Dark Mind (The Dark Mind Trilogy Book 1) (17 page)

The first step for that morning, however, was to call Amy. After breakfast he took the phone and excused himself from the kitchen. He could feel his heart pounding as he dialed the number and it wasn’t until the phone started to ring that he comprehended how nervous he was. He did not have time to decipher what was causing this panic before a voice came over the line.

“Hello?”

“Hi, Mrs. Brown. It’s Cole.”

“Oh, Cole, how are you?”

“Well, not great. I don’t know if you heard but there was an accident this week. A… fire.”

“Oh my God! No. What happened? Is everyone okay?”

Cole held back fake tears. “My arm got pretty badly burned and…
and my house… It’s gone. They couldn’t save it.”

“Oh dear, that’s awful! I'm so sorry. I can't even imagine...
Is there anything I can do for you? Anything at all that you need, please, just tell me.”

“I was hoping I could see Amy so I could tell her what happened. Would it be all right if I came over? Please? I know she’s not feeling well but it would mean a lot.”

Mrs. Brown exhaled sharply. “Um… Yes. Of course!” She cleared her throat. “Just give us about an hour. We aren't ready for company yet. I’ll let Amy know you’re coming.”

“Thanks so much, Mrs. Brown. See you in an hour.”

“Yep. Bye.”

Cole burst into the kitchen in a frenzy to find Beth reading the paper. She glanced up and immediately recognized the excitement on his face.

“What’s the matter?” she mumbled.

“Can you please, please, please take me to Amy’s house in an hour? I’ll do anything.”

“Getting you out of the house is enough for me. Go get ready.”

“Thank you so much!” Beth flinched as Cole threw his arms around her and then he ran off to get ready.

For forty-five minutes he sat in the kitchen while Beth read, counting minute after agonizing minute. When five minutes remained he could sit no more; he was practically bursting with energy.

“Calm yourself. You’re gonna give me an aneurism. I can’t stand watching you jump around like that,” Beth said.

“Close enough, let’s go,” Cole said, running to the door to put on his sneakers.
This is it. Today I can do it all.

Beth trailed after him, putting her coat on at a painfully slow speed.

During the ride, Cole composed himself. He had to focus if he was going accomplish everything today. More importantly, keeping up the ruse of sadness was critical.

“I’ll be fine from here,” Cole said as they pulled up. “Thanks.”

“Yep. I assume I’ll be getting a call later.”

“Probably.” As Beth pulled away, he plodded up the pathway to the front door. He shook out his limbs, relaxed his face, and rang the bell.

There was scuffling inside and a moment later Amy’s mother opened the door.

“Oh, Cole! You made it. Come in and take off your shoes.” She led him through the living room to the hallway leading to Amy’s room. “She’s in her room. Last door on the right.”

As Cole walked down the hall, she returned to the kitchen where a conversation immediately ensued. The words drifted through the house into his ears.

“He shouldn’t be here,” Amy’s father said.

There was an indiscernible whisper.

“I don’t care,” he said.

Amy’s door was shut so Cole rapped a few quick times. Amy opened it and hurried him inside, closing the door behind him.

“Thank God,” Amy said, taking a seat on her bed. “I don’t know how you managed to convince them to let you come over but I don’t think I could’ve taken one more minute here alone.”

“It’s not a great reason but at least I’m here,” he said, taking a seat next to her.

Just then she noticed the bandage on his arm. “Oh my God, what happened?”

Cole inspected her face, filled with such terror and concern, a light bruise running the length of her cheekbone. He shuddered to think what had transpired here last week. “Travis. He set… fire to my house…” His voice trailed off.

Amy’s face dropped in horror and she grabbed his leg. “No! Are you all right? And your mom?”

With hesitation, Cole described the events of the night while Amy stared, wide-eyed, her hand covering her mouth, which refused to close.

When Cole had finished, Amy composed herself, sadness the only emotion that remained. “But wait, why do you think Travis had anything to do with this? It sounds like you didn’t see anyone.”

“I just know it was him.”

“Why would he do something so horrible? Is there something you’re not telling me?”

“I just know. I really don’t want to get into it. I told you my story. Now tell me what’s been going on here all week.”

“All right, fine,” Amy said, taking a deep breath. “As you know, it all started when I snuck out of the house. And then, no offense, but it got worse when you showed up out of nowhere. They were furious, more than I’ve ever seen. They said I was grounded but that didn’t seem to lessen their anger. Then, in one of their frequent fights with each other, my dad got riled up and I was stupid enough to be around at the time. I had…just come out to get a drink of water. He hit me, hard, yelling at me about why I wasn’t in my room. Then Mom started yelling at him, because if I got a bruise I wouldn’t be able to go out in public for a while. That was the last I heard because I ran back to my room crying. My mom came in a few hours later to check my face and when she saw it was bruised she ran back out and started fighting with my dad again.”

“That’s awful. I’m so sorry. Did anything else happen?” Cole said.

“No, but…” Amy was getting choked up and she had to stop for a minute before she could continue. “That’s it. She didn’t even try to help or ask me if it hurt. And they said that if I told anyone I’d get it even worse and I’d never see you or this town ever again. They don’t give a crap about me. You have to help me. I can’t live here anymore. Please.” She threw her arms around him and burst into tears on his shoulder.

Cole looked down at the back of Amy’s head in surprise and then slowly put his arms around her. “They won’t be able to hurt you anymore. I’ll get you out of here. I promise.”

“Thank you,” Amy sobbed. “Thank you so much. You’re the greatest friend I ever had.” She pulled back and wiped her eyes. “What are you going to do?”

“I’ll just tell my mom to report it to the authorities. They’ll come here and take you away from them to where they can’t hurt you.”

“Cole, I’m scared,” Amy said. “What if my parents find out before I’m safe? And where will I go? Will I never see you again? Who will I live with? I don’t know…”

“Amy, look at me. You have to trust me. I won’t let them hurt you anymore. If they do somehow find out, come to my house. I’ll keep you safe. You have to do this. There’s no other way.”

“Okay, yeah, you’re right. Okay.” She hugged him tightly. “I can’t wait until I’m away from them. You can’t imagine what it’s like to live here.”

“It’ll be all right, soon. Listen there’s something else I need to do while I’m here.”

Amy sat up straight, blinking through her tears in confusion. “What do you mean? What do you need to do?”

“I need to sneak out to Travis’ place. He lives near here and I need to go over there.”

“Cole! Don’t do anything rash, anything you’re going to regret.”

“I just need to have a word with him,” Cole said. “Don’t worry.”

“Are you sure you’re not saying that so I won’t come?”

Cole smiled. “Absolutely not. But you’re right about one thing. I don’t want you to come. This is something I need to do by myself.”

Amy bit her lip. “All right, just promise me you won't hurt him. Even if you're positive he did it, that isn't something you can take into your own hands. You can get in a lot of trouble.”

“I won't. Just a word. I promise. So, any ideas how I can come and go unnoticed?”

“Well...
you’re pretty lucky. I think my parents are heading out soon.”

“They leave you here alone? I mean I guess that makes sense but they trust
me
here alone? What if my mom were to call?”

“They really don’t care about anyone,” Amy said. “If anyone calls asking for them, I’m supposed to say they’re in the bathroom or something and they’ll call back. They never both leave long enough to blow their cover.”

“Wow, those heartless bastards. Well, until they leave, I’ve got some stuff to tell you about. You missed something interesting at school. It’s about your so-called friends.”

“Yeah? What’s that? I hope they didn’t give you any trouble.”

“Not quite.” He told her the story of Friday’s lunch period. By the time he finished, Amy was smiling.

“Huh, I didn’t realize those guys liked me so much. What do you think of all this? Do you want to hang out with them?”

“They didn’t really give me a choice but I’m sure it’ll be all right once you’re there.”

“Man, those guys,” Amy said, shaking her head. “You’re much cooler than them but I do feel kinda bad that –”

She was interrupted by a knock at the door.

“We’re going out,” Mr. Brown said gruffly through the door, followed by footsteps heading away.

“Sooner than I thought,” Amy said. “You better hurry back. They’ll be a while but I have no idea exactly how long.”

They crept to the bedroom door and waited for the sound of the front door closing.

“You should be good to go,” Amy said. She opened her door and listened to make sure there were no more noises in the house. “Come with me.”

She led Cole down the hallway and through the kitchen to the back door. “I’ll leave this open. When you get back, make sure you lock it and then come straight back to my room. And please don’t do anything dumb.”

“Don’t worry about me. I’ll be back before you know it.” He slipped out the back door, sliding it closed behind him. He checked around the front of the house to ensure Amy’s parents were gone and then took off at a fast jog toward Travis’. It was a difficult route since he had never traveled between these two houses, but with his good sense of direction he found his way without much difficulty. He did not wear a watch but he assumed it had taken a while to get there. He had no set plan, but whatever he did, it had to be quick.

Once on Travis’ block, Cole paused to catch his breath. Travis’ house loomed in front of him, taunting him, destroying the confidence and resolve that had brought him this far.

No. You have to do this. It’s for your own and your family’s safety. I didn’t choose this war but I have to end it. If only I had struck first…

For a few minutes he stood just out of sight of the house, measuring his options, figuring out the best entry point. Before he lost his nerve he set his jaw firm and walked along the side of the house to the backyard. There was a small rusted swing set as the centerpiece of the patch of grass, blowing gently in the breeze. Not a soul was around. He was considering his next course of action when a sound at the back door sent him ducking around the corner of the house. He peeked out for a moment to catch a glimpse of the back of a woman with shoulder length stringy blond hair and a dirty blue work shirt before scurrying back around the house.

He approached the front door, checking around to see if anyone was watching, and tried the knob. It was locked. He went around the other side of the house and, to his relief and apprehension, saw a first floor window open. Shutting off his brain, he grabbed the ledge and climbed inside.

He was standing in a small, dirty little kitchen, pots and pans scattered across the countertop. He gave it a brief glance and hurried through. He had no idea what Travis’ mother was doing but he had to be in and out before she came back inside.

He emerged in the living room, which was empty as well. It reminded him of his own living room, tattered curtains, a decrepit couch in the center and an old TV with rabbit ear antennae.
He'd better be here. He
has
to be here.
Cole checked his surroundings so as not to be caught off guard. There was a staircase going up to the second floor and a door presumably leading down into the basement. He chose the staircase and raced up into a short hallway with three doors, all of which were open. He crept quietly down the hall, making as little noise as possible and straining his ears for a sound. He peeked his head around the first door on the right, which was a vacant bathroom. At the end of the hall were two open doors opposite each other. He checked the one on the left. Dark and empty.
Dammit.
However, at that moment he noticed a small whispering in his head.

“What are you doing here?”

Cole spun at the sound of the voice. Travis was sitting in a chair at his desk, swiveled around to face the door, his eyes narrowed in suspicion, his hand resting on a golf club.

At the sight of Travis, the fiery rage reared up, driving out rational thought. “You son of a bitch.” Cole’s eyes flashed with anger as he stalked into the room. “You think you can try to kill me and my mom and get away with it?” Blood coursed through his veins as the indecipherable whispers in his head grew angrier, more pronounced. His breath grew short and raspy, as his hands subconsciously closed into fists and his vision narrowed, seeing only Travis.