Monster Minds [completed]

Chapter 27

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Recap:

"Now we match." He gestured to his own forehead and we both fell into a fit of laughter, the sound echoing off of the walls of the prison, brightening even the darkest corners of its cells.

When the last giggle settled into a sigh, he pulled me close once again and rested his forehead upon mine. When he spoke, the words were quiet and delicate, as if they could break in the air between us like dry twigs, ready to be burned in a fire.

"You've got to get me out of here, Emily... You've got to help me escape."

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" I will in all probability be convicted, but I will not go away as a monster, but as a tragedy."  

- Joel David Rifkin was sentenced to 203 years in prison for the murders of nine women between 1989 and 1993. He is believed to have killed up to 17 victims. After he killed his victims, he would dismember the bodies and place the parts in different locations. He is still alive and in prison today. 

Chapter 27

"Ex-excuse me?" I stammered, unable to form complete words. It was impossible to describe what I was feeling; every sense in my body was amplified, thrumming with nerves, but at the same time I felt complete numb. It was safe to say that shock ran through my veins like a high dose of heroine.

"If I stay here any longer, I'll die, Emily." Vans pleaded, holding my face in his rough hands.

"No." I shook my head, "There has to be another way!"

"If there was another way, don't you think this would all be resolved by now? Emily, we're tried to figure out who is at the heart of this, but we have found nothing that brings us any closer! I would not be asking this of you unless it was absolutely necessary."

"Vans," I grabbed his hands from my face and held them in my own, a crease deepening between my brows. "I can't break you out of here!" I whispered harshly, looking around to find the hallways were still empty.

"Yes you can, Emily! I know you can do it." He lowered his voice with mine and drew me close. I rested my head on his chest, heart still hammering, and was unsure of how I should have felt. It was nice to know he believed in me so much that he would trust me with his life, but the thought of becoming a criminal by breaking someone out of Gail was unthinkable, unimaginable.

"I don't think you understand. I have a life here, Vans. If I help you escape, I have to leave it all behind. My family, all the hard work and years of school and study that got me to where I am today, I would have to leave it all. I would have to run away, hide with you. There would be no turning back." My voice wavered as the full extent of my anxiety was revealed. He needed to understand how much he was asking of me to risk for him.

His chest heaved and he took a shaky step backwards, raking his hand through his hair. He swore under his breath and shuddered wiping a calloused hand over his face.

"You're right, Emily, I didn't think about that." He said quietly, his expression filled with pain and guilt. "I'm sorry, I'm just so scared. But I shouldn't have asked you to risk your life for me."

I was about to interrupt, to say it was okay, but when he saw I was going to say something he took placed his hands on my shoulders and smiled affectionately.

"This conversation can wait, at least for one night, so you can think about it. No matter what you chose, it isn't just my life in danger and I'm sorry I didn't realise that sooner." He pulled me against his firm chest and wrapped his tattooed arms around my body. One hand held my neck while the other snaked around my waist, making me feel safe in his arms.