The Last One Home

Part 9

Lana flexed her wrists in an attempt to return feeling to her tired extremities. She had long ago decided that pulling at her restraints was futile. Her hands were secured with a zip tie behind her back, tight enough to leave gouges in the skin of her wrists. She was blindfolded. She lay prone on the bed with her left leg drawn up as much as she dared, to reduce the weight on her chest. Her shoulders screamed and felt as if they would rip from their sockets.

She hadn't heard the grinning man since just before the gunshots. After the first shot she felt as if her heart had stopped. It was so unexpected, she even forgot to breath. After the second shot, she took a ragged gasping breath and nearly cried out. She had no idea who he had shot but somehow felt responsible for their death. Hot tears streamed down her cheeks. She could hear the choking sobs of her mother and wondered if she felt guilty too. The cloth wrapped around her eyes prevented her from seeing her mother but hearing her provided at least a small measure of comfort.

"Mom," she croaked.

Shhh! Her mother shushed her as if she were a small child. "Don't say anything, be perfectly silent." Her voice wavered with emotion. She was scared and it showed.

Lana didn't challenge her request.

Sounds of movement could be heard from downstairs. Footsteps. The occasional scrape of a chair moving. The thick walls of the house muffled other noises making them unintelligable. No one spoke.

The sound of the two gunshots had been deafening. Had a neighbor heard them? Possibly even someone passing by? Lana desperately hoped that someone had heard the shots and called for help.

Minutes ticked by with no sound from downstairs. Lana dreaded the man coming back, but somehow the silence seemed even more menacing. Any second she expected the silence to be shattered by the sound of a bullet impacting her skull.

Who was this man and why had he picked this house? She struggled with the idea that this was a completely random act. She didn't believe in those kinds of coincidences.

Minutes of silence drug by. Finally there was a noise. The sound of footsteps on the stairs. Quiet at first but gaining in intensity. The man was returning. Lana locked eyes with her mother and let out a whimper. Her mother tilted her head in a nod to her daughter. Lana knew exactly what that meant. It was in that simple nod that her mother told her that she was not alone. No matter what horrible things happen to them, at least they are together. A slow drawn out creek announced the opening of the door. Heavy footsteps entered the room. Lana held her breath.