Finding Scarlet

by Holly C. Webb

“Then w…why does it feel like it i…is?” I sobbed looking him in the eyes. “I feel like I am being p…p…punished for something I have done.”

  “Scarlet, you were just in the wrong place at the wrong time,” Oliver said, as he brushed the tears from my face. “I know that seems unfair, and that’s because it is unfair.”

  “I can’t stay here,” I said pushing myself up off the bed. My legs wobbled and I crashed to the ground.

  “SCARLET!” Oliver exclaimed and tried to catch me before I landed with a thump, but he was not quick enough. He dropped to the floor in front of me and wrapped me in his arms. I began to sob uncontrollably. “Please don’t cry.”

  “Why didn’t I die?” I asked in a voice that was barely a whisper. “Why did I survive? I don’t know how to be the girl that survived.”

  “You don’t have to be,” he replied softly, before he brushed his lips against my forehead. “You just have to be you. Scarlet you survived because it wasn’t your time.”

  “And was it theirs?” I cried looking up into his eyes. “Was it their time to die?”

  “I wish I had the answers you were looking for,” Oliver said sadly. “All I know is, something made me turn back the night I found you. Just like someone told me to stop and not give chase. I believe a higher power brought me to you that night. I was meant to save you. You were meant to survive.”

  “I wish that I hadn’t,” I cried softly before I buried my face in his chest. “Because I am tired of waiting for him to finish what he started.”

  “Don’t say that,” Oliver quickly said, pulling me closer to him. “Don’t you ever say that!”

  He held me in his arms for what seemed like forever, just sitting there on the bedroom floor. He let me cry until there were no more tears left.

  I lay on the floor, with my head against his chest, as slowly my breathing returned to normal. As I lay there, I listened to his soft breathing and his heartbeat. The sound had become so familiar to me, it made me feel safe.

  “I just want this over,” I finally whispered quietly.

  “It will be,” Oliver reassured me. “They are picking up Dean as we speak. They have a warrant to search his house. He can’t hurt you anymore.”

  “Really?” I asked as I sat up and looked at Oliver.

  “Really,” he replied with a smile. “It’s almost over.”

  There was a soft tap on the door, but Oliver made no move to get up. Instead he just called out. “Come in.”

  “Hi,” Caitlin said as she cautiously walked into the room. “How are you doing?”

  She tentatively walked to the end of the bed and sat down. I sat up and looked up at her. The moment I did, she gave me a warm smile. I smiled back, but inside I felt awful. I knew Oliver wouldn’t lie to me, but still something inside told me that being here was wrong. This family had taken me in and made me feel like I belonged. I owed them so much. No matter what Oliver said, I couldn’t shake the feeling that being here was putting them all in danger.

  “I’m okay,” I replied feebly. I wanted so much to be tougher, but I just felt tired and wanted to give up.

  “Aww, sweetie,” Caitlin said as she hurried towards me and dropped down on the floor next to Oliver and me, then hugged me tightly. “I can’t begin to imagine what you are going through.”

  “I will be okay,” I replied, trying my hardest to sound like I meant what I said.

  “It’s okay not to be,” Caitlin said with a smile. “A lot has happened to you Scarlet. If it were me, I would be scared, Christ, I would probably freak the hell out. But we are all here to support you.”

  “Thanks, Caitlin,” I said, grateful for her words.

  “So,” she said, turning her attention to Oliver. “You really thought it was Seth? I can’t believe you really thought that.”

  “I was wrong,” Oliver said, and I could feel him instantly tense next to me. “I really can’t discuss the case, Caitlin. You know that. So, let’s just drop it.”

  “You thought it was someone called Seth?” I asked surprised by this little revelation. Then it clicked with me who Seth was. “The guy in the kitchen today, the other guy I mean. You thought he was the one that shot me?”

  “I made a mistake!” Oliver said as he quickly got up from the floor. “But he was cleared. It was all just coincidence.”

  “How long did you suspect him?” I asked, regretting the edge in my voice.

  “What does it matter?” Oliver replied a little defensively. “I was wrong, it wasn’t him. But I am not wrong about Dean.”

  “I want to know,” I said as he helped me up from the floor. When I was on my feet, I stood and stared at him. “How long did you suspect him?”

  “A few days,” he said, and I knew by the look on his face he had no idea how I would react to this information.

  If I was honest, I was a little thrown. He thought he knew who did this, but he never told me. I tried to process it, tried to understand what reason he would have for not telling me, but I really couldn’t. Then I remembered he showed me the photo. The one with him and Clea. Seth was in it too.

  “Oh God,” I said as the realisation hit me. “You showed me that picture. You…you were trying to jog my memory. That was days ago.”

  “Scarlet, I had no proof it was him,” Oliver replied quickly. “Seth has been my friend as long as I can remember. I didn’t want to be right. I hated that I even suspected him. But then you said about what you remembered, and I knew then it wasn’t him. I had been wrong about him.”

  “What I remembered?” I asked confused. I sounded angrier than I meant to, and even Caitlin picked up on it.

  “Please don’t argue, you guys,” she said getting up from the floor too. “I shouldn’t have said anything, I’m sorry.”

  “But I don’t understand,” I continued, ignoring Caitlin, my eyes never leaving Oliver’s. “How did what I remember, clear this Seth guy?”

  Oliver closed his eyes and blew out a deep breath, as he pushed his hands through his hair. I knew he was frustrated because I knew that’s what he did when he was backed into a corner. I have seen him do it before.

  “Seth couldn’t have been the person who shot you because…” he hesitated for a moment and the look on his face almost broke my heart. “Because he was with me the night Clea died. I believe, no, I know the man that shot you, was the man that killed Clea.”

  “Oh my God, Oliver!” Caitlin said moving closer to her brother, but he stepped back.

  “Don’t!” He said, as he raised his hand to stop her. “Please.”

  “But I know how hard this is for you…” Caitlin pushed but I knew Oliver was struggling to hold back, so I stopped her.

  “Caitlin,” I said, before I took a deep steadying breath. “Can you give Oliver and me a few minutes, please?”

  “Oh, okay,” she nodded as she glanced at me quickly before she looked at Oliver again. “I will leave you two alone.”

  She turned and walked to the door but stopped when she reached it.

  “Oh, I almost forgot,” she said nervously, turning back to Oliver and I. “Mom asked me to let you both know dinner will be ready in about twenty minutes.”

  “Thanks, Caitlin,” I said giving her a grateful smile before she turned and walked out the door.

  For a moment, both Oliver and I just stood there, his eyes fixed on the floor, mine fixed on him. I could feel the sadness pouring from him and I wanted so much to make it right for him.

  Finally, he lifted his head and let his eyes meet mine. Without saying a word, I hurried to him and he instantly wrapped me in his arms.

  “I should have told you,” he whispered, as he held me tightly. “I’m sorry.”

  “Shhh,” was all I replied and wrapped my arms around him tighter. “Just hold me.”

  “I love you, Scarlet,” he breathed into my ear. “I need you to believe that.”

  “I know you do,” I replied. “I love you too and that’s all that matters right now.”

&n
bsp; “I am going to make sure Dean will pay for what he has done,” Oliver said, holding me at arms-length. “I will do it for you and for Clea.”

  “I know you will, Oliver,” I smiled, but still I couldn’t hold back the tears.

  “I am sorry I made you cry,” he said wiping my tears away. “Please don’t be sad.”

  “They aren’t sad tears,” I said with a half laugh. “Not really.”

  “Then why are you crying?” Oliver asked, looking at me in confusion.

  “I am crying because I finally have hope,” I replied.

  “Hope?” Oliver asked.

  “Hope that maybe happy ever afters do still happen.”

  Chapter 26

  Oliver

  When Scarlet and I made our way down to the kitchen, Mom, Dad and Caitlin were already seated at the table. They all smiled but none of them said a word. I knew Caitlin had filled them in on what was going on. Well, Mom anyway, as Dad already knew about Seth and everything else to do with the case.

  I also knew they didn’t know what to say to me. They remembered what I was like when Clea died. I fell to pieces for about five minutes, then I just shut down. I shut everyone out. I became distant and cold. I never let anyone close to me again. Well, that was until I met Scarlet. She was like a breath of air that had breathed new life into me.

  Even on those long nights when I was sitting by her bed and the doctors didn’t believe she would wake up…even on those nights, I felt connected to her. I never had any doubt after she survived that first night, that she wouldn’t pull through and wake up. She was a fighter. So, when she did wake up, I wasn’t that surprised.

  I watched her sitting across the dinner table as she picked at her dinner and it made me feel a little sad. I could see piece by piece, she seemed to be losing that fight inside her. I knew she was trying to be brave and strong for me, but I also knew she was terrified of what could happen. I hoped that now we were picking Dean up, somehow it would make everything easier for her. She would be able to finally move on.

  I thought about Dean. I hoped we would find what we needed in the search of his house. I had made the call not to take part in the search, I knew Scarlet was struggling and I needed to be with her right now. I knew the rest of the team would leave no stone unturned. If there was something there, they would find it.

  “So,” Mom said, finally breaking the awkward silence at the table. “I was thinking, that for Thanksgiving, maybe we could cook something instead of turkey? What do you think?”

  “Eh, that’s a big no,” Caitlin snorted, then laughed out loud. “You think I came home from college to spend time with you losers? Wrong, I came for the turkey!”

  “Charming,” Dad said with a laugh, but Mom just smiled. I knew she was brooding; I just wasn’t sure about what. I mean, I knew it was to do with the news about Clea, but I wasn’t sure what exactly she was upset about. I figured it was most likely I hadn’t told her that I thought Clea’s death was connected to the current murders. I decided then that I would talk to her after dinner to clear the air.

  “We have this conversation every year,” Caitlin continued, still trying to stop the conversation from dying again. “Mom always suggests we have something different and we all tell her all the reasons why that would be a bad idea. But this year I have the best excuse and one you can’t argue with.”

  “And what is that?” Dad asked, he too trying to keep things light-hearted. “Please enlighten us.”

  “It’s Scarlet’s first Thanksgiving with us,” Caitlin smiled triumphantly, then added. “And also, the first one she will remember, technically. So, you can’t not have a turkey.”

  I froze and glanced at Scarlet. It still surprised me that Caitlin spoke so casually about Scarlet’s amnesia. However, Scarlet just smiled and continued to eat her dinner, totally unfazed by Caitlin’s remark.

  “What’s going on?” Ella said as she suddenly came in through the back door of the house, into the kitchen. She looked like she barely had time to put her coat on before she came rushing over. “Caits said that there was big news and that Olly needed us.”

  “Did she now?” I said as I set down my knife and fork. I picked up my napkin and wiped my mouth. I glared at Caitlin who turned a deep shade of red. “And what else did Caitlin tell you?”

  “Nothing much,” Ella said as she slid off her jacket and slipped into a chair at the table. “Just that I should get straight over here. So, Harrison and I jumped into the car and came over.”

  Before I could say another word, Harrison, Ella’s fiancé walked in through the back door and I released an irritated sigh.

  “Evening all!” Harrison said as he slipped off his jacket and took a stool at the counter. “What smells so good?”

  “Mom’s chicken casserole,” Caitlin said, shooting me a nervous glance. I knew she meant well, but I was still mad.

  “Oh, where are my manners?” Harrison said when he spotted Scarlet, who was sitting quietly in the corner, watching everything that was going on. He stood up and walked towards the table and offered Scarlet his hand. “You must be Scarlet. I have heard a lot about you. It’s nice to finally meet you properly.”

  “You must be Harrison,” Scarlet said as she stood and shook his hand. She smiled, but there was a look in her eyes, a sudden vulnerability that I had never seen before and I realised she knew who Harrison was.

  Harrison was one of the paramedics who responded to the 911 call, the night I found Scarlet. I had stood there that night and watched as he and his partner Lynn, worked on Scarlet, trying to keep her alive. I still remember the look he gave me when he saw her.

  “It’s great to see you up and about,” he nodded with a broad smile. “You are one tough lady.”

  Scarlet just smiled back and sat back down in her seat.

  “So, what’s the big news?” Ella asked looking me straight in the eyes. Ella was so different compared to Caitlin. Caits being the baby, used her innocent and sarcastic wit to get around people. Ella was more direct. Being a schoolteacher probably had a lot to do with that. Even though I was the eldest by eleven months, she was always the sensible one. The one who bossed Caitlin and I around.

  “Why don’t you ask Caitlin?” I replied, still feeling more than a little pissed. I felt almost like I was being ambushed.

  “I’m asking you,” she said without even blinking. “You could cut the atmosphere in here with a knife. So, spill.”

  I stared at her for a moment. I wasn’t sure I was ready to talk about this, and the fact that Scarlet was sitting across from me really didn’t make it any easier. I looked at Scarlet, trying to read her face, but it was completely blank.

  “Olly,” Ella pushed.

  “Fine!” I replied, breathing out sharply. “We have reason to believe…that the man who murdered all those girls, and…shot Scarlet, well we think he is the same man that…that killed Clea.”

  “Oh Olly, no,” Ella said, and I cringed when I heard the sympathy in her voice. “I don’t know what to say.”

  “There is nothing to say,” I replied a little more abruptly than I had meant to. I stood up and took my plate to the sink and scraped the rest of my dinner into the garbage disposal before I put the plate in the dishwasher. When I turned back to the table, everyone was staring at me. “Look, I know you are all worried about me, but I am fine. I just want this asshole off the streets for good, so we can all get on with our lives.”

  “Olly,” Dad said, as he slowly stood up. “It’s okay to be upset. I know you want this over. We all do. But it’s okay for you not to be okay.”

  He turned to Scarlet and smiled. “I mean no disrespect, Scarlet,” he said then he turned back to me. “But we remember how broken you were when you lost Clea. We remember how obsessed you became with the case, and how it nearly killed you when the trail ran cold.”

  “Dad,” I sighed, feeling like I was backed into a corner. “What do you want me to say? Do you want me to cry and say how much I miss her every day?
I do, but I can’t live in the past. I am okay. I promise.”

  Before I could say another word, my phone began to ring. I sighed and pulled it from my pocket. Lieutenant Parker’s name flashed on the screen.

  “I gotta take this,” I sighed again. My eyes met Scarlet’s and she looked at me with an expression I had never seen before. My heart sank. I knew this whole Clea thing was getting to her. I needed to get her out of here before it all got too much for her. I knew my family were worried for me, but they were forgetting this was about her too. “I won’t be long.”

  She nodded and smiled as I brought the phone to my ear and hurried out of the room.

  “Lieutenant,” I said once I was in the privacy of the hallway. “Tell me you found something.”

  “We found plenty of somethings,” the lieutenant said, but he didn’t sound happy. “We found evidence that connects him to most of the girls.”

  “Most of the girls?” I asked, feeling a bit confused.

  “He had a file on each of the girls,” he replied. “Their names, where he met them, everything. The sick bastard took photos of them before and after he murdered them.”

  “What are you not telling me?” I asked, knowing there was something he wasn’t saying.

  “One of the files is missing,” he sighed.

  “Scarlet’s?” I asked but already knew the answer.

  “Yes,” the lieutenant confirmed. “I don’t know why he has taken hers.”

  “I do,” I said, as it all made perfect sense to me. “He knows who she really is. Scarlet is the only one who can confirm that it was Dean there without a shadow of a doubt. He is afraid, if she finds who she really is, her memory will come back.”

  “I hadn’t thought of that,” he replied.

  “Have you questioned him yet?” I asked, wishing I had gone with them to pick him up myself.

  The lieutenant didn’t respond for a few moments and I got a sickening feeling in the pit of my stomach.

  “Tell me you got him!” I demanded.

  “Oliver,” he said in a tone that already answered my question. “He was gone when we got here. We think he left your folks, came here and got her file, then hit the road. We are running traffic cameras in the area, but so far, nothing has come up.”