Page 59 of Traces of Her
Thirty-Six
ROWENA
THE DRIVE TO THEIR FATHER’S HOUSE is short and awkward, being stuck between the love of my life and the psychopathic parasite that uses him like a host. Griffin scoops Lydia up into his arms from the back of the van and carefully carries her into the yard, lying her down onto the wet grass just as we hear yelling.
“What’s going on? What happened?” Robert yells, running toward us. He collapses on his knees by Lydia’s lifeless body, dropping a small duffle bag beside him.
“Hey there Dad,” Jared’s voice is harsh, coming from the other side of me.
“Jared?” Robert asks, rising to his feet. He grabs the duffle bag and begins to walk toward Jared until he holds up a gun and points it directly at him.
“You really think I want the money?” He laughs. “I don’t want your money. I want you to feel pain. To really know what it feels like to suffer.” I can hear the smile in his voice. This was all just a setup.
“Jared, please,” Robert pleads, motioning down toward Lydia. “We need to get her to the hospital before we lose her.”
“That’s right!” Jared exclaims. “We have a doctor in the house tonight folks.” He starts clapping. “Of course you understand the process her body is going through.”
A strangled moan comes from Lydia’s broken form lying in the grass.
“You don’t understand, Jared. Let’s get her to the hospital and then give me a chance. I’ll explain everything to you,” he tries to negotiate. His words are rushed as he knows we’re running out of time.
Jared cocks the hammer on his pistol. “I don’t want shit from you.” He raises his voice and waves his gun around, mumbling incoherently to himself. His widened eyes bulge from his head and without another word, a loud bang sounds through the air. My head pounds as the sound barrels through my ears, piercing my eardrums as I watch Robert crumple to the ground as blood begins to stain his shirt covering his abdomen.
“What the fuck did you just do?” Griffin yells at him.
“I did what the fuck should have been done a long time ago,” Jared growls as he pushes past Griffin. “You’re welcome for that shit,” he barks, walking away from the mess he just made.
A mess Griffin won’t be able to clean up.
My mind struggles to keep track of what is happening. Standing by the van, out of the way, it’s as if I’m watching a horror movie. I almost forget that this is real life, that I’m truly here watching this all unfold.
My mind doesn’t register the predator as he comes closer. My mind doesn’t signal the fight or flight response in my body. I’m a sitting duck.
A hand wraps around my upper arm as another hand clamps down on my mouth.
“Let’s go, Ghost,” Jared breathes in my ear. “They all die if you make a fucking sound.”
Roughly, he shoves me toward the open door of the van and ushers me in. He runs around the front of the van and jumps in, throwing it into drive and speeds away. I watch in the side mirror as another car pulls up and Griffin moves around frantically. I watch until he’s out of sight. He never noticed I was gone.
I sit silently as Jared speeds down the road, whistling along to the radio.
“Where are we going?” I ask after a few minutes pass.
“It’s a surprise.” He smiles, glancing over at me with his black eyes dancing.
“If you’re going to kill me, just do it now,” I sigh in resignation. Griffin is untouchable now, so Jared is more than welcome to kill me if it means everyone else stays safe.
He laughs. “I’m not going to kill you, silly.” He lightly punches my shoulder. “We’re going on a little road trip.”
Letting out a sigh, I look out the window into the dark night knowing this might be the last time I see this place. We’re not going on a little road trip.
We’re on the run.
My only hope is Griffin can run faster.