" Why did you hit me? Just because I took your
mask off? That is so stupid! I had a reason to do that.
Don't even think about interrupting me until I am finished. I wanted
to see who was keeping me captive down here.
I have that right at least, don't I? You seem to want us to become
more than friends. Well, there is no way anyone can become more than
friends without seeing their true face! The way you have acted so
far this evening, I don't even think we will get very far!"
Erik was staring at me intently, actually listening. He had not interrupted, but seemed to be digesting what I had just told him. Then he got up slowly, went into a room across from my bed, and returned with a cool towel.
" I hope you will forgive me for treating you like
an animal. I lost my temper. I have never let anyone see my
face for personal reasons. What you said was absolutely right.
If I expect you to live here, I need to act more
like a gentleman. Now, lie down and get some rest. I will
awaken you in a hour."
With that, he left. I stared at the closed
door in disbelief. He expected me just to stay here like some faithful
dog? I don't think so. I got up and searched for any possible
exits. The room also looked like it had come from the seventeenth
century. The bed that I had been on was king sized with huge pillows
and fluffy blankets, but not comfortable enough to make me want to stay.
I walked into the room that Erik had gotten the towel from. It
was a nice bathroom with a huge rectangular mirror, double sinks made
of marble, a shower with glass doors, and a plain looking toilet.
Of course there weren't any windows to climb out of. Neither closets,
nor any doors in
that freaking room except the one Erik had come in and out of.
It was very frustrating. I of course couldn't go back to sleep.
Then an idea hit me. It was dangerous and very unlikely to work,
but not that hard to do. I could
just walk out the door that we had come in and hope that he wasn't
watching over my door. I carefully turned the knob and opened the
door a crack. Sure enough, Erik was right next to the door, wide-awake.
" Can't sleep?" He asked pleasantly.
" Nope."
He stood up, and I again noticed how incredibly tall and muscular he was. Aren't kidnappers always stronger than their victims? Of course they would have to be. Otherwise, I wouldn't be down here in the first place. Wait a minute! Down here?
" Erik, just a hunch, but are we underground?"
" Why yes we are! How did you guess that?"
" Well, I can smell the dirt, but I don't see any. I can tell the difference between a basement and a room above ground. Just curious, but why is your house underground?"
" Well, to be exact, it is under your basement. Your parents don't know about it, no one ever knew about it except my wacko parents. I guess fate brought us here."
This was beginning to make me feel uneasier. That at least explained how I could hear him singing in my bathroom. I deduced that there were probably trapdoors all over the place, in his house and in my house. How else could he have gotten me down here, and known my name? This was getting like a horror movie. My only choice was not to anger the madman in front of me and play his weird game until I could find an escape that wouldn't kill me. I just hoped that I had the stuff to go through it without letting Erik know my intentions.
" Would you like to change into daytime clothing? I have brought some of your clothing down here so that you don't have to wear your pajamas all day. Until I get you something more fitting for the setting down here, your clothes will have to do."
He produced a suitcase, which he handed to me and started walking down the hall.
" I will give you a half hour to change, shower, do whatever you need to do. I expect you to be waiting for me outside the door on the chair that I was sitting in earlier. Don't dwell on it, get in there and make yourself beautiful Alice."
I closed the door and locked it as well as the bathroom door.
I did not trust him one bit. I quickly showered, put my Lee Pipes
on with my flowered T-shirt, white socks, and Nike shoes, and then I was
ready to work with my
hair. I decided to go simple; Erik wasn't worth the extra trouble.
I pulled my thick brown hair back into a tight ponytail, and then brushed
my teeth. Luckily I had forgotten to take off my watch before I went
to bed, so I knew what the time was. It told me that I still had
about five minutes before I had to be in the chair. I looked at my
hands, noticing that the ring was still on my pinky. I thought it
would have come off with soap, but it hadn't. I reached around my
neck for the cross my mother had given me when my grandmother had died.
It had tiny pearls on the string and the cross itself had tiny purple diamonds
engraved in it, which was rumored to have magical powers, but I had yet
to see anything magical. But, it wasn't around my neck. I panicked
momentarily, before I remember that I had taken it off before I took the
shower, setting it on the counter. I put it on, making sure that
it was underneath my shirt. Then I was officially ready to play Erik's
little game.
I did not have to wait long, for as soon as I sat down; Erik was coming down the hall with a large bouquet of flowers in his hands.
" I hope you like these, they are your favorites, right?"
I took a closer look and realized that they were the most beautiful purple tulips that I had ever seen. They were in fact my favorite kind of flower, and color!
" Erik! They are beautiful!" I said.
" I have placed a vase on the dresser next to the lamp for you to put them in."
" Thank you! I am going to put them in right
now before they wilt." I took another deep breath of their fragrance
before I carefully placed them in the huge crystal vase that I had not
noticed before. Erik was waiting
patiently outside the door for me to come back, so I relunctly tore
myself away from the flowers, feeling a little lightheaded.
" Ready for an official tour of my humble home beneath yours?"
" Of course!" I said eagerly, and took his arm. No, I didn't go insane, it was the fragrance from the flowers, I later realized. But I suppose that it was better that I was under the influence of those flowers, or I would have been one miserable person that day.
The day went by rather quickly. I didn't realize
how big his house was. He had a kitchen, dining room, rec. room,
office, his own room, and music room. His kitchen was one of those
stainless steel ones, like one you would see in a professional restaurant.
The dining room was a regular looking room with china cabinets filled with
gold and silver edged plates and cups. In the middle of the room
was a medium sized wood table, with two chairs facing each other.
In the rec. room, a large couch was in front of a huge T.V. Across
the room, a stereo lined the other wall with C.D. racks. I commented
on the neatness and hugeness of each room, which seemed to please Erik.
He seemed to care a lot more about his music room, actually making me take
off my shoes before walking in. He said that I might accidentally
step on a piece of music that could fall out of the very messy piles on
his desk. I choose not to argue with him about it. I was impressed
on how many different instruments he knew how to play. There was
a keyboard and organ on one side of the wall. Directly across from
it were the string instruments: harp, viola, violin, cello, bass,
guitar, and auto harp. In the middle of the room was a drum set.
Erik played a quick song for me on each instrument. I have to admit
that he was an excellent player. The only two rooms he did not let
me see were his room and office, which he that I was never to go into any
of
those without his permission. Right now, he told me, they were
not proper for me to see. I had no idea what to make of that.
Maybe he had some embarrassing posters or something, I didn't question
him about it.
We had a candle lit dinner with pepperoni pizza and
sparkling grape juice. It wasn't exactly a planned candlelit dinner
because the power went out. Apparently there was a huge storm occurring
above us. Erik told me the
back up power would kick in soon, just that it took about an hour or
so. Back then I didn't think that it was too suspicious; I believed
every word that came out of his mouth. I didn't realize that was
because I was under
the flowers' influence until I went to bed that night, and he had taken
the flowers out.
" Good night Alice and sleep tight," were his last
words before he kissed my forehead and left. As soon as the scent
was gone I realized that I had been tricked. I took it as a warning
that if I wasn't careful, he would have
me acting like a programmed robot. Since when there such perfect
purple violets like the ones that Erik had given me? Probably not
in this world. I was incredibly frightened. What if he tried
to seduce me with that voice of
his? I had no doubt that he was perfectly capable of it.
I had to be on the alert the whole time or I might lose my senses.