Turn for the Worst

Chapter 42

Arthur sits behind the wheel, weaving through late night traffic, his heart pounding loudly. He had mere minutes to escape with Emma. Seconds even, he knew how fast police could drive and he never looked back to see if he could see his children one more time, likely for the last time. It did not, however, stop him from crying as he left. The choices he made, what he did to keep the family together... it all fell apart.

He pulled from the parking lot and sped out into traffic. He got as far up the highway as he could before the sounds of sirens rang in his ears. Like every other law-abiding citizen, he pulled to the side to allow the police to pass through on their way, smiling quietly to himself as he went.

Once they were passed, he drove away, away from his children, away from being caught, away from the life he once had.

Now, he's out in the countryside of New Haven, Connecticut, unsure of what to do next. He is literally at a crossroads.

He was wanted for multiple kidnappings, he still had one hostage in the trunk, he was likely wanted for the assault of his wife, the multiple rapes of Emma Swan, his physical assaults on her too, evading police, credit card fraud and probably a few other crimes that he couldn't remember or really cared about recalling.

He continues to drive, acting as if nothing was wrong, while a woman was bound and gagged in the back of his trunk. A woman, who had a family, who had friends, a job and a life of her own and he had taken it all away from her...

For a good reason, of course, his mind told him. You want a family...

"I've always wanted a bigger family," Arthur says quietly to himself. "A family worth waking up in the morning for and Gwen..." He swallows a lump in his throat. Gwen took that all away. She never told him anything, she never asked how he felt, she just did it... he could understand why, financial strain, but the two of them should have made the decision together like they were supposed to.

"If Gwen had just talked to me..." he sighs. None of this would've had to happen.

Now what? His mind asks.

Good question, Arthur ponders. The police will be looking everywhere for me and Miss Swan, no doubt the kids will identify the car. I have to get off the roads soon.

Could you go to Canada?

There have been serious crackdowns there. Those Mounties do a very thorough job nowadays

Mexico?

With the wall going up are you nuts?

And you can't very well take her on a plane without being caught...

I know. I'll be all over the news and I can't keep her in the trunk for nine months or however long...

Some cabin in the woods?

Arthur pauses at the thought.

That might be a good idea, as long it's not in a horror movie. But somewhere very far into the woods where she won't be able to escape very easily. She'd either die from exhaustion or hypothermia before anyone found her.

Are there places like that?

I'm sure there are except... I don't know anything about Connecticut. Zero... nada... zip

You do know a lot about Massachusetts though...

That is true...

Plus, the police would expect you to try and cross the border to another state, not go back to the scene of the crime.

Another good point. It would be much easier if I was hiding in plain sight.

Yes, it would.

You've won me over, we're going back to Massachusetts

A very good idea. You'll have to stop and feed her, though.

Yeah, and I need to refill on gas.

...

Crossing the state border was not a real problem for Arthur, especially through the countryside. Arthur had stopped at a gas station to refill the car and get food. Then he pulled into a remote location to give Emma something to eat. She continually swore at him but ate what he gave her before he gagged her again. He did tell her that she'd be out of the trunk soon.

Not soon enough! Emma thought. Then she might have a way to escape.

Once over the border again, Arthur headed in any given direction, keeping to the country roads. He'd been driving for many hours and was getting very tired. He pulled over to rest, sleeping for a few hours. Then he took out a map of Massachusetts and studied it by flashlight on the side of the road.

He looked at the list of national parks. Surely a few had remote hunting cabins, some that might be abandoned or foreclosed on.

The following morning, he drives into a small town whose name he doesn't care to remember. He asks a man at a local supermarket where he might find a place to rent a hunting cabin. The man directs him to a ranger's station just outside one of the main recreational parks. Arthur gets a listing of them. He asks the head ranger if there were ones that were not used very often and the man points them out. Arthur thanks him and tells the ranger that he'll be in touch very soon about renting one of the cabins. This is a lie of course, but he acts like he's going back the way he came. He waits an hour or so before going back, into the forest.

He's following the map to the most remote cabins he can find, driving along dirt and gravel paths. The vehicle shifts and sways quite a lot, causing Emma to be thrown around in the trunk. Her body aches even more with the constant movement. She can't hear cars anymore and can vaguely smell pine and wet leaves. Her heart beats in her ears. She's worried that he might be taking her to a remote area to dump her body. Then she reminds herself that he needs her to become pregnant and carry a baby.

He won't kill me... not yet anyway.

She assumes that he might be taking her someplace where no one would try to find her. She would still find a way. She always would.

Arthur finally pulls up to a cabin that looks a bit run down, but still livable. There is ivy growing along the sides of the wood, the dirt path that passes for a driveway is quite overgrown and the entire roof seems to sag in just a little bit.

"It's perfect," he smiles to himself. They are so far in the woods, there's no way Emma could run.

He pulls the car around behind the cabin, killing many saplings as he goes and finally stops the car. He climbs up the creaking porch and peers inside one of the windows. Completely empty and in disarray. Clearly, no one comes here very often, if at all.

Arthur approaches the trunk and slowly opens it, almost excited for what will come next.

"Well, Emma," he says to her. "Welcome to your new home."

Hey, readers. Here's a new chapter. Sorry if it is a bit short, been a bit busy even though it's reading week for me. Please keep reviewing and thank you so much!