My Friend Jamie
I have been friends with Jamie for as
long as I can remember. She had a skinny petite figure. Her long curly bleach
blonde hair cascaded down her back. She loved wearing backless dresses and crop
tops with holes in the jeans. She had a unique sense of style and loved showing
off her tiny figure. A lot of boys noticed her appearance and would quickly offer
her their number. It appeared she had a new boy wrapped around her finger every
week. At times I was very envious of her. I was very much a tom boy. I loved
skate boarding, playing basketball and along other things I loved playing video
games. I was raised most of my life by my much older brother. He was twelve
years older than me. When my parents died in a drunk driving collision, he
gained full custody of me. It wasn't the plan, but he knew he couldn't abandon
me and leave me in a foster care system. At first our living situation was very
awkward. Our relationship always seemed abnormal, he felt more like a second
dad to me then a big brother. He was a hard-working mechanic, he lived in a
bachelor apartment with a golden retriever named Lucky. She was a loving dog,
but she always appeared to look a bit lonely. She loved having me around. I
loved playing with her while my older brother Lucas worked long hours. Our new
place felt crowded and small, Lucas would often crash on the couch while I
slept in the room that was once his bedroom. At times it felt claustrophobic. Lucas
always spoke about getting a bigger place for us, but I also knew how busy he
was. I knew eventually we would move out but as of now that kind of transition
was just too much on our plates. I was friends with Jamie, and I would often
sleep over. Her childhood house was huge with a family pool, and she had two parents
who loved her. Her mom was a gourmet chef, she cooked delicious meals and even
her own signature dishes. She even owned her own luxurious restaurant. Her
restaurant was always too expensive for Lucas and I to dine at. But I always
wanted to dine there. Jamie's dad worked real estate. Jamie's older brother
Thomas was a senior in high school. Just one year older than Jamie and I. He was
often out with friends or would go driving around. However, on the nights where
I did sleep over and he was home I would get a feel of who he was. He was funny
and down to earth, like Jamie in ways but not entirely. He knew he had a huge house
with a huge family fortune behind him. Despite all this he didn't boast to
others or put them down. Instead, he was humble. I admired him and his kind
heart. He was popular and played football and he was very protective of Jamie.
With his blonde spiked hair and chisel chest his physical appearance seemed
intimidating at times but when he spoke you felt his kind nature. One Friday afternoon
I paid Jamie a visit. She had sent me a text saying she was alone in her big
old empty house, and she needed some company. She spoke about how she had tubes
of ice cream dying to be gobbled up just sitting there in the freezer and she
had Netflix up and loaded on the screen already. All she was missing was her
best friend. I accepted her invitation and rode my bike over. Jamie and I were
close. However, we were complete opposites, from what seemed like two separate
worlds somehow colliding. I couldn't understand how we had formed such a strong
friendship. Was it out of pity? Or did she enjoy my company? I always subconsciously
thought to myself. Jamie and I were sitting by her family pool,
splashing the water with our feet. Jamie insisted she could style my long brown
hair. I always loved to hide my hair in a baseball cap, with a messy braid sticking
out of the Velcro hole in the back of the hat. Jamie would often curled my hair or give me unique hair styles. I always felt awkward
getting my hair done or adding concealer or cosmetics to my face. My mom never
taught me about makeup or hair products. I felt I was missing those feminine
aspects in my life. All I had was Jamie now, but I didn't want to bother her
with silly questions. She pulled out her cellphone from the back pocket of her denim
shorts. "There's something I want to show you!" She squealed with excitement.
My curious mind began to wonder. Was it cute kitten videos? Scarlett Johansson
vacationing on a yacht? Or A new provided secret about weight loss and how to
keep it off? Jamie was always into
those kinds of things. But as per usual, it was another picture of a mysterious
boy who had caught her eye. Jamie had a new crush. I sometimes wondered if
any boy would take notice in me? If he did, would Jamie be the first to know? I
felt like I was completely oblivious about the dating world and how it worked.
Again, another topic I would love to learn from my mother. I saw the excitement in Jamie's smile, she was glowing. Ecstatic with a
mix of arousal. Her feet moved faster in the water creating tiny whirlpools around
her. She swiped through each picture. Zooming in and zooming out, she got so
excited she accidently took a screen shot of one of his pictures. The picture
she accidentally saved was him smiling wearing a plain white Tee, with blue
jeans. Behind him appeared to be an empty baseball diamond. "So, what do you
think?" she began to twirl her blonde hair. I grabbed her phone and studied each
picture. Examining his profile. Jake Smith, brown hair with dark hazelnut eyes.
He was fit and muscular and tall. He appeared to be six foot two while Jamie
was only five foot two. In a lot of his pictures, he was playing sports, or
drinking beer with friends. There was also a lot of shirtless pictures of him as well. Flexing his muscles
and showing off his abs. She waited to hear my approval. I will admit, he was attractive,
but something seemed off about his digital photographs. It felt as if he was
trying to put on a show to others around him. Create a certain character, or a
persona to present to the public. His profile didn't have anything personal
about him on there. He never spoke about his work, family, relationship status,
his car, his hometown. It just looked to be a typical boy's profile. Faked,
even hacked somehow into the system. He was handsome, athletic but something
felt off about the profile set up. "Are you sure Jake is even real?" I looked
at her concerned. Jamie laughed "Of course he is! He met me at a grocery store,
we were both in line together and he asked me for my number. We have a date next
Saturday!" I was relieved to hear that Jake was indeed a person, and she had met
him in person but that concerned feeling in my stomach still couldn't turn itself
off. "I am happy for you. Let me know how it goes, alright." I gave her encouragement
and acceptance. I saw a happy look on her face and caught her constantly
staring at her phone hoping he would text back. Every time she heard a "Ding"
she would race to her phone as quickly as she could as if her life depended on
it. She was becoming too attached too quickly. She would look disappointed if
the "Ding" on her phone was a Facebook notification, or a text from her mom. "Do
you want me to bring home extra caramel cheesecake that I made from work? There's
lots of leftovers. You and Maeve can share some if she's thinking about
spending the night." Jamie squeezed my hand and insisted I sleep over. "Of
course." I answered back. She stood up
and took off her black tank top and denim shorts revealing the new bikini she
had just bought from the mall. Cherry red with matching bottoms. She looked like
a model. Showing off her tiny waist and bare legs. I took off my sweats and
rock band T shirt and felt awkward in my body. My one-piece bathing suit was black
and showed some parts of my stomach. I felt insecure compared to her. She
jumped in the water feet first. Creating a large splash in the water. She rose
to the surface of the water and revealed her face. She pushed her wet tangled
hair back and laughed. Her mascara was now stained and some of it washed away
in the water. "Come on, get in!" She reached for my hand. I grabbed her hand,
and she pulled me in the chlorine pool. I rose back up to the surface. "How about
you? Are there any boys that you are crushing on?" She splashed me with water. "When
I do, you will be the first to know." I gave her a smile. At the edge of the
pool her cellphone dinged, she did a front stroke to receive it. She reached
the edge of the pool and unlocked her phone. "Oh my gosh! It's from Jake!"
One Week and a day later
It was Saturday afternoon. I was watching television in my living room.
Lucky was curled up asleep in her bed. I had the place to myself, and I was
enjoying the silence. I had a bowl of mini pretzels on my lap with a
coke bottle sitting on a coaster on the coffee table near by. I was flipping
through different channels. First the news, then sports television. I couldn't decide
what to watch. I heard a ding come from my cellphone, I unlocked it and opened it.
A Facebook status from Jamie "Excited for my super hot date tonight! Black
dress with cute matching heels, you are all mine tonight." She ended it with a
heart symbol. I began reading the comments below. LisaLovexoxo commented "Oh,
Who's the mysterious guy? Is he anyone I know?" Another user with the name LauraLee
commented "Have Fun Chicka, be safe." I went back to Jake's profile a new
picture was added. Another shirtless picture, this time he was at the gym. I
turned off my phone and continued watching television. I soon fell asleep.
The next morning
I woke up to Lucky barking and jumping on my bed. She was hyper and wouldn't
settle down which meant she was in desperate need of a walk. I got up and opened
my closet door and threw a hoodie on. "Come on girl." I spoke to Lucky. I was
still wearing my pajama bottoms. I exited my bedroom and made my way to the
kitchen to find her leash. I found a written note on the fridge door from my
older brother Lucas. I stopped and stared at it reading the words off the page.
"Met a girl, her and I went out for breakfast. Don't wait up. I already fed
Lucky but she may need a walk soon. Once she wakes up give her a good long walk
for me. Love you kiddo, Lucas." I yawned looking through out the kitchen for
Lucky's leash. I finally found it sitting by the kitchen table. I put Lucky's harness
on and proceeded to give her a walk. I took her for a walk to the dog park. I let
her race around and engage with other dogs where I sat on a park bench near by.
I was so tired I didn't even have the chance to check my phone. I unlocked it
and saw fourteen missed calls from Jamie's brother Thomas. That was odd, he
never calls me. I thought to myself. Along with missed calls there were
also unopened texts from him. I opened them and began to read some. "Jamie is
missing. She isn't with you, is she?" "Her Facebook status mentions a date. Do
you know where he was taking her and who she was talking about?" I froze. The
last text from him said "Call me back!" I dialed his number anxiously waiting
to hear what happened to Jamie. I heard his voice from the other end of the line. It sounded as though he was crying. "What happened?" I asked him. The
phone call became silent for a few minutes. Hearing the words that stopped me
in my tracks. "Jamie…" He spoke. "She never came home last night." "It's
alright. I'll come over and we can talk." I ended the phone call and called
Lucky over. I put her leash back on and left the dog park. I walked to Jamie's house. I knocked on her door. Thomas answered it. His face
looked red. "Come in." he spoke. "My parents are at
the police station right now filling out a missing persons report." He offered me
a drink, but I politely declined. Thomas and I spoke about Jamie, and I
mentioned her sudden interest in Jake. Thomas insisted I show him Jake's
profile and I did just that. Thomas asked me "Do you know where he was taking
her?" I sat down on the sofa "I'm sorry, she didn't mention where she was
going." Thomas got up and poured himself some water from the kitchen tap. "Maybe
there's a clue or perhaps she forgot something that might suggest something more.
Jamie loves social media maybe she made a new status update or added a new
picture. Maybe-" Thomas cut me off. "No, I already checked her social media.
There was nothing else added. Just her date status and that was it." I walked
to her bedroom. The door was still open. I saw her messy bed with clothes
laying all over the floor. I could picture her dancing around her room trying
to decide what to wear for her date. Her bed was pushed against her bedroom
window. The window was opened. It was facing the sidewalk and streetlight. Her bedroom
was on the ground floor, perhaps she met up with him late and snuck out of her
window. I walked inside. I saw something sticking out from her bedsheets. It
was her cellphone. She must have dropped it when she climbed out of the window.
I walked inside and grabbed her cellphone. "Thomas, look! She left it behind. I
don't think she realized." Thomas gave me a tight squeeze. "Oh my gosh Maeve
you are a genius. Do you know her passcode?" I thought for a few seconds. "It's
her birthday!" Thomas pressed on the numbers and unlocked it. Free access to
the mobile device. We saw the texts between her and Jake. They spoke about
their hobbies and interests but as we scrolled down, we found the matching date
of when she went missing. He told her he wanted to take her to a bar. He
mentioned the name of the bar and what time she should arrive. It was after her
curfew. Which meant she had to sneak out. We had a hunch that Jake was guilty
of something. We needed to find him, but most importantly we needed to find
Jamie. Thomas quickly called his parents and told them new information which
him and I found. We started checking Jake's social media to find out more
information about him. To our surprise a new Facebook post was added. With such
luck he posted about where he currently was. The whiskey fountain, a pub located
on the outskirts of town.Thomas was very protective of his sister. "You stay here!" He grabbed his car
keys and grabbed his jacket "Text me if Jake posts anything new on social
media, anymore clues that might reveal more about Jamie's disappearance." He headed
for the front door. "Wait, what are you going to do?" He shut the door behind
him. Leaving my question unanswered.
Thomas
I parked my truck on the sidewalk
beside the local bar. I climbed out and slammed my door. I was angry, scared, eager
to know what happened to my younger sister Jamie. I felt my protective
instincts shift into high gear. I was ready to destroy Jake, beat him to a pulp
for hurting her. I thought of different scenarios that could have happened to
her. Was he abusive? A sociopath? Did he party with her and leave her
somewhere? I wondered. I realized I didn't know a thing about him. Besides
his damn hobbies and for some reason it's impossible for him to find a shirt as
most of the pictures added to his Facebook are him posing shirtless in front of
a mirror. I wanted to kill him, break his teeth in. But when I walked into the bar,
I saw him. He was sitting alone drinking a beer watching the news on the television
on the wall. I walked up to him and tapped him on his shoulder. He spun around.
"Can I help you?" My hands turned into fist. "Where's my little sister?" Jake
looked confused "Who?" I grew annoyed. "Jamie! Where is she?" Jake coughed. "Oh,
you must be Jamie's brother Thomas. She spoke about you. We had a date here
last night, but she drank too much, and I got her a taxi home. I haven't heard
back from her all day. I figured she must be sleeping. Alcohol will do that to
you. Hang overs are the worst." Thomas didn't believe his story, Jake acted too
calm. His fist were beginning to shake, they were hiding in the sleeves of his
jacket. He was getting ready to take the first swing at Jake. Then a waitress
walked by, she appeared young. Early twenties. She was wearing a uniform with a
silver name tag "Ashley." "Oh, your sister is missing? I saw her enter a taxi
last night. I'm sure she's just crashing at a friend's place. You will probably
hear from her soon." Thomas let his guard down. He believed Jake at that moment.
He asked about the taxi service that Jake used and began calling the company.
Soon after he called Maeve "Jake isn't our guy. I thought he was, but he said
she went home in a taxi last night." Maeve sounded concerned "Are you sure Jake
isn't lying?" Thomas answered "He isn't, a waitress witnessed it too. I'll call
you later I'm going to go back to the police station to see if they have anymore
leads." Thomas hung up the phone. He left the pub and climbed into his truck.
He put the key into the ignition and drove away.
Maeve
I had just finished printing off a missing persons poster. I had dozens of flyers
in my hand. I started attaching them to trees and telephone poles. It was Jamie's
face. A picture I had stolen from her Facebook. Below was a description of her
and to contact the local police department. I cried as I consistently hung the
flyers up. Where are you? I thought
to myself. I went more into town and attached more flyers. I made my way to the
police department and stapled her flyer to a tree in front of the station. Thomas
came out of the front doors. "Maeve?" I stopped what I was doing. "Hey, did you
find out anything new about Jamie?" Thomas shook his head with disappointment. "They
have no leads right now." I hugged Thomas "It's okay, we will find her." Just
as I was about to let go, he held me tighter "Thank you for helping me look for
her." I smiled "Of course, Jamie is my best friend." Thomas and I spoke about grabbing lunch, we
went to a local café and ordered mini sandwiches and soup with coffee and iced
tea. Thomas scrolled through his phone. Reading Jamie's status one more time. "Black
dress and cute matching heels you are all mine tonight." He froze. "She
wore heels… you can't run far in heels what if someone grabbed her?" I
continued drinking my iced tea. "Put your phone away for now, let the police do
their job." He pushed his phone to the side and continued eating. Afterwards we
proceeded to leave the restaurant. He offered me a ride in his truck "I would
like that. Thank you." He made his way to the passenger side of the vehicle and
opened my door for me. I took his hand and climbed in. He then proceeded to go
to the driver's door and entered the truck and closed the door. He fastened his
seat belt, started his engine and reversed out of the parking lot. I looked into the car mirror and remembered
a memory between Jamie and I. Her and I once ate at that same restaurant many
years ago, we went there for her thirteenth birthday and celebrated it there.
Her mom used to be a cook there, she even made Jamie's birthday cake. Vanilla
frosting with yellow daisies placed on top. "I miss you" I spoke to
myself. Thomas continued driving eventually he reached my tiny apartment pad. The
truck came to a halt. Lucky was barking from inside of the apartment we could hear
her from the opened windows. "Thanks." I grabbed my purse and reached for the car door. "Wait…" Thomas spoke up. I let go of the door. "Yes?" He looked down "Nothing.
I'll see you at school." I nodded and opened the door and walked to the front
steps. I looked back at Thomas. He was watching me making sure I got home
safely. I entered the apartment and closed the front screen door behind me. I placed
my purse and phone down on a table and greeted Lucky. She was wagging her tail
and greeting me with sloppy wet kisses. "Hey, my girl, how are you?" I walked
into the kitchen and grabbed a pop can from the fridge then I heard a sound
come from the other room. "Ding!" A notification from my phone, I
unlocked the screen and opened it. It was a video of Jamie. She was laying on a
bed wearing a black dress, barefoot. She was unconscious. There beside her on a
night side table stood a large bottle of alcohol. The video was being shared
and was soon going viral. There was a handwritten note in the video "If you
want her back we need $50,000." She was being held for ransom. My whole world
stopped. Then I heard my ring tone blow up. I answered the call it was from
Thomas. "Have you seen the video?" he asked. "Yes, who shared it?" There was
silence on the call. "Jake." Then Thomas hung up the phone. I upload Jake's
profile, there was proof that he was the one who originally found it and began
sharing it. But his post didn't seem too concerned for her well being. He didn't
plead for help or ask if anyone has seen her it was just the video and the video
alone. I went back to his previous posts. The Whiskey fountain, was he still
there? I wondered to myself. I was thinking of speaking to him, but I knew
Thomas already spoke to him. Is Jake a pathological liar? Did he deliberately
lie to Thomas? But why? How? I started opening Jamie's profile, no new updates.
I had to do something. I had a flashback of Jamie and I watching a movie last
summer. The movie was about a girl who was investigating a club for drug use. The
main character was an undercover cop. She planned to go to the club and order a
drink at the bar. She had nail polish that could detect if your drink has been
drugged or not. They were white, but if your nails changed colours your drink
was drugged. She planned to put her pinky into each drink she ordered at the
bar until they found a match. Which they did. Jamie loved that movie and loved
the idea of the uncover cop outsmarting the men. Then she confessed a secret. "I
have nail polish just like that. I ordered it online after seeing the trailer of
this movie. You can borrow it if you want." I didn't believe her until I saw
the nail polish bottle myself. She handed it to me, and I stuffed it in my
purse and returned home. I began searching for that nail polish bottle,
flipping my room inside and out. Where are you! I screamed in frustration.
Lucky came into my room barking. "Not now Lucky!" I continued searching and
throwing things on the floor. Then it fell out of an old pair of jeans and
rolled across the floor. I bent down and picked it up. "Drug testing nail
polish, to save you from dangerous unpredictable interactions." It was a all-white bottle. I took out the
brush and painted my fingernails waiting for them to dry. I sent a quick text
to Thomas and told him I had a plan. "Meet me at The Whiskey Fountain in twenty
minutes." I placed my phone down. Blowing on my nails to speed it along, hoping
they would dry faster. My phone dinged. I opened it. It was from Thomas "I'll
see you there." I reached the bar and made my way inside. I was looking for Jake. Maybe he wouldn't
talk to Thomas again, but perhaps he might talk to me. Jake was sitting alone
ordering the daily afternoon special. Talking to a waitress with black hair.
She walked away and disappeared into the kitchen. I sat in an empty seat beside
him. "Is anyone sitting here?" he smiled "No, go ahead." I grabbed the menu and
pretended to look at ordering a drink. Jake spoke "I always loved Bloody Mary."
I closed the menu. "Thanks for the suggestion." I looked across the room.
Thomas sat down at an empty booth. He sent me a text "What's the plan?" He
seemed confused. I quickly answered back "I'll scratch my nose as a signal for
you to call the police, just trust me." I hid my phone in my back pocket and
proceeded to talk more with Jake. I was testing his character, his honesty
looking for any red flags in this social interaction that we were sharing with
each other. I asked about a local girl named Jamie, pretending I didn't know
who she was. Jake denied any involvement in her disappearance he claimed he didn't
even know her or even spoke to her. She was a no body to him. I knew Jake was lying
at that moment I knew I couldn't trust him. The waitress came out with home
fries and a barbecue grilled chicken wrap with a beer glass filled all the way to the top. She served it on a tray and placed it on the counter "For
you kind sir." Jake took a bite of his home fries. The waitress looked at me "And
for you? Have you decided what you want to order?" I studied her name tag Ashley.
She had black hair, and it was in a ponytail, she was wearing a waitress uniform.
"Bloody Mary Please." Jake and I continued talking I would occasionally look back
at Thomas. He was sipping on a cold beer. He kept watching me from the corner
of the room. I dipped my pinky into my Bloody Mary but the nail polish remained
white. I was disappointed. I was sure Jake was our guy. I grew frustrated and
ordered two more drinks but same result. The nail polish never changed. Was I
wasting time at this bar? Maybe Someone else was a suspect? Someone I missed
all along. Accepting defeat, I decided to order a non-alcoholic iced tea. The
waitress came by and delivered it to me. With Curiosity I dipped my pinkie into
the iced tea, my nail polish slowly began to change. I couldn't believe it. Ashely
the waitress had drugged my drink. I looked at Thomas and scratched my nose as
a signal for help. He dialed 911 and quietly called the police. Ashely and Jake were both arrested in the involvement of Jamie's disappearance.
They soon revealed there was never a taxi service, that was their clever lie to
throw people into an entirely different direction to keep the focus off of them.
It was soon revealed they were working together to drug and kidnap local girls
in the area. They were selling girls on the dark web for large amounts of money
but despite all this they wanted more. Jake found out Jamie came from a rich
home, he decided she would be the perfect bait to collect ransom. Ashely agreed.
They both tried to blame the other to get out of serving time behind bars. But
at the court hearing they were both found guilty. There was also proof that not
only were they partners in crime, but they were also lovers. They had a thrill
of kidnapping young girls and that seemed to make their sex life more exciting.
Ashley Baker a 22-year-old waitress at The
Whiskey Fountain served life in prison without the possibility of parole. Jake Smith, a freshman at college received the same sentence. The victims were brought back home and reunited with their families including Jamie.
Jamie had to undergo therapy twice a week, but she dealt with it secretly. She
chose not to talk about it. One day she offered me to sleep over. Her and I
were watching a chick flick, she rolled her eyes and threw a handful of popcorn
into her mouth. "I'm so over guys." I laughed. Just then Thomas walked through
the living room and entered the kitchen. He opened the fridge and poured
himself some juice. Jamie and I were sitting on her couch, she pinched my arm "How
about you? Are you over guys just as much as I am? Or is there a sudden crush,
I don't know about?" I giggled. I looked at Thomas and smiled. Then I looked
back at Jamie "There might be a crush." Jamie squealed "Is he someone I know?"
Thomas left the kitchen and disappeared outside. "You definitely know him."
The End.