Owen waited until she had put her seat belt on and fastened it before he started the truck. He feels kind of awkward around her, being alone with her like this in such close quarters but he had not wanted to pass up the opportunity to be around her for just a little bit longer. It has been a while since he had been around a woman that he liked enough to spend time with, so he was a bit out of practice.
The last time he had been alone in a car with a woman was two years ago when he went on that last disasterous date. He had met a woman at the grocery store and she had flirted with him. A lot. He had gone along with it, but he did not really flirt back, because he just was not a flirter. Any line that he tried to be smooth with sounded gringe-worthy and cheesy to him. But that does not mean that he does not recognize when a woman flirts with him.
After a bit of back and forth banter, she had asked him out and he had accepted, since it had been a while for him since work had kept him so busy. The two of them arranged a time and place to get together, after they had exchanged numbers.
Over the week she had texted him a lot, coming on a bit strong, but he had not really see any red flags in the behavior. At the time, he had just thought that maybe she was lonely, possibly a little desperate, and that she was really interested in him. No big deal.
He had picked her up on the Saturday night that was suppose to be their date, but they had never made it to the restaurant. She had asked him pull over on the side of the road, way up into the trees and then she had turned to face him.
“I want to be your next victim.”
At first Owen was sure that he had heard her wrong. Maybe she had said 'girlfriend'. I want to be your next girlfriend. That is a whole different converation but he was sure that she had said something else. Victim. As in Nate's victims? Who did she think that he was?
“Uh..”
“You don't have to take me to eat or anything. You can save the money and time. Just take me back to your motel. I won't put up a fight, unless you tell me to.” She had told him, looking completely serious as she says the words, other than the coy, flirtatious smile on her lips.
Owen had been shocked speechless by the things that she has said. Was she serious or had that been her idea of a joke? It was not funny, at all, it that was what she was going for. “I, um, I don't know what you are talking about. If you want to go to dinner, we can or I can take you back to your home. Whichever you would prefer.”
“I am going home with you. You kidnapped me.” She says and Owen freezes, his blood running cold as if she had just dumped a bucket of ice water on his head.
“No. No the fuck I did not. You are free to go at any time that you want. Now, would be great!” Owen tells her, getting freaked out by this woman and the crazy things that she is saying. But to accuse him of kidnapping her?
That could get him in a whole heap of trouble. That comes with a whole prison sentence or at the very least a jail term. Combine that with the notoriety that his family has racked up in this town and all of the prejudices against him, he know that the police, if not the whole damn town, will have no problem believing her if she decides to go public with these outrageous claims.
“But I want you to rape me and murder me. I want to be your next victim.”
“Are you fucking kidding me right now?” What kind of crazy was this girl? She was seriously fucked up in the head if she was begging for him to rape and murder her. That is some freaky shit that women usually try to avoid and her this chick is, asking for it.
The woman is completely serious right now. She is not cracking a smile, she is not blinking or showing any expression on her face, what so ever. There is something wrong with this woman and Owen has no idea what to do about this situation.
He does not want to just leave her alone on the side of the road, with it already getting dark. That goes against every moral bone in his body and it just feels wrong. He is completely conflicted about how to handle this mess.
But he does know one thing for sure.. he wants to be very, very far away from this woman. “Alright, Taylor, I think that you should get out of the car. Right now.”
“What? No.” She finally shows some emotion, as she grabs the door handle tightly, holding on for dear life as she glares at him. “I am not getting out of this truck! I am yours now!”
“Oh yes, you are!” Owen shouts at her angrily. Enough of this shit.
“No! I read all about you and the women that you take! I researched you and your family for years. I have read every article. watched all of the news and tv interviews. I know you and what you like!" She shouts. "I want to be your next victim. I even dyed my hair brown for you!” She tells him, sounding accusing. "You know that you want me too! Stop being like this!"
“Get out of the truck!” Owen tells her. "Now!"
“No! I know you want me! I am just as good as them!” She cries out and he turns to her, at his wits end with her bull shit.
“I am not my father and I am not my brother! I have never kidnapped anyone. I have never raped anyone. I will never do either. I do not want you! I want you to get out of my truck and I want to drive far away from you and never see your crazy ass again! I do not know how you planned to meet me or what you think that you know about me, but you are wrong about everything. Now, please, get out of my truck before I throw you out of it.”
“I could make you love me! We could be great together!” She cries out and Owen gets out of the vehicle, walking around to the passenger side of the truck. He flings open the passenger side door and drags her out. “You can have me! I want you to have me! I am yours for the taking!”
“Bitch, you are crazy!” Owen shuts the door while she sits on the ground, staring up at him as if she does not fully understand what is happening. She tries to grab at his leg but he side steps out of her reach, moving quickly to the driver's side of the truck.
He gets in and starts it, driving away as quickly as he can. The last time that he saw her was in his rear view mirror as he drove very far away from her as quickly as he could.
“Hey, are you okay?”
Owen turns to face Olivia, in the here and now, giving her a small smile and a nod. “Yeah, I am fine.”
He had started the car earlier, so now he puts it in drive and pulls away from the motel. He pulls out on to the road, heading into town, while silence prevails in the confines of his truck. He eyes her out of the corner of his eye, only to find that she is watching him. He fights back a smile as he turns to face her.
They are about fifteen minutes from town and an idea for a topic of conversation finally crosses his mind. “So, where was it that you needed to go in town?”
“Oh, um.. to the store. I, uh, just need to grab a few things..” She says and this time Owen does not try to hide his smile. He gets the feeling that she merely came along to spend some more time with him and he likes that. Far more than he should.
“Well, I need to run to the hardware store to pick up a few thing that I need, then to the furniture store and the bank. Are you okay to do all that running with me or should I drop you at the store while I handle my errands and then come back for you?”
“I can go with you.” Olivia says quickly, warming him. Her cheeks turn a tinge pink and he figures that she must have embarrassed herself with the quick answer. He is kind of flattered but motly just thrilled. Despite their rough start, he enjoys being in her company.
“Great!” Owen says and leaves it at that. He is glad to have her along with him, even if just for this one time.
They lapse into a comfortable, companionable silence as the sounds from the radio fill the cab of the truck. Neither speaks until they are just outside of the city limits. That is when she breaks the silence.
“So what are you getting at the hardware store?” Olivia asks and Owen gives her a quick look before returning his eyes to the road.
“Some wood and things for a little project that I am working on.”
“Project? What kind of project are you working on?” She asks him.
“I am making Christmas gifts for my family.” Owen tells her, saying the least that he could about it. He does not like to tell anyone about his woodworking or how he makes furniture for the store.. it always feels like bragging to him.
“That is really sweet of you!” Olivia says and Owen shrugs. He lapses into silence once more, while she watches him with a smile. Clearly he aid something that she liked. He would say anything that she wants him to if it would keep her looking at him like that, with those big, beautiful eyes and warm smile.
When they pull up outside of the hardware store, Owen rushes around to her side to open the door for her. He is trying to be a gentleman, as Lacey and Andy had taught him, but then he grows a bit self-concious of his actions, thinking that maybe she will think that he thinks this is some kind of weird date, since that was kind of a date move.
“You are overthinking this.” Owen mumbles under his breath and Olivia turns to him, looking surprised.
“What? Are you reading my mind?” Olivia quips and now it is is Owen's turn to look startled.
“What?”
“Nothing. Never mind.” Liv says and Owen shakes his head, confused by the turn of conversation.
“Okay...” Was she overthinking this as well? Is that what she meant? She thought that his words were for her and she had reacted to them? What was she overthinking? Was she as confused as him by what is going on between them?
“Let's just go.” Liv says, taking his hand and tugging him into the store. Owen follows along absently, his mind completely focused on the sensations that the feel of her small hand is causing him to experience.
The two of them walk through the hardware store, hand in hand, as she does not seem inclined to let go of him and he has not intention of pulling away from her touch any time soon. He leads her down to the lumber section, where he prices the plank of wood that he will need. Not that money is an issue or anything, he just wants to make sure that he is getting the best wood that he can. With everyone being obsessed by this stupid legnd and his family, the motel has done such a booming business that he can easily say that he is well off. Not that he says it.. that would be in poor taste. But he is.
Owen sighs deeply. She is avoiding dicussing the real issue here, which is what she just overheard. The accusations against him. By her not discussing it, either she does not believe it so she is giving it no credit or she does believe it and is far too afraid to bring it up in conversation within striking distance of him. To which he understands. Olivia was naturally graced with the power of self preservation, which is shining through in this scenerio. He just wishes that she had never heard any of that hateful drivel that Trudy Bellmer was spewing at the hardware store. “I am making furniture for them.”
* Graphic content warning* Owen walked into the office of the motel with a smile on his face and Liv right behind him, but the smile quickly disappeared when he got a look at Stephanie's face. She looks upset and worried. “What's wrong?” He asks her, moving closer. Was something going on with the motel or was it a personal issue? When he had sent Sam home early, he had managed the office until Stephanie had arrived to cover his morning shift so that he could run some errands. He would work her evening shift for her so that she would have a night free for a date with her boyfriend. Th
Liv watches helplessly as the sheriff loads Owen up in the back of his car and drives away. As she stands there, she hears two officers walking past her, having a conversation about it. “Yeah, she is the girl that was reported missing a few days ago.” One officer says. “Damn. Thought so. Looks like Owen is following in his father and brother's shoes. We might want to go check that well. Any time a girl goes missing around here, we are sure to find them at the Murder Motel.” The other one says. The first officer ch
Owen moves over to bed to pick up the card. It represents something ominous. How did this card get here? Why was it placed here? For someone to have left this card for him they would have had to break into his room. Was it the killer? Owen figured that it had to be. As he set in an interrogation room getting drilled with question after question, he had spent the time thinking. It had helped him come up with an idea of what had happened. Owen figures that the killer somehow managed to get the keys from his kitchen a few days ago, somehow. He or she used them to steal his tools from his workshop. He already made the connection in his
“Owen.” Liv reaches for his hand and sits down on the foot of his bed, pulling him down with her. Once he is seated beside her, she turns to face him. “You were not a coward and you did not let those women die. It wasn't like you helped them kill those women. You tried to stop them and they hurt you. You were young and you were afraid. You were human. That affliction happens to the best of us sometimes and we can't do anything about it.” “So being human is an affliction?” He teases her with a smile, trying to lighten the mood and she chuckles. “Of course it is!” But then she s
Liv lifts a hand to her face, rubbing at her still closed eyes. They are so dry that they feel like sandpaper. She tries to open them but the light hits them and they burn like fire. She quickly closes them with a quiet groan, lifting an arm to cover them in the hopes of eliviating the pain. When she restlessly moves her leg, she freezes as it touches something. She encountered another leg. What the hell? Slowly she opens her eyes, letting them adjust to the pain. She remembers most of last night but she isn't sure how that explains the fact that he is in bed beside her or that she is still in his room come morning time.Last night s
Liv enters her room, ready to take a hot shower and get dressed for the day. She left Owen to deal with his angry mother and the rest of his family. Despite having just woke up less than half an hour ago, she is exhausted. Probably from flipping through so many emotions in such a short time. Anger and disappointment when she thought that Owen had a girlfriend. Jealousy. Relief and embarassment when she found out that the woman was his mother. Happiness at the woman's kindness. Amusement at the family's antics. Attraction so deep that it made her breathless as she had gazed at Owen, watching him with them. He was a different person a