by, and before they knew it, it was July and they were celebrating Alessa’s birthday at a local restaurant. Lucy was beside herself with glee, when her burger came out with onion rings stacked on top and filled with French fries. Ebby joined them, and it was a quiet but fun evening. Before dessert was served, Regina and her parents joined them, too. It was all Alessa could have wished for. The rest of the summer went quickly, and before they knew it, they were getting Lucy ready to go back to school. She was excited about her upcoming birthday, and Alessa was planning a party at their house with her friends from school.
A week before Lucy’s birthday, Cliff and Beth drove Regina down as usual to Alessa’s house so she could spend Saturday with them. Alessa, Lucy, Remo, and Regina walked down to Clark Park to meet the customary mix of students, families, and homeless people. It was eighty-two degrees and sunny, unusually warm for mid-September in Philadelphia. Alessa and Regina sat on a bench, while Remo and Lucy walked around the park, handing out soft pretzels and juice to the homeless.
It had been a whole year since Regina returned to her parents. She had evolved so much, both physically and mentally, that Alessa found her transformed. They had remained friends, and she was pleased with the girl’s rapid progress. They talked about a boy in school that Regina had a crush on. The girl was nervous about dating anyone in her school since she believed that her peers knew what had happened to her but couldn’t help sharing with Alessa her feeling this particular boy was different. He was a “geek,” as she put it, but was always very pleasant to her and treated her with respect. He was one of the few kids outside her close circle of friends who talked to her as though she were a regular teenage girl.
As Regina chatted, she looked toward the street and stopped in mid-sentence. First, she opened her eyes wider. She straightened her spine into a tight, hard line. Her arms came up and crossed over her chest.
Noticing the physical change, Alessa took her hand. “What’s wrong, Regina?” she asked, alarmed. “Why do you look so scared?”
Regina’s chin quivered as she tried to speak the words, but her voice was caught. She shook her head, and she couldn’t make eye contact. “That woman over there, by the black car, is the one who used to feed us in the house where they had kept me locked up,” she whispered.
With her heart thudding, Alessa followed her gaze and almost threw up. The woman Regina had been referring to was someone she knew . . . someone she had loved. Thoughts raced through Alessa’s mind. Regina must be mistaken. How could this be? Alessa found it impossible to believe.
There, standing next to a black Mercedes, was a woman. Alessa froze. It was as though the world had stopped spinning. Everything around her went dead silent, except for the high-pitched ringing in her ears. She was staring at Tasha, Harlin’s sister.
She felt Regina tugging on her arm. “I’m scared, Alessa. I want to leave right now.”
“Me too, sweetie,” Alessa replied gently. She panicked as she scanned the park, her eyes wildly searching for Remo and Lucy, but she couldn’t locate them. Her stomach swirled, and there was fire moving into her throat. Then she spotted the two off in a remote corner, talking to people. Alessa pointed out where Remo and Lucy were and urged Regina to run to them and tell them to go back to the Outside Inn immediately and call the police. “Tell the police you saw a woman from the house on Dauphin Street. Do it! Do it now!”
Having the girl safely out of the way, Alessa stood staring at Tasha. If she were the person who had fed the kids being held in the basement of the house from where Regina had fled, surely Harlin had something to do with it. Even from a distance, she could see that Tasha looked worn out and ragged. Life had not treated her well over the years. That much was clear.
Alessa moved away from where Tasha was but stopped short as she felt the cold metal of a gun against her neck. Remaining out of her field of vision, the gunman ordered her to turn and walk toward the street. Alessa obeyed, heading for Tasha and the Mercedes, aware by now that the man with the gun was one of Harlin’s boys.
As Alessa approached Tasha, the woman who had helped her escape from her prison years ago, she was desperate to reach out to her and plead for help once again.
“Tasha,” she cried out, “what’s going on? What’s happening?”
Tasha seemed nervous and wired, acting as if Alessa hadn’t said a word, as she slid into the car’s passenger seat.
The gunman opened the back door. “Get in, bitch!” he barked.
It wasn’t until Alessa leaned down to get into the car she saw the man sitting there. Harlin stared at her grimly, his expression one of pure venom. His rage against Alessa for fleeing his clutches had not subsided. The realization she was in grave danger wrenched from her gut a small, involuntary whimper. Harlin reached over and grabbed her by the hair, pulling her face to within inches of his own.
“You thought you would screw me over and I’d forget?” he snarled. “You stupid girl. Because of you, I spent years locked up in prison. Then you turn around and have my house busted. Do you know how much money you cost me?”
Alessa feared she would lose control of all her bodily functions, as she fought hard against the sheer terror that threatened to overwhelm her.
Harlin pushed her away from him. “See my boys over there? The ones next to your faggot husband and those dumb kids you been helping?”
Alessa looked back into the park and noticed two of Harlin’s boys standing not ten feet behind Remo, Lucy, and Regina. Her heart was beating, as if she had run a marathon.
She gulped in the car’s stale, smoke-filled air. “Please, Harlin. I’ll do anything you want me to. Leave them alone. They have nothing to do with this,” she begged.
“I don’t wanna hear nothin’ you got to say,” he sneered. “You ruined my life and now it’s payback time.”
He tapped the driver’s seat from behind, and as they pulled away, Alessa turned to look back at Remo, Lucy, and Regina with panic and fear. From the frantic expressions on their faces, she could tell they were looking for her. She watched in horror as Harlin’s boys walked toward them. Then the car sped off, and all Alessa could visualize was her world crumbling to pieces. During the drive back to North Philadelphia, not once did Tasha turn around to look at Alessa. As if in a drug-induced coma, she kept her eyes fixed on the view from the front window.
