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FOUR
‘MONSTERS’ LUCY DAYDREAM
Lexi
Alan finally leaves Maxine and me in the cell, the loud bang of a metal door closing behind him echoing around the room in an ominous way. The moment we hear another door close and lock, Maxine yanks the gag out of her mouth and comes as close as she can to me. Alan chained her ankle to one of the many floor-to-ceiling poles in the room, and the metal wire-like leash doesn’t allow her to go more than three feet in any direction. There’re boxes everywhere as well, surrounding us like a wall beneath the single bulb above us. The boxes have different labels of food brands printed on them like we’re being held in a warehouse somewhere. The temperature here is almost as cold as it is outside, and my crop top hoodie and ripped jeans aren’t doing much to keep me warm.
I’m almost certain we’re beneath a store of some kind. The thought of yelling out for help crosses my mind, but I don’t want to draw the wrong attention.
“Tell me he’s lying. Tell me my brother isn’t dead.” Maxine’s voice sounds dry and hoarse as she begins coughing like a chain smoker.
Her skin is sickly pale, almost green, and the manacle around her ankle looks like it’s cut into her skin. There’s dry blood around the binding, and the sickening smell of rotted flesh wafts off her. Fucking hell, how long has she been here?
I debate with myself for a moment, unsure if I should tell her the truth or lie to her, but the lie slips free before I can make a conscious choice.
“He’s alive.” The bitterness on my tongue fades as soon as I hear her sobs of relief; I know I made the right choice.
“He’ll find us. Him and Gio will. They won’t rest until we’re out of here.” She says this mostly to herself as though she’s trying to convince herself to hang on a little longer.
“How long have you been here, Max?” I ask her, wishing with all my might that I could touch her, wrap my arms around her and protect her.
“I don’t know. I never see the sun. I was shopping when I was nabbed by this fucker. One minute I’m walking down the street to that boutique I love on Main, and the next thing I know, someone grabs me from behind with a rag over my nose and mouth, and the whole world goes black.
She begins coughing again. Loud, wet coughs wrack through her body, the rattle of her lungs sends a chill down my spine. Maxine is sick as hell, and this cold room isn’t doing shit to help her get better.
“Has he been feeding you?”
She shrugs, “I get a glass of water and a bagel whenever he feels like doing so. I tried starving, but the pangs got to be too much.”
Tears drop from my lashes, a sob fighting to be free from my throat, but I swallow it down.
“I’m so sorry. So fucking sorry I brought this shit to you. I’m–”
“Stop!” Maxine interrupts me, “Just stop. I thought I’d be bitter, maybe even enraged, the next time I saw you or Gio, but when I heard your voice and saw your face, all I could feel wasrelief. Let’s save the bullshit until we’re out of here, yeah?”
I smile at her, an apology still on my tongue, but I know she’s right, “Yeah.”
I look around some more while Maxine coughs and wheezes beside me, but there’s not much else to see, not with the wall of boxes surrounding us. I can’t find a store name anywhere, so if my assumption is correct, I wouldn’t know. I look back down at the chair I’m in, letting my fingers feel around the bottom of the armrests to see if it’s glued together or screwed. If it’s the former, maybe I’ll be able to break it with a rough fall, but if it doesn’t break, I’ll just be stuck on the floor.
“Do you know how long it’s been since Alan brought me down here?”
Maxine thinks for a minute, “About twenty minutes or so.”
My mind goes to Luce and Gio. What’re they doing right now? Is Luce okay? Does Gio know I’ve been taken?
I can’t rely on them right now. I’ve got to play this smart, play the part of a willing captive until I find my escape. I know Gio will be searching for me once he realizes I’m in danger, but until then, this is all on me.
“I’m so tired,” Maxine says softly, lying down on the floor, her fingers touching my ankle as she curls her other arm under her head. “I’m just going to rest for a little bit.”
I watch her fall asleep, her breathing basically shallow, and I worry her lungs are filled with fluid, pneumonia wreaking havoc in her body.
Once she’s fully asleep, I try to break the zip ties on my wrists again. They’re not the thick white ones some police use, but more like something you’d find in a house hidden in junk drawers. They’re black and thin but tight enough that I can’t curl my fingers under my palms.
I sit forward and twist my wrist, pushing my elbow outward and my hand in toward my chest. The black plastic cuts into my skin, but I grit my teeth and keep going, ignoring the blood and burning pain until the plastic snaps open. Once my right hand is free, I begin on the other ties, but then, the sound of the locking mechanism echoes around the room, freezing me in place as I listen to the door open and close. I quickly shake my arm out, letting my sleeve cover my wrist before sitting back and resting my arm in the same place it was when Alan left.
The sound of footsteps meet my ears, one set walking with purpose, and when Alan walks like that, he’s usually pissed and eager to take it out on me.
He rounds the wall of boxes directly in front of me and steps into the light. His beady gaze is locked on me, a salacious grin on his face, and it makes my skin crawl.
