Prologue || 4 Months Ago
Footsteps. I remember how loud they were. Whenever he enters the cold, dark cell I called my friend, echoes of his presence fill what little space it can provide. I remember how cold my tears were, falling on my bruised cheeks. I always wonder if I’ll live again to see the sunlight or feel the warm breeze of the air. The sound of leaves dancing with the wind.
Remembering all those dark memories made it more challenging to fight today. As I scamper in this familiar scenario, all I can do is weep and wish it was all just another nightmare. I was in no shape to run, but I still tried to move as much as my fragile body could. To escape this long torture I’ve had to endure for years.
In the darkness, I try to feel anything I can use to defend myself, but no matter how I try to build my courage, with his voice I come crashing down again.
“Relax, Lia. I just want to talk,” he says, letting out his maniacal laugh. I was on the verge of breaking down. I just want to let it end. But how?
I close my eyes and try to think. But then it went blank as my hair started to stand on end and short breaths tickled my shoulder. I knew then and there it was my end.
“Hello, my love.”
With his strength, he tackles me and covers my mouth with his right hand. I can’t quite see his face under the hood he is wearing. Yet there is no doubt about who he is. He is really back.
My mind can only think of one thing: bite his hand. As he screams in pain, I try to change our position and when I am now on top of him, gripping his hands away, I punch him as hard as I can and start to stand up. I kicked him in the crotch which made him scream in pain. I did not stay for long. I need to get out of the house.
As I was trying to escape, my mind kept on blaming itself. True enough, if I wasn’t so ambitious in capturing him, I wouldn’t be at death’s door. As expected, there is no clear exit, and now resorted to finding myself lost in the dark again. I can tell how far he is as he still continues to scream but not in pain. Anger.
A clear sign that my time is running out, I had to be quick and unfortunately, I stumbled down a flight of stairs. I can feel some of my ribs are broken as well as my right arm. Either I sprained my right ankle or broke it, it doesn’t matter. I had to get out quickly.
I was struggling to stand up and now limping my way toward what seemed to be a tool shelf. I must have fallen into the basement. I accidentally trapped myself even more. I found an ax hammer and tried lifting it. With only one good hand, lifting it would be impossible. Adrenaline drives my strength as I wait for him below the stairs.
“Come on, Lia. It’s been a long time. I just want to catch up,” he says. “Oh my, you still drive me crazy after, what, 15? 18 years?”, he says as he stops by the basement door, scanning my presence in the darkness.
The stairs creak as he descends. I just need the right timing to attack him. As his pace quickens, I swing the ax hammer by the stairs hoping it hit its target. I knew it was successful when I heard him fall hard to the floor crying in so much pain.
With my senses, I climbed the stairs back up without caring about the injuries I just acquired. I run as fast as I can. When I reached the basement door, I locked it and I instantly found the light switch. Clever of him to turn off the main circuit breaker. I make my way into the kitchen where I can pick up knives as my weapon. I also grabbed two table napkins and made them my temporary bandage for my forehead and arms.
As my adrenaline starts to deplete, I started feeling the throbbing pain of my broken arm. I ran to the kitchen door connecting to the backyard and still, it was locked. The thick curtains covering the glass wall of the dining room made my situation even more depressing. If only I had my flashlight with me.
The abandoned house was a three-story building including the basement. Climbing up to the second floor feels impossible. I can still hear him whimpering for whatever part of his body I pierced. I returned to the basement door and found a drawer, blocked the door with it then secured he won’t be interrupting my escape.
I searched in drawers and cupboards for anything useful. I found a glow stick and break it. I used it to gain Connor’s attention who was outside chasing the accomplice. But he was nowhere to be found.
I kept repeating the question “what should I do” in my mind and I always end up with no answers. Windows on the first floor all are blocked from the outside with grills. I will need to try my luck upstairs. I slowly stepped on the first stairs and a rush of pain from my sprained foot run up to my broken arm and head.
I stepped slowly going up and was sweating heavily when I arrived. In the hallway, I see four doors. I opened the nearest room and saw it empty and with windows blocked as well. By this time, I was starting to hyperventilate and limp badly. The table napkin wrapped around my forehead is soaked with my blood. I felt nauseous already.
Where is Connor when I need him?
With my remaining strength, I held on to the walls for support and made my way to the other rooms. Same thing, empty and blocked. Even the bathroom has no windows. The last room at the very end of the hallway seemed to have light breaking through the door’s cracks. I opened it and found a makeshift bed, boxes of random wires, a small table with a laptop that is still on, a lava lamp, two duffle bags, and a gun.
It must be his. He must have made it his camp when he was stalking me. I found a small med kit among his belongings. I locked the door and used the chairs to block the doorknob. Hoping it will give me ample time to check on my injuries. I drank a painkiller then cleaned my wounds and applied bandages.
As for my arm, I used one of his scarves as support. My right ankle needs attention as well but I ran out of bandages. After applying first aid, I scanned the room in more detail. The window that has light entering has grills but it’s loose. This must be his entry to the house. How did he quickly block the front door where I entered?
I took his gun and placed his laptop inside the box with wires. I opened the window and loosen the grills. It instantly came off. I placed the box on the roof. It was difficult getting out of the window with a broken arm and sprained foot. It took so much strength and sweat to get myself out of the house finally. Now, how do I get down?
I closed the window and then attached the grills back firmly. With my glow stick, I made a Morse Code signal for Connor. Using my hand to cover it and make dots and dashes in the air. I can’t call him in the open since my attacker may still be alive and I will only reveal my position. One dot four dashes, five dashes, three dots two dashes repeated twice.
Need Immediate assistance.
I continued giving the signals and wished he would look up. The house is isolated from the nearest neighbor as far as one kilometer. It is not really that deep in the woods but the eerie feeling of it in the night adds to the chilling night. The only light is from a street lamp nearby. I sat on the roof with the glow stick in my hand. The gun and the box beside me.
I took the time to rest and compose myself. I am on my own now. Just like 18 years ago. My tears started to fall. All the fear and anxiety tonight has now surfaced. Why did he have to come back? I was sure I killed him that night. I was sure I saw the bullet pierce through his chest, blood oozing and soaking his lab coat.
I closed my eyes trying to shut away the memories. I don’t want to experience the same thing all over again. My reverie was disturbed when I heard a loud commotion inside. It was him shouting in a complete rage. My heart started to beat fast again. I have nowhere to go. If I jump, I’d be in more danger than in my current situation. My wounds felt like they opened wider, welcoming more pain from the man downstairs.
If I can time it right, when he gets upstairs, I’d have to jump. Stupid of me, why didn’t do it sooner? I’d have to shoot him then to disable him. Yes, sounds like a plan. I positioned myself facing the window and waited. I can hear him cursing and screaming as he blindly walks in the darkness. His heavy footsteps were uneven. One of his legs is the lucky one to be hit by my ax hammer.
Doors were opened violently and as his steps were getting closer, I felt my own blood and sweat trickling down my nose and cheeks. The gun’s safety is now off and I placed my index finger on the trigger and gripped the gun tightly. I breathe in deeply and tried to focus. When he opened the door, I made three shots and heard him fall to the floor.
I stand up and checked the inside. The faint glow of the lava lamp helped me see better. But as quick as lightning, he stands up and grabbed my collar making my rib injury worse by pulling me in. The grills were in the way but he managed to insert his hands in between. He kept on banging me to the grills as if I’d just be able to fit in.
Right now the pain has started to make me feel dizzy and weak. He was laughing wildly seeing how much in pain I was. I can now see his face which is odd. Maybe I’d forgotten what he looked like. But I’ll never forget his face. What I’m seeing right now is a complete stranger. When he sensed I was too weak to fight back, he let me go for a moment and removed the grills throwing it in the air. It landed loudly below. The gun, where is it? I tried feeling it beside me but it was gone. It must have slipped down the roof. My vision is blurry and I can taste my own blood on my lips. My broken arm is numb, and my ribs and ankle are burning in pain. Now I’m sure it’s broken as well.
My forehead is throbbing badly. I can feel my life slipping away as more blood left my body. He grabs me by the collar again and drags me inside through the window. The broken glass pierced my skin as he carelessly pulls me inside. He threw me like a rag doll on the floor and just looks at me with those crazy eyes. He smiled widely.
“Look at you. You’re hurt. If you were only behaving just as I told you, we wouldn’t be in this mess,” he says with such fake sympathy. He held my ankles and dragged me closer to him. I made small efforts of escaping his grip but to no avail. I cried and cried for my life. What have I done to receive such punishment?
He was about to grope me when I heard a loud thud by the window and a shadow appeared. The next thing I knew, gunshots were fired and he fell down beside me choking on his own blood. I looked at Connor in such weakness and he quickly checked on me.
Then, everything became dark.
