and pulled out of the parking lot, and Kelly did her best to seem pleased about it.
As they drove, Kelly pulled out her phone and sent Tiffany a text asking her where the hell she was.
“Sorry. Met hot guys. How’d it go?”
“Oh, fine. I was bought by a psycho axe murderer, but I’m glad you found some guys to flirt with.”
“Haha, I’m sure it’ll be fine. Are you still here?”
“No, we’re going to dinner. Italian.”
“Oooo, fancy. How much did he get you for?”
“$500.”
“WHAT”
Kelly laughed.
“What’s funny?” Daniel asked.
“Oh, nothing. I was… where are we going?” Kelly looked out the windows and saw they’d gotten on the freeway. Trees surrounded them on all sides.
“Oh, there’s this great Italian place just outside of town. I’m sorry, I thought I told you.”
“No,” Kelly said, watching the woods roll by. “You hadn’t said.”
What restaurant was out of town? Especially this freeway, going this way.
There wasn’t anything for a hundred miles.
When she looked down at her phone, she had a text from Tiffany asking if he was loaded, and then another asking what kind of car he drove.
“He’s taking me out in the middle of nowhere. I’m seriously freaking out right now,” she typed.
Before she hit send, Daniel grabbed the phone from her hands and read the text out loud.
“Kelly,” he said, his tone condescending, “that hurts my feelings.”
“Give me my phone, Daniel.”
“You don’t need this,” he said as he rolled down his window.
“Don’t you dare!”
Out the window it went, and before she’d sent the text. Tiffany would think she was off having a wonderful time.
“Who are you?” she asked. “What is this?”
Daniel sighed long and low, the sound of release.
“Oh Kelly, I’ve waited for this for a long time. I know all about you. All I’ve wanted was a chance to get close to you. You don’t remember me, do you?”
Kelly swallowed, her arms going numb with fear, the skin of her neck and fingers tingling.
“I don’t.”
“Aw,” he said, whining a little.
“Why are you trying to hurt me so much? We shared such a wonderful moment, Kelly. Don’t pretend it meant nothing to you.”
What the hell was he talking about? She couldn’t take her eyes off of him, waiting for him to pull out a knife or a gun or something, and she was sure beyond a doubt she’d never seen him before.
“Three years ago. The mall. You were wearing that, mmm, that blue dress of yours. With the frills around the waist. That dress always looked so nice on you, Kelly. You don’t have it with you, do you?”
“Are you serious?”
When he turned his head and looked at her, his features locked in furious disdain, she quickly changed her tone.
It was as if a whole different person sat in that seat.
“No, I don’t carry that dress around with me.”
“That’s too bad,” he said.
“That’s just too bad. It would’ve been nice to have seen you in it one last time.”
One last time? Kelly whimpered without intending to. What was happening? Who was this guy?
She racked her brain, trying to think of what happened at the mall three years ago.
The car slowed down, and he pulled off onto a side road. Oh no, she thought, now we’re really in the middle of nowhere.
She’d been thinking that if she saw a highway patrol or something she could swerve the car or honk the horn to get their attention, but now, in the middle of the forest, there was no hope.
After a mile, the road turned to dirt. The car bounced around on it, the tires grinding over the dirt and gravel. The smell of the forest and dust came through the air conditioning vents.
“I love you, Kelly,” he said suddenly, “don’t you see that? Why can’t you see that? I did this for you. I’m doing this all for
Lisa Mondello, L. A. Mondello