Free Had a Great Fall (An Olivia Thompson Mystery) by Jullian Scott Page B

anything that doesn’t play into his delusion that we have a perfect family.” Olivia remembered that when their mom had moved out, Brian had pretended that everything was fine and that their mom just needed more space. He would tell his friends that their family had two houses rather than admit that their parents were separated. “He still won’t admit that Teddy wasn’t planned even though Taylor was still in high school when she got pregnant.”
    “This pie smells amazing,” Nate said, holding it up to his nose.
    Olivia rolled her eyes. “Good talk.”
    “Look, Liv. There’s nothing I can say here that’s going to make you feel better. But we can at least eat some delicious pie.” He gave her a pleading look.
    She was already on her way to the kitchen. “Fine. But this will be the only desert you’re having tonight.”
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     

CHAPTER NINE
    Dani quickly lost track of time in her prison cell. She only knew that time was passing because of the rising and falling of light outside the distant window that faintly lit her cell. Every night, when the light would fade completely, the footsteps would come. They would be faint at first, growing heavier as they approached the bars that kept her separated from her freedom.
    With the protection of the darkness, the footsteps would stop on the other side of the bars, just feet away. Dani could hear the breathing, but she couldn’t see a face. The figure was large enough that she suspected it was a male. Some nights, he would slide a plate of food under the two-inch gap between the bars and the floor. Other nights, he would bypass her cell completely and move further down the hall.
    Within a short amount of time, Dani had realized that she wasn’t alone in the basement. She could hear other people moving around, at least two or three people. It took much longer before she had the courage to reach out to them. Even then, it started with a hesitant hello that went unanswered. Five hellos later, a timid voice finally responded.
    Dani had discovered that their mystery captor never visited them during daylight. That meant they were free to talk to each other for hours at a time. During that time, they each took turn telling their stories. At first, there were two other girls: Melanie Grant and Tina Larson. If Madison was being kept in the basement, she wasn’t able to talk. Dani did her best to keep positive thoughts about her friend, but deep inside she suspected that something terrible had happened to her.
    One night, not long after Dani woke up in her prison, the man came and took Melanie away. She never came back. The night after Melanie was taken away, the man came to Dani’s cell. So far, she had been lucky. He had visited the other girls at night, doing unspeakable thing to them. But he had always left Dani alone.
    That night, she wasn’t so lucky.
    After locking the cell behind him, he came and sat next to her on the bed. He was a surprisingly attractive man- early 30s with dark hair and eyes. He also looked very familiar.
    “Hello, Dani,” he said, a playful smile on his lips.
    She nearly threw up. “Do I know you?”
    “I know you,” he replied. “My name is Eli.”
    The name didn’t register, but the way he kept staring at her reminded her of someone. A few seconds later, she realized that he was the man she had seen in the library, the one she had suspected was watching her.
    “You’ve been following me,” she said in a whisper.
    His smile grew. “You remember me. Good. You and I were destined to be together, Dani.”
    “Just like all the other girls?” she asked angrily.
    “No.” He grabbed her arm and squeezed hard enough to make her wince. “This other girls are just a distraction. I use them to serve my needs so that I don’t hurt you.”
    “You’re hurting me now,” Dani said, her stomach turning.
    “I’m sorry.” His hand dropped away. “I don’t want to hurt you. I just want us to be together.”
    Dani was