Hard Times by C. Hallman
19
Idon’t think I’ve ever slept so well in my whole life.
I smile to myself, eyes still closed, stretching my arms and legs, relaxed like I just got out of a hot tub. For the first time in forever, I feel good inside and out.
That feeling lasts a mere second, which is the time it takes me to open my eyes. Once I do that, I realize I’m alone.
I sit up, my head swinging back and forth. They’re both gone. The bathroom is empty when I check it, too. They didn’t leave a note or anything. They just… left.
My legs go weak and I have to lean against the wall outside the bathroom door for support. They’re gone. Like nothing happened.
With a gasp, I looked down at my wrist, remembering what this was all about in the first place. I don’t think I’ve ever let out a sigh of relief as big as the one that comes out of me when I see the familiar chain, when I feel it sliding over my skin. My fingers brush against the butterfly.
Ryker must’ve clasped it there at some point when I was asleep—I’m sure he didn’t have to try too hard not to wake me, since I pretty much fell into a coma.
I hold my wrist in my other hand, eyes closed, and a single tear squeezes out from under my lashes and rolls down my cheek. It’s a happy tear, a tear of gratitude. I got what I wanted, what I needed.
And I guess I should be grateful, too, that they left me unharmed. They didn’t try to stop me from reporting them, probably because they knew better than to think I ever would. I’m not interested in them getting what’s coming to them or anything like that. All I wanted was this, and I got it, and now I can move on with my life.
I should feel happy… ecstatic. Complete, whole, fulfilled. Not to mention relieved as fuck because now I don’t have to scrimp and save and rent dumps like the one on the other side of town. I can go anywhere I want, be anybody I choose to be. So long as I fly under the radar, that is. But I know my way around the rules, too, so that doesn’t bother me. It’s easy to get a fake ID.
I know all of this.
So why does it feel like my heart is breaking?
It might’ve been easier if they had at least left a note explaining why they had to go. Maybe something I could hold on to now, something I could use to remind myself that they thought of me as more than just another victim. Some cop they managed to Stockholm Syndrome their way around. An easy lay.
I need to get out of here. I can’t stand looking at the bed, remembering what it was like last night. How they made me feel, the things they did to me. The things I gladly did to them, things I would do again in a heartbeat if I had the chance. I pull on my jeans and the baggy T-shirt I wore here, then take the ball cap from the dresser and shove it on my head. The sooner I start living my new life, the better.
I jump with a gasp at the sound of the electronic lock beeping, signaling that it’s been tripped. The door opens before I have a chance to react further, though there isn’t much I could do. Why in the hell didn’t I bring my gun with me? Why did I leave it locked with the money?
“Oh, my God!” It’s a good thing I’m standing next to the bed, because my knees go out on me at the sight of Hunter, followed by Ryker. I sit down with a thud hard enough to almost bounce myself onto the floor. “Where did you go? I thought you—”
Hunter smirks as he places a bag on the dresser. Ryker’s holding one of those cardboard carriers with three coffee cups, and he places it next to the bag that I can tell from the smell holds breakfast. “What? You didn’t think we left, did you?”
“We figured you’d be exhausted and starving after all the work we put you through last night.” Hunter fishes out a sandwich and hands it to me. “Bacon, egg, and cheese on a biscuit.”
“You are my savior.” And I’m not just saying that. They are my saviors, both of them. It makes no sense, and I’m positive nobody outside of the three of us could understand, but it’s the truth.
I have half the sandwich eaten and about the same amount of coffee drank before pointing out, “You could’ve let me know you were coming back, you realize. I might’ve left—I would’ve been gone by the time you got back if I had woken up five minutes earlier than I did.”
Ryker hits me with a hard stare, forgetting his sandwich for a second. “It never occurred to us you would think we left.”
“You really think we would have left after we waited so long for you to find us?” Hunter hands me a hash brown patty wrapped in paper.
It’s still hard to understand the way they think. To get inside their heads. They’re locked up just as tight as what’s left of my money.
That doesn’t mean I’m not happy, though. I don’t think I’ve ever been this happy. And not just because they brought me food. Although that helps a lot.
Once we’re finished eating, and everything’s cleaned up, the guys exchange a look. I’ve seen enough of the way they communicate without using words to know something’s up. “What is it? Why did you look at each other like that?”
For maybe the first time, it looks like Ryker is at a loss for words. He rubs a hand over the back of his neck, grimacing with his eyes on the floor. “Here’s the thing. We’re not here because were running away.”
I look back and forth between them, but Hunter’s expression is unreadable as he leans against the dresser, arms folded over his chest. “I don’t understand. Why else would you have zigzagged all over the place for half a year? You have to know law enforcement is still—”
“That’s not what he’s talking about,” Hunter informs me. “If we wanted to get away and stay away, we would’ve gone straight to California.”
“What’s in California?”
“Disneyland, obviously.” Ryker grins when my jaw drops. “Just kidding.”
“We have a house on the beach in Malibu.” Hunter grins, too, since this little piece of news has my jaw still hanging open. “We made arrangements for it a long time ago, back when we were still inside.”
“We knew we’d need a place to go once we were free, somewhere we could disappear. It’s waiting for us out there.”
I lick my lips, which have suddenly gone dry. “So why didn’t you go straight there? What, were you afraid I wouldn’t be able to track you down if you went all the way out to the West Coast?”
Another look between them, and this time it’s obvious they’re both fighting to keep a straight face. “Come on,” Ryker finally says, pulling me to my feet when I don’t move. “We have something to show you.”
“You’re taking me someplace?” My heart pounds at the thought. Sure, they came back with breakfast, but was that all a way of getting me to let my guard down? No matter what, it’s still hard to trust. I wish I could, but I can’t help feeling wary.
“Hey, Sugar.” Ryker hooks a finger under my chin before lifting it so our eyes meet. “You can trust me. You can trust both of us. If we wanted to hurt you or get rid of you, we could’ve done that way before now. I didn’t have to leave you alive in that bunker. I wanted you to find me, to find us. And not because of some game I’m playing. I’ve never been more serious. Okay?”
There’s something in his eyes and the tone of his voice that convinces me. Maybe this is the dumbest thing I’ve ever done, but it’s not the first dumb thing, either. “Okay.” I get my bag and follow them from the room, then take the back steps to avoid the elevator and the lobby. So, they’re still being careful, even now.
More careful because of me, I bet.
And dammit, I’m glad they are. Even though I know this is wrong, deep down inside, I’m glad they’re one step ahead of anybody who might be after them.
There’s a nondescript black truck with the engine running in an alley behind the hotel. Hunter gets behind the wheel while Ryker helps me into the passenger seat since it’s sort of a climb. “I can handle this,” I tell him with a smile when he tries to strap me in.
“You can’t be too careful with something as important as you are.” I think it’s the way he says it, like it’s the most obvious thing in the world, that makes my nose and my eyes sting like I might burst into tears. It’s just that I’ve never had anybody besides Mom care so much about me before, and it’s been a long time since I lost her.
It amazes me, honestly, that they drive around town like half the law enforcement in the country isn’t after them. They’re even laughing and joking as Hunter drives us out of the commercial district and into an area slightly seedier. I’ve seen my share of seedy areas during the search for my missing bracelet, but this qualifies as one of the worst.
We’re at the riverside, where a row of crumbling warehouses sits. It’s impossible to imagine a time when this area might’ve been bustling, full of workers loading up ships to sail around the world.
Now, it’s obvious from the used needles and condoms littering the broken concrete what people come down here to do. It’s daytime, so we’re the only living creatures around except for birds and rodents and a skinny dog that runs at the sight of us.
“If you were trying to make me feel better, this is probably the last place you should’ve brought me.” I manage a thin little laugh, but even I can tell how pathetic it sounds.
“Relax, Sugar. You’re in for a treat, trust me.” Ryker sounds almost happy as Hunter pulls to a stop in front of a graffiti covered brick building. The broken windows remind me of a mouth with missing teeth.
And they think it’s funny I’m nervous. I’m not sure I’ll ever be able to understand them.
“Come on. We’re going in.” There’s no arguing with them, since Ryker is out of the truck and opening my door before I know it. He reaches over me to unlock the belt, then gives my arm a tug. “I can’t wait for you to see. I’m actually getting a little hard right now.”
“I hope you understand that none of this makes any sense.” My eyes dart this way and that, my mind racing as I try to come up with ways to escape if needed. Here I am again, wondering how I can get away from them.
Right now, there’s no chance of that, since Ryker won’t let go of my arm. I’m sure it’s better for me to play along for the moment, rather than trying to fight my way out of this.
It smells like rotting wood in here, and it’s easy to see why once my eyes adjust to the semi-darkness. Water drips from what looks like a hundred places in the broken roof, where there’s a gaping hole. When I look up, I can see the sky.
“Come on, down here.” Hunter leads the way to a set of metal stairs leading down to a basement that I can only imagine is like something out of a nightmare. What choice do I have but to play along? Even if I can’t help but imagine how long it would take anybody to find my body here? And even if they did, I don’t have any ID on me.
Then again, nobody would care, anyway. Sure, the Sherriff’s office might be glad to know I’m gone, but that’s it. It was always going to turn out this way, wasn’t it? I got a six-month reprieve, is all.
It’s darker down here, with only a few holes in the floor above us to let in enough light for us to see. My blood runs cold when a rat scurries past, only inches from my feet. I cringe and grab Ryker’s arm, but he only laughs. “After everything you’ve been through, a rat scares you?”
“It disgusts me. Big difference.”
It’s not completely open down here the way it is on the main floor. There are doors everywhere, narrow passageways between them. This is probably where the offices were located. I shudder with revulsion at the thought of what’s in them now.
Hunter stops in front of one of those doors. “You ready to see what we put together for you?”
It’s not easy to talk with my heart in my throat. I can only nod my head and hope that whatever it is, it’s over with quickly.
The door swings open with a squeak that makes chills run down my spine like nails on a chalkboard. Inside the room are a bunch of battery-operated lanterns giving off an eerie, greenish blue glow.
And a chair in the center of the room.
There’s somebody in it.
My eyes take in the scene rapidly, moving from one thing to another. The rope, coils and coils of it, holding the person in place on the bare wooden chair. The way their head hangs forward with duct tape over their mouth. It’s a man. A man who stinks. A man whose sweat has soaked his hair and clothes.
“Surprise!” Ryker goes to him, takes a handful of his hair, and jerks his head up so I can see his face.
And suddenly, it’s clear. All of it.
Because I’m looking into the face of my long-lost stepfather.