CHAPTER 6

 

Chapter 6

Lisa swerved left, the steering wheel jerking in her hands as she merged onto the 101, tears blurring the highway signs into a mess of neon lights and streaks of color.

Deep down, she knew exactly where she was going, but there was a part of her that still didn’t want to admit it — a teeny, tiny part that clung to the hopeless idea she might actually turn around and go back to the city.

Or maybe, just maybe, she had only gone for a drive, hoping it could calm her shattered nerves and offer a fleeting escape from the inner turmoil that was eating her alive.

It was now almost three in the morning, but with all the adrenaline rushing through her veins, she couldn’t feel tired even if she wanted to. The night stretched endlessly before her, mirroring the unparalleled chaos in her mind.

Leaning over to the radio, Lisa cranked the music even louder, the voice of Marilyn Manson filling up the car, and she screamed along with him, tears now streaming down her cheeks without restraint, mingling with the raw, cathartic release of her emotions.

Her foot slammed down on the gas, flying past some ancient, slow Datsun and the quick pass earned her an angry honk in protest.

“Fuck you!” Lisa growled.

Could this night get any worse?

Possibly — if she killed someone.

Her body was still trembling, and the chill inside her had very little to do with the cool night air. Lisa felt a bile rise in her throat, and she coughed, the acrid taste lingering and making it hard to swallow.

Desperately, she reached over and grabbed a bottle of water, twisted the cap off and chugged half of it in one go, hoping to wash away the bitter taste of her despair.

After passing Ventura, she knew the road ahead would be much less busy, granting her the solitude she needed to process all the awful events of the night.

The quiet highway stretched out in front of her now, the headlights casting long shadows on the asphalt as her mind replayed every damn moment, every second of that night’s disaster…

 

Lisa had watched Michael's car disappear in the dark as tears streamed down her face and she sobbed quietly. She had done it, pulled the trigger — she had successfully driven him away, telling him she only wanted to be friends and preferably not even any time soon.

What a load of bullshit.

But did she really expect him to break down, fall to his knees, and beg her to take him back?

No. He had done exactly what she asked of him. He had let her go.

The realization, however, hit her like a punch to the gut and the echo of her words still hung in the air, blending with the fading taillights of his SUV disappearing down her driveway and leaving an unexpected ache in her heart.

Michael had brought up moving abroad, and it shocked her how much the idea actually scared her. Even though they weren't together, Lisa took some comfort in knowing he was still around, living in the same city. She had settled for hearing about him through the press or mutual friends once in a while - it was all she let herself have when it came to keeping him in her life. Just that little fix was enough to keep her going, but the idea of him leaving? Well, that hit different.

Lisa couldn’t recall how long she had stood there – outside her house - rooted to the spot, as tears trickled steadily from her eyes. Then, after what felt like an eternity, she turned slowly, each step deliberate and filled with a sense of resignation, as she made her way to the front door.

With trembling hands, she unlocked it, pushed it open and leaned against the doorframe for a moment, seeking solace in its sturdy embrace and trying to steady her breath. The weight of everything hit her all at once, like she had been running on fumes for too long.

Suddenly, Lisa felt exhausted, defeated, gutted but she quickly shook her head trying to make her brain refocus on what was really important now.

A hot shower and at least nine hours of undisturbed sleep. That was all she needed... Lisa knew she wasn’t thinking straight — she was completely wiped and she figured that by morning, things would clear up and hopefully make more sense again.

She would surely see Michael's move as a good idea, him thriving elsewhere, away from this rotten place, and she would finally move on from the fleeting, crazy notion of them being together again, too.

The night before she had stayed up late talking to Riley, having an amazing time with her daughter, munching on popcorn and ice cream and discussing everything from music, to fashion and even boys until the wee hours of the night. But now Lisa could really feel the weight of her sleeplessness pressing down on her, making her brain freak out on her and therefore making all the events of the night seem more unbearable than they probably really were.

She didn’t want Michael back. It had been too painful the first hundred times or so around…

Right?

Right… 

So why did it hit her so much, even though she swore she didn’t care anymore?

Lisa took a deep breath and shook her head again.

‘Enough!’

She just needed to drag her half-dead body upstairs and let sleep somehow miraculously help untangle the unbelievable mess in her head.

She placed her purse on an antique cabinet in the foyer, her fingers lingering on the smooth surface as she noticed she was still clutching the small card with Michael’s number in her other hand, the card now all crumpled from how hard she had been squeezing it.

Well, she wasn’t going to need that number any time soon, she thought and opened one of the drawers, throwing it inside and grunting as she started making her way upstairs slowly.

Her legs had hurt her all night from wearing the stupid high heels and Lisa just couldn’t wait to kick them off.

She made it upstairs and slowly walked into her bedroom, not even bothering to turn on the lights as she dragged her tired body towards the bathroom.

First things first.

Shower.

As soon as she stepped over the threshold, she flipped the switch on the wall, the sudden flood of light momentarily blinding her. She blinked, waiting for her eyes to adjust. Then, with a groan of annoyance, she noticed her Dior lipstick on the floor, open and broken.

‘The magic of having a teenage daughter who randomly borrows things and never puts them back in their place.’ Lisa thought and rolled her eyes. She loved her kids dearly, but the mess they were able to create was really quite often beyond her wildest imagination.

As Lisa bent over to pick up the broken lipstick, she muttered something under her breath, the words vanishing into the stillness of the room. With a sigh, she then took a few slow steps forward and reached for the open drawer to put her favorite Dior item back where it belonged.

But before she could do it, she glanced up.

In that moment, sheer terror seized her, sending a chill down her spine that made her blood run cold. Lisa’s breath caught in her throat, eyes widening in shock and fear, and she let out a sharp gasp as a wave of panic crashed over her like a tidal wave. The world around her seemed to blur.

She dropped the lipstick on the floor, the sound of its impact barely registering in her mind as her hand flew to her mouth to stifle a horrified scream.

She saw something on the mirror, the red letters erratic and hauntingly familiar.

Sweet dreams, my love!

I’ll be close by.

With a low, panicked cry, she stumbled back, her heart pounding in her chest as if trying to break free from its cage. Every instinct screamed at her to flee and without a second thought, she turned on her heel and raced through the darkened room towards the hall, each step echoing in the silent house like a gunshot in a quiet forest.

Adrenaline fueled her movements as she ran down the stairs as fast as the stupid heels allowed her, silently praying not to fall or break her leg in her desperate bid to escape and get out of the house.

Once in the foyer, she snatched her purse from the ornate cabinet and threw the heavy door open, her heart pounding with urgency as she ran to her car as fast as she could. She leaped into the driver's seat of her car, turned on the engine and slammed her foot on the gas pedal, desperate to put as much distance as possible between herself and the creepy house.

The tires screeched against the asphalt, leaving behind a trail of rubber and smoke as she sped away into the darkness of the night…

 

Lisa now passed the familiar sign indicating she would reach Santa Barbara in about 10 miles.

Good.

She needed some gas and probably some sugary snacks, too. Something that would help calm her down a little.

And the more reasonable part of her brain once again reminded her that the smartest thing to do would be to just stay right there, find the nearest hotel, get a room, take a hot shower and go to sleep.

Yet, the other part of her brain adamantly argued that it was pointless and that she wouldn’t sleep a wink anyways. Not after what had happened in her house.

Lisa felt guilty for losing it like she had, her nerves so shot she could barely think straight, no matter how hard she tried to pull it together. She wanted to be calm, to be strong — but she just couldn’t. She felt her nails digging involuntarily into the steering wheel again.

Fucking hell!

Couldn’t she get a break for once??

 

After fleeing her property like a bat out of hell earlier that dreadful night, she had driven for a good fifteen minutes before pulling into a Costco parking lot.

The lot stretched out under the flickering glow of a few fluorescent lights and she listened to the faint echoes of distant voices coming through her cracked windows.

With shaky hands, she had turned off the engine, double-checked that the car was locked, and made sure no one could get inside.

Her eyes darted around, spotting a group of some weird-looking individuals hanging out near one of the cars, their silhouettes shadowy and indistinct under the dim parking lot lights, but despite their appearance, she actually doubted they posed any real danger to her.

No, the real danger had been hiding in her own house…

Lisa took a deep breath and tried to calm herself down, though her heart continued racing in her chest. With her hands still shaking, she reached for her purse, opened it and took out her cell phone, searching for a familiar number before bringing the phone to her ear.

“Hello?” She heard a deep voice and swallowed.

“Hey, it’s me!!” Lisa blurted out, noticing that not only her hands but also her voice was shaking like crazy. “Danny, are the kids okay??!!”

“Huh? What?” He sounded sleepy. “Of course they are.”

“Can you go check, please??” She knew she sounded frantic but she didn’t know how to compose herself and didn’t feel like wasting any energy on it either. First she needed to make sure the kids were safe.

“What? Lisa, what’s going on? Are you okay?”

“Please!!”

“Gosh, okay, calm down! Riley’s here with me, we were watching a movie and.. and I must have passed out.” He said and yawned.

“Hey mom!” She heard her daughter say into the phone before it sounded like her father slowly got up from the couch and trudged towards Ben’s room.

“Ben’s sleeping. What’s going on? Do you want me to wake him up??”

“No, no! Just make sure he’s okay, please.”

He mumbled something unintelligible and a few seconds later she heard him open the door and whisper: “He’s out like a light. Care to tell me what’s going on?”

Lisa chewed on her lower lip and stared into space as she contemplated whether to tell him the truth or not. Danny would rush to her and help her, there was no doubt about it…

But…

But, he would also freak out, wake the kids and drive all the way to Hidden Hills, disrupting the plans he had made for the kids' much-anticipated road trip. She just couldn’t ruin it.

“Um, everything is fine. Just make sure the kids are okay, please! And tell them I love them. Night!”

She knew she was talking a mile a minute and not making much sense, her voice both too fast and too fake but she couldn’t help herself. The only thing Lisa thought and kind of hoped for was that the creep was only after her and her kids were in no danger at all.

She hung up, took a couple shaky breaths and immediately dialed a different number.

911.

And from that point on, things really picked up speed…

 

 

Lisa took the exit and drove into Santa Barbara, a town which offered the holy trinity of survival.

Fuel, candy and a restroom.

She pulled up and got out of the car, feeling extremely conspicuous in her light blue dress and the stupid high heels she now hated more than ever. The outfit seemed absurdly out of place for her current predicament, like a costume worn by a silly cartoon character lost in a story gone awry.

She filled up the gas tank and then walked inside, making a beeline for the candy aisle.

With shaky hands, she grabbed a couple of Hershey’s bars, some Reese's Peanut Butter Cups, and a pack of strawberry Twizzlers for good measure.

She paid at the cashier as her eyes darted nervously around, though the store was almost empty and nobody really seemed to have recognized her or cared at all. Lisa thanked the tired and bored-looking lady who handed her the change back, tried a weak smile and quickly headed to the restroom in the back of the small store.

The moment Lisa saw herself in the mirror, she winced. Her face was ghostly pale, a stark contrast to the dark circles under her eyes and some mascara was smudged around her eyelids, giving her a raccoon-like appearance. Her hair was a tangled mess making her look like she had just emerged from a wild adventure through a dense jungle.

Just ridiculous…

“Wow Lisa, look at you… maybe staying at one of the inns here would be the smartest thing to do, really.” She muttered to herself.

She used the bathroom and then splashed some ice-cold water on her face, getting rid of all the smudged make-up and hoping to shock herself back to some semblance of normalcy.

Feeling slightly more composed, she got back in her car and without giving it much thought, she quickly drove out of the town, finding herself on the highway once again.

Apparently the less reasonable part of her had gotten the upper hand again…

 

After she had called the police, they had picked her up at the Costco parking lot. They must have set a record getting there, especially after she had told them her name, where she lived, and what had happened.

Five police cars escorted her back to her house, speeding with sirens blaring … very much like a scene you would see on ‘True Detective’.

Then, two rather handsome officers stayed outside with her, diligently taking her statement and acting all sympathetic while the others combed through her entire house gathering evidence. Despite her best efforts to stay composed, at one point Lisa felt herself tremble and one of the cops seemed to notice right away and rushed back to one of the patrol cars. Within seconds, he was back with a blanket in hand, carefully draping it over her shoulders like he was handling glass. It didn’t stop the shaking, but the gesture actually warmed her.

Taxpayer money well spent, if you asked her.

About fifteen minutes or so later, the sheriff walked out of the front door and made his way to her. He looked to be in his early fifties, tall, with a square jawline, piercing blue eyes framed by thick brows, and a well-groomed mustache. Basically the guy you would cast in a gritty detective show.

“Miss Presley, the house is safe and secure, but I would still recommend you spend the night somewhere else.”

“Oh, absolutely! I’m not fucking staying here!” She blurted out before biting her lip and clearing her throat. “Excuse me…I’m a bit um…out of it. It’s been a really long night.“

“Oh, no worries. I completely understand what a shock it must have been. Anyway, we’ve gathered some evidence, but if you have spare keys, we’d like to come back first thing in the morning and look some more. That way we wouldn’t make you come back here and let us in.”

“Of course! Um, They…they are in the hall, in one of the drawers.” She paused and looked at the creepy, haunted house. “Can you… um… come with me, please?”

“Sure.” He nodded, and they both made their way towards the building with Lisa walking inside the house very hesitantly.

The moment she stepped across the threshold, she felt a chill run down her spine and her heart started pounding again.

Her dear friend Anxiety seemed to drop by to say hi once again…

Lisa walked over to one of the wooden cabinets and rummaged through a drawer until she found a bunch of keys and handed them to the tall man standing next to her.

“Um, can I ask you one more favor?” She asked as he pocketed the keys. “Could you come upstairs with me? I’d like… I’d like to take a change of clothes with me but… I’m not sure…”

Lisa couldn’t even finish the sentence, but the sheriff gave her another encouraging smile, his eyes kind and understanding.

“You have nothing to worry about, Miss Presley. The guys are still there but of course, I’ll go with you.”

As they slowly walked up the stairs, he cleared his throat.

“I should warn you, though.” He said, and Lisa looked at him, narrowing her eyes.

“About?”

“Um, we have found something in the bedroom.”

They walked slowly through the hall towards her bedroom and when they reached the room, the sheriff let her walk in first. She saw four cops still looking around for evidence before she noticed one of them using a swab on the bed sheets.

What the hell?

“Miss Presley, the good news is that he’s not the brightest bulb on the Christmas tree, and I can assure you we will catch him soon.”

“And the bad news?” Lisa breathed out, her eyes wide now. The swab was a dead giveaway, and she knew where the story was probably headed, but she desperately hoped she was wrong.

“Well, um, it appears as if he has masturbated on your bed while he was here.”

Her hand flew to her mouth and she started trembling with shock and disgust, struggling to hold back the bile rising in her throat.

That fucking freak might have still been there when she had walked in and gone to the bathroom. Sitting on her bed in the dark, waiting…

“Oh my god!” She let out and took a shaky step back before looking around the room again. She noticed one of the drawers open — the one where she had kept all her underwear.

Her head spun, and she had to close her eyes for a second.

‘Okay, Lisa… stay strong! You’re fine. It’s all good now.’

“Okay.” She managed to utter, her voice barely above a whisper and she took a deep breath. With a determined nod, she cleared her throat, trying to appear at least somewhat composed despite the turmoil raging within her. “I’ll just take some clothes and I’m outta here.”

She walked over to her closet, grabbed her gym bag quickly, and started throwing random things in it without giving it much thought — a pair of jeans, a pair of sneakers, a tank top, a T-shirt, and a hoodie. She had intended to take some underwear as well, but couldn’t bear to touch anything the creep might have touched before.

Lisa shuddered again.

Throwing the bag on her shoulder, she walked quickly towards the sheriff and thanked him. Once again he made sure she had a place to stay for the night, and she assured him she was going to stay with her boyfriend.

Yeah, right.

She walked down the stairs carefully, fighting back tears once again, trying to keep her emotions in check for just a little longer.

She walked outside and said goodbye to the other officers who still waited there, then jumped in her car and drove off quickly bursting into tears the moment she knew she could afford to do just that because she was finally all alone and nobody could see how how terrified she truly was.

There was no point in trying to reach Matt. He was an early riser and would be surely asleep by now. And it was two in the morning, after all.

Plus, Lisa hadn't been lying when she said they were taking it slow.

Very slow.

A slug-pace slow.

And so, while they might have been hanging out for almost two months now, it wasn't like they had already slept together or anything.

So, no… there was no waking up Matt and staying with him.

Alecia!!!

Lisa glanced at the clock on her dashboard and let out a long sigh. While Matt was surely getting his beauty sleep now, Alecia was, without a doubt, still out, living her best ‘regret-it-in-the-morning’ life.

Just for kicks, Lisa dialed her number, but of course, it went straight to voicemail.

‘Meh.’

No, she wasn’t going to drive all the way back downtown to try and hunt her friend down in some crowded club.

Fuck that…

But… now what?

 

Well, and that was how she had found herself on that highway. Lisa drove for another fifteen minutes before pulling up in front of a familiar gate and she took a deep breath as the view managed to stir a million memories inside her, flooding her mind altogether. Suddenly she felt as if she was standing at the threshold of her past, enveloped by an eerie sense of familiarity as if she was finally coming home after a long and exhausting journey… and in a way she was.

“Alright, alright.” Lisa heard a low voice, prompting her to open the car window slightly to hear better. “Forget about it right there, turn and leave.”

Must have been one of Michael’s guards.

The man approached her car, bent down a little shining a small flashlight to look at her closely and squinted his eyes.

Fuck.

FUCK!

FUCK!!!

Okay, two-hour drive and her idiotic self hadn’t even considered that particular and very, VERY probable scenario!

Goddammit!!

Rolling down the window, Lisa flashed the guard a sweet smile, determined to try and get her way now that she was there.

“Hi… um. I really need to talk to Michael, please.”

He let out a humorless laugh and shook his head, rolling his eyes at her blatant stupidity. And sadly, deep down she couldn't help but agree with him.

It would take a special kind of idiot to think they would let her in just like they used to back in the day.

“Yeah, right. You and hundreds of other nutjobs like you. Beat it, lady, before it gets ugly.”

Shit! SHIT!

Lisa’s brain flashed back to earlier that night when she had thrown Michael’s card into one of the drawers, leaving it there.

Fucking hell! How dumb was she? How could she not have realized she wouldn’t be able to get to him?

She felt like screaming, punching the steering wheel, punching the guy… anything …

… but instead, she forced herself to calm down, took a deep breath and cleared her throat, looking at him again trying her best polite voice.

“Please, sir. Listen to me, I forgot his phone number at my house, but I need to see him. I promise you he would want to talk to me.” She tried but in all fairness, if the shoe was on the other foot and she was the guard at the gate, she wouldn’t really believe herself either.

Back in the day, Lisa had known all the guards, and they had known her and every time her car approached the gate, they always opened it immediately, a clear testament to the carte blanche she used to have to him.

Well, that time seemed very much over now.

“I’m not joking here. Do yourself a solid and get out of here before I call the cops and have you arrested. How deluded are you?” The guy was on a power trip now, a part of him annoyed while the other part clearly enjoying every single second and she sighed, looking down at her hands in her lap. “It’s four in the morning, for fuck’s sake! I wish you crazy fans were a bit more shrewd and made it at least a bit of a challenge.”

Okay. There was one move left. She hated it, but desperate times called for desperate measures, didn’t they?

“Look, sir…” She said and took a deep breath before looking back at him. “My name is Lisa Presley, and I need to talk to my ex-husband. Now. I know what time it is and I’m sorry for the inconvenience but I also know he’s a light sleeper, so there's a good chance he's still awake. He gave me a card with his phone number earlier today, but unfortunately, I left it at home. Now… of course I could drive all the way back to the city, get the card and call him but believe me when I tell you, Michael won’t be happy to find out you made me leave in the middle of the night… especially when I came to him in an obviously rattled state. Do you really think I would bother him at this ungodly hour if everything was all… um… dandy?”

There… she had done it. Lisa watched his face slowly morph into an expression resembling a mix of surprise and shock and he looked at her closely again, his eyes widening a second later.

‘Good. There we go. Now go ahead and call him.’ She thought.

“Um… alright.” He said and cleared his throat nervously. “Let me call the house.” He said and walked back to the small guardhouse at the gate.

Lisa sighed and braced herself for what was to come.

Michael could be already sleeping or worse… he could tell the oh-so-pleasant guy to send her on her merry way because he never wanted to see her again… wouldn’t it be something she deserved after treating him like shit earlier?

Michael was a master at icing people out, after all.

Well, shit. She hadn’t considered that scenario either.

Or, heaven forbid, he had decided to soothe his bruised ego by picking up some "lady friend" after he had dropped her off earlier.

Wow, talk about the worst timing in the history of humankind -walking in on his little post-rejection pity party with someone else…

‘A stunt only I could pull off, really.’  She shook her head and swallowed with difficulty.

God she hoped he was alone because if he wasn’t, what would be there left to do?

She realized she would probably have to drive back to Santa Barbara and really get a hotel room for the night. Or she might just drive back to the city - she would be there by the time Matt woke up all ready to hit the gym.

Lisa rolled her eyes and honestly couldn’t even fathom how the night could get any worse. Maybe if a zombie apocalypse broke out…

She was so unbelievably tired, and she felt her eyes filling with tears again. Pinching the bridge of her nose, she looked around for her water bottle when, from the corner of her eye, she noticed the gate opening slowly.

No… fucking… way!

Yes! YES!!

She started the engine, quickly forgetting about how thirsty she was after all the damn candy she had eaten and drove through, the previously very unpleasant guard now smiling and nodding at her.

“Do you know how to get to the house, ma’am?”

“Yes, I do. Thank you.” She said, offering him a kind smile back.

After all, he was just doing his job, protecting Michael.

Driving through the ranch felt like stepping into a faded memory. The road leading to the mansion was the same, but a lot of the decorations were now missing, and there weren’t as many lights around as she remembered.

As she drove around the lake, the large and beautiful house came into view, illuminated by a soft glow from both the lights and the gentle moonlight. When was the last time she had seen it? She couldn’t even remember.

As she got closer, Lisa saw Michael walk out of the door, tying his robe and making his way slowly towards the parking spots in front of the building. She slowed down, making the last small turn onto his driveway.

Then Lisa pulled up, shut off the engine quickly and without thinking yanked the door open, jumped out of the car, and ran to him as fast as the stupid heels allowed her.

She threw herself into his arms, the force nearly knocking him off balance and he caught her wrapping his arms around her and holding her tight. Tears streamed down her face, and this time she didn’t even try to stop them. Her unintelligible sobs were muffled against his chest as she buried her face there, the tears flowing freely and soaking through his robe.

“Lise, what in the world? Are you okay? What happened??” He asked in a low and worried voice, and she found herself unable to contain a loud, pained sob that somehow burst from her lips. “Talk to me, girl!”

But she couldn’t. Every breath was a struggle, coming in ragged gasps between sobs, and she felt him tighten his embrace.

Lisa clung to him tighter, her fingers now gripping the fabric of his robe like it was the only thing keeping her sane and grounded.

She felt him gently stroke her hair with one hand as his other one held her close to his warm body, softly drawing slow circles on her back, a comforting gesture she had longed for all night long.

“Are you hurt?” He mumbled into her hair, his thumb brushing against her temple and she managed at least to weakly shake her head against his chest when she noticed his heartbeat quicken beneath her ear.

“I’m… I’m okay. I… Can… can I stay h…here tonight?” Her voice was barely a whisper, shaky and fragile, like she was afraid it might crack if she spoke any louder and Michael kissed the top of her head and then pulled her in even tighter against him, his fingers brushing gently through her hair as he held her close.

“Of course, c’mon, let’s get you inside.”