As I sit on the couch, watching television and waiting for the three hours to be up, I think about Nina.
All along, I believed she was the crazy one. Now I don’t know what to think. She must have left me the pepper spray in that room. She suspected what he was going to do to me. Which makes me think he’s done it to her. Maybe many times before.
Was Nina ever really jealous? Or was it all just an act? I’m still not entirely sure. Part of me wants to call her and find out, but I suspect that wouldn’t be a good idea. After all, Kelsey never spoke to me again after I killed Duncan. I don’t understand why, because I killed him for her. He was forcing himself on her. But the next time I saw my former best friend, she looked at me with disgust.
Nobody ever understood. After I got in trouble for slashing Mr. Cavanaugh’s tires, I tried to explain to my mother how he had told me I was going to fail math class unless I let him feel me up. She didn’t believe me. Nobody believed me. She shipped me off to boarding school because I kept getting in trouble. That didn’t work out so well. After the incident at the boarding school, they wiped their hands of me for good.
And then when I finally got a decent job after getting out of prison, I had to deal with that bartender Kyle, who kept grabbing my ass every chance he got. So one day, I spun around and slammed my fist into his nose. He only didn’t press charges because he was so embarrassed that he got beat up by a girl. But they told me not to come back. And soon after that, I was living in my car.
The only person I can trust is myself.
I yawn and shut off the television. It’s been just over three hours and Andrew hasn’t budged from the floor. He’s followed all the rules, even though he must be in agony. I take my time walking up the steps to the top floor. Just as I get there, he shoves the books off his genitals. For a moment, he just lies there, doubled over.
“Andrew?” I say.
“What?”
“How are you feeling?”
“How do you think I’m feeling?” he hisses. “Let me out of here, you bitch.”
He doesn’t seem nearly as calm and smug as he was last time I was here. Good. I lean against the door, watching his face on my screen. “I really don’t appreciate swearing. I would’ve thought since you’re counting on me to help you, you could be a little nicer.”
“Let. Me. Out.” He sits up on the floor, cradling his head in his hands. “I swear to God, Millie. If you don’t let me out right now, I’m going to kill you.”
He says it so casually. I’m going to kill you. I stare at the screen of my phone, wondering how many other women have been in this room. I wonder if any of them have died in this room.
It seems entirely possible.
“Relax,” I say. “I’m going to let you out.”
“Good.”
“Just not yet.”
“Millie…” he growls. “I did exactly what you said. Three hours.”
“Three hours?” I raise my eyebrows even though he can’t see them. “I’m sorry if you heard three hours. I actually said five hours. So I’m afraid you’re going to have to start over.”
“Five…” I love that the full-color display allows me to see the way his face blanches. “I can’t do that. I can’t do five more hours. Come on. You’ve got to let me out of here. This game is over.”
“This isn’t a negotiation, Andrew,” I say patiently. “If you want to get out of this room, you’re going to keep those books on your junk for the next five hours. The choice is yours.”
“Millie. Millie.” His breathing is jagged. “Look, there is always room to negotiate. What do you want? I’ll give you money. I’ll give you a million dollars right now if you let me out of this room. How about that?”
“No.”
“Two million.”
It’s easy for him to offer me money he has no intention of ever giving me. “I’m afraid not. I’m going to go to bed now, but maybe in the morning I’ll see you again.”
“Millie, be reasonable!” His voice breaks. “At least I left you with some water. Can’t I have some water?”
“I’m afraid not,” I say. “Maybe next time, you should leave the girl you lock in the room with more water, so some will be left for you.”
With those words, I walk down the hallway as he screams my name. As soon as I get down to the bedroom, I google: How long can a person live without water?
