Kasey Laine Page 9

  “Yeah, I know what you mean. I’ve been miserable too. This has really been hard for me.” The truth is, a small part of her does miss him.

  “It’s been hard for me too. I’m so sorry. All I want to do is show you how sorry I am.” His voice is hindered by more tears.

  Kasey assumes a more upbeat tone. “Well, we can talk about everything tomorrow night. Figure it all out.”

  “Okay, till tomorrow. I love you. I want to make this work. I promise you. I’ll do anything to make it work.” He prays for Kasey to hear the remorse in his voice.

  Kasey hesitates. “I love you too. I’ll see you tomorrow.” She hangs up.

  Relieved, Chase puts his phone down and stretches out on his bed. This day could not have ended more perfectly; Kasey is coming back home to him. He closes his eyes and falls into a deep sleep. At exactly six in the morning, his alarm goes off. It takes him a couple of tries to silence the alarm. Still drowsy, Chase stretches in his bed. Once dressed, Chase heads to work. It is Friday, he has got a date with Kasey, and he could not be happier.

  At the warehouse, Jason picks up a box. It is too heavy for him, but he picks it up anyway. Chase enters the warehouse with pep in his step. He finds Jason struggling to maintain his grip on the box. On a typical day, he would simply laugh, but today he jogs over to help. “Whoa, whoa.” He places his hands under two of the corners and helps Jason manage the weight. Once the box is stabilized, he laughs. “You look like you’re struggling, man.”

  “Oh, you noticed,” Jason responds with a smirk. They laugh together as they walk the box over to another stack of boxes. They lower it to the ground carefully.

  “Thanks man,” Jason huffs.

  “No problem.”

  Jason leans on the stack of boxes. “What’s wrong with you, man?” He breathes heavily.

  “What do you mean?”

  “I mean, you. You seem a little too happy today. ‘You look like you’re struggling.’” Jason mimics Chase. “What’s up with that? You’re never that helpful. You would watch me fall on my ass any other day.”

  Chase smiles. “Well, things are going pretty good for me right now.”

  “That means...” Jason wrinkles his brow. Yesterday Chase was miserable; today he seems ecstatic.

  “It’s just that Kasey is coming over tonight.” Just the thought of her brightens his day.

  “Oh, I know what that means.” Jason makes a lewd gesture.

  “Shut up man. It’s just I finally got her to talk to me. I’m feeling good right now. I want this to work. She’s right for me.”

  “Well I hope it works, man. A little word of advice, test the waters...you know. You messed up, so just be prepared to have it thrown in your face constantly. Not once, not twice either. I mean like all the time; like ten times a day. I’m serious, too. That’s what women do. You mess up once, and they’ll bring that shit up every day till the day you die. Hell, they’ll bring that shit up on your deathbed.” Jason’s tone turns silly. “Your heart monitor is beeping away and your ass is in a fucking coma. I promise you, she’ll be right at your bedside nagging your ass about the time you fucked up twenty years ago. Watch, I’m not lying. Listen to me man. Bitchin’ 101. Read it sometime.” He is laughing now, trying to lighten the mood, but he is genuinely concerned for his friend. He does not want Chase to have unrealistic expectations. He and Kasey are not going to magically go back to the way they were, even if they both want it that way.

  Chase waves a hand in dismissal. “I don’t care about that, man. I just want her back. I will have to deal with all that just for her to come home. I’m gonna see her tonight.”

  “You alright?”

  “Yeah.” Chase shrugs.

  “Well don’t worry, everything will work out.”

  “I hope so too---for her sake.”

  “I mean I’m just saying I’m not giving up. I’d do anything to be with her. Steal, lie, kill...anything.”

  Jason laughs uneasily. He breathes a sigh of relief when their boss struts into the warehouse. He gruffly hands them clipboards with their day’s routes. Jason comically mimics him after his exit, drawing laughs from Chase. His taunts always lighten the mood.

  “Alright, check ya later.” Jason heads out to begin his route.

  “Alright.”

  On his way out, Jason pauses. He has a bad feeling about Chase’s demeanor. His last comment about Kasey was especially unnerving.

  Later that evening, Kasey prepares for her date with Chase. She puts the finishing touches on her makeup. After smoothing down some frizzy strands of hair, Kasey walks over to the full-length mirror in her bedroom. She turns from side to side, checking the views on her perfectly fitted dress. She walks to her bedroom door and reaches for a duffel bag she has packed. She drags it out of the room and down the hall, scraping it along the hardwood floor as she goes. The duffel bag is filled to its capacity. She struggles the entire way down the hall.

  Meanwhile, Chase prepares for Kasey’s arrival. He can barely control his nerves as he walks into his living room. He places two champagne glasses on the table. A bottle of champagne sits in a bucket of ice on the table. He pops the cork, producing a bubbly stream. After he fills the two glasses with champagne, he places the bottle back into the bucket of ice. There is a knock at the door.

  Chase walks to the door, overjoyed, and lets Kasey in. Kasey is in full seduction mode, and turns on the charm immediately. In hopes of arousing Chase immediately, Kasey seductively walks past him. Chase can barely contain his urge to ravage her, but he knows he must control himself. In order to win Kasey back, he needs to be patient, and on his best behavior.

  Midway through dinner, Chase picks up a glass of champagne. “Should we toast?”

  “To what?” Kasey tilts her head and smiles, as she flutters her eyelashes.

  “Us being together again. This is special.” Chase starts to raise his glass.

  “Why don’t we save the toast and get to what’s really important?” Kasey giggles, her eyes focuses on Chase.

  “And what’s important to you?”

  Kasey chugs the rest of her champagne before she answers Chase’s question. Feeling playful, she plucks Chase’s glass and chugs it as well. Chase has never seen her drink this way before; she seems loosened up. His anticipation builds.

  “This is what matters: I love you, Chase.” Still holding both glasses, she drapes her arms around his shoulders and hugs him tightly. Chase hugs her around the waist. They kiss passionately.

  Later that evening, Chase sleeps soundly in his bed after a night of intimacy with Kasey. While Chase sleeps, Kasey sits across from him in a chair. She is barely visible because of the darkness in the room. She slowly rocks back and forth in the chair as she continues to watch Chase sleep. A baseball bat rests in her lap.

  As she watches him sleep, there is no trace of love in her facial expression. She watches him like a bird of prey. She repeatedly taps the bat in her hand as she rocks back and forth in the chair. Convinced he is sound asleep; Kasey makes her move. She stands up and walks to the edge of the bed. Boldly, she turns on the lamp next to Chase. Her black, lifeless eyes now visible. In one sharp movement, Kasey raises the bat above her head and brings it down hard onto the side of Chase’s head.

  Chase goes from sound asleep to knocked out cold. A stream of blood runs from a gash above his hairline. She chuckles as she admires her work. Then, she quietly strolls over to turn off the light. The games have only just begun.

  Chase wakes up at the dining room table. He sits slumped in a chair with blood running down his face. He slowly shakes his head, as pain flares from various parts of his body. His vision is blurred, but he can see a silhouette across from him. His groans turn to screams, as he realizes he is handcuffed to the chair.

  “You might as well give up, because there’s no use. Those cuffs aren’t coming off.” Kasey laughs cruelly.

  “Kasey?”

  “Uh huh.” She chuckles, mocking his fear and confusi
on.

  “What’s going on?”

  “Don’t you know? We’re working things out. Isn’t this what you wanted?”

  Feelings of pain and betrayal momentarily increase his strength. He screams again, in anger this time. He tries to jump up out of his cuffs. The handcuffs will not budge. He slumps back into his chair, defeated.

  “Are you done? I think it’s best if you calm down.” Kasey waits. “Now if you listen and are a good boy, it’ll be over quickly. But if you give me a hard time, I swear to GOD I’ll make you suffer.” Kasey gets up and walks over to him.

  Chase hears her footsteps coming closer, then behind his chair. His chair is jerked around to face the silhouette which taunts him. He feels a soft kiss on his lips. As his vision begins to clear, he recognizes Kasey’s face--but it is not the face he remembers. This face is cold, devoid of emotion. Chase looks over at the dining room table, where a razor-sharp hunting knife sits. He begins to panic.

  “What are you doing? What are you going to do with that?”

  Kasey glances at the knife and lets out a short, cynical laugh. She looks Chase in the eyes and strokes his hair. “Don’t worry. We haven’t gotten to that part yet.” She smiles and walks out of the room.

  While Kasey is away, Chase frantically looks around the room. He tries to wriggle out of the handcuffs, but they will not budge. He hears a scraping sound. Kasey appears in the doorway, dragging a heavy duffel bag. She sets it down and wipes her forehead. “Whew, now that’s a heavy bag,” she says affably. She unzips the bag. Chase begins to hyperventilate.

  Kasey pulls out the contents of the bag: rope, then hedge trimmers, then pliers, and finally duct tape. She twirls each one playfully as she pulls them out and sets them down.

  “What’s that for?” Chase stutters his words, his eyes never leaving the bag’s contents.

  “Being a man, you like to get straight to the point.” Kasey pauses to savor the anguish in Chase’s eyes. She has been waiting for this moment. “But you see, I’m a woman and I’m into foreplay. I brought these along to help stimulate my mood. And since you kind of suck at foreplay, I thought I’d teach you a thing or two.” Kasey grabs the pliers. She also pulls out a small stack of papers from her duffel bag. She brings both the pliers and papers over and sits in a chair next to him. She lightly runs the pliers through his hair.

  “You’re fucking crazy.” Chase jerks his head away from the pliers.

  Kasey doubles over with laughter. “I’m crazy. I’m crazy. Well, you must know the signs. Did your therapist teach you that? I’m crazy...okay, I’ll be crazy then.” Kasey shrugs. “Maybe you’re right, but at least I’m not a liar. Yeah, I’m definitely not a liar. You got that area covered, don’t you?”

  “What are you talking about?”

  “Do you really want to keep playing dumb, Chase?”

  Chase’s freezes.

  “I’ll ask you again. Do you want to keep playing dumb, Chase? Is there really even any point anymore? Your game is up. I mean really, I called you Chase hours ago--right before I fucked you. But you were too stupid to notice. It’s over.”

  “Look, let’s talk about this rationally.” Chase keeps his voice steady as he tries to divert her attention from his hands, which he is still trying to wriggle from the cuffs.

  “Rationally? You wanna talk rationally. Did you talk rationally to LeAnn?”

  Chase falls silent.

  “Oh yeah, I know about LeAnn and your family, and your fake identity. I know everything. I don’t care what the papers say; I know you hurt that poor girl. I know it, you sick son of a bitch. And you know what the worst part is? You insult my intelligence by trying to carry on this lie---like I’m not going to find out.” Kasey’s voice rises, along with her rage. In one quick motion, she grabs the knife from the table and puts it to Chase’s neck. “You really thought you were smarter than me, you spineless prick?” Kasey pushes the knife into his skin, drawing a thin line of blood. She screams directly into his face. “Look at me.”

  Chase turns to Kasey and searches her lifeless eyes.

  “I’m going to give you a chance to make it right. Do you want to make it right?” Once Chase nods, Kasey continues calmly. “Tell the truth. Tell the truth for once. I don’t even know you. Everything was a lie.” Kasey’s voice quivers with the last sentence.

  Chase breaks down into sobs. Minutes later, he is crying softly and shaking his head. His exaggerated sobs perplex her. She watches him closely, desperately waiting for a response. He finally lifts his head to speak. “I didn’t want him to go. I wanted him to stay with me. I was alone and scared.” He is looking through her, with tears still in his eyes.

  “Austin, don’t go.’ I kept saying it.” Chase bows his head again, visualizing the day that changed him forever. He recounts to her a memory he had never before discussed.

  Eleven-year-old Chase sits in the closet with his brother, Austin, who is twelve. The door is slightly ajar, and through the opening Austin is watching their father, Steve. Steve is viciously attacking their mother, Tracie. Austin looks back at his frail younger brother. He reaches out to take his hand. “Everything will be okay. I need you to listen to me very carefully. Okay?” Chase is already afraid, but he is even more scared by how hard Austin is squeezing his hand. His face is salty from crying, which he has been doing since his parents’ arguing began to escalate over a day ago.

  “Okay, when I tell you to, I want you to run and find help. Anywhere. You hear me? Go get help, can you do that?” Chase nods. Austin hugs him as if he knows it will be the last time.

  Steve sits on top of Tracie, choking her with both hands. He does not see that Austin has quietly made his way out of the closet, and has picked up a bottle from the end table.

  Austin shatters the bottle over Steve’s head. As Steve struggles to regain his balance, Austin turns to the closet. “Go---now.”

  Chase darts from the closet and runs out of the bedroom in a flash. He runs all the way to the front lawn, where he begins screaming for help.

  Chase opens his eyes and looks at Kasey. He sits in the chair with his head down by his chest. His wrists are bloody from struggling against the handcuffs. He trembles from exhaustion. Kasey stands over him with her arms crossed. Unfortunately for Chase, his sob story has fallen on deaf ears.

  “And LeAnn?”

  While crying silently, Chase keeps his head down.

  Kasey screams his name to get his attention. “What happened to LeAnn?” Her patience is running thin. She desperately wants answers so she resolves to keep her cool.

  “I did it.” His voice is barely audible.

  “What?” Kasey leans in closer.

  “I did it. Isn’t that what you want to hear? Yes, I did it.” Chase looks up, ashamed.

  Kasey rolls her eyes. “Wow.”

  “I didn’t mean to. I swear...I didn’t mean to.”

  “Oh, and what did you mean to do?”

  Chase laughs. “You think life is so simple. Well, it isn’t. Sometimes things just happen and you’re thrown into a situation. Then suddenly, you have to make a split-second decision. Then over time, you discover that split-second decision was the wrong decision. But now you’re stuck, and can’t take it back.”

  “So what happened?”

  Chase closes his eyes. These are memories he had long ago buried. “I was driving down this highway, and I saw this skinny, sexy brunette walking along the side of the road. She needed a ride, so I pulled over.”

  LeAnn Wilson walks alongside a seemingly deserted highway on the outskirts of Seattle. Rebelling against her family’s values, she left home about a year ago. She has not looked back since. She has no friends or possessions, and she does not mind. She has adapted well to the transient lifestyle, because her beauty gets her from place to place. She was last dropped off about an hour ago, and has been walking since then.

  A rundown car approaches in the distance, heading in the same direction LeAnn is walking. LeAnn hears it coming and
turns around, signaling for the driver to stop. She puckers her lips and arches her back slightly, perking up her bosom. Chase likes what he sees, and pulls to a stop.

  LeAnn leans on his open window provocatively, turning on the charm.

  Chase glances first at her chest, then her face. “You need a ride?”

  LeAnn smiles and bites the corner of her lip. “Sure.” She gets in and closes the door. They quickly pull away.

  “So, where are you heading?”

  “Anywhere.” LeAnn flicks her hair.

  “Really?” Chase chuckles.

  “Yeah, I don’t have much family, so I’m just going wherever life takes me.”

  “Sounds adventurous.” Chase looks into his rearview mirror. As he continues to drive, he passes a sign indicating a rest area is near.

  “Oh, can you do me a favor and stop at that rest stop?”

  “Sure.”

  They pull into the rest stop. LeAnn gets out and walks towards the bathroom. She freshens up for a few minutes, while Chase begins to get antsy. He turns on the radio, hoping it will help relax his nerves; he has never picked up a woman in this type of situation before.

  LeAnn returns to the car and sits down. The second LeAnn settles in the car, Chase leans in and kisses her. The parking lot is deserted. They roughly transition to the back seat and start yanking each other’s clothes off.

  Later, Chase sleeps soundly in the back seat while LeAnn is wide awake. She crawls over him, careful not to rouse him. She positions herself in the front seat. She reaches into his pocket and locates his wallet. She takes out all of the money and stuffs it in her bra. She eases out of the car, with her purse and shoes in hand. She leaves the door wide open.

  Just as she thinks she has made her getaway, Chase’s eyes open. He looks around to find his car door open and his wallet on his chest devoid of cash. He sees LeAnn sneaking off into the dark. He immediately hops out of the car.

  “Hey!”

  LeAnn turns around to see Chase running toward her, gaining ground quickly. She hustles away. The money she stole spills onto the ground. Several paces in front of her is a curb that appears to border a wooded area. She is certain Chase will lose sight of her in the deep woods. Sadly, the curb borders on the edge of a deep embankment. She runs past the curb, through the thin barrier of trees, and right over the edge. She tumbles all the way to the bottom, hitting her head several times on the way down. Her fall ends when she hits a huge rock, with her head absorbing most of the landing.