The Trials of November

Chapter Fourteen

Victoria took one more glance up and down the street, and went back inside of her house. She knew that David would get the message, as he seemed to visit her house daily, but it was also general enough that any other passerby would not know what it meant. It was perfect.
The pier in Grand Haven was a beautiful dock with a tall red lighthouse. It was beautiful all seasons, but winter was Victoria's favorite.
At the pier in winter, the dock and lighthouse were always covered in a beautiful blanket of snow, and Victoria knew that if, in fact, she were to be taken, the pier would be the perfect last place for her to see. Even though Lake Michigan was only a lake, from that pier, it seemed to go on for an eternity. Victoria loved looking out over the seemingly never ending lake because, to her, it represented endless opportunities. It represented one hundred new beginnings.
Victoria made herself some hot chocolate, suddenly very cold from all of those thoughts. She looked out the window at the mid afternoon light, and exhaled, holding her warm drink up to her face.
She then walked to the bathroom and turned on the water in the bathtub. Victoria sprinkled some bath salts into it. Those were her favorite. They always seemed to relax her. She dimmed the lights and got in the warm water. Victoria leaned back so that the water covered her whole body. She could feel the heat soaking into her skin. She closed her eyes.
Victoria knew that she was doing the right thing. She knew that if she would have chosen otherwise, she would have certainly regretted it for as long as she would live. She had to save Anne. Anne was so sweet, and she made so many people happy. She had so much life left in her and she deserved to live it much more than Victoria did.
Victoria thought about how she had not really done anything amazing in her lifetime. She never saved anyone before. She never made it so that people wanted to be around her. Her life was just ordinary. Little Anne's life was sure to be amazing and it was sure to make a ton of people happy.
Of course, there was the possibility of David not staying true to his word. Anne could already be dead and he just wanted Victoria too. It could be a trap too. He could just meet Victoria and not ever release Annie, keeping them both. At least, in that scenario, little Anne would not have to be alone. She would have Victoria there too. However, that would completely tear Ben apart. He would not be able to handle that. Victoria chose then to quit thinking about such morbid things.
Everything is going to be okay. She told herself. David will make the trade fair and square, and Annie would be returned to her family safely, and then eventually Victoria would find some way to overpower David or escape, and everything would be okay. She would make it back to Ben and her friends and family, and she would be fine.
Her family probably would not care a whole lot if she went missing anyway. They never spent time with her when she was there, so nothing would change if she wasn't there.
Victoria knew that it would probably suck for Ben a little, but she wanted to do this. It was for HIS sister. He should be thankful that she was willing to do it and not angry with her for wanting to help his family.
Victoria then realized that she did not want to leave on a bad note with Ben. She decided that she would go over to his house that night to apologize for kicking him out of her house, and she would tell him how much he meant to her so that they would part on good terms.
She then got out of the bathtub and dried off.
Once she was dressed again, Victoria put on her coat to make the trek over to Ben's. She left her house, locking it behind her. Even though Victoria was the one David wanted, she couldn't be too careful.
She walked down her walkway to the sidewalk, and noticed that her message to David was scratched out. There was an "OK" in the snow next to the scratched off snow where she had written the message originally.
She knew that he would see it. Victoria felt so clever.
She started walking down the sidewalk to Ben's house. It was almost five now so it was starting to get kind of dark out. It was also cooling off pretty quickly, but Victoria paid no attention.
Victoria was thinking about what she was going to say to Ben. She had to be considerate, and she couldn't tell Ben of her plans. He would never let her follow through with them and that was something that Victoria knew she had to accomplish. It was the right thing to do.
After about ten minutes, she approached Ben's small house. When she got to the door, she hesitated before knocking. Victoria did not want to lie to Ben, and she hated feeling estranged from him. She also knew that Laura was still in mourning from her missing daughter, and Victoria did not want to create any uncomfortable encounters with her presence.
Victoria decided that she had made a mistake by coming here. She started to walk back down the walkway, but then Ben opened the door behind her, making her jump. She spun around.
"Where are you going?" Ben asked. His eyes were puffy, as if he was really tired or had just gotten finished crying.
"I'm sorry, Ben." Victoria said. "I wanted to come over because I missed you and I wanted to apologize for before, but then I got here and realized that it is wrong of me to intrude. I know your mom must be still having a hard time with this." Victoria looked down at her feet, obviously still embarrassed.
"Yeah, she is." Ben concluded. "But I am sure that you would be like a breath of fresh air to her." He continued. "Please, Vic. Come in."
Victoria nodded and entered, even though she still did not feel very welcome.
When she walked in their home, it had an entirely different feel from the last time she was there. It felt cold. But not temperature-wise. It felt like all of the joy and the love had been sucked out of it and taken somewhere else in the world.
The floor was covered in dirty clothes and some dirty dishes and garbage. It was a very different scene from the night earlier. The whole house felt abandoned, even though two people still resided there. It amazed Victoria how, because one person was removed, the house was no longer a home. It was just a house.
There were no lights on, even though it was getting dark outside, which only cast ugly shadows on everything, and the television was on a channel that was trying to sell customers some non-stick frying pan.
Ben's mother was sitting in a recliner in the corner, blankly staring at the television. She was obviously in pain. She looked over at Victoria.
"Victoria." Laura said. Her voice sounded rough as though she was crying a lot recently. "I am so happy to see you." She stood up out of her chair and walked over to Victoria. Her normally beautiful hair was up in a bun, and she looked and smelled as though she needed a shower desperately.
Once Laura got to Victoria, she grabbed her into a hug. Victoria was a little taken aback at first, because she was not expecting it, but eventually she hugged Laura back, trying to show her that she was loved.
That was when the most surprising thing happened.
Ben's mother started crying into Victoria's shoulder. Victoria looked at Ben, who then approached and started hugging both Victoria and Laura. Laura's crying turned to sobs, and every one made Victoria's heart sad. She wanted only to help her, but she did not know what she could possibly do.
Victoria was hesitant at first, because of the crying, but soon she was feeling extra sympathetic and sad for her.
Laura's daughter had been stolen from her bed in the night. She had never said goodbye. Victoria could not imagine what she was going through, and she prayed that she would never have to.
Victoria could feel Laura's pain as though she was the one experiencing it and not her. She felt an overwhelming sense of loss and grief, one that she had never felt before and she could not put into words.
That was when it was obvious to Victoria that she had, in fact, done the absolute right thing.
After Laura was finished crying, she sat down on the couch with Victoria, and Ben took the recliner.
"I just don't understand how this could have happened to our family." Ben's mom said, still crying. "We have never wronged anyone. I don't know what kind of person could do this to my little girl." Her voice kept quivering and Victoria knew she was holding back all of her tears.
"I know." Victoria sympathized. "I am so sorry." She did not know what she could say. No amount of words could bring Annie back. Ben sulked in the corner, acting like the conversation Victoria was having with his mother did not exist.
"The police are looking for her, but they have no idea where to start." Laura said, reentering her sad trance. "She was just taken, Victoria. Right out of her bed. What kind of monster would do such a thing?" Laura asked. Her eyes glazed back over.
"I have no idea." Victoria replied, grabbing Laura's hands in hers. "But whoever did that is going to pay. I know they will."
Ben's mother hugged Victoria again.
Victoria embraced her back, knowing that it would be the last hug she would get from Laura in a while.
"Don't worry." Victoria assured her. "Everything will be okay. You will get your daughter back. I promise." She finished and stood. "Ben?" Victoria asked, snapping Ben back into the real world. "Will you please walk me home?" She asked. He nodded and followed her to the door.
"Goodbye, Victoria. Thank you." Laura thanked sincerely. Laura smiled, nodded and walked out into the freezing air, followed by Ben.
They walked down the icy sidewalk in silence for a few moments. Eventually, Ben broke the silence.
"So I am assuming that you have come to the conclusion that you are not going to trade for Anne, right?" He asked. "It's too dangerous. Let's just let the police do their jobs. Please, baby. I cannot lose you. I'll die." He stopped walking and looked Victoria dead in the eyes and it sent a chill down her spine.
They stood there for a few moments, until Victoria nodded her head once.
She hated lying to Ben. He was the love of her life and she could not stand the thought of breaking his trust.
"Vic. Please. We will find another way out of this together. I know we will." He said, with tears coming to his eyes. Victoria had never seen him cry before. At the sight of it, her heart seemed to crumple up into a tiny lifeless ball. She had to look away.
Ben then forcefully pulled her close to him in a hug. Victoria hugged him back tightly, trying to show him how much he meant to her. A light snow started to fall from the sky. Ben kissed Victoria, and suddenly Victoria felt torn again. How could she do that to him? She kept thinking.
They kept walking towards Victoria's house, and the snow was picking up, forcing them to hurry. Once they arrived inside, they shut the door behind them and took off their snowy shoes.
"Do you want some tea? Or coffee? Or hot chocolate?" Victoria asked. She saw how red Ben's cheeks were from the nipping cold.
"Some coffee sounds great." Ben replied, taking off his jacket and hanging it on the coat rack that was next to the porch door. He then walked farther into Victoria's house, sitting down in her living room on her couch. He turned on the television. Victoria could hear it and it made her smile. They had only known each other for a matter of a few weeks, but they were already more than comfortable with each other, like they had known each other for year and years.
"Victoria made the coffee and then brought it to him, curling up next to him, joining her boyfriend in watching the television.
"They sat there for a while, just soaking up each other's presences. The warmth from Ben's body was radiating off of him, and Victoria loved it. She felt warm not only in her body, but also in her soul.
"Ben, I love you." Victoria said.
Ben looked down at her and smiled. "I love you too." Ben said happily. Victoria felt sad that it was the last time in a long time that Ben would hold her like that, and she wanted it to last forever.
"After about an hour, the couple fell asleep together on the couch, curled up in a blanket and both having sweet dreams.