usmcsis's Diaryland Diary

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untitled chapter 1

i started writing this over a year ago but i lost it before getting very far. it's stayed in the back of my mind, kind of simmering on low heat. lol anyway, lately it's been pushing it's way forward and forcing me to pay attention. thanks to juggy for helping me find the original first chapter over at LL.

I didn�t know where I was or where I was going. I only knew that some unknown presence seemed to guide my bare feet over the grass. It was darker than I had ever imagined night could be. It was eerily quiet yet the silence didn�t bother me. The darkness seemed heavy, weighing on my body and causing my progress to my unknown destination to be agonizingly slow. I paused now and again, cocking my head to one side as if waiting for an imaginary whisper to guide me in the right direction. I didn�t know how far I�d come or how far I still had to go.

I paused again in the darkness, waiting for something, anything, to direct me. As I stopped I heard a twig snap in the distance and I quickly turned my head in the direction I thought the sound had come from. I could see nothing in the dark blanket of night that covered the world. I stood still another moment listening, and just as I began to walk again I heard it. A faint footstep, muffled against the thick, soft grass. I remained still, waiting. Waiting for what I didn�t know, just waiting.

A heartbeat later, I heard it again, the whisper of movement somewhere behind me in this horrible darkness. Fear gripped my belly and gooseflesh broke out along my bare arms. I stood still, hardly breathing, with my fists clenched at my sides. I could feel my fingernails digging into the palms of my hands but I didn�t relax them. The hair on the back of my neck stood on end as I heard another step, and then another.

Suddenly there was silence again. A silence so complete that I almost wished the muffled footsteps would begin again. Almost. Rivulets of sweat ran down my back as I fought the urge to turn and look behind me. Part of me was scared of what I might see, another part of me, scared that I would see nothing.

�Run.�

A coarse whisper floated on the breeze, chilling my very bones. I strained to hear more. More footsteps, more words, more anything. There was nothing but silence.

�Run.�

This time more urgent but still the same coarse whisper reached my ears. Too scared to run, I stood my ground closing my eyes against the offending darkness.

�RUN!�

My eyes flew open and I lurched forward in a stumbling run as the high-pitched scream pierced the darkness. I heard the footsteps behind me again, louder now as I was being chased through the night. Thorns tore at my bare legs, branches slapped my face but still I ran, never pausing for direction, just running.

Suddenly I stumbled. I tried to catch myself, to keep on running. Something was back there, something that would surely catch me if I went down. A sharp pain shot through my ankle as I twisted it during my fall. My breath escaped me fast and hard as I hit the ground, the dark world spun and then there was nothing.

~*~

I sat bolt upright in gasping for breath. Something was holding my legs. Kicking with all my strength, I was finally free. I looked wildly around. I was in my room. In my bed. My bed sheet was twisted at the foot of the bed where I had kicked it. The oversized t-shirt I used as a nightgown was soaked through with sweat. Gradually I caught my breath and felt my heartbeat return to normal.

I glanced over at the clock on the bedside table. It was blinking 12:00. Damn, the power must have gone out again. The air was thick and hot. I heard air hissing through the air conditioning vent in the ceiling. The power must have only just come back on. I reached over and turned on the lamp next to the bed, intending to fix the time on the clock when there was a loud pounding on the front door. Startled, I jumped. I grabbed my watch from the bedside table and glanced at it. Two in the morning. Who the hell goes around banging on doors at two in the morning?

The pounding continued as I stumbled out of bed and fumbled on a pair of shorts that I scooped up off of the floor. Grumbling to myself I headed down the hallway towards the racket at my front door.

�Who is it?� I called through the door.

�It�s the police, Ms. Bender. We need to speak to you.� A deep voice called through from the hallway outside my apartment.

The police? At two in the morning? What on earth was going on?

�Has my shop been broken into?� I asked, still leaning on the door.

�No ma�am. Please, if you�ll just let us in, we need to speak to you.� The disembodied voice called out again.

I cracked the door, leaving the security chain in place. Peering out into the brightly lit hallway I saw two men. One was obviously a police officer, looking way too bright eyed and bushy tailed for two a.m. The other was a tall blonde man in a rumpled suit that looked as if he had pulled it out of the bottom of his hamper, much like the shorts I�d just thrown on.

�I�m sorry, but do you have any identification?� I asked, watching the two men warily through the crack of the door.

�Of course Ms. Bender. I�m Detective Mitch Keene and this is Officer Cain.� The tall blonde said as he pulled his badge from a hidden pocket inside his suit jacket, passing it through to me.

�If you don�t mind waiting a moment, I�d like to call the station just to verify this.� I said.

�Of course ma�am. After all, a woman can�t be too careful nowadays.� Detective Keene spoke with a heaviness in his voice that hinted to me that he had seen the end results of too many careless victims.

Nodding, I closed the door and clicked the deadbolt into place. He was right. You could never be too careful. Heading to the phone in the kitchen I flipped the overhead light on, blinking against the sudden brightness. Pulling the phone book from the drawer by the stove, I quickly found the non-emergency police number and placed my call. The night operator sounded dreadfully sleepy as he quickly verified that I had two bonafied officers of the law standing outside my front door.

Unlocking the deadbolt, but leaving the chain still in place, I opened the door once again to see the two men still standing patiently in the hallway. I passed the detective�s badge back out to him.

�Did you speak to Officer Johnson, Ms. Bender?� The detective asked.

�Yes, he assured me that I have nothing to fear from two policemen pounding on my door at two in the morning.� I said; pushing the door closed just enough to undo the chain. Pulling the door open, I waved them in. �Now, if you�d please just tell me what is going on.�

I closed the door, locking it again and then led the way into the living room. The two large men followed me and I could sense them looking around, inspecting my home. I didn�t like the feeling.

�Perhaps you�d like to have a seat Ms. Bender.� The uniformed officer whose name I�d forgotten said as he stood near the doorway.

�If you�re standing, I�ll stand. Please, it�s late, could someone just please tell me what�s going on?� I pleaded.

�Ms. Bender, do you know a Ms. Karen Benedict?� The detective asked.

�I, yes, yes I do. Is something wrong? Has something happened to Karen?� I asked, almost unable to get the words past the lump that had quickly formed in my throat.

�She�s your business partner isn�t she?� Detective Keene asked.

�Yes, and my best friend. We grew up together. We�re like sisters. Please, what�s happened?� I could feel the panic rolling in my stomach.

�Please, Ms. Bender, sit down.� Detective Keene crossed to me and placed a hand on my arm.

My knees were on the verge of giving out so I sat. Numbly I looked up into his eyes. They were a bright blue, like the sky on the clearest summer day, but there was a sadness in them and it told me what I wanted to know.

�Oh God, what�s happened? Please?� My voice broke and I felt tears pricking the backs of my eyes.

�When was the last time you saw Ms. Benedict, Ms. Bender?� The detective asked, sitting next to me on the couch.

�Um, well, Friday. At the shop. She left a bit early, she had a date. I stayed late to close up.�

�She had a date? Do you know the man she was dating?� he asked, leaning forward ever so slightly.

�She isn�t dating. I mean, not any one person steadily. She goes out with a few different men now and then. She says she�s too young yet to settle down.�

�She was thirty-five wasn�t she?� The uniformed officer stated blandly from his post by the door.

�She IS thirty-five officer. And a lot of women feel that thirty-five is still young.� I said coldly as I realized what his words meant.

�She�s dead isn�t she?� I asked, turning to the kind eyes of the detective sitting next to me.

�We found a woman.� He said softly. �In the park near Ms. Benedict�s home, fitting her description. A wallet was nearby, mostly empty.�

�Mostly?� I asked.

�This was tucked inside.�

He reached again into the pocket hidden inside his suit jacket and pulled out a picture. He passed it to me. I glanced at it a moment and then closed my eyes. Holding the picture against my heart I stood.

�Ms. Bender?� The detective stood as well.

�Just a moment please. I�ll be right back.�

I walked a few feet into the hallway, which was lined with framed photos. I stood facing an exact copy of the picture I held in my hand. Reaching out I removed the frame from the wall and turned to see Detective Keene standing a few feet away.

�It was taken the night of our senior prom. Ages ago. Neither of us was dating anyone so we got all dressed up and went together. We danced all night. Karen always said that carrying this picture with her kept her eighteen at heart.� I said, a sad smile playing on my face as the detective took my arm and led me back to the living room.

When I was seated again he spoke. �Ms. Benedict has no family correct?�

�Yes, she was an only child and her parents were killed in an accident five years ago.� I said as the tears finally spilled from eyes and ran down my face.

�Ms. Bender, I hate to do this to you but we�ll need someone to identify the body.� The detective�s voice was gentle.

�Of course. I�m all the family she had.� I said standing again. �If you�ll just give me a moment to get dressed.�

�Yes ma�am. We�ll wait.�

the conversation needs more fleshing out as far as descriptions go but the next chapter is calling to me rather insistantly so i will hold off on the edits for a bit, for now.

i've been writing random things over the past year but most of it i haven't been all that happy with. this story just won't leave me alone and i think i'm just going to have to give in and finish it or else go crazy. lol

so, what do you think?

12:34 am - 09 Sep 2002

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