When She Returned

by Berry, Lucinda

  FORTY

  ABBI

  NOW

  How’s it going?

  Dad had been texting me pretty much nonstop since he had dropped us off. I quickly tapped out a response, telling him I was going to take a shower, so he would at least lay off it for a little while. We were staying at Extended Stay America, one of those places you could book by the month, so it was more like a small apartment than a hotel room. It was nicer than the apartments we’d seen. There was a queen-size bed and pullout couch. Mom offered to sleep on the couch right away.

  She still seemed nervous even though it’d been over two hours since we’d checked in. Shiloh had fallen asleep thirty minutes ago, but Mom was too keyed up to sit down.

  “I’m so sorry for all of this,” she said as she paced the hotel room, wringing her hands together.

  “Please stop saying that,” I said. She’d been apologizing over and over again, but she couldn’t help that Meredith had freaked out and gotten all superspy on everyone. Nobody would’ve predicted she’d act that way. I hadn’t told her that Meredith left tonight too. She would really feel bad then, and there was no way I was going to do that to her. Besides, Meredith would probably be home in the morning. She’d stormed off one other time when they’d gotten into a fight. Spent the night at Caleb’s, I think, or maybe it was Thad’s. Anyway, she’d been back by lunch the following day.

  “Are you sure I can’t make you any soup or tea?” I asked her.

  We’d walked down to the 7-Eleven on the corner to pick up a few supplies. I put everything on my debit card. Dad had given me permission to use it however I wanted. He’d never given me free rein on it before.

  “I’m okay. I’m really not hungry,” she said, but she’d barely eaten all day.

  And then I remembered she was used to going days without food, and this was probably nothing for her. Maybe she was intentionally fasting. She prayed underneath her breath while she walked. It was oddly soothing, and it wasn’t long before my eyelids grew heavy with exhaustion. How was she still standing? Let alone walking around? I kicked off my shoes and collapsed on the bed. It was hard, and the pillow felt scratchy against my cheeks, but I didn’t care. That was how tired I was. I could’ve slept on anything. I fell asleep before I had a chance to say good night.

  KATE

  THEN

  My heartbeat exploded in my ears. The darkness pressed in on me. My body screamed to run, twitching as I forced myself to be still and wait. Where was Margo? This was the spot. We’d been over it at least ten times—follow the deer trail to the tree with all its bark stripped away. I had barely convinced Abner to let me sleep alone tonight. He hadn’t wasted any time trying to create the next soldier and planned to have me pregnant again by the time he left with Shiloh. I’d pretended to have the stomach flu tonight, and even then he’d tried to talk himself into staying in my tent. Gagging in front of him had finally made him leave me alone and pick someone else.

  I scanned the forest line for her, terrified his voice would call my name out at any moment, summoning me back to him. What was taking her so long? We were counting on the lengthy discussions that followed his lovemaking sessions to give us a far enough lead before anyone realized we were gone, but they didn’t go on forever.

  A twig snapped behind me. I whirled around to see Margo hurrying through the trees. Zed was pressed tightly against her chest, and she clutched her stomach with her other arm as she shuffled along. I raced toward her and hugged her like it’d been years since we’d seen each other.

  “Thank God. I was getting so nervous, and every sound is magnified out here, which only made it worse.” I put my arm around her waist and tried to help her walk. “Come on, we have to hurry.” I tried to pull her along.

  But she wasn’t moving. She stood still.

  “No, Margo, no. Don’t.” The clouds made it impossible for the moonlight to penetrate the dense canopy above us, making it almost pitch black, but I didn’t need to see her face to know she was crying.

  “I can’t leave him. I just can’t do it,” she sobbed. She held Zed out to me. “Take him.”

  “I’m not taking him. That’s ridiculous. You’re just scared, but we have each other. We can do this together. I’m scared too. Come on, we have to go.”

  She stayed rooted to her spot. I grabbed her and shoved her forward. She’d be grateful once we were gone. She pushed me back.

  “Get off me!” she yelled.

  We froze. She put her hand over her mouth, recoiling in horror. “Oh my God, I’m so sorry. I’m so sorry.” She tried to hand Zed to me again, but I shook my head. We both knew she was dead if she went back without him.

  Tears streamed down my cheeks. “I can’t leave you.”

  “Go. You have to.” Her voice shook. “Run.”

  “Come with me, please,” I sobbed. “I can’t do this alone.”

  “They’re going to be coming any minute. You have to go now. You can’t wait.” She took a step backward, ready to bolt. “Remember what Abner always says—when you go, you don’t look back. Go, Kate.”

  My sobs shook me. “Margo, no.” But she had already turned her back and started running to camp. For a second, I almost followed her, but Shiloh’s breath against my chest gave me the courage I needed to turn and run into the night.

  FORTY-ONE

  ABBI

  NOW

  A hand over my mouth startled me awake. My entire body tensed. Mom’s face came into view as she hovered over me. She held her finger up to her lips and motioned for me to get out of bed. The shape of the hotel room formed around me as my eyes slowly adjusted to the dark. She wore Shiloh in a tight wrap across her chest and anxiously jiggled her as she threw the covers off me. What was going on? Why were we being quiet?

  “Hurry. We have to hurry,” she mouthed as I stumbled out of bed, scanning the floor for my clothes.

  “Where are we going?” I mouthed back.

  She frantically shook her head and pointed to my Nikes in front of the bathroom door. I threw on the jeans and T-shirt I’d been wearing earlier and knelt down to pull on my shoes while she peeked out the front window. I started shoving things into my bag, but she grabbed me and pulled me to my feet.

  “There’s no time,” she whispered in my ear.

  She pressed her face against the peephole before opening the door and stepping outside onto the patio. She grabbed my arm and hurried us down the cement corridor, never taking her eyes off the parking lot below us. She rounded the corner past the ice machine, where the staircase led down to the ground floor.

  “Mom, what’s going on? You’re totally freaking me out,” I said as soon as we hit the stairs. Her nails dug into me. She acted like she hadn’t heard me. Was she having one of her posttraumatic episodes or whatever they called it?

  We reached the parking lot and darted through the lines of cars until we reached the street. She pulled me to a stop. She furtively looked in each direction. “Where are we going?” I asked.

  “I’ll explain it all as soon as we get there,” she said breathlessly.

  “I need to call Dad.” I fumbled in my pocket for my phone. Where was it?

  Mom glanced behind us, then took off running down the left side of the street. She stopped as soon as she saw I hadn’t moved from my spot on the curb and raced back across.

  “Abbi, we have to go. Come on.” Something was wrong with her face. Why did she look so strange?

  “I can’t find my phone.” I tried to keep the hysteria out of my voice. I had to call Dad. He’d know what to do.

  “We don’t have time.” She grabbed my arm again and pulled me forward along with her. Shiloh’s head popped out of her wrap, and she let out a wail. Mom slapped her hand over her mouth. “Shh, be quiet.”

  She was losing it. Nobody could hear us.

  We hit the street, and she broke into a run, gripping my hand as we moved down the pavement just as a black van sped around the corner. It came to a screeching halt in front of us.
We froze. The front doors flung open, and two men jumped out of the cab. Terror filled my insides as they moved toward us. Mom put her arm around my waist, gripping me tightly.

  “Mom?” I whimpered.

  “The Lord is with us. Don’t be afraid,” she said.

  They were on us within seconds.

  I let out a bloodcurdling scream when one of them grabbed me by the wrist and twisted my arm behind my back.

  “Shut up, kid,” he hissed within inches of my face. His eyes were wild. Dirt crusted his face; his hair was bushy and uncombed. His skin was tanned and leathered, peeling in parts.

  “Help! Somebody help! H—”

  His hand smacked my face, snapping my jaw shut. My heartbeat exploded in my ears. I shoved him away and took off running in blind terror, screaming wildly. He pummeled me from behind, smashing me onto the concrete. I flailed against him, biting and clawing at him, trying to jab my finger in his eyes, kick between his legs. It was no use. He was too strong.

  “Scream again and I’ll hurt you.” His breath was hot on my neck. He smelled like rotten cheese. I fought the urge to pull away again. My entire body trembled.

  “Please, what do you want? Just tell me what you want,” I cried. He ignored me. He yanked both arms behind me, and something sharp cut into my wrists as he tied them together. He worked in silence. “Please let us go. Please don’t hurt us.” What did they say in class? Appeal to their humanity. Make yourself human if you can’t make yourself repulsive. He lifted me up like I weighed nothing and spun me around. “Do you have kids?” I blurted out.

  Sweat dripped down his chin. He ignored me and pulled me back in the direction of Mom. His partner had his arm around her waist. He was whispering something in her ear, touching her. I squeezed my eyes shut. I didn’t want to see it, couldn’t.

  “Please go away. Leave us alone,” I begged, dragging my feet as he pulled me along.

  The man with Mom turned around. A scruffy layer of facial hair covered his face. “Hurry up.” He peered at me with beady blue eyes.

  Why wasn’t she running? How come she was just standing there? And then I spotted it—the gun slung on his hip. The two of them surrounded me. My captor shoved me toward the scruffy man, and he grabbed me, his fingernails digging into my arms. I let my body go slack. I couldn’t take my eyes off his gun. The one with the dark beard opened the back door of the van.

  “Please, God, no, please.” I was sobbing so hard I could barely talk as they shoved me inside.

  They paid me no attention. One of them slapped tape over my mouth, while the other wrapped my ankles together. Paralyzing fear shot through me. My eyes searched for Mom. She slowly crept closer. My pulse pounded in my temples. I forced myself to be still and pretend like I didn’t see her. What would she hit them with? She was so close. Right behind them. Every muscle tensed.

  She stepped between them. Everything moved in slow motion as she unwrapped Shiloh and handed her to the man on the left, the one with the gun. And that was when it happened. My brain stopped. Took them in—really took them in—long, scraggly beards, beige T-shirts, and khaki pants, dirty and worn. Mom’s eyes caught mine, and she saw the realization hit. She didn’t blink as she reached out and slammed the van door, sealing me inside.

  I screamed No! so hard behind my tape it felt like my eyes would burst.

  “Hurry—we’ve got to move, Abner,” Mom said.

  I froze. It was the same voice she’d used in her home videos.

  “I told you I could do it,” she said. “I made the Lord proud. You know I did.”

  He laughed. “I missed you, my love.”

  I couldn’t make out what she said next as their muffled whispers made their way to the front of the van. The doors opened and then slammed shut. The van lurched forward. I tried to grab for something—anything—to steady myself, but there was nothing. The back was stripped bare. I dropped to the floor and scooted against the wall, curling myself into a ball. The ties cut into my wrists. My head throbbed.

  Where were they taking me? The realization that she’d brought me to them on purpose hit me again and again, hardening my stomach into knots. I shook so hard my teeth chattered. Her betrayal hurt too much for tears. Why were they doing this to me?

  The van slammed to a stop, sending me flying to the other side of the vehicle. I smacked my head against the metal. Waves of panic shot up my spine. There was wetness between my legs, like I’d peed myself. Did I pee? I tried to scream, but it wouldn’t come out. Tears trickled out of the corners of my eyes. The van lurched forward again. Then stalled. Dizziness washed over me. Tires squealed. Stopped.

  “Freeze! Police!” A man’s voice shattered the air.

  Wailing up front. Like an animal. Was that Mom? Did he hurt her? I scooted over and threw myself at the back wall, beating my bound feet against it.

  “Stay away from her!” I tried to scream, but the words were trapped behind the tape covering my mouth. I kicked the wall a final time before scooting back to the corner. The police wouldn’t hurt her, would they?

  More screaming. So many screams. A gunshot rang out. My insides froze; I was too scared to breathe. The door clicked, then was flung open. Dean plunged into the van. He knelt in front of me, carefully taking the tape from my mouth. “Are you okay?” I wanted to talk, but all the sounds stayed stuck inside me. “Are you hurt?” he asked again, peering at me within inches of my face. He didn’t wait for a response. He quickly untied me before scooping me up and lifting me off the floor like I weighed nothing.

  I clung to him and buried my face in his chest. He carried me through the van, stepping over the blankets spread out on the floor, and outside into the commotion. Flashing lights were everywhere. The helicopter above us roared in my ears. My eyes searched for Mom’s.

  “Close your eyes,” Dean shouted. “Just close your eyes and hold on to me.”

  Too late. A body lay covered with a blanket in the center of the road.

  “Is that . . .”

  I couldn’t finish.

  “It’s not your mom,” Dean said.

  I closed my eyes, shaking with sobs as he carried me. I didn’t open them until we were in the ambulance. Medical personnel swirled around me. There were so many lights. Why were there so many lights? They were too bright. I felt like I was going to throw up. Too late. Just that quickly the liquid was gone, swiped off my face.

  “Abbi?” A woman’s face in mine. “You’re safe now. Your parents will meet you at the hospital. Okay? Do you understand?”

  I turned my head away, the movement sending shooting pain down my neck. The scene moved in front of me, liquid and warm.

  Mom? Where was she?

  I closed my eyes again so the world would stop spinning.

  FORTY-TWO

  MEREDITH

  NOW

  “Scott, slow down. What are you talking about? I don’t understand.” I sat up, rubbing the sleep from my eyes, instantly awake. I brought my phone to my other ear, sliding my glasses on so that I could see in the dark. “I’m here, but I don’t understand a word you’re saying. You have to slow down.”

  “They tried to kidnap Abbi. Oh my God. I can’t even believe this. How could I be such an idiot?” he sputtered.

  “Are you driving? It sounds like you’re driving. Why don’t you pull over and talk to me?” I flicked on the light above the nightstand.

  “I can’t pull over. I have to get down to the hospital. How did I not see this? You were right, Meredith. You were always right.”

  “What are you talking about? You’re not making any sense.”

  “Okay. God, I just can’t believe this—”

  “Scott, focus. Either that or pull over, because you can’t be driving like a crazy man, or someone is going to get hurt.” I slipped a gray hoodie over my head and searched for where I’d thrown my sweatpants before getting into bed last night. “Take me through what happened. One step at a time. It will help you calm down.”

  “I kept textin
g Abbi after you left, but she stopped responding after a while. Probably because I was annoying her. Anyway, I fell asleep watching TV, and my phone woke me up. I knew it was bad as soon as I saw that it was Dean. I jumped off the couch, and I’m like, tell me what’s going on. He said he couldn’t talk about it over the phone but that Abbi was in the hospital, and Kate was in custody at the police station because of a kidnapping sting. He was going on and on about how Ray and one of his men showed up near the girls’ hotel and grabbed them. They tied Abbi up and threw her in the back of a van. He kept saying ‘they,’ and it took me a while to realize he meant Kate too. She was in on it.”

  I stopped midstride. “Wait? What are you saying? That she helped kidnap Abbi?”

  “Yes.” His voice cracked, thick with emotion. “How could I have been so stupid? I should’ve listened to you.”

  “Has she been in contact with him this entire time? Are we sure we’re okay?” My heart jumped as I tried not to run. I searched for my car in the unfamiliar hotel parking lot. I waved my fob, listening for the sound of the beep.

  “I have no clue. Our conversation lasted all of two minutes. I’m not kidding. He said he’d fill me in on the details once I got down to the hospital.” He wasn’t any less choked up, falling to pieces still. “I need you there. You have to meet me down there. I can’t do this without you.”

  I slid my key into the lock. “I’m on the way.” No matter what had happened, they were still my family, and Abbi would need me as much as he did right now. She’d been too young to feel the devastation of her mom leaving before, but she’d feel the impact of this hit, and she would need me to help her through it, even if she didn’t know that yet.

  Scott rushed down the hospital corridor at the sight of me. His clothes were wrinkled and rumpled, and he wore two different tennis shoes—one navy, the other black. His eyes were watery and bloodshot as he leaned in, giving me a tentative kiss on my cheek.

  “I can’t believe I let this happen.” He struggled to control his emotions.

  “You didn’t let this happen.” I opened my arms, and he fell into them, but his body was rigid, stiff with unspent worry and grief. I rubbed his back in circles, hoping it’d help him calm down. “Where is she?” I asked.