A tear leaks down my cheek and there’s nothing that I can do to put myself back together. Not in this hell. I no longer have any control. I lost it as soon as that guy got into the car with me. At the time, I thought that he would drive me to an abandoned place to kill me, not bring me to a building to trap me while they try and lure in a man who is in another state somewhere.
It’s hardly a surprise, is it? Everyone who gets close to Ted ends up dead. It doesn’t matter if his uncle started this, he is the one I am close to and the reason I’ve ended up here. If he never lived next door to me, if he wasn’t my best friend who I fell in love with, if he didn’t come back, then I would be at the hospital now helping to save lives.
I have always loved Ted Landon though, haven’t I? For as long as I can remember. So, I guess if that’s what gets me killed, I die knowing I had that.
The thing is, I want Ted to come because I want to be rescued, but I also don’t want him to turn up because there’s no way that he will survive.
All of a sudden, the door to the room unlocks and opens. Instinctively, I scoot back on the bed to press myself against the wall. I might not have been hurt by any of these assholes yet, but I know that there’s going to be a first time… although, probably not right now. Jack is coming in with a plate of food and a smile for me.
Jack isn’t the guy who kidnapped me, and he’s never done anything to hurt me. He’s the nicest man in this building, but he’s still a criminal, and he’s dangerous.
“Hey, I got you something hot today.” He slides the plate over to me. “I hope you like this.”
I don’t eat it right away, I stay frozen staring at Jack. He knows how afraid I am, and I think that a part of him feels bad about it. But there isn’t anything that he can do. He isn’t in charge.
“Oh, don’t worry, Chloe, you won’t be here much longer,” he tries to reassure me as he takes a seat on the bed next to me. “Ted will come soon, and then you can go back to your life.”
I raise my eyebrow in disbelief. “You know that won’t happen. The only way I’m getting out of here is in a body bag. Ted will die as well, if he ever turns up which I keep trying to tell you that he won’t because he’s gone...”
“No, no, it won’t be like that,” Jack tries to reassure me. “It won’t end in blood. This is all just tying up loose ends. This is… just making things right. You know? Things went south for a while, but we’re making it better.”
“I don’t know what you mean. I don’t know what happened. Don’t you understand that? Please, please let me go.” I whine.
“I can’t let you out, you know that,” Jack tells me apologetically. “I know that this doesn’t have anything to do with you, but I’m not in charge. I just bring you the food. Speaking of which…” He slides the plate closer.
I don’t have any choice, I have no idea how long I’m going to be here, so I eat. Jack stays with me while I eat, I don’t like to be watched, but I know they don’t want to leave me with anything I could use to escape. I wolf everything down much too quickly and watch him go.
“See ya later,” he declares as he goes. “Let me know if you need anything.”
I want to laugh because this is so ridiculous. Like I have a phone and I can just contact him when I need something. Like this is a fucking hotel.
Eventually, because I have nothing else to do, I curl up on the bed to sleep. Not that I’ll be drifting off any time soon, I don’t here unless I’m really exhausted because it’s scary. I’m not safe here, but sleeping is the only time that I’m not freaking out.
“Fuck.” Tears stream down my face, I give up the attempt to remain strong and cry. I can’t do this anymore. How long will they keep me here before they just kill me because Ted’s not coming? “FUUUUUCK!! LET ME OUT OF HERE!!”
I can’t remember how big this building is, I don’t remember being brought in, I was too scared, so I don’t know if anyone can hear me but I don’t care. I just need to let some of my frustration out. I scream and scream until my lungs are sore, hoping that someone, maybe Jack, will feel bad. I doubt they’ll feel bad enough to let me go because what the boss says has them so scared, but it might make them think about what they are doing to me.