UNREAL ( A Suspense Filled Abduction Crime Thriller ) Read online

  “He is kind of a cool stepdad, Jules. Guess you got one of the good ones.”

  Even as her fingers grazed the ridges of her locket, she had to agree.

  Hunger came, and Julie turned off on an exit ramp. They were somewhere in Pennsylvania. At first glance, the town was nondescript. There were signs pointing to hospitals and streets dotted with chain stores that they were likely to encounter again and again during the tip. Everywhere had a Wal-Mart, and it was either the spirit of healthy competition or total stupidity to place a Target one door down. Moving into the heart of the place, they were welcomed with a sign that read Welcome to Eatonsburg. Julie had never heard of it, and she’d probably forget this first town as soon as they crossed its border. They turned onto the main street, and Kim made note of the gas station. After they grabbed a bite, they’d be smart to fill up before passing through the nearby hamlets.

  “How about this?” Kim asked.

  She slowed down at the parking lot of Eatonsburg’s Eats. It was small place with minimal parking, but they were obviously at the tail end of families finishing their post-church meal. Kim got a decent enough spot, and they passed a woman with a walker and her patient husband as they made their way up a ramp. Julie smiled at the couple as they entered the establishment.

  If ever there was a greasy spoon, this was it. Grizzled men sat at the bar drinking endless cups of coffee. A row of booths featured mothers cutting chicken fingers into even smaller pieces while the eventual eaters splashed apple juice upon placemats adorned with local advertisement. The waitresses were all leathery skin just below hairstyles permanently trapped in the 1980’s. It was as if they had been born there and would carry tray after tray of burgers and seasoned fries until they took their last breath.

  “How many?”

  The girls were approached by a woman whose obesity was just shy of morbid. She wore a necklace of too many charms around her thick neck, the most prominent reading I Luv Grandma. Kim held up two fingers, and they were shown led past the booths into a back room of proper tables. Why waste a booth on such a small party?

  It was quieter there save for another couple, even older than the pair they had passed upon entry, and a strange-looking man with perpetually bulging eyes and a mass of unkempt curls atop a too wide forehead. Kim was already settling in her seat and accepting a menu from Grandma when Julie noticed him leering at them over a short stack. It made her uneasy, but hopefully he would finish up quickly and leave them to their meal.

  “Drinks?”

  “Coffee. And water. With lemon.”

  Grandma snorted at Kim’s request and turned her attention to Kim.

  “And you, honey?”

  “Um… the same I guess.”

  She waddled off to fulfill the request as Kim became fully absorbed in the spiral bound set of choices. Short Stack drizzled ketchup on his saucer and started dipping sausage links into the red pool. He licked the tomato pasted clean before biting down on the meat, keeping his eyes on Julie the entire time. She tried to ignore him and flipped through her menu. She didn’t want breakfast. It had already been done. A sandwich, something light with a small side of fires might do the tick. Clams casino. Who would ever order that in a place like this?

  Short Stack kept staring as he blew on his coffee cup. Julie thought he… no he did wink at her, and she was overcome by the sensation that the man who’d never have to worry about purchasing a Halloween costume was imagining her in one of the waitress’ apron and nothing else.

  Forget food. She wanted to get out.

  “Kim?”

  “I’m thinking a Reuben,” she said. With her back to Short Stack, Kim had no way of seeing his evil eye.

  “Kim, I---”

  “Or corned beef hash. Bet they’re famous for it.”

  Short Stack scooted out of his seat and started to approach their table. He was a large man in height and belly, and he moved slowly but surely. Julie instinctively reached for the hand that still surrounded Kim’s menu.

  “What about you?”

  Kim finally noticed the man hovering over their table. Julie blinked fast and started rearranging her silverware as Kim stared up at him.

  “Can we help you with something?” Kim asked, annoyed.

  “No. But I bet I can help you, pretty lady.”

  Julie could feel her leg trembling under the table. Had her mother been right? Was this just the first step to some redneck’s torture chamber with rusty power tools meant to inflict the most unspeakable harm?

  Stop it, Julie. You’re in a public place for Christ’s sake.

  Kim obviously had no such concerns. She dropped her menu and got to her feet.

  “We don’t need any help,” Kim said with an icy glare.

  “Beg to differ. How’d you two like to join me for breakfast?”

  Kim barely managed to stifle a laugh.

  “We’re here for lunch. So you’re a little behind the curve there.”

  “Just trying to be friendly. You don’t have to be such a rude little bitch.”

  Julie looked back to the booths and prayed for Grandma to return with their drinks. No doubt she could put this creep in his place. When she didn’t see her, Julie looked to the elderly couple focused on their tuna melts. They probably couldn’t hear or see what was going on with any measure of clarity. Julie pushed her chair out from under her with the intention of getting help from someone when Short Stack grabbed her wrist and held her in place where she stood.

  “No,” Julie said,

  Before she could struggle, Short Stack had her other arm in his meaty paw.

  “And where are you going? Got no manners, baby?”

  Kim pushed him away from Julie with two flat palms. Short Stack kept his grasp on Julie as he stumbled back and crashed into the setting of an unoccupied table. It was enough noise to quiet the other diners and finally capture the attention of the tuna melt pair. Julie could feel Short Stack’s foul coffee breath running down her neck when a voice mercifully ordered him to let her go.

  Julie turned her head to see two boys.

  They were tall, blonde-haired and blue-eyed. One of them, the one who was obviously in charge, plowed forward and pulled Julie from Short Stack’s grasp. The would-be assailant wiped his sweaty palms across the front of his button down shirt and smirked. But he took a step back. Julie’s sudden hero stood with clenched fists and a look of rage that made her believe that he would pop Short Stack if he made one more wrong move.

  “You okay?” he whispered to Julie.

  She slowly nodded as Kim pulled her back to their table. As Julie trembled, she could feel Kim’s hands smoothing the tension from her back. Kim’s eyes continued to brim with rage, but as a sigh escaped her lips, Julie knew that she was equally relieved that someone had come to their aid.

  The boy glared at Short Stack.

  “Get lost.”

  Short Stack’s fingers crept perilously close to a jam-stained knife. It could do no real harm, but Julie held her breath. The boy was quicker than Short Stack’s intention, and he knocked the knife to the floor and pressed his booted heel against the silverware.

  Now Short Stack was sweating for other reasons.

  “You deaf, asshole? These ladies want you out.”

  Short Stack was panting as he collected his newspaper and wallet from the table top. He tossed a few bills on the table and lumbered past the girls. His tongue smoothed across his upper lip as he exited. Even when he was finally gone, Julie was still jumpy. She could barely feel Kim pressing her close. Once he was sure that Short Stack was gone, the boy approached them with a concerned look on his face.

  “Are you two alright?” he asked.

  Julie couldn’t breathe, couldn’t speak. As if on cue, Kim took the lead.

  “Yeah,” she said. “Thanks.”

  “Prick.”

  Julie looked at the boy’s friend. He hung back and looked as nervous as he felt. Once he seemed convinced that the danger had past, he moved to his
friend’s side and shyly smiled.

  “That coulda been ugly, Matt,” he said.

  “Could of. Sure. Glad it wasn’t.”

  Julie had to sit to stop her heart from racing and the room from spinning. Kim knelt at her side, and Grandma finally returned with their drink order.

  “Sorry about that,” she said as she set the waters and the coffees on their table. “He’s a handsy one.”

  Grandma offered no other explanation or apology for the groper and returned to the counter. Julie was grateful for the water, sans lemon, and her pulse decelerated as the cool stream poured down her throat. Had she been scared? Naturally. Who wouldn’t be with the threat of a greasy man three times her size? Her mind shifted back to her mother, but when Matt’s friend smiled and told her that everything would be okay, Julie took some comfort in the reality of the many good people along their road to anywhere.

  Kim could shift gears quicker like a stick shift, and she leapt to her feet and offered to buy the boys lunch in a show of gratitude. They quickly accepted.

  Once Short Stack’s table was cleared, Julie started to forget his vile intentions. It was easier when sitting across from two smiling knights with taut muscles under their gray and blue tees. Matt, the one in blue, was the talker of the pair.

  “You’re not from around here, right?”

  Kim took charge.

  “What gave us away?”

  “Good hair. Nice teeth. The fact that you showered.”

  It was a condescending statement that carried a ring of truth. Julie had to laugh as she doused her coffee with sugar. Matt’s friend followed suit, and Julie took it as a show of solidarity. It served to relax her further.

  “Nice call, Einstein,” Kim said. “And what’s your deal?”

  “Us? We’re just making a study of animal life in these here parts. You know. Rug rats, dying cougars, elephants.”

  That last bit was for Grandma, and Matt laughed at his own joke. Kim had already staked her prey and giggled as prompted, but there was something a bit crude in the boy that bothered Julie.

  His friend was a different story

  He laughed at Matt and smiled at Kim, but he only looked at Julie for slight seconds at a time. His eyes kept returning to the coke that Grandma delivered on his order, and he stirred the bubbles with his straw. Like Julie, he got the joke but didn’t revel in it. She liked that.

  “And what are we?” Kim teasingly asked.

  Matt studied them carefully before he answered.

  “Oh you’re off the plantation. Like rare birds trying to find a better perch.”

  Kim scrunched her nose at the supposed compliment.

  “Too much?” Matt asked.

  “How about we drop the animal metaphors,” Kim said.

  “Fine by me,” the other boy said.

  Matt’s friend nervously laughed as he stood his ground. When Julie looked into his eyes, she wondered if he was just like her. Did he long to spread his wings while still tangled in ropes of regret?

  Now she was the one likening one table at Eatonsburg’s Eats to escaped safari attractions far from home.

  “You’re right, Pete. It’s too much.”

  Pete.

  Julie watched him sip his soda and smile. He was easy on the eyes and the ears. She’d never shared her ideal man with anyone. Even Kim. Julie wanted someone to save her. Someone beautiful and strong that spoke in soft tones. Pete’s laugh was awkward despite his fine features, and Julie was glad that Kim gravitated to his friend.

  Julie preferred Pete.

  As the moments slipped by, Short Stack’s almost assault started to fade away. She listened to Kim compare notes with Matt. Like them, he and his friend were on a road trip far from home. It seemed like fate that they had all chanced upon one another.

  Fate. Another good word that Julie like to believe in against all odds.

  The boys had burgers, and Kim got her corned beef hash. Julie could remember nothing from the menu, and except Kim’s desire for chicken salad. One of the dying cougars honored her request. Julie only nibbled at her sandwich as she watched Pete and his side of fries. The words he offered provided no new insights into Matt’s never-ending monologue. Recently graduated? Yes. Afraid for the future? Sure, who wasn’t? Looking for an adventure? Whatever they wanted to do.

  Kim grew even bolder and asked about any nightlife within a 10 mile radius of Eatonsburg.

  Matt and Pete exchanged knowing glances.

  “From what we’ve seen, it’s pretty rough,” Matt said. “So-called singles nights where no one wants to pair up. A 40’s themed dance at the local legion. But they did have a carnival last week.”

  Julie sensed Pete inviting them towards a better time, and her boldness stretched to Kim heights.

  “Bet you could show us something better.”

  The entire table turned their attention to Julie’s attempt at playful flirting. Matt lifted his eyebrow, and Kim sadly smiled at her friend. Julie wanted to crawl under the table and forget that she had ever gained the ability to speak. Kim always wondered why she never made it with the boys in Hawthorne. It was because they weren’t the right ones, and she felt uncomfortable when they had her out of her shirt. But even on the few occasions when she felt that she could trust someone, she played the wrong role. Who wanted someone shaking and sure in the same second? And that was Julie. She didn’t know what she was supposed to do, but whatever it was made sense in her mind. Someone special just had to understand.

  Pete took her hand.

  “We… we could?”

  That it came out like a question calmed her. Pete. His smile was kind of goofy, and maybe he wasn’t Matt hot. But he was still beautiful, and Julie liked the feel of his hand in hers.

  “What’s this?” Matt asked. “You got a plan, Pete?”

  He lowered his eyes. Julie wanted them back in in her stare, but he was slow to follow her wishes. All Julie could do was clutch his hand tighter. She wanted him to give voice to whatever was locked away in his mind.

  “I… I was just…”

  Matt laughed and rolled his eyes at Kim. They were already locked in a conspiracy of sorts, and Julie and Pete were the outsiders.

  What could they do? Pete’s voice held a promise that Julie wanted to explore, and she leaned across the table and turned Pete’s face to hers.

  “What’s your plan?”

  When Pete left her hand, she felt sad. He shuffled in his seat and made like he was anxious as he looked out to the lot. Julie followed his eyes to a mass of trees and stones that promised more of the unknown. With these boys, it might prove everything.

  “I… let’s just go for a walk or something.”

  He smiled at Julie. She liked his lips curled up and imagined what they would feel like against hers.

  “A walk?” Matt asked.

  “Yeah. After lunch. Let’s explore.”

  Julie couldn’t wait.

  3

  When the new friends finished their meal, Matt and Pete stood and pulled out the girls’ chairs. Playing the gentleman to the hilt, they paid the bill, and Pete even told Grandma that she was cute. Grandma chuckled and pinched his cheek as she referred to him as a sweet young thing. He rolled his eyes at Julie, and she blushed at what suddenly seemed like an inside joke. Matt only had eyes for Kim, and Julie couldn’t care less.

  She’d take Pete in a heartbeat.

  They exited the eatery, and Julie hung by Pete’s side as Kim started for her Camry. She’d barely walked three steps when Matt caught her arm and wagged a playful finger in her face. Kim was never one to take orders, but it was obvious that she liked the view, and she let Matt plead his case.

  “Not that way,” Matt said.

  Kim scanned the lot for their ride. In between the battered pickups and rusty sedans, it was preferable that Matt held keys to the latter. But he didn’t have wheels in mind.

  “We said a walk.”

  Kim looked to the rolling hills behind Eatonsburg’s E
ats.

  “What there?” she asked. “Seriously?”

  A walk was one thing, but no doubt Kim had taken the glance to the woods as a figurative promise of a strip of street that held shops to be ducked in and out of despite the fact that her trunk was already filled beyond capacity.

  “There,” Matt said.

  Kim frowned at her sandals and the prospect of stones filling the strappy shoes as dirt snuck and stayed in between her painted toenails. At least Julie had had the foresight to wear sneakers.

  “You want to?” Kim asked her.

  Julie was nervous about leaving the car unattended for minutes that might stretch into hours, but when Pete took her hand, her nerves were calmed.

  “It’ll be fun,” Pete said.

  “I’m… I’m sure. But can we just leave---?”

  Julie nodded her head towards their car.

  “What that?” Pete asked. Matt laughed as he wrapped his arm around Kim’s waiting shoulders.

  “They won’t care,” Matt said. “Lunch rush is almost out. And we’ll come back for it when we’re done.”

  Julie pressed Pete’s hand closer to hers and watched Kim weigh the options. The back roads of small town America continued to call their names, but couldn’t they wait a bit? She wanted Kim to reach the same conclusion.

  She dangled her key ring around her fingers. Kim kept her face devoid of emotion as she mulled over Matt’s suggestion. After several seconds of suspense that felt like hours to Julie, Kim finally sighed and plunked her keys into her purse. Then she checked her cell.

  “It’s got enough juice for a few hours,” she said. “Okay. Let’s take a walk.”

  Nice call, Kim!

  Matt reached into the back of one of the pickups. His vehicle came as a bit of a surprise, but Julie let it go as he hoisted a cooler with a strap over his arm and pointed ahead.

  “Great! Let’s see what’s out there.”

  They left the lot and started up the hill. The terrain was hardly uncultivated, but Kim had to take Matt’s hand to steady her step, and Julie nearly tripped over a twig as the diner began to fade away. Pete kept her on her toes as the ground grew flat and the group’s pace quickened.

  “So what’s the plan?” Matt asked.