Chapter six: Waiting
Jack shot me a look that conveyed how I felt about Matt having a surprise for us. What the hell? The only thing Matt told us to wait until he got back from doing errands. I pushed myself up from the couch to make my way into the bathroom so I could get some time to myself. The door to the bathroom didn’t lock but no one bothered me while I was in the bathroom. It was the one room in the house where I could actually get privacy. I hate waiting. Waiting to be rescued because somehow Matt hasn’t messed up once. There has been no chance of escape, not with the cameras, attack dogs, hidden microphones, and automatic locks on every door. He even had cows, pigs, and chickens in the back yard. The only time he left the house was when he was running errands which usually meant he was restocking his booze supply. It felt like we were stuck in a bunker.
I splashed some cold water on my face. How does Jack keep his sanity in this place? I’ve only been here for a couple weeks and I’m starting to lose it. He has been here for five years… Damn how come no one reported him missing? How did my team and I miss that he was the first victim? I pondered these questions while observing my reflection. My chocolate brown eyes looked back with black bags under my eyes from the restless nights of sleep. I took a step back from the mirror and noticed that my usually petite frame had filled out slightly over the course of my stay. I did not mind this, but I thought it was weird that Matt was forcing us to gain weight. Why did he want us stronger? As far as I knew most captors barely kept their victims alive… What’s his plan?
I walked back out of the bathroom without using it feeling like my team couldn’t come fast enough. The whole getting a surprise from a serial killer is starting to get to me. Normally, I would be extremely excited to hear that someone had a surprise for me, but hearing it from Matt made my blood run cold. He won’t kill us if that was his plan we wouldn’t be alive today. Unless he was just toying with us this whole time, but why keep Jack alive for five years? So much didn’t make sense to me, but there’s only so much one can understand when it comes to a serial killer’s mind.
Then there was Jack Summers himself. Between whispering late at night and unspoken messages we sent each other through stolen glances we plotted our escape. However, the very first step was to get outside, but there was no way to do that undetected. Even if the power went out he had ways to keep everything on without it. It feels strange to admit, but we’ve grown really close over the past few weeks. Sure being stuck sleeping, living, and pretending to be lovers may have helped with that, but it’s not like I didn’t have a crush on him before he disappeared…
“Veronica, what are your thoughts on Harry Potter?” Jack’s voice caught my attention, pulling me away from my thoughts.
“Yes, let’s watch it,” I agreed not needing to know which one he was referring to. I enjoyed them all but not as much as I enjoyed the books. I plopped myself next to him as the movie played in the background.
“Can I tell you something personal?” He asked after a few moments.
“Tell me whatever you are comfortable with me knowing. I won’t judge you.” I assured him keeping my voice soft and low.
“So obviously I’ve been living here for five years and living with a serial killer will really fuck with your mental health, but somehow now that you are here with me I feel more like I did before I was kidnapped. Maybe it’s because I know we have a chance of escaping now that your team knows where we are.” He stopped to take a breath before he continued. “All I know is that running into you is the only positive thing that has happened to me in my life. Before I freak you out too much with my honesty I know that running into me probably turned out to be the worst thing, so I am truly sorry that you’re stuck with me and that I got you into this situation in the first place.”
This was a side of Jack that I didn’t know existed. “Jack, if I hadn’t run into you no one would even know you were missing. No one reported you were even gone these past five years. I am so glad that I ran into you. I do have to admit that I’ve always wondered where you went.” I whispered gently touching his arm.
“It’s strange that the man who prevented us from getting to know each other better is the same one bringing us together.” Jack mused quietly while gazing at me.
“That’s one way of putting it,” I retorted, “this whole situation is outrageous. It’s an unfortunate circumstance that we reconnect at some serial killer’s cabin.” I added under my breath. We sat in silence for the rest of the movie.
After a few more hours of watching what was on the television and having casual conversation the sound of heavy foot steps climbing stairs interrupted our conversation. The door flew open as Matt stumbled in bringing the smell of alcohol into the cabin. “So I’ll be honest with you guys. I got drunk early tonight.” He dropped the bags he was carrying carelessly on the floor with one hand and held tightly onto the large glass bottles of hard liquor. “I usually wait until you two are asleep, but I decided today is going to be a good day.” He hicuped slightly.
You know someone is drunk when they don’t even know what time of day it is. It’s not even 4:00pm and he is hammered. Well this is new. I thought to myself.
“Now, don’t worry, lovers, your good buddy, Matt, hasn’t forgotten about your surprise. I’ll be telling you what it is after I put this shit away!” He cheered, while taking another swig off his bottle. He put on the radio and cranked the 2000s top hits station like he normally did.
Jack took my hand in his and squeezed it which was actually pretty comforting. Now it’s back to waiting.
To be continued…
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