if it meant my life. I broke the rules so regularly, I forgot they existed until Dad came home. You are my escape from this awful place. I love you, Anna," Garrett whispered as he pulled away from me slightly.
"I won't tell your father," I promised as tears slid down my cheeks. "I love you, too, Garrett. I had feelings for you since our first kiss, and then I couldn't ignore them any longer."
Garrett gently placed his hands around my face again and used his thumbs to wipe away my tears. His touch was so soft and loving that my breath hitched again, wishing he wouldn't stop. I offered him a gentle smile since I was at a loss of words, because I was so taken by the moment. I heard him sigh as he wrapped me in a hug and pressed me tightly to him.
He smelled wonderful, like the smell right before it rains. He smelled like home to me and that gave me a beautiful sense of belonging that I hadn't felt before in my life. I tried to get closer to him as I moved in his arms, and as I moved against him I could hear his heartbeat pick up with excitement. Garrett kissed the top of my head softly and nuzzled into my hair.
My brain yelled and screamed at me that this was wrong. I shouldn't be falling for him, we shouldn't be standing here waiting to be found, and we should be running from this house. Although, there was a part of me that appreciated the strange act of falling in love with Garrett. As I pressed myself closer to him, I accepted that I had fallen for him and that he had fallen in love with me.
I wasn't sure if this was really love, but it was closer than I had felt before, even with Andy. I hadn't felt anything compared this, I never wanted to leave his arms. I had dreamed of being wrapped in his arms and being able to kiss him, and now I could. There was still one problem, though—we were both trapped in this house with no way out.
"We can't be together in here though, Garrett," I said in a whisper as tears continued to stream down my face.
"I know, I've thought about that. Which is why I have a plan on how to get us out, and with any luck, alive." His arms wrapped tighter around me and placed a kiss on the top of my head. "And if not, I'll see you wherever the dead go."
"What's the plan?" I asked curiously as he held me just a little bit tighter, afraid to explain it to me.
***
The plan had been decided, though neither of us really liked what was going happen. Garrett would be beaten again, and I would be running for my life. I would run in the general direction of a town he vaguely remembered visiting, and he’d have to find me. I would have no way of contacting him. We would have no way of knowing if the other made it until it was all over.
"He leaves the door open when he chases the girls, so I can leave after he does," Garrett had explained to me earlier.
"But you'll be beaten, which is why he leaves it open," I countered.
"Yes, but I also didn't have a reason to fight back before," he said lightly running his fingers against my cheek. "If I can weaken him, you'll have a better chance, and it will give me more time to recover and escape."
"How will we know if the other one made it when this is over?" I asked. I had wondered about how we would meet up if he didn't know where I was and I didn't know where he was. What if I never saw Garrett again after this?
"We won't until it's truly over. I will find a way to contact you or see you again once this is all over, and if I don't it means I didn't make it. So don't stop fighting or running, you'll find out about me eventually, just like I will eventually find out about you," Garrett said bluntly.
There was a sudden bang on the door down stairs, I tensed and Garrett jumped. Steve was coming home and he wouldn't like what he found. I would be breaking rule six and Garrett would be breaking all of his rules at once. There were a few more bangs as Steve tried to open the door, then the door gave way and slammed against the bare walls down stairs.
"Kelly, I'm home! I have a surprise for you!" Steve said as the door slammed shut.
"This is it, Anna. Are you ready?" Garrett asked leaning into kiss me. I had grown accustom to having him touch and be around me after yesterday, I almost craved it. That sliver of hope gave me something to fight for.
"Good luck, Garrett," I said as I leaned forward.
"Good luck, Anna. I love you," he said as his lips slammed against mine.
This was supposed to be overly dramatic, like regular teenagers being caught mid-make out. So I ran my hands through his hair, pulling slightly to make him moan. He ran his hands up my sides, making my shirt ride up. His kisses sent sparks through me as my body begged for more. I let him place himself provocatively in between my legs, even though we were both in jeans and filled with fear, I could feel the smiles on both our faces as we continued to kiss.
Fear surged through me as I heard footsteps start coming up the stairs and the only comfort was that Garrett was here with me, if his worked out I'd have him forever. The footsteps got louder as Steve came unknowingly closer to the scene Garrett and I had created for him. Although, a few seconds before Steve was going to show up Garrett pushed away from me and grabbed the book on the table from yesterday.
"Pretend to be asleep, someone is with him!" Garrett whispered urgently. I could hear the fear lacing his words as he pretended to read the book and calm his breathing at the same time. This must be something new, even Garrett was terrified, and he had seen everything before.
I did as I was told and shut my eyes to pretend to be asleep. I tried to slow my rapid breathing as I relaxed into the couch, but my mind wouldn't stop replaying the scene with Garrett and me. My breathing finally slowed after a few seconds, and I relaxed my body into the couch as if I was sleeping.
Steve's footsteps entered the room and came to a halt. I felt fear spike through me again as I began to wonder what made him stop. Did Steve know something was going on? What gave us away?
"Kelly, wake up!" Steve ordered.
"Dad, she's sleeping. She's been cleaning all week—” Garrett started, but never finished.
"Did I tell you to speak?" Steve coldly interrupted. "Kelly, get up!"
I stirred slightly and slowly as I pretended to stretch and yawn. "Hello, Steve," I said quietly in a feigned raspy voice as if I had just awoken.
"I have a surprise for you," he stated with a smile, as he produced a small girl, no more than five or six years old, from behind his back. Her hair had dirt in it, her pink sundress was torn, and she only had on one flip flop. It m
ust be warm outside for her to be dressed like this—how long had I been here?
"What is this?" I asked in shock, unable to believe what I was seeing. He brought someone else into the house? He took a little girl as a second child, and her life would be ruined like mine if she stayed trapped in here.
The little girl began crying, but had long given up fighting Steve's hold as she just wept to herself. Steve ordered her to shut up and she did for a moment, but then her cries got louder. Angry at the girl’s defiance, he slapped her and made the crying worse. The scene ripped my heart out, but I had no way of helping the girl.
"This is our new daughter, Kelly. She's about Garrett's age when we took him, and she is so beautiful," he said cooing at the young girl.
I glanced at Garrett while Steve's attention was on the little girl. His mouth hung open, his eyes bulging from their sockets. Steve’s statement was news to him. He was taken at such a young age that he didn’t remember a life before this house.
Garrett abruptly stood up without Steve taking notice to him as he fawned over the little girl. “You took me?”
"Yes, just like this one. Of course, a girl is better for the family than another boy." Steve said with a smile as he handed me the little girl. I quickly pulled her away from Steve and let her cry in my arms. When I looked up from my new 'daughter' I caught Garrett staring at me, asking the silent question 'what now?'
Chapter 12
It was a great question. What do we do now? I had been up all night thinking about what was there to do. A six year old wouldn't be able to comprehend what was happening around her. She couldn't understand how she was taken from a family that most likely adored her or what this prison would be like. She wouldn't understand the severity of the situation. Being taken at a young age, like Garrett, had shown that the mind blocks out horrible things and adapts in order for us to survive. He coped with living here by forgetting about his previous life. He truly believed Kelly was his mother and Steve was his father, but now that reality had been shattered, and he was angry.
Just like this little girl would be one day if we didn't find a way escape. We needed to think of a new plan. Was there even a way to get us all out at once?
I'm not sure, but can I risk a young girl's life just to attempt to save Garrett's and my own? Questions continually poured into my mind as I gave up on sleeping and walked out into the living room. The situation had changed drastically, and there wasn't anything we could do about it. This girl had barely lived, it wasn't fair to risk her life, but if I left her here alone it would be worse. She would have to come with me, she couldn't stay with Garrett while he was beaten. The sight would kill me, and it would do irreversible damage to her. We had to go together, we had to get her out safely back to her family.
"Where are you from?" I heard Garrett ask the young girl as he came out of my room with her.
“How old are you?” I asked.
“What’s your name?”
Garrett and I took turns asking questions to the young girl, but she never answered. She simply shook her head and clutched onto the teddy bear that Garrett had given to her last night before she went to sleep in my room. It was the only form of comfort we could give her, but she was still fearful of us. She avoided our gaze, the terror gleamed in her eyes every second of the day, and turned to pure fear at night.
I had watched her shake and cry during the night, afraid of Steve coming to see her. She thought I would hurt her too. She would flinch and move away from me whenever I moved, she didn’t even want to be near me.
"Do you know how to read a map?" An idea started forming in my head. It was a long shot and I knew it, but if she could read a map then maybe we could find a way to make the escape a little bit easier.
"Why does that matter?" Garrett questioned me with a curious glimmer in his eye.
"If she can read a map she can tell us where she's from."
"Oh, and then I could tell you the town closest to us and we can find out where we are!" Garrett said, finally catching up with my train of thought.
"Can you read a map?" I asked the girl again.
She shook her head, then stopped and nodded her head yes. It was as if she wasn't sure about her answer.
"Do you have any maps in your room?" I asked Garrett, who had a growing interest now that the girl was responding to us. Ever since she came he had an overprotective sense over her and me; it was sweet and made me feel safe whenever Steve was around.
"I might, I'll be right back." Garrett got up and ran to his room, leaving me with the newest member of our 'family'.
"Where's he going?" the girl asked in a quiet voice.
I stared shocked for a moment, "he went to his room to find a map."
"Why?" she asked.
"So we can see if you can read one," I answered with a soft smile, thrilled that I now had her talking.
"Why?"
"So we can try to get you out of here."
"Why?"
I could feel the joy of having her speak slowly diminishing with the repeated question. I always hated the 'why' phase of children, it just got annoying after a while, but at least it was something.
"Because we don't belong here. Don't you want to go home and see your real mommy and daddy?" I asked.
She nodded her head in answer as she gripped the teddy bear a little bit tighter. There was fear in her eyes as she looked around, waiting for Steve to show up and scare her again. He had done everything in his power to control her, but she was too young to understand what was happening. All she knew is that she didn't like it and I couldn't blame her.
"What's your name?" I asked. She needed to keep talking, the faster she got used to this place maybe the faster she'd be able to understand what happened to her.
"Jessi." Her voice was so soft and angelic, it brought me to tears that she was now trapped in this place with us.
"Hi Jessi, I'm Anna."
"But the big man calls you Kelly."
I offered her a smile. She didn’t understand, but if she called me Kelly it was probably for the best. We had to play the rules perfectly now and pray that soon we could figure a way out of here.
"Yes, he does call me Kelly, but my name is Anna," I said, unsure of how to explain.
"Why does he call you Kelly?"
"Because I look like someone he once knew. Her name was Kelly and he loved her very much. I remind him of her so he calls me Kelly," I said, hoping that was simple enough for her to comprehend.
She made her mouth into a big 'O' in understanding. "What's my name?" She asked after a few moments in silence. Steve said I could rename her, but I didn't want to lose her identity like I had. The name Kelly would haunt me forever if I escaped and managed to return to life.
"Jessi."
She screeched loudly and bounced with excitement. "That's my name too!"
Garrett ran back into the room with maps grasped in his hand and worry in his eyes, "What's wrong? What happened? Is she okay?" he asked as he quickly approached Jessi looking her over to make sure she was unharmed.
"She's happy that Jessi is the name she has here," I explained.
"Why?" Garrett asked with confusion. I wondered if his name was Garrett. Had his identity been stolen as well? Maybe he would never know, he had accepted it once, why not again?
"Because it's her actual name."
"Oh, I understand," Garrett said with a nod as he laid the maps on the table behind me.
Without a thought he shoved aside the only newspaper that Steve had ever brought home. The front page flashed a picture of Jessi and another one of me, asking if anyone had seen us. Steve had brought it home by accident; he was angry and yelling at himself for taking a girl so close to home. It was sure to attract attention, but he said that when he saw Jessi he knew she would be perfect for us. "Do you know how to read this?"
Jessi stared at the maps for a while, tracing her fingers along the lines. She started to say she was 'sorry', but her tears covered up her words. She had
figured that this was pretty important, and that she wasn't able to do it meant she felt horrible.
"What now?" Garrett asked while he was consoling Jessi.
"There's only one idea I have, but it's almost the same plan as before. It will be even harder with three people now, so I'm not even sure how effective it will be." I stated as I slouched into the back of the couch.
"Yeah? Well, let's hear it. I can't let Jessi go through what I did growing up, and I have no more ideas. I barely liked the first plan, but it was the only one I had." Garrett shivered at the memory of whatever happened to him when he was younger.
I didn't ask him to elaborate. I didn't want to know, but if he ever wanted to tell me he could and he knew that. I trusted him with my life and he trusted me with his. That was the only way our original plan would have worked. Now we needed a new plan, and the one I had wasn't that great
"It's the same plan, but we beg him to let her out without seeing it. If we appeal to the human in him, then he lets her go. Then you get her out of the house while he’s busy with me, I will find her when I get out."
If it worked, Jessi could wait for me outside, Steve would toss me out of the house, and then we would run from there. We would run to whatever town we could find and hopefully find a way to get Garrett out safely, then get Steve thrown in Jail.
"Appeal to the human in him," Garrett spat with disgust. "He has no human in him. He'll torture this poor little girl without a second thought. He'll beat her until she has scars. It will only get worse as she gets older and losses her childlike appearance, then she'll be his for the taking." Garrett stated while petting Jessi's hair down attempting to sooth her.
"I can't let that happen to her."
"I can't either," I stated with an unwavering voice.
"Then that's the plan, but I do have one change to make," Garrett said with a mischievous smile curling onto the edge of his lips. "And with any luck, she will make it out alive at the very least."