I gave Charlie a frosty, mocking look. "So, what's your point after all that talk?"
He casually touched my cheek with his fingers. "I've taken care of them. Come with me. What do you say?"
"You're crazy!" I snapped, my stare sharp as knives.
Instead of getting mad at the insult, he just asked, "What's the matter? Can't stand the thought of leaving your family, friends, or Idris behind?"
He was completely unhinged, and I was not about to waste my breath on him. I met his gaze with a chill in my voice, "Lucas, this isn't some lawless frontier. You killed Officer Jackson and took me. Do you seriously think you're off the police's radar?"
He let out a low, mocking laugh. Before he could reply, however, his phone started ringing.
He glanced down with a smirk, "You're right on time with that warning. How about a little wager? Let's see what the cops can do to me, even if they manage to track me down."
I watched him, all cocky and mocking. Quietly, I bit my lip, keeping quiet.
With a playful raise of his eyebrow and a smile, he slipped back into Charlie's friendly, approachable skin and walked out of the dark room. I was amazed at how quickly someone could flip their expression like a switch.
I never once suspected that the kind Charlie, who was always so nice to me, was actually Lucas—the same guy who could kill without a second thought. If it had not been for Officer Jackson's death, I never would have connected the dots between these two completely different people.
The dark room was still as empty as ever, with the TV at the end of the bed frozen on a scene of a man and a woman.
The man's face on the screen was all too familiar, and it felt like a thousand knives were stabbing me in the heart, making every breath taste bitter and sharp.
Why was Idris with Alice?
What on earth happened tonight? How did it come to this? Had Idris really not noticed I was missing all this time? As for my mom and Maxwell, last night was New Year's Eve, and they had not seen me all night. Did they really have no clue?
Lucas's words were not just empty threats. I was alive and now kidnapped, stuck in this pitch-black room, not knowing if I would live or die. If I ended up dead and dumped in the wilderness, how long would it be before someone found me? Would I just be a pile of bones years from now or found only after I had rotted away?
Comments
The readers' comments on the novel: Facade of Love Novel