Mercy (Atlee Pine #4)(33)

There were items she didn’t recognize. A pair of boys’ sneakers, a baseball mitt, a deflated soccer ball, some girly magazines. Maybe the people living in the house now had kids and they had found this place and used it as a hideout or something. In fact, the more she thought about it, maybe that was how the place came to be found by the cops.

And then she saw it.

Sally, her doll, which lay in a corner on the floor. She went over and picked it up. It looked so tiny in her hand now, though the last time she had held it she was nearly fully grown. She had come to regret leaving it behind, but in the heat of the moment, in the sheer exhilaration at being free, she had forgotten all about Sally. She stuck it under her bulky sweater. Sally would not be left behind this time. She rose and left, closing the door behind her.

And that was when the voice called out.

“Hey, what are you doing here?”





CHAPTER





22


THE TEENAGE BOY HELD A FLASHLIGHT in his hand and was pointing it at Cain. He was medium height and skinny with a mop of unruly hair. She estimated he was around fourteen or fifteen.

She found her voice and said, “Hey there. Look, I just heard about the stuff that went on here. I was driving by and decided to take a peek. Sorry, I didn’t mean any harm.”

His expression softened, but his look remained wary. “O-okay, I . . . I guess I’d be curious, too.”

“You live around here?”

He looked over his shoulder. “In the house back there. This is our property.”

“Wow, okay. Did you use to hang out in there?”

“Yeah, me and my brother, when we were younger.”

“What’s your name?”

“What’s yours?” he said sharply.

“I’m Donna.”

“Okay, I’m . . . Kyle. And . . . and I don’t think you should be here.”

Cain had shifted Sally to the back of her sweater, so Kyle couldn’t see the lump. “Look, you have every reason to be freaked out, but I’m sort of freaked out, too, you know?”

His features softened. “Yeah, I guess. I mean, you’re a girl and I’m a guy. Don’t worry, I won’t hurt you,” he added hastily.

Cain almost smiled at this because she could have knocked Kyle out with one lazy kick.

“Thanks, Kyle. I really appreciate that. So, I saw on the local news the FBI was on the case. Damn, that’s not something you see every day. Were they here, too?”

Kyle came forward, his features now full of excitement. “Yeah, they were. It was like being in the middle of a cop TV show. They were asking about some girl. And about the people who used to live here before us. I forget their names. Anyway, I remembered this place. And I was the one who showed them,” he added proudly. “My dad talked to the cops and it seems like they were keeping a girl out here. I guess they were weird-ass people. I mean, she was like a prisoner or something.” He frowned. “Totally sick stuff.”

“Totally. Somebody I know said she saw a picture of the girl on the news.”

“That’s right. It was on a tape. You see that camera there?”

“Yeah.”

Kyle frowned as he looked at the camera pointing the other way now. “Hey, somebody moved it. Maybe it was the cops. Anyway, the asshole who used to live here had a cable that ran all the way back to our house. I found it. And there was one of those old VCR things under the floor. And there was a tape in it. We played it and that picture was on it.” He shone his light on the door. “That girl they made live in there busted out.”

“Wow, no way,” said Cain.

“Oh, yeah. And that’s not all. The dude who owned the house? He got killed. My dad said the girl might’ve done it and that the jerk deserved it.”

Cain felt something like a molten lava rock in her stomach. “Did they say how he died?”

“Not that I remember.”

“And was there anyone else involved?”

“The dude’s wife. She disappeared. They don’t know what happened to her. Or the girl.”

“But I guess the cops are looking for her, the girl, I mean.”’

“Yeah, I guess so. I mean, if she killed that guy, she should get a medal, least I think so. But I guess if she killed him she broke the law, too. Probably why they want to find her.” He looked up at her appraisingly. “Man, you are tall. Like that FBI lady.”

“FBI lady?”

“The one who was here asking about everything. But you’re taller.”

“Yeah, I’m taller than most girls, unless they play basketball. Again, I’m sorry I trespassed, Kyle. I don’t want to get into trouble.”

Kyle waved this off. “No problem. I won’t tell anybody. Hey, you want me to show you around in there?”

“No. It looks way too creepy.”

Kyle nodded. “I know. When me and my brother found it, we thought it was creepy, too, but it was a cool place just to hang out. That’s why we didn’t tell our parents. But when we found out some little kid was being held in there? They must’ve been really, I don’t know, screwed in the head. That’s what Dad said, anyway.”

“I think your dad’s probably right about that.”