Saving Maddie

They hugged one final time before Maddie turned and walked out of her life forever. Carrie sat there, still in disbelief. She couldn’t believe that she had just said goodbye to the love of her life. They had been together for 3 years, nearing four in June, and ending it didn’t sit right with either of them. Unfortunately, neither of them was going to admit that they were not ready to give each other up. A few days had gone by, and though the girls had sworn they would remain the best of friends, Maddie had been quiet. There was no text, no call, no form of communication at all. Carrie was worried, so she bit her tongue and called, but no answer. Carrie texted Maddie and told her to meet her at their treehouse. When she got there, she was shocked to find Maddie’s vgvdebag, and her cell phone thrown across the grass along with some of her other belongings. Carrie picked up the cell phone and looked at the message on the screen. It was supposed to be sent to her. “In danger, being followed.” The text was never sent. Whatever was following Maddie had gotten to her. Carrie reached into her pocket and grabbed her cell phone. Just as she was about to dial 911, a video popped up. Carrie opened it to find a very disturbing clip. Maddie was tied up and looked as though she had been beaten. What horrified Carrie most was her clothing. She had been wearing the same outfit from the day they broke up. No wonder she had not reached out, she had been missing for about three days. Carrie stared at the screen as silent tears streamed down her face. “If you want to see her alive again” a deep ominous voice from the video started “you need to save her.” “WHO ARE YOU???” Carrie yelled at the phone screen. “That is of no importance at this time,” the voice replied. “If you love this girl as much as you have told her, save her.” “I will. You bet your pathetic ass I will. And when I do, you’d better hope that there is someone to save you.”Carrie practically screamed at the video. The video disappeared once it ended. There was no evidence of it anywhere. Carrie knew what she needed to do, and for some reason, she felt like she had to do this on her own. No authorities could be involved. Carrie gathered up Maddie’s things and headed home. One thing Carrie knew for sure was that she had to get Maddie back safe. She was unsure what she would do without her. Carrie got home, packed a few outfits and other necessities. She wrote a note telling her parents that she was going to be okay and not to worry. She climbed out of her bedroom window and stood there for a second. Staring at the trees. “I’m coming for you, Maddie.” were the last words she spoke before walking off into the night.

Carrie’s adrenaline was rushing. Thought after thought was racing through her head. “What if this is some stupid prank and your setting yourself up?” “What if this is real?” “Where exactly are you going?” All the thoughts came to a stop after she asked herself that question. The truth was that Carrie really had no idea where she was going. She stopped on the side of a gas station, both to rest and figure everything out. Carrie had wished to God that she had learned how to drive when Maddie had offered to teach her. She had wished she wasn’t so stubborn about a lot of things. There was no time to be sorry now. Maddie needed her. Suddenly, there was a ding. It was Maddie’s phone. She grabbed it and unlocked it just in time to see another message from Maddie’s captor. She opened the video and was appalled by what she saw. Maddie was lying on the floor, stripped of all her clothing, in tears. “What do you want with us you sick fuck?” Carrie said harshly. The man said nothing, he walked over to Maddie and removed her gag. “Why don’t you tell your friend why you are here?” Maddie was silent, but you could see the pain in her eyes. “Carrie, please” Maddie pleaded weakly. “I don’t know what he wants but I don’t want you to get hurt trying to help me. Please don’t do this.” Seeing her in that state brought me to tears. “Awe now isn’t that sweet? The two girlfriends are crying together.” He gagged Maddie again and kicked her in the stomach. She winced in pain and more tears came out. “LEAVE HER ALONE!” I yelled at the phone. The video ended and I quickly fumbled around in my bag for a pen. During the three years that we were together Maddie and I had come up with our own code language and she had managed to add a few of our code words in while the camera was on her. My name, which symbolized the number 6, please twice, which symbolized 3, and want, which symbolized 4. Putting that together gave me what I was hoping was the numbers of an address. I rapidly typed the numbers into Google Maps and one location popped up. 634 S Kintinine street. My GPS showed that I was about 34 hours from there. Now I may be crazy but I am in no way stupid. I knew I wasn’t going to be able to walk 34 hours and still have the energy to get Maddie out of the seriously messed up situation she was in. I went inside the store and bought a bottle of water and a doughnut. It was the first thing I had eaten since Maddie and I had stopped talking. My GPS told me that there was an inn about a half-mile away. When I got there I gave the night clerk my $30 for a room and when I got inside I crashed on the bed and fell asleep without a wasted moment. I knew I would need all the sleep I could get. Tomorrow was the day I saved the love of my life.

Carrie was awakened by a knock on the door. “Who is it?” she asked a bit hesitantly. “Housekeeping” came a reply, to which she let out a deep sigh of relief. She opened the door and let in the old lady. Carrie began collecting her things and in a haste dropped the bag containing the Glock 17 she planned to use against whoever this psychopath was. Carrie rushed past the maid, bumping into her and momentarily knocking her off balance, and dropped the bag revealing the weapon. The maid looked terrified as Carrie scrambled to put it back. “Calm down, its ok’’ Carrie reassured her. “I’m not here to hurt anyone, this is only for protection.” The maid let out a laugh, it was forced no doubt, but Carrie joined in to help calm both of them down. Carrie put the weapon and clothes she was using to hide it back into the bag and left the hotel. She knew she couldn’t expect to make it to the address on foot leaving her one option. Hitchhiking. She didn’t agree with it but she was determined to get to Maddie while she was still alive, if she was still alive. Over the next day and a half, Carrie got in and out of stranger’s cars until she reached the town where Google Maps had placed the address. She could go on foot from here. From the time she had left the motel to now, Carrie had received multiple videos from Maddie’s captor. Each time he was performing an act more gruesome than the last. She was playing the image in her had for the 5th time when she heard that dreadful ding. She opened the video with tears of anger streaming down her face. Maddie sat still bound to a chair with smeared mascara all over her face. “You listen here you sick, spineless, sorry excuse for a human being. You are gonna be sorry you ever messed with us. I’m going to make sure of it.” Carrie said without giving him the chance to utter a word. She studied the man’s face. Though he was wearing a mask she could see he wasn’t wearing the usual smirk he always is. He looked worried. He didn’t say a word. He just ended the video. Carrie knew exactly what had made him uneasy. He knew she had found them. Which meant she was running out of time. She shoved the phone in her back pocket and grabbed hers. Google Maps was showing that she was about 25 minutes away. Carrie slung the backpack over her back and went as fast as she could go. There was no way she was letting him haul Maddie off anywhere else. Even if her life depended on it. After what seemed like an eternity of walking she heard the voice as clear as day. “You have reached your destination.” Carrie stopped and crouched down behind some bushes. She removed the gun from her bag, made sure it was loaded and cocked, and secured it in her waistband. She stashed the bags into the bush and began to observe the house. The slightest movement was all she needed. After 30 minutes of just sitting there, she decided to get a closer look. She cautiously walked up to a window and looked around for any sign of them. The mask, Maddie’s clothes, anything. She crept around the perimeter of the house until she got to the kitchen window. She looked through and nearly fell back in disbelief. Lying there on a mattress, motionless and naked, was Maddie. Carrie thought better of making an effort to get her attention in case he was nearby. Now that she knew she was at the right place, she began looking for a way in. She remembered the empty room she had first looked into had a sliding door. She made her way back around the house and checked to see if the door was unlocked. To her surprise, it was. Something about how easy it was didn’t sit right with her. Carrie looked for another way in. The garage side door seemed to be the only other way she could get in without being noticed. The door was locked, but Carrie had no problem with that. Maddie had taught Carrie how to pick a lock during the first month of their relationship. Carrie successfully got the door open using her bobby pin and a nail she had found on the ground. Once inside Carrie needed a plan. So she sat in a corner out of sight and thought of just what she was gonna do next. She knew she couldn’t just run in demanding he gives her Maddie. She wasn’t sure where in the house he was or if he was even in the house. As she sat there thinking about what to do, she heard a car pull into the driveway. Panic washed over Carrie as she heard footsteps approaching the door. Without hesitation, she ran through the door into the house and straight to the backroom where Maddie was. Maddie saw her and began to sit up but Carrie urged her back down and signaled for her to stay quiet. She slipped into the closet and slid the door closed behind her. For a while it was quiet. Then the footsteps came echoing down the hallway and into the bedroom. “Wakey wakey Maddie.” Now that she was hearing it in person, his voice sounded more intimidating. She listened as Maddie begged and pleaded with the man. “Please, no more. Please” Maddie begged as he dragged her out of the room. She couldn’t imagine how many times she had to say those words. She just knew that she wasn’t going to allow it to happen again. She exited the closet and cautiously walked through the hall until she was at the end. She peered around the corner and saw him gathering the ratty old rope to tie her down. Carrie slowly pulled the gun out of her waistband and put it at her side. She crept up behind him and pointed it at his head. “Drop the rope.” Carrie said. The man let out a chuckle and she cocked the gun to let him know she had not come to negotiate. “Drop the fucking rope and turn around slowly you sick son of a bitch.” He did as she said. Then without warning, he lunged at her knocking her to the ground and launching the gun across the room. He punched her in the face repeatedly. Carrie struggled to loosen herself from under him in any way possible. She scratched at his face and pulled at his clothes but to no avail. He was not going to let up. Just when Carrie was about to slip into unconsciousness she heard it. His body thudding against the floor.Carrie looked up and saw Maddie standing over her holding a bat. She extended her arm and pulled her up. “Come on, we need to get out of here” she said as she pulled her to her feet. Carrie ran for the gun and then they both ran out the door and headed down the road as fast as they could to the bush where Carrie had stashed the bags. After they picked the bags up they kept walking. All of a sudden Maddie pushed Carrie into the trees and ran in behind her. “What the” “Shhh, he’s out there” Maddie said in the shakiest voice Carrie had ever heard. She was right. The beat up car that was in the driveway was now driving up to the very spot where they were hiding. They both ran deeper into the woods and didn’t slow down because right behind them they could hear his footsteps right behind them. Just as they were coming to a road Carrie tripped on a rock and fell. “Come inn Carrie get up the roads right there we can make it. Please get up he’s coming.” But before she could go up and keep going he grabbed her by her hair. “Where do you think your going?” Both girls sat there looking scared for their lives. “Let her go. Please. It’s me you want.” “No no no, it wasn’t you. It was never you. You were just bait for her. She’s the one I really want. You see Carrie I’ve been watching you for a quite a while now. And I figured there was only one way I wasn’t going to get you. Through the person you love the most.” “Well.” Carrie said. “You got me, now what you psycho. You gonna torture me the same way you torture her? Go ahead.” “Oh I see sweetie, see I’ve got something way worse in store for you. The only difference is you won’t get a rescue because no one will know where you are.” And then he pulled out a gun and aimed it straight for Maddie. “It’s been a pleasure.” Two gun shots rang out and then Carrie fell to the ground. She got up, and scrambled away from the now lifeless man. “Dispatch I need an ambulance out here asap.” In the heat of the moment Carrie had forgotten she’d turned on her location after calling the cops on the way to the house. The girls breathe out a sigh of relief and follow the officer back to the car.The ambulance arrived and pronounced him dead and then the girls got in the car and the cop drove them to the station where they called their parents and answered more questions. Every day after that the girls were inseparable. Memories from that day still haunted the girls but as time grew so did they.

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