Among the Shadows: Part 1, Chapter 10
Turning to sprint away from the crazy guy, I heard the resulting crash and the glass of the bulb shattering. If I wasn't busy running, I would be worrying about the mess I'd have to clean up later. In a few steps, I had reached the front door and realized that I couldn't leave Susie with him. I changed my mind and continued my run for the kitchen.
On my way there, I yelled out, "Susie! Call 911, Luke's trying to kidnap me!" My voice was distressed, and whether Susie thought it was a joke or not, she would have still come out of her room to investigate. Once in the kitchen, I pulled open the drawers to find a couple steak knives. Great plan. What was I going to do, throw them?
Swinging my room's door closed, Luke casually sauntered out carrying the luggage, which he set down by the door. Calmly, he walked over to the kitchen, where I held out the two knives in both my hands threateningly. What now? Could I jab him? Luke was bigger than me. I wasn't even sure I could reach his torso, but I supposed I could at least jab at his arms. Luke merely looked at me while I contemplated attacks. He was amused!
"Aren't you wondering why your roommate didn't come out of her room?" he asked mildly, tilting his head in that direction.
What? I stared blankly at him then shook my head. "She's being smart. She locked herself in her room when she heard me," I responded. I held my stance. "She already called. Police should be here any minute to take down the psycho." I hoped that I sounded confident. I had always been a poor poker player. The bitter taste flooding my mouth was distracting, but I kept my eyes on Luke's face.
Luke smiled. I imagined that it was a sinister smile as he laughed off my bluff, but truthfully, I saw no malice in his face. He coolly picked up the frying pan that was on the stove and spun it around by the handle. Silently, I cursed. Why didn't I pick that up? It was practically a tennis racket, and probably a more reasonable weapon compared to this measly four-inch blade.
Having not been expecting him to chuck the pan at me, I yelped and put out a hand to stop it from crashing into my ribs. In the chaos, I dropped the knife I held in my right hand. The knife fell to the floor, and I jumped back trying to avoid having my foot impaled. With a fluid motion, Luke grabbed my left wrist, and his other hand moved to my waist as he kneeled and hefted me onto his shoulder.
From inside her room, Susie called out, "Are you alright, Lena?" She had probably heard the crash, but I couldn't figure out why she hadn't heard my screams. "No, I'm not!" I shouted. She had to be concerned by that declaration. This was not normal.
With my body slung over his shoulder, Luke stood up easily. Oh, no. My heart sank. He was really kidnapping me. I was left staring at his back with my butt in the air, kicking blindly. With the bitter taste was in full force, I hacked and coughed. "Susie, call 911!" I yelled out one last time. Strangely, Luke released my left hand which still held the knife. I decided not to use it just yet. Perhaps he forgot I had been holding two of them.
With one arm, Luke held onto my legs. He was stronger than I expected. Held in place in an odd position, I found I couldn't kick and fidget as much. He headed for the door and opened it easily, remembering to grab the luggage with his free hand. "Nice to have met you, Susie," he called out. Even I admitted his voice sounded friendly. Susie called back through the walls, "Bye, Lena." Her tone and farewell sounded as if nothing was wrong.
As the door swung closed behind us, I remembered something. My keys were on my desk where I had left them this morning. Luke was already walking down the hall heading for the stairs. I asked, "What about my keys?"
Luke replied, "You won't need them. Susie will lock the door when she leaves for her exam." Why did he sound so sure of himself?
My book bag was on his left side. Inside the bag were two things, my laptop and my purse. I thought about opening my bag quickly to grab my purse before he stopped me or threw me off. Hopefully he threw me off. I decided to chance it. I yanked at the bag, but Luke must have been anticipating I would try that, for I found his hand carrying the luggage had also been holding onto my book bag. He had a strong grip.
"You can have it later," he said as I grew tired of wrestling over it. Why not now? At least that hinted that I might be able to get access to my phone.
Carrying me on his shoulder the entire time, Luke carefully jogged down the stairs and out the doors. He was cautious enough to make sure I didn't bump my head on the doorway. While I wasn't screaming at the top of my lungs, I was certainly not being quiet about it, yet no one around us even seemed to be paying attention. I really hoped it was not the sorry state of affairs in this country that no one would help a screaming girl in broad daylight. I supposed I should start believing what Luke said about shadows. Through all the screaming I had been doing, I learned that his illusions were not just visual if no one could hear me. He really hadn't been kidding about taking me with him kicking and screaming.
A girl rounded the corner behind Luke. If I could see her, she could see me. Maybe. I waved at her, trying to get her attention. I couldn't count the number of times I had screamed 'help' that I was seriously starting to get tired of the word. The girl even looked ahead. I think she was checking out Luke's butt. I groaned loudly.
"They only see a young couple walking hand-in-hand," Luke explained. I bet he was smug.
Still holding the knife, I considered the places on his body to use it. I reckoned I had one, maybe two stabs before Luke stopped me or dropped me, and if the second happened, I could make a run for it. What major organs did I have access to from here? I probably couldn't do much against bone. Kidney, perhaps. I settled on where I thought his left kidney was located, and if I had enough time, his butt. If the guy had pains every time he sat down for a while and remembered me, I would have some revenge.
I coughed loudly while fidgeting as I transferred the knife into my dominant hand. I continued my random yelling, trying not to give away my plan. Hopefully, he had completely forgotten about the second knife. I counted silently to myself before swinging my arm to plunge the knife into his side.
| Chapter 9 | Table of Contents | Chapter 11 |