The Only Witness

13

A year and 3 weeks in captivity

FREDDY POV

My body hurts so much. It aches. My muscles are stiff. It feels like I worked out for a whole day. I open my eyes and see blackness. Am I blind?!
Oh shit, no, what's going on?
"Stop moving," I hear her voice in a low whisper.
Then, she takes off whatever I had on my head and see a wooden ceiling. Karen or Jasmin, whatever he name is, takes my head and puts it on her lap. I look up at her. She is beaten. Her lower lip is cut. She has her right eye shut close and a small bruise on her left cheekbone.
"Let me fix you up," she says. She puts a piece of cotton to my cheek and it burns as hell. I yell in my head and close my eyes.
"Where are we?" I ask.
"I don't know," she answers. Her tone is that of a robot. What happened? Why didn't the police come for us?
Minutes of pain pass by and I'm finally bandage. Karen or Jasmin helps me sit on top of a pillow on the floor. I put my head agaisnt the wall. I look around and we are living in a crappy wooden cabin. There's no furniture in the room. Only some rays of sunlight are hiting the floor and walls.
"Let me get you water," she stands and walks to the other corner of the room.
I notice she has a dirty satin night gown only. Her hair is messy and she has no shoes. She comes back with a glass of water halfway filled.
"Here drink it all," she puts the edge on my lips and I drink. It tastes a bit weird but my lips are dry.
"What's your name? Why are you with that guy?" I ask. I need answers.
"Jasmin."
"Are you sure you aren't lying to me?"
She nods.
"Wha-"
Connor comes in and Jasmin runs to the corner next to mine.
"You finally woke up kid," he smiles. "Just in time." He goes to me and pulls my hair. Shit, it hurts! He makes me stand. My hands are tied behind my back. He pushes me to another room. It smells like pot. I get sit on a chair and look around. I'm surrounded by marijuana plants. There's only a wooden table in front of me, a box of plastic bags, tape, and a lamp on the table.
"Ricky!" Connor yells. Then a short chubby man comes in.
"He's going to show you how to package. You better listen and obey Ricky, do you understand?" Connor pulls my hair back.
"Fuck no! What's going on?" I ask.
Ricky chuckles and gets my hair. "You at my place. You gonna work," he says. He lets me go and I feel Connor cutting me loose.
It's my time to run away.
My hand is finally free. I punch Connor's gut with my elbow, get the chair and hit Ricky. I run to Jasmin and she yells.
"Let's go!" I grab her arm and drag her out.
"Where you think you are going?" Connor yells.
We head to the door and I see the outside. There are woods. Where are we?
We continue to run, but I hear a gun go off. Shit, he has a gun.
"Over here," I spot a car. Thankfully the passage door is open and I push Jasmin in and shut the door. Connor shoots but misses me, hitting the back window. I dodge and go to the driver's side and go in.
"There's no keys!" Jasmin yells.
I know how to wire it though. I get the cables out and try to turn on the car.
"He's coming!" Jasmin yells. I can't look. I need to-got it! Jasmin puts the car into reverse mode and I step on the gas. I look up and see Connor loading a rifle. I shift the car to drive mode and turn to my side. The gun is off and it misses Jasmin by an inch, hitting the seat behind her head.
She yells again and begins to panic. "No! He's going to kill us! Stop!"
I look behind and don't see him following us. I tell Jasmin to look for a 911 button in the car.
"There's isn't one," she says. I look around, but there's only woods and a long road ahead. I notice the car only has half of the gas tank full. We can make it.
...
PHIL POV

I am resting as I have been on my feet almost all day. We have been asking around for Jasmin.
Mr. Mayer comes by with a vanilla smoothie. "Here son," he sits in front of me and sips on ice tea.
"Thanks,"
"I can't believe people haven't seen them," he says.
"Connor might have changed Jasmin's apparance and name too," I answer.
We finish our drinks in silence.
As we are walking out, a chubby woman walks towards us. "Are you Mr. Mayer?" she asks worriedly.
"Yes, are you okay miss?" Mr. Mayer says.
"No, you are the dad of the missing girl right?"
"Yes,"
"Have you seen them?" I ask.
"No, I-I am Freddy Price mother. He has been missing for days now. He saw Jasmin," she says.
Mr. Mayer pats her upper arm. "Let's go talk somewhere," he says.
...
"He was very happy he meet her. He told me she was super cute but she had a boyfriend," Mrs. Price says. We are in the hotel's lobby with Ken and a police woman.
"So, what happened?" I ask.
"I didn't give it much thought. One day, he left to the mall to go shopping with some friends, and never came back. He texted me only once asking me what would I do if someone asked for help. I told him if he was okay and he didn't repsond."
"Mrs. Price came into my office yesterday to report Freddy's disapparence," the policewoman says. "I mentioned you were in town still to talk."
Ken nods, "That's good Mrs. Price. So you think that Freddy is with Jasmin?"
"We checked the phone last call and signal," the policewoman says, "it was a 911 call and it was around the hotels area on the west side."
"I first thought he left, since his father and I have been going through a divorce, but I connected the dots."
"I do believe he is with Jasmin," I say. "The call we know was from a hotel too. The diner owner said Freddy was talking about Jasmin."
"Why? That's what I dont understand," Mrs. Price asks.
"To save her," I say. "He asked you what to do to help someone. I think he saw Jasmin at the mall and tried to help."
"Connor might have kidnapped him too," Mr. Mayer says.
"Or killed him," Ken says.
"No!" Mrs. Price yells.
"It's fine," I say. "Relax. We don't know that yet."
But he might be..
Connor can't risk being caught now. If Freddy tried to help, he knew something that Connor didn't want him to.