hapter 67- Thousand Words of Silence
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Chapter 67 – Thousand Words of Silence
Soft, golden light filled the bedroom as the early sun peeked through the thin drapes. Jacob
woke
up with a wonderful ache in his body from the previous night. Madeline was curled under the covers next to him, her shoulder uncovered and her hair disheveled. He bent down
and gave her cheek a gentle kiss, a smirk creeping over his face,
“Good morning, rise and shine” he whispered, his voice warm and teasing. Madeline mumbled something incomprehensible and groaned gently, pressing her face farther into the cushion. Jacob shook his head and laughed,
“Still out, huh?” He gave her a gentle shake.
Her only response was a sleepy murmur, barely audible.
Jacob got out of bed, stretched his aching muscles, and went to the bathroom, laughing to himself. The final remnants of his sleep were chased away by the splashing cold water. As he recalled the previous evening, passion, laughing, and an enticing intimacy he could never get enough of with Madeline, the mirror’s image smiled back at him.
Jacob changed into his regular work clothes and went back to the bedroom, he perched on the side of the bed and Madeline’s eyelids fluttered open and she stirred slightly,
“Hey” he said, brushing a strand of hair from her face,
“Hey” she replied, her voice still thick with sleep
“I’m off to work” He pressed a kiss to her palm, lingering for a moment.
She smiled drowsily,
“Have a lovely day”
“You too” he said, giving her one last look before heading out the door.
Madeline remained still as she listened to the sound of his footsteps diminish, she rolled onto her back and gazed up at the ceiling, wishing she could fall back asleep, but a slight uneasiness that she couldn’t get rid of gnawed at the corner of her consciousness.
She sat up and surveyed the space, the house was oddly quiet. Bíting her lip, Madeline dismissed the feeling as residual paranoia from an unremembered dream,
“It’s nothing” she told herself, lying back down
Sleep, however, would not come back, she stood in front of the mirror after getting out of bed in frustration. Her eyes were piercing and tired as her reflection looked back, she decided to dress after running her fingers over her hair.
She was reaching for her clothes when she noticed a shadow darting just out of sight in the yard. She froze, peering out the window, her heart racing and her breath catching,
Chapter 67–Thousand Words of Silence
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“Calm down” she whispered to herself,
“It’s probably just a stray cat or something”
However, the unsettling sensation persisted, her gut telling her that something was off. Madeline picked up her phone and called Jacob. Before going to voicemail, the line rang once, twice, and three times,
“Pick up, pick up” she muttered, her fingers trembling as she redialed, still no answer.
Her feet were walking toward the front door on their own, and she was holding the phone tightly. She had a strong desire to leave the house, her mind encouraging her to run, her pulse pounding, she clutched the handle.
But as she turned the knob, she was violently yanked away from the door by a pair of hands that seized her from behind. Madeline yelled and her phone fell out of her hand and onto the ground. Her startled eyes met the masked face of a man who towered over her as she spun
around,
“Let go of me!” she shouted, trying to wrest herself free. The man said nothing, rather, he pushed her to the ground with astonishing ease. She fell hard on her side and gasped for air, feeling a sharp pain. She stumbled to her feet and ran frantically into the corridor, adrenaline pumping through her veins, but he was quicker.
He grabbed her arm and threw her against the wall in two swift steps. She was stunned by the hit and collapsed to the ground, her vision hazy. He pulled a handkerchief from his pocket and/ squatted over her before she could get her bearings. With her screams muffled, Madeline struggled as he forced it to her lips and nose.
Her head was swimming as the acrid, sickly–sweet smell of chemicals filled her nostrils. With
every
minute that went by, her strength diminished as she clawed at his arms,
“No” she whispered as darkness closed in around her.
Her head lolled on his chest as her entire body fell limp in his grasp. To make sure nobody had heard or seen the disturbance, the man in the mask looked around the room. Feeling satisfied, he lifted her lifeless body over his shoulder and went outside.
The rear doors of the vehicle were open as it sat in the driveway. After binding Madeline’s ankles and wrists with zip ties, he slammed the doors shut and put her inside, he climbed into the driver’s seat, he looked at her in the rearview mirror, her lifeless body lying on the floor of
the van.
He started the engine without thinking and drove out into the morning light, leaving behind an empty house and nothing but silence.
