Not A Word Chapter 1-5

 

 

Chapter 1

 

 

He stood on the ground and looked up at her window for just a moment before he began to climb the rose trellis beneath it, a slight smile on his face. He pushed aside the flowers carefully, silently, making sure he did not rustle them too much. Then he was there on the porch roof, easy to see in the light from the full moon that floated above his head. He put his hands on the ledge and pulled upward gently, relieved to find that it slid open easily. He stuck his head in and peered over at her bed...there she was, sleeping, her face like an angel, her beautiful mouth soft and relaxed, her lashes curled upon her perfect cheeks. Her hair spread over her pillows in soft, golden brown curls, and as he lowered himself carefully to the floor he took a deep breath. The room smelled of her, of sweetness, innocence, and beauty. Of everything that she was. He tiptoed over to her bed and stood looking at her for just a moment before he reached out and gently stroked her cheek.

"Elizabeth."

She stirred slightly, a tiny smile curving her lips. Her eyelids fluttered open slowly. "Lucky," she whispered.

Lucky Spencer awoke with a start and looked at his alarm clock. It was nearly 8:00 a.m. "Damn!" He had an important English test in a half-hour and he had overslept. He stumbled out of bed and jumped in the shower. He had stayed up too late the night before talking to Elizabeth on the phone. It was always so hard to say goodnight to her. He wanted to hear her voice for as long as possible.

Ten minutes later he was grabbing his backpack and running out the door, his hair still wet. He made it to class three minutes late and was greeted with a disapproving look from his teacher as he tried to sneak in. "Nice to see you could make it Mr. Spencer. I hope we aren't keeping you from anything." .

"No, ha, no, sorry." He sat down and ran his hand through his hair as he looked around the room for Elizabeth. Strange, she wasn't there. Now he knew he wouldn't be able to concentrate on the test, wondering what could have kept her from coming to class. He knew she had been worried about this test. They had studied for it together last night. He wondered if she was sick, although she had seemed fine the night before. He would have to call her as soon as he was finished with this damned test. .

He muddled his way through the test as best he could and made his way quickly to the phone when it was over. He let the phone ring for a long time before hanging up. Where could she be? Maybe she was sick and had turned off the phone so she could get some sleep. He decided he would go over there after school to check on her. .

It was nearly 3:00 when he left school. He headed first to Kelly's to see if she had started to feel better and had decided to go into work. He opened the door and saw Tammy at the counter. "Hi, Tammy, is Elizabeth here?" .

"No, she isn't due in until 6:00. You didn't know that?" .

"Yea, but she wasn't at school today, so I thought maybe she came in early." .

"Sorry, honey, I haven't seen her today." .

"Thanks." .

He left and decided to walk down to the docks before heading to her house. She wasn't there, either and just a hint of worry was beginning to creep into his subconscious. Something just didn't feel right in his gut. .

He knocked on the door of her house and when there was no answer, he walked around the back and climbed the rose trellis to the roof by her window, just as he had done so many times in the past. He called to her as he knocked on the window, but he could see that the room was empty. He also noticed that her bed was unmade, which was unusual. Elizabeth always made her bed. .

A cold grip of panic seized his heart as he noticed the window was open a few inches. Something was terribly wrong. He could feel it. He lifted the window slowly, his throat constricting as he saw the scene before him. .

What he saw terrified him and he felt his heart pounding wildly, his blood rushing to his head. The sheet had a handprint of blood on the edge as if she had been grasping the sheet. He kept saying "Oh, god, oh, god, oh, god, please don't let this be real," as he first paced the room, then searched the entire house looking for her. He found small amounts of blood on the banister and another hand print on the front door. He ended up back in the bedroom. He willed himself to calm down, to search the room for some clue as to what might have happened. It was obvious there had been a struggle. The lamp that usually sat on the nightstand at the side of the bed was on the floor, and the picture of him with Elizabeth was by the window on the floor, the glass shattered. He picked up the picture and found blood on it, too. Finally he grabbed the phone, and tried to dial. His hands were shaking so badly it took him three tries to get the number dialed. He listened to the phone ring for several minutes, whispering, "Come on, come on, come on, answer the phone." .

He was just about to hang up when he heard his father's voice. "Luke's." .

"Dad..." His voice faltered. .

"Lucky? To what do I owe....?" .

His spoke rapidly, wanting to get it all out so that his Dad would come and fix everything quickly. "Dad, I need your help. I'm at Elizabeth's house, and she's gone. There's blood all over her room. Oh, god...." .

"Slow down, there Cowboy. Take a deep breath and try to tell me what's going on." .

"Can you just come over here, please?" .

"I'll be right there." .

He found Lucky sitting on the edge of Elizabeth's bed, his head in his hands, the shattered picture in his lap. Luke surveyed the room, saw the blood and the signs of struggle, and thought, "This is bad. This is real bad." His heart broke for his son. He knew how much Lucky loved Elizabeth and if something had happened to her, he wasn't sure how Lucky would get through it. .

He walked over and put his hand on Lucky's shoulder. "You okay, son?" Lucky looked up at him, tears welling in his eyes. "No, I'm not okay. How can I be okay? She's gone, Dad, something terrible has happened to her. Where is she? What happened to her?" His voice broke and he put his hands over his eyes, to try and stop the tears, but he knew they were going to come anyway. Finally he looked at his father and said, "You have to help me, Dad. Please. We have to find her."

Chapter 2

I felt a jolt pass through me when I saw him, but then it was gone, replaced by calm. I had seen him so many times in my dreams and he used to scare me, but he had no power over me anymore. I knew this was just a dream like any other and now I felt no fear. .

"Go away," I said quietly, and started to roll over, but then his gloved hand clamped down suddenly on my mouth. I smelled the leather and felt the pressure, the inability to breathe, and then he leaned down close to me, his breath hot on my cheek. .

"Not a word," he whispered, and in that moment I knew he was real. For a second I couldn't even think…every thought that started splintered off into my brain and was lost in the darkness. The unreality of it all, the impossibility…he was supposed to be in jail, not here, how did he know where I lived, why was he here, how did he get here. Involuntarily my lungs searched for the air they were being deprived of, but encountered only the force of his hand pressing down harder, harder….

"I bet you never expected to see me here, did you?" He hissed, his face still close to mine. "Well, I have news for you, little girl. I got out for good behavior. What do you think of that?" .

Always before when I encountered him, my mind and my body froze and I was completely powerless in his presence, as if he had some spell over me. But after all this time, after all I had achieved…I had finally gotten my life back and now he wanted to take it away again. Well, I wouldn't let him. Not this time. I would not let him. .

I don't think he was expecting my sudden lunge because his hand dropped and he fell backwards easily…too easily as I surged upwards, scrambling blindly, fighting for air, desperately trying to get away. In the haze of my panic I think I heard him laugh, and then he was there again, knocking my lamp to the floor as he threw himself on top of me, pinning me down with his heavy weight, smothering me. I opened my mouth to scream, but the cold point of a knife against my throat silenced me. .

"I said not a word, remember? You've gotten a little bit better than last time, but still not good enough." He sat up slowly and I gasped for breath, fighting the tears burning behind my eyes, not wanting him to see any weakness from me. He glanced at my bedside table and his eyes fell on the picture of Lucky and me, his lips curving in a cruel smile as he picked it up. "Isn't this sweet? You and your boyfriend. I guess he doesn't mind used goods, does he?" .

I couldn't control the tears any longer, and they spilled scalding hot down my cheeks. "Shutup," I said, my voice shaking with fear and rage. "Shutup." .

"Shh, Lizzie. Not a word." .

I charged past him off the end of my bed, hitting the floor on hands and knees, but I was up again without even realizing it. I just needed to get to the door, the door and I would be free and away from him….free… I screamed when he grabbed my hair and yanked hard, pulling my head back, crushing me against his chest, the knife at my throat again. He turned me around slowly and walked me to my bed. He pushed me down onto it and I felt his knee on my back. .

"You try that again, and I'll cut your throat. Say anything, scream again, and you're dead. You got that?" I could only nod, sobbing as he flipped me over. Still kneeling over me, he picked up the picture again and smashed it against the edge of the table, shattering the glass. He shoved his knife into the sheath clipped to his belt and picked up a particularly large shard of glass. He held it up before me. .

"I think I need to teach you a little lesson." He took my arm and held it out, and I flinched as he ran the point of the glass down it lightly. When he reached my palm he pressed down, and I gasped as the tip cut deeply into my flesh. He made a cup of my hand and watched as it filled slowly with blood. "See that? Isn't it pretty?" He tipped my hand and the blood spilled out, splashing onto my blanket. "I hope that didn't hurt too much." He grabbed my other arm and did the same thing to that hand. .

I did not feel the pain, only the panic coursing through my veins with every beat of my heart, pumping out bright and warm with the blood in my hands. Lucky, where are you Lucky? I need you. Please come save me. I need you. Help me Lucky….

He jerked me to my feet. "No!" I shouted and tried to pull away from him, but he shook me hard. .

"What did I tell you, Elizabeth? Are you going to cooperate or are you going to die?"I subsided, cursing my smallness, wishing I was seven feet tall, wishing I was strong enough to pick him up and throw him out of the window. I turned and started to pick up the photo, but he yanked me upward again, leaving a smear of blood across Lucky's face. .

"Leave that." He dragged me across the room to my dresser, his arm around my waist as he opened a drawer and pulled out some of my clothes, stuffing them down the front of his shirt. Then he was opening my door, practically carrying me as he thundered down the stairs and out the front door. I touched everything I could on the way down. My message to Lucky. Come save me. .

Chapter 3

Luke looked into Lucky's eyes and saw all the pain he was feeling. He knew how much Lucky loved Elizabeth and his heart felt heavy for the pain he was going to have to endure until Elizabeth was found. He knew what it felt like to love someone that much. He had loved Laura that much since the day he met her, and still loved her as much to this day even though they were no longer together. He knew that kind of love never died. .

Luke turned from Lucky and dialed the number to the police station. Mac and Taggert arrived a few minutes later. While Mac searched downstairs, he led Taggert to the bedroom where Lucky still sat on Elizabeth's bed, holding the picture against his chest. Taggert spoke first, softly. "Lucky?" .

He looked up at him, his eyes glazed and unfocused. He was unable to get the vision of Elizabeth struggling with her captor out of his head. He could see her grabbing the picture as he pulled off the bed, meaning to take it with her as a reminder of him, something that would help to keep her sane. .

"Lucky, I need to ask you some questions." .

"Ah...okay." .

"Where's Mrs. Hardy? Is she at work?" .

"She's ah, she's at a convention. She wasn't here last night. I never should have left Elizabeth alone..." .

Luke spoke up. "I talked to Bobbie. She's gone to get her. Audrey's going to be upset and we didn't want her driving home alone. She's just a few hours away." .

"Good." Taggert turned back to Lucky. "Lucky, when was the last time you saw Elizabeth?" .

"I was with her until about 10:00 last night. We had dinner at Kelly's and then came back here for awhile to study for a test. I talked to her on the phone around midnight. She was so happy last night. And now...." He looked at Taggert searching for answers. "What kind of sick bastard would do this to her, and why?" .

"We'll do everything in our power to find her, Lucky." Lucky was grateful for Taggert's sympathy. He had appreciated the way he had treated Elizabeth after she was raped, and he felt that he truly cared about her. .

"When she wasn't at school this morning I tried to call her, but I thought she had just turned the phone off. I came over here after school and when she didn't answer the door I came to the window." .

"Is that something you've done before?" .

He nodded. "Lot's of times. But the window was open a few inches and that's when I knew something was wrong and I found the room like this." He ran his hands through his hair. "Why didn't I come over here this morning? Maybe I could have saved her, maybe he was still here and I could have stopped him." .

"Lucky, it's not going to do you any good blaming yourself and wishing you had done things differently. We need to search her room, see if we can get any finger prints or clues." Taggert pointed to the picture "What have you got there?" .

"It's the picture she kept by her bed. I found it on the floor by the window with the glass shattered." .

"You shouldn't have touched it, Lucky. You know that don't you?" .

He nodded. "I had to. I know Elizabeth, and I know she would have grabbed it and tried to take it with her. She would do that. It was probably one of the last things she touched. I'm sorry." .

"It's okay. I understand. Can I have it now?" .

He reluctantly gave Taggert the picture and finally stood up from the bed, surveying the room. He was extremely agitated. .

"Lucky, why don't you and Luke wait downstairs? And ask Mac to come up here." .

"Can't I stay?" .

"It would be better if you waited downstairs." .

Luke spoke up. "Come on son, let's go. Let them do their job." .

As he let Luke lead him from the room, he stopped to look at the bloody hand print on the door and then hurriedly went down the stairs to the living room. .

Now Lucky was pacing the floor, unable to sit still. It had been nearly an hour since they had left the bedroom. Luke approached Lucky. "Lucky, you need to try and calm down." .

"Calm down? How can I calm down, Dad? I can't even breathe. I keep seeing her struggling, trying to get free. I can't just stand here and do nothing. I have to find her before he hurts her anymore." .

Mac and Taggert came down the steps and their expressions were grim. "What? What is it?" .

It appears that some of her clothes are missing from her dresser. Whoever took her plans to keep her. And we think the blood is all Elizabeth's. The prints are all so small. We think that she must have been cut on the palms of her hands for there to have been so much blood on the prints. She marked every surface she could. We got some good finger prints; we should know who they all belong to by tomorrow." .

"There's something else isn't there? Something else you're not telling me." .

Mac and Taggert looked at each other briefly before Mac spoke. "The man who raped Elizabeth, Tom Baker, got out of jail yesterday on good behavior. We just got the call a few minutes ago." .

Lucky stared at them in horror, the color draining from his face. He felt his knees start to buckle. He whispered. "Jesus, oh Jesus," and leaned over, putting his hands on his knees, taking a deep breath, fighting the urge to be sick. Finally he stood up and looked at Luke. 'I'll kill him, Dad, I swear I'll kill him." Luke put his hand on Lucky's shoulder. "Son, come and sit down." .

He sat down on the couch and put his head in his hands, closing his eyes to the ever present vision of her struggling with her captor, only this time the man had a face. He knew without a doubt that it was Tom who had taken her. He had vowed revenge on her months before. Lucky knew he would not have a moment's peace until he found her and saved her from the most sick and twisted man he had ever known. And he knew the bloody prints were her message to him: Come save me.

Chapter 4

As soon as his feet hit the front porch I screamed.

"Help me! Someone help m--!"

"Shut up!" He clamped his hand over my mouth, pulling the back of my head tight against his shoulder. I struggled, trying to fight him, but he carried me as if I weighed no more than a cloth doll stuffed with cotton. Oh God, why hadn't I ever done what I said I'd do? Why hadn't I taken karate or self-defense classes? Why did I have to be so little? Why couldn't I be stronger? Why couldn't I be...someone else?

His car was parked in the driveway, the trunk already open, waiting for me like the foul and dripping jaws of some fairy tale monster. He threw me inside onto my back, and when his hands left me I opened my mouth again.

"Somebody help me! Help! Someone--!"

"I said shutup, you little bitch!" He grabbed me by the upper arms and shook me so hard that my teeth rattled. "What did I tell you about fighting me?"

A surge of reckless burst through me and I filled my lungs with air, prepared to shriek loud enough to wake the entire neighborhood.

"Don't even think about it."

For a split second I saw the handle of the knife sailing towards my head, and then it slammed against my right temple with a solid, crunching thud. Dazed and sick, I could no longer control my body or my thoughts. My bones seemed suddenly made of water, and all of the will drained away from me as he leaned his face closed to mine.

"Not a word," he whispered. "How many times do I have to tell you that? My God you're a stubborn little girl, Lizzie. But you always have been, haven't you?" He pulled a piece of my clothing from inside his shirt and dabbed at my head, but I had no energy to react to the blood I saw there when he lifted it away. I saw him smile, and then I succumbed to the darkness lapping like waves at the edges of my soul.

I woke up trying to scream, trying to flail against the black terror consuming me, but something had me locked into a fetal position, unable to move, and something was shoved into my throat, nearly choking me. No dream. Real. It was still real. For a panicked moment I disregarded the throbbing of my skull and thrashed blindly, my breath wheezing through my nose, unable to get enough air into my constricted lungs. Lucky Lucky save me save me Lucky where are you Lucky!!!!!! A lightning bolt of agony shot through my head and I subsided, fighting the nausea washing over me.

Stop, Liz, stop stop stop. I fell still and weak against the carpet of the trunk. I needed to stop shaking, I needed to breathe, I needed to gather my scattered thoughts. He has me in the trunk. There are ropes tying my wrists to my ankles. He's gagged me. He's driving. He's taking me somewhere. My head...oh God, my head hurts so bad. I want to be sick....I need to be sick but I can't, I can't because even if this thing wasn't in my mouth, if I throw up in here I'll be even more miserable. More miserable? I'm afraid to think of that. I'm afraid. Lucky, I'm afraid. What is he going to do to me? He's going to hurt me Lucky, he's really going to hurt me. Why aren't you here? Why can't you be here to save me? Whatever he's going to do will be a thousand times worse than what he's already done. I'm not going to make it this time, Lucky. I can feel it. I'll never see you again. I'll never touch you again. I'll never kiss you again. We'll never get married and we'll never make love and we'll never have beautiful babies. Our babies would have been so beautiful, wouldn't they Lucky? I'm sorry Lucky, I'm so sorry. I tried to fight him this time but I'm still not strong enough. I don't know why I thought things would have changed. I tried, I really tried, but it still wasn't good enough. But whatever he does to me...whatever he does...I'll never stop loving you. Never. I love you more than anything, anything in the world, Lucky. I love you.

Chapter 5

The call from Detective Taggert came at 1:00 a.m. Luke and Lucky had decided to stay together in Luke's small apartment above Luke's Club. Luke was pretending to sleep and Lucky was sitting in the dark on the couch when the phone rang. He answered on the first ring. "Detective Taggert?"

"Yea, it's me. Lucky we need you to get over to the police station right away."

Lucky's heart stopped, afraid to ask the question for which he needed to know the answer. "Did you find her?"

"No, something else."

"I'll be right there." He hung up the phone and turned to Luke, who had appeared in the doorway. He started to speak, but Luke waved him toward the door and said, "I'm right behind you, son."

Lucky didn't like the look on Taggert's face when he greeted them at the police station. He looked grim, and more tired than Lucky had ever seen him look. He was putting his all into this case and he could see it was taking its toll. "Luke, Lucky, why don't you come in the other room with me."

He led them to one of the interrogation rooms and motioned for them to sit down. They both declined. Lucky said, "Just tell me."

"First; all of the blood in the room was Elizabeth's. We were able to get a match from hospital records. And the only fingerprints we found were hers, Mrs. Hardy's, yours and Emily Quartermaine's. No unusual prints."

Luke spoke, disheartened that no other prints were found. "Shit, so we don't know for sure that it's this Baker creep."

"Dad, it is him. I know it. I can feel it."

Taggert spoke. "We're pretty certain it's him, Lucky. His whereabouts are unknown."

"What else?"

"We found this." He held up a plastic bag with a piece of clothing inside. "Do you recognize it?"

Lucky recognized it immediately. It was one of Elizabeth's sweaters, and he could see that it was covered with a great deal of blood.

He nodded and felt his own blood run cold at the sight of it. When he spoke he could only manage a weak whisper as Luke placed his hand on his shoulder. "It's Elizabeth's."

Luke spoke then. "Where did you find it, Taggert?"

"Along the interstate leading out of town. We don't have the lab results back yet on the blood."

Lucky looked at Luke, searching again for answers he knew he didn't have, the answers he knew no one had except the sick bastard who had taken Elizabeth from the safety of her room. "I can't bear the thought of her with him, Dad. I have to do something. I can't just sit back and do nothing."

"I know, Lucky. I feel the same way." Lucky turned away from them then and walked toward the window, looking out..

Luke looked at Taggert. "You know, you and I haven't always been on the best of terms, but I want you to know I appreciate everything you're doing to try and find Elizabeth. And we need to know what we can do to help."

Taggert gave him a faint, sad smile. "Let's just say I've got a soft spot for Miss Webber." He placed a hand on Luke's shoulder briefly. "I don't intend to rest until we find her."

Lucky had been deep in thought, his eyes unfocused and glazed. Finally he spoke again. "Where could he have been taking her, if he was heading out of town?"

"Someplace out of state probably, maybe even out of the country. We searched the entire area where this was found."

"Were you looking for her there?"

Taggert nodded.

Lucky ran his hand through his hair, feeling the tears stinging his eyes. "She's not dead, Detective Taggert. I know she isn't. I would be able to feel it if she were."

"Let's hope you're right, Lucky. Why don't you two go home and try to get some sleep and I'll let you know tomorrow what you can do to help." Lucky shook his head. "I can't sleep and I know my Dad can't either. Please just tell me what we can do."

Taggert sighed. "Okay. Stay here for a few minutes and I'll be right back." They nodded as he left the room.

Luke turned to Lucky. "You doing okay, son?"

Lucky nodded, but his eyes betrayed him. Forty-eight had passed since Elizabeth had been taken, and with each passing hour, Lucky grew more frightened for her and less hopeful that she would be found any time soon. He still blamed himself for letting so much time go by between the time she was taken and the time he discovered she was missing. How he wished he could relive the night before it happened. If he had stayed with Elizabeth while her grandmother was out of town, he would have been able to protect her. He would never forgive himself for leaving her alone.

Taggert returned a few minutes later. "I have an idea, if you think you're up for it."

"Anything, man. Anything at all. Nothing I do can compare to what Elizabeth is going through right now."

"Okay. Why don't you and Luke come over to Elizabeth's house with me? I want to search her room again, see if there's anything we might have missed. Lucky, you might be able to tell if anything else is missing. It would be a big help to us." Lucky looked to Luke and they both nodded in agreement.

"I understand Mrs. Hardy is staying with your sister?"

Luke nodded and spoke. "Let's get going, then. We'll meet you over there."

A few moments later, Lucky was entering Elizabeth's bedroom, and all the emotions he felt that first night came rushing back to him and he felt as if he had been kicked in the gut. He had to put his hand on the door frame to steady himself.

Taggert noticed him falter. "Lucky, if you'd rather not do this, its okay.

He shook his head, "No, I'm okay. It's just that being here brings it all back. I'll be okay. She needs me to help her.I can feel her willing me to find her and save her.Don't you understand Detective Taggert? I love her more than my life. I have to do whatever it takes to find her."

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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