Desire in Frost (14 page)

“Why did you destroy my car?” I retorted.

“It’s because of you and your boyfriend that I had to bring her here. Your Minnesota license plate gave you away. We were fine before you came around looking for her.”

Even as I spoke, I knew I should have been more afraid of Lauren. For some reason, I thought her wild eyes and disheveled look made her appear weak and scared even though she still held the screwdriver in front of her like it were a weapon.

“You can’t keep running away, Lauren. There’s a policeman here, and he’s going to help get Hope home safely and get you the help you need.” 

“The police?” The hand holding the screwdriver came up to brush the hair out of her face, but the crazy look in her eyes remained. Suddenly, her eyes locked on me, and her entire stance shifted so that she was no longer rocking nervously. The screwdriver came out in front of her body again defensively when she realized what I was saying. “No, the police can’t take her,” she practically shouted. Her face twisted into an evil snarl. “I’ll be damned if someone is going to take my little girl again!” 

In one quick motion, she spun Hope to the side to clear a path to me and twisted the screwdriver in her hand so she was holding it like a knife. And then she lunged. 

A shriek escaped my lungs and reverberated off the walls of the garage as the screwdriver ripped through the skin on my left shoulder and Lauren’s weight sent me crashing to the ground. I heard the crack of my phone as it crushed in my back pocket. Everything happened so fast that it was difficult to process.

Lauren gripped so tight onto the screwdriver that her knuckles turned white. She raised her arm above her head and thrust it down on me again. I tried to roll out of the way, but her body bore too much weight on my own. I squeezed my eyes shut, bracing myself for the second blow. 

A second later, the blow still hadn’t come, and then suddenly, Lauren’s weight was lifted off me. I heard shuffling and opened my eyes just in time to see Robin’s fist connect with Lauren’s face. A little part of me rooted for him. He lunged for her again and pried the screwdriver—which she was now trying to assault him with—from her fingers. For a moment, I forgot how to move.

“Go,” Robin shouted at me the same time he pinned down Lauren’s flailing body.  

I didn’t waste another second. I quickly got to my feet and rushed over to Hope, who was crouched in the corner with tears streaming down her face.

“Come on,” I prompted in a low voice.

Hope rushed to me immediately. I gripped her small hand, and together, we ran out of the garage toward the front of the house. 

Teddy was already sprinting our way, no doubt in response to my scream. He slowed as he met up with us, and his eyes shifted from Hope to me then to my bloody shoulder. “Are you okay?” he asked frantically. Both of his hands came to grip my biceps, and his eyes stared seriously into mine. 

“The garage,” I said breathlessly, pointing behind the house with my good arm. Teddy immediately understood what I was saying and didn’t waste another second. He ran off toward the garage.

Hope and I took off in the other direction at the same time. When we rounded the side of the house, the woman standing next to my mother finally processed what had happened in the last few seconds. I watched her fist come back, and I made a noise to warn my mother, but my mom was already shifting her weight. She dodged the punch and, in one swift movement, gripped the woman’s wrist and twisted it around before pushing the woman’s body up against the side of the house. The woman couldn’t fight my mom off no matter how much she squirmed.  

I came to a halt in witnessing this and stared in disbelief at my mother. I hadn’t realized she was capable of that.

She caught a glimpse of my expression. “I took a self-defense class once,” she explained. She cocked her head toward the car, and I understood immediately what she was trying to say. 

I held on tight to Hope’s hand and ran across the road, opening the door for her and helping her crawl into the passenger seat. I rounded the car and slid into the driver’s seat. The keys I’d stuck in the ignition were still there, and even though I still didn’t have my license, I was ready to make a quick getaway if needed.  

“Are you okay?” I asked Hope. My chest rose and fell in time with my racing heartbeat. 

Hope closed the gap between us and flung her arms around my neck. “I knew you’d save me. I just knew it! Thank you so much.” 

“Wait. What?” I asked as I pulled away from her. “How did you know? And how do you know my name?” 

“I see you sometimes,” Hope admitted slowly. “In my dreams. You’re always there when I have nightmares about that night—the night she took me—and you’re telling me that everything is going to be okay and that you’re coming to get me. I knew you wouldn’t let me down.” 

I couldn’t move for several long seconds as I processed what she was saying. Every night that I’d dreamt about her abduction, she was reliving it, too. Only somehow, I was there with her. That phenomenon amazed me, but I didn’t have the time to dwell on it for long. We were still in the middle of a crisis. 

“It’s not like she hurt me,” Hope was saying. “I mean, she never tried to, but I was so scared. I miss my mom.” Hope sniffled, wiping tears away from her face. “I hate it when she calls me Penny. I tell her that’s not my name. She never believes me. Is it all over yet?” 

I gazed past Hope to see if I could tell what was going on toward the house. I couldn’t see anything but my mom holding the woman’s body in place.

“Not yet,” I told Hope. I reached into my pants pocket and pulled out my phone, desperately hoping it was still functional. I breathed a sigh of relief when the backlight came on. A crack ran the width of the screen, but I was still able to make a 911 call. 

I never took my eyes off the yellow house while I spoke to the woman on the other end of the line. I had calmed down enough that I could make coherent sentences, but based on the woman’s questions, I knew I wasn’t quite making sense. I gave her the address I was at and said the word abduction enough times that I think she understood me. She assured me help was on the way and had me stay on the line until they arrived. When she asked if we needed an ambulance, I almost said no, but then the pain in my shoulder prompted me to answer yes. Besides, I had no idea how beat up everyone else was. Before I knew it, I could already hear the sirens. 

“Are they coming to take me home?” Hope asked quietly. 

I nodded. “Yes.” 

“Can’t you take me home?” 

I met her eyes. “I’m sorry. I don’t think I can.” Her face fell in a way that stung at my heart. “But I’ll be back in Peyton Springs, and maybe if your mom lets us, we can spend some time together.” 

Hope’s face lit up at my suggestion, but that only made me feel bad because I wasn’t sure what would happen next. Her mom may choose to move away from where so much tragedy had happened recently, or maybe she simply wouldn’t let anyone near Hope again. That’s probably what I would do if my child was abducted. 

I took a moment to examine my shoulder. My shirt was ripped, and a deep scratch ran up the front side of my deltoid. The screwdriver hadn’t penetrated as deep as it could have but instead skidded along my skin. I didn’t think I needed stitches, but the injury still stung and was lightly dripping with blood. I grabbed some tissues from the middle console and pressed them into my raw skin, biting back a cry of pain in the process. 

I wrapped my good arm around Hope, glad this would soon be over for real. We both watched the police cars approach the house and shook nervously when they emerged from their vehicles. None of them noticed us right away. They first ran to my mother and the woman she was holding. I couldn’t hear what was going on, even with the window cracked open, but I saw my mother release the woman, and her hands came up in a surrender stance. Her mouth moved, and then some officers raced around to the back of the house on their way to the garage. 

A knock rapped at my window, and I nearly jumped out of my skin. I turned to find an officer standing above me. I hadn’t even noticed him making his way over here. I quickly opened my door for him. 

“Are you two okay?” he asked. 

“I think so,” I answered.  

His eyes shifted to my injured shoulder and widened. “Our EMTs should take a look at that.” 

I nodded in agreement. The officer led me to the back of the ambulance, and an EMT tended to my shoulder while other officials questioned Hope. 

I watched several officers lead a handcuffed Lauren around the side of the house. “She needs help,” I said to no one in particular. My eyes remained locked on her. 

The EMT followed my gaze. “Is she hurt?” she asked. 

“I don’t think so. Not physically. Ouch.” I winced in pain when the EMT touched my shoulder. I could see a dark purple bruise forming now that some of the blood was gone. “She’s sick. Mentally. That’s why she took Hope. She needs to get psychiatric treatment.” 

The EMT nodded, but I didn’t really think she was listening. She said I didn’t need stitches but wrapped me up in gauze and tape instead. She also inspected the lump that was now forming on my head and questioned me about dizziness or nausea to be sure I didn’t have a concussion. The pain had already passed except for a lingering headache, so I answered her honestly and assured her my head would be fine. She gave me an ice pack anyway. The whole time the EMT questioned me, I never shifted my gaze from Lauren until after they drove away with her.  

Soon after I was properly bandaged, an officer came to ask me about what I had witnessed. I told as much of the truth as I could, bending it only so slightly. I explained how this was Teddy’s case and that we’d been on vacation. Due to new information he’d received while on vacation—which I feigned ignorance to—he was compelled to check it out on his way back home. I told the officer that while Teddy left Robin and me in the car, I noticed motion behind the house, and, stupid little girl that I am, I went to check it out and found Hope and Lauren there.

I sounded innocent enough that I was positive he bought it. The rest of the events were the truth, only I left out the part about Hope telling me she knew me. I figured that would sound too suspicious, and I wasn’t about to tell the officer about my abilities when I already knew he wouldn’t believe that kind of story. So I stuck to what was most believable.  

When I was finally free to go, I started toward Robin, except something in my peripheral vision caught my eye. Two figures stood on one side of the house, only they didn’t quite fit the picture. Everyone else here was living, and I was the only one who could see them. I casually strolled toward Scott and Penny and leaned myself up against the house to make it look like I was still trying to recover, which in truth, I was.  

I angled my body away from the crowd so people wouldn’t see me talking to myself. “Is it all over, then?” I asked them. 

They both smiled back at me. “I think so,” Scott replied. “We can’t thank you enough for rescuing Hope.” 

I offered a shy smile in return. “I couldn’t have done it without either of you. You both led me to her. That’s why I kept seeing you, Scott, wasn’t it? In the hotel, gas station, and restaurant? You were trying to tell me I was getting closer to her, weren’t you?”

Scott nodded.

“And you, Penny. You showed me where to go even though it seemed silly at the time.”

Her smile widened in pride. “I couldn’t cross over until I knew my mom was going to get the help she needed. I learned about Hope shortly before finding you. I’m glad we could help them both.”

I looked between both of them. They really did look like father and daughter. It was painful to know they’d never had a chance to get to know each other and that Hope wouldn’t grow to know her sister. 

“It’s okay,” Penny said like she could read my thoughts, which I wasn’t entirely sure was completely off from reality. “We get a chance to be together now, and someday, Hope will be with us, too.” 

They both shifted their gaze and looked at something I couldn’t see. 

“The light?” I asked. 

Scott nodded while Penny smiled. “It looks like it,” she said. “Thanks for helping my sister and my mom. I’m pretty sure she’ll get the help she needs now.” 

“Always a pleasure,” I replied. “Only, if you decide to ask for my help again,” I joked, “could you not be all mysterious?”  

“Will do,” Scott agreed. Then he lifted his daughter onto his shoulders, waved goodbye, and walked into a light I couldn’t see. They faded into nothing. 

I smiled after them, happy that I could help them cross over and better their—for lack of a better word—lives. Unsure what to do next, I glanced around the lawn and locked eyes with my mother. She hugged me as soon as I was close enough.

“I thought we told you to stay in the car,” she scolded, but I could hear relief in her voice.

“I’m sorry,” I said guiltily, still locked in her embrace. “I couldn’t just sit around.” 

“I know, sweetie. I know you’re hurt, but I’m glad you took the initiative.” 

I pulled away from her in surprise. “You mean, you’re not mad that I went to face Lauren alone?” 

She shook her head. “I know mothers should be concerned about their child's safety, but I'm not your typical mother. You're a strong girl, Crystal, and I know that no matter what paths your abilities lead you on, you'll come away from each situation stronger than ever.”

I didn’t quite understand what had changed my mother’s mind. A few weeks ago, she was scolding me for breaking into Tammy Owen’s house to help my friend Kelli. Now she was praising me for breaking into someone’s garage? I guess I proved to her that sometimes I had to break the rules to save people.

My mother paused for a moment and then continued. “We weren’t getting much out of Colette—that was the girl’s name who Teddy was questioning. It looked like Teddy was wondering if you made another mistake because it didn’t make sense why Lauren would bring Hope here.” 

I still didn’t understand it myself. “Why
did
she bring her here?” 

“You can thank me for the answer to that,” she told me proudly. “I asked Colette that same thing. Turns out Colette’s daughter, Abby, and Penny were in the hospital at the same time, both for a heart condition, so Colette and Lauren got to know each other. I guess she was just a friend who understood her pain and was willing to take her in when she had nowhere else to go. Colette told me she’d lost Abby, too.” 

I dropped my head. A part of me still felt for Lauren’s loss even though she’d attacked me. I couldn’t imagine everything she’d been through with her daughter and her daughter’s father dying around the same time.