Chapter 5
Chapter Five
RUBY
“ It’s safe to take the blindfolds off now, girls.”
To say I’m shocked when I remove mine is an understatement. I never dreamed Janet was going to bring us to a place this unique. “ Wow , Janet , this is sweet. How in the world did you find it?”
“ My husband built it, actually. Days after it was done, I lost him to a drunk driver.” My face must have shown my shock. “ What ? Did you think that I’d been mistreated and that’s why I’m helping you and the others?”
“ Yes , I’m sorry, I simply assumed.” I stumble over the words.
“ No need to apologize, child. You’re right to an extent because our daughter was killed by an abusive man. We tried and tried to get her away from him, but like all the others, she was scared and felt like there was no escaping him. After we lost her, this place became a labor of love for me and the hubby. At the time, we both felt like we’d failed her in so many ways. It’s taken me years to come to grips with the fact that we didn’t. Sometimes things happen that are completely out of our control, and it’s only natural to wonder if we could’ve done more. If anything, those horrible things had to occur in order for me to be able to help others in the same, if not worse situations than she’d been in.”
“ I’d be lying if I said it was easy for me to move on. Losing both of them made it hard to function and it took me quite a while to accept, although I’ve truly never overcome it. I was wrapped up in my own hell for many years, my heart breaking every time I opened my eyes in the morning. Until I walked into a supermarket one day and found a teenage girl hiding in the bathroom, bruised, and scared as hell. From that very moment on, I decided to honor my loved ones the only way I could, by helping as many others as possible.
Come on, we’re all tired and that’s enough about me for now. It’s getting late and you girls have been through plenty these last few days. This place is not on any map and no one besides me and one other woman even know how to get here from the main road. You’re as safe as you can get, for a while anyway. Once I get you girls settled inside, I’ll head back out and put the car in the garage. We make sure to never leave anything outside that can be seen by air, or a nosy hiker.”
The area is getting dark as dusk settles, and all I can see around us is the glow of pale lights behind a massive set of glass doors in front of this underground cave-house. I grab a couple of the bags out of the back of the van while Rowan stands there looking around in a daze. I’m not sure what is going on with her, but it’s like she’s in shock. Her body is here, but her mind isn’t, and her eyes seem unfocused.
When I see Janet holding the door open for us, I grab Rowan’s hand, pulling her along with me as we walk through the door. I don’t know why I’m surprised to see quite a few girls sitting around, but I am. Several are playing cards and others, some type of dice game. Another is sitting on a couch with a book in her hand. They all look up at the same time when we come through the door. Janet motions to us standing behind her.
“ Everyone , this is Ruby and Rowan . They’ll be staying with us for a little while. They’ve had a long drive and it’s late, so we’ll make all the introductions in the morning after they get settled.”
I hear a few ‘ welcomes’ as we follow Janet down a long hallway where there are several doors located on each side. She stops at the one on the end, then motions for us to go in. The room is larger than I would have expected, with two twin beds and a separate bath.
“ This will be yours while you’re with us. The bathroom is stocked and there’s also a small refrigerator in the corner with drinks inside. Get settled and some sleep. There’ll be plenty of time to figure out the rest later.” She doesn’t wait for either of us to say anything, simply shuts the door behind her as she leaves.
I throw my bag on the twin bed, running my hand over the smoothed rock wall next to it. “ Wow , Rowan , I don’t believe I’ve ever seen anything like this place. You would think it would smell like dirt or even be damp on the inside, but it’s not at all. This is sweet.”
Rowan is still just standing by the door, statue still, she hasn’t moved. Frowning , I walk over, pulling the hood off her head slowly while trying not to flinch at the shape her beautiful face is in. Waving my hand in front of her vacant eyes, she jerks back. Tears form in my own as I have no idea how to help her. I lean down so that my face is level with hers. “ Hey , talk to me.”
“ I’m scared Ruby .” Her voice is so weak I barely hear her.
“ Lord baby girl, I am too, but right now we’re alright, so let’s be grateful for that. Why don’t you go grab a quick shower and change out of this old sweatshirt into something more comfortable.”
“ I don’t want to, I’m just gonna lay down. I don’t feel up to bathing right now, but you go ahead.”
Gently I start to pull her in for a hug, but she stiffens up, so I don’t force it. Instead , I kiss her cheek and leave her standing there. Opening my bag, I grab my favorite pajamas that I’ve had for so many years, they’re full of holes. I head into the bathroom that’s small and plain, but it has everything we need in it.
Trying to destress my body, I lean my head against the cold tiles. Making myself take a couple of deep breaths, the hot water beats down on me from the shower head above. I reluctantly get out after staying in way too long. Wrapping a towel around myself, I glance out into the darkened bedroom, not shocked to find Rowan already in bed. The hood of that damn sweatshirt is pulled completely up over her head, like a shield.
Even though I’m worn out, I take a moment to brush out my long, dark red curls. They instantly start frizzing because I’ve not been conditioning it right these last few days. I make a mental note to myself to bring my leave-in conditioner and stuff into the bathroom tomorrow, then turn off the light.
Flipping the bathroom light off makes the room get scary dark. Not a fan, I flip the light back on, leaving the door cracked so that I can still see a little. Tip -toeing across the room, I stop to look down at Rowan’s small form curled up in the twin bed before heading toward mine. Pulling the blankets down, I slide into the soft, sweet-smelling sheets, then roll onto my side, so that I am facing Rowan .
My mind is busy, but blank all at the same time. Knowing I need to sleep, I feel like I’ve no sooner closed my eyes than something wakes me up. The hairs on my arms stand up the moment I realize the room is pitch black again. Listening , the room is eerily quiet at first, then there’s an odd sound, like something is sliding around on the floor near the bed.