“Right,” Minnie said, placing her hands on her slender hips. “Let’s get this show on the road.” She picked up the bowl and took it over to the door of the RV, where she tossed the contents out into the bright morning, the water creating a loud smack as it joined with the already moist terrain.
“Finally!” grinned Flo with a mouthful of crisps, pushing the bag away from her as she picked up the phone again.
Sienna grabbed hold of Jared’s hand and swallowed.
“P-p-p-please…” she projected her voice as bravely as she could, although it came out in a pathetic squeak that made her feel smaller and weaker than ever. “I-i-i-if it’s the-the RV you want… y-y-y-you can have it…”
Samantha/Stella threw her head back and laughed. “Obviously,” she drawled. “Obviously, we are going to have the RV.”
Inside her chest, Sienna felt her heart break. She tightened her grip on Jared’s limp, cold fingers. “But you’ll let us go, right? We’ll g-g-g-go peacefully…”
Minnie pulled out one of the mini fabric bar stools beneath the dining table and plonked herself down on it. The laminate flooring was a mess; a disgusting, shimmering surface of glistening mud streaked with the odd blood trail that wept from Jared’s stab wound. No one had bothered to remove their boots. It was a sad, sorry sight that reflected the sordid scenario back to Sienna in all its rawness.
“Do as we say, and we’ll let you go,” Minnie agreed.
Sienna nodded, desperately trying to catch her breath, and stop herself from crying. “Anything, right, Jared?”
Jared’s eyes darted towards her, but still, he did not speak.
“Good,” smiled Minnie. “Remember, any funny business, and there will be hell to pay.”
Heart pounding, Sienna nodded again.
She listened intently to her instructions and stifled groans of terror as each horrible demand soaked into her soul and filled her with agonising dread. Because everything that Minnie said made it more and more clear that, contrary to the original bargain, Sienna and Jared would not be walking free.
Minnie wanted Sienna and Jared to stage a video for their YouTube, a farewell video to their fans explaining how they were selling the RV and returning to the states to resume a normal life.
A video that, if Sienna and Jared ever went to the authorities, would be easily accessible and could be used as evidence for a whole host of crimes. Assault with a knife; breaking and entering; theft… would they really risk that?
“Right, are you ready?” Minnie asked, “Flo, get the camera on.”
“Balance it on the table,” Zach said, “otherwise it’ll look obvious that there are other people here.”
Sienna squirmed and looked at Jared.
“You need to look a bit less paralysed,” Lloyd barked.
At first, Sienna thought the boy was referring to her tense, understandably rigid frame. But then she became aware of the five pairs of eyes, each fixed on the spot beside her, looking at Jared. The realisation was like the swing of a steel hammer, swiftly ripping through the air and colliding hard with the front of her skull, shattering her world into oblivion.
“Paralysed?” she croaked, staring at Jared. Her heart sunk as she saw that his eyes were glassy, filling quickly with tears. She took in his awkward body and the strange, disconcerting way that his body remained as still and stiff as a stone statue, even where his facial features flickered and twitched. “Oh baby…” she whispered, lunging herself forward and falling against him. “Oh baby, what did they do to you?” she sobbed uncontrollably into his neck. She felt his lips graze her ear, and for a moment, she thought he was kissing her.
“Run,” he whispered, his words tickling her earlobe. “Leave me.”
“No,” she wept, “no…”
“Come on!” snapped Minnie impatiently, “let’s just get this over with. Film the video, and you can go, okay?”
“How are we meant to go anywhere?” screamed Sienna, her face red, her skin streaked with a disgusting, sticky paste of tears and snot. “You paralysed him!”
Stella rolled her eyes and glared at Lloyd, “why the hell did you say anything? She was calm before you had to open your big, ugly trap!”
“Oh shut up, you stupid bitch! You’re the one who fucking paralysed him in the first place. How is anyone going to believe it’s a legit video with a damn quadriplegic in the frame?” Lloyd argued back, thumping his sister in the arm.
“Right, enough!” Minnie interrupted. “Come on, we’re all tired and cranky, but this has got to be done!”
Lloyd’s ugly face crumpled, his thick, chubby brow furrowing over his piggy eyes. “She started it,” he grumbled.
“Yeah? And I’m finishing it,” Minnie said. “Just shut up, the lot of you.” She turned back to Sienna, “come on; we can do this the easy way or the hard way.”
Sienna’s entire body shook. Her eyes flitted to the open door just a few metres away. She knew that she could easily dodge past. But she was not wearing any shoes, and it’d be difficult to get anywhere in the thick sludge that surrounded them. Her only real hope would be to get a hold of one of the knives from the kitchen drawers…
“Easy way,” Sienna said, her breaths regulating as a plan formed inside her head.
Minnie smiled as she watched the young woman wipe her tears and obediently put an arm around her husband.
“Okay, Flo, you ready to record?”
Flo nodded, “alright… 1… 2… 3…”
Sienna summoned every ounce of her inner strength to plaster on a wide, fake smile. “Hey guys, and welcome back to our YouTube channel,” she began, her voice surprisingly collected and bright, when inside, she was just a moment away from breaking down entirely.
“We’re recording this video from Lonely Loch, and being here has given us a lot of time to think,” she continued. Slowly, she began to snake her arm back around Jared’s waist, gently, gently so that the family would not notice. “…we’ve decided that this travelling life is not for us…” her skin prickled as she
