Page 67 of Safe
“We have to wait for backup, and they’re about 10, maybe 15 minutes behind us.”
“You’ve got to be fucking kidding me. We’re just supposed to sit here?”
“I don’t like the idea any more than you do, but we have to play it smart. If he’s kept her alive this long, the odds of him killing her in the next few minutes are way less than the odds of him killing her if we go in there alone.”
I wasn’t about to admit that Alex was right, so I kept quiet.
Minutes dragged on like hours while the silence amplified my anxiety. All I could do was sit there, imagining what might be happening to Danielle just a short distance away, and dwell on the pestering feeling that this was somehow my fault, despite Alex’s reassurances that it was not.
My mind raced through all the things I wanted to say to Danielle if I ever got the chance to see her again, though I wasn’t sure if she'd even want to hear them. Guilt was clawing at the logical parts of my brain, and I felt the urge to say something to Alex, but before I could, he beat me to it.
“She’s not going to hate you,” he said, side-eyeing me.
I looked over at him, confused by the sudden statement. Alex had an uncanny ability to read my mind, a trait that was part of what made us such good friends; I could never hide anything from him.
Alex continued, “I’ve known you long enough to understand what’s going through your mind. But I’ve also known Danielle her entire life. She won’t hate you. Just give her some time and explain what was really going on. She was scared—probably more scared of her feelings for you than anything else. You gotta remember what she’s been through.”
“I wasn’t trying to—” I began, but he interrupted me.
“I know. You don’t have to justify your actions to me. Honestly, you might not even need to justify it to her. I didn’t give either of you much choice in the matter,” he said, staring out the windshield at the dirt road leading to the house. “I’m glad you didn’t tell her about the money. She would have resented me even more for it. But I’m her brother, and she can’t get rid of me, so I can handle her hating me for a while now if it fixes shit for the two of you.”
The sun was setting, and Alex had bitten off all his nails at this point.
“Can we at least circle the property or something?” I tried to suggest, noting the way Alex was damn near vibrating out of his seat.
“I mean, I guess that would be fine as long as we aren’t seen.”
Alex and I stepped out of the car, shutting the doors as quietly as possible, and began the walk.
“Do we have an actual plan?” I asked him, questioning what was about to happen.
“Just stay behind me.”
I kept silent, knowing full well there was a good chance Alex was going to go off the book and there would be no reasoning with him in this state. Whatever fate had laid out was what would happen from this moment forward. As we neared the house, the nausea rose in my throat, knowing Danielle was just inside those walls. We circled the house twice, hoping SWAT would be here soon.
As we came back around toward the front of the house, a blood-curdling scream permeated the outer walls, catching us off guard.
“That’s Danielle!” I shouted at a volume that I thought was sure to get us caught.
“Fuck this, we’re going in.” Alex started racing to the back of the house, finding a way for us to slip in, away from where the scream came from, giving us an element of surprise or at least some cover.
“SWAT is on the way. You said we have to wait for them.” I tried reminding Alex to wait, but he was already looking for a way into the back of the house. The last thing I wanted was him getting us both fucked—me for being there, and him for not following protocol.
“Emergent circumstances, mother fucker.”
“In English?”
“Means I can enter without SWAT if there’s immediate danger.”
Our best option appeared to be a back cellar door that, with some effort and patience, we managed to open just enough for us to slip inside and make our way into the cellar.
It was dark and damp in the cellar, but the dirt floor gave us the silence we needed. Navigating through rats, dirt, and abandoned boxes, we reached the far side and found a staircase leading up into the house.
Alex crept up the stairs with caution as I followed close behind. Without a moment’s hesitation, Alex kicked open the door and barreled into the hallway.
34. LANDON
I stepped out of the shower, put my clothes back on, and contemplated how the fuck everything had fallen into place the way I hoped it would. This had been too fucking easy.
