by Lake, Rae B.
He raised his hands, clearly not wanting to agitate me any further.
“I am not judging him. At least, I don’t mean to. He seems different from the sort of guy I would expect you to be with. That’s all. If you like him and he treats you right, that’s all that matters.”
“Exactly. Don’t forget it!”
Lamonte took that as his exit. He walked out, leaving me to my thoughts and anger. Why am I so angry? That was the real question. I think it was because I was so different from what I appeared on the outside. My father was a killer, my mother, a snake. You disagreed with him; he had you killed. You crossed him; he had you killed. You spoke against his name; he had you killed. I grew up around guns, knives, thieves and murderers. These people weren’t the enemy to me, they were just people like everyone else. They were just trying to live their lives and they would do what they needed to do to survive and if that meant ending someone else's life, they would do it. I respected a man who could kill for the right reasons. I understood a man that would beat you to within an inch of your life to get any information that may help his family. What I couldn’t get down with was the treatment of women. Back where my family was, women were expected to please the man and turn the other cheek when they came back reeking of another woman. They were supposed to be pretty and not cause a fuss. I couldn’t do it. I wouldn’t be pawned off like a chess piece to smooth over a deal. That, in essence, was the reason that my father and I were at odds. He’d tried to give me to one of his enemies as a show of good faith in a merger that was happening. I’d had no say in it, so I ran off and had sex with the first man I could get my hands on and let them catch me. I would not be tied down to someone unless I was the one with the keys.
I gathered my thoughts and got what I needed to get my samples. It was a cool night, so I bundled up the best that I could.
By the time I left my office, everything was closed up for the night. There wasn’t a big crew in this complex so I was used to being alone around this time of night.
I jogged out to my truck, double checking again that I had everything. It was about five pm and it would take me about thirty minutes to get to the site. I was excited to meet up with Dillon later, maybe find out more about him. He was a puzzle that I was just desperate to figure out.
I was in my own little world, and it didn’t even register I was being followed by three bikes until I got closer to the wooded area. No one went to this side of the creek. It was hard to traverse and there was no real place to set up camp.
They couldn’t be from Dillon’s crew. He said he was playing. Who are they?
I got more concerned when I began to see my turn off, the road unpaved and as far as I could tell, only those that worked at my facility were the ones that would come this way, but the bikes were still on my tail, faces covered and lids off.
I tried to see what was on their kuttes, but they were too far away, and my eyesight was not that good. I could make out one word because it was bigger and bolder than the rest. Chaos.
That wasn’t the name of Dillon’s club. Wings of Diablo; that was his. So why were these people following me? They hadn’t done anything to harm me yet, but I was about to end up deep in the sticks with only one way out.
Time to panic.
No, no. You can’t panic. Just go about your business. Maybe, they’re going somewhere else.
I pulled into my designated spot and waited and watched as all three bikes continued past me, I exhaled and tried to steady my hands. I was almost sure I was overreacting. I grabbed my kit and made my way to the research site.
The site was about a fifteen-minute trek uphill. I let myself relax against a large tree, my heart still pounding in my chest from the ordeal.
What was that?
Something had cracked behind me. Was there an animal making its way through the trees? There weren’t any large animals in this area, but I had come across a wolf or two. I was hoping it wasn’t that.
I took a quick peek around the tree to see what I was dealing with. Instead of being a wolf, like I’d expected, it was a man. One of the men who’d been following me just a few seconds ago, looking at the ground, obviously searching for tracks. They were looking for me. I turned to the other side as quickly and as quietly as I could manage. Another man was there, in his hand was a silver gun. This was bad. I had no weapon, no backup and my phone was as good as useless. I had no reception out here. We had said before that we were going to spring for a better phone for the night runs, but we’d forgotten about it and no one had raised the issue again. I could take one of them out, but not three. There was no way that I would win a fight against three armed men. I would have to run.
I waited until I had both of their backs to me, and I took off as fast as I could in the opposite direction. I ran smack dab into the chest of the third man. I hadn’t bothered to look for him before I started to run.
“Well, hello there, girly!” He grabbed me around my shoulders and tried to hold me still as I squirmed to get free. “Hey, Scotty. I got her!” He screamed to his friends, who were now closing in on his location.
I reared my head back, flinging my forehead with all the force that I had towards his nose and mouth. When he let go of my shoulders to cup his nose and try to stem the blood spewing from his face, I lifted my leg and kneed him right in the dick. He fell to the ground, hard, one hand on his face, the other on his dick. He wasn’t going to get up right away. I continued to run. I could hear them behind me, and I was running into a part of the woods that wasn’t familiar. I knew that if I weren’t careful I would run clear off the mountain. Some of the cliff faces were shear and gave no indication that they were coming up.
“Come back here, you fuckin’ bitch,” they bellowed as they continued to run to catch me.
Good, keep talking.
I could use the sound of their voices to figure out where they were so that I could run in the opposite direction and hopefully shake them off my tail.
I turned right and kept running, hoping they would stay on the same path they’d been on a few minutes ago. I pumped my legs as fast as they would go, dodging hanging branches and hurdled downed trees like I was an Olympic runner, nothing like the motivation of death looming behind you to put you to the test.
Then my life flashed before my eyes, followed by darkness and pain. I howled in surprise and agony as I fell legs first down, down, down.
I don’t know how far it was I went down, but I hit water and rock when I landed. I bobbed to the surface, raising my face over the dirty stagnant smelling water. I tried to feel for the bottom, but I couldn’t reach it. I relaxed and let my head sink under the water and pushed down until I could feel the bottom, but my head was fully submerged. Shit, it was deeper than I thought. I was going to have to tread water until I could figure out a way to get out of here. I put my hand out into the darkness to see if I could feel anything around me. For a split second, there was nothing and immediately, I started to panic, but then I felt a wall and realized that things were as worse as it could get. It was stone and slippery. I was in a well.
I tried to get some leverage but knew immediately, my leg was broken. Even moving it through the water was enough for me to scream out in pain.
I raised my hands and grabbed onto the stones as best I could. I slipped off almost straight away. I grabbed again and again. The force of my motion was enough to suck me under the water. I could feel my heart pounding in my ears. I was dying. I would drown here if I didn’t find a way out, but there was no way out. I cried for the first time in years.
“Help!” I screamed at the top of my lungs. “Please! Someone help me!” I sucked in a breath and coughed out the water that came in with it. “Please! Please! Help me!”
I could hear ruffling above me.
“Oh, would you look here, boys,” the one they called Scotty said from above.
They all laughed, including the one with the now crooked nose.
“Please. Please help me. I can’t get out.
” I was begging, hoping that I would be able to appeal to their better nature.
“Sorry, doll. That's not happening today. Hopefully, by the time Wire finds you, he’ll still be able to tell it’s you. I doubt it, though.” He shrugged as he stood up and walked away.
I screamed, begging for them to come back. I didn’t hear another sound except for my hoarse voice echoing off the walls of the well. I begged God, begged the spirits, cursed Dillon, prayed for him. I just wanted someone to come and help me. The longer I stayed in the well, the more I gave up hope and the weaker I became. I started to feel myself fall asleep and my hand would slip off the wall, sending me splashing down into the water below, waking me for a short time. It wouldn’t be too long before I would go to sleep and not wake up.
* * *
Wire
I showed up at her house a few minutes after nine-thirty, with some flowers I picked up at the gas station in hand. They were old and only cost $3.99, and I was pissed with myself for actually buying them. Honestly, I only bought them because she still seemed a bit mad earlier and I felt like I needed to make it up to her.
I knocked on the door; no one answered. She couldn’t have stood me up because I was a few minutes late.
This is why I don’t deal with bullshit like this. I don’t have the time.
I wasn’t going to knock again. I took the flowers, dumped them in her garbage and was making my way back to my car when I noticed that her truck was not in the drive.
I heard Max barking in the back. I went to the side of the house and unlatched the gate and Max bound out immediately, putting my hand on my gun as a precaution, he sniffed me twice and ran towards my car. It was nearly ten at night and she still hadn’t made it home. I remembered she’d said that she had to go to some site near Prayer’s Creek. Maybe she was still at work? This didn’t sit right with me at all. She didn’t seem like the type of girl to ignore you when she was pissed. If she was angry at me for being late, she would’ve called and ripped me a new one. I opened my door and before I could get in, Max jumped in and climbed in the back.
“What the fuck do you think you are doing?”
He just cocked his head to the side and waited for me. I swear if I didn’t know any better, I would have been sure that he could understand every word that came out of my mouth.
“Whatever. You mess up my ride and I will leave you on the side of the road. Play around if you want.”
The dog leaned down on his forelegs and sat with his head rested on the seat.
I drove back to her job but her car wasn’t there either. Shit is getting really weird.
I took the nearest road and began to race towards Prayer’s Creek.
Where the hell is this woman?
I pulled off but didn’t see her car in the lot. Max hopped out of the car right along with me. I knew which way the creek was but I didn’t know what area she would be in. I was hoping this dog was as smart as I thought he was and that he would be able to find her if she was still here.
“Max, can you find Keeley?” He barked once and trotted off into the woods.
I followed behind him but still kept my eyes out for any sign of her. It was night, so it was close to pitch black.
Max ran past the creek, over a walkway and continued going, he’d been here before. I tried to keep up with him but he was moving fast. It wasn’t until I heard the damn dog whimpering that I knew that there was something wrong. He’d found her truck, but there was no Keeley inside. It was after ten at night. There was no way that she was still collecting samples or whatever it was that she needed to do.
“Keeley!” I started to call for her. I walked back in the direction of the creek I’d just passed and knew that she wasn’t there.
I called for her again but I heard nothing no matter how many times I called her name. Then out of nowhere, Max started to bark and set off running. I didn’t know what he’d heard or seen, but I was trusting his senses were better than mine.
“Keeley!” I screamed out for her again as I jumped over trees and dodged branches.
Max stopped a little ahead of me, whining loudly, his eyes trained on the ground. I got to where he was, but I didn’t see anyone laying there.
“Keeley!” I screamed again.
“Help. Please.” A small voice came floating toward me. I turned around, looking everywhere but didn’t see her.
“Keeley, where are you?” I waited for her to answer again and when she didn’t, I called for her again. “Keeley, goddammit!”
“Please. Down here.”
I looked down, and not three feet from where I was standing was a hole in the ground. I got on my hands and knees, and I could barely see the top of Keeley’s head. She was in what looked to be a well.
“Holy shit. Hold on. I’m coming. Hold on, Keeley!” I had nothing long enough to reach her, and no one else was on their way here.
“I’m so tired.”
“Stop the shit. I’m here. I’ll get you out.” I stood up to look around to see if I could use anything.
“Oh, Dillon, please hurry. I can’t do it. Please.” The small voice coming from the usually fiery woman would have been enough to break a lesser man. I just felt the hum and my muscles loosened up. I was existing in that moment, nothing more.
“Dillon, please!” The shouting of my name was enough to catapult me back to the present.
“I have to go find something to pull you up.”
“No, no… No! Don’t leave me. Please, don’t leave me,” she cried.
“I’ll be right here. I may have some chain in my car. Just hold on. Max is here. Ok?” I waited until she confirmed that she’d heard me, and then I was on my way. It took me about fifteen minutes to run back to my car.
The minute I was at the car, I pulled out my phone, dialing Clean.
“Speak.”
“I need you to get your shit and come to Prayer’s Creek, double time.”
“Nah, bro. I just got in with a bunny. I’m busy.”
“Are you fucking stupid. I don’t care who or what is about to suck on your little dick. Get your shit and come. Now!” I screamed down the phone. I huffed as I scrounged around the back of my car for anything that I could use to pull her out of that small space. “Look man, it’s a fucking emergency. Keeley fell into this well or some shit. I’m trying to get her out, but she looks seriously hurt. I need some-”
He cut me off before I could even finish. “Keeley’s hurt? Why didn’t you say that shit before? I’m on my way.” I heard him curse whoever was in the room with him out and then loud noises as he made his way out of the clubhouse. I hung up with him and began to run back to Keeley. I’d found a piece of rope, and some chain I used to tie my bike up if I had to leave it in an unfamiliar place and some barbed wire.
I made it back to her in record time. Max was still barking when I laid back down on the ground. She was barely hanging on to the rock above her head. I could see the light slowly leaving her.
“Keeley! Wake up!” I shouted down to her, knocking a bit of dirt on her. It hit her in the face, causing her to sputter, looking up at me.
“I knew you would come. I just knew you would.”
“Yeah, princess. I’m here.” I tied the rope at the end of the chain and made a loop so that she could put her arms through it. It wasn’t nearly long enough, and I was dreading what I would have to do to get her out, but I knew that I had no choice. There was no way that I was going to leave her in there. No way.
I attached the dull barbed wire to the opposite end of the chain, giving it just enough length if I laid down to be able to reach her. Barely.
I took off my kutte and my shirt, ripped the shirt in two, and padded both of my hands and wrists.
“Keeley, wrap the rope under your arms,” I yelled down to her.
“I can’t.”
“I don’t give a hot damn what you think you can do. You’re going to reach up and take the rope and secure it under your arms. Do it now.”
&n
bsp; She started to cry as she tried to reach up and grab the lifeline above her head. “Dillon, it’s too high. I can’t reach it.”
I could see the distance, and if she reached, she would make it, but she would have to try.
“Stop being a baby. The rope is right there, just give us a little jump, and you’ll reach it.”
“Fuck you, Dillon!” She screamed at me, snot and tears streaming all over her dirty face.
“Come on, Keeley. Just reach up. I know you can do it.”
“Ok... ok. I’ll try.” I saw the steely resolve in her eyes.
She jumped up once, and the rope missed completely, leaving her submerged in the water. Her little head popped back up as she gasped for air.
She tried again, and this time I felt her fingers graze the rope.
“Come on, Keeley. One more try! You almost got it!”
“Wire!” Clean was looking for me.
“I’m over here!” I shouted over my shoulder but did not move from where I was.
Max began to bark and I could hear Clean running towards the sound. I didn’t move, refusing to take my eyes off Keeley and waited for her to catch her next breath so that she could jump up and grab the rope.
Finally, she jumped up one final time, and her hand managed to grab hold of the rope. She used everything she had to get both arms through the loop and under her armpits, now she was just dead weight at the end of the rope.
I wrapped the barbed wire around one hand, feeling the telltale burn of metal slicing skin. I was used to the sensation, but I knew that if I tried to move too quickly, I could do some serious damage to myself.
“What the fuck!” Clean was beside me in an instant. “Oh, shit, is she dead?”
“No, you bastard. I'm sleepy.”
I was sure she meant to sound menacing, but it floated up to us as barely a whisper.
“She’ll be ok. She will,” I said more to myself than to him.
Once the barbed wire was completely up, Clean grabbed the smooth chain with me and hauled her up.