Chapter 8

~Back with Mercedes~

The cold worn out coils of the hard mattress stuck into my back like a splinter. The iridescent light from the cheap plastic hotel TV gave off a soft murmur. I blinked several times before finally realizing where I was.

Sitting up dizzily, I looked around for Melissa, but not seeing her anywhere. Just then the creak of the rusted door sounded and in came Melissa, her arms full of brown paper bags. "Hey Daisy, 'bout time you woke up. You passed out in the parking lot and I honestly wasn't sure you were going to wake up." She handed me a bottle of Jack Daniel's and looked at me expectantly.

"What's this for?" I mumbled.

"It's for you to piss in." She told me sarcastically. "Your so stupid, drink it god damnit." She spat at me.

Removing the cap, I was not sure if I should drink it or not. The condensation felt sweaty around my hands, and leaning back, I took a big swig. 'This taste like shit' I thought to myself, setting the bottle on the floor.

After we were both wasted, there was a knock on the door. "BANG BANG BANG!!!!"

A drunken Melissa yanked open the door and smiled, teetering to the side a little. "Hey Daisy, I bought you a boyfriend for tonight. His name is, wait, what is your name again?" she pointed at the stranger, laughing a little bit.

"Matt" the strange man said.

She quickly ushered him inside and looked at the two of us.

"I'll be back in a few hours." Melissa said as she walked out of the cheap hotel door.

"So, did Melissa really pay you?" I asked him falling onto the bed.

"Yup, and you will get your moneys worth." He told me, crossing the room and sitting on the bed.

He started kissing my neck, when I pushed him off. "Ewwww... get away." I told him, getting off the bed and walking towards the door.

"Where do you think you are going?" He asked me, approaching me suddenly.

Before I had a chance to reply, he slapped me across the face. I clutched my stinging face and fell to the floor. "Get up." He told me.

I just sat there.

"Get up." He told me raising his voice a little. "Get up you little bitch!!!"He screamed at me, picking me up and slinging me over his shoulder.

The door of the hotel opened and he walked outside, me kicking and screaming all the way. He threw me into the front seat of a really nice car and slammed the door shut and quickly ran around to the other door. Slamming the door behind himself, he turned to look at me. Clicking on the child safety lock so I could not get out. Starting the engine, he quickly peeled out of the parking lot.

The next few minutes was a blur of confusion and fear. My jaw trembled slightly as I watched the highway scenery go by. A few minutes later, he pulled up in front of some kind of crowded parking lot. Removing his seatbelt, he looked at me. "If you fight me, I swear I'll kill you. I don't care about you and neither does anyone else. Don't forget that."

With that, he ran around the other side, opening the door. He picked me up and started walking across the parking lot until he came to the back entrance. Opening the door, the place wreaked of alcohol and sweat. I was still moderately drunk, so it was difficult to make out what it was.

The man carried me down a long hallway until he reached a door that said "Wardrobe." The door was yanked open by someone on the opposite side.

"Finally," the stranger said.

To drunk to fight anymore I finally just gave in and fell limp on his shoulder like a sack of potatoes. He walked into a room with racks of costumes in it. It was a that moment I knew why I was there.

~Back with Michelle~

The hotel ceiling really amused me. The way the popcorn just sat up there. Why wouldn't gravity make it fall down? The whole possibility of Mercedes possibly being the person Howie described scared me. I often just sit and wonder why it is Mercedes never picked me up. I really don't think that she would just leave me. After all we've been through.....Why would she do something like that? Maybe she got hurt...maybe she is lying dead somewhere in an alley....no......don't think like that. I have to see her again....or she will never know the truth I have been so carefully hiding. She has to know....I've just got to find her.

~Back with Mercedes~

I sat, unmoving in a chair for quite some time. Feeling a strong wave of nausea wash over me, I closed my eyes and prayed this would all end. Why am I sitting here? What did I do? I was almost scared to find out.

Just then, a gruff looking man in a black suit came in and looked at me, with questioning eyes.

~Back with Michelle~

If I do find her....how can I tell her something like this? How would she react? What would she say? I don't know what to do.

~Back with Mercedes~

"No! Don't touch me!! Stop! " I screamed as the man picked me up. Carrying me outside to a waiting car, he yanked open the door and threw me in the back-seat. The worn out leather felt cold around my prickled skin. In the front seat, I heard two men conversing as the car sped away.

"Are you sure this is the one?" I heard one of the guys say.

"Oh yes, positive."

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Chapter 9

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