Chapter 37

© Copyright 2006 by Kendra Cornell



“Karen?” a man’s voice called almost playfully. The evil in the tone brought shivers to Karen’s spine. “Karen, I know you’re in here. You dripped all the way up the aisle, and I’m following it right to where you’re hiding…” The voice drew closer and closer. Karen scooted along the shiny wooden floor further away.

“There no way out of here. You’re hurt. Just give up… I promise you, everything will be fine.”

The voice was vaguely familiar. The timbre of the voice was clearly not its normal inflection. She swallowed, her mouth dry as tinder. The wound in her side screamed in agony as she tried to slide underneath the pews.

“Karen, STOP!” When she dared to look up, the figure in the black face mask stared down at her. He was about fifteen feet away. Karen pulled her legs up under her torso and rose to her feet.

“Who are you?”

“Does it matter?” he asked. As of yet, he had still made no move toward her. It was almost like he was waiting, milking the moment and drawing some sick satisfaction out of her fear.

“It does,” she replied simply. She leaned against the old fashioned radiators that lined both sides of the chapel.

At an excruciatingly slow pace, he reached up with one black clad hand and peeled the mask out of place. As his features became evident, Karen gasped in shock. He smiled, an enigmatic gesture that she had seen so many times in the last year.

“Jack!”

He blinked lazily at her, presenting an aura of languor. He was enjoying this, she could tell.

“But… Why?!”

“Why what? Why chase you all over the city? Why hire you in the first place? Why corner you here? It’s simple. Because I want you, Karen.” His words created nausea in the pit of her stomach.

“You could’ve tried more conventional methods, don’t you think?” She was fighting spots in front of her eyes. Consciousness was slowly slipping from her grasp.

Smiling, he replied, “I’m feeling rather magnanimous at the moment. Sit down, Karen, before you fall down.”

She shook her head. There was no way she was going to give in to him without a fight. But to her surprise, he backed up across the aisle and into the pew directly across from her. He had added another ten feet to the gap between them.

Karen slid into the very edge of the pew, her hands still covering the gash in her side.

“Good girl. Now, what was your question? Oh yes! Why didn’t I follow the old standard route of pursuit? I would expect better out of you. That should be easy to figure out. I did ask you out, repeatedly, but you turned me down.”

Blessedly, after she sat, Karen’s head had already begun to clear. And when it did, another thought occurred to her. Panicking, Karen turned to him and croaked, “What did you do to Paul?!”

A dark look passed through Jack’s eyes as though he understood something more than she stated in her words. But just as quickly, the look was replaced by that dangerous calm.

“He a friend of yours, Karen?”

She stayed perfectly still, refusing to reply.

“Well, we had a bit of a tussle, but I think it’s safe to say he won’t be joining us any time soon.”

A curious taste burned in the back of Karen’s throat. Her eyes stung with unshed tears and her breathing quickly escalated.

“Why would you do that to someone… How could you do that to someone?”

“These questions are meaningless, Karen. I’m afraid it’s time to go.”

“Go where? Where are you taking me?”

He moved slowly across the length between them. Karen mad it to her feet and backed up the side aisle.

Jack sighed, as though with boredom. “I’m tiring quickly of this Karen. We both know that there’s no way you’re getting out of this tonight. So do us both a favor, and just come with me.”

Karen thought wildly, trying to buy herself time… just precious seconds that would offer any opportunity to get out of here. “Jack, if you wanted me so much, why would you hurt me like this?”

“I never wanted to hurt you, Karen. But there was no way I could afford to let you get away again.” He still moved with dead calm towards her.

At that moment, Karen caught sight of something… Or had she? Seeing nothing further, she continued her backtrack up the aisle. Jack practically slithered up the middle path towards her, closing the distance quicker than she could get away.

Suddenly, behind Jack, a towering figure rose up. Jack must have sensed it because he turned suddenly, but it was too late.

Paul, blood-streaked and battle-weary, brought down a massive brass urn down on top of Jack’s head- the same one he had prepared to threaten Karen with the night he found her unconscious. Jack continued in his arc of movement, crumpling at Paul’s feet. A knife clattered on the floor, several feet away. Paul knelt quickly and checked for a pulse. Standing, he stripped off his outer shirt and used it to bind Jack’s hands behind his back.

Karen stood still at the back of the chapel breathing heavily. The pain in her side seared with every breath and tears coursed down her face. At that moment, she was overcome with the events of the night, and she sank to her knees sobbing.

“Karen!” Paul ran up the aisle and arrived at her side. He gathered her easily into his arms.

“It’s okay now,” he murmured. “It’s okay.” Karen clung to his arms, but couldn’t manage to speak through her tears.

At that moment, eight police officers stormed into the chapel, guns drawn. They quickly realized that Jack Jenkins was unconscious and crudely bound.

“Got him… He’s out. Call for medical assistance!” one officer shouted checking Jack’s pulse.

Several officers ran up the aisle, and Paul found himself holding onto Karen as though he could protect her from them. Sadness washed in waves through his body when he thought of losing her so quickly.

To the surprise of both, a young officer with kind brown eyes knelt next to them,

“Ma’am, are you okay?” he asked.

Karen’s eyes rose wearily.

Speaking into a radio on his shoulder, the officer contacted someone outside.

“We’re going to need medical assistance here, too. Sir, you have a nasty gash on your head.”

Paul nodded and said clumsily, “I guess… I guess he hit me.”

“Alright, both of you. Just sit tight. The paramedics will be here in a second.”

A blur of activity surrounded both of them in the next few minutes. One of the paramedics gently pulled Karen out of his arms, and with great reluctance, he let her go. She was dazed and barely noticed.

Paul was led out of the church to a waiting ambulance. Glenda waited outside with crossed arms and an infinitely distraught look on her face. Paul walked away from the accompanying medical tech and hugged his mother hard. She walked with him to a waiting ambulance. After cleaning up the worst of the blood, one of the paramedics checked him for a concussion. Glenda waited, saying nothing but holding Paul’s hand like she never planned on letting go.

Finally, the woman told him, “Sir, you’re probably going to have a headache and dizziness for the next several days. Stay off your feet and go to the hospital immediately if you have any difficulty walking, or if the headache becomes severe.”

“I’ll be right here with him the whole time,” Glenda assured the woman.

Soon, the ambulance pulled away and the pair walked back to his house on the dark and now-quiet street. Curious neighbors looked out of doors and windows.

“They took her, Mom. I tried to protect her but they got her anyway.” Paul had collapsed on the couch, not because of his injury but out of grief.

Glenda came and sat next to him gently.

“Paul, the police came here first. Not that detective, but some officers. Honey, they told me Karen had nothing to do with any murder, but they suspected that she was in immediate danger. I told them where you were.”

Paul looked up at her, dazed.

“I don’t understand. What happened?”

“I’m not sure. Only that someone had come forward with new information about Karen. When you didn’t come home right away, I was afraid that something had happened. But the police showed up right then. I sent them over.” None of this was making any sense to him.

“Thanks… Thank-you for that.”

“What happened, Paul?”

“He tried to attack her, Mom. He cut her in the side.”

Glenda nodded, “I know. She came out before you. She didn’t even seem to see me.”

“He hit me over the head with a chair. I do remember that. When I woke up, I tried to find her. I have no idea how long he had her up there. Or what he did…”

“She’s alive, Paul. And that’s something to be thankful for.”

“I know, I know.” A moment passed. “I hit him, Mom.”

“You had to,” she said softly.

“I need to go to the hospital… now. I have to see if she’s okay.”

“Paul, you’re not going anywhere tonight except to bed. I’ll go over there now, if you promise me to get some rest.”

“You don’t understand, Mom. I have to see her.”

Glenda put a restraining hand on her son’s arm.

“I called Steve. He’ll be here in a little bit. I’ll take you there first thing in the morning. Paul, that girl’s in shock. She’s been through too much tonight. Leave her be…”

Paul nodded and without another word, trudged up the stairs to his room. Moments later, Steve knocked on the screen door. Glenda let him in.

“He’s upstairs, Steve.”

“Alright, I’ll keep an eye on him. Don’t worry…”

“That’s right. Don’t worry. Because there’s no way I’m staying here right now.” Paul had come back down the stairs after changing into a dark green sweatshirt and a fresh pair of jeans.

Before Glenda even had a chance to protest, he continued, “There’s nowhere safer for me than a hospital tonight. I’m going. Now who’s driving?”




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