Don't forget About Me

Chapter Nine

The remainder of the week flew by surprisingly fast. I was ecstatic and lonely at the same time. I missed Elvis dearly, and he consumed my every thought. He kept in touch, his phone calls were what I looked forward to throughout the entire day. Our conversations were usually cut short, and as soon as the phone went silent, my loneliness grew stronger.

Vernon and Gladys were hardly ever home these days, so I took the company of grandma. Every afternoon we would sit in her room, side by side, eating mints while she told stories. Her stories were lovely and comforting. The only time I felt happy was when I rushed into her room after school, wondering what story she'd tell me next.

I was especially lonely at school. Maggie had not attended all week and I was beginning to get worried. I stopped by her house yesterday, and no one was there. All the cars were gone, and even the help was not there. I tried calling, but nothing. I just hope her family was safe, wherever they may be.

It was a typical Saturday morning, and I was tidying up my room and Elvis' room. He wanted a maid but Gladys didn't really like the idea of a woman she hardly knew taking care of her home. She preferred to do it herself, or a close family member. I had no problem with Elvis' room. I picked up the very few clothes lying on the floor and threw them into the laundry basket. For a boy, he was actually quite tidy.

I skipped down stairs expecting everyone to be gone, but as I passed by Vernon's office I heard voices coming through the slightly opened door. I recognized the voice to be Mr. Dalton, my principal. My eyes narrowed and I slowly inched toward the door.

I listened, trying to be as quiet as possible. The last time I eavesdropped on Vernon's conversations, it didn't end well.

"I'm not sure who wrote it. The handwriting could belong to anybody." Mr. Dalton spoke gruffly. Vernon sighed.

"The only thing that matters is that Leila is safe going to school. I mean it'd be foolish for us to pull her out since graduation is just around the corner." Vernon replied.

"I'm not suggesting y'all pull her out."

"Well what am I supposed to do? I can't risk my only daughter being unsafe." Vernon's voice rose in anger.

What was this all about? How was I unsafe?

"Isn't there a bodyguard you could send with her?" Mr. Dalton asked, his voice wavering.

"Leila doesn't want any special treatment though. It's bad enough she hasn't had many friends. We can't trust anyone out there." Vernon said.

Bodyguard? For what?

"Just to help you and your family feel at ease. I'm sure, almost certain she's safe at school."

"I'm not taking any chances. We need to tell her about this though. Maybe she might have an idea of who wrote this." My eyes widened I'm fear as Vernon's voice grew closer to the door. Before I could move, the door swung open to reveal Vernon shocked to see me standing there. His face then turned to silent anger when he looked at me fully. The laundry basket slipped from my arms, falling to the floor and half the clothes dumping out.

I bit my lip as I reached down to retrieve them.

"Come in here. Mr. Dalton has something to speak to you about." He said ushering me in. I set the basket aside in the hallway, and followed him into the office.

I seated myself beside Mr. Dalton who watched the scene with amusement.

"Do you by any chance recognize this handwriting?" He asked shuffling a paper toward me.

I looked down at the slightly crumpled piece of notebook paper, and read the scrawled out words.
If we take Leila we'll ask for ransom money from Elvis. The fool will have to pay us to return her. After all, she's so precious to him. How easy could it be huh? You in???