Maddie wakes up with my cries, just in time to try to fight him off. She screams as she kicks and punches at him. She must have nailed him as I see him recoil back towards the ground on his hands and knees. But she’s too small as he rebounds and overtakes her. The burly man picks her up and tosses her over her shoulder. I try to stand, but I hit my head against the ceiling again and fall back down next to the pipe. It collapses under my weight with a loud crash.
The man turns back around to face me as I lay on my stomach in a heap, not daring to move or even breathe. As much as I want to help Maddie, playing dead in a situation like this is probably the best thing I can do. He looks at me for a long while before he mutters under his breath, “That’s right, bitch. You stay down.”
I watch as he turns and runs up the stairs, Maddie calling out for me under his strong hold. Her voice fades, but I chase after it, standing low and running through the dark towards the stairwell. I climb on my hands and knees towards the door, still being able to hear her voice. It’s faint through the metal, but I can still make it out as she sobs and wails my name.
The cold stings my ears as I press it to the doorframe, struggling to hear what is coming next. But instead of shouts and yells, Maddie has suddenly calmed down. Whatever they are saying or doing to her is actually making her happy. I hear her let out a squeal as someone shouts commanded her, “Take this, kid. And be quick. It’s on speakerphone, so don’t try anything funny.”
“Yes,” she says nervously, but I can hear the excitement. Her voice shakes as she talks into the phone loudly enough for everyone, including me, to hear, “Hello? Dad?”
“Maddie!” His voice is as gruff as ever, but there’s something else there. Something like urgency, happiness, and excitement all wrapped into one. “Maddie, where are you at? What are you doing?”
There’s a long pause as I can sense Maddie is getting prompted not to say where she is or details on any information that can give our location away. “I’m, um, I’m okay, Dad. I’m just in a room. I was in a car, but I couldn’t see anything. I don’t know where I am. There’s only a window and everything’s really smoky.”
“What about Michelle and her roommate? Are they with you? Are they safe?” I’m stunned as I listen to his voice shake as he asks about me. I would think with this situation and me getting Maddie taken from him that I would be the last person he would want to talk to. But here he is, making a point to check in on me as if I still matter to him. Maybe I do. Maybe hope isn’t lost for the two of us to find some peace.
“Michelle’s okay. She’s watching over me and making sure I’m okay. I think I hurt my leg and she tied it up for me with part of her clothes.” Her voice drops lower as she slowly whispers solemnly, “But Erin, Michelle’s roommate, isn’t so good. She’s breathing, but I don’t know how long she has, Dad. I’m scared. I don’t want her to die.” She quickly breaks down into tears, muffled sobs bursting out from her throat. That big, bad girl veneer is breaking down bit by bit at the thought of losing her friend.
“Maddie, listen to me.” She coughs a few times before composing herself to listen to what Cal has to say, “Erin is going to be okay. Michelle is going to be fine. And you are going to make it out of there. I just need you to remain calm, stay strong, and do what the people who are watching tells you to do.”
“But – but – I’m scared. Like, I’m really, really scared.”
My heart breaks as I listen to her. I want to kick down this door and run to her. I can’t imagine how Cal feels as he listens to his own daughter fall apart. And, unlike me, he isn’t here to hold her, to bring her close, to give her the feeling that someone is watching over her.
And it’s my fault. It’s all my fault. Listening to him talk to her, I realize just how wrong I was. No, Maddie shouldn’t have been made to live in such a dangerous, horrible place, but she had Cal and Cal had her. And I should have trusted that Cal was making the best decisions he could have for his daughter. He was protecting her and me this entire time until I cut him off. Now, we’re paying for it.
I wipe the tears from my eyes as I listen to him continue to soothe her, “You can be scared. I’m scared, too.” He takes a deep, audible breath as he starts, “When your mom died all those years ago, I came home that night and your grandmother handed you to me. And I looked down at you in my arms, sleeping. And I had never been so scared in my life. I couldn’t believe I would have to take care of you, let alone keep you safe, for the rest of your life. But even though I was scared out of my damn mind, I still made a promise that I was going to be brave and strong for you every single day. Do you think you could make that promise? Do you think you can be brave and strong for me? Just this once?”
“Yeah, Dad. I can.” Her voice just squeaks it out. It’s so low I can barely hear it.
“Say it louder. Say it like you mean it. Like a Mustang would!”
She is resolute as she shouts back, “I can! I’m going to be brave! I’m a Mus—”