Trust A Stranger

by Baxter, Cole

  I have to get out of here!

  Frantically, she started looking about the room. It was clean and bare, apart from the bed, a nightstand that was empty, and a closet that had folded women's clothes inside it. All the hangers were removed. The room provided everything that was useless as a weapon. Although she could perhaps smother someone with a cashmere sweater.

  Stop it. Focus.

  She tried the door next and it was locked. That was to be expected. That man wouldn't go to all this trouble simply to let her go. What does he want from me, anyway? As her heart started to race with renewed strength, she forced herself to calm down. Panic wasn't productive at the moment. She needed to find a way out of here, so that should be her only focus.

  Taking a couple of deep, steadying breaths, she continued with her investigation. The room had one large window but it was completely boarded with wooden planks. They were close enough that she couldn't put her hand between them, though she could see a little bit of her surroundings.

  The sky was getting dark, which meant she'd slept for hours. If this was the same day, anyway.

  She was held in a house, that much was obvious, high above the ground, on the second or third floor. The estate was surrounded, as far as she could see, by a deep wooded area. She tried really hard not to think about the fact that she was clearly being held at some abandoned house that was in the middle of nowhere and failed.

  Stay calm, stay sharp, and find a way out, she reminded herself. A part of her really wished to curl up in that bed and cry her eyes out, but she knew she couldn't do that. If she fell apart now then that meant the game was over and that man had won.

  Game over, he'd told her in the apartment, and remembering that sent shivers down her spine.

  Mary approached the door again and started banging against it.

  "Hey, is anybody out there?" she shouted. "Let me go."

  Mary realized too late that perhaps her behavior wasn't that productive, meaning maybe it wasn't prudent to draw attention to herself. She didn’t want to let that man know she'd finally woken up. Mary stopped.

  Not knowing what else to do, she did another sweep of the room, looked under the bed, and checked every nook and cranny in hopes she would find something, anything useful. Mary contemplated whether she should peel the floral wallpaper off. Not because she thought something was hidden underneath it but because it was extremely ugly and made her feel more anxious than she already was.

  After the third go-around, Mary had to accept something she already knew and didn't want to—she was trapped, locked inside, and she would stay that way until her kidnapper deemed otherwise.

  Where am I? she had to wonder. What does he want from me? Not that she was too eager to find out. Would anybody notice her gone? All these thoughts plagued her, making her succumb to despair.

  None of her things apart from the clothes on her back were here, and she couldn't decide if that was a good or bad thing. The only thing she truly missed was her phone. It would solve all her problems if she could call for help, which was precisely why she didn't have it at the moment. The man who took her wasn't an idiot.

  Just don't panic. You will find a way out of here. She tried to give herself a little pep talk. It was interrupted when she heard footsteps and then the door being unlocked.

  Mary stopped breathing and retreated to the furthest corner of the room, away from the door, keeping as much distance as was possible, waiting for him to appear.

  Once again, she was confronted with the notion that she had nothing to defend herself with since this darned room was completely stripped of anything useful.

  Like a weapon would help you at any rate, a part of her pointed out. Mary banished that thought since this was not the time nor the place for such negativity.

  Mary braced herself to meet her kidnapper again. To her utmost surprise, it wasn't a man who came through that door but a woman. Ruby walked in wearing her most radiant smile.

  "Ruby?" Mary advanced toward her without a thought, her mind in shambles. "What is going on? Where am I?" Mary demanded, for a second there forgetting with whom she was dealing.

  "My dear Mary, I am so glad you could finally make it to my country house," she told her, petting her on the cheek.

  Mary took a step back, breaking the contact. Is Ruby gloating? It certainly felt like that.

  Mary looked at the other woman incredulously. "What are you talking about? I didn't come here. A man kidnapped me. Is he working for you? Have you completely lost your mind?" Besides, her last remark was a little bit redundant. It was more than apparent that Ruby was crazy.

  "We're going to have so much fun now that we're finally together again. You’ll see," Ruby said as though Mary hadn't spoken at all.

  "You can't keep me locked up here. You have to let me go," Mary insisted.

  "You are a guest, honey."

  A guest can leave. "I want to go home."

  Ruby waved with her hand in a dismissing manner. "We both know you don't really mean that. You're saying that just to hurt my feelings."

  "What? No," Mary wanted to argue.

  Ruby continued speaking. "You will stay right here in this room where I can keep you safe," she practically sang. "Do you like the room? I made it specifically for you. The wallpaper is just marvelous."

  "Ruby, this is not okay! I want to go home."

  "Home?" Ruby inquired, looking a bit confused. "To what? You have no family or friends apart from me, and your job is a laugh, meaningless. Nobody will miss you."

  Ruby was wrong. She did have a friend and there were people out there who would miss her, notice she was gone, not that she was about to share that with her jailer.

  "This is your home now," Ruby finished triumphantly.

  Like hell it is. Every part of Mary's being rebelled. "You can't make me stay here. Someone will—"

  "Nobody will come for you because nobody cares," Ruby snapped back, clearly annoyed by Mary's behavior. Not that she cared.

  "So the sooner you accept that this is your home and obey all the rules, the better."

  What? This woman grew madder by the second. Mary couldn't and wouldn't stay here and that was final.

  "You will be very happy here," Ruby continued, finding her good mood again. "I promise," she added in all honesty.

  Her delusion was so great, Mary realized there was no way to reach her, make her see reason since she had none. Mary needed to escape. And now.

  As Ruby chatted about all this nonsense, Mary tried to run past her and go through the door, hoping she would find her way to freedom that way. Ruby blocked her way in a move and speed Mary wouldn't believe possible.

  She faked her illness, remember?

  Mary had to stop, not wanting to collide with the other woman. She tried again yet Ruby pushed her away, closing the door. "This kind of behavior is unacceptable," Ruby snapped.

  "You and all of this are what is unacceptable," Mary shouted back, losing her temper.

  Without a word, Ruby slapped her with all her might.

  Mary's head turned from the impact as her whole face started to tingle. Mary placed a hand over her bruised cheek. She couldn't believe Ruby just did that.

  "Apparently, I need to teach you a lesson," she said as though thinking out loud. "You will stay here alone. You are to contemplate the errors of your actions and to repent." With that, Ruby left the room, locking the door behind her.

  Mary rushed to the door and started banging against it. "You can't do this to me," she screamed from the top of her lungs. "This is crazy. Ruby, let me go!"

  No matter how hard she shouted or banged against the door, Ruby did not return. The fact that she didn't care about Mary making such a ruckus worried her.

  We really are in the middle of nowhere. That didn't stop her from continuing, though. She poured all her frustrations and anger into this small act of rebellion.

  Eventually, when her throat felt completely raw and her hands throbbed, she stopped. Hours and hours passed a
s Mary paced about the room, plotting her way out.

  Over time, Mary started to get seriously hungry, then thirsty. That was nothing to the uncomfortableness she felt because she needed to go to the bathroom. That was Ruby's plan all along, Mary realized, to keep her here without anything and force her into compliance. I will never be a part of her madness, she vowed.

  To get her mind off all the physical needs she was denied, Mary tried to make a connection between the man who kidnapped her and Ruby. Did she hire him to do this? How did they meet? That man snooped around Nick, so where was the connection there? she wondered as the sky darkened even further.

  The whole night passed while Mary contemplated everything, coming up with nothing, and when it started to get lighter again, Ruby returned.

  "I hope you had a good night's rest and had the opportunity to think really hard about your options here."

  Mary hadn't slept at all.

  At first, she wanted to stay quiet, but it was clear that Ruby wanted an answer. If Mary remained quiet there was a possibility the other woman would see that as an act of insurgence.

  "Yes, I did have a chance to think about my actions." Especially my future ones, how to get away from you.

  "Marvelous. I suppose you need to use the restroom now, freshen up a bit."

  Mary nodded in return. It was really hard playing it cool when her bladder was about to burst.

  Ruby waved with her hand for Mary to follow her. Mary exited the room. She was standing in a corridor and could see the staircase going down just a couple of feet away.

  She couldn't risk going for it at the moment, so she entered the bathroom that was across from the room she was being locked in.

  Ruby waited by the door, chatting while Mary peed. Relieving herself was the best feeling in the world. Mary didn't want to leave that bathroom and face Ruby, but seeing no other way, she did just that.

  "I left you fresh clothes in the closet. Feel free to change into anything you like," she said generously. "Then come and meet me downstairs." And with that, she left her alone. In that corridor. Mary couldn't believe her luck.

  Without missing a beat, Mary tried all the other doors. Sadly, they were all locked. Damn it! She should have known there would be a catch. Ruby wouldn't simply leave her alone, unsupervised, without being sure that Mary couldn't get away.

  That didn't mean Mary was ready to give up. She went down the stairs and checked all the doors on the lower floor as well. No luck, all locked.

  It appeared she could only escape from this house using the front door, so she descended to the ground level.

  When she spotted the door, she rushed toward it and started pulling and tugging with all her might, yet as was foreseen, it was locked as well. Ruby turned this house into a prison. Come on. She was so close to freedom she could taste it.

  "Over here, Mary." She heard Ruby's voice calling out for her from the nearby room. Mary cringed realizing Ruby had heard her fruitless attempts to escape.

  I need a real plan or I'll never leave this place, she realized with dread. Seeing no other way at the moment, Mary very slowly entered the room where Ruby was waiting for her. As it turned out, she entered a big dining room. A large table was set, just for the two of them, and it was packed with all kinds of food that could feed at least twenty people.

  It's all my favorites, she thought as her stomach started to grumble and her mouth actually watered. Her body was a big traitor.

  "Come, sit," Ruby said in her usual cheerful manner. It made Mary sick to her stomach.

  This is wrong. This is very wrong.

  "I made quite a feast to celebrate this happy day," she explained. "You're finally here with me. My dream came true."

  And my worst nightmare. There was no way she would stay here, eat, and pretend like everything was okay when it wasn't.

  On second thought, perhaps it would be best to pretend and play along, keep her strength up. Mary did as she was told and started to eat without really tasting the food. Ruby was delighted by her behavior, yet Mary was miles away, inside her head.

  Mary didn't have the faintest idea where she was, how far from any kind of civilization, and it became more than apparent that she would need all her wits, if she ever had any, and strength to escape this place.

  Or die trying. She cringed at that thought, considering it quite unnecessary.

  "What's the matter? You don't like your breakfast?" Ruby asked in concern, clearly misunderstanding Mary's behavior.

  "Everything is perfect," Mary forced herself to say.

  Ruby was pleased by that and continued to chat like everything was normal, as before, when they were still friends. We were never friends, she reminded herself. Ruby lied and pretended the whole time, clearly planning her end game. This place.

  A part of Mary longed for that time of blissful ignorance when she thought Ruby was a true friend, and the other part rebelled. It was better to always know the truth, no matter what. Living a lie was no life at all.

  The truth brought Mary the knowledge of understanding precisely what Ruby was, a narcissist and a killer. Is she going to keep me captive here forever or kill me?

  "Why are you doing this, Ruby?" Mary asked at some point, interrupting Ruby during some meaningless story, unable to stop herself.

  Ruby put down her glass of white wine, even though it was only breakfast time, so forcibly it was a miracle it didn't break, clearly irked.

  Expensive crystal.

  "You are being unnecessarily stubborn," Ruby accused, her good mood disappearing. Not that Mary cared.

  She rose from her seat, and Mary followed suit, and before she had an opportunity to react, Ruby grabbed her by the arm, squeezing hard.

  "You are ruining everything, you selfish girl. I see you still haven't learned your lesson." And with that, she started dragging her back toward the room.

  Mary resisted. Unfortunately, in the end, she was locked inside that room yet again.

  "You need to accept your part, and the sooner the better." Ruby left with those words.

  Mary scoffed. She had no intention of doing something like that. She would rather die.

  Chapter Twenty-Nine

  It got dark again, and Ruby didn't return. She was really set on teaching Mary some kind of lesson, forcing her to behave in a certain manner. On the other hand, Mary was set on winning in this mind game and escaping. When Ruby did return, they continued to do their song and dance routine.

  In the next couple of days, Mary tried her best to escape from Ruby and that continued to be out of her reach. Ruby would punish her for her behavior, of course, yet all that gave Mary knowledge and future ammunition.

  Ruby wanted a person to play with, fulfill some fantasy of hers that Mary couldn't fully understand. If she played nice, Ruby would reward her. If she didn't, Mary got punished, usually by being locked inside the room for a long period of time. At times, Mary did as she was told, and at others she rebelled, testing boundaries.

  Pretty soon, a pattern of Ruby's behavior started to emerge. Mary discovered if she pretended everything was okay, that they were the best of friends and she was there completely voluntarily as a guest, then Ruby was pleased and would reward her. Mary's door would stay unlocked and she could go to the bathroom whenever she pleased. All the meals were included in the deal as well.

  To a sane person, that didn't sound like much, but Mary knew what a lack of these essentials felt like. Of course, Mary was not a fool. She knew Ruby was simply training her like she was nothing but a wild animal that needed taming. Mary let her, lulling her into a false sense of confidence.

  And Ruby was beyond confident that Mary would stay put, which could only mean she’d made sure they were at a completely remote place with no other people around. Also, it meant she had done this before. That was a truly terrifying notion and only fueled Mary's desire to escape even more.

  At some point, Mary lost track of how many days she had been kept there against her will. Is it three or fo
ur days?

  Either way, she got hungry, so she descended into the kitchen to prepare herself a sandwich. Ruby was there. She’s everywhere. Wherever I look, wherever I go, Mary thought glumly.

  "Good morning, honey," she sang.

  "Morning, Ruby."

  The other woman looked at her with displeasure. What did I do wrong now?

  "You still haven't changed," she complained.

  That was true. Mary had kept her own clothes on all this time, even refused to shower. She considered her stink a subtle, or not so subtle anymore, display of rebellion.

  "I chose all the clothes inside your room with such care," Ruby complained, trying to emotionally manipulate her.

  For that, Mary would have to have positive emotions toward Ruby in the first place. In reality, the only emotions she had for her were from the negative spectrum.

  "I put on some weight. Nothing fits me," Mary lied without missing a beat.

  Ruby made a face. "Never mind. I'll get you new ones."

  Mary continued to work on her meal, and it was clear that Ruby was waiting for something. Mary knew what the other woman wanted to hear, and it was hard to relent.

  "Thank you, Ruby. You are such a good friend," Mary forced herself to say. Then she shoved the sandwich into her mouth simply so she wouldn't start screaming.

  Ruby smiled in return, happy everything was as she wanted it to be. She was 'good' to Mary when she was in a good mood. She never stayed that way.

  If Mary made a wrong gesture, displayed in any way that she was there against her will, then Ruby would have one of her fits. Instantly, Mary would be thrown back into the room, locked, until she learned not to cross Ruby in any way. It went without saying that Mary learned all the things not to do the hard way.

  It was difficult spending all her days like this with a person like Ruby, without a moment of peace. At times, she even wanted them to sleep together in the same room.

  I guess that’s why this is called being held against your will and not a vacation. Mary tried to joke as much as possible, though it was only inside her head. It was keeping her sane . . . as much as was possible in a situation like this one. Only thoughts about escaping kept her going.