Page 28 of A Storm of Nightmares

Chapter 17

As soon as Rick closes the door behind him, and we hear the padlock being put back into place, Jess breaks down in tears and covers her face. I rush over to her and pull her into my arms to comfort her. Thank God she’s not brainwashed like Betty.

“Shh, it’s ok,” I whisper as I rub small circles on her back. Jess shakes her head aggressively, but she doesn’t say anything. “I know this won’t make you feel any better, but I’ve been looking for you. I’m a private investigator, and Malerie hired me to find you.”

Jess laughs in my arms, and I lean back to look at her. I’m puzzled at the sudden change of emotion with her. “You’ve been hired to find me? Well, no offense, but you suck at your job. You’re trapped in here with me too.” She laughs again, and I can’t help but join her. Jess is right, I think I may have chosen the wrong career path. Not that it really matters now unless I can figure out how to get out of this place. My stomach churns at the idea of being stuck here forever.

Jess finally stops crying, mostly because she’s laughing at me, and I release her from my hold. I look around the room once more. It’s almost unsettling how immaculate it is when I know my dingy room is just down the hall. Rick did mention he remodeled for us, but I didn’t expect to see anything this nice.

My eyes flick back to the door. My first instinct is to run over to it and try to break it down, but I know my efforts would be futile. I’m not nearly strong enough, and the door is padlocked. I’m also wary of doing anything that might upset Rick and earn me a one-way ticket to handcuffs and a dark bedroom.

“Kat,” Betty whispers as she puts her hand on my arm. No doubt a warning for me to stop eyeing the door. I yank my arm away from her before I can even think about what I’m doing, and the hurt on her face is evident. I don’t want her to touch me when she’s been touching Rick for the past four years, though. I can’t tame my anger right now.

Betty steps forward again but keeps her hands to herself. “Listen to me, Kat,” she whispers. “Don’t even think about trying to run. Don’t talk about your past. Don’t give Rick any reason to hurt you.” Betty eyes me cautiously. “He hasn’t hurt you yet, has he?”

My eyes drop to the floor, and I nod. “He hit me. Once.” I bite my cheek to keep my emotions at bay.

“Fucking bastard,” she spits. I look up at her again. That doesn’t sound like something you say about a significant other. The confusion on my face must be evident because Betty starts to explain, “Kat, it’s not what you think. I fucking hate Rick. He’s ruined my life. God only knows what he’s done to Dan...” Betty’s voice trails off, and I see her struggling to hold back tears. If that kiss earlier was a show, my sister is a damn good actor. I was totally fooled.

She wipes her eyes angrily and takes a deep breath. “Look, I do what I have to so I can survive. You and Jess are new here. You’re both scared and thinking of a million ways to get the hell out of here. Trust me, I know. But I’ve been a prisoner for four years. There is no escaping Rick. The best advice I have is to play nice. Let him think he’s won and that you care for him but do it slowly, or else he’ll catch on. He’ll know you’re only faking it.”

Jess starts to cry again, and Betty looks at her with sympathy. She grabs my arm and leads me away from Jess and lowers her voice. “He took her so I wouldn’t be alone here, you know? Rick knew how much I missed you, so he took her as a sort of replacement sister, I guess. He offered to get you for me years ago, but I swore that if he ever brought you here, I would kill myself. I knew Rick wouldn’t risk losing his prized possession, so he’s left you alone all this time. I never wanted this hell for you, Kat. For the last four years, I’ve been hoping you’ve moved on and have been living a great life without me. I imagined you having a long-term boyfriend and kicking ass in college, with the entire world at your feet. But now, here you are. We’ll grow old and die here, and the world will never know where we disappeared to.”

Her words turn the blood in my veins to ice. We’ll grow old and die here. Panic starts to set in as I think about mom and dad losing another daughter. And poor Malerie will never know what happened to her sister. And Keith... I don’t even know if Keith is here or if he’s alright, but one thing’s for sure; I will never see him again. The man I love is lost to me forever. This is all too much, and finally, I feel big, hot tears run down my cheeks. Everything Betty said has made this shit situation really set in, and I know for sure now this is no nightmare.

Betty pulls me into a warm embrace, and I let myself sob into her shoulder until my throat hurts. Once my emotions took over, Jess pulled herself together and joined us. Here we stand, three stolen girls in the middle of this too-perfect living room, crying and holding each other. What a sight we must be. If this is going to be my life now, I’m thankful to have Betty and Jess by my side, at least. We can be strong for each other. I can’t even imagine how Betty felt, alone for the first several years of this prison.

I’ve cried myself dry, and I’m sure at least ten minutes have passed by without any of us saying a word. I finally step back, and Jess and Betty’s arms fall back to their sides. “Alright, enough blubbering. Tell me what I’ve missed, Kat,” Betty asks as she wipes away her tears and puts a smile on.

The three of us start to walk to the couch, and I try to think about what I should and shouldn’t tell Betty. Life hasn’t been great since she went missing. The happiest I’ve been in the entire four years she’s been gone was the wonderful week I spent with Keith. Memories of laughing with him, watching him cook for me, and our intimate lovemaking start to swirl in my mind, and I feel the tears wanting to break free again.

Betty immediately senses my pain and puts her hand on my thigh as we sit. “Kat, tell me. I want to know everything I’ve missed, the good and the bad.”

“Oh, Betty... The last four years have been mostly bad. My life pretty much stopped when you went missing. Mom and dad fell apart, and I distanced myself from them because it hurt too much to be around them. I dropped out of college to become a private investigator. I had this stupid idea that I could find you. Now look at me, I’m fucked. Not only could I not find you, but I got myself kidnapped too.” I drop my head in shame, not able to look Betty in the eyes.

“Hey, don’t think like that. It was never your responsibility to find me. I’m happy you tried, but it’s not your fault that I went missing, and it’s not your fault that you ended up in here with me.” She grips my chin in her hand and forces my eyes to hers, a small, stern smile on her lips. There’s my bold, stubborn big sister. I have missed her so much. Her words calm me a bit and I return her smile. “Now, I’ve heard plenty of the bad for one day. Tell me about something good, Kat.”

I feel my cheeks blushing. How badly I have wanted to confide in my sister over the years. Talk about boy troubles and get advice for dating and losing my virginity. Now the opportunity is here, and I’m feeling a mix of gratefulness and embarrassment.

I decide to just go for it and tell her everything. “I fell in love. It’s very recent, and now I’ll probably never see him again, but it was amazing while I had it. I never thought I would find a man who took my mind off you, off of how sad I always felt since the day you vanished. Until Keith. He is everything I needed in a partner. He’s strong where I’m weak. He’s gentle where I’m damaged. Keith made me laugh every single day, and when he slept next to me, I didn’t have nightmares about you and that god-awful night. I waited twenty years to sleep with someone. I had the opportunity several times, but nothing ever felt right. I knew I was waiting for more. And Keith was so much more. I gave him every part of me, and it was beyond anything I could have imagined. All those romance novels I devoured in high school didn’t do sex justice. It was hot and passionate, yet every second was filled with love. I’m glad I got to experience something like that before getting stuck here.” I shrug and bite my lip as sadness washes over me.

All of what I’ve just said is true, which makes it so much more painful. I’ll be locked in here forever, never to see Keith again. I feel my heart-shattering at the thought. It’s almost too much to handle.

Betty and Jess both go nuts about Keith. I can tell they’re trying to keep my mood light. They take turns asking all about him and how we met, and pretty soon, I find myself giggling alongside them like a bunch of schoolgirls.

Betty thinks it’s nice that Keith was a cop investigating her disappearance. Something about shared grief between Keith and me that made our bond stronger. I have no idea what she was babbling on about, but one thing is clear; she’s happy that I got a week of pure bliss before being taken and held captive by Rick.

After they finish grilling me about Keith, Jess takes over the conversation. She’s different than I thought she’d be. I’m not actually sure what I expected, but she’s not it. Jess is really smart and witty. Her face lights up when she talks about all the sisterly shenanigans she and Malerie got into as children. She’s able to escape this terrible situation for a while when she tells Betty and me about vacationing in Tahoe every winter. Hearing her stories reminds me of poor Malerie and how distraught she was that day in my apartment. That seems like ages ago now, rather than days. Will she ever know that I did find Jess and that she’s ok? I mean,relatively. We’re all locked up here by a crazy fuck, but hey, we’re all alive.

I tell Jess about how heartbroken Malerie seemed and how brave she was, coming to me for help. Malerie had some guts going against her parents’ wishes and seeking someone to find Jess. I wasn’t nearly as brave as she was when Betty first went missing. Jess’ blue eyes sparkle with pride for her dear sister for a moment, and then we all break into tears once more. Today has turned out to be overly emotional for all parties involved.

Rick comes barreling through the door before any of us realizes what’s happening. I didn’t hear the freaking padlock being undone. Thankfully, the three of us have just stopped our crying, but I don’t doubt that each of us has red, puffy eyes, and I’m sure it’s all too obvious what’s been going on. Without a word, Rick comes up to me, grabs a fistful of my hair, and yanks me up to my feet. I yelp, equally from pain and surprise, and try to pull his hand off of me.

Betty is on her feet and trying to get Rick’s attention within seconds, while Jess sits on the couch with wide eyes, watching this scene unfold before her. Rick pushes Betty down onto the sofa without any effort and pulls me by my hair toward the door.

“What are you doing?!” Betty yells as she gets back up and races after us. Meanwhile, all I can do is cry. Today was going relatively well, but in a matter of minutes, I’m reminded of the hell that I’m trapped in. How stupid of me to think this whole being imprisoned for the rest of my life situation wouldn’t be as bad with Betty and Jess by my side.

“Don’t play fucking dumb, Elizabeth. You think I haven’t heard what’s being going on in here today? I am always watching. You girls have been naughty, and it’s Katherine’s fault. Maybe three girls is one too many... I should never have brought her here, but what choice did she leave me? Now the three of you have been crying and reminiscing all damn day when you shouldn’t ever be thinking about your past. Your future is with me, and I will be respected! It’s time to fix my mistake.” Rick’s hold on my hair gets harsher as his anger rises, and he looks into my eyes with so much hatred that I actually fear for my life. I swear I can feel my hair being ripped out of my scalp at this point, but I’m too scared to try to fight out of his hold.

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