The Perfect Crime

CHAPTER 21

CHAPTER 21

I was in my bedroom. The one I haven't been in since I was 9 years old, when life was perfect.

Today I had snuck in. I waited for everyone to leave before coming. I didn't need to come but I wanted to show Janey how lovely my room was. The walls were light pink and the bed sheets and curtains were also a matching pink with butterflies on it. I loved my room so much. And I missed it. They had moved me into the attic and banned me from coming. They kept the door open and I had finally found the perfect occasion to sneak in. But I couldn't get caught, otherwise they'd lock it and probably throw away the key.

I sat my nine year old self on my pink rug, and opened my toy box which was in front of my bed. I pulled out two Barbies, one for me and one for Janey.

The door suddenly opened and I saw an excited little Janey. I patted the spot next to me and she came. I gave her my favourite Barbie to use. We played with them for about half an hour before we got bored. We eventually ended up giggling over nothing.

And then disaster struck. We were probably too loud, or our constant laughing became too much, which resulted in Walter and Amanda finding us.

Walter dragged me out of the room by the arm, and locked the door. I bet that key got thrown into thrown into the sea. Once he locked it, he shoved me to the ground.

My surroundings then changed. I was no longer in the house, but in the hallways of high school. I was still 9 years old and on the ground from where Walter shoved me. Amanda and Janey were in front of me. They were both 16 years.

"Poor little Laine couldn't even survive High School for a month," Amanda sneered.

"Yeah, and she thought I was going to stick with her," Janey laughed.

"Leave me alone!" I shouted.

"Why would I want you as a friend when I can have with Mandy?" Janey asked and then she and Amanda laughed.

And then it hit me. I was dreaming.

Take control of your dream, Laine, my own voice echoed in my head.

"This is a dream," I whispered. "Get out of my dream. Get out of my head! You can't make bad things happen to me because this is MY dream! I control it! Get out of f*****g my dream!" I started throwing a tantrum.

A laugh from behind me made me freeze. Reed.

"Small girls aren't allowed to swear," he said.

"I'm not small!" I closed my eyes and imagined myself 16. When I opened my eyes, I was no longer small, but my right age.

"Why would I want you as a mate when I can have Amanda?" he asked, his voice directly behind me.

I didn't want to hear it. So I blocked my ears and shut my eyes, brought my knees up to my chin and started shouting again, "Get out of my dream! Get out of my dream!! You can't do this to me. It's a dream! It's my dream! MY DREAM, YOU HEAR ME? MY DREAM!! IT'S A DREAM!! A dream," I finally whispered.

Reed squatted behind me, and put his arms around me like he was going to hug me from behind, but he didn't. He gripped my wrists and pulled my hands away from my ears.

"Open your eyes and look around you," I opened my eyes and saw everyone pointing at me, some laughing, some calling me a murderer. I saw the two hunters that killed my parents, laughing along with them. Their laughter faded into the background.

I saw my parents drenched in blood. Their eyes had blood running down and my mother had the dagger stuck in her chest.

My parents slowly walked towards me. Her eyes were sad. She whispered, "You did this to us, Laine. You did this."

"This is not a dream, Laine," Reed stated. My surroundings once again changed. I was in a pitch black, empty room. It was silent for a few seconds before I heard his whisper echo throughout the room.

"It's a nightmare."

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"Wake up, Laine, wake up," I heard a gentle voice call out from beside me, while they shook me awake.

"Wha-What's happening. Are we there?"

"No, you kept shouting, "It's a dream," over and over again. I couldn't get you awake. And also your phone won't stop ringing."

"Oh," I said, dumbfounded. I forgot about my phone. I didn't use it much, but I had to keep it to keep in touch with Teal.

As I recalled bits and pieces of my dream, my phone started ringing again. I recognised the number.

Teal.

"Hello," was all I managed before I was bombarded with questions.

"Where are you, Laine? Why did you leave? You come back right now!"

"Sorry, Teal. I had to leave. You weren't there. It was bad. Craig was-"

"Look, just wait wherever you are. Craig-"

"Craig can't find me. He MUSN'T find me!"

"What are you talking about? Craig's going to help you, Laine. Look, he told us everything. About your mental break down. Your psychological condition."

"My what?" What was she on about? "Listen to me, Teal, don't listen to a word that man says!"

Suddenly a voice I knew all to well came.

"Tell us where you are, Laine," Reeds voice came from the other side.

"I-" I choked, "I can't."

Teal told them. After I told her not to tell. I knew she was looking out for me, but I felt betrayed. Everyone was against me.

"You idiot!" she shouted in the background. "She wasn't supposed to know you knew! Now she's not gonna tell us where she is!" she must have thought I couldn't hear and it hurt me to know.

"It doesn't matter. Craig is tracking her phone right now," I heard Reed respond in the background.

Shoot.

"NO!!" A scream found its way out of my mouth.

"La-" she started.

"You told them," my voice was croaky.

"You need help, Laine."

"No, YOU need help if you're going to believe that... that murderer! I didn't peg you for the gullible type. Goodbye, Teal."

"No, wai-"

I cut her off and switched my phone off. I opened the window and threw it out. Unbelievable.

"How long until we reach?" I asked Jack.

"A couple hours," he replied. Good. They won't find me.

"Go to sleep, Laine, I'll wake you up."

And for the final time that night, I slept.