Footsteps

Insert 4

Being tortured is not like the movies. They make it look so glamorous, like child birth or elections. The reality of it is a lot more, messy. The room keeps feeling smaller and smaller until you think you're in a match box. After the cluster-phobia sets in, there is the choking, the need to take a shit, the tears and of course, the pain. T was good at it too. She cut through flesh clean and easy. Almost artistic. She reviled in it. Anybody could see that that was her happy place, her calm. Lina had blacked out eventually. After the meds wore off T got bored and stopped. She had a conversation with Lina that Lina did not quite remember. She even thought it was an illusion. In that illusion T was telling Lina about how they met. It was in October and it was the hottest it had been. They were both pretty young and their parents were drinking wine from juice bottles thinking the children didn't know. Lina and T were always smarter than the rest of the children and they knew it. They joked about their parents drinking habits and Lina told T how she had stolen wine before. T was shocked and said "maybe I should too" Liana pulled out a juice bottle and the 15 year olds were drunk after 3 sips. A friendship began. And now, 21 years later here they were, one desperately trying to escape the other. Friendship, what a fucking joke.

"Hi sleeping beauty" T said through the chews of a partially brown apple. She had left it exposed again. She always did that. "You're up. Are you ready to talk?" Lina was exhausted and filthy. "Can I get some water please" She mumbled. "You'll get water when you talk Lina. We've been here long enough don't you think? What a sad little life you have. No one called to ask for you. Your phone has been quiet for 3 days now. Well, except a few people from work. Might as well turn it off" It was true. Lina kept her circle very small. She told herself it was because she did not want the hustle of talking to so many people. Why there was no man however, well. That was too depressing to even think about. "T, give me some water and I will talk. Either that or I die and this little game you have going on is over" She had nothing more to lose at this point. That and it was 4:17 am in the morning. She never was a morning person. "Fine, gimme a minute" T left the room and was back with water in a metal cup. She held it to Lina who was desperate to drink it down but was too tired to. She drunk as much as her strength allowed her. "When I wan banging at your door so early, you had no intention of helping me did you? It was always about you huh? This entire time. All these years and it has always been about you" Lina finally spoke. Her words were barely audible but still, audible enough. "Oh come off it Lina. I didn't plan this form the moment I knew you. It just happened. And you with your naive self spilled so much information without a second thought because what? You assume everyone you talk to can be trusted?" T was standing by the door of the room looking around, her eyes shifty, her leg twitching. Was she nervous? Maybe it was just cause she hadn't had a cigarette. "No I assumed everyone who claimed they loved me were to be trusted" I slaved all my adult life to become who I am and you just want to take it? LOOK AT ME!" Lina felt like she was losing her mind. The room was spinning, her throat seemed to constantly want more water and her knees had holes in them. "We both know that's not true Lina" T stopped shaking. The door flung open and there was Bill. Fucking Bill. Always there to save master. Pathetic? Loyalty perhaps. "Is everything OK?" Bill asked. "It's fine, get out" Lina nudged him out the door and he was gone "What do you mean it's not true T?" See they had grown up together but Lina's father died just before she turned 16. Lina was in 12th grade at a preppy boarding school and was top of her class. But when her father died suddenly, her relatives came and took everything and they lived form hand to mouth for a couple of years. When Lina was 22 her mother died. She was fresh out of University and dragged herself all over the country for a job until she got where she was. She was worth a fortune by the time she was in her 30s. T took the simpler route and had the kids and the husband. Her husband ran off with a work colleague a couple of years onto the marriage though and T was stuck with these two beautiful kids. During the course of their lives, Lina had mentioned to T that she had stuffed money away that was meant to keep her child, whom she was planning in having with or without a man. Half a billion dollars. T worked as a teacher and her pay was barely enough to keep her children. Half a billion dollars was THE score. "You want the combination to the safe right? That is what this is all about?" Lina asked her pacing best friend. "No Lina, I want the combination to your father's safe" Father's safe? "What? I dont know what you're on about. My father didn't leave a will or any of that. You know this" T grabbed a glass on the table and threw it against the wall "Enough Lina! You're wasting yours and my time. What's the damn combination? If you don't know then I have no use for you anymore" T pulled a gun from her back and pointed it at Lina. "Ok OK Relax. I'll get you the combination. I don't have it here but we can get it. But we have to pick up your girls first" Lina laughed hysterically. "If you think I'm gonna draw my kids into this shit you mus..." "I don't wanna do it either but you need to. Trust me" Lina swallowed hard, hoping, praying that T would listen. She had to. "Arg. Fuck!" Hearing T cuss was funny. It forced a chuckle out of Lina. T moved closer to untie Lina who grabbed the gun. "I'm not gonna hurt you. I'm not you" Pointing the gun at T, Lina tied her down and covered her mouth. She snuck out the back door. It wasn't even guarded. psh. Fucking Bill. Lina drove right to T's and cleaned up. "Hi aunt Maureen, yes it's Elina. I'm coming by to get the girls now. Yes I wasn't feeling too good but I'm ok now. Are you home? Alright I will be there very soon" Lina grabbed a bag and the keys then went to pick up the girls. They were so excited to see her "Hi guys. So we are going to pick up mommy somewhere but it's a surprise. Here, I got you toothbrushes and some snacks. Just relax. Everything is gonna be great"