Deadly Silence (complete) Chapter 156

When Jacques asked if she was hungry, Vivian wasn’t sure how to respond. She wanted to get to the library, sooner rather than later, to send that email, but he was focused on food?

He drove them to a sketchy part of the city and parked at a small fast food outlet. “Come on,” he told her, motioning for Vivian to follow him inside. “They have free wifi, and I’m starving.”

At the mention of free wifi, Vivian was more than happy to do as he said. It was five minutes before the deadline and she still had to set up a new email.

Finding a two seater in a corner, Vivian sat with her back to the wall and got to work. By the time Jacques sat down she’d hit send with a minute to spare. The email had been three words: when and where? Nothing else needed to be said.

Jacques slid over a plate of fries, which she looked at with raised brows. “Girls always steal fries, don’t they?” He chuckled. “So I got you some.”

Though the thought was nice, Vivian’s stomach was in knots and adding food to the mix felt like a bad idea. Still, she decided to appease him and took a fry. “Thanks.”

“So,” he began, taking a bite of his burger, “what’s going on? Why are we keeping this hush-hush from my old man?”

Vivian watched the man take another bite, contemplating what to tell him. The last thing she wanted was for him to change his mind and bring her back to the hospital but, if she wanted his help, she’d have to tell him *something*. “Everyone decided I had no say in a decision that directly impacts my life,” she began, speaking slow as she chose each word with great care. “And I’m tired of having no say in my life.”

“Good on you,” he nodded. “So, what’s going on that impacts your life so much you ran off? I’m guessing it has to do with last night?”

“Yeah.”

“Gonna tell me what’s going on?”

Again she watched him for a little bit before speaking. “If I do, and you disagree with me on it, will you drag me back?”

“Nope.”

“…really?” She asked, frowning.

Jacques grabbed a napkin and wiped his mouth. “From what I can tell, you’re gonna do… whatever you’re gonna do, whether I, or my old man, like it. You already slipped away from him because he made the choice for you; if I do that, too, you’ll be on your own. And being there to make sure nothing bad happens to you isn’t part of my job, so it’ll really dig at him when I shove it in his face later. Whatever’s going on, I’m on your side.”

From the sound of it, Jacques was petty, and she could work with that. If his need to prove something to Gilbert was strong enough to keep his mouth shut about this, who was she to complain? “I’m getting my family back.” She explained how she’d been told about the ransom demand, and how everyone had already decided on what to do.

“So you’re going to, what, martyr yourself for your dad and brother?”

Vivian let out a sigh. “It’s not… like that. If I don’t go, they die. If I go, there’s no way of knowing if I’ll be killed.” *At least not right away*, she silently added. “They wouldn’t listen to me when I said I was doing it, didn’t even ask why I’d agree to it or anything.” She knew Paul; he wouldn’t stop with her father and brother. If they didn’t make the trade, he would go for her remaining two bothers, or her friends, until he got what he wanted.

The sooner she gave herself up, the fewer lives would be ruined. It was that simple.

“So you’re banking on them wanting to keep you alive.”

“Yes.”

Jacques was quiet for a moment, sipping his drink. “I’m surprised the old man didn’t think about that.”

“They’re all focused on keeping me safe,” Vivian complained, crossing her arms on the table. “Sending me in for the trade goes against that, and Gilbert was like ‘your father wouldn’t agree to this, so it’s not happening’ but, like… so, what? If he dies then how is that… What then?”

“So, what’s the plan? I take it you contacted the kidnapper,” he motioned towards the phone she’d set on the table. “Now what?”

Vivian picked up the phone to check if any notification had come in. “Now we wait for an email to tell us when and where.”

“Any idea how long that’ll take?”

She shook her head. “No, but I don’t think it’ll…” Vivian turned the phone to show him an email had just come in. “Didn’t take long at all.” Tapping away at the screen, she opened it. It was two lines; an address and time. “How long will it take to get here?”

Jacques took the offered phone and glanced at the email. “Eh, maybe half an hour, depending on traffic? Forty-five minutes if it’s bad. But… since we’re on a bike, there’s a bunch of shortcuts I can take to get there faster.”

“They want us there for one, so we have fifty minutes.”

Vivian’s heart began to race as they left the restaurant and returned to where he’d parked his bike.

“You wanna get there right on time, or early?” Jacques asked as he fastened the chin strap on his helmet.

“Early,” she replied without needing to think about it.

“Got it. I’ll be taking some shortcuts, so make sure to hold on tight, okay?”

Vivian gave a nod before climbing onto the back of the bike. As they pulled out into traffic and sped down the road what she was about to do was starting to feel real.

At first, she’d worried about doing it alone. Stumbling upon Jacques had been pure luck and, for that, Vivian was grateful. Without his help she wasn’t sure if she’d have been able to pull any of this off. Having someone on her side, who wasn’t trying to change her mind, who listened to her explanation without judgment… There was a chance she might get out of this alive. A small chance, but a chance all the same.

What more could she ask for?