One Year Later

August 30,2024

"One year ago today a fellow classmate went missing, we are here today to remember how amazing she was when she was with us. Her name was Alison Tucker and she would be in her last year of high school if she was still with us.."Alex breaks off her speech in a loud sob. 

"Alex was her best friend and I, Chad, was her boyfriend…."

Chad went on with the speech that Alex wrote and reminded people of who Alison was before she disappeared. The ceremony was held at Fort Mill High and was live on television so I was forced to watch while tied to the walls unable to move. For a year now I have been locked down here unable to get away from the horrors that I have endured. I pray that someone will find me but until then I Loathe all the ones that only know the pain of not getting what they want and I loathe the man that put me here. Every night he comes down here and I scream for anyone to hear me so he can't hurt me but every night he just smiles down at me and says, 

"No one can hear you from down here Alibaby, No use in screaming." 

Even when he's gone I'm afraid because I know he will be back every night like clock work but today I'm pissed because my last hope finally died because they think that I have been dead for the past year. I knew he was back because I could hear his soft footsteps on the basement floor. I knew what was coming and like always I try to get out of the bindings that are around my wrists, to get away from him. 

"Please do-on't, g-go away."

 I try to beg him not to hurt me but it never works. 

"Oh come on Alibaby, I just want to have a little bit more fun tonight."

He puts on a cruel smirk that makes a deep sob escape that back of my throat but that only encourages him. He pulls off his belt and then slowly strips his clothes as he makes his way over to me to rape me like every night. I try to stop him but he beats me until I can't take the beating any more and finishes up with what he came down here to do and leaves me to cry myself to sleep wishing he would kill me already or for someone to find me.

August 31,2024

    Jake hasn't seen or talked to his father in almost two years and wished he could keep it that way. His father used to beat him and his mother whenever he came home from work drunk. Now Jake is being forced to go and live with his dad because he "changed". Apparently his father has been going to classes and counseling and hasn't had a drink in three  years now. The taxi dropped Jake off at a big two story house with a fence that goes around the front and backyard with a colorful flower bed on the outside of the fence next to the sidewalks. Jake's father didn't appear to be home at the moment so he decided to let himself in the fence and into the front door. The door opened with ease as he slowly walked into the door and took in his surroundings. He could hear a distant TV somewhere in the house but couldn't tell where it was coming from and instantly became curious. He was walking to where he thought the noise was coming from when he found a door that had three locks on it locked from the outside, which seemed really odd, so he unlocked the dead bolts and cautiously opened the door, which appeared to lead to the  basement, and started to walk down the stairs. 

I hoped I was hearing things because he never came down during the day but like always I'm not hearing things and he really is coming down the stairs. I was too frozen in fear to try to scream for help. Last night he left me without a blanket so I can't hide my naked body from him as he makes his way down the steps. I try to hide some of myself by moving my legs up toward the top part of my body but it hurts too much to continue. When he finally came into view I realized that it wasn't the man from my nightmares but the resemblance was too much to ignore but I finally had some hope. 

"Who are you?" 

He sounded young and kind of scared and hesitant.

"I'm Ali-Alison, can you help me?" 

He seemed to shake off the shock and hurried over to untie my wrists and tried to get me to stand but I had to stop him because it was hurting too much. He decided on scooping me up and carrying me up the stairs to the living room. When we got there he set me down on the couch and checked me to see how badly injured I was and finally seemed to realize that I wasn't wearing any clothes. I watched him carefully as he ran to an overnight bag and pulled out an oversized t-shirt and a cell phone.He gave me the t-shirt to put on and started to make a call on his phone, while I tried to put on the shirt. Finally, I gave up because it hurt to have my arms over my head

"Can you help me please?" 

When I asked, he seemed to forget everything that he was doing and looked at me with horror in his eyes. 

"Oh umm okay let me know if I hurt you in any way"

I nodded my head as he took the shirt and gently got it over my head and helped me get my arms through the sleeves. He went back to his phone and started to talk to the other person

"Yes I need the police and an ambulance over here right away...I found a girl in my father's basement and she doesn't look like she's in good condition ...okay thanks." 

As he was talking, I was trying to get off of the couch and get as far from the house as I could but just then he turned back and looked at me

"No, don't get up" 

I forgot that he wasn't the man and got scared that he was going to hurt me if I tried to move anymore so I sat frozen in fear. 

"They should be here anytime now and I don't want you to accidentally hurt yourself anymore than you already are." 

I was confused as to why someone like him was worried about me rather than using me. In the distance I could hear a faint siren getting louder and closer to me so in the excitement of someone coming for me I tried to get off the couch to go outside. The boy was busy waiting at a window to notice me trying to head for the door but as soon as my feet touched the ground my legs gave out and I let out a startled cry as I fell to the ground and hit my head on the coffee table and the world faded into a black space. 

Jake turned from the window to see why Alison cried out to find her unconscious on the ground. He quickly ran over to make sure she was still breathing and had a pulse when the police finally made it to the house. Jake ran out to the police to tell them that she wasn't responding and the paramedics ran into the house and got her on a stretcher to bring her to the hospital. The police started to hammer Jake with questions about Alison and if he knew that she was here or how long she was down there. Jake tried to answer every question the best that he could and asked the paramedics if he could ride in the ambulance to the hospital to make sure she would be okay. When they got there they wouldn't allow Jake to see her and made him wait in the waiting room as they treated her and got her on the correct fluids and medications. It was now eleven o'clock in the morning and he had been waiting in the same room for two hours. Right when he was about to get up to go to the bathroom the doctor walks out and calls out his name. 

"I'm Jake, is she going to be okay, Doc?"  

 "I'm Doctor Rivera and She is not in the best condition one could hope for but she should be able to recover fully in about a week." 

Jake was relieved with the news but still heartbroken about the whole thing. 

"Doc, can I go back and see her now?"

 "I truly don't think that will be a good idea. She is still resting and recovering from a lot of trauma that has happened to her"

"I won't disturb her I just want to see for myself that she is okay"

"All right as long as you don't wake or touch her and if you are quiet"

"Of course, I promise I won't"

Doctor Rivera leads Jake to Alison's hospital room but he is still unable to erase the guilt that he feels because he didn't know what his father was doing even though he should have known. He wanted to ask the doctor how long she was there in that horrible place but he was afraid of what he would find out. They made it to room 136- Alison's room -when he finally asked him the hardest question. 

"Do you think you can tell me how long you might believe that she was down there hurting like that?"

He turns to Jake with a pained expression on his face as he quietly answers his question. 

"Some of the scars and wounds that weren't treated can go back to around a year, even though I'm not supposed to answer these questions I want you to know how much you must be careful when you go in that room. Just be careful when you go in that room."

Jake thought that he didn't hear him correctly because there was no way that she could have been down in that dark basement for a year. Inside the hospital room Jake could see that they cleaned and treated her. She was sleeping soundly in the bed while softly mumbling and snoring slightly. On the left side of her bed was an armchair that Jake walked to and sat down in to be next to Alison to truly make sure that she would be okay. Alison's eyes were fluttering like they were ready to open any second but she never woke.Before Jake realized it he dozed off in the chair not even a minute later.

As I opened my eyes, I realized that I wasn't in the basement anymore but rather a hospital room. I slowly worked my way to a sitting position to start to get off the bed when a man caught my eyes and stopped me dead in my tracks. It took me a minute to actually realize that it wasn't the man but rather the boy that helped me get out. I'm glad to be out of the basement but I don't want to be in the hospital either. I was probably here too long anyways and they figured out the secret that I have been keeping for three months now. I tried to unhook myself from all of the machines but whenever I came to the IV in my arm I got nauseated and ended up throwing up on the floor next to my bed. I slowly try to work my way off of the bed so that I can quickly clean it up before someone walks in and sees that mess I made. I hear the door to my room open and a young nurse walks in, Oh god she's going to be so mad.

"I'm so sorry please don't hurt me I will clean it up"

When I looked up at her I saw that she had a look of horror and sadness on her face but not even a hint of anger when she spoke.

"You lay back down and I'll clean it up, it's no big deal, Oh my how did you manage to unhook yourself from all of the machines and your IVs, hun?"

I was too ashamed in myself to actually answer that question so I just layed back down on the bed as she cleaned up the mess that I made. By the time she was done with cleaning the clock that was on the wall read 7:15pm and the boy in the armchair started to stir. I watched him carefully as he woke up and looked at me.

"Oh you're awake"

He said it as a statement so I just looked at his eyes and discovered a chilling fact about him.

"You have the same light brown eyes as him they are so much alike, although yours are filled with sadness his was filled with anger"

"Alison can you tell me who has the same eyes as me"

I don't remember telling him my name but then again I don't remember getting out of the basement either.

"The man that took me and that kept me locked up in that basement has the same eyes as you. Your faces are a little similar too,you are just younger and not filled with as much rage as he has."

I didn't want to tell him but with him it was easier. It must have been because I had no one to talk to about anything other than trying to beg for my freedom from a man that has no remorse or soul to begin with.

"What's your name anyways"

"Oh it's Jake and I am really sorry that this even happened to you."

Yeah me too. I just wanted out of this horrible place but I want my mom here with me to tell me that I will be okay and that it will get better in the future. 

"Alison, what's your last name?"

"It's Tucker, why?"

"The hospital will be able to contact your parents faster if they know your last name."

I forgot that the nurse was even in here so i turned to ask her something to find a Doctor and a police officer which scared me for a second until I registered who they were.

"Hello Alison, I'm Doctor Rivera and I'm going to be your doctor while you are here in the hospital recovering."

"And I'm Detective keener, I was wondering if you are well enough to answer some questions for me today?"

I nodded my head yes because for some reason my voice just didn't want to work.

"Alright Alison let me know if it gets too much for you. Now can you tell me who did this to you?"

"I know what he looks like but I don't know his name, he forced me to call him Jackyboo and didn't like it whenever I refused to call him that."

"You're doing great Alison. Now can you tell me if he had a birthmark or a tattoo that may have been unique?"

I tried to think and think but I was back in the basement before I could stop myself from going there and I turned to my right to not find Jake but the man that took me, he's looking down at me with his cruel smile I-

"Alison…     Alison come back to us….     Hey are you okay"

I blink back to the hospital room to find Doctor Rivera next to me trying to get me to look at him. When I looked at him I saw true fear and sadness in his eyes. I turn to find that Jake is being escorted out of the room by Detective Keener. 

"Alison, Detective Keener will be back tomorrow to talk to you further, but in the meantime there is something important that we discovered about you"

I leaned but on the bed and without meaning to I fell into a deep sleep before the doctor could tell me what he discovered but i'm pretty sure i already knew what it is that they figured out.

Doctor Rivera walked out of Alison's room and he doesn't look happy.

"Hey doc is Alison okay?"

Jake had been worried sick ever since he got kicked out of her room and he couldn't help but think that something was wrong with Alison.

"Don't worry Jake I just needed to tell her something she may not want to hear but she fell asleep before I could tell her."

When Jake looked at Doctor Rivera he could tell that he wasn't older than twenty-seven but when he truly talked like a doctor he sounded like he was older than thirty. Jake was extremely curious as to what he had to tell her but he was more worried about whether or not she would be alright and prayed that she would be okay.