SUMMER
It’s a dream, a bad nightmare.
It isn’t real.
It’s a movie that I’m watching and I can’t find the remote to turn it off.
I’m hunched over, fighting for my breath, fighting to claw my way out of the nightmare I’ve found myself in. My heart races, beats against my chest as if it’s about to break free from the mortal cage of bone and flesh.
I feel the shadow of the man who saved me—but couldn’t save my sister—pass over me. Then, I see his shadow and for all I care, as thankful as I should be, I can’t help but to pass some of the blame onto him.
It’s not right. Even in the heat of the moment, I know that to be true. I have enough of my wits to be able to piece together the pieces of the puzzle that matter, but on some level I’m angry because he saved me instead of Taylor.
She’s gone.
I dig into my pocket to retrieve my phone, and though it’s cracked from the struggle, it’s still working. My fingers fumble against the glass surface of the screen. It’s only three numbers—911—but I keep screwing up.
And then my phone rings, and for a split second all the worry in the world fades from my mind and body. It’s Taylor’s face on my screen. I slide to answer the phone, “Taylor?”
“You wish it was Taylor,” a man says through the phone, his voice dark and husky, sounding almost like it’s being filtered through a computer system.
“Who…” I stumble over my own words. “Who is this?”
“You will never know, but if you want to see your sister alive, you will do exactly as you’re told.”
“Okay,” I say weakly, lowly under my breath. “What do you want?” I question as the man’s shadow hangs over me.
“It wasn’t supposed to be like this and it wasn’t going to be like this until that man arrived,” he says, and I twist to face my protector. “But now it is like this, and so we’re going to need some time to piece together a plan, and in the meantime, you are going to stay silent. We are monitoring all local police channels and if you contact the authorities in any way, you’re going to be fishing your sister’s body out of the river.” There’s a break of eerie silence, and in the wake of the absence of the man’s voice, I break from within, swallowing nervously as I wait for him to continue with the instructions. “Keep your phone on you and we’ll be in contact later tonight. Do you understand?”
“Yes,” I say and nod my head. “I understand.”
Click. The line goes dead and it’s like I’m standing in a vacuum. The full weight of the situation we’ve found ourselves in hasn’t exactly hit with full brunt force yet and it’s almost like I’m numb.
I drop my phone to my side but continue to hold it tightly. Though it’s cracked, it’s still working and at the present it’s the only lifeline I have left to my sister.
“What did they say?” the man questions as he steps in front of me with a severe look on his face. He’s dark and tan with short hair cut across the top of his head, wearing a black shirt and dark jeans. And I only notice this because I’m trying to remember every detail of the situation. Soon enough, I realize it’s not this man’s facial features I should be remembering but rather the men who have abducted my sister.
And I can’t recall a thing other than they, too, were wearing dark black clothing. I can’t remember the slightest detail of their faces.
“What did they say?” he questions again, this time lifting me at the chin with one strong hand.
When my eyes meet his, I’m lost in his dark chocolate eyes. Lost in my thoughts, lost in the terror of the moment.
“Th… They said that if I want to see my sister alive to not contact the police and they’ll call me later tonight with more details.” I gasp for air. The temperature in my body runs cold. “I don’t know what to do.”
He sighs and exhales a breath of hot air. “I think you should come with me.”
“What about the police?”
“I think you should come with me.”
“Who are you?” I question finally, taking a measured step back. Could it be that he’s in on whatever’s going on? After all, he’s dressed just about the same as the men who took Taylor. “Are you with those men?”
“I’m Chase Carter,” he says lowly.
“No, I mean, who are you?” I cock my head at him. “Where did you come from?” I shake my head, trying to understand why a perfect stranger would interfere the way he did. “Why did you—?”
“I’ll explain in the car,” he interrupts me and takes a step forward, closing off the distance between us. “But I think I can help you and your sister.”
I nod gently, taking in his offer. And it doesn’t take much time at all to accept his assistance. No matter who he is, I figure it’s better than me being out here alone. And if he’s somehow involved in this, well that’s just a possibility I’m going to have to accept.
“I’m Summer Smart, by the way.”
# # #
The highway is a slow-rolling parking lot. It’s stop and go, and every time he touches the brake, there’s a silent bit of hope burning through the knots twisted in my stomach that I’m about to wake from this nightmare.
My eyes drift aimlessly at the sea of cars merging onto the highway to the right and the traffic moving in the opposite direction at a much faster rate.
I look at each and every car wondering if Taylor could be on this very same highway. The odds, I suppose, are probable. But that doesn’t mean I stand a chance in hell at finding her right now. Just ahead of us, a black SUV merges in front of the car ahead of us.
My heart sinks into my gut.
That’s the same car from earlier.
The brake lights on the car ahead of us light up, painting the asphalt beneath us in a red glow underneath the bright, hot sun. We too come to a standstill.
My heart races, screaming for me to make my move. I crane my head over to Chase Carter—if that’s even his name—to find him idling in his thoughts the same way we’re now idling in traffic. His face is carved in all the right spots with a sharp jawline and afternoon stubble coloring his chin in dark stubble.
I could throw up as I reach for the door handle. Just as I move to push the door open, his eyes catch mine.
“What are you doing?”
“I have to,” I say desperately before throwing the door open and jumping out of the car. My feet slam against the hard surface beneath me as I race past the car ahead of us and straight for the black SUV.
Without so much as thinking, I rip the back door of the SUV open and freeze in place when I’m met with the visage of two toddlers in car seats.
From the front seat, a woman wearing a pair of pastel yellow scrubs turns and screams at me in Spanish.
“I… I’m sorry.” I push the door closed and turn to flee, running right into Chase’s strong chest.
“What the hell are you doing?” He grabs me by the arm and pulls me back to his car while the traffic ahead of us begins to move again. “Assuming that was even who you thought it was, what were you planning on doing?”
“I don’t know,” I shriek as he rips open the door and ushers me inside. “Maybe I thought…”
Horns honk from behind us as cars begin to pass us on either side. Chase slams the door shut and races back to the driver’s seat. As soon as he pulls his door closed, we begin to accelerate, the tires beneath us squealing against the asphalt.
“You could have been killed.”
That word killed cuts right through me as if it’s a serrated blade, slicing me open and leaving me to bleed out. “I know that…”
“I understand you’re under a lot of stress. I know what it’s like.” He turns to me, and though I’m not looking at him, I can see him from the corner of my eye. The way he looks at me, it’s like he’s passing me a pitiful look as if I’m a wounded puppy. “Your world has just been changed forever, and I know it’s next to impossible right now, but you have to force yourself to stay grounded.”
I finally manage to look at him fully, but at this point his attention is already back on the road ahead. We’re surrounded by stop-and-go traffic, moving almost as slow as my world that’s come to a complete standstill.
I think about Rick, Taylor’s husband. I should call him and let him know what’s going on, but he’s never been a patient man and he’d probably alert the authorities. It feels so sick keeping something like this from him or from our parents.
Oh God. A single tear bleeds from my eye, tracing a path down my cold, pale cheek. It’s been a year and I still sometimes forget that they’re both gone. That thought alone is sobering. For better or worse, it’s just me and this man who promises that he can help.
I wish more than anything my parents were still with us. Not because I wish that they’d ever have to experience this pain stabbing me in the heart, but because I wish they were here to tell me what to do.
I wish Taylor was here. She’d for sure know what to do. She had always protected me and now it was my turn to protect her, whatever the hell that means.
I cock my head sideways against the glass and stare longingly as the towering skyscrapers of the city give way to a more muted scenery of industrial parks and lower-class homes.
Where he’s taking me? I don’t know.
I grab the diamond pendant hanging from my neck and squeeze it tightly. It’s almost as if she’s here beside me in the moment, but the feeling of relief is only a temporary illusion before it’s gone again and my world is shattered into tiny pieces all over again.
# # #
We jumped off the interstate about ten minutes back and drove through a neighborhood that’s a little more than run down. It’s the type of neighborhood that’s not terrifying, but also one that I wouldn’t want to be caught in alone at night. Especially not after what’s happened to me today.
After this is over, I’m not sure I’ll ever be able to step foot outside the school I work in or my home. It’ll be easier to become a hermit, safer too.
We pass a wall of aluminum sheet metal covering a rusted chain link fence. Painted across the metal is incomprehensible graffiti, both words and objects.
We round a corner at the end of the road. The asphalt beneath us blends into a gravel parking lot. The sound of the tires crunching against the tires puts me on edge. Up ahead is an old brick factory that looks as if it’s been long abandoned.
I swallow nervously, thinking that I’ve made a huge mistake in allowing him to bring me here. After all, I know nothing about this man other than what he looks like and the car he drives. He says his name is Chase Carter, but I can’t be sure of anything.
The car comes to a stop parked beside three other vehicles—two white sedans and a black SUV. The sight of the latter sends chills up my spine. Will I spend the rest of my life seeing Taylor pulled into a black SUV every time I come across a similar vehicle?
Chase turns the ignition over and throws his arm behind my head so that it’s situated on headrest. He looks over to me, pushing his tongue against his cheek. “I’m going to do everything in my power to get your sister back, but I’m going to need you to trust me.”
“Okay,” I say with a nod. “I’m trying.”
“Now,” he sighs, thumbs his lip nervously, “We’re not supposed to bring people back here, but I don’t think Domino will have any objections given the circumstances.”
“Domino?” I gulp and then add, “Where exactly is here?”
“Come inside and I’ll show you.”
My eyes tangle with his for a short moment, orbs of dark chocolate just waiting to be explored. I can’t explain the reasons why, but there’s just something about him that pulls me in. Something about him that makes me want to trust him without hesitation or questions. It’s more than want, I suppose, because I do trust him, inexplicably without rhyme or reason.