Apply In Person - Jack Ivey (reading in the dark .TXT) 📗

Apply in person

Jack Ivey

Liz had found the ad on the popular website, Nanny Wanted. It read, Apply in Person, 43 Hatch Rd. She normally didn't like using this site, based on news reports of scams and worse, but the address was in an affluent neighborhood on the north side of town. And it was exactly the job she had been looking for.

The colonial style house, red brick with black shutters and white picket fence was very nice. The man who answered the door was well dressed but had a strange look about him. Once inside Liz noticed there were no signs of children anywhere. She found it odd, but the father explained that they were gone with their mother for the day.

Liz followed him into a lavishly appointed living room where she took a seat on an over-sized leather couch. She was relieved to see photos of his wife and children on the mantle above the stone fireplace. He asked her several questions and reviewed her references before he told her she was hired. He then offered her a drink to celebrate, which she gladly accepted.

* * *

Upon regaining consciousness, the horror of being bound and gagged took over. The musty odor of the damp basement floor made it hard to breathe, and the darkness was suffocating. Each footstep or noise heard on the floor above created tentacles of distress. Thoughts of, “what if” battled with terrified fears, that raged non-stop. What would happen next? Would this be the end? Struggling only caused the plastic strap bindings to tighten, increasing the pain with every movement.

A faraway door opened, a slow creaking sound that sent shivers up and down the spine. Then footsteps on the stairs pounded, each one of them getting closer and closer. The sound was deafening as sweat began escaping from every pore. A hand grabbed the duct tape and ripped it from his eyes. He stared at her menacing grin, his screams muffled by the gag which still covered his mouth.

“Shut up, and quit your whining,” she barked, holding a large butcher’s knife in her hand. His eyes became large as saucers as he struggled to fight the bindings holding him.

“Hush,” she whispered in his ear, “You have nothing to worry about until your kids get home.”

Text: Jack Ivey
Editing: Valerie Byron
Publication Date: 11-16-2012

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