Chapter 39

I felt someone shaking me, as I opened my eyes, I could see a white ceiling directly above me. I looked to the side and there was a window overlooking a parking lot. “Where am I?” I asked as my voice cracked.

A nurse in blue scrubs grabbed a glass of water with a straw and offered it to me. I took it with a smile, as I took a couple of sips.

“You have been out for quite a while, sweetie. Don’t try to move too fast, you have been in a coma for 2 days,” the nurse said.

“2 days, how?” I asked.

“You got a pretty nasty gash on your head when they did the surgery, they put you into a coma afterward for your brain and body to heal,” the nurse said.

“Is Aaron okay?” I asked hesitantly.

“Yes, I am assuming that is the gentleman who has been here every day, he has a gunshot wound on his leg?” the nurse asked for clarification.

“Yes, that’s him,” I said.

“He should be here shortly, he usually arrives a little after lunch. Are you hungry? Could I get you something light to eat?” the nurse asked as she fluffed my pillow behind my head.

“Yes, please, I would just like some crackers and maybe some juice,” I said as I sat up slightly in the bed.

“I’ll be by in a bit with something for you,” the nurse said as she walked out of the door.

###

Jen struggled against the restraints binding her to the chair. Her mouth was covered in duct tape, so she couldn’t scream. She looked around frantically, wishing her kidnapper would just release her. She had pleaded with him. Begged him to let her go, to stop hurting her. But he didn’t even seem to care. She had waited at the bar patiently for Vivienne to come and pick her up after the fight with Eric. A handsome, dark-haired man came up and offered to buy her a drink while she waited. He said that he had seen the fight between her and Eric before he just left her at the bar.

Shortly after finishing her drink, Jen couldn’t remember anything but waking up in a strange room with her hands and feet bound by duct tape. Her mouth had not been taped then. He did that when she started screaming for help. The room was dark, but a little light came in through the crack at the bottom of the door. There was no way out of the room except through the door, there were no windows or vents.

Jen pushed against the duct tape that was binding her to the chair in the room. He would be coming down soon with some food, Jen thought as her stomach grumbled. Someone must be looking for me, it’s been a few days since this guy took me. Why hasn’t anyone found me? Jen thought to herself as she patiently waited for her captor.

The door opened as Jen pushed against the restraints again. A dark figure took up the entire doorway.

###

I sat in my hospital room, wondering where Jen might be, as I had tried her phone. It went straight to voicemail, which meant she hadn’t charged it. I turned on the TV and flipped through the news programs. There was a story about the car crash and the ultimate shooting of a police officer by a crazed former police officer. The reporter interrupted the story, asking if there was any word on the additional female that was injured during the shooting. No word yet, but we are interviewing the police officer who was shot tomorrow on our 6 AM morning show, the reporter said.

The door opened and Aaron hobbled into the room on crutches. I smiled as he arrived.

“Hello beautiful,” he said, kissing me lightly on the lips.

“Hello handsome,” I said as he hugged me tightly.

“How are you feeling? I was so worried about you,” Aaron said as he sat down in a chair and placed his crutches next to him on the floor.

“I am feeling okay, a bit of a headache but other than that I feel all right,” I said. “How are you?”

“I’m doing okay,” Aaron said, nodding towards his leg that was outstretched and had a bandage on his upper thigh where he was shot.

His shorts didn’t conceal it as he sat down near the bed. The stark white bandage wrapped around his leg made me think of Brad when he had his accident, there were so many bandages when I got to the hospital. A tear rolled down my cheek and I brushed it away.

“You all right?” Aaron asked seeing the tear roll down my cheek.

“Yes, yes, just happy to see you,” I said as he leaned over and kissed me. “You haven’t seen Jen have you?”

“No, I tried to call her when I got to the hospital for the gunshot wound and there was no answer,” Aaron said.

“I just tried her too, do you think you could go by the office and her house to make sure she is okay?” I asked.

“Of course, I will go do that now, can you text me her home address?” Aaron asked.

I grabbed my phone and sent him her address. He kissed me and gave me a long hug before hobbling out of the door and saying Goodbye.

###

Jen continued to struggle against the duct tape that restrained her. He had loosened it this time a little, she thought to herself. How was she going to get out of here? Jen thought as she heard a door slam upstairs in the house. She had been trapped in this room now for three days. She wiggled and wiggled against the duct tape as it began to loosen from the back of the chair that she was sitting upon. At night he would undo the duct tape and allow her to lay down with just a handcuff holding her wrist to the bed. Then during the day he had been duct taping her to the chair. Pushing back and forth Jen loosened the duct tape further until she could move her arms slightly to move them in front of her chest. She then pushed as hard as she could at the duct tape across her chest and it loosened enough for her to slip out one hand. Clawing at the duct tape, Jen was able to get the duct tape loose from around her chest and started to unwind it from the chair.

Sitting quietly, Jen strained her ears to listen for his footsteps. She heard footsteps on the stairs as he came down into the basement where he was keeping her held captive. The key made a metal scratching sound as he turned it in the lock that held the door shut. Jen frantically shoved at the duct tape until it was free from the chair, and she jumped up and ran to the door. The door opened, the man was shocked to see Jen standing by the door. He was not prepared as she lunged at him, scratching his eyes. Jen scrambled past him and up the stairs. He grabbed her leg on the stairs and dragged her back into the room kicking and screaming.

“What’s all that noise?” someone said as they opened a door at the top of the stairs. There stood a little old lady with gray hair. Jen screamed again for her to help her, the lady slammed the door and the man threw her onto the bed.