Hope Read Free Page B

and her legs tied tightly together.
    Voices hit her ears. She couldn’t make out if they were the same men who took her and Hope.
    “Hope, you there?” she asked.
    No reply.
    “Hope?”
    “She’s not here; she’s in another room.”
    “Please don’t hurt us, please,” she pleaded.
    A hand touched her arm.
    She scooted away.
    “I won’t hurt you, I promise. I’m here to bring you food,” the man said.
    This voice was different than the others.
    The man again reached and touched her arm, this time more gently. “I won’t hurt you, I swear.”
    There was something in his voice that soothed her. She quit moving and allowed him to sit her upright.
    The man removed the bag from her head.
    Charlotte squinted and looked away when the light of the early morning hit her eyes. When her vision adjusted, she looked around to get acquainted with her new surroundings and with the man.
    He was kneeling down just feet in front of her.
    “Where’s my sister?”
    “She’s just in the other room. She’s fine, well, not exactly fine, who could be in this situation?” the man said.
    “I want to see her,” Charlotte insisted.
    “Are you hungry?” the man asked.
    Charlotte shook her head.
    “I’ve got some food here. I’ll leave it, and you can eat when you’re hungry, okay?” the man said, setting a plate next to her.
    Charlotte kicked the plate.
    “That wasn’t nice,” the man said. “But I understand.” He picked up an orange that had rolled off and placed it back on the plate. “Here’s some water too. You need to stay hydrated.”
    “I want my sister,” Charlotte barked.
    Another man stepped in the small cinder-block room and asked, “You need help, Drew?”
    Charlotte recognized this man as the one who had disarmed her.
    “I got this,” Drew replied, his gaze still on Charlotte.
    “Let me know, that one is feisty,” the man at the door said.
    “She’s fine, just scared,” Drew countered.
    “Whatever, hurry up, we have to make a run for the boss,” the man said and walked away.
    “I need you to eat and drink. You need to stay strong for your sister.”
    Charlotte glared.
    Drew reached towards her.
    Charlotte kicked his hands.
    “If you’re going to eat, I need to untie your arms, and I’ll untie your legs so you can at least pace around the room.”
    Charlotte thought for a moment and realized she didn’t have any power, and if he was going to hurt her, he could do so regardless. She turned slightly and offered him her hands.
    Drew untied her hands and then her feet. “All better.”
    Charlotte still couldn’t find her ability to speak unless it was about Hope.
    Seeing nothing but fear coming from Charlotte, Drew tried to calm her with casual conversation. “Your sister told me your name is Charlotte. That’s a beautiful name. Mine is Drew, short for Andrew, but no one’s called me that since I was a kid.”
    Charlotte nodded.
    Time wasn’t his ally, so he decided to alleviate her fear with some reassuring words. “I’m one of the good guys. I won’t hurt you and I’ll make sure they don’t either.”
    “I want to see Hope,” Charlotte blurted out.
    “I’ll see about making that happen.”
    “What are you going to do with us?”
    Drew looked down; his long black hair fell around his face. “Nothing if I can help it.”
    “What do they want to do with us?”
    He looked up and said, “You have to trust me; I’ll keep you safe.” Drew got up quickly and exited the room.

CHAPTER FOUR
    “Neither should a ship rely on one small anchor, nor should life rest on a single hope.”
– Epictetus
    El Centro, CA
    Carlos slid the blade of his Spyderco Police model folding knife across the whetstone. The gritty sound the steel made crossing the stone brought back fond memories of his childhood. Like a skipping record, the voice of his father would repeat the process of sharpening a blade. After a dozen passes, he gently touched the edge with his thumb. “Just about right.”
    He ran