"A few minutes eh?" I hid my face from Bacons view as I climbed back onto the bus. "I hope you got what you came for, because your dad won't stop asking me where you were"
I rolled my eyes in annoyance. "Oh my god he is such a worry-wart" Bacon chuckled.
"He's a father, you can't be mad at him for that" He was right, but I wasn't going to admit it.
I slumped myself on the couch as Bacon pulled away from the cemetery. I stuck my hand into my front pocket and pulled out the bracelet. I played with it and tried to scratch off the rust, but it didn't help.
"Whatcha got there?" I looked up to see Bacon looking at me through his rear-view mirror. I clasped the bracelet in my palm and stuck it back in my pocket.
"Nothing important" I looked out the window, avoiding his gaze. He shrugged his shoulders and went back to driving.
We said nothing for the entire drive back. I was too busy thinking about the warnings I received from both a living person and a dead one.
"Something very bad will happen at the prison" Danny's voice kept replaying in my head.
I reached down and touched the outside of my jeans. I traced my finger over the grooves of the bracelet sticking out through the jean pocket. Memories of Danny and me as children flooded my mind, making me unconsciously smile. Although I may be able to see her now, I badly wished she was still alive. The sudden halt of the bus pulled me from my thoughts. I looked out the window to see the library just across the street.
Before I could stand up, Bacon hopped out of his seat and sat next to me. "Is something wrong darling?"
I looked into his grey eyes; they were filled with concern. I reached over and squeezed his big hand.
"I'm fine, really. This whole thing is just very stressful. I'm sure you understand" He nodded and I pulled my hand away.
"I totally understand. You know I'm here if you need anything" He smiled. I patted his knee and stood up.
"Of course"
The sound of a chime from a text message caught both of our attention, causing us to pull out our phones. To my dismay, it wasn't my phone that received the text.
Bacon smiled and started typing away at his phone. "Looks like your dad and the guys found everything they needed. They just wanted to let me know they're coming out and we can eat back at the hotel"
I smiled as I saw my dad step out of the library followed by Aaron then Billy and Jay. "I see them"
Bacon looked up out the window, and then opened the bus doors.
"Bacon?" I asked. He shot around. "Please don't tell my dad where I went, he has too much to worry about"
"Of course sweetheart" He opened the doors to the bus and Zak stepped on. He immediately smiled when he saw me.
"Did you find anything?" Zak looked at Jay, who pulled out a file from his bag and handed it to me.
"Just this" I took the file from Jay and flipped it open. Inside, I found another prisoner file. I scanned the file as fast as I could while the guys waited for my reaction.
Damien Foster: Inmate #3920
Sentence: 35 years (1967-2002)
1943-1972
Damien Foster (also known as the Phoenix Butcher) was found guilty of murder in May of 1967. Foster was 24 years of age when he murdered his entire family with an axe, all bodies but one have been found. One survivor of the murders claimed Foster arrived home intoxicated and became angry. From there, he went into his fathers shed and took an axe; this axe was used to horrifically butcher his family of five, leaving his youngest brother alive as he hid in the attic. Foster moved the bodies of his family and buried them in the woods behind his house; all bodies except the one of his eldest sister have been found. After being found guilty, Foster was moved to Blackwater Prison to spend his 35 year sentence. In 1972, a riot broke out in Blackwater Prison leading to the complete disappearance of Damien Foster, who's dismembered had was found on the prison roof. No other information regarding Damien Foster's disappearance has been found.
I looked up from the file to see all the guys looking at me with smirks. They were so proud to have found some valuable information about the prison.
"What the fuck happened at this prison?" I was shocked. So many bad things happened at Blackwater, and we only found the documented horror stories.
Jay laughed and took the file from me. "They buried his hand in the prison cemetery. I think we should find it during the lockdown and see if we can get any information if his spirit is still attached to it"
We all nodded to Jay's suggestion.
Zak walked up to me and reached for me neck. At first, I had no idea what he was doing, but then he grabbed the necklace Maria had given me an hour earlier.
"Where'd you get this?" He held it between his thumb and index finger, slowly turning it between his fingers.
"Uh- I-uh" I didn't know what to tell him.
"I gave it to her" Bacon interrupted. Zak turned and faced him, giving him a strange look.
"Why?"
"Uh" Bacon stammered, but regained his posture within seconds. "I thought she needed some color on her. You know, she's only wearing black so I thought she needed something else" It definitely wasn't the best lie I had ever heard, but it worked. Zak let go of the necklace and shrugged.
"Okay, whatever, let's get back to the hotel"
*************************
A couple hours later and everyone had gone to their rooms to sleep, but I couldn't. My mind wouldn't stop thinking about the prison.
I sat up straight in my bed and walked over to the desk in the corner of the room. I sat down in the office chair opened up my laptop screen. I winced at the brightness of the screen, but quickly adjusted and began to google every question I had about Blackwater Prison.
I probably sat there for about ten minutes, but I didn't get any new information about the prison. I slumped back in my chair and groaned. I felt like I we were about to walk into a black hole, we had no idea what to expect. I closed the laptop and stood up. I needed some air.
I walked over to my suitcase and pulled out a red hoodie, it looked good with the black jeans I was still wearing from earlier. I threw my hair into a simple bun and checked my phone.
9:27 p.m.
If Zak knew I was about to leave the hotel without his permission, he would probably kill me. But he won't find out, I'd make sure of it.
I stuffed a few of the many pillows on my bed underneath the thick duvet. I smiled proudly. It looked like someone was sleeping there. I sighed and clasped my hands together, then I checked and made sure my phone and room card were in my back pocket.
I entered the hallway of the hotel. I looked up and down both sides of the hallway before fully stepping out and closing the door behind me. I could not afford to get caught.
I tiptoed past Zak's door, then Aarons, Billy's, and finally Jay's. I wiped my face of any possible sweat that had built up while being as quiet as I could. I reached the elevators and hit the down button, but as soon as I did, Aarons door began to open, and a tall bald man with plaid pajamas walked out into the hallway. I instinctively covered my mouth and pushed my back up against the wall.
The second my body hit the wall, it created a loud thud sound. I wanted to peek my head out and see if Aaron was walking toward me, but I couldn't risk him seeing me. The ding of the elevator almost made me jump. As soon as the doors opened, I rushed into the elevator and hit the close door button as many times as possible. When the doors finally shut, I let out a breath of relief.
"Running from something?" A frail voice came from beside me. I nearly jumped again. I looked to my side to see an elderly woman with a fur scarf dangling of her slender shoulders. Her bug eyes were staring at me through her thick-large framed glasses.
"Uh-" I started, but she waved her gloved hand in dismissal. A large ring on her index finger caught the light and glimmered.
"Never mind, I don't really care" she adjusted the scarf over her shoulders and sighed. She pursed her red lips and smacked them.
It was silent for a few seconds before she spoke again. "Do I look alright?" she turned to me. "It's my husband's birthday dinner, I wanted to surprise him" she smiled, the harsh wrinkles on her face softened.
"You look lovely" I gave a quick smile. This elevator ride couldn't be any longer.
The elevator dinged right after that. Before I could step out, the woman put her hand onto my shoulder; a powerful rush of energy jolted through my veins.
"Be careful at that prison darling"
When she let go, she drained everything I had out of me and walked out into the hallway. I ran to follow her out, but as soon as I stepped out she was gone. I walked further down the hallway and past the front desk. A man with gelled black hair was mindlessly staring at the hotel pen he was holding.
"Excuse me?" he looked up. "Have you seen an old woman with a fur scarf, large glasses, and white gloves?" his face scrunched up in confusion.
"You mean her?" he pointed to a small portrait on the wall across from us. To my shock, it was a picture of the same woman I was just talking to.
"Holy shit. Yea that's her. Where did she go?" I turned around to face him. His face still had a confused look.
"She died, like thirty years ago; it was a car accident after her husband's birthday or something. But she was the owner of this place" my eyes widened.
"She's dead?" he nodded.
Well that explains it.