Screaming In The Darkness - Chapter 11
Late night, brakes lock, hear the tires squeal
Red light, can't stop so I spin the wheel
My world goes black before I feel an angel lift me up
And I open bloodshot eyes into fluorescent white
They flip the siren, hit the lights, close the doors and I am gone
He didn't do well in hospitals. He'd only been there couple of times but the first time had been enough.
It was when he had been around nine years old. He and Dylan had been playing around in their little tree house not far from his home.
Their tree house wasn't one of the most stable buildings in the world but it had been theirs.
It didn't even matter that one of the railings broke and he fell to the ground.
He remembered crying a lot but he also remembered that Dylan had been there but didn't make fun of him crying. That's when he knew he'd never make fun of him.
Anyway, he'd ended up in the hospital with a broken arm and a sprained ankle. And it had been far from a nice experience.
First he had had to wait for hours before anyone had been there to look at his injuries. It was the most pain he had ever been in his short life. But that really hadn't been the hardest part.
It was the fact that after getting out he had been so drugged out of his mind that it scared the shit out of him.
Zac didn't really know why he was thinking about it right now.
Maybe because for the second time in his life he had been loaded full of drugs. But now they had't left him to wait.
People kept talking to him, asking him questions, maybe even waiting for him to answer. They kept showing lights to his eyes and poking him in places they shouldn't be poking.
And it fucking hurt.
He didn't like drugs. Even when they meant to help with the pain. He liked to keep his head clear.
And it didn't really help when he felt a needle go into his arms and heard someone telling him that he'd be better once he woke up.
What did they mean by 'woke up'? He didn't really plan on falling asleep anytime soon.
In a moment his eyes started to fall shut and the sleeping thing sounded like the best thing in a while.
He just hoped Dylan wouldn't make fun of him if he was to see him now.
Now I lay here owing my life to a stranger
And I realize that empty words are not enough
I'm left here with the question of just
What have I to show except the promises I never kept?
I lie here shaking on this bed, under the weight of my regrets
David wanted to cry.
He hated to see his son like this. To see his eyes glazed over, frantically looking at the people around him. Yet David believed he didn't really see them.
Zac was openly crying, sobbing, on the gurney, whispering his friend's name and something about it hurting too much.
People kept showing David aside, telling him to leave but he couldn't move.
They had cut Zac's clothes open.
David didn't know what to think.
This wasn't the boy he had known for over twenty years. His empty eyes, broken voice, battered body... this wasn't the Zac he knew.
David let out a breath he hadn't realised he'd been holding when he saw his son closing his eyes and relaxing on the bed.
His boy looked more young and vulnerable than ever.
I hope that I will never let you down
I know that this can be more than just flashing lights and sound
The waiting room was more quiet than ever.
They had found Zac but were no closer to seeing him than they had been an hour ago.
David had been the only one who had seen him.
They all looked up at the door when they heard a knock. For privacy reasons they had gotten a whole waiting room to themselves.
The door opened and a policeman came in.
''Efron family, correct?'' the man asked.
Next came the introductions, people shaking hands and giving each other fake smiles.
''Any news on Zac?'' Dylan asked, his patience running short.
''That's what I'm here for,'' the man stated, mentioning for them all to sit down.
Officer Smith started.
''A witness states that Mr. Efron was seen in a restaurant on Friday at 6.30 pm. Do any of you have any idea why he was there?'' The police officer looked up from his papers.
After a while a whisper came from the end of the couch.
''He was there to meet me,'' Vanessa said, slightly shaking. ''We were supposed to meet there at 6.45 pm. but he has a habit of always showing up early. Once I got there he was gone...''
Starla put an arm around her. The officer nodded approvingly.
''A waitress at the restaurant says Mr. Efron ordered a drink. Another witness says they saw him get up and stagger like he was drunk. After he left the waitress told she went to clean the table and found the drink barely touched. Our best guess is that someone put something in his drink.''
The waiting room was deathly quiet.
''Once outside an another witness saw a man coming to Mr. Efron's side, leading him into a car and driving off. The witness states that she recognized Mr. Efron immediately and took the time to remember the registration number of the car. That information soon proved to be very important.''
The officer wondered if anyone was even listening to him anymore.
''The man that kidnapped your son,'' the officer began only to look up to see their reactions, ''was a man named Matt Riley. He was 43 years old, a husband and a father to four children. He's record was clean until that day and we can only imagine what his motive might've been.''
Officer Smith closed the file in his hands and faced the people in the room.
''That's all for now. Once Mr. Efron is ready, we'll get the complete story.''
He gave the father his number and said to call him if they needed anything.
He was about to go when he remembered something.
''Oh, and Dr. Miller asked me to tell you that he'd come and see you shortly.''
He gave the family one last attempt of a supporting smile before softly closing the door behind himself.
Look around and you'll see that at times it feels like no one really cares
It gets me down but I'm still gonna try to do what's right, I know that there's
A difference between sleight of hand and giving everything you have
There's a line drawn in the sand, I'm working up the will to cross it