Finding Maisie
Chapter 10
I had always thought that I hadn't been kidnapped by the abductor for a reason. I thought that, by being free, I would save Maisie and bring the abductor to justice. I thought that it was my duty to. It was like my life was a treasure map. The line showing the way to the treasure was my life now, the present, and the "x" which marked the spot was when I would find Maisie. Maisie was kidnapped and I was free so there had to be a reason behind it. And it had to be Maisie that was abducted. If it had been me then Callum wouldn't have been eager to follow the abductors commands and may have even dissuaded Maisie from trying to find me. It was too dangerous for her and Callum and I hadn't been friends. And ultimately Maisie would've had Callum and Callum would've had Maisie and they would've been able to move as they still had one of their best friends. Maisie and Callum were always so close. But me... I had no one to call a friend, well not for the first couple of years. Of course, I became good friends with Callum but it wasn't the same. We weren't as inseparable as Maisie and I had always been. I couldn't talk to Callum about anything like I would've been able to with Maisie. I never had the best life after she disappeared and that's why I was so desperate to get Maisie back and was completely sure to go on the treasure hunt. I needed my best friend back and would do absolutely anything to get her back.
So that's why I felt like it had to be me who wasn't captured by the abductor. I would've made sure that I got Maisie back. But it all seemed worthless now. The rock and support that I needed to complete the treasure hunt and find Maisie was dying in my arms. Callums eyes were fluttering and his breathing was ragged and short. His life was leaving him. How would I finish this treasure hunt without him? How could I defeat the abductor? And how could I even live without him? It was impossible for Callum to leave me but yet. the impossible was happening right in front of my eyes.
'Maisie... Where's Maisie?' Callum said. His voice was weak, like his heartbeat. It broke me just to hear those words.
'Maisie's alive, Callum,' I said, tears streaming down my face. 'She's fine, Callum. Just waiting for me and you to find her so you have to hang on. You have to fight, Callum.'
I tried to make my voice sound strong to try and show Callum everything would be alright. I couldn't though. My voice kept breaking and, besides, the emotion on my face must've showed the whole story.
'Alive?' Callum whispered.
I placed a finger on his mouth, 'Shush, Callum. Don't waste your breath. Yes, alive. So you have to stay with me because I can't fight the abductor on my own, you'll have to help me with that. So, please, fight.'
Callums eyes stared at me. He knew exactly what I was saying but was too weak to answer. Of course he would be. My whole arm was soaking wet from his blood. He had lost too much of it. That really wasn't good.
'Where is the ambulance?' I whispered to myself mostly. It felt like ages ago she had called them, yet with every second that passed Callum was slipping further into darkness. So where were they?
I smiled weakly when the faint noise of sirens sounded in the distance. They gradually grew louder and closer. The ambulance was here. They could take Callum to hospital and make him better.
'The ambulance is here, Callum,' I said as I looked over the edge of the roof for the green and yellow vehicle. 'You'll be just-'
I looked at Callum. His eyes were closed.
'No...' I whispered. I placed my hand under his nose and waited. Relief shook through me when I felt the warm drift of his breath. Callum was unconscious but breathing... Just.
The ambulance had stopped at the bottom of the building and I heard the paramedics jumping out of the van and into the apartment building. I wondered how many sets of stairs there were and whether it would be easier to climb them than use the lift. All that went through my mind was why don't they hurry up? Or, shouldn't they be here by now?
The roof door swung open and in came the paramedics. They rushed over to Callum and placed him on the stretcher.
'What happened?' A woman with mid-length blonde hair in a ponytail asked.
'He was shot,' I said, 'In the hip. Please help him.'
'What's his name,' spoke a man with short brown hair whilst helping to carefully place Callum on the stretcher.
'Callum. Callum Miller.'
The paramedics pulled the stretcher along to the lift. They wouldn't be able to carry him down the stairs without causing much more damage. I waited to enter it with them but there was no room. I had to take the stairs.
I rushed down them, skipping many and jumping the rest when I reached near the bottom of the staircase. I was secretly glad that I couldn't take the lift. That way I didn't have to wait and look at Callum. This way I could keep myself distracted.
I reached the last staircase and heard the ding of the elevator. I saw the paramedics and the stretcher carrying Callum race towards the ambulance. I ran next to them and climbed in the back of the van. One paramedic got in the front and started the engine. The other two paramedics began working on trying to stabilise Callum the best they could without being at the hospital. I heard snippets of what they were saying: "Bullet entered pelvis,", "May be blood clot," and "Prepare for cardiac arrest."
All I could focus on was Callums face. It was paler than usual. It was cold. How could I have let that happen?
The ambulance stopped and the back doors opened. The paramedics rushed him into hospital and I quickly followed.
'This is Callum Miller,' the blonde-haired paramedic said, 'He has a gun-shot wound to his pelvis which means the risk of pulmonary embolism.'
They led him into a room and began working on him. I stayed outside, not wanting to get in their way and jeopardise something. It seemed to be going alright; they seemed to be making him better until a beeping from the heart monitor alarmed me. Something had happened. I looked at the paramedics and they looked worried. They immediately began CPR.
I couldn't watch it anymore. I slid down the wall and shut my eyes. I blocked out the sound of the heart monitor or the sounds of nurses telling me they had a family waiting room. I didn't know how long I sat there but finally a doctor came out with news.
'What happened?' I asked.
'Callum was shot in the deep veins of his pelvis, this created a blood clot. This blood clot broke away and moved to the lungs and blocked one of the arteries. Thus, Callum cardiac arrested,' the doctor explained.
'Will he be okay?'
'He's stable... At the moment. The next twenty-four hours will be very touch and go but only time can tell if Callum will make a full recovery. We've given him medication to make him sleep but you can sit in there for a little while. The police will be here soon and they'll want to talk to you. After that you can leave. Give your number to reception and we can call you if anything happens. Oh and we'll need his next of kin's as well.'
'Thank you,' I said.
I walked into Callum's room and stared at him. He had tubes sticking out of him and the heart monitor next to him beeping his steady heartbeat. It only made him look more vulnerable.
I couldn't sit next to him. If I had not angered the abductor then Callum wouldn't have been lying in that bed in this building. I sat in the corner of the room on a chair and placed my head in my hands.
My phone vibrated.
'How's Callum, Poppy? Ha! Do you think he will forgive you for this? You were the cause of his suffering, may I remind you. Forgiveness seems unlikely.
Oh, and by the way, have you checked up on your mother lately?
Love,
The Abductor.'
I couldn't contain my anger anymore. I threw my phone across the room and it hit the wall. How dare he say that? He was the one who shot Callum not me. Of course Callum would forgive me; he would know I didn't mean to get him shot and that that was the last thing I wanted to happen. Wouldn't he?
I looked at my phone on the ground and panicked. Hadn't the abductor said that if I broke my phone then I would never see Maisie again? I ran to it and pressed the on button. The screen lit up.
'Thank goodness,' I whispered.
I could have ruined this whole thing because I was angry. If that had happened, I would've never forgiven myself.
Hang on... the abductor said something about me checking on my mum. Had he hurt her? Would he stoop that low? I knew the answer to that question even before I asked it; of course he would.
'I'll be back later,' I said to Callum and ran out the room.
I quickly ran to the reception desk and wrote down my number.
I sprinted to the car park and realised Callum's car was still at the apartment building. I groaned in frustration and ran to the edge of the street. I flagged down a taxi and told the driver my home address. He nodded and began the drive.
Now I had time to think I got more and more nervous. I prayed that he was just leading me on a wild goose chase so that I would get distracted from the real clue, which I had not figured out yet. The abductor better not have hurt my mother or my hatred for him will only intensify dramatically.
The taxi stopped and I paid the driver the fare. I raced to my house and pulled out my bunch of keys, finding the one to my old house. I quickly unlocked the door and ran in.
'Mum?!' I yelled. There was no respond. 'Mum, where are you?'
I began searching the rooms, pulling open doors at random. She wasn't in any of them and I began to panic.
'Mum, please!' I shouted. Where was she?
The back door opened and my mum walked in, humming to herself. She looked up and I saw her eyes widen.
'Poppy, darling. What are you doing here?' She asked.
'Just seeing if you're alright,' I said, truthfully.
'Well, I'm fine honey,' my mum replied, 'Anyway, now you're here would you like a drink?'
'Sure,' I said. I was just so happy that my mother was okay. The abductor had lied to me. What I didn't understand though was why.
My mother handed me a glass of cloudy lemonade and ice, 'I would've asked you what you wanted but, in this heat, lemonades the only thing that is refreshing.'
I looked outside and it was extremely sunny. There wasn't a cloud in the sky and I could feel the heat inside as well as outside. It had been this drought like weather for a while now. I hadn't had time to enjoy the weather, though. Enjoying something as mundane as the weather seemed a pointless pleasure in the grand scheme of things.
'Oh, I can give you your mail now you're here,' mum said. She picked up some envelopes from the kitchen shelve and threw them at me. They fell on a pile on the ground.
'Cheers, mum,' I mumbled, sarcastically. I grabbed the envelopes and flicked through them. They looked like mostly junk mail from broadbands trying to advertise deals to me.
'Anything good?' Mum asked, nosily.
'Nop-,' I began to say but looked at the last letter. An eerily familiar handwriting stared up at me.
I tore the letter open and pulled out what was inside. It was a road map.
'Who's that from?'
'No one,' I lied. 'Just a friend. I wanted to go camping but you know me. No sense of direction. They probably sent this to help me.'
My mum looked at me and narrowed her eyes. She knew something didn't quite add up.
'Okay. There are three things wrong with your lie,' my mum said. I shifted uncomfortably on my chair. Why couldn't mum just believe the lie? It was for her own good.
'Number one, you and camping... Well, they just don't mix.'
'Yeah, but I just wanted to try it-'
'Number two,' mum interrupted. 'You hate map reading.'
'True, but-'
'Number three, you have no friends.'
'Mum!' I yelled. I threw one of the envelopes at her even though what she said was kind of true. But I did have some friends.
'Seriously though, love. Why did someone send you a map?'
I laughed nervously, 'Basically, I got lost when I went to my friend's house. She lives only five minutes away. I travelled half an hour further than that. She sent this to me as a joke.'
My mum burst out laughing, 'Oh, you really are clueless when it comes to navigation.'
'Ha, thanks mum. I have to go,' I said as I stood up, 'I need to get back to Callum at the hospital.'
My mums mouth dropped open, 'Callum?! Why's he at the hospital.'
'Oh, I forgot you didn't know. He was shot.'
'What?! Is he alright? Does his mother know?'
'He's stable but not out of the woods. No, I don't think so. I left without giving them her number. Or telling the police what happened.'
'Well I'll ring her now. I'll see you at the hospital later. Gosh, I hope he's okay,' my mum said, half in thought.
I nodded sadly and picked up the map. After leaving the house, I sat on a bench which was shadowed under a tree, not wanting to stay in this insane heat for much longer. I pulled open the map to its full size and scanned it. A circle drawn out in a black marker caught my attention. It had circled a large area of the map. I looked into the area within the black circle and searched for something of importance to me. A smile grew across my face when I saw the familiar service station that my family and Callum's family went to when we went down to Somerset together.
I quickly thought of the quickest way to get there and decided a train would be best. As I ran to get a taxi for the train station I couldn't help but think a thought that terrified me. Callum was in hospital. I would have to face the abductor alone.
***
The train journey was long and boring. All I could do was wish I wasn't going alone. I had the horrible feeling that I would be joining Callum in the hospital soon. But being alone wasn't the only thing I was worried about.
It had been a mistake to go to the flat. It had made the abductor... Change in a sense. I could feel something building, like a storm brewing. The abductor knew we were getting too much information on him and the abduction. We already knew that it had something to do with our dads and that they left, probably because of the abductor. Also this was all something to do with revenge. But most importantly Callum and I knew that Maisie was alive. And that made things worse for the abductor. As we knew she was well at the moment, Callum and I would want to fight for her harder, to make sure she was still alive when we got her. The abductor was feeling vulnerable, and that only made him more dangerous. Up until now I had always thought the abductor had more than enough power and that if he wanted to kill us now then he could, quite easily. But he always seemed to stop himself. Except, this morning, the abductor shot Callum and put his life in high risk. I had a feeling that the abductor was trying to put us back in our place, to remind us that he had the control in the situation.
As I looked up at the service station I realised I hadn't been here in a while. We went on holiday again, as two families, two years after Maisie's abduction. It wasn't the same. After that we never went to Somerset again. My family would occasionally go to visit other relatives or go on summer holiday abroad but we never went on a holiday with the Millers. It wasn't right without Maisie.
I looked at the car park and it was pretty crowded. Not many spaces were left bare. Surely the abductor wouldn't pick a place so crowded. However, the abductor had led Callum and I to an amusement park and found an empty place there. Maybe there was somewhere nearby of isolation. I thought hard about where that may be. The only less crowded places would be where they store their products but there would still be someone there like Bella was. The abductor wouldn't risk being seen again.
I turned around and saw a woods that was at the side of the motorway. It just screamed out to me as a place the abductor would lead me. Somewhere secluded, where no one would go... where no one would hear my screams.
I grunted and walked over to the edge of the woods. There wasn't a dirt path or anything that indicated people walk through here. No-one did walk in these woods. I was going to be alone.
I stepped in the woods, the twigs snapping underneath my feet. I could tell I was getting funny looks from the people near me. To them, I was a strange girl walking into a woods by a motorway on her own. They had no idea...
I walked quicker as I felt like the stares were penetrating my skin. Why couldn't they turn away? It was safer for them if they did. The sunlight seemed to be getting blocked out by the thick mass of the trees surrounding me. It felt like they were suffocating me, secluding me from the normal world. Now, I was in the world of the abductor.
Once I knew I was out of sight from any members of the public I sprinted into the forest. I wanted to get this over and done with. The quicker I faced the abductor, the quicker I could get out of here. Or at least, that's what I told myself.
I looked around me and all I could see were trees. How could I get lost? I panicked and completely forgot what general direction I had first travelled in. I was going to die was the only thought that ran through my mind.
A twig snapped from somewhere near me. My heart leaped and I turned hastily but nervously. I couldn't see anyone there. I didn't know what to do. Should I stay here? Should I go closer to try and see where he was? Or should I run? There were problems with all of those plans. If I stayed here the abductor would get me easily. If I went closer to him that would just make the abductors job of killing me easier. And there was no point in running. I had to move on in the treasure hunt.
My phone vibrated in my pocket. I knew who it was before I looked at the message. It said one word. A command that I followed with ease.
'Run!'
I didn't need to be asked twice. I ran in the opposite direction and continued to run. I heard twigs breaking behind me as the abductor chased after me. I couldn't trip, I couldn't look behind me. I just had to keep running without getting distracted. The twigs snipping and the leaves rustling grew closer as the abductors speed was greater than mine. It wouldn't be long before he caught up with me.
I continued running and realised that the noises behind me had stopped. Had the abductor stopped chasing me? I quickly dared myself a look behind and I swung my head around. The abductor wasn't running after me. There was no one behind my scared self.
I walked back a few steps and looked around. The fact that the abductor stopped meant something. Had he left me a clue? Or had he led me into a trap?
It was eerily quiet and I had the horrible feeling of being watched. The abductor hadn't left me. He was still here, waiting for me to figure out why he stopped running here.
I looked around. Something shiny caught my attention. It was hanging from a branch on a tree. It looked like a necklace from where I was standing. I walked over to it carefully, fully aware that the abductor was in here somewhere close and watching. When I reached the branch I could see that it was in fact a locket. Sliding it off the tree, I saw that it looked quite old. It wasn't shiny anymore but dull, and the once golden colour was fading to a bronze. As I was about to open it I heard a noise behind me. I stopped breathing. I wanted to hear what it was.
It sounded like a click. Like something metal, clicking. I had heard that noise before in the past few weeks. It was a noise I dreaded to hear.
I slowly turned around and saw what I didn't want to see: the abductor standing behind me. Holding a gun. He didn't waste any time in pointing the gun up to me. He either actually wanted to kill me or did a very good job at pretending.
I jumped to the side just in time as a bullet rang past my head. I stared at the abductor in disbelief. I was frozen for a few seconds before reality hit me. I had to get out of here.
My legs sprinted and I turned around. I heard another shot fire. I ducked, even though I didn't know where the shot was aimed. I heard the thick log behind me splinter as the bullet lodged into it.
I continued jumping over fallen trees and logs. I knew that once the abductor started running he would catch me soon enough. My only option was to hide.
I saw a hollowed out tree trunk that had fallen. I figured that would be good enough and looked behind me to make sure I hadn't been followed. I couldn't see the abductor and hid in the tree trunk. I tried as best as I could to make my breathing inaudible from the panting it was. I stopped breathing altogether when I heard twigs snapping around me.
The abductor was close.
I tried to stop moving completely or make any little sound. It was so quiet in the surroundings that the abductor would hear.
The twigs snapping and footsteps grew closer. I mentally prayed to myself that the abductor wouldn't find me. Suddenly the footsteps stopped. Why had they stopped? What had he found? Did he know I was here?
'Boo!'
I leapt back and looked to the other end of the hollow tree trunk. The dark figure of the abductor stood before me. He had whispered to me. It was a low and gruff whisper. So quiet that even if I did know the abductor then I wouldn't be able to recognise the voice.
I gasped as the abductor walked closer and turned to the end of the tree trunk that I was closer to. Thick bushes were covering it. I really hadn't thought about this hiding place. The most important thing to remember when hiding was to always have a backup exit if I was found.
I thought about what I could do and didn't really have a choice in the matter. I crammed myself into the thick bushes, trying to get away from the abductor. The twigs and branches scratched against my skin and I held in a yelp. I pushed myself through the bushes and onto the forest floor. The abductor had already begun shooting at me through the bushes as I began sprinting.
The abductor had only given me one way to run. The other ways would have put me in a line of fire for the abductor.
I raced through the woods again. My foot stumped a rock and I felt it twist badly but I had to carry on. The abductor was catching up with me and that only made me run faster.
I finally could see an end of the woods. As long as I got into the public's view then the abductor would've had to hold back on shooting me.
The light from the edge of the woods shone on me like the light at the end of the tunnel. I would be able to get out of here, that's the sentence I concentrated on. As I finally got to the last line of trees I closed my eyes and jumped. My feet met a hard surface.
A loud horn beeped from somewhere near me and my eyes flew open. A large truck was heading straight for me. I had jumped onto the motorway. I ran into the next lane of the motorway, missing the truck by a few seconds. There were cars heading for me again, beeping their horns. I jumped onto the next lane and began heading for a patch of grass in between the two roads of the motorway. I dodged around cars and ignored the cursing coming from the drivers. I did a final jump and reached the grass. I sighed in relief and looked back at the forests edge.
The abductor was standing there, his gun still clutched tightly in his hand. I wasn't safe here and had to keep moving. I ran through the next cars, having many near hits with the vehicles. At the other side of the road was a grass hill. That was my target.
With a final dodge of a car I reached the grass hill. I turned to look back at the abductor. He was still at the edge of the forest. It looked like he was waiting for something, but what?
A hand grabbed over my stomach and mouth. I immediately began to struggle against whoever it was.
'Poppy, relax, it's just me,' spoke Alan.
He was still working for the abductor then. Even though Alan had helped me escape when I was trapped in the Millers old houses' basement.
'What are you doing?' I asked him.
'Nothing,' he said, 'I'm going to let you go but we need to make it convincing. Continue to struggle and act scared.'
I obeyed Alan and immediately began to try to wriggle my body away and gave my eyes a widened look of terror.
'What do I do?' I asked Alan, my mouth still hidden by his hand.
Alan was silent for a moment, thinking, before he answered, 'Kick my shin.'
'W-what?' I stuttered.
'Kick my shin with as much force that you have and then run right from here,' Alan commanded, 'There's a taxi service over the hill. Get in one and go.'
I nodded my head, disguising it in my struggle so the abductor wouldn't tell.
'Okay,' I said, 'Wait! Where're Harry and Max?'
'Harry's in a small shed not far from here. I was meant to bring you there. Max isn't here,' Alan informed me, 'Now, kick my shin. I'll let you go, but make it believable.'
I took a deep breath and pulled my leg up. I then forced it back strongly and pushed it into Alan's shin. He stepped back and let go of me, grabbing his shin with a yelp.
'Sorry,' I muttered.
I ran to the right as Alan told me to. I heard a shout of annoyance from not far away. It was the abductor. I couldn't help but feel guilty as the abductor would surely punish Alan for this.
I continued running and ran over the hill before the abductor could shoot me again. I saw another road. This wasn't part of the motorway and so there weren't many cars on it.
I ran next to the road and searched for the taxi station. I saw it come into view as a gunshot rang through the air. I heard cars screeching and a few screams. I didn't want to see what was happening. If the abductor had shot Alan, I wouldn't forgive myself.
I ran to a taxi and jumped in.
'Where do you want to go?' The driver asked.
As I was about to answer my phone rang. I picked it up.
'Hello?'
'Miss Leads, this is Olivia from the hospital,' she said. My heart immediately began ramming against my chest. 'I just rang to inform you that Callums awake.'
'Thank you so much!' I said, feeling elated.
'Where do you want to go?!' The driver asked, annoyed now.
'To Everview Hospital, please.'
***
It was four days until I was actually able to see Callum. He had been too weak to have a conversation but the doctors were now giving him a few minutes. When my mum called me to tell me the news, I could barely control my excitement. Joshua volunteered to give me a ride to the hospital and I thanked him profusely.
I ran through the people in the car park and to the reception desk.
'Callum Miller, please,' I panted from running.
The receptionist typed something in her computer and smiled up at me, 'Room 46.'
I ran past the reception and up to the rooms. I ran along the hallways until I saw a familiar face.
'Mrs. Miller!'
'Poppy! Callum's getting better!' She cheered, happily.
'I know,' I said, smiling, 'Where are you going?'
'To the canteen to get some food. Callum told me I needed to eat,' she said, rolling her eyes.
I laughed lightly and entered the room. Callum was lying on his bed, looking a little weak.
'Callum... I'm so sorry,' I whispered as the guilt washed over me again.
He looked at me and turned around back to facing the wall.
'Callum?' I walked over and sat at the end of the bed. 'What's wrong?'
'What's wrong?' He whispered, 'What's wrong is that I was shot. And it's your fault.'
I looked at him hurt. Surely he knew that him getting shot was the last thing that I wanted to happen? I thought he would understand that it was a mistake.
'I know Callum,' I said. 'And I'm so sorry. I never meant for you to get shot.'
'Well it happened, didn't it?' He said as he turned his face to me. Anger was written all over it. 'You couldn't learn to keep your mouth shut. You just had to go and make the abductor angry and get me shot.'
'You think I don't regret it?' I said, getting angry as well, 'Do you think I don't wish I could take it back? Callum I hate myself for this and I thought you would forgive me.'
'Well you thought wrong,' he muttered, sending pain throughout me, 'And do you know what the worst thing was about it. I thought I was going to die and leave Maisie. I thought I was going to fail her and leave her. You have no idea what that feels like.'
'No, I don't,' I said, 'But I've apologised. What else do you expect me to do, go back in time and make the bullet go inside me and not you? Because I would.'
'No, Poppy,' he spat out. 'I wish you wouldn't have been stupid and angered the abductor. How could you be so foolish?'
I shook my head; I didn't know what else I could say. I had apologised and at the moment that was all I could do. 'Have the police spoken to you?'
'No.'
'I have,' I told Callum, the conversation that took place a few days ago flashing in my mind. 'When they ask you questions say we do not know who shot you. They were just a gang who came up to us and asked us for our phones and cash. You pulled us into an apartment building to try and escape but they followed us. When they shot you they left, as if it was a spur of the moment thing. That's all we know.'
Callum regarded me for a second before responding, 'Okay, fine. Now can you go, I'm feeling tired.'
I smiled at Callum weakly, a smile that I knew he wouldn't return, "Okay, I'll see you later.'
I didn't know what more to say to Callum. All I could think about was how I'd lost one of the closest people to me. I had to make it up to him. I had to sort everything out. Otherwise finding Maisie was going to more difficult than it was now.