Chapter Forty-three

Melanie leaped off the bed to the side. What is going on? She could hear items being thrown against the wall and crashing to the floor. Melanie had been stuck in the cabin room so long, she wondered if she would ever see the outside again. Her heart raced as she heard a string of loud expletives. Something or someone had angered Mister. At any moment, Melanie thought, he would burst through the door.

Maybe whatever reason he had kept her here was no longer valid. Maybe he no longer needed to. What was it Mister had told her? That’s up to your father.

Melanie held her head, which was now throbbing with tension. “Dad, what did you do?”

Something hard and huge bumped against the door. Then she heard the most awful scream. Mister sounded like he was having a nervous breakdown. She covered her ears and looked around her bedroom prison. What could she do that she hadn’t already thought of a million times? She thought, I’m not going down without a fight. She had watched enough CSI episodes to know all she needed to do was to get his DNA under her fingernails.

She closed her eyes and prayed.

As fast as the tornado outside her door had come, it grew quiet.

Melanie opened her eyes. She knew he wasn’t gone. What had stopped him?

She didn’t have long to ponder. The bedroom door burst open, slamming against the wall. Melanie got up from the floor and stood to face Mister, the bed in between them. She looked at the open door behind the man. If only she could get by him, out that door. It was her chance for freedom. She knew she had to be out somewhere deep in the woods. If she had the chance, she would take her last opportunity to escape among the trees.

Mister stepped into the room. His eyes were crazed, and he didn’t smell right today. Melanie subconsciously stepped back, knowing all she had behind her was a wall.

The man shook his head. “What am I going to do with you? Your dad couldn’t do it. Couldn’t keep his mouth closed.” Mister threw up his hands and walked closer to her. “All these years and he suddenly got a conscience.”

He paced in front of her. The wide-open door behind him beckoned her to make a run for it. She looked down at the bed and then returned her attention to Mister. He stopped and pointed in her direction. The man was facing her, but his eyes didn’t seem to be focused on her. It was like he was having a conversation with himself and she was his audience.

“He took the money. Didn’t have a conscience back then. I told him to be careful and that none of this better get back to me. I told him.”

Melanie eyed the door, but she wanted to know what Mister was talking about. “Are you talking about something my dad did?”

“Yes.”

“I don’t understand why you brought me into it. Shouldn’t you deal with him?”

Mister smiled. That crazed look in his eyes scared her. What he said next paralyzed her. “I’ve already dealt with dear ole dad. He’s no more trouble.”

He’s crazy! She took one look at him and screamed, “No!” Melanie swerved as if she was going to go around the bed. Mister came around the other side. With all the strength she had in her body, she went back toward the bed and reached for the blanket. She threw the blanket at his head as he leaped toward her. She screamed as she felt his hand touch her leg. With all her strength she kicked hard, feeling her feet making contact with bone.

Melanie stumbled to the other side of the bed, crawled, and then sprinted for the door. She made it through the door, then ran past another bedroom, down a hallway, and into the living area. The front door was ahead of her, but before she reached it, she felt strong hands yank her backward by her shirt.

“No, no!” Melanie screamed and kicked. She swung her hands toward Mister’s face and dug into skin. He roared and pushed her hard. She fell against something hard, smacking the back of her head.

Melanie felt her body slide down to the floor as blackness overtook her.