FOREVER MINE (30 page)

Brody watches the screen as Charlie sits up taller and listens to the door being unlocked.  What song is he whistling, it is creepy.  When he enters her little cell, Charlie looks relieved.  She isn’t screaming.  She is passive and accepting of his help. When he touches her she doesn’t shy away, she moves toward him. 

As they exit the cell, she is holding on to him so tightly her knuckles are white.  “Charlie, what are you doing?  Please, baby, hold on a little longer.” 

The camera goes dark for a second when it comes back on they are walking into a bedroom.  It is the same room from the pictures I saw earlier, when she was wearing the black nightie.  They walk toward a room off camera.

Just when I think I will lose my mind because I can’t see anything, the screen changes and I am in the bathroom with them.  Charlie is still naked, not that she is thinking about that right now, she is sitting on the toilet while Michael gets her shower ready.

I hate watching this.  Michael has his hands all over her.  He washes her two times.  He washes her hair.  The whole time Charlie is smiling.  She looks content.  She is lying in the bath now while he massages her feet. 

He says something to her that I can’t hear and she nods and stands up.  Her wet skin is all pink and clean.  She rests her foot on the edge of the tub and lets Michael shave her legs.  I can’t take it anymore.

I start to pace.  I am afraid to go too far what if he says something to me and I miss it?  I can’t watch him with her.  I can’t look at the smile on her cracked and bloody mouth knowing he put it there.  The bruises and the pain she has endured because of this man, and now she is acting so comfortable with him.

I walk back over to the screen just in time to see Michael rubbing lotion on her legs.  I feel sick.  I hate how he touches her.  Then the most unspeakably horrifying thing happens; he kisses her and she kisses him back.

“No, she can’t be falling for his act.  She can’t give up now.”  I sit on the floor with my head in my hands and try to think of everything I saw.  “Where could they be?”  I don’t have a computer here but even if I did could I use it without Michael knowing?  He always seems to know what I’m doing and where I am.

I get up and pace the area.  I look in corners, on shelves, in the cracks in the walls; I can’t find anything that could be a camera.  He is probably using the camera on the laptop.  I take the piece of paper out of my pocket and tear a 2x2 inch square off the corner.  I place it over the built in camera on the laptop and wait to see what, if anything, Michael does.

Just as I start to think I’ve got one thing going for me, the screen showing Charlie
sleeping,
goes black.  I panic.  I can’t, not see her.  Maybe he is bluffing.  I wait about 10 minutes and when the screen still remains black, I remove the paper.  Instantly I am rewarded with Charlie’s image. 

My phone beeps signaling a text message.  I pull it from my pocket, look at the screen and see it is a blocked caller.  I touch the message icon to open the text and it says;
Don’t
play games.  You won’t get a second warning.

I put my phone back in my pocket and wait for Michael to tell me what to do next.  For now I will play it his way. 
For now.

Michael walks out of Charlie’s room and is flying high.  “I think I may have gotten her to see things my way.”  He stops halfway into the dark room, where he found Charlie hiding only days ago, and pulls on a cord.  A section of the ceiling opens up and a set of stairs unfolds out of the opening.  He walks up the stairs and pulls them closed again; closing the hole like it was never there.

Up in the main building he goes to the kitchen area and starts to make her something to eat.  While he waits he goes to his office and looks at his monitors.  He watches Brody as he paces around Charlie’s apartment.  He looks very distraught.  He turns and looks at the laptop, takes a piece of paper out of his pocket and rips a corner.  Then, he covers the camera lens, and the screen goes dark.

“I can’t believe it took you so long.”  I smile to myself thinking how he must be so proud of himself.  In reality he is an idiot.  It took him until now to figure out that the computer has a webcam.  He works with and fixes computers; he should have figured it out on day one.  I hit a button and turn his feed of Charlie off and wait for him to remove the paper.

When only 10 minutes goes by, the paper comes off and a panicked Brody is visible on the screen.  I take out my phone and text him.  He is only a very thin line away from totally loosing it.  I need to keep working him.  He will be a basket case when I finally tell him where go. 

I watch as Brody reads the text and puts his phone away.  He sits down on the floor and waits.  “Good boy, Brody.”  I laugh thinking how easy he is to control.

Walking back to the kitchen I check on Charlie’s soup.  I hope she can keep this down.  It is a shame things had to go so badly for her but it worked out in my favor in the end.  She is much more submissive now. 

I make up a tray with soup, water, toast, and of course a rose, and take it to her room.  When I get there she is still sleeping.  I place the tray on the table.  Walking back to the bed, I watch her sleep for a minute and then I climb in next to her; pulling her to me and wrapping my arms around her.

I lay holding her for awhile.  She finally starts to stir and I kiss her forehead to wake her fully.  She opens her eyes and smiles up at me.  My heart melts.  “Good morning, beautiful.”  I kiss her swollen eye lid. 

“How long did I sleep?”  Her voice is hoarse, like a pack a day smoker.

“Not too long, you will probably sleep for quite awhile once you eat.”

“I am really hungry.”  She smiles shyly as she admits her hunger.

“Well, good, I made up some soup.”  I get up and walk over to the table.  “Do you want to eat here or there?”

“I don’t think I can get up, I’m so tired.  But I also don’t want to
lie
here anymore.”  She pushes herself up and walks over to the table.

I sit in front of her and watch as she eats the soup and drinks the water like they are a gourmet meal.  She eats like a starved child; all hands and noises.  She has so much toast in her mouth her cheeks are puffed out.  She looks up and stops chewing.

“Sorry,” She mumbles with her mouth full, “I am really hungry.  I guess I got lost in my food and forgot my manners.”  She laughs nervously.

“It’s alright, Charlie.  Just eat, if you want more I can get it for you.”  I reach over and brush some crumbs off her bottom lip.  She looks at me and smiles.

“Thanks.  I think I would like some more.”

I get up from the table and walk to her side.  She turns to face me and offers her hand to me.  I take it helping her to her feet.  She is standing so close I can smell the soap I washed her with.  I pull her closer to me, knowing Brody can see everything we are doing, and I touch her cheek, cupping her face in my hands I lean toward her and capture her mouth with mine.

She doesn’t respond right away, but when she does it is heaven.  She kisses me like I remember.  She is always shy until she finds her confidence then she is a force.  Swept up in the passion she is offering I pick her up and take her back to her bed.  I lay next to her and while deepening the kiss I run my hands up her side.  I feel the skin under her shirt and she gasps a little.

“Wait, Michael, can we please slow down a little?  I am still really sore.  I think my soup may be making a return visit.”  She reaches up and strokes my face; begging with her eyes.

“You have to know how impatient I am to be with you again, but I will wait until you no longer feel sick.”  I kiss the tip of her nose and roll off the bed.  Standing I grab the tray off the table and adjust my pants.  “I don’t think you need anything else to eat, I will get you something for your stomach and be back.”

“Thank you.  Oh, and Michael, I appreciate you being so understanding.”

“Just remember I am not a patient man.  You won’t get much time; I’ve waited too long for you, Charlie.  I suggest you rest and build your strength.  You will defiantly need it.”  With that I turn and leave her room.  

Charlie lies in bed knowing she is being watched.  She is so tired and her body is so sore.  The pain in her head is finally just a dull ache.  Her lip isn’t splitting open, everytime she moves her mouth, anymore.  If she tries really hard she can open her swollen eye a crack. 

She is thinking about how long she has been here.  If she was only down in that awful hole for one day today would be Tuesday, July 2
^nd
.  It is only two days until Brody’s birthday.  No I can’t think about him.  It hurts too much.

When I was down in that dark hole alone, I realized that I will never see him again.  Even if I give Michael everything he wants he is still going to kill me.  I cannot think about Brody now or I will not be able to do what I need to.  I will not let Michael win.  I just need time to figure out how to do what I must. 

As she lies in bed her eyes get heavier and heavier, before she knows it she is fast asleep. 

The door to her room opens and someone walks in.  Charlie is too tired to roll over and talk to Michael.  When a small cold hand rubs her hair away from her face she stops breathing.  She slowly rolls over and comes face to face with her mom.

The sob that breaks forth from her mouth is uncontrollable.  It comes from regret and loneliness.  She wraps her arms around her waist and cries into her mother’s lap, as she strokes her hair like she did when she was a little girl.

“Mom, how, why are you here?”

“Sweetheart, I am always here for you.”  She smiles and the beautiful crinkles around her eyes appear, telling everyone she loves to smile and does so often, wrinkles be damned.

“But you, your accident, you…”  I look at her memorizing her face; the light brown curly hair, her beautiful blue-
ish
eyes, her full cheeks and her thin upper lip that we used to tease her about because it didn’t match the full bottom one.  She is wearing a yellow sun dress and has her hair piled up on top of her head.  She looks so pretty.

She presses a finger to my mouth, “
Shhh
, sweetie, you need to listen to me.  We don’t have a lot of time.  You need to get out of here.”

“I can’t. He is smart and strong.  I can’t beat him at this.  He has planned for too long.  He has a way to handle anything I do to him.  I know he is going to kill me mom.”

She holds my face between her hands and she looks deep into my eyes, “No, you are not going to let that happen.  No matter what, do not let him kill you.”

“I don’t know how to stop him.”  I cry harder now. She hugs me tightly to her.

“I love you, Charlie.  I miss you every day, and I’m sorry I didn’t see what was going on with the two of you.  I thought one day Brody would just come to the rescue and take you away.”

“I love you too, mom.  Please don’t apologize.  I lied to everyone.  I cut people out of my life to protect my secret.  And Brody did come to the rescue; he saved me, more times than I can count.  I am trying to save him now.”

We don’t speak anymore; I just cry and cry, until there’s nothing left.  When I hear the door open I stir and realize I am holding and crying into my pillow.  I was dreaming.  It felt so real.  I put my head back down and try to sleep as Michael climbs into bed with me.  I can’t stand him touching me.

I roll away from him so he is draped around the back of me.  His head is against my neck and I feel his hot breath.  I try to ignore it and rest.  I need to heal and I need him to give me more time to think of a way out of this mess.