Beyond His Control (His 2)

Still, I won’t let it get me down. Instead, I sneak us into a cinema, and we sit down to enjoy a movie together. Emmy’s eyes are practically glued to the screen. So far, she’s loved every inch of the city. There’s so much more to discover, so much more to do, and the more time she spends here, the bigger the smile on her face gets.

It’s like watching a toddler experience the world for the first time, and it’s both endearing and humbling. I know the world she came from, and I know what she’s missed out on all these years, so I’m glad I get to see her go through it all for the first time.

“What else is there to do?” she asks when the movie is over.

I love her curiosity. She reminds me of myself … way back when I was still young and innocent.

“Loads. We could go ice skating or speed dating; we could go to an amusement park and ride a roller coaster,” I say.

She makes a weird face. “Speed dating? What?”

“It’s where you go and have a drink with someone you have never met, and you talk … and then you switch to another person after fifteen minutes,” I explain.

She holds up a hand. “Oh no, that’s … not for me.” She clears her throat. “But that amusement park thing sounds like fun.”

“Definitely, it’s such a thrill. Though it does cost money.” I kick around as I walk. “Which we don’t have enough of right now.”

“Oh well, how do we get more?” she asks.

“Work,” I say. “So I’m looking for a job.”

“Right. Should I be looking too then?”

I smile. I like that she wants to pitch in, but I don’t think anyone would want to hire her right now. She doesn’t even know how to use the metro, let alone a car. How is she gonna get to work?

“No, it’s fine. I’ll handle it,” I say, waving it off.

I know it’ll be expensive to pay for two people by myself, but I’ll worry about that later.

“Okay, if you’re sure,” she says. “I’m just so excited to see your world. If you’d told me it would be like this back when we were still in the community, I probably would’ve never believed you.”

A grin spreads on my face. “And you haven’t even seen the internet yet.”

“The internet?” She frowns.

I laugh. “I’ll explain it later. First, we should go grab a bite to eat. I’m hungry.”

Locking my arm in hers, I pull her along toward a cheap deli down the street. With the last few pennies I have, I buy us two hot dogs, and we munch on them on our way back to my apartment. For a minute, I’ve forgotten all the worries I have and enjoy the day for what it is. Heck, it’s almost as though we’ve become best friends. Maybe living with Emmy won’t be so bad after all. It beats being alone.

As I press the numbers into the pad to open the building’s door, Emmy stays behind, her eyes scanning the street. I open the door and step in, but Emmy’s not following. I glance at her over my shoulder right as I step inside. “Emmy?”

She’s frozen to the ground, her body gone rigid … face completely white.

The bag of groceries she holds falls to the ground, vegetables and fruits rolling everywhere.

Her eyes fill with tears as her lips part.

My brain can’t process quickly enough what’s unfolding in front of me, but I know something’s wrong. But the door closes on me before I can slip a foot between.

A man approaches Emmy. He speaks to her. I can’t hear what he says. I pry at the door handle, trying to get it to open again, but it won’t budge.

The man wraps his arms around her body.

I gasp.

She doesn’t push back or resist.

It’s as though the minute she saw him, she instantly reverted to her placated self.

But I won’t let her give up this fight.

My hand immediately reaches into my purse, and I frantically search for the keys to open the door again. Through the tiny glass window, I watch Emmy and the man whose hand snaked around her waist walk away. She turns her head to me, mouthing something I can only decipher as “help.”

The keys shake in my trembling hands as I find the right one and try to shove it into the lock, but it takes me three times. “Fuck!” I yell as I finally get it right.

The door unlocks. I push it open and run outside.

“Emmy! Emmy?” I yell.

There’s no response.

Emmy is gone.

Taken by a man she clearly knew.

They’ve come.

Chapter 5

Noah

Holed up in my hotel room, I press the phone button multiple times, but the guy refuses to pick up. “Fuck!” I yell, chucking it across the room.

What use is a cell phone when you can’t contact the people you need to talk to?