The Life Changing Vacation

Chapter 3

Kristina's point of view
The next day, I woke up early. I went to grab the bedroom door handle, but the door was still locked. Before I went to bed the night before, Joanna told me she will unlock the door when she wake up in the morning, so I guess I just had to wait.

Around half an hour later, the door unlocked. Dory was still sleeping. I went to the bathroom and got ready, and then I went downstairs. The time was 8:04 am. "You're up early", Joanna said when I entered the kitchen. "I couldn't sleep", I answered. I had slept very bad that night. I wanted to go home. But I knew that wasn't an option. Joanna turned the TV on and took a sip of her morning coffee. She had put on the news channel. "Two girls and parents have gone missing in New York City, according to a hotel receptionist on the hotel where the tourists stayed". Joanna looked at me. I thought about my parents who were shot the day before. A tear ran down my face. I tried to wipe my tears away, but they just kept coming. Joanna got up from her chair and hugged me. "I hate you", I whispered as Joanna held me tight.

A few minutes later, Alex came downstairs. He was smiling. "A bit of some morning people who live here", I said. He chuckled. "I'm not a morning person, I'm a coffee person", he said and took a cup out of the kitchen cabinet. "I'm going to make breakfast, any wishes?", Joanna asked me. "I'm not hungry", I told her. She sighed. "I know you are upset about what happened, but you have to eat something". "I don't take food from strangers, and especially not from the people who murdered my parents", I explained. "You did yesterday", Alex said. "Well did I have a choice?", I asked. "Do you now?", Joanna asked.

I tried to stay calm, but my pain and anger kept taking control. Joanna seemed to recognize it. I was just sitting there trying not to lose control. "Breathe", Joanna said, looking down at my hands that I was playing with, from anxiety. A while after, at around 9:00 am, Dory came downstairs. She seemed nervous too. "There you are, I was afraid when I woke up without you. I thought something happened", she explained. "Oh, no. I woke up early", I told her. She looked at my eyes, she could see that I had been crying. "What happened, did they do something to you?", Dory asked me. "No, she's scared and upset about what happened to her parents", Joanna answered before I could.

"Anyways, let's talk about the rules of this house", she said. "What rules are we talking about?", Dory asked. "The rules that will keep you guys in line and prevent any disobedience", Alex explained. "That means no yelling, no screaming, and keep common areas clean. And don't try to escape", Joanna warned us. "And what if we have a problem with any of the rules?", I asked. Alex turned the TV off and got up from the chair. "You don't want to have a problem with us. But if you do, we'll deal with it accordingly", he said. I sighed. I have always been that kind of girl who didn't say a lot around strangers, after entering my teenage years. I was shy and I struggled with anxiety. And now that I was being held against my will by the people that murdered my parents, it all got worse. I was nervous, scared, and angry.

All I did was cry. I sat by the window the whole day just waiting for someone to come get us, but no one seemed to be coming. Joanna came and sat down next to me. "I need to ask you a few questions, and you will answer them truthfully", she had a notebook and a pen ready to write down what I told her. She had just been talking to Dory about the same. "How old are you?", she asked. I wiped some of my tears. "15", I answered. "Where did you live before coming here?", she asked. I told her that I lived in Norway, but that wasn't enough. I had to tell her my address. She probably needed it for later if I managed to escape them, so that they could find me again. "Do you have a boyfriend?", she then asked. I shook my head, "no". She asked me about my friends and where they live. I told her their names and the town they live in, but I didn't know their address.

After answering her questions, I thought about something I have heard earlier, That if you are kidnapped, it's important to gather information for the police, for when you get out of there. "So what do you do?", I asked Alex and Joanna. Joanna told me that she is a psychologist, and that she and Alex is working for a criminal organization. Alex told me that he is a police officer. It all sounded strange, that they are both working with people, but at the same time they deal with criminality. It made me realize I can't trust anyone. No one. And knowing that Alex is a cop, made me realize how difficult it would be to convince the police. "So, what do you do in the criminal organization? Kidnap kids?", I asked. "No, not just that. We do other things too. Things that people are willing to pay a lot of money for", Joanna explained, looking away. "Like what? Drugs? Guns? Human trafficking?", I asked disgusted. Joanna shook her head. "I can't say. But trust me, it's not as bad as you think. And we're not doing it just for the money. I'm doing it to protect the people I care about", she told me. I rolled my eyes. "Oh, well that makes it all better", I said sarcastic. "You are still criminals, no matter how you spin it", I added. "I know. And I'm sorry. But sometimes, there's no other choice. Sometimes, you have to do things that other people won't, to survive", she smiled sadly. I also asked where they went to school, where they grew up, everything about them. But when I got to the question about their families, Joanna stopped me. "I know what you are doing, you know. You really think I'm that stupid?", she asked. "I have been studying psychology longer than you've been alive, good luck with that", she added. I didn't get a lot of answers to my questions, Alex and Joanna are quite mysterious, secretive people.

Around 11:30 pm, Joanna asked me and Dory to go to bed. But I couldn't sleep that night. Every time I closed my eyes, I could hear the gunshots from when my parents were shot. I knew Dory and I had to escape from that place. But it wasn't a good time, Joanna and Alex were still awake. I thought it was best to wait until the next day, and then we strike.