The Criminal Diaries

      Everyone had to wait for two or three hours before Raquelle came back to them with the news about Sammy’s condition. After getting all the instructions and paying for everything she should have paid for, the girl was allowed to take the dog out. No matter how much she did not want to do it, she drove him to the home of Scarlett, who was deeply shocked when she saw the retriever with bandages on his body, who was whining with pity and looking at her guiltily as if he apologized for not being able to save Helene and letting the bad men take her away.       A little later, Peter joined them. His red, puffy eyes clearly show that he has already expressed his despair by crying bitterly. He would let his emotions out again, but he tries to hold himself down, applying much effort for this. That’s why his whole body is strongly tense, his hands are shaking, and he sometimes lacks air in his lungs.       “Luckily, the wounds aren’t too deep,” Raquelle says, sitting on the bed and yanking Sammy by the ears, while he is lying near Scarlett, who is squeezing a little handkerchief in her hands and sitting on the table. “No important organs were hurt. Though the vet doctor said he’d lost a lot of blood when I was driving him to the clinic.”       “Holy Mother, my heart breaks when I look at him,” Scarlett says in a shaking voice, petting Sammy’s head tenderly. “Sammy, my little boy… What did those monsters do to you?”       Sammy whines with great pity, folding his paws in front of himself.       “He was prescribed a full rest and some antibiotics,” Raquelle says quietly. “He also needs to go there for a regular ligation. But I will be doing this by myself. If he follows all the recommendations, Sammy is supposed to recover quickly.”       “At first, those bastards beat him with hands and feet, but now they decided to wound him,” Peter says in a low, rude voice, rubbing his hands nervously and sitting next to Raquelle.       “Thank God, those people agreed to help me drive him to the clinic. Because I would’ve hardly done it by myself. Sammy is heavy enough, and I’m not driving today.”       “But how did you come here?” Scarlett asks.       “I was brought here by those people who found Sammy. They were waiting for the news with me. And when the vet doctor allowed us to take the dog home, they suggested that they drive us to the necessary address.”       “I’m really glad he’s okay, at least,” Peter says thoughtfully and pets Sammy’s head. “And you, Raquelle. If we also lost one of you, it would be too much.”       “Oh, I’m also horrified by this thought,” Scarlett says in a little shaking voice. “I’ve been so attracted to Sammy over all this time, and I don’t regret letting Helene adopt a dog that she dreamed about so badly.”       Hearing Helene’s name, Sammy starts whining heartbreakingly.       “Quiet, quiet, buddy, quiet,” Peter calms down softly. “It’s okay, you’re guilty of nothing.”       “Sammy feels so guilty of what happened to Helene,” Raquelle notices with sadness in her eyes. “When we mention her name briefly, what you see happens all the time.”       “Jesus Christ, what’s gonna happen to her?” Scarlett wonders with tears in her eyes. “What do they want to do to my granddaughter? Why was it her?”       “Trust me, Mrs. Marshall, my heart also tears at the thought that something might happen to Helene,” Peter says quietly, putting his hand on Scarlett’s hand, while Raquelle sitting next to him caresses his shoulder softly. “I’ve been shaking for two hours.”       “Why did it happen? I don’t get it! Couldn’t you prevent it at all?”       “Alas, Mrs. Marshall, we could do literally nothing,” Raquelle sighs heavily. “Our efforts weren’t worth it, in the end.”       “I did know something was happening. I was sure Helene was hiding something from me. She was restless lately. She was always kinda tense, not funny, and even cried quietly in her room at times. And when I asked her what was wrong, my granddaughter said everything was alright.”       “Did she really tell you nothing about my situation?” Peter asks. “Didn’t she tell you I was chased by a certain Marcus?”       “Nope, Helene didn’t tell me anything. But something told me the problem was definitely about you. She’s always worried about everything connected with you much more than anything else.”       “We’re really sorry you had to find out everything at the last moment, at such a terrible situation,” Raquelle expresses sympathy. “We couldn’t just hide Sammy’s wound and Helene’s kidnapping.”       “But what does Marcus want from Peter? What did my granddaughter do to him?”       “Marcus says I must pay for ruining his life,” Peter explains. “Though I have no idea what I did. I met that man for the first time just one week ago when the same stinkers hit me on the head, drove me away nobody the hell knows where, and tied me up.”       “They drove you away?” Scarlett opens her eyes widely.       “Yes. Sammy was with me on that day. He tried to help me, but he could not.”       “Those cads left him all alone,” Raquelle continues. “But thank God, Natalia passed by, took Sammy with her, and connected all of us.”       “Marcus didn’t actually think of letting me go. At first, they wanted to torture me a little and then drive me to a different place. But I was so lucky that I managed to untie myself, fight off those bastards, and escape in the car of one of them. Otherwise, I wouldn’t have been sitting here with you.”       “Did they beat you so strongly?” Scarlett asks, glances at Peter’s puffy eye and bruises on his face and arms that are still bright with a horror in her eyes. “You’ve got bruises on your whole body and puffy eyes.”       “Yup, them…” Peter pronounces in a low voice. “But now I look more or less good. One week ago, looking at me in the mirror had me horrified. You would’ve been overwhelmed, I’m going to be honest.”       “Gosh, Peter, my poor boy…” Scarlett strokes Peter’s hand and cheek softly with wet eyes. “Why did those cads do it to you? You’re such a good and kind guy and do nothing bad to anyone!”       “I’ve been kicked by someone all my life… My schoolmates or someone else… It’s like being a punching bag and the object of ridicule is my destiny.”       “No, Peter, don’t say it,” Raquelle protests, taking Peter under his arm.       “It’s true, Raquelle. I can’t remember any periods of my life when nobody treated me so cruelly.”       “Well, don’t you have any assumptions about why Marcus hates you so much?” Scarlett asks.       “The guys and I are currently focused on the theory about my mother having to do with it. One day, Helene told us about the meeting with one of those jackals, who confessed that the woman had to do with what was happening.”       “Your mother? But she disappeared a long time ago! You said it!”       “Yeah, but Marcus didn’t deny it when I asked him directly about my mother. But he also confirmed nothing.”       “Gosh, what did she do to him? And what do you have to do with it?”       “I don’t know, Mrs. Marshall, I can’t say anything,” Peter shakes his head. “At first, I thought she just did something bad to a rich man, who learned about her rich son and decided to make me pay him money. Since he could get nothing out of the long-time alcoholic woman except her dirty underwear. But as it turned out, Marcus is not rich; he is just a regular worker. And those who help him now are sons of his late friends.”       “So, does it mean your mother is alive?”       “I don’t know, I don’t care, honestly. I want her to leave me alone and deal with that old bastard by herself.” Peter clenches his hands tightly into fists with a heavy breath. “The one I shall strangle with my own hands if something happens to Helene.”       “Peter…”       “I swear I shall throw him against the wall! Marcus will eat the freaking ground and swallow the dust! He will pay me if she dies because of him. He would not better stand in my way outside! He will be dead!”       “Maybe, he just needs money? Maybe you will live a quiet life, and Helene will be back home if we just pay him as much as he wants?”       “No, Mrs. Marshall, everything is not so easy,” Raquelle shakes her head. “Marcus is not doing all of this for money. Peter offered him money, but he refused categorically. It’s like the only thing he needs now is his skin and his name on the grave.”       “But what does Helene have to do with it?” Scarlett wonders and sniffs quietly. “Why did that man kidnap my granddaughter?”       “To drive me crazy,” Peter throws gloomily. “He does know I won’t take it if Helene suffers somehow. Made sure about it after she almost died after the attack on her.”       “Attack?” Scarlett specifies, feeling that her heart stops. “What attack?”       “One of those bastards tried to drown her in the river.”       “Jesus Christ…”       “If Sammy hadn’t found me and told me to come back, she would’ve died. But luckily, I got her out of the water in time.”       “It’s awful, my God…”       Scarlett closes her mouth with her hand with tears in her eyes, while Sammy whines with pity.       “But I’m, old idiot, sitting here with my hands folded and guessing nothing! While my poor granddaughter is suffering…”       “I am really very sorry, Mrs. Marshall,” Peter apologizes with sadness in his eyes, putting his hand on Scarlett’s hand after sitting next to her. “I swear I tried so hard to protect Helene and not to let anything bad happen. I was ready to tolerate all the awful and worst tortures. But alas, nothing helped her.”       “I wouldn’t have also helped her if both of us had been caught by those stinkers,” Raquelle says hesitantly.       “My heart has ached for weeks for the reason,” Scarlett shakes her head, putting her hand on her chest. “I did feel that I would know something terrible one day.”       “Mrs. Marshall, darling…”       “And Helene was silent like a partisan all this time… She found excuses all the time, changed the subject quickly…”       “Didn’t anything special happen to you when we walked somewhere together?”       “Nope, nothing like that… But I had a suspicion about something… On one of those days, we walked in the city, and I decided to go to the pharmacy. So, when I was waiting in the queue, I looked through the window and saw a man coming to Helene, who was definitely scared.”       “Can’t you remember who that man is?” Peter frowns slightly.       “He was tall, with a bun on his head! I could barely see him from afar, even with my glasses, but I assumed he was a little more than thirty.”       “It seems like that’s the leader in Marcus’ company… His name is likely Elijah… When I was tied, that asshole was nuzzling him like a cat and doing everything he wanted.”       “Helene said he just asked her how to find a certain stadium. But something told me she was lying. Because my granddaughter looked too scared. And I saw Sammy growling at him. Though the boy usually has a quiet reaction to those with whom he talks, and he is always friendly.”       “I swear, Mrs. Marshall, we told Helene that she should’ve told you everything when we heard about her meetings with Marcus’ henchmen,” Raquelle confesses. “But your granddaughter refused to tell you something and decided to lie. She didn’t listen to us when we said you’d know everything early or late.”       “We understood that she did it to save you from a shock,” Peter adds. “But we thought you deserved to know the truth. The truth about the danger that threatened her and me.”       “But I knew nothing…” Scarlett sighs heavily and wipes tears under her eyes carefully with her handkerchief. “Nothing… I let my granddaughter go to work or walk with her friends and boyfriend. I didn't think something bad would happen.”       “For the time being, we also didn’t know those people watched her outside and caught her to scare her,” Raquelle confesses. “We found it out on the day she almost drowned. When we learned about Peter’s mother’s connection with all this hell.”       “How could I miss it all? How could I miss the moment? Why couldn’t I protect my granddaughter? Why?”       Scarlett closes her face with both hands and lets her emotions out, starting to make heartbreaking sobs, while Raquelle sits down next to her with half-wet eyes and hugs her softly around the shoulders with the hope of calming her down a little.       “Don’t blame yourself, Mrs. Marshall,” Peter says, taking Scarlett’s hand. “You would’ve done nothing anyway. I guess I was powerless, too. Despite all my efforts.”       “Where do we find her?” Scarlett wonders, understanding that she is shaking. “Where did those cads take my girl away? What do they wanna do to her?”       “Don’t worry, Mrs. Marshall, we will find her,” Raquelle tries to calm down. “Helene’s gonna be okay. Marcus won’t do anything to her.”       “The police will be powerless, too. Because no one knows where to find her. You said the witnesses only confirmed the moment when they pushed Helene in the car.”       “I know. But I promise we will be doing our best. The guys and I will do everything we can to save Helene.”       “You’re able to do nothing now. No clues that would help us track her.”       “I’m sure the police will find something.”       “Moreover, Marcus turned out not to be so innocent,” Peter adds.       Sammy barks very quietly at this moment, feeling pain every time he moves.       “Oh, by the way, where are your friends?” Scarlett asks in a low voice.       “They’re about to come,” Peter replies. “At least, Terrence, Daniel, and Anna will come soon. But Edward and Natalia warned that they would be a little late.”       “God, why do I have to get through it?” Scarlett sniffs quietly, while Raquelle presses her closely to herself and lets the woman put her head on her shoulder. “Why do I have to suffer? I cried my eyes out when Roger got sick and died in the end. But now I won’t be sleeping at night ‘cause I will be worried about Helene. The only relative that I have.”       “We’re with you, Mrs. Marshal,” Raquelle says confidently. “The guys and I will not leave you. We’ll do everything you need.”       “I only need one thing – my granddaughter. Alive, healthy, and happy.”       “It’s gonna be fine, dear Mrs. Marshall,” Peter replies hesitantly, slapping himself in his mind for lying to Scarlett and telling her what would hardly be the truth. “Helene will be back home soon.”       “I don’t know what I’ll do if Helene dies. She… She’s the only one I live in this world for. I don’t have anyone else. Just my little girl…”       “We know,” Raquelle pronounces softly.       “And what about Sammy? How devastated will he be if his owner dies?”       Sammy whines with pity again, looking at Scarlett with half-wet eyes.       “Helene will not die, Mrs. Marshall,” Raquelle assures. “She will live and get through this.”       “I hope she will not do any stupid things not to make the kidnappers mad,” Scarlett expresses hope. “She will do anything they say.”       “It will hardly help her if Marcus is determined to get rid of her anyway,” Peter expresses anxiety.       “My God, what do we do? What do we do? I have no idea! My gosh… I’m shocked… Absolutely shocked…”       “Don’t worry, the guys and I will work on searching for her,” Raquelle promises. “You should think about your health. Helene won’t take it if something happens to you. And Sammy needs you now so badly.”       “Yeah, we can’t leave him alone now,” Peter agrees. “We should help him recover and survive this separation with his owner.”       “Therapy is probably going to cost a lot,” Scarlett expresses anxiety. “One surgery is as expensive as an airplane wing…”       “Don’t even worry about it, Mrs. Marshall,” Raquelle says confidently. “I take responsibility for all the expenses on Sammy’s therapy and recovery. All the bills will be in my name, and I will pay them all by myself.”       “But it’s a very big amount!”       “It’s not a big deal to me. I will pay for everything. I think this is the least I can do for my friend.”       “Oh, thank you so much, Raquelle,” Scarlett thanks a little guiltily in a shaking voice. “Thank you, sweetie… You helped me out… I wouldn’t be able to pay for it with my humble pension, and I have no access to Helene’s bank account.”       “Don’t even think about money. Sammy’s therapy is going to be under my responsibility.”       “I promise, girl, I will give everything back little by little. I will be giving you a little from my pension every month. I swear to God.”       “Don’t give anything back, Mrs. Marshall.” Raquelle puts her hand on Scarlett’s hand. “Paying for Sammy’s therapy is all my initiative. That I want to do for my friend.”       “Thank you, my sweetheart, thank you so much.” Scarlett takes Raquelle in a touching hug and sniffs quietly. “May God bless you! May you be healthy!”       “And if you ever need something, you can always ask the guys and me for help,” Peter adds. “We’ll do everything, we’ll solve everything.”       “I’m asking you about just one thing – find and save Helene. I will not care about myself and everything in the world if my granddaughter isn’t back home safe and sound.”       “We will be doing our best for this. I will turn this world upside down, but I will find Helene. Wherever she is. Wherever that asshole is hiding her.”       “Oh, Holy Mother, when did I make a mistake in my life? Why do I have to be punished so cruelly? Why?”       “Please, Mrs. Marshall, don’t cry,” Raquelle begs with eyes that are wet from tears.       “Mrs. Marshall, you must not get excited,” Peter says quietly, hugging Scarlett around the shoulders. “You’ve got a weak heart. Take care of yourself a little.”       “Helene, my granddaughter… My little girl… She’s all alone there… Cold, hungry, surrounded by some jackals…”       At this moment, Sammy makes a quiet, heartbreaking howl as he moves his half-wet eyes full of pity to Scarlett crying bitterly, shaking, and looking pale from tension. Although Peter and Raquelle try to comfort the woman and reassure her that everything is going to be alright, they are actually not sure about the happy ending of this story. They are not sure they will find Helene before Marcus wants to deal with her. Yes, they feel terrible from literally lying to her, but the girl and the man understand that it would be much better. And they do not give up on trying to help the crying woman calm down a little before they hear a loud ring on the doorbell, which everyone pays attention to.       “The guys have come, I guess,” Peter assumes.       “I will open,” Scarlett pronounces without emotions, wiping tears under her eyes.       Scarlett gets up from the bed and goes to hell, while Raquelle and Peter look at each other with sadness in their eyes, embrace each other, and pay some attention to Sammy whining with pity and lying powerlessly next to them. The woman opens the door quickly and sees the anxious Daniel and Terrence and the tear-stained Anna, who is pressing herself closely to her boyfriend.       “Good afternoon, guys,” Scarlett greets in a low, shaking voice.       “Good afternoon,” Anna, Terrence, and Daniel greet.       “Come in.”       Scarlett goes aside to let the visitors enter. And when Anna crosses the doorstep first, she takes the woman in a tight hug with tears in her eyes.       “Mrs. Marshall…” Anna pronounces quietly.       “Anna, my girl…” Scarlett makes a loud sob.       “How are you, Mrs. Marshall?” Daniel expresses anxiety, putting his hand on Scarlett’s shoulder.       “I’m restless… At the thought that my granddaughter is in danger.”       “We’re with you, Mrs. Marshall,” Terrence says confidently. “You’re not alone.”       “Thanks a lot… And I’m sorry about you having to put your business aside.”       “No, you forgive us. For letting it happen.”       “Yeah, we did everything we could, but it seems like it wasn’t enough,” Daniel adds.       “Don’t blame yourself, guys,” Scarlett shakes her head. “You’re not guilty of Marcus’ craziness. He’s the only one to blame.”       “Are you alone now?” Anna specifies. “Or is someone from the guys here already?”       “Peter and Raquelle only.”       “She brought Sammy?”       “Yes, he’s with us.”       “Is he okay?” Terrence asks tensely.       “Yeah, thank God, that girl drove Sammy to the clinic in time, and he got an urgent surgery. He is too weak now and whining from pain, and it’s hard for him to come to himself after anesthesia.”       “At least one good piece of news,” Daniel exhales sharply.       “Let me lead you to my room. The guys are there, waiting for you.”       When Scarlett turns around and goes to her room, Daniel, Terrence, and Anna follow her. And when they come there, Peter and Raquelle move their eyes to them and get up from the bed, while Sammy puts his face on his paws and turns it aside shamelessly.       “Raquelle, honey…” Terrence exhales with relief, comes to Raquelle in a quick step, and takes her in a strong hug. “Thank God! I was so worried about you!”       “Don’t worry, sweetheart, I’m okay,” Raquelle replies with a little false smile, running her fingers through Terrence’s hair.       “I almost went crazy when I briefly thought you were taken away along with Helene.”       “Nope, I didn’t run into those men. A miracle saved me, I guess. And Serena. Who distracted me with a talk.”       “My girl…”       Terrence caresses Raquelle’s head tenderly and kisses her on the temple multiple times.       “Don’t scare me like this anymore! Otherwise, I’m gonna go crazy. I won’t be able to live quietly without you.”       “I’m sorry about what happened.” Raquelle caresses Terrence’s cheek tenderly after she steps away from him a little. “I didn’t want to scare you at all.”       “It’s okay, sunshine… It’s okay…”       Terrence caresses Raquelle’s cheeks with both hands and kisses her sweetly on her temple with a heavy breath. Meanwhile, Anna cries a little on Peter’s shoulder when she hugs him, and then Daniel takes his depressed friend in a strong hug and claps him on the head, while the blond tries so hard to keep his emotions deep inside.       “Hold on, Peter, it’s gonna be okay,” Daniel encourages, clapping Peter on the shoulder and squeezing it tightly. “We’ll find Helene wherever she is.”       “I barely believe,” Peter shakes his head.       “No, no, we won’t give up so easily! We won’t give this girl to that bastard and his jackals! No way!”       “I swear I shall kill that bastard if something happens to her. I shall grab a knife and get it into Marcus.”       “Can’t believe it’s really happening,” Anna says in a shaking voice as she cries bitterly. “I don’t want Helene to die. I don’t want anything to happen to her.”       “She will not die, guys, you’ll see it!” Daniel says with his head proudly raised. “Helene will be found alive and healthy. We will not give up!”       At this moment, Terrence comes to Peter and takes him in a strong, friendly hug, clapping the guy on the back and rubbing it slightly. While Raquelle spreads her arms to press Anna to herself, caresses her head, and kisses her on the top of her head, and smiles slightly at Daniel, who hugs the brunette too.       “Thank God, you’re okay,” Daniel says with relief.       “Yeah, I’m okay,” Raquelle replies quietly. “Don’t worry, Daniel.”       “Keep your head up, Pete, we’ll find her,” Terrence promises and squeezes Peter’s forearms. “It’s gonna be okay. That asshole will do nothing to her.”       “If Helene dies, I’ll never forgive myself for that,” Peter says as he shakes his head. “Never, hear me! I will not bear it. I will not!”       “What happened today is not your fault.”       “That’s what we call… Calm before the storm… That bastard lay low and showed up when nobody expected anything from him.”       “We’re here, brother,” Daniel says confidently, hugging Peter around the shoulder. “We’re ready to help you with everything and listen.”       “Yeah, if you feel bad, don’t hold it down,” Terrence encourages. “Speak out everything you feel.”       “I only feel one thing…” Peter replies in a low, shaking voice. “A wish to die… Because I feel fucking bad.”       “Quiet, buddy, quiet,” Terrence comforts, clapping Peter on the back of his head and his back. “We will not leave you.”       While Raquelle tries so hard to comfort Anna, and Daniel and Terrence give their support to Peter, Scarlett sits on the bed with tears in her eyes and yanks Sammy softly by his ears. At some moment, the dog gets the friends’ attention with his emotional whine.       “Sammy, boy…” Anna opens her eyes widely and closes her mouth with her hands. “My God…”       “Hey, how are you feeling, buddy?” Daniel asks with sympathy, getting down to his knees in front of Sammy and petting his head.       Then Sammy whines with great pity.       “My God, what those assholes did to you!” Terrence horrifies, squatting down and stroking Sammy’s back.       “He’s lucky the wound turned out to be mild,” Raquelle says quietly. “All his wounds have been disinfected, sewn, and bandaged.”       “Poor boy, he feels so bad,” Anna notices thoughtfully, sitting on the edge of the bed, and reaches out her hand, in which Sammy snuggles his nose tenderly.       “He had no chance against the crowd,” Scarlett sighs heavily. “No matter how much he wanted to save my granddaughter.”       Again, Sammy makes a loud, heartbreaking howl, showing his unbearable pain and sense of shame that is eating him inside.       “No, no, Sammy, it’s okay,” Terrence calms down softly. “You did everything you could. You wouldn’t have been able to fight against the crowd alone.”       “Quiet, quiet, Sammy, what happened to Helene is not your fault,” Daniel says after Sammy howls again. “You couldn’t change it at all.”       “Sammy, please, don’t break our hearts,” Anna begs with pity in her eyes. “It’s too hard for us, but your howl is about to make me hysterical.”       “My God, what’s gonna happen to the poor boy?” Scarlett wonders with tears in her eyes, squeezing tightly the handkerchief in her hands. “What do we do to him, while we know nothing about Helene? What’s gonna happen if we don’t make it by time, and she dies?”       “No, no, Mrs. Marshall, don’t say it!” Terrence protests and gets up quickly. “Believe that it’s gonna be alright.”       “We can only comfort ourselves with these words.” Scarlett sniffs quietly. “But if we think soberly, the situation is hopeless.”       “Mrs. Marshall, please…” Daniel pronounces with pity in his eyes, getting up too.       “It would be okay if we knew where they hid her. It would be okay if we had some clues. But we have nothing! Nothing! These cads even threw Helene’s bag with her phone, money, and cards. She can’t contact us at all. And they won’t let her do it.”       “Yeah, but we know for sure that it was Marcus Longbottom’s work,” Peter notices, sitting next to Scarlett. “And the police know about him due to his crimes from the past.”       “Jesus Christ, if that’s really Marcus, who killed more than one hundred people in the 90s, I’m horrified. Horrified by what that stinker may want to do to my girl.”       “We’re afraid of this to death, too,” Anna says in a low, shaking voice. “Remembering how cruel his crimes were.”       “He’ll murder Helene…” Scarlett exhales with a shake, while Peter strokes her back softly. “Marcus will not leave my granddaughter alive. She’ll be another victim of him.”       Closing her mouth with a hand, Scarlett keeps crying bitterly as she breaks the hearts of the depressed and emptied Anna, Raquelle, Daniel, Terrence, and Peter.       “Damn, I’d rather let those bastards catch me again,” Peter says in a low voice, locking his fingers tightly and doubling over. “I’d rather get through everything they did to me the last time. I feel bad at the thought that Helene may go through the same things.”       “Honestly, I have no idea what to do,” Raquelle puts her hands on her hips.       “What can we do?” Anna shrugs. “We have the witnesses to the kidnapping, but they only confirmed the fact and memorized the criminals.”       “Maybe, we should find the owner of the car, in which they drove Helene away?” Daniel asks. “Raquelle, don’t you have the number?”       “Yes, the man memorized it and wrote it on a piece of paper,” Raquelle nods. “I have it in my bag. And just in case, I got the mobile numbers from him and his mother.”       “Didn't they see who was driving?” Terrence specifies. “What if he’s the owner?”       “The old lady said the man with a bun on his head was driving it.”       “It was his car, then,” Peter concludes.       “Does it make sense?” Scarlett throws her hands up. “What if that guy is innocent in the law's eyes? Marcus, who started it all, is the only one not to be.”       “Not quite,” Daniel protests. “The one who attacked Peter after one of our concerts got a so-called black label. Everything started with that moment.”       “Yeah, the security managed to catch him quickly and called the police shortly,” Terrence adds. “But as we understand, they didn’t put him in jail.”       “Marcus kinda helped that man pay the penalty that he got,” Peter says thoughtfully. “And I don’t know what will happen to him next. Maybe, they’ve actually dropped all the charges. I wouldn’t be surprised.”       “Damn, Mr. Johnson decided to leave the city at such a wrong time,” Raquelle swears.       “On the way here, the guys and I recorded a voice message to him and explained the situation,” Anna confesses. “He’ll listen to it and tell us what to do when he has time.”       “Yeah, what do we do before it happens?” Scarlett wonders. “Wait for that cad to decide to murder my granddaughter?”       “There’s hope that he may show up with some specific claims,” Daniel says thoughtfully.       “But he will hardly not,” Terrence assumes. “He didn’t commit the kidnapping to get money out of us.”       “Anyway, if we have a little clue related to her location, we must go there immediately and take her out,” Peter says determinedly.       “Damn, it’s hard to find someone when you don’t have any information about where they could be,” Raquelle exhales sharply. “When the criminal is hiding in their hole.”       “It seems like we only have to wait, pray, and believe that my girl will not do stupid things in fear,” Scarlett replies and sniffs quietly.       “Do or not, but if Marcus is determined to murder her, nothing will help her,” Anna makes a quiet sob. “No matter how hard Helene begs him, no matter how sweet and fluffy she is…”       “Excuse me, Mrs. Marshall, is it true that Helene ran into Marcus when she was a kid?” Raquelle asks hesitantly.       “What?” Peter frons slightly.       “True,” Scarlet nods. “Roger and I lost her one day when we went to a shop all together. We got busy with a talk with our familiar woman and didn’t notice that Helene left us behind. Later, she said she paid attention to a beautiful but too expensive doll in the showcase. We were running through the whole shop, looking for her like crazy, and asking everyone about her. The shop’s security also helped her find her when we asked them about it.”       Scarlett sighs heavily.       “My husband and I literally got like ten years older from fear. We knew well what Marcus was doing. We never stopped watching our granddaughter and held her hand every time we went somewhere, but back then, we, old idiots, got busy talking. We almost lost our little baby.”       “But did you find her?” Daniel asks.       “Helene found us. She was running to us and shouting, ‘Help!’ and started to cry bitterly when she pressed herself to Roger. We barely calmed down and barely made her come to herself. Helene was choking from excitement when she told us about the man who came to her and invited her home to look at puppies. She said she recognized him as Marcus immediately and rushed to run. And it’s amazing that he didn’t start to chase her.”       “I think we all ran into him,” Terrence shrugs. “Or know those who became his victim or could save themselves from him.”       “I wonder if Marcus will recognize her now?” Peter asks.       “Who knows,” Raquelle shrugs. “But I don't think he clearly remembers all his victims, the number of which is like three hundred people. And there are many more of those who managed to save themselves.”       “I resent that the police didn’t catch that cad,” Scarlett notices. “We got as many dead people as during some kind of terrorist attack. Crimes happened literally before their eyes, but they missed him. And he’s been living at ease for like twenty years. And… He’s getting ready to commit a new crime.”       “It’s all right, Mrs. Marshall, he will pay for all his tricks early or late,” Daniel replies confidently. “I do believe in justice personally. Since justice could not punish him, life itself will do this.”       “But how many victims will suffer before it happens?” Peter wonders. “How many people should that bastard bury in the ground? If my girlfriend has to die for this kind of justice, I don’t the fuck need it at all!”       “I don’t need this justice if my granddaughter dies,” Scarlett replies. “If she dies, I will not need anything anymore.”       “Do you think we want to lose our friend?” Raquelle wonders with eyes that are wet from tears, squatting down in front of Scarlett and taking her hand, while Peter is holding the woman in his strong hug. “Do you think Sammy wanna suffer because of his owner’s death?”       “I know my girl is not holy and has done many bad things. But she doesn’t deserve anything like this. Helene did understand that she was wrong. She is still madly sorry about what she did toward those whom she humiliated with no shame by the order of that nasty cad, Ashley Christensen.”       “Trust us, Mrs. Marshall, Anna, Natalia, and I forgave Helene a long time ago, and we reproach her for nothing. Yes, we initially gave her a chance for the men because we didn’t want to upset them. But over time, she became our close friend. We saw that your granddaughter was actually a very sweet and cool girl.”       “You forgave her, but God did not, I guess. It seems like He decided that her sins were too hard if He put her under this horrible torture.”       Sammy makes a quiet bark full of pity. Stuttering, Scarlett tries to say something else, but she eventually just waves her hand and keeps crying bitterly in the arms of Peter, who does not feel good, but who finds the strength to support the poor old woman, who is now restless because Helene is in mortal danger. Meanwhile, Anna gets up from the bed and goes aside, still crying bitterly, but later ends up pressed to the chest of Daniel, who comes to her determinedly and caresses her head tenderly. And after Terrence sits on the bed, caresses Raquelle’s cheek, and takes Scarlett’s hand, everyone can hear the ring on the doorbell.       “Oh, our lovebirds have shown up!” Terrence exclaims.       “Want me to open the door?” Peter asks, stroking Scarlett’s shoulder.       “Yes, sweetie, open it, please,” Scarlett allows faintly, waving her hand.       When Peter gets up and goes to the hall, Raquelle sits in his place, hugs Scarlett, and strokes her back softly, while Terrence yanks the whining Sammy by the ears, and Daniel keeps trying to comfort Anna with no success with a quiet, calming voice and strong hugs. After the blond opens the hall door, he sees the anxious Edward, who is hugging the shaking Natalia wiping tears under her eyes around her shoulders.       “Hey, guys,” Peter greets without emotions and steps aside to let the visitors in.       “Peter, brother…” Edward pronounces with anxiety and takes Peter in a tight hug. “How are you?”       “Wanna hang myself.”       “I completely understand your feelings.” Edward claps Peter slightly on his head and back. “I also went crazy when Uncle Michael held Natalia at his house for four days by force.”       “And just like you, I wanna kill Marcus with my own hands. I shall do this. I shall do this if Helene dies. I swear I shall skin him alive.”       “Hold on, buddy, we’re with you.” Edward steps away from Peter and takes him by the forearms. “You can count on us in everything.”       “Yeah, Pete, whatever happens, we’ll not leave you,” Natalia promises and sobs loudly when she hugs Peter tightly. “Whatever you do. Whatever you say.”       “Thanks a lot, guys,” Peter thanks with a false smile. “If not for you, I would go insane from grief. You’re my salvation, my strength.”       “The guys are here?”       “Yup, we’re waiting for you only.”       “What about Sammy?”       “Coming to himself. The wounds aren’t deep. A little bit of rest before he recovers.”       “Thank God…” Edward exhales sharply.       “Let’s go, you’ll see everything now.”       Edward and Natalia go to Scarlett’s room after Peter, who inclines his head and thinks about something terrible, not feeling a super great relief from getting his friends’ infinite support. After the visitors, who are a little late, show up, everyone moves their eyes to them shortly.       “Finally, guys!” Terrence exclaims, getting up sharply from the bed.       “Where have you been?” Daniel asks.       “Long story,” Edward replies gloomily. “And it’s not the time to talk about it.”       Although Terrence and Daniel understand everything when they see a slight bruise on the curve of Edward’s neck that he did not cover, they glance at each other, deciding to be silent about it gently. Instead, the guys just come to him to greet him by hugging him amicably, while Natalia rushes into the hugs of Raquelle and Anna and lets her emotions out, while the girls press her to themselves at the same time.       “Quiet, quiet, Natalia, don’t cry,” Daniel tries to calm down, hugging Natalia tightly and caressing her back. “It’s gonna be okay.”       “We will find Helene,” Terrence assures, caressing Natalia’s head. “Wherever she is.”       “Hold on, Mrs. Marshall,” Edward encourages, taking the crying Scarlett in his strong hug. “Believe that it’s going to be alright.”       Scarlett says nothing and just waves her hand, closing her mouth with it, while Natalia comes to her and hugs her around the shoulders. And after he tries to comfort Raquelle and Anna with the same strong, friendly hugs, Edward glances at Sammy lying on the floor powerlessly, comes to him, squats down, and pets the dog’s head softly.       “Sammy, buddy…” Edward pronounces with sympathy in his eyes and scratches Sammy’s face after the dog whines with pity. “Those assholes didn’t pity you…”       “My gosh, poor baby…” Natalia horrifies, bends to Sammy and pets the dog’s head, while he looks at her and Edward with a heartbreaking pity. “My heart bleeds when I look at you…”       “He's so sorry about not being able to do anything,” Scarlett says thoughtfully. “Not being able to save his owner.”       “Who’s been taken away right before his eyes…” Raquelle adds thoughtfully, while Anna and Natalia are pressing themselves to her as closely as possible.       “And who we won’t find so easily,” Natalia adds. “Whether we’ll actually find her…”       “No matter how hard we try to calm ourselves down, the situation is really hopeless,” Edward notices with sadness, gets up, and hugs Peter around the shoulders. “At least, now.”       “Yeah, we’ve gotta turn on the long, tormenting suspense mode,” Peter crosses his arms over his chest. “We have to wait for that asshole to show up so we can hang him by the balls with his head down.”       “I completely understand why Helene feels now,” Natalia embraces herself with both arms. “I know what it’s like to be held by someone by force in a place you don’t know. When you’re all alone, far from your close people, without a chance to ask someone for help.”       “When Michael held you at his house, we only had to wait too,” Anna recalls.       “We waited for four days, but how long will we have to wait this time?” Terrence asks. “How long will that asshole keep mocking us?”       “How long will that asshole keep mocking me?” Peter fixes. “Marcus decided to torture me enough before putting me in the grave.”       “I don’t think he’ll be silent for more than one week,” Daniel assumes. “That bastard won’t play time, no matter how much he loves making pleasure longer.”       “Would your familiar person working in the police help us for sure?” Scarlett asks hesitantly. “Can we trust him? Will he not tell us to get out?”       “No, Mrs. Marshall, don’t even think about it!” Peter raises his head proudly. “Victor Johnson is an old friend of Terrence and Edward’s father, who’s always come to help us and done a lot for the guys and me.”       “Yeah, that man is very responsible for his work and deeply respected by his colleagues,” Raquelle adds.       “Oh, hey, I forgot to tell you that I’d talked to him before I came here,” Edward says.       “What do you mean?” Anna rounds her eyes.       “It’s true,” Natalia confirms. “As it turned out, Mr. Johnson came back yesterday. And he contacted Edward himself. He told him about a voice message from Terrence, Daniel, and Anna.”       “We recorded it before coming here,” Daniel confesses. “We thought he’d listen to it in his free time and call us.”       “He listened to it,” Edward replies. “And he said he got it all and would be working on this case much more carefully.”       “By the way, he also asked if it was possible to talk to Mrs. Marshall so she could report Helene’s kidnapping to the police,” Natalia adds.       “Yes, yes, sure, Mr. Policeman can come,” Scarlett allows. “At any time.”       “Edward and I gave him your home address and said we were headed here. Mr. Johnson said he’d come within half an hour if you agreed.”       “I will do anything he says. I agree to do anything to find my granddaughter.”       “I will now text him and say you agree,” Edward says, taking his smartphone from the inside pocket of his jacket.       “Oh, thank God, he’s here…” Raquelle exhales sharply, running her hands over her hair.       “There’s a little hope that he will do something, but we should go to the police and report the kidnapping anyway,” Anna adds.       “At least, thanks to the case of Peter, we managed to learn the identity of the one who started it all,” Terrence notices.       “But we may have problems with clues,” Daniel expresses anxiety. “That cad and his henchmen do everything so that they don’t leave any tracks.”       “Agree,” Scarlett pronounces. “The police didn't even prove that Marcus had anything to do with all those murders. Yes, there are some diaries, but they did not prove that they belonged to him. And he also got rid of all the tracks carefully. There were no guns on the crime scenes. So, it’s stupid to expect something this time.”       “Even if you think you planned everything well, there’s always a chance that you miss something,” Terrence notices. “Even if you think you’re a lord of strategies, it doesn’t mean you can’t lose because of one little detail that may put an end to your effort. Marcus probably didn’t take a note about some problems that might play a major role in this story and help us save Helene.”       “Anyway, there’s a higher chance of finding her with the police’s help,” Natalia notices. “Maybe, we do think the situation is hopeless. But the police can actually do this quickly.”       “Oh, Marcus, fucking asshole…” Peter hisses through his teeth, comes to the writing table, and leans on it with his hands. “I wish you died, bastard… I shall personally do this if I lose Helene because of you. I shall personally lynch you. And I give a fuck about what will happen to me.”       Everyone says nothing and just looks at each other and Sammy with sad eyes, while the dog just barks quietly. While the girls hold each other and Scarlett in a strong hug, not being able to hold down the tears, the men come to Rose and try to comfort him somehow. Though they understand that they can hardly encourage him with words about his girlfriend being alright. Because they are not sure about this.       “Pete, bro…” Daniel pronounces with pity in his eyes, hugging Peter amicably and putting the blond’s head on his shoulder with a slight movement.       “Why was it her?” Peter wonders in a low, shaking voice. “Why did it the fuck happen to Helene? Did she really deserve it?”       “We’re here, buddy, we’ll help you,” Terrence promises, clapping Peter on his head and cheek. “And don’t be shy of your emotions. If you wanna speak, do this.”       “Fuck, I would rather let those bastards catch me again. I would take anything if it had saved the life of my girlfriend.”       “In this case, we would be restless because of you,” Edward notices, taking Peter’s hands. “Just like we were when you disappeared one week ago.”       “If I lose her, you can’t even try to save me. I shall never come to myself after this. Never.”       “No, no, buddy, don’t say it!” Daniel protests.       “If she dies, I shall die too. If Marcus wants me to die, he will get it. I shall give him this pleasure. I shall. So that old bastard chokes!”       “Oh, no, we won’t give you and Helene to him so easily,” Edward says confidently. “If he wants your skin, he must deal with us first.”       “Nobody dares to hurt our close people,” Terrence adds. “Marcus and his ass-lickers will pay a lot for what they’ve already done. They will not get away from it so easily.”       “It’s insane, guys,” Peter pronounces desperately. “Just insane. I won’t take it. It’s beyond me.”       Choking from excitement, Peter squeezes Daniel in his hug so tightly that the brunet feels a little discomfort. Nevertheless, Perkins does not show it, just presses his buddy to himself and strokes his head, seeing clearly how much the blond needs it and thinking words will hardly make him feel good in this situation. Terrence rubs Rose’s back softly and then hugs his friend when the blond shows initiative, while Edward presses both of them to himself. Peter’s friends apply much effort to hold themselves down, seeing how depressed their close friend is, while he hides his wet, red eyes shamelessly. He tried so hard to hold on until the very end, but Helene’s situation struck him down and made him weak and vulnerable, and any advice to brace himself make him, to be honest, kind of enraged.       Even though Raquelle, Natalia, and Anna do not feel better, they find the strength to try to comfort the restless Scarlett. While Sammy watches the woman with sad eyes and shows his sympathy with a quiet, heartbreaking bark that breaks their hearts.       “Mrs. Marshall, for God’s sake, pity yourself a little,” Natalia begs softly, holding Scarlett’s hand. “You’re gonna have high blood pressure from worrying.”       “How can I be quiet when my granddaughter is now with some evil people, not with me?” Scarlett wonders with tears in her eyes. “I will not be sleeping at nights… I will be praying to the Icon of the Holy Mother… Beg God to protect my girl…”       “Sadly, we can do nothing at the moment,” Raquelle replies. “There’s no need to deny it. But I’m sure it’s gonna be alright. The police will surely find Helene.”       “My God, I didn’t think something bad would happen when Helene left home with Sammy. I did my business and watched my favorite TV show with calm in my soul.”       “We expected nothing bad, too,” Anna replies. “We all had a wonderful mood this morning. At least me. But now I wanna pull my hair out and cry my eyes out. Because my friend is in trouble. This is the second kidnapping that I remember. First, it was Natalia, but now it’s Helene.”       “And how does Peter feel now?”       Scarlett moves her wet eyes to Peter, who is hugged tightly by Edward at this moment, while Daniel and Terrence say something to him.       “The poor boy can barely hold on. His eyes are wet, and he’s shaking. I’m even afraid to imagine what’s gonna happen to him if we lose Helene. He will go crazy without her. Just like me. I will not be able to live without my granddaughter.”       “Mrs. Marshall, please…” Natalia begs with pity in her eyes.       “Your face is red now, but your eyes are puffy,” Anna notices, caressing Scarlett’s hand and wrist. “And your heartbeat is fast…”       “Oh, I also have a headache…” Scarlett winces slightly, rubbing her temples energetically. “And my heart is kind of beating in my head.”       “I think you should lie down,” Raquelle says thoughtfully. “Have some rest before Mr. Johnson comes, and we’ll be with you.”       “And it’s kind of hard to breathe. As if something is pressing my chest. Too much…”       Scarlett puts her hand on her heart, which works at maximum capacity with a heavy breath.       “It’s alright, Mrs. Marshall, it’s alright,” Raquelle tries to calm down, taking Scarlett’s hand. “Breathe deeper.”       “I guess my blood pressure is high,” Scarlett assumes. “From excitement.”       “We told you to think of yourself!” Natalia recalls.       “How could I think of myself when my sweetheart is in trouble? When I can’t be next to my girl and comfort her? Helene is the dearest thing I have in the world.”       While Scarlett cries bitterly, not feeling good, Terrence moves his eyes to the girls at some moment and decides to come to them, seeing how anxious they are. And then Daniel joins them, hugging Peter and Edward by the shoulders at the same time.       “Mrs. Marshall, if you feel bad, let’s call an ambulance?” Terrence suggests.       “No, no, don’t need it,” Scarlett refuses. “I just have high blood pressure. I’ve gotten through it a million times, I already know what this is.”       “Where are your cures?” Peter asks.       “In a drawer in the kitchen. The smallest door. There is a small plastic box with all the tablets. It has a yellow pack. That’s my tablets for stabilizing my blood pressure. Give them to me, please…”       “I will try to find them.”       Inclining his head, Peter goes quickly to the kitchen to find the necessary tablets. However, he does not rush to come back shortly and lets his emotions out, while everyone is much more anxious about the condition of the old woman. Leaning on the surface with his shaking hands, the guy lets himself cry quietly from the realization of how hopeless the situation is and the fact that he cannot change it. Every beat of his heart gives him pain in the chest, he kind of lacks the air catastrophically, and a shake gets through every cell of his body and squeezes his muscles as if someone squeezes a towel.       Peter opens the drawer with cures, takes the plastic box, and takes the blister that he sees first. Being in some kind of trance, he comes back to the bedroom, gives the girl what he has in his hands, and sets his dead eyes into the distance, falling deeper and deeper into his dark thoughts that possess his mind like gray tight clouds. The guy does not react to Anna’s words about him giving them the wrong tablets. Then she goes to the kitchen to find what she needs, while he stops his eyes on the scissors that are placed in a little glass alongside some pencils and pens. The cold metal literally hypnotizes Rose, making him think that he should take just one step to feel good. And he does not even think of resisting, stopping to hear everything his friends say, and focusing on the fast beat of his heart and the voice that sounds in his head only, and takes total control of him.       Peter comes to the writing table on his weak legs in a slow step and wants to take the scissors in his hands. But at this moment, Daniel looks around the whole bedroom with tired eyes and oohs quietly when he sees his friend’s hand reach out to the scissors that he definitely wants to use to harm himself. Not thinking a lot, the man gets up from the bed sharply and pulls the blond aside. While Rose keeps being in a trance and looking into the distance with dead eyes, as he does not hear anything everyone says and does not react at all when Perkins takes him by the shoulders and tells him to look at him loudly. Nevertheless, Peter does not show any resistance when Perkins seats him on the bed and keeps trying to wake the man up with no success. That’s how the blond scares the men and the girls, who are terribly worried that the situation with Helene has already started to drive him crazy little by little.       

***

      The evening light that gets through the small window with rotten frames with no glass does not light up the room with a sloped ceiling on the highest level under the roof. The walls are covered with yellow wallpaper that is ripped in some areas, and the rotten, gray parquet on the floor is covered with a thick layer of dust. Spiders made tight webs in the corners of the room, and naked feet would get immediately dirty after a couple of steps due to pieces of concrete, pieces of paper, and some trash that nobody needs. The white door that is amazingly in good condition is closed tightly, and the only socket in the room probably does not work. And it will be dangerous to insert a plug in it since live wires will not do anything good to a person.       There is nothing here except the bed with the rusty headboard and the foot of the bed. A young girl is lying unconscious on the yellow mattress. Her black hair is lying on the pillow that lost its original form and is now as soft as a pancake and stands out against her pale skin, the light green top made of cotton is raised slightly, showing a part of her flat belly, her legs seems visually long in her light blue denim shorts, and her sneakers that used to be snow white are now covered with a layer of dirt. Helene has been sleeping deeply for several hours after she was injected with something that made her lose control of her body and the situation. And even if she is all alone in this room now, it does not mean nobody comes to check on her condition not to let her die earlier. At some moment, a fly gets on one of the girl’s legs after flying in circles for a long time and makes its way to her abdomen and then comes back to her legs and flies away for its business. And a hungry mosquito leaves several bites on her body, which is now covered with specific red spots and blisters.       Who knows how much time is gone before Helene’s closed liquids shake, and she barely moves the fingers of the hand that is lying beside her. The girl makes a very slow but deep sigh and a quiet, painful moan, starting to move her whole body little by little. And when she barely opens her eyes and sets them in the distance, she cannot see anything since her vision is too unclear, and all the objects are blurred so that they become a spot. But Marshall quickly realizes that she feels a little dizzy and can barely move due to the strong weakness. She puts her head on her forehead with a heavy sigh and keeps her eyes closed for some time, making herself breathe deeply with the hope that it can help her come to herself a little.       A little later, Helene raises herself on her elbows with a sense of the heaviness in her head and sits up very slowly, even though she does not have the strength at all. After looking around with a much clearer vision, the girl gets a little pale with the thought that her heart stops for a moment. The room where she is now is unfamiliar to her. She immediately gets millions of questions on her mind, but she cannot find the answer to at least some of them.       “What’s this place?” Helene asks herself in a little hoarse voice, looking around again and again. “What am I doing here? What actually happened?”       Rubbing her painful temples energetically, Helene looks around the dark, dirty, and dusty room for some time. She shakes sharply in surprise when she sees a fly fly by her nose. She tenses all her muscles when she hears a suspicious squeak somewhere here. The fear makes the girl open her eyes widely, hold her breath, and feel that her skin gets covered with goosebumps. Looking into the distance tensely, the girl presses her knees to herself unconsciously and squeaks quietly when she thinks a mouse is scratching something not far from her.       “My God, what’s this?” Helene wonders with half-wet eyes and embraces herself with both arms, putting her head on her shoulders with a wish to become small and invisible. “My God… I’m scared…”       Due to the lack of air, Helene starts breathing deeply and heavily, feeling that the skin on her legs starts itching at some moment. She understands that she has been bitten by mosquitoes, even though she does not know what could happen. A suspicious scratch makes the girl tenser and tenser and makes her fear much stronger because she is all alone at this unfamiliar place. And after thinking a little, Marshall recalls all the memories that happened to her before she lost consciousness after the injection she got.       “It’s them…” Helene pronounces in a shaking voice. “They brought me here… Those people…”       The heart starts beating like crazy right against her chest and temples. The whole body is squeezed by the invisible icy chains, and every single muscle twitches from strong tension. Helene’s mind refuses categorically to accept the thought that she stayed all alone and ended up taken hostage by the horrible people, and makes her think it’s just her nightmare.       “No, no…” Helene shakes her head sharply. “No, it can’t be the truth… Please, God, not this… For God’s sake… No… I wish it were a nightmare… Please…”       Helene shouts quietly when she glances at the dirty floor and sees a big red cockroach walking as if it were in its home. And she presses her legs much closer to herself when she sees a middle-sized spider that does not care about her since it’s busy weaving webs. Then the girl exhales with a shake, stopping to hold down the tears that wet her red eyes and roll over her cheeks fast.       “Someone…” Helene pronounces in a high, loud, and shaking voice and exhales sharply in fear. “Help me… Can someone hear me? Hey!”       Helene wants to believe that she is not alone, that someone else is near. For example, Raquelle, with whom she walked before what happened. Or Sammy, who was wounded with a knife by Luther some time before she was dragged into the infinite darkness. But after a few attempts to call out somewhere, nobody answers her. And the thought that nobody can hear her pray about salvation makes her horrified to death.       “No…” Helene shakes her head sharply and sniffs loudly. “No, not this! It can’t be the truth! It’s not happening to me! No… NO-O-O-O-O-O!”       Screaming at the top of her lungs, Helene starts crying bitterly from fear that possesses her mind and makes her feel like a little, unprotected girl.       “Peter…” Helene pronounces in despair. “Peter, please, help me… I need you… Please, save me… I’m so scared…”       Helene wipes some tears off her face with one movement of her hand, sits on the edge of the bed, and gets up so sharply that her legs get immediately weak, and she shakes due to the slight dizziness. Nevertheless, the girl starts walking in the whole small room by force with the hope of finding something that can help her get out. But it turns out to be a hard thing because there is not enough light here, and the light gets in here through the only small window in the daylight only. She starts to panic a lot when she understands she cannot find her bag with her phone, wallet, money, and all her cards. Just like the opportunity to contact someone and ask them for help. And her heart misses a beat when the brunette comes to the door and finds out that it does not open, no matter if she pushes it or pulls.       “Damn, locked…” Helene pronounces excitedly and tries to open the door two more times. “Neither this nor that works! It’s locked…”       Helene takes several attempts to do this, falling into a hysteria more and more.       “Someone, open the door! Please, let me out of here!” Helene hits the door with her fists strongly. “Can someone hear me? Hey! Let me out! Please, help! I don’t wanna stay here! I’m scared! Please, for God’s sake! Please, OPEN!”       Helene starts hitting the door much more strongly with a scream.       “LET ME OUT OF HERE! OPEN THE DOOR! FOR GOD’S SAKE! DOES SOMEONE HEAR ME? PLEASE, LET ME OUT! I DON’T WANNA STAY HERE! I DON’T WANT!”       But no matter how loudly and heartbreakingly Helene screams, no matter how hard she hits the door with her fists and hands, nobody even thinks of letting her out of here. Then the girl runs to the window with a heavy breath and looks at everything she can see through the small frame. She figures out that the room is on the highest floor and only sees the thick woods located far from the busy city in a very quiet and deaf place. It makes Marshall think she is definitely too far from her home, and getting out of the place she does not know would be a hard mission for her.       “Damn!” Helene swears. “I can’t get out of here. Neither this small window that I can’t get through nor the locked door. But even if I get out of here magically, where do I run?”       After standing in front of the window for some time, Helene comes to the bed, sits on it powerlessly, and looks around the whole room again, losing hope of finding just something good for her.       “No, no, I don’t wanna believe it…” Helene makes a quiet sob. “I don’t want… It cannot be my last goodbye… It cannot! I can’t die! I don’t want! I don’t want! I DON’T WANT!”       Helene lies on the bed like a stone, rolls onto her stomach, and hides her head in her arms, crying bitterly with heartbreaking shouts and not paying attention to the smell of something rotten that the old mattress, which is supposed to be thrown, spreads. She still does not want to admit the hopelessness of her situation, but the events kind of make her do this on purpose. Make her feel like an unprotected child who stayed alone among unfamiliar people, who may not always have good thoughts.       “God, did I really deserve it? WHY? Did I really deserve it all? Why was it me? WHY? WHY?”       Choking on tears that roll over her cheeks and wet the mattress, Helene does not notice that a much louder squeak spreads throughout the room at some moment. However, when it happens again, the girl shaking sharply looks around with widely open eyes and stops them on the door that opens with a disgusting squeak after someone pushes it very strongly. The girl breathing heavily and getting sharply pale sits up and presses her back against the headboard, pressing her legs to her chest and literally stopping to blink as she looks at the moving object non-stop.       Marcus smiling slyly shows up on the doorstep. As usual, he remains amazingly calm and cold. When he sees the tear-stained Helene sitting on the bed, he raises his head proudly with the thought that his plan is working like magic.       “M-m-m, hello, girl,” Marcus says confidently, closes the door, and comes to the bed determinedly. “I heard you screaming and hitting the door and thought, ‘Oh, our Sleeping Beauty has finally woken up!’”       “Who are you?” Helene asks in a high, shaking voice. “What do you want from me?”       “My name is Marcus. Marcus Longbottom. And I am one of those whom you will have to see often in the near future.”       “What am I doing here? Why did you bring me here?”       “You and I would’ve never met if not for certain events.”       “Wait… It’s you… You’re the one who is chasing Peter and wants to kill him.”       “It’s correct, baby,” Marcus confirms with a wide smile and sits on the edge of the bed. “I need Peter’s skin.”       “What did he do to you? Why do you want to get rid of him?”       “C’mon, enough, Helene, enough. Why do you ask the old man so many questions?”       “What do you think I should do after waking up in a room full of some living things?”       “You will spend the rest of your life in this room. You have very little time to live.”       “What?”       “Yes, yes, dolly, you’ll be my captive that will die when I think it’s your time.”       “No…” Helene shakes her head sharply. “No, please, don’t do this…”       “Of course, I am madly sorry that the world is going to lose such a sympathetic young girl. But I cannot let the close people of my enemy stay alive.”       Marcus puts his finger on his lip.       “To be clear… I can’t let those who mean a lot to Peter stay alive. I have a goal of torturing him a lot and driving him crazy before he personally gets his own place at a cemetery. Or he will not. Who knows. Maybe, he will not have a grave.”       “For God’s sake, Mr. Longbottom, let me out of here,” Helene begs with tears in her eyes. “Please, don’t do anything bad to me.”       “I’m sorry, Helene, but it’s impossible. And it will be impossible even if Peter and you want to end your relationship for one or another reason. No matter what, you will always mean the whole world to him.”       “I don’t wanna die…” Helene sniffs loudly. “I’m only twenty-five. Almost twenty-six.”       “Aw, don’t worry, my sweetheart.”       Marcus claps Helene slightly on her knee, making her shake slightly with widely open eyes and the feeling that an electric wave has been sent through her whole body.       “I promise your death will not be tormenting,” Marcus promises. “Everything will be over shortly. You will not understand a thing. While Peter will have to suffer a lot, I shall be good for you and end your suffering quickly.”       “Why are you doing this?” Helene wonders. “Why do you want to kill us? What did I do? What did Peter do?”       “It’s a very long story, honey.”       “He's guilty of nothing for you! Peter didn’t know you at all before your people kidnapped him!”       “Yeah, we did it one week ago.”       Marcus gets up from the bed and starts walking slowly in circles in the whole room, locking his fingers tightly.       “Peter should’ve stayed captivated until his death. I wasn’t going to let him go. And I personally let my guys torture this man as much as they wanted. So to say, take it out on him after they are annoyed by the furious bosses that wash their brains so hard. Your sweetheart should’ve been their toy.”       “You almost killed him!” Helene breaks into a cry. “The guys and I were shocked when we saw you made to him! He was all in blood, with bruises, with the tracks of an electric gun.”       “It was funny, I must confess,” Marcus laughs evilly. “My guys had fun, but I watched. With great pleasure. But if I’d known they’d let me watch such an amazing show, I would’ve taken something to eat.”       “Assholes!” Helene starts breathing heavily from excitement. “You would’ve paid a lot if he’d died!”       “Relax, girl, you cannot kill a person with an electric gun. And Peter took all the hits from my friends well. He never squawked. Yes, he screamed like crazy, of course, when they hit him with an electric gun. But he never said a word about pitying.”       Marcus sighs disappointedly.       “Though, I hope. I hoped to hear him begging me about it.”       “It’s insane…” Helene shakes her head. “Just insane…”       “Yes, he managed to untie himself and run away from me and my people by stealing the car of one of them. But Peter did not get away from me. I shall not leave him alone. Yes, I kindly gave him one week to come to himself a little. But it will not happen again. Now I shall do my best for the boy to be tense all the time.”       “He will, don’t doubt. When he knows you’ve kidnapped me.”       “I know, I know,” Marcus nods confidently. “And I am more than sure that your sweetheart is going crazy from grief. He is probably crying like a girl in the hugs of his pals, who will also be dead if they keep meddling in our business.”       “They will, do not doubt!” Helene exclaims. “And Peter will not leave me! He will find me and take me out of here!”       “And now you are wrong, beautiful,” Marcus clicks his fingers, stopping sharply and turning on Helene. “Nobody can find you at this place. It’s too far from the city. And you can only come here in a car.”       “They will ask for help! The police will find me! My friends and boyfriend have probably already reported my kidnapping.”       “Oh, they can even send a letter to the president of the country! They cannot do anything. We do not leave tracks, and the guys and I are clean and innocent for the law, just like virgins.”       “I don’t know what about your friends, but the case of you is different.”       “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”       “You know it all well. You know what the secrets of your dark past are hiding. What you haven’t paid for to the fullest extent of the law.”       “Let’s not talk about it. Let’s better talk about you, my sweet Helene Miranda Marshall. About the secrets you are hiding from your boyfriend and all your friends.”       “Since you avoid the answer, it means it’s the truth.”       “Just like you do. I was sure you were pretending to be innocent and puffy for everyone, not telling anyone about what you did in the past.”       “Don’t say what you don’t know about.”       “Oh, no, I know everything about you. I know what kind of bullying you put two innocent girls under, even if they did nothing bad to you. I know you’re the reason why many more innocent people suffered.”       “The problem with the girls has been solved already.”       “Maybe. What about the others?”       Marcus brings his face close to the face of Helene, who bends back with widely open eyes.       “Did you beg the others for forgiveness? Or do they keep paying for your sins?”       “I…” Helene pronounces hesitantly in a shaking voice. “I… D-d-don’t und-d-derstand…”       “Don’t act like an idiot, Helene. You should also know how to pretend. I am well aware of everything thanks to the one who betrayed you.”       Marcus smirks evilly.       “I decided to learn much more about you when I finally found out the identity of Peter Rose’s girlfriend. And… I think I was super lucky.”       “And who betrayed me?” Helene asks.       “M-m-m, does it mean you will deny nothing?”       “Let me think…” Helene thinks for two seconds, frowning slightly. “That’s the girl from my school who bullied everyone whom she disliked. Including my friends.”       “I can only say just one thing to you: you were betrayed by the girl and the man.”       “Girl and man?”       “They are some of your victims. Some of my guys are lucky to be their familiars. And when they found out we wanted to get some dirty information about you, these young people kindly told us everything. They told us you were a nasty bitch in your school days. Who was the reason why your grandfather and grandmother had to be ashamed of everyone.”       “No…”       “They are still suffering from the consequences of your tricks. You did not recognize your fault even when you were revealed one day. You shouted that you were guilty of nothing, but someone framed you.”       “I’m still ashamed to remember that,” Helene says with tears in her eyes. “I… I am really sorry about everything I did. I swear… If I could change everything, I would never do anything like that.”       “Yeah… You were even worse than the school queen, whom the guys talked about, too. It’s like, Ashley Christensen was a bitch, but Helene Marshall was a more shameless snake.”       “I was young! Stupid… I didn’t know what was good and what was bad. I didn’t listen to my grandpa and grandma because I considered myself an adult and thought I could decide what to do by myself.”       “Age is not an excuse for a lack of brain. Gray hair does not guarantee you are smart, but youth does not mean you are not stupid. Even if you were a little girl, you should’ve had brains. I think a one-year-old baby understands much more of what you did back then.”       “Did you get mad at me because of that story? Did I harm someone who meant a lot to you? Tell me!”       “No, Helene, the case is not about it. I just want to use the information I know for my own interest. Use the fact that you haven’t told at least Peter anything.”       “I was going to tell him!”       “It’s too late now, baby. You had a chance that you successfully fucked up, pardon me.”       “You are happy!” Helene throws gloomily and wipes tears under her eyes. “You sent tons of messages to Peter every day, showering me with mud so hard.”       “And I got what I wanted – he started to look at you badly. He started to suspect you of not being loyal and lying to him.”       “And you are happy to support this thing!”       “Why not? When he knows he doesn’t have to do with your sins, it will be too late. However, Peter will not like everything you did to those who did nothing bad to you.”       “Hate…” Helene hisses through her teeth. “I HATE YOU! YOU ARE AN ASSHOLE! THE WORST SCUM EVER!”       “I would bet who is a scum!”       “If not for you, everything would be alright between Peter and me. And after you washed his brains, you started to hate me, and he doesn’t look at me with the admiration, just like he did before.”       “Nevertheless, it didn’t stop him from saving you when Luther threw you in the water. Though I’m not sure if he wanted it. Your doggy probably annoyed him to the fuck. That’s why Peter had to wet his gorgeous blond hair and recall how to do a heart massage and artificial respiration.”       “And after that, I stopped understanding when I could come to him and when I should’ve stayed far from him. Because Peter’s attitude toward me changed again and again. Thanks to the men, who managed to make him softer.”       “Well, it seems like the system failed if Peter fought with his friend, who told him how sweet, innocent, and puffy you were, before he was kidnapped.”       “Don’t be happy, Mr. Longbottom, they’ve reconciled.”       “Sorry. I wouldn’t mind turning Peter against his friends. Though… If I keep washing his brain, and they don’t change their tactic, he will eventually get mad at them. He will be sick of hearing those assholes excusing you. Sick of understanding that they are not by his side. I will not even have to come up with anything to slander them.”       “Your tactic won’t work forever. One day, Peter will understand he has been fooled. At least, he’s already begun to doubt that I betrayed him. That’s why he started to be much softer to me.”       “Honestly, I haven’t decided if I should tell him about your tricks. However, I don’t exclude that he will know everything when your soul leaves your body and flies high to the sky. Even if he does not the fuck need this information at all.”       “Since the girls got it all and forgave me, Peter will give me a chance, too.”       “I really doubt it, my darling.”       Marcus sits on the bed after he is tired of walking and standing.       “You and I know well that Peter has serious mental issues. No matter how hard he tries to assure that everything is alright, the traumas of the past still break his soul. That boy was betrayed by everyone. That’s why he stopped trusting people. He was afraid to befriend someone. He was ready to spend his whole life in loneliness from fear of getting through that eating kind of pain again.”       “Peter’s fighting with himself. And the guys and I are really proud of how long he’s gone already. That guy has changed a lot and become much braver and more determined.”       “Autosuggestion is a wonderful thing, but if you use it wrong, you may have a split personality. So, the same thing is happening to Peter. He’s got two personalities: a sassy, brave, and confident one and a terrified, cowardly one that doubts everything all the time and expects a betrayal of the whole world.”       “You can’t get rid of these things so easily. As everyone knows, time heals. But in the case of Peter, he needs much more.”       “No, Helene, nothing will help him. Especially now, when you are my captive. Despite all his doubts about you and all the offences, I am more than sure that the boy is pulling his hair out. Because of the realization that he can do nothing to save you. Not knowing he will see you in the afterlife. If he’s lucky.”       “He’ll find me! I will not stop believing in it!”       “He will not. The guys and I took care of it well. And you will not hide. This time, my people will not screw it up and will be watching you very closely.”       “I don’t want to die…” Helene pronounces in a shaking, quiet voice. “Please, don’t’ kill me…”       “Don’t worry, my sweetheart, nobody is going to kill you now. You will have to entertain my people a lot. I gave you to them as a reward. For everything they have done to me. The guys did deserve a generous award.”       “No, please, don’t… For God’s sake… Pity me! I’m begging you!”       “Oh, damn…” Marcus smiles falsely. “How naive girls are… Do they really think a criminal will let them go immediately if they say such a magic phrase as, ‘Let me go, please’? Aha, I am about to wave my hand at you, apologize for all the inconveniences, wish you luck, and tell you to go wherever you want.”       “I wanna be with my grandma…” Helene makes a quiet sob, embracing herself tightly. “I wanna be with my friends… I wanna be with my boyfriend… I wanna know what you did to my doggy…”       Marcus sneers evilly and clears his throat quickly.       “Listen, Helene, sweetie… I completely understand it all. I understand you are super scared now. You feel like a little, unprotected girl captured by the evil and mean men. But we have to, get it. You are tightly connected with Peter. But I want to give him as much pain as possible. I need to press on all of his weaknesses. And one of them is you, my girl. If something happens to you, that boy will go crazy from grief. Even one thought about it would be enough. And your death will break him at all.”       “I’m not a toy to use me like this!” Helene breaks into a cry. “I’m a human!”       “You’re my best gun in my fight with the enemy. I can easily use you to blackmail Peter and make him do anything I want.”       “What do you want from him? What should he do for you so you get off him? What? Tell me!”       “I’ve already said it’s a long story.”       “Are you doing all of this for money? You found a victim and decided to rob him?”       “I don’t need his money, Helene. I need Peter himself. To kill him later.”       “Why? How did the one who met you for the first time just a week ago harm you?”       “Yes, he met me one week ago. But I’ve known him forever. And I shall never forget what that nasty bastard did to me.”       “What did he do?”       “Do you really want to know it?”       “We all want it. Especially Peter himself. Who had lived a quiet life and done his business before you started it all.”       “I would say he has lived a quiet life for too long. If I’d had a chance to get rid of him much earlier, I would’ve been happy to use it. But sadly, everything happened that I have to do this now.”       “Why are you doing this to him?” Helene repeats her question loudly. “What’s the fault of such a wonderful and innocent guy? The only thing he’s always wanted is to be happy and loved. But people have kicked him like a ball all this time. And now, when he has loving people, you are doing your best to make them turn their back on him.”       “It’s like fate itself told him nobody in this world needed him. It would be much better for everyone if Peter died or was never born at all.”       “It would be better for you! But Peter means a lot to the guys and me! He will always mean. Whatever you do!”       “M-m-m, if only you knew what a dirty trick he did to me… If only you knew how that asshole ruined my whole life.”       “No matter what the reason is, I am sure that it’s not worth doing all of this. Not worth the attempt to poison our friend, who nearly died because of you. Not worth all these cases, threats, and kidnappings.”       “Don’t pretend to be a holy saint, Helene. You cannot talk about it after everything you did.”       “So, don’t you want to explain why you want to kill Peter?”       “And what would change for you if I told you this information?”       “I would at least understand how bad everything is. How insane you have gone.”       “Oh, alright, my baby, alright,” Marcus sighs tiredly. “If it can make you feel better, alright, you will know what Peter’s sin is. You will know what I shall make him pay for one beautiful day.”       “Tell me all the truth then!” Helene swallows nervously and glances aside with a scared expression in her eyes, while a spider is still weaving a web in the corner. “I think I have the right to know why my boyfriend should be suffering. Why you got mad at me, too. Come on, Mr. Longbottom, speak out!”       Tense silence settles in the air for two seconds, during which Helene is breathing a little heavily from excitement, putting her head on her shoulders and pressing herself to the corner of the bed with a feeling that she is something small for the one, who seems something big, evil, and very dangerous, and Marcus just smiles slyly as he looks at the girl with contempt.