Man By The River

In came a powerful strike to the side of Emma’s face so forceful that she fell backwards. With blood dripping everywhere, an intense and sharp pain overwhelmed all other senses. Everything was blurry. There may have been a dark shadow of a man wearing a hoodie but she wasn’t sure.

“HELP……HELP……SOMEONE PLEASE HELP ME!”

She got up and ran but her knees buckled and she tripped over some wet leaves. With hands held in the air trying to hold on to anything that may help break the fall, down she went until her face hit the ground. Her head was spinning and the ringing in the ears began. While trying to get up, he came from behind and dragged her by the arms. Her pants scraped the gravel and grass beneath leaving holes that resulted in bruises on her butt and legs. It also made her skin burn from the friction.

“HELP……HELP……SOMEONE PLEASE HELP ME!”

Screams for help quickly stopped when the man said, “Shut up! The more you scream, the more you will be hit until you can’t scream anymore.”

“Please, please don't hurt me,” Emma pleaded.

Her jaws clenched reflexively to muffle those screams. They stopped after a few feet and she got a better view of his silhouette. The hoodie covered his entire face and a green cape draped his whole body. While hands were pulled roughly towards the back, Emma attempted to fight him off, but her strength failed her miserably. He punched her several times on the side of her head and her upper body leaving her breathless. After securing her hands, he placed his left boot on her chest and applied his weight leaving an imprint. She bent her knees in an attempt to kick with the little strength that she had left. A firm arm gripped her leg digging through her pants and into the muscle.

“I wouldn’t do that if I were you.”

His voice was gravelly calm.

Emma decided it was best to cooperate instead of trying to escape. It would only result in more pain and she had no more strength left. She relinquished control of her entire body as her heart beat became more apparent wanting to break through her chest and her breaths quickened. He seemed to be fishing something out of a bag and before anything else there was a sharp sting on the side of her neck. With a sudden warmth that enveloped her body and intensifying headache, the pain radiated to all sides. Multiple fears came to mind; the fear of losing too much blood, of dying and never seeing her family again. Emma’s body stopped moving and her eyes closed.

******************

A loud thud from the corner of the room jolted Emma out of sleep. Her eyelids fluttered but the dried blood on the left side of the head made it difficult to open both eyes simultaneously. When they were finally open, the room was thankfully dark. Some time would be needed to adjust to any form of lighting. The debilitating headache hit Emma out of nowhere. The pain was electrifying.

“Is anyone there?” She squinted as the sound of her own voice inside her head made it hurt even more.

Deep breaths came from behind. Only an old, low, hard and straight-backed chair was present to which both her hands and feet were bound. The backs of her legs and butt were still sore and sitting exacerbated it.

“I can hear you breathing! Who are you? Why am I here?”

Suddenly, quick footsteps were heard. A ball of cloth was shoved into her mouth followed by a muzzle.

“SHUT UP!” He said.

“WHY DON’T YOU JUST SHUUT UUUP!”

She barely got a glimpse of him this time. Where could she be? Why was she being held captive? Nothing seemed to make sense. A door opened abruptly and then slammed shut. The sound made Emma jump up as far as the restraints would allow. Her heart was beating rapidly and hands were getting clammy. "What will happen next?"

The last thing she remembered was stopping next to the bridge near the river to have a better view of the full moon. Why didn’t she head home like her parents asked? Why did she stop there?

The door was violently pushed open. He wasn’t gone for too long. Her body shook uncontrollably in anticipation of what would occur. It didn't seem like it would end well. Emma sat there listening for any sounds but there was mainly silence besides him moving around and his deep breaths.

A coolness was felt on her neck which sent a shiver down the spine. This was followed by a familiar sting. Within seconds her eyes closed again.

******************

The sudden jerk of the box as it made its slow descent into the water had awakened Emma.

“Where am I?”

Her instincts caused her arms and legs to flail but they were restricted. Her entire body was also in pain. There was nothing that could be done. A muttered man’s voice could be heard coming from the surface. Emma wondered if that was him. "What did I do to deserve this and why would anyone want to hurt me?"

At first the water trickled in then became a heavy stream as the box continued its descent.

“He’s trying to drown me!”

As the water spewed in, she continued to remind herself, “You’ve got to hold your breath.” The once bright light from the surface slowly disappeared and darkness engulfed her surroundings. Her body forcefully pushed to inhale.

She tried to prevent it. The coolness of the water was felt entering her nostrils. At first there was resistance, but the body did what it was supposed to do and forced inhalation. This time the water had collapsed and enveloped her face like a damp cloth trying to suffocate her. She couldn’t breathe.

Everything grew darker. Her oxygen deprived brain indicated that this was the point where death was inevitable. An image of mom and dad flashed before her eyes. They would never see each other again. The thought was painful. She knew that they would worry and never discover her.

“I HAVE TO SURVIVE. I DON’T WANT TO DIE!” Emma screamed inside her head.

She was an accomplished sixteen-year-old who recently began taking college classes. Life can’t be over for her. Not that soon. There was so much left in store for the future plus she was young. Where was the opportunity to become something more in life or to make her impact on the world? This wasn’t fair. Emma continued to blame herself.

“Why did I have to ride along the river?”

Then came the point where she couldn’t hold on any longer. Her body fought until it couldn’t fight anymore. It was then that everything went dark as if a light switch had been suddenly turned off.

******************

“There’s someone in there. There’s someone in there. Hurry up and open up the box!”

The men broke the box and pulled Emma out expeditiously.

“I don’t know how long she’s been in there. I saw someone placing something into the water in the distance. Something seemed off. As soon as the boat left, I knew I had to investigate.”

Emma was thrust into the ground and CPR was started immediately.

“Any pulse?”

The man shook his head. “No.”

“Come on young girl, you’re gonna pull through ok!”

“COME ON! BREATHE FOR ME HONEY! BREATHE!”

They all heard the cracking of Emma’s ribs as her chest rose and fell against the palms of his hands. Some stood by with hands clasped or placed around their heads. They wanted her to make it. They wanted her to live. The emergency team was contacted and were on their way.

Just when everyone had given up hope, Emma began to cough up what seemed like water.

“We got a pulse. We got a pulse! It’s a weak pulse but we got one!“

The police and ambulance arrived. Emma was rushed away to the nearest hospital. No one knew if she would make it. That man who performed CPR on her had given it all he got.

******************

After weeks at the hospital in a coma, Emma slowly opened those eyes to the uninviting bright lights. There was panic because the last thing she remembered was drowning in a wooden box. Her mother was holding on to her hands. The opening of Emma’s eyes must have done something to her mother as she instinctively awakened and immediately sensed fear.

“Emma, it’s ok Emma. Mom is right here,” as tears dripped down her face. “Oh Emma, I am so glad you’re awake. Dad went out to get a cup of coffee and I know he can’t wait to be at your side. We have missed you so much.”

Emma was attached to a breathing tube and multiple monitors. The nurses were informed that she was awake. A police officer waited outside the door while mom ran out to grab dad.

While the nurses were getting her vitals and the doctors entered the room, Emma thought she saw a shadow of a man around the corner. He was wearing a dark hoodie. A quick look away and her eyes shut immediately. She opened them again and he was no longer there.

“Maybe my mind is playing tricks on me.”

Emma overheard the doctors telling her parents that a lack of oxygen to the brain and blunt force trauma can result in brain damage as they had previously discussed. They would be scheduling her for further tests to assess brain activity. Emma was unable to communicate with anyone at the time but she could hear and understand everything. They tried to determine her response to stimuli but all Emma could do was move her eyes.

The detectives came by to interview her. The doctors informed them that she was unable to speak and probably had no recollection of what happened. One of them mentioned another victim whose body was found in the river. They were desperate for answers.

Hearing this made Emma so angry. She wanted them to know that she was still in there. She wanted them to know that she did remember. She wanted them to know about the man in the dark hoodie by the river. She wanted to regain control of her entire body. Her voice could not remain trapped inside of her head. There was too much that needed to be said.

******************

“Code Blue”

“Code Blue”

“Why is everyone rushing in so frantically? What’s going on in here?”

“Begin CPR”

“Step away from the patient”

“All clear!”

“All clear!”

“Resume CPR”

This went on for minutes. The physician finally said, “We need to call time; 2:15pm.”

Emma's mom and dad were both crying uncontrollably out in the hallway.

“Why were they putting a blanket over my face?”

"NOOOOOOOOOO! You're trying to suffocate me again. I'm alive. I'm not dead!"

"Emma!.....Emma!....Emma!"

Emma thought she heard her name being called but she continued to try to alert everyone that she was still alive. The voice came in louder and she unwillingly submitted herself to the person calling her name and forced her eyes open.

"Are you with me now? Are you ok? You're still shaking honey."

"I just can't stop dreaming about it mom," cried Emma," About the man in the dark hoodie by the river and me dying over and over again."

"Emma this happened almost two years ago. Nothing has happened since and you are safe. He is in prison where he belongs and he is never coming out. He will never hurt you or anyone again. Now please try to get some rest."

With mom humming beautifully in the background while stroking her hair, she tried to go back to sleep. "Mom was right. He is in jail and it was only a dream. I am safe and there was no reason to be afraid."

She must have been asleep for a few hours when she was awakened by some voices in the hallway. It sounded like mom and dad were having a discussion.

"Mom, can you bring me a glass of water?" she called out but no answer.

Emma lazily got out of bed and opened her bedroom door into the hallway

"Hey mom. Can you......?" Emma froze.

"Hello Emma Jones. I know it was only time before we met again"......