Page 143 of The Confidant
After Bash finished tying his shoes, he said he was calling the police.
But as my own phone rang, instead of hearing Scarlett’s lovely voice telling me that she was okay and safe in her bed, I only got her pre-recorded voicemail saying to leave a message.
“Please call me back, Scarlett,” I said after the beep, my body tense with anxiety, sweat dripping down my forehead. “I read your email, and I’m worried that Xander might be dangerous. Whatever you do, don’t go anywhere near him. If you’re okay, please at least text me. Either way though, Bash is talking to the police right now, and they’re on their way to the church.”
The elevator finally made it to the main level. As soon as the doors opened, Bash and I darted out and sprinted toward the church down the street.
And even though I hadn’t prayed to any sort of god or deity all year, I found myself pleading to anyone that might be listening:Please let Scarlett be unharmed. Please don’t let her suffer the trauma that so many other people have gone through.
A minute later, the church came into view. There was a faint light coming from one of the windows where the staircase was.
Someone was still in there.
Please be okay.
I pushed myself to run even harder, my heart feeling like it would burst inside my chest any second.
Why had I let her go into that church alone? Why hadn’t I told her about the Holy of Holies or the rituals and blood oaths they performed in there when I’d first read about them?
If I’d ignored her father and just told her everything I knew, she would have known that the revelation the High Priest claimed came from God was just the writings of someone with ulterior motives.
I made it to the wrought-iron fence that marked the perimeter of the church property, having left Bash several paces behind me. As soon as I made it to the archway, I pushed the gate open and ran straight for the main entrance of the church.
Please be unlocked still.
I grabbed the door handle and yanked it open, but it didn’t budge.
“NO!” I banged on the door with my fists. “Open up, Xander!”
But when it still didn’t budge, I raced down the steps to try a different set of doors. There were three other entrances that I knew of, so there was still a chance of getting inside if Scarlett happened to have just used a different door this time.
Deciding that she might have chosen the one closest to the parsonage, I ran to the west entrance. But once again, it was locked.
If the other sets of doors were locked, I might need to break through a window.
I was just running toward the opposite side of the building when the doors of the main entrance suddenly burst open. An instant later, Scarlett was running down the steps.
“SCARLETT!” I pivoted my direction and started sprinting toward her, relief coursing through my veins.
When she registered that someone was out here with her, she turned her head in my direction and gasped, “Hunter!”
A second later, she was falling into my arms, clinging to me tightly, and I was frantically asking, “What happened? Are you okay? What did he do to you?”
“I’m okay,” she said between sobs, burying her face into my neck. “I got away before he could do anything.”
And with those few words, my whole body went weak with relief.
She’d gotten away in time.
He hadn’t hurt her.
We both collapsed to the ground as my knees gave out from the strain of the run and the relief of finding Scarlett. I started to inspect her face and her body for any signs of a struggle while Bash ran onto the church grounds.
“Is he still up there?” he asked breathlessly when he noticed Scarlett clinging to me on the grass.
“I think so,” I said. “I didn’t see him come out.”
“He's on the top floor.” Scarlett pointed toward the doors she’d just run out of. “In the Holy of Holies.”
