Dark Star

8. Hope

Josef ran the knife back and forth across her neck, not cutting her, but coming extremely close to it. It was scaring her so badly, and it was so hard to focus on anything else, but she knew she needed to focus on this conversation. One wrong move, one wrong word, and she knew he would kill her.

“Why not? Give me one reason, just one. Why shouldn't I kill you?”

“Because you still need me.” Vesper replied, trying to sound brave, but failing miserably.

Josef looked at her in surprise, and took the knife away from her throat. She breathed a sigh of relief. She watched him as he looked down at the knife in his hand, looking conflicted about something, but she didn't know what and she didn't dare ask. Remembering that she had been cut, she pressed her hand against the wound to stop the bleeding.

All of a sudden, the door to the room opened. Vesper looked past Josef to see who had entered, and Josef turned to see for himself. It was Varick. Vesper noticed for the first time how young he looked. He was tall, and obviously worked out a lot, so when you first glanced at him he looked much older. But now that she took a good look at him, she could tell he was only a little older than herself.

“The body is taken care of.” Varick stated, obviously taking in the scene before him. Josef was still holding the knife, and it was easy to see that Vesper was bleeding.

Josef nodded at him, acknowledging his words. Suddenly he looked a million years old, and tired, very tired.

“We need to get ready to move, Josef,” Varick continued. “We can't risk any more distractions.”

Josef nodded again, and made his way out of her prison. Varick looked as though he was going to follow him, but once Josef was gone he turned back, walking over to where Vesper stood. He looked her up and down, as if he were assessing her. He kept walking until he was only a few inches from her face.

“Carsten was my friend,” Varick said in a low voice, his eyes held hers with a bittersweet expression. “I don't know why he helped you, but I know he must have had his reasons. I hope you were worth it.”

Then, without another word, he turned and left the room. He shut the door, and Vesper heard the now familiar sound of the lock clicking. She stood alone in the room, frozen where she was, standing against the wall. She didn't know what to think anymore. So much had happened in such a small amount of time. The only thing she felt right now was numb.

She sunk to the floor, sitting on the hard floor, with her back against the wall. She stared up at the ceiling for awhile, trying to pretend she was somewhere else, for at least a few minutes. But she couldn't force her mind to let her be delusional, even for that long. She sighed and looked around the room.

Not that there was much to look at. There was the window, and the bed. Other than the four walls and the door, there wasn't much to try to occupy her mind with. She was about to stand up and go lay down on the bed when she say something from the corner of her eye that caught her attention.

There was something small, and dark in color underneath the bed. It wasn't until she got closer, though, that she realized what it was. She reached under the bed and got a hold of it, and for the first time since everything had happened, she felt hope. In her hand, she was holding a cell phone.

But how had a cell phone gotten underneath the bed? It wasn't likely that her captors would have left it for her. She flipped it open, hoping for some sort of clue. She gasped almost instantly. The background on the cell phone was a photo of Carsten with a girl she didn't recognize. It must be his cell phone! Somehow, when he fell down after Josef shot him, it must have somehow fallen underneath the bed.

Vesper stifled a sob. Her savior boy had unknowingly helped her, yet again. She would never forget what he'd done for her. If she ever found a way to repay him, she knew she would. If only she'd been able to stop Josef from pulling the trigger.

She wiped away a tear. She needed to focus, who knew how long she had before someone entered the room. She looked at the phone again, and for a moment she considered calling her home. But if she only had time for one call, she knew she needed to call 9-1-1. So, her head won over her heart, and she dialed the number and listened as the phone rang.

“9-1-1, what's your emergency?” Said the operator who answered.

“H-hello, my name is Vesper Hale,” She replied, trying to stay calm and speak as quietly as she could. “I've, um, I'm being held hostage.”

She tried to listen to hear if anyone was coming, but the world behind the door seemed rather quiet.

“What did you say your name was?” The operator seemed very intent now, she'd obviously caught her attention.

“Vesper Hale,” She answered. “I was in the Bank of New York City last night, and it was robbed. The men who robbed it, they took me with them in case they needed a hostage.”

“Yes, I saw it on the news,” The woman answered. “I recognized your name. Are you in danger right now?”

“No, they're holding me in a room, but I don't think they are going to hurt me yet.”

“Do you know where you are?”

“No, they brought me here in a van, and I was blindfolded.”

“How are you able to make this call then?”

“I found a cell phone,” Vesper answered, then paused. “I think one of the thieves dropped it.”

“Listen, Vesper, I'm going to transfer you to the police in charge of your case. They'll be able to help you.”

“Thank you.”

She heard the phone ringing, as her call was transferred. She didn't know what to expect, but she felt good that she was finally able to do something. To fight back, and not just surrender to her fate.

“Hello, this is Detective Smith. Can I help you?”

“Hi, my name is Vesper Hale,” She said. “I was-”

“Wait, did you say Vesper Hale?”

“Yes, I-”

“Oh my, uh, hold on just a second. Let me grab the detective in charge. He's going to want to speak to you.”

Vesper waited, again. She kept listening for the sound of someone coming, but it seemed luck was finally going to be on her side. She heard someone pick up the phone, and she waited for them to speak.

“Hello, this is Detective Carter. Is this Vesper Hale?”

“Yes, it is.”

“I'm going to have to ask you a few questions, Vesper, okay? Just to make sure it's really you, and not someone pretending to be you. These are questions only you would know the answer to.”

“Okay.”

“Something happened to you, when you were fourteen years old. What was it?”

Vesper gasped, a sob catching in her throat. “You know about that?”

“I'm sorry if it's painful, Vesper, but I need you to answer the question.”

“I was kidnapped, and held captive for eighteen months,” She answered softly. “The man who did it, his name is Blake Griffin. Is that enough for you?”

“Yes, yes it is. I'm sorry for bringing it up, Vesper, but I needed to be certain.”

“It's okay, I understand.”

“You don't know how happy I am to hear you, Vesper. I've been looking for you all day. Now, let's figure out how to get you home.”