The Girl and Her Lost Souls

Chapter Fifteen

           

AMELIA

THE CELLAR is cold. There are wisps of wind coming through the walls and sometimes I can feel the floor through the mattress. The big clothes that they gave me to wear before I took a shower are bothering me because every time I turn in my sleep, it twists around my body and almost chokes me. It's harder sleeping with Jaime just a few feet away from me. He groans in his sleep and sometimes cries out.

When he first came downstairs, I had to hide the shock that I felt. His face was bruised and cut. Later after that, I saw the bruises and cuts that covered his back. He hardly said a word to me. The only thing that he had said was that the men were going to bring dinner down later. Brandon had barely said a word when he came down. What he had said earlier was still running through my mind.

How can you have kids and still do this?

He took care of us. I'll admit that much. He never laid a hand on me. He kept his voice gentle when he showed me to the bathroom. His eyes were soft as he cleaned the wounds from my fall on the gravel. I could see that he was just as tired as we were. It would never excuse the fact that he knows where we are but wouldn't tell anyone.

There are times when I wish that I hadn't made the stupid decision to go and find Jaime, but then I remember that if I hadn't, then I'd be leaving him for dead. Finding out that Jaime's father knew about him being a hostage to his brother had lit a fire inside me. No one deserves to be trapped beneath a house where it's cold, and they have no human contact. There were times when I had to use the bucket and hang one of the blankets around it so that I could go in peace.

I've never been shy, but Jaime made me feel shy. He looked a lot like Alex in person. The eyes were the only things that made a difference. His structure and height were the most similar. He caught me looking once, and I saw his face turn a bit pink. Thinking about it now had me smiling.

I can't believe I'm saying this but I kind of miss Alex.

Today is Monday and he must be freaking out. Not only him though, my mother and father too. A shot of pain went through my chest thinking about my mom and dad. They were most likely sitting in the living room, sitting by the phone, and waiting for a phone call from me or the police. My mom has always been suffocating. It's partly because I'm her only child. There's another part of me that thinks it's because she was a wild child and she didn't want me to end up with bad grades or worse, smoking behind the school gym.

Alayne and Tom were probably freaking out too. If my mom were panicking, she would have called Alayne to make sure I was just there and forgot to leave a note. When Alayne realized that something was wrong, she would panic along with my mom. Tom would assume that I decided to go out on the road and leave town for a little bit. He never expected the worst. The second that he saw I left my laptop, he'd know that something is wrong. I've always brought my laptop with me anywhere that I go.

Kevin had taken the knife from me the second he grabbed hold of my bag. I should have fought harder. If I hadn't of tripped, I would have made it. When I saw the feet stand in my line of vision, I knew it was the end. I was surprised when they told me I was going to be stuck with Jaime. Two of us taking on one of them coming down the steps could work. I had tried to talk Jaime into it, but all he did was shake his head no, and he continued to stare at the wall.

It was hard being stuck with someone who didn't want to talk. Not talking was driving me nuts. I have so many unanswered questions floating around in my head. There wasn't a way that I could answer them myself, not with Brandon not talking or Jaime. Brandon couldn't speak because he was afraid Kevin or Lenn would find out. He didn't have to tell me that. It was noticeable every time he brought us something that we needed. I don't even like that fact that I know their names. It made me feel like I was going to be stuck here for the rest of my life.