The Voice Page 7

  My phone vibrated. Pulling it out of my pocket, I glanced at the screen. Pittsburgh area code—it had to be the DA. I handed Mrs. Nocon my note and left the classroom. Standing outside, I answered.

  “Is this Audrey?” a male asked.

  “Yes.”

  “Good,” he slowly purred. A chill ran through my body.

  “Who’s this?” I whispered.

  “Someone who knows you very well.”

  My heart stopped. Was it Bill? I couldn’t breathe. I wanted to hang up, but was frozen, unable to move.

  “You never were one to talk. Always so quiet. But your eyes would give you away. And your . . . body revealed your true feelings. I miss you. But it won’t be too much longer.” He spoke slowly, drawling out the words.

  I was going to vomit. Sweat dripped down my face. Everything around me was spinning.

  “Don’t go anywhere, dear,” he said harshly. “I want to make sure you won’t be testifying. As a matter of fact, I want you to tell them you went willingly, but you were too afraid of your parents, so you fabricated the kidnapping story.” I couldn’t respond. “Do you understand?” he spat. Then softer, “I know you’re there. And if you don’t do as I say, you’ll be sorry. I can get to you.”

  The phone fell out of my hand, and I was too stunned to move.

  The principal walked by. “Get back to class. I’m trying to shape the world of tomorrow and I can’t do that unless you’re learning today.”

  Fumbling, I picked up my phone. My entire body was clammy, and I was having difficulty concentrating. Kate—I needed to see Kate. She would know what to do. Everyone would take me seriously this time. I slipped back into the classroom and started to pack up my stuff.

  “Going somewhere, Makayla?” Mrs. Nocon asked.

  “Ms. Brown,” I managed to squeak. Mrs. Nocon walked back to her desk and picked up my note, rereading it.

  “Do you have another pass?” she asked. I shook my head. “Then you can wait until lunch. Now, why don’t you tell us who the golden thread in the book is?” She smiled sweetly, but her eyes revealed a challenge.

  What? A Tale of Two Cities was the furthest thing from my mind right then. How did Bill find me? How could he threaten me like that?

  “Makayla, did you do the reading over the weekend?” Mrs. Nocon asked condescendingly.

  Could he really hurt me again? How could he call me from jail? Was he still in jail? What if he’d escaped? I glanced around frantically. What if he was on the school grounds, watching me?

  “Makayla!” Mrs. Nocon now stood next to my desk, her arms folded. A few students laughed.

  “Lucie Manette is the golden thread,” a gruff voice answered. The entire class went silent. The only sound was the humming of the air conditioning unit.

  Everyone stared at Justin.

  “So you aren’t hung over,” someone snickered.

  Mrs. Nocon, looking startled, walked to the front of the class. “Good, Justin. Care to elaborate?” she encouraged.

  “Lucie ties together all of the characters in the book. She keeps her father and her family’s lives from falling apart. And she has blond hair. She’s the golden thread.” His voice was deep and raspy, like he was getting over a cough.

  Forgetting all about me, Mrs. Nocon launched the class into a discussion from Justin’s comments. I couldn’t help but gawk at him. He was watching me with a neutral expression. I couldn’t shake the eerie sensation that he knew about my phone call.

  The bell rang, and Maddie sat on the edge of my desk. “That was odd,” she said, swinging her backpack over her shoulder. “I’ve never heard Justin talk in class before. And what was with his voice? He sounded all hoarse or something.”

  I stood, afraid my legs wouldn’t be able to support me. A warm hand tentatively held my arm. Glancing up, Justin stood next to me. Usually he took off to fourth period, letting me fend for myself. And here he was, touching me.

  “Um, I’ll see you later, Makayla. Nice save, Justin,” Maddie said on her way out, stopping long enough to glance over her shoulder and give me an odd smile.

  Going to Kate’s room right now wouldn’t help. She had a class to teach, and I didn’t want to interrupt. I had already caused her enough problems. The only option was to go to fourth period. But Justin was still touching me. And watching me. I gently pulled my arm away and put my backpack on. He started walking, and I followed.

  When Justin reached the door, he held it open, waiting for me. Once I was next to him, he started walking again. I wanted to say something to him, but was afraid he’d run away. And quite frankly, I needed him right then.

  “Hey, Justin,” a group of guys said. He nodded to them, carefully stepping around me and putting himself between me and the group.

  Walking through the halls, Justin made sure no one got near me. He was keenly aware of the space surrounding my body.

  “Justin,” the president of the ASB said, coming up to him. “I need to talk to you about something.”

  I didn’t realize Justin had any friends, since he appeared so antisocial in class.

  There were still a lot of students around, and I didn’t want to stop in the middle of the hall right then. I contemplated continuing on without Justin. He leaned toward the ASB girl and said something so softly, I couldn’t hear. Then he put his hand on my back and led me away. Normally I would tense and shift away when someone touched me, but his hand felt protective. Maybe it was the way he touched me—carefully, as if

  I were fragile. There wasn’t a hard, possessive edge like . . . I stopped the thought process, not even wanting to compare the two. Justin’s hand dropped, and he peered down at me.

  “I’m good,” I said.

  Justin nodded.

  When we got to calculus, Justin walked me to my seat. I sat down while he stood there staring at me. I wasn’t sure what to say. I wanted to thank him for his help, but the words were stuck in my throat. He knelt down so we were eye level. An odd expression flashed across his face so quickly, I thought I imagined it. He opened his mouth to say something, but then he stopped. There was a flicker of sadness on his face.

  This was the closest I’d ever been to him. His hand reached out to me, his fingers gliding lightly down my arm, like he was trying to comfort me. Justin’s eyes were dark and warm. There was an odd connection, as if his eyes were holding me, pulling me toward him.

  A book slammed on the desk next to me, and I jumped. Justin stood and walked to his seat. He didn’t put his iPod in like he usually did. Instead, he kept his eyes focused on me, and thoughts of Bill stayed away for the entire period.

  At lunch, a horrified Kate insisted that I go home and rest, but I didn’t want to be alone. She called my mom and left a message telling her that Bill had contacted me on my cell and threatened me. Until we heard back from her, there wasn’t much we could do. During my TA period, Kate had me write down exactly what Bill had said, so I wouldn’t forget. But I was having trouble concentrating, because I couldn’t stop thinking about Justin and how he had made me feel safe, almost like the voice.

  I purposely tried not to think about the voice, because then I would realize how much I missed him. I wished he were here with me now, giving me the distraction that I briefly felt around Justin. Shaking my head, I tried to banish all thoughts about Justin. Justin of all people. It was insane to think about him like that.

  When the bell rang at the end of the day, Caleb grabbed my backpack. “Let’s go.”

  “I can walk to Kate’s room by myself.” I reached for my bag.

  “I’m driving you home.”

  A huge red flag went up. Why did he want to drive me home? What was going on? “Don’t you have football practice?” I asked.

  “Not today.”

  The phone call had me paranoid. My guard was up and I couldn’t trust anyone right then.

  “Makayla, it’s okay.”

  I wasn’t sure if I believed him. Caleb seemed harmless and Kate trusted him, but he was s
till a kid like me. There was no way he was capable of protecting me.

  “I went to Kate’s room to walk you to sixth period, but you were already gone. Kate said she had a lot of work to do and that you needed to get home to make a few phone calls. I offered to drive you. She made me promise not to leave you alone until she gets there. Satisfied?” He raised his eyebrows, waiting for my response.

  I nodded, following Caleb to his Jeep. Justin was already in the back seat waiting for us. His hood was up even though he had to be roasting in that black sweatshirt. When I got in, I turned back toward Justin.

  “Hi,” I said. The corners of his mouth went up in the briefest of smiles, and he nodded. But he didn’t say a single word to me.

  Okay . . . I faced forward, waiting for Caleb to monopolize the conversation; but for once, he didn’t have anything to say during the ride home. The silence wasn’t good. I really needed a distraction, because I was having trouble keeping the memories away.

  The phone call had brought everything back in such vivid detail. The mattress on the floor in the cabin. The smell of cigarettes, urine, and body odor. The way Bill’s hands felt on me—like a snake slithering over my skin. And because I wouldn’t cooperate, he’d tied my hands up and been extra forceful. There were still marks on my wrists. I blinked the tears away.

  We pulled into the driveway. “Thanks for the ride,” I said. Justin jumped out and slipped past me. I tried to see his face, but couldn’t.

  I headed toward Kate’s. “Wait,” Caleb yelled. “Remember, I promised to stay with you until Kate gets home.”

  The image of a trained German Shepherd came to mind, and I had to stifle a laugh.

  It was nice to have Caleb with me—going into Kate’s alone would’ve freaked me out. Once inside, Caleb headed straight to the kitchen. He raided the pantry until he found a box of cookies. Flopping on the couch, he turned on the TV and Wii.

  “Want to play with me?” he asked, shoving a cookie in his mouth.

  “Um, I’m going to go upstairs and change. I’ll be back in a bit. Stay here.” I grabbed my cell and called my mom.

  “Honey,” she answered on the first ring. “We’ve been so worried about you.”

  “Is he still in jail?” I asked, my body as stiff as a metal rod. Please, please, please, I begged, let him still be locked up.

  “Yes,” she answered. I relaxed. Thank God. “I’ve already spoken with the DA on the matter. First, let me assure you that Bill is in jail, where he will remain until the conclusion of the trial.”

  I felt so much safer already. There was no need to be paranoid and hide in the house, away from the windows.

  “But why was he allowed to call?”

  “Did you hear a prerecorded message stating that the call was from the Allegheny County Jail and would be recorded?” my mom asked.

  “No.”

  “And the call wasn’t collect?” she carefully asked.

  “No, why? What’s going on?”

  She sighed. “Honey, Bill didn’t call you. There’s a stay-away order in place, which prevents him from contacting you, and even if he violated it, you would’ve had the chance to refuse the call before he got on. And the jail has no record of the call.”

  If it wasn’t Bill, then who was it? “What are we going to do?”

  “The police want the phone number that called so they can investigate.” I wanted more action than that. My mom continued, “Honey, don’t worry. Bill’s in jail. There’s nothing he can do to hurt you now. The police are convinced this was just a random prank.”

  “But he had my cell number and it was a Pittsburgh area code.”

  “Some kid from school probably just wanted to scare you.”

  “But they knew that I was . . . you know.” I couldn’t say “raped”to my mom.

  “Anyone who read the newspapers or saw the TV reports knows that. Trust me, there’s nothing to worry about.”

  The caller had threatened me if I testified. It was a serious threat, regardless of what Mom said.

  “Honey, I think you should come home.”

  “I’m not ready.” There weren’t any memories here, and Kate had been great.

  “Oh.” I could hear the hurt in my mom’s voice. “I’m worried about you.”

  “I know, Mom. I’m worried too.” Great, it sounded like Mom was crying. I wanted to say something to reassure her, but I couldn’t. “I haven’t heard from the boys in awhile,” I said, changing the subject.

  “They’re trying to give you space. They think that when you’re ready, you’ll call them. But I know they’re all concerned.”

  There was a knock on my bedroom door. I glanced up and found Caleb standing there with two bowls of ice cream. I hung up, hoping that Caleb hadn’t heard any of my conversation.

  Chapter 12

  Bill stood in the middle of a ten-foot-by-ten-foot prison cell. When he saw me, his lips rose in a devious smile. Only the gray metal bars separated us. I wanted to back away, but my feet were glued to the ground. Bill sauntered closer until we were only a foot apart. His hands slowly curled around the bars, one finger at a time.

  “You can’t escape me, Audrey,” his voice purred. “I know where you are, and I’m coming for you.”

  Swift as a snake’s strike, his hands flew through the bars and onto my neck. He lifted me off the ground. “You’re mine,” he snarled. I kicked and grabbed his hands, trying to pry them off. I couldn’t breathe. Pulling me toward himself, he smashed my body against the cold metal bars. And then he dropped me. I fell to the ground. He laughed, a wicked sound echoing against the concrete walls.

  Bill turned and walked toward a door with a red exit sign above it. That’s when I looked around and realized that I was the one in the jail cell. And when he opened the door, Kara stood on the other side.

  “NO!” I screamed.

  Come on, Audrey, snap out of it. Get up.

  I awoke in a cold sweat. My phone was on the nightstand. Grabbing it, I checked to see if Kara had texted or called. Nothing. She was probably fine. It was just a crazy dream, and I couldn’t let my mind play tricks on me.

  I didn’t have to get up for another two hours, but I couldn’t go back to sleep. Too afraid to close my eyes and needing to calm down before school, I decided to take a hot shower. The warm water beat on my back as I counted to one hundred over and over again. After forty minutes, Kate yelled through the door for me to get out before all the hot water was gone.

  By the time I got downstairs, Kate was already shoving a bagel in her mouth. “Audrey, I made coffee. Want some?”

  “No, I’m fine.” I never drank coffee. She looked at me as if trying to decide something. “Whatever it is, just say it,” I said, pouring Cheerios into a bowl.

  “You were screaming a lot last night. I thought you might need a little pick-me-up.” She lifted her mug, indicating the caffeine. “You obviously didn’t sleep much.”

  “What about you? I heard you crying last night. You need a little pick-me-up?” She looked hurt, making me realize I’d gone too far, but she quickly recovered.

  “Yes, actually. But I’m not afraid to admit it.”

  “To me. Have you even told your friends about Mike leaving?” I asked more softly.

  “My friends that I don’t work with. Remember, you’re supposed to be Mike’s sister. Can’t really tell people at work, now can I?”

  “Sorry.” I slid onto the stool next to Kate at the kitchen counter.

  “Doesn’t matter.” She waved her hand dismissively.

  I didn’t want to take out my anger on her. She didn’t deserve an attitude from me.

  “So,” Kate continued, “you all right?”

  I needed to confide in someone, and she was a good listener. “I’m scared.”

  “So am I,” she admitted. “But we’ll both get through it.”

  “That phone call yesterday really messed me up.”

  “Whoever called wanted to scare you. That was the point. There are
some sick people out there, Audrey. But you can’t stop living because of some psycho.”

  But living was hard.

  “You’re the strongest person I know,” Kate continued. “You’ve endured more than anyone ever should. And you survived.” She put her coffee cup down and took hold of my shoulders. Her touch felt safe and reassuring. “Audrey, you’re beautiful and intelligent. Don’t let all that go to waste. There’s so much life in you.”

  “But who would want me? I’m damaged.” I couldn’t look her in the eyes. I was too ashamed.

  “You’re not damaged; you’re just a stronger person now.” Kate hugged me. “Tell you what. After you get home from school today, let’s celebrate. We’ll toast to our freedom, to life.”

  “I have a math test tomorrow that I need to study for.”

  “You’re pulling double duty. You deserve some time off. We’ll stay up all night and watch movies. I’ll call us both in sick tomorrow so we can recuperate.”

  “My mom would never do something like that.”

  “And that’s why you’re here with me, and not back home with her,” she said, smiling. I loved Kate. “We better get going.” Kate grabbed her keys. “Eight hours until we are on this couch, hanging out.”

  After we arrived at school, I went to my locker. Sliding A Tale of Two Cities out of my backpack, I thought of Justin. I still didn’t understand what had happened between us yesterday. It felt like he was concerned about me, as if he knew what I was going through and wanted to help. But then on the way home, he was back to his old self, ignoring me again.

  Either way, there was something strange about him, something not quite right. The best thing to do was to pretend like nothing had happened. The ball was in his court. I would wait and see what he did with it, and play along.

  The bell rang and I hurried to class.

  In civics, we ended up having a pop quiz that took the entire period. At the end of class, Caleb came over to walk me to Spanish.

  “You should come to the game on Friday,” he said, holding the door open for me.

  “Why?” I didn’t know anyone here, and this really wasn’t my school.