Free Held by Kimberly A. Bettes Page B

be back. It may be a while, though. Try to miss me while I’m away.”
    “Wait,” I said quickly as he ascended the stairs. “Can I get a blanket? And some food? And water? And a bucket to use as a toilet?”
    Halfway up the steps, he turned to me. “ That’s a lot of requests coming from a girl in the basement. You can pee on the floor. I’ll wash it when I get back. You’ve got food, Nicole. Eat that. As for the blanket, you should have enough nice thoughts of me to keep you warm. And as for water, there’s a thunderstorm due tonight or tomorrow. When it rains, water seeps into the basement. That should hold you until I return. I’ll see you soon.” And with that, he disappeared into the main floor, closing the door behind him.
    Just how long did he plan to be gone? At least a coup le days from the way he talked.
    I wanted to cry. But I wouldn’t let myself until I’d thought through the situation I was in now. If this bowl of rotten dog food was all I had to eat, it was going to have to do.
    Pulling the bowl to me, I felt my stomach rumble. I wasn’t going to eat it yet. I was just preparing for when the time came that I had to.
    As disgusting as it was, I reached in and began pulling out the maggots. One by one, I pulled them from the bowl, placed them on the floor, and stomped them with the heel of my foot. When the bowl was free of the white, wriggling worms, I slid it aside. I sat back a nd looked around the dank room.
    I felt myself falling apart, and I did nothing to stop it. I cried, knowing I shouldn’t. I should ’ve conserved my energy and kept as much liquid in me as I could.
    But I couldn’t stop myself from throwing a little pity party.

Chapter 14
     
    I had no way of knowing how long it was before Ron returned. It could’ve been several hours. It could’ve been a couple of days. The minutes all ran together in the basement with no way of telling time.
    All I knew for sure was that the things I’d had to do to survive were things I wasn’t proud of doing.
    I di dn’t want to lick the water off the concrete walls as the rain seeped in. But I did. Until my tongue was raw from scraping it against the rough concrete.
    I di dn’t want to shit on the floor beside my bed. But I did. Three times.
    I didn’t want to eat that dog food. And I didn’t. That was still a line I wasn’t able to cross. Though my stomach rumbled and I was weak, I held out. Ignoring the voice in my head that shouted out for me to just close my eyes and eat it, I waited. I still had ho pe that he would bring me food.
    Turns out, Ron did bring me something, but it wasn’t the food I was craving.
    I woke to Ron shaking me. When I opened my eyes, he smiled down at me. It took everything I had, but I pushed myself up and sat with my back to the wall.
    “Did you miss me?” he asked, smiling.
    Hungry and hopeful, I nodded.
    “Good. I knew you would. I see you haven’t eaten. Is there a reason?”
    “Yeah. It’s rotten dog food.”
    “So you’d rather starve than eat old dog food? Interesting. Are you often stubborn, or is it just when it comes to what you eat?”
    “I’m not picky. I just won’t eat rotten food. Would you please bring me a sandwich or something?”
    He considered this for a moment and said, “No. Girls in the basement eat basement food. If you want a sandwich, then you must learn your lesson.”
    “I have,” I said quickly.
    “Oh have you?” he asked suspiciously. “What lesson have you learned?”
    Shit.
    “Well, I’ve learned that I shouldn’t make you angry.”
    He nodded.
    “And I shouldn’t talk back to you.”
    He shook his head. “I’m afraid you’re wrong. It seems you haven’t learned your lesson yet. But don’t worry.” He kissed the top of my head and stood. “You will. Until then, I’m afraid this is your dinner,” he said, nudging the bowl with his foot. “It won’t be so bad. Remember, it could always be worse.”
    That was no lie.
    It wasn’t until Ron was