“Okay. Stop,” he directed me, “But keep them closed. I’m gonna remove my hand.”
The urge to peek was strong but I resisted it. I listened to what was going on around me. A jangling of keys, a gentle intake of breath and a single lock being turned.
“Are we at your house?” I asked.
“Sort of,” Victor laughed, grabbing my hand. “Follow me.”
A subtle familiarity surrounded me as we entered our destination. I hadn’t opened my eyes, but a feeling of foreboding and calm washed over me at the same time. Victor took a right turn and pulled me gently along with him, followed by another left turn.
“We’re going down some stairs now, Annie. Don’t you worry, I won’t let you fall.”
The air grew slightly colder with each step we took and when we got to the bottom and stopped, I shivered lightly.
“Cold, my love?”
“A little,” I responded.
“Well, don’t you worry about that. I’ve got just the thing to warm you up. Open your eyes.”
“I hope it’s your coc--,” my words cut off as I took in the scene in front of me. I wasn’t sure what I had been expecting, but this wasn’t it.
A wall of memories threatened to topple me over as I looked around the basement of the home I had grown up in. Every single detail was in place, down to the deep freezer that I had drawn on with red permanent marker when I was four or five. Even the smell in the air reminded me of my youth.
There was only one difference that I could vividly see. One that made my heart swell with more love than I thought was humanly possible. There, on the wall directly across from the stairwell we had just come down were seven perfectly spaced bars attached to the wall. Secured tightly to each bar was a set of thick metal cuffs, and within those cuffs, the wrists of those who had wronged me.
Justin, Thomas, Jerry, Frank, John, Phillip, and Cory, all looked at me, confusion wide in their eyes, bound and gagged for my delight and pleasure. Leon’s brothers had been presented to me on a silver platter by the man behind me and I couldn’t contain my joy.
I turned around to face Victor, tears in my eyes. “How?”
“I’ve had almost ten years to locate them, my love. Are you happy?”
“Happy?” I asked incredulously. “Victor, I’m over the moon. What are we going to do with them?”
“Well, the choice is ultimately yours, Annie, however, I think you already know what you want to do.”
Victor was right. I knew exactly what I wanted to do to these foul creatures before me, but would I have the tools needed to get the job done?
“I can see the questions spinning in your mind, Annie, but like I told you in my first letter. I know you better than you know yourself. Wait here.”
I watched as Victor walked over to the stairs and made his way up. As soon as he was out of view, I turned back around to meet my prisoners. There was so much I wanted to say to them. So many hours I had spent locked behind bars practicing every single syllable of what I would say, but they all disappeared as soon as I saw them.
I walked down the line of brothers, each more pitiful than the last. They had been stripped down to only their boxers and I took a good hard look at each one.
The first brother Justin, the oldest, had clearly been here the longest. His hair was shaggy, his beard disheveled. His underwear and his body reeked of filth, and shit and piss. If I had to wager a guess, I would say he had been locked up for nearly a month or more.
The next few brothers down faired much the same fate, while the last one, Cory, the youngest just above Leon, had probably only been captive for a day or two.
“You don’t recognize me, do you, Walker brothers?” I asked. “Well, I remember you. I remember the way you tormented me, and teased me. I remember the way you pushed me around, spat on me, and called me foul names. Mostly though, I remember the way you turned your own brother against me.”
I watched as each one’s eyes dawned with clarity, immediately turning to rage, and finally settling on fear. Good. They should be afraid. They should be very afraid. Inside, I vibrated. Their fear only adding fuel to my rage and revenge.
While I waited for Victor to rejoin me, I looked over to the laundry area to find my fathers grass watering hose, spiralled up just like he always had it. I didn’t know how Victor had accomplished something so detailed, but in the moment, I didn’t much care.
Hooking up the hose to the washing sink, I turned the cold water on full blast and walked up to Justin.
“You fucking stink,” I whispered before aiming the nozzle at him and pulling the trigger. Ice cold water splattered the filthy man in the chest and ran down his body.
One by one I rinsed the muk off of each man before returning the hose back to it’s rightful position.I turned back towards them and gently sauntered up to Cory, the one on the far right.
“You aren’t perfect. But you will be,” I uttered, my hand softly caressing his cheek. Cory’s eyes softened a miniscule as he let hope back in. I laughed inside and moved on to the next brother, Phillip.
“You aren’t perfect. But you will be.”
One after the other, I made my way down the line and as I pulled my hand away from Justin’s face, the familiar sound of boots coming down the stairs greeted my ears.
“I’ve got everything you need, my love. Are you ready to begin?”
I grabbed the electric hand saw out of Victor’s hand and smiled. “I love you.”
Chapter Five
I walked up to the eldest,
