Forlot: Welcome to the Dummy House - Book Forty-One

Chapter Thirty-One

I blinked rapidly and tried processing what Jack said. I was not surprised. Just confused. I could not believe it. I must have misheard him. I must have. So I asked. He repeated his statement and added that it was true. The color drained from his face as he stroked my cheek. My confusion changed to concern.

"Oh, Janice. I love you. I love you with all my heart. I-I do not know what I would do if I never saw you again."

I looked into his eyes. "Why do you believe that I never will see you again? It will be hard to not see each other because we are neighbors. Our houses are right next to each other."

He held my face and loomed over me like a monster. "I need you to listen to me. Listen to the words that I say. It will all make sense. I promise."

Now I was scared. "W-what will make sense? What are you talking about?"

"Take deeps breaths, Janice. I will not harm you. I will not let anyone hurt you."

I pulled away and almost lost my balance. "Just tell me already!" I was sooo close to ripping all my hair out. "It has been long enough, Jack. No more mind games. I...I will call the police and tell them that you have Alexis."

"You cannot."

I yanked off his jacket and tossed it to him. "You are so right, Jack. I do not need to call the police." I wiped my nose. "Two cops are already waiting outside to search."

His eyes bulged from their sockets. "You are willing for them to search my house? You actually want to put me and my family through heck? My mom will surely have a heart attack."

I tugged on my hair and pondered what he stated. I bit my lip as I looked at the wooden floor. Maybe Jack was right. Maybe I should not let those officers in. Maybe I was overreacting. I had no proof that he kidnapped my sister other than his confession. But...if somebody says that he or she kidnapped a person...you need to treat it as a crime. It could be a sick joke - or something dark.

I clenched my fists and looked back up at Jack. "I have made up my mind. I do not want your mom to suffer a heart attack, so I will escort her out of here and tell her that...this house is in a contest. Yeah. It was selected to be in a house contest. The best-looking house wins."

A grin spread across Jack's face as he crossed his arms. "Mom sure loves winning. What will be her prize if she wins?"

I looked at him as if he were a weirdo. "There is none." I tugged on my fingers. "It is a fake contest, so there is no prize."

He looked at the dummy before looking back at me. "It is not a brilliant idea to lie to my mother. She will have a heart attack for sure."

"She will have a heart attack if I lie to her?"

"She will suffer a heart attack if she never gets a prize."

I was so frustrated that I thought that I would explode. "Then...then what do you want me to do?! I will not let this go. If I keep a crime secret, I will be a crook. Those officers must search your house."

He grabbed my arm. His nails dug in my skin. "You are not a crook. A beauty such as you can never be."

It was the first time that Jack - the guy whom I figured that loved me - was physically hurting me. "Let me go." His grip was too strong for me to break free. "Jack. Let go. I need to go home. My parents miss me. They lost a daughter. They will not lose another."

"I am afraid that I cannot let you do that."

"Does this mean that she will be transformed? She will stay with us forever?" the dummy said. "I mean...we do not need her to tell the world our little secret."

"What secret? That you kidnapped my sister?!"

He pointed his wooden finger at me. "Your sister is not the first - and will not be the last."

"You kidnap innocent people?!"

"They would not be here if they were innocent. And we - Jack - would have spared you if you did not snoop."

"How do you know if I snooped? You were in the other room when I walked in. You should have stayed out of sight when I walked through that door."

Jack finally released my arm and strolled to this round window. Or should I say, what was in front of it. It was so dark outside that I could not see any houses. I could feel the waterworks. This was a mistake. I wanted to go home. I wanted to hug my parents and baby sister. My gosh. Olive. I...I am not by her. Not playing with her. I am not reading to her or rocking her to sleep. If I never found a way out of here...Olive would be alone. And no one would know who Jack really was.

I glanced at the attic door. Too slow. I could not scurry down those steps. And I did not know my way around. I had only one option. I could die...but I had to try.

"Janice," Jack said. "You ready to see your sister?"

I managed to hold back tears. "Yes."

The dummy snapped his fingers, and yellow light lit up the objects. I could not contain my surprise. It felt as if I were in a dream. A nightmare. I covered my mouth. I was looking at a wooden shelf. A shelf filled with dolls. The dolls were so lifelike.

And one looked exactly like Alexis.

I grabbed Alexis - and jumped out the window.