Chapter 186: Mousetrap
Moana
“Don’t worry, you two,” Kelly said as she turned around in her seat to look at us. There was a sick, twisted grin on her gaunt face. She looked even more skeletal than before, as though she hadn’t eaten or slept in days, maybe even weeks. “I’m going to take you far, far away. And I’ll make sure that Edrick never finds you.”
“K-Kelly?” I whimpered. I tried the car door again, but it was still locked. And it was too late now; the light turned green and Kelly hit the gas, speeding down the mostly empty street.
“Didn’t expect to see me, huh?” she said, laughing almost maniacally as she gripped the steering wheel tightly. Even in the dim light of the car, I could see that her knuckles were as white as a sheet.
Ella, who had caught onto the danger by now, was beginning to panic. I felt her little arms slip around my waist, and when I looked down, she was looking up at me with terror in her eyes. I pulled her close, holding her tightly, and took her head and buried it in my side so she wouldn’t have to see in case Kelly did anything insane.
“Kelly, what is all of this?” I asked, my heart practically pounding out of my chest. “Do you know Olivia? Why are you here?”
Kelly giggled, sounding almost like a child. “Oh, her?” she asked. She took a sharp turn, causing Ella and I to slide across the seat. I quickly buckled Ella into a seatbelt as I mentally prepared for Kelly to do something rash like intentionally crash the car. “Yeah, of course I know my good friend Olivia,” she continued. “If it wasn’t thanks to her, I wouldn’t be here right now. She’s been really helpful.”
“Helpful with what?” I asked.
“Well, you see,” Kelly said, speeding through a yellow light, “you’ve done nothing except get in the way of my relationship with Edrick. Both of you, really. First that little snot-nosed brat,” she gestured over her shoulder at Ella with her thumb, “and then you, with your stupid pregnancy.” Her eyes met mine in the rear view mirror then. They looked hollow and pale, like ghosts of what they once were. Kelly was always a bit unhinged, but now she seemed far worse. It had only been a few weeks since the incident in the Rogue district, and already she seemed like an almost entirely different person.
“You never had a relationship with Edrick,” I growled. “He can’t stand you.”
Suddenly, Kelly came to a screeching halt at another red light. She whipped around in her seat, her eyes shooting daggers. Her face was twisted into such an evil expression that she looked like a demon, and I covered Ella’s face with my hand.
“Shut the f**k up,” she snarled, “before I come back there and shut you up myself.”
My eyes widened. I decided that it was best for me to stay quiet, as she seemed so unhinged that I wouldn’t have put it past her to intentionally run the car into a building over my next comment.
The light turned green again, and Kelly hit the gas once more, causing us to lurch in our seats. I heard Ella sob quietly beside me, and I pulled her closer.
“Don’t worry, sweetheart,” I whispered into her ear. “I’m gonna protect you. Momma’s gonna protect you.” In the moment, I didn’t even think twice about referring to myself as Ella’s mother. In fact, now that I knew that Olivia was indeed either an actress or simply a horrible person who led us right into a trap, I felt more maternal over Ella than ever. But at the same time, I felt like a horrible mother for letting her get into this situation with me, all because of things that a stranger told me…
“Anyway,” Kelly said, gesturing wildly with one hand while she drove with the other, “I’ve figured out the perfect way to finally make Edrick understand that I’m the only one for him. I know that we’re meant for each other, but it’s just gonna take a little extra push to get him there.”
“If you let us go right now, you can have him,” I begged. “Please, just let us go and don’t hurt El—”
“So,” Kelly interrupted, “here’s my plan: while Edrick is dealing with his grief, that’s when I’ll swoop in. I actually learned a little lesson from you, believe it or not, and that’s that I can lock him down by getting pregnant. I don’t even care if it’s his baby, honestly. If I need to get pregnant before I ever even sleep with him, then so be it. It doesn’t matter whose baby it is, so long as he thinks that it’s his. Then, he’ll never leave me, and he’ll finally realize his true feelings for me.”
She’s sick, I thought to myself. We took another sharp turn, and by now we were headed into the Rogue district. I felt my stomach twist inside of me as we picked up speed, and all I could do at this point was hold Ella as tightly as possible, as though that would keep her safe from this maniac.
“And, you know,” Kelly said as she drove, her voice raising in pitch, “it’s been really hard lately. Ever since you survived the Rogue district — which you weren’t supposed to, by the way, in case you already didn’t know — my parents have been punishing me. I’m sure you remember how hard it is to be a peasant. I’ve been miserable. Edrick had them cut me off from the money; but once I marry him, it won’t matter anymore. I’ll never need to worry about money again.”
While Kelly spoke, I began to subtly look around for anything that I could use to defend Ella and myself or escape with: a heavy flashlight, an ice scraper, anything that could have been in the back of the car. But there was nothing. Outside the car, the streets of the entry of the Rogue district were lined with hungry Rogues who looked at the car as if it were their next meal.
Kelly ranted for a long time about her parents’ money and how she had been cut off. All the while, I desperately searched for ways to escape. I even pleaded with my wolf to see if I could shift once the car stopped, but I couldn’t. It was too early, and she was too weak. I was certain that Kelly somehow knew that, and that was why all of this came together on that night.
Eventually, the roads darkened and turned from brightly straight city streets to dark and ominously twisting alleyways, and soon the city lights were nothing but dots in the distance. Even in the car, I could feel the weight of the darkness and the silence all around us as we went further and further into the Rogue district.
At least, I told myself, Ella could shift when we got out of the car and make a run for it. At least she could stand a chance.
Finally, we pulled down a long, narrow road. Eventually, a large brick building came into view; I could tell from its square shape and large paned windows with broken glass that it was an abandoned warehouse.
And it was likely to be the place that I would die that night.
“When the car door opens, I want you to shift and run away,” I whispered into Ella’s ear as quietly as I could. She looked up at me with wide eyes and shook her head, but I squeezed her shoulders and looked at her intensely, mouthing only three words: I love you.
Kelly came to a stop and got out of the car.
The car door opened on my side first. I gave Ella one last look, wishing that I could tell her that I was sorry, before I got out.
“Give me your hands,” Kelly said. I complied, only because I wanted her to be distracted with tying me up while Ella ran.
Behind me, I heard a scuffle as Ella leaped out of the car and made a run for it.
“s**t,” Kelly said.
And then, something hit the side of my head, and everything went black
