If Not Her, You

Part 6

Time has slowed down as nausea swims through Adeline's stomach and races up her throat. The cold chunky soup threatens to come up again but she forces herself to swallow it down as she eyes the corner.

The corpse is sitting in a rocking chair, its hands folded neatly on its lap. Bennett said his grandmother was buried next to his parents in a family plot. He said she died of natural causes but the clear chunk of her skull missing seems to say otherwise. "You don't know it's his grandmother," Adeline says to herself. She shakes her head. "Obviously it is. How many other dead bodies – nope don't go there." She turns away from the skeleton and picks up the receiver. The hum of the dial tone is the best noise she's heard in her entire life. She quickly dials 911.

"Nashua police. What is your emergency?"

"My boyfriend kidnapped me. Please help," Adeline rushes out quietly and picks up the whole phone base in her hand.

"Ma'am, do you know where you are?"

"I don't know! I've never been here, it's a house. It's a blue house with the paint chipping off the sides. I've been chained up in the basement for the last week."

"Are you injured?"

"My hand is broken. I have a few – please he left and I don't know when he'll be back. Please help," Adeline begs. A sob bubbles out of her chest and she stifles it down.

"Ma'am, tell me your name, please."

"Adeline Moss," she says and the dispatcher inhales.

"Okay, Adeline. My name is Veronica. Everything is going to be okay. You said your boyfriend kidnapped you? What is his name?"

"Bennett Brown. This is his grandmother's house. I don't know her name. I've never been here. Please, he's going to be back soon," Adeline says. Desperation creeps under her skin and she can't keep the tears from running down her cheeks. "You can find me, right?"

"Yes, Adeline. We're going to find you. Police are going to find Bennett as well. You're going to be okay," Veronica pauses for a few seconds. "Okay, Adeline. We have an address. Police are on the way, please stay on the line."

"Okay," Adeline whispers. She leans against the wall and takes a deep breath. "His grandmother's body is in the house. I think – I think he killed her."

"Adeline, there's no need to worry about that. Police are just ten minutes out. Everything is going to be okay," Veronica says and Adeline lets her voice sooth her for just a few seconds. She jolts forward when she hears tires crunching along the snow in the driveway.

"Oh no. Please, no," Adeline whimpers. "He's back. What do I do, what do I do?"

"Adeline, listen to me very carefully. Is this phone a hand held?"

"No," she breathes.

"Okay. You're going put the phone down. The police are just eight minutes away. Put the phone down and hide somewhere. Okay?"

"I'm scared," Adeline sobs. She clutches the phone to her chest and curls over it.

"Adeline, listen to me. You got yourself out of that basement. You can do this. Just six minutes, Adeline," Veronica tells her. "Put the phone down and hide."

"Okay," Adeline says. "But can you just – just tell my parents I love them so, so much. Please? They need to know how much I love them." She places the phone down on the nightstand and rushes across the room as she hears the front door open. She slips into the closet and shuts the door, trying to steady her breathing.

"Addie, guess what!" Bennett calls out happily and she covers her mouth with her hand, biting into her skin. She hears his footsteps as they walk towards the basement door. "Addie? Addie! Oh, you stupid fucking bitch. You better not be in the house because when I find you, I'm going to kill you," Bennett roars. His footsteps grow louder as he climbs the stairs. The doors slam open around her and finally he's in his grandmother's bedroom. Just five feet away from her.

"Addie, come out come out where ever you are," Bennett sings. He begins to whistle and Adeline feels her knees go weak. Patience by Guns N' Roses. "Come on, Addie. This is the only place you could be. There were no footprints in the snow, I know you're here. Plus, I'm sure you've been dying to meet my grandmother." He laughs at his own joke.

Adeline gags silently.

The knob to the closet door twists and the door flies open. Bennett stares at her with an angry smile. "There you are." He grabs the front of her shirt and yanks her out of the closet, throwing her across the room. She hits the corner of the bed and falls to the ground, landing on her broken hand. A cry of pain rips from her chest and Bennett grabs her by the hair, lifting her to her feet. He marches her out of the bedroom and stops at the top of the stairs. He sticks his foot out to catch hers and purposefully trips her as he shoves her from behind. She falls down the stairs, her head flipping over her feet until she comes to a stop at the bottom. Bennett takes his time getting down the stairs.

The front door is open and she can hear sirens. Sirens.