5. Chapter Four
CHAPTER FOUR
MARGERY
T ears pooled in her eyes as she realized the severity of the situation. He had a gun to her head and said he was going to have fun with her.
Even if she screamed and her neighbors heard , Margery knew they weren’t going to help. They weren’t the type of neighbors to help in a situation like this. They were the type of neighbors to pretend they didn’t hear a thing and never feel guilty about it.
If, by chance, one of them did come and help, what were they going to do? This man had a gun to her head. How were they going to get her out of this situation?
Probably by calling the police, but she and the guy holding the gun to her head knew it wasn’t going to happen.
“Unlock the door,” the man commanded. “Nice and slowly.”
Margery didn’t move, though. She was frozen in fear. Was he going to rape her?
“Bitch. Unlock the door. Now.”
The man pushed the head of the gun into her temple even harder, and she winced. That was definitely going to leave a mark.
Slowly, they both started to walk toward her door, and she shakily reached into her bag to find her keys. Margery’s fingers brushed up against her knife, and she stilled for a second. Should she try to grab it and hit him with it? Would she be able to stab him?
“Don’t even think about it,” the man whispered in her ear. “Grab your keys and unlock the door. If you don’t, I’m going to shoot.”
Tears streamed down her face as she grabbed her keys. Was he going to kill her after this? Was he going to make it quick and then leave?
Margery had heard about women getting raped; how every time it was different. For some people, it was quick, and the person left. For others, it lasted for hours and hours.
Which one was she going to be? Was he going to kill her after, or was he going to let her go?
Once Margery opened the door, the man pushed her inside, and she fell to the ground. She turned onto her back and could see the man coming toward her.
She carried on rummaging through her bag, trying to get to her knife. Maybe if she got to it, she could use it if he got too close to her. He was going to get close to her beccause he said he was going to have fun with her. But would she be able to give him a fatal blow so he couldn’t shoot her? That was the real question.
Before she could do anything, the man fell to the floor. Her eyes went wide as another man stood over him, holding his own gun. He was staring at her through the mask he was wearing. The first thing she noticed was his eyes. They were gray, such an odd color.
“Call nine-one-one,” the man instructed. “He should be knocked out until they arrive.”
His voice sounded familiar, but with her panic-filled brain, she couldn’t remember who it was. Margery started to look through her bag, trying to find her phone. The man who saved her turned around and started to walk out.
“Wait!” she called out. “The police.”
“Tell them someone saved you, but you don’t know who. They don’t need to know who,” the man told her. “Now call the police.”
With shaky hands, she dialed nine-one-one but kept her eyes on the man. She jumped as her rescuer’s phone went off. He pulled out his phone and did something. As soon as he did , the operator picked up.
“Nine-one-one. What’s your emergency?” a female voice asked through the phone.
“I-I w-was almost r-raped,” Margery stuttered. “T-the man i-is unconscious on my fl-floor.”
“All right, ma’am, I’ll need your address.”
Margery rattled off her address. Her eyes were now focused on the unconscious man in her room. Was he going to wake up before the police got here? Was the same police officer from before going to come?
If the man did wake up, how was she going to subdue him? He was taller and stronger than she was.
“Ma’am?” a voice called out.
Two police officers stood in her doorway, and she pointed toward the unconscious man. She was still shaking like a leaf. She had almost been raped. She would have been if it wasn’t for that stranger. Who was he? What was he doing? Was that her stalker?
So many questions were running through her head, overwhelming her. What if he was the person who was stalking her, sending her things? What if he was right in front of her, and she had no idea?
“Ma’am? Are you all right?” One of the police officers knelt in front of her.
The other officer walked over to the unconscious man and checked him out. How was she going to explain that a random person helped her out? A random person who didn’t want to be known.
“Ma’am,” the police officer said again. “Can you tell me your name?”
“Margery,” she whispered.
“Can you look at me please?”
She didn’t want to. What if the man woke up and went after her again? She wanted her eyes on him so she could be prepared.
“Ma’am. Officer Johnson has him under control. He’s putting cuffs on him now, so he can’t do anything,” the man said in front of her. “I’m Officer Parker. Can you tell me if you are hurt anywhere?”
Margery finally looked at him. “I’m not. I don’t think I am.”
Honestly, she didn’t know. He hadn’t shot her. Maybe she had some bruises and cuts from when he had pushed her into the house.
“Did he do anything to you?” Officer Parker asked.
“N-no. Just p-pushed me in the h-house,” she stuttered her way through the sentence.
“Good. Can you tell me what happened?”
She took a deep breath, and her eyes darted toward the other officer and the unconscious man.
“It’s Diego,” Officer Johnson said.
“Diego Longbottom?” Officer Parker asked. “The serial rapist?”
“Yes, sir.”
Margery looked at Officer Parker with a confused face. Was she supposed to know who this person was?
Officer Parker turned toward her. “Was he waiting on your porch?”
Her eyes went wide, and she nodded. How did he know?
“Diego is a known rapist who waits near girls’ doors—girls he knows ’live alone—and forces himself into their home and rapes them.”
Margery’s mouth hung open as she processed his words. For him to know she lived alone meant he had to have been watching her for a while. Or, well, maybe not a while, but a couple of days at least.
“He’s been on the run, staying under our radar. Thanks to you, we now have him. He is going to be locked up for a long, long time,” Officer Parker told her.
“Wasn’t me,” she mumbled.
Officer Parker looked at her strangely. “What do you mean it wasn’t you?”
“Some guy saved me. I don’t know who it was, but he saved me.”
“Where did he go?”
“He left. Didn’t want to be known, I guess.”
Margery didn’t really understand. How could he not want the officers to know? Didn’t most people want to be known as the person who saved somebody?
“Well, I’m glad he was here for you. Are you sure you don’t need to go to the hospital?”
She shook her head. “Nothing’s wrong. Maybe bruises, but that’s it. He didn’t hurt me or do anything.”
“Good. If you need anything, you can call the non-emergency line or you go to the emergency room.”
“Thank you.”
She sat on the ground as they picked the man up and started to leave. She honestly thought they were going to have to do so much more, but they didn’t. She thought they would need her statement or something.
Maybe they had enough witnesses already and didn’t want to drag her into it. She didn’t know, and right now, she didn’t really care. She was having a hard time already focusing and comprehending everything that had happened.
The door closed, and Margery continued to sit there, staring at the wall. She didn’t know what to do. What did a person do after they were almost raped?
Margery looked around the room, and her skin began to crawl. She needed to clean this room right here. He had been in her house. Nothing happened, but just knowing that a man she didn’t know had been in her house made her need to clean everything.
She slowly got up from the ground and turned around, but she quickly stopped. Her eyes went wide as she stared at another stuffed zebra sitting on the coffee table.
Margery screamed. How had that got there? How had the stuffed zebra moved?
Her mind went to the other officer who came over the other night. Did he tell his friends when she told him? Had the officer moved the stuffed animal to prank her tonight? Put her on edge? He wouldn’t do that, would he?
She didn’t have her eyes on him the whole time. She wasn’t paying attention to her surroundings as she talked to Officer Parker. Officer Johnson could have very well snuck off and moved one of the zebras.
Margery took a step forward and looked closely at the stuffed zebra, trying to see which one he picked. But her breath got stuck in her throat.
For .
The word was written on the stuffed zebra along with the same initials as before: Y.L. What did that mean?
Her eyes went wide as she thought about it. Ethan used to sign the notes he sent her with Your Love.
“No,” she whispered. “No. No. No.”
It wasn’t possible. Ethan couldn’t have done it. He was dead. It couldn’t be possible. No one else knew he signed his letters like that.
Margery took a step back and started to shake her head. There was no way it could be Ethan. No way at all. Tears formed in her eyes as she continued to walk backward, staring at the stuffed zebra the whole time.
How did it get there? How had the person come in without her knowing? Was it there before the guy attacked her? Was this Ethan?
There were so many questions running through her head. So many things to try and make sense of, but she couldn’t.
Her back hit the wall, and she screamed before sliding down, her bottom hitting the floor. She wrapped her arms around her legs and started to rock slowly.
This wasn’t possible.
This couldn’t be happening.
There was no way Ethan was alive.