Chapter 29

The footsteps faded as Angela slowly opened the door. She looked through the side of the door. It was quiet; there was no one in sight. As she stepped out behind the door, she had to find the key to that door.

She slowly picked through those keys and fitted every key. When he was down to the last key, the gate lock opened.

With a sigh of relief, Angela looked around and walked over to the door. She attempted to push it open, but it was locked. She banged twice on the door.

When she heard someone screaming for help, "Nicole, is that you?" There was no answer. Angela was searching through the keys when she heard footsteps from upstairs and ran manicured into the corner until the footsteps faded.

She stood up and put the gun in the back of her Jean. She searched through the keys and found a key that had fitted into the door. She slowly turned the key, expecting the worst, taking a deep breath; when the door opened, a horrible smell came from the cell. It was unbearable. There sat a girl; her hair hung loosely over her knees her face was buried in her knees. She wore a white rope covered in filth, and in the corner was a white bucket.

Rats were eating the crumbs on the ground, "hello?" No response.

Angela walked up to the girl and kept the gun to her side. She kneeled, faced the girl, and reached out to touch her shoulder; her finger was inches away when the girl looked up; Angela couldn't believe her eyes. It was Nicole.

Nicole had recognized Angela; her eyes were black from no sleep, her hair was messy and curly, her hands and nails were dirty, and her lips were dry.

"Nicole, it's me, Angela, Jack's sister?" Angela leaned in and tried to lift Nicole from the ground; Nicole could barely breathe as she struggled to stand up.

Angela put her arm around her neck as she lifted Nicole from the ground, "you can do this," she was utterly disorientated. Angela removed a bottle of water she had kept and gave it to Nicole. Nicole looked at the water bottle like she had never seen water before. She drank it, choking on the water as she coughed.

She had swallowed every drop of water that was in that bottle. She then looked up at Angela as if Angela was a bright light appearing out of the darkness.

"An gel laaa," she said in a soft tone as she reached out with her index finger, touching her face, "you," she stuttered, "you have come to save me." She pushed herself straight and dragged her feet with every energy she had left.

"We need to get out of here." Angela repeated, "you need to be quiet."

Nicole looked up at her. "Be quiet."

Nicole was having this horrible smell of foul odor. Angela tried to avoid that smell by covering her nose with a cloth.

"Wait here. I will be back for you."

"No, no," Nicole screamed, "you can't leave me here with these pigs."

"Ssshhhhhh... Quiet, I hear someone upstairs," Angela grabbed Nicole and pulled her to the corner holding her hand over her mouth, "if they hear us, they will lock us both away, and no one will ever find us," Angela whispered in her ear. "We will get out of here, but first, we need to keep you calm."

"I am calm," Nicole whispered as she struggled to keep steady.

"We would have to wait till dark before we can get out of here. Right now, it sounds like everyone is awake."

Nicole nodded as Angela sat flat on the ground, keeping her gun in her hand.

"We will get out of here."

The door upstairs had a sudden bang, and someone was screaming.

"Are you trying to get us killed? What were you thinking? My brother has his suspicions about your imbecile." There was another loud bang this time. It sounded as if someone had punched the door.

"You have to be careful. We can't afford slip-ups, and have you found that girl?"

"No, boss." Replied a younger male voice, "but we believe she is around. People heard and saw her."

"If they heard and saw her, why the fuck isn't she caught."

"Boss, she is fast and smart. It's as if she knows our moves, but we have the plan to catch her."

"Good, that's the news I like to hear. We will have to start cleaning out those cells in the basement, just in case anyone tipped off the cops."

"Okay, boss, we will get right onto it."

Angela had started to worry if they came downstairs and noticed the guards were killed and the cell was empty, they would hunt for her. Angela tightened her grip on the gun, holding it up. Her heart was pounding. The anticipation was worse than being in the sea, with tiger and bull sharks at your feet.

She thought, "I can't use the bullets." Angela hides the gun in the back of her pants in her belt.

She then removed her knife. Nicole looked at her in total shock, "Angela is so calm." She thought to herself. Her stomach had started to make crumbling sounds. Angela turned and looked at Nicole, handing her a snickers bar, and smiled at her.

Nicole looked at her wide-eyed and grabbed the snicker bar, ripping the paper off like a little kid getting their first Christmas present.

She ate that snickers bar so fast, holding it with two hands covering it as she ate it.

"You must have been starving. Nicole felt a little embarrassed as she shook her head."

"You are safe now." Nicole shook her head and asked for more water. Angela reached into her backpack, removed another bottle of water, and handed it to her. Nicole grabbed it as she became more conscious of her surrounding.

She could now stand up straight, "where is Jack?" Is the first thing she asked, "Jack is at home, people are suspecting him of your disappearance, but no one would believe his not capable of that."

Nicole's eyes grew wide when a third voice upstairs said, "we first need to clean up the mess outside before starting with the cells. We will split up into three groups, and whoever finds her will bring her alive to me. I want her father to plead for her life as I slit her throat."

Nicole started shaking as her eyes grew big. Whoever that was, she was afraid of that person. "Is that the guy who took you?" Nicole's eyes were wide. She nodded.

"Dont be afraid. You are not alone. We have each other." Nicole continued staring at the door of the basement. The light from upstairs was thinking through an uneven cut on the edge of the basement door. The head foot walked across the wooden floor as every sound sounded as if he was about trap right through the wooden floor. The dust from the floor loosened, falling onto Angela and Nicole. Nicole wanted to sneeze as Angela covered her hand over Nicole's mouth.

"They will hear us," Nicole let out a soft sneeze and whispered, "thank you."

Whoever was upstairs had left. Angela stepped on the ladder and peeked through the door. There was no one in sight. Angela had then reached down her arm as she had guided Nicole up the ladder. Nicole got locked up for a long time, so she had difficulty moving her legs. When she reached upstairs, Nicole covered her eyes. She had been stuck so long in the darkness that the light was too bright for her.

"We have to keep moving, Nicole," Angela and Nicole ran to the back and looked out of the kitchen window with a net over, "it's safer to go out here than the front." There is no one here. Angela opens the back door. She thought Nicole was behind her until she looked back and saw Nicole was by the fridge, stuffing her mouth. "Nicole, come, we must go before they get back."

Nicole turned to Angela, stretching out her arm with an apple; Angela shook he head, "yes, now come, we do not have much time." The back of the yard had a tall five-meter concrete wall. "I don't know how we are going to get over here. There was a gate over there." It was a black gate with sharp points which was locked.

"Any idea how we can get out of here?" Nicole had pointed down towards the corner of the wall. It had a hole deep enough to crawl through. Angela grinned, "you're a genius," they ran over to the hole in the wall and were about to crawl under it when there were dogs that had started to bark.

"Shit, don't tell me dogs are on the opposite side of the wall," they had looked around, but that was the only mistake.

"I am sure the dogs are tied up, or else they would be through this hole."

Angela looked at Nicole and smiled broadly, "you have a point. All we have to do is hope you are right."