Finding Amy

"Actually Dr Taft, you don't." Will Harper paused for a moment, his tone was different now. Solemn.

"There's another option doctor, one that is perhaps the most likely. It's something I never raised with Ashley Thomson because I thought the very idea of it might kill her."

Again there was a long pause.

"What is this third option Officer Harper?" Wendy Taft stared intently and met Will's gaze then. The sheer simplicity and logic of his answer bore a definite ring of truth. A simple revelation that was almost frightening.

"Read Amy Price's farewell letter once more Dr Taft, and this time ask yourself.....Am I really reading a farewell letter....or....a suicide note."

After that there didn't seem to be anything more left to say.

Officer Will Harper did however offer one last piece of information to Wendy Taft before she left.

"There was perhaps one half-lead Ashley and I discussed. Does the term 'Fallen Angel' mean anything to you?"

2

A jarring sense of movement.

The friction of skin against skin.

A sickening and yet beautiful fear spreading over her as she looked around the room and started to understand what was happening.

Ashley wasn't alone.

Those four men from her hallway.

Oh God.......That phone number scrawled on her wrist that she had finally called in her desperation.

Now she was kneeling there on her hands and knees just like Amy had done for those six men in those photos.

Suddenly aware of the erect male flesh that she was being fucked with again and again.

The youngest of those four men was behind her.

His strong hands grasping her hips and pulling her back toward him.

His own response performed in perfect unison as he thrust his manhood forward and filled her deeply with every stroke.

The whooping and hollering as his three friends yelled out encouragement.

"Oh God...please...please don't stop.... just keep fucking me like that." Ashley hissed back at all of them.

It was a different male voice that answered her plea.

A dark husky tone that sent shivers down her spine.

"Oh I'm gonna keep fucking you alright....but not like that."

That voice didn't come from any of those four men from her hallway.

For only a moment a dark, masculine silhouette of a man appeared on the very edge of her peripheral vision.

A few moments later he was behind her.

"She's all yours now." Ashley heard the young man behind her say before feeling him pull out of her entirely.

An excruciating pause followed. Her body just seemed to ache with longing during those tortured seconds.

When that dark and booming voice finally broke the silence, Ashley almost jumped with fright.

"Such a dirty girl....a filthy little fallen angel."

"Oh god.....I knew you'd come for me....I just knew it." Ashley gasped back at him.

"And such an obedient whore too." The dark voice breathed before continuing. "She's been waiting for you....did you know that? She wants you to join her."

"Please...take me to her....I miss her...I want my friend back." She pleaded in response.

The dark figure just seemed indifferent.

"It's not going to be that easy little one, but, I think you know that already don't you."

"Yes." Ashley replied softly before adding what she knew that man wanted to hear. "I'll do whatever it takes...I'm much dirtier than her."

There were no words after that, but Ashley received a rapid response none the less.

She felt all four fingers of his right hand enter her womanhood all at once.

The force was so strong that she fought to brace herself and hold her position.

She felt his hand withdraw and then slam into her again. And then again. And then again.

He began to piston those four thick fingers into her like a carpenter working a hand saw.

He had started to violate her like he had violated Amy in those photos, but with one new twist.

Amy had been facing that man in those photos but Ashley hadn't been so fortunate.

She was on her on her hands and knees like an obedient little puppy while those same four fingers invaded her from behind.

The meaning was clear. She hadn't earned the right to see his face yet.

Only his out-stretched thumb halted her complete penetration and even that quickly became a new source of distraction.

Every time those fingers punched deep inside her Ashley felt the padded flesh of his thumb pressing up hard against her sphincter.

Dirty and exhilarating thoughts began to crowd her mind.

"Fuck me Daddy.....fuck your dirty little angel." Ashley almost grunted. It was the dirtiest thing she could think of.

Mildly disturbing. So primal and base.

Then, quite suddenly came a subtle shift in her reality.

That inevitable change in consciousness.

That familiar vision that always told Ashley that her current dream was coming to an end.

"No....please...not yet. I want this so much. Let me stay here just a little longer." She pleaded.

Suddenly she became aware of those beautiful and dark strangers surrounding her bed once more. They had been there all along. Watching her, drinking in her ordeal.

Two of them stepped forward then. A vaguely familiar young man and a beautiful dark haired woman.

"We are so very proud of you....you've come so far. So close now...so close to the end." The handsome young man said softly, his eyes full of pride and admiration.

"I want you to be proud of me." Ashley replied.

"Oh we are," the woman beside him answered before pausing and then adding, ".......remember we are always with you....a light for you in the dark places."

3

Ashley opened her eyes quite suddenly then.

Bright light shone through her windows.....way too bright for early morning. She glanced over at the bedside clock.

12:13pm.

After a sleepless night she had finally fallen asleep somewhere around dawn. It wasn't a restful slumber at all.

Explicit visions. Startling carnal situations. Desire fuelled dreams that would not leave her entirely. They would fade into her subconscious but never truly go away.

Every day seemed to feel like that now.

The dreams were intensifying in almost every way. Each night the 'dream Ashley' was getting bolder and more reckless.

Even more worrying was that her dream 'self' was beginning to influence and inform the actions of the conscious Ashley more and more.

Those longings and desires were now the same.

The waking Ashley wanted those dreams to become real more than ever now.

She couldn't help but think that once she achieved that goal and made it all real, it would surely lead her to Amy.

A test to be endured.

A gauntlet of experience that she had to pass through in order to get to Amy who was surely waiting for her on the other side.

Ashley got out of bed.

She didn't bother to get dressed.

She had worn a small t-shirt and a plain set of panties to bed the night before and she didn't see the point in putting anything else on.

A perfectly acceptable choice of wardrobe for someone who wasn't going to leave her apartment that day anyway.

A definite departure from the 'old Ashley' who had once been described as 'fastidious' when it came to her own personal appearance. An attention to detail and grooming that she had practiced regardless of whether anyone was going to see it or not.

But this new Ashley was a different kind of animal. Feelings and emotions informed her actions now.

Her basic wardrobe also served a more practical purpose.

After a quick cup of coffee Ashley had intended to examine the 'Dark Palace' website and Amy's profile in more depth.

She reasoned that she might be able to get in a good half hour of browsing before the biological imperative to masturbate over-took her.

There was no point in fighting that fact now.

She could simply just 'get herself off' while sitting right there at the kitchen table and then resume her search. She wouldn't even need to power down her Mac-Book.

In all likely-hood another image or even just an idea would probably just set her off again in an hour or two, but by simply parting her legs every now and then and letting her fingers solve the problem, she would potentially be able to get alot of work done that day.

'It's hard work being a slut....but I make it look easy!' That thought actually made Ashley laugh out loud then. Something she hadn't done in a long time.

She sat down, powered up her Mac-Book and logged-in to 'Dark Palace' as 'Fallen_angel5'.

Straight away something was different. The screen just seemed to freeze.

Moments later a simple sentence in bold red letters flashed across the screen.

Ashley's heart just seemed to stop for a moment. She felt almost sick.

"No......jesus fuck.....no...no...no......You can't do this to me!....You just can't..."

4

'THIS ACCOUNT HAS BEEN TERMINATED DUE TO UN-AUTHORISED ACCESS'

Why?

How?

Ashley's mind raced. She couldn't quite believe what she was seeing.

She could feel tears begin to form and then watched her own vision blur.

How did this happen?

This had been the last link to Amy and now even that had been taken away from her.

Was it the e-mail she had sent to 'Lust4Life77'? If so how could they have even known that the e-mail she sent hadn't really been from Amy?

'This isn't happening......this isn't happening....this isn.....................'

Ashley just repeated those words over and over, but no matter how many times she said them it still didn't change what was really happening or make it all go away.

She quickly re-started her notebook.

Once more she attempted to log in.

Again the same message.

Next she tried to browse Amy's profile as a mere visitor to 'thedarkpalace.com'.

She made an important discovery then. Amy's 'Fallen_angel5' profile was gone.

Deleted. As if it had never existed in the first place.

All those e-mails. All those pictures and files.

She had meant all along to copy those folders and make back-ups, but up until a few days ago she hadn't even had the courage to even look at them again let alone save them all.

That had turned out to be a very costly mistake.

"Think Ashley think," she said out loud then. She could feel herself starting to drift toward panic. She desperately fought that urge, but there was simply no denying that she had just lost maybe the best opportunity she had to ever find her friend.

"It can't end here. It can't."

'It's okay to cry now...it's okay to let her go.' Ashley thought to herself then.

She got up from the kitchen table and then calmly walked toward the living room. She sat on that familiar spot in the middle of her couch and curled herself into a ball as she stared straight ahead. Hardly blinking, not saying a word.

She drew her legs up to her chest as she sat and then just peered out at the world over the tops of her knees.

Her mind was blank.

The desires and daydreams all faded away.

She was empty.

'So this is what the end of hope feels like'. It was the only thought that entered her mind for a long time. It felt good to be able to cry so freely now. The world seemed to lose all shape and definition as the tears flooded her eyes.

If it was possible to drown in her own sorrow then she would have welcomed that release.

When she finally did start to feel thoughts and voices enter her mind again she realized that the words she was hearing weren't even her own anymore.

That was okay with her.

All she wanted now was for someone to tell her what to do, for someone to give her the answers she so desperately needed to hear.

A strange disconnected feeling then. An odd conversation in her mind between herself and someone who was clearly very distinct from her in every way.

'Remember we are always with you.' A familiar female voice began to speak.

'A light for you in........'

'Yeah I know...I know.......a light for me in the dark places.' Ashley interrupted and then continued.

'Well...it's pretty fuckin dark right now...I could use some of that light you've been promising me.'

'I know you're in pain, I know you want your old life back, but you know it can never be like it was.'

'I know that....I just miss my friend....I'd do anything to get her back." Ashley replied.

'But don't you see? This was her gift to you. A new life and a new way to feel, a new side to yourself that you never knew existed.' The woman's voice was calm and almost nurturing.

'Just tell me what to do....I'll do whatever it takes.' Ashley almost pleaded in reply.

'Oh Ashley.....oh pretty girl.....you've known the answer to that question all along....haven't you.'

5

"I don't get visitors much anymore. Oh I used to. Once upon a time this house was always buzzin' with callers."

"Well I'm sorry that my visit wasn't under happier circumstances Mrs. Price." Wendy Taft realized immediately how hollow and almost insincere her words sounded.

Evelyn Price just stared back at her. She seemed almost indifferent to it all. Strangely detached.

"I suppose it would be pointless to ask if you've heard from Amy at all." Wendy carefully framed those words into a statement rather than a question.

"Well if I had, then you wouldn't be here would you," was her curt reply.

The eyes of Evelyn Price narrowed then. She regarded the prim and proper Dr Wendy Taft with obvious suspicion as they sat opposite one another.

Only the sound of a large and very old wall-clock punctuated the silence in the living room of that modest little house in Braintree.

"Why the interest in my Amy Doctor? What's in it for you....if you don't mind my asking."

"There's nothing in it for me Mrs. Price. I'm not after money or anything else from you."

"Then what is it you want?"

Wendy Taft felt far from comfortable. She wasn't even sure why she had done this herself.

It was still very unclear to her why all of it gotten under her skin so deeply.

Why she had contacted Officer Harper.

Why she had now visited the home of Evelyn Price, the mother of the missing woman.

"I've been in contact with Ashley Thomson." Wendy offered then.

"Oh."

It was the way Evelyn Price said that one simple word that spoke volumes.

Matter of fact.

Unimpressed.

Her next few words seemed to convey only her annoyance.

"Yes well, that explains it then. Put you up to this did she?"

"No, not at all. I'm here of my own volition."

A brief pause ensued before a rather more animated reply.

"Well Amy took off. That's all you need to know. She took off and didn't even bother to tell her own mother.

No, not one word. She thought enough of her friend to tell her though. She even left her a note. It's more than I got."

"But aren't you worried that something has happened to your daughter?" Wendy hit back.

"You don't know my Amy."

"Please elaborate Mrs. Price. I'm trying to understand and maybe even help if I can."

The wary Evelyn seemed to soften just a little then. She must have been close to sixty years old. She had the kind of welcoming face that looked like it should have worn a smile, but clearly hadn't in a very long time.

"Are you a mother Dr Taft?"

"No."

"Well maybe that's why you don't understand. A mother knows things about her own daughter without needing to see or even be told. She just knows."

Wendy Taft leaned forward intently in her chair. There was so much more to all of this. Something her mother knew. A big piece of the puzzle perhaps.

"Please Mrs. Price. I'm only trying to help. If you know something that could make a difference then perhaps I can use it to track down your daughter."

Once more silence. The sound of that old clock on the wall magnifying until each rasp and click sounded out like a hammer-fall.

"Oh my sweet Amy. My beautiful little girl. Always so full of light." She took a deep breath. Her next words were cold and almost final.

"But the brighter the light, the darker she shadow. My little angel was full of shadows. Some people are afraid of the dark, but not my Amy, she always ran to it."

6

It was the first day in a very long time that Ashley had felt any real drive or purpose.

It felt wonderful.

Her old habits had returned to her in a blinding flash. That in itself seemed to signify something important.

There was just no way she could ever feel the way she felt before or even be the same person she was before all of this had happened.

She didn't want to be that 'old Ashley' anymore anyway.

But.....that didn't mean that she couldn't take the best parts of her old self and make them work for the new and improved model.

It was an exciting prospect. If she could take the fire and intensity of the 'new' and combine it with the intelligence and drive of the 'old' then surely there was nothing she couldn't achieve.

She had sat there on that couch for most of the previous night listening to those voices in her head. Not only had she listened, but she had answered them, and before the clock had struck 2am they had all come up with a plan.

No.....more than a plan. An imperative.

A call to action that now represented both her only chance of finding Amy, and also the next stage in her evolution as a human being.

Symmetrical.

Perfect.

Breathtaking in it's simplicity.

She wasn't even halfway into her six week sabbatical from her job at Phoenix Publishing.

A beautiful window of opportunity now lay before her.

Ashley rose from her bed the next morning and simply let her 'old self' take control for a while. After breakfast and a shower came the preening rituals that had dominated almost all of her mornings up until very recently.

By 8am she was 'work-ready' in a pressed skirt, jacket and blouse. Make-up flawless. Sensible underwear underneath and the scent of an understated perfume wafting up to her nostrils.

She had no intention of stopping by work.

This attire that she had once considered part of who she was felt more like a costume now.

A superhero's alter ego of sorts.

A comfortable and familiar disguise.

She sat at her kitchen table and began to make a check-list.

Very specific items that she would need later that day.

She wouldn't be sleeping in her own apartment that night, but she had no intention of 'hooking-up' with a complete stranger or engaging in meaningless sex.

No. Her evening would be far more structured and productive than that.

Sex with anyone wasn't even an option. There was just too much to do.

She then expanded the check-list to include not only items, but also tasks and objectives.

In a very real way she was going to take a good walk in Amy's shoes before the night was out.

Nothing dramatic, just the first tentative steps down that same dark path.

Losing access to Amy's 'Dark Palace' account had been a huge setback, there was no denying that, but in the end it had changed nothing.

"I have all the information I need." Ashley declared to herself.

Quite suddenly, a vivid memory from her childhood had flashed in front of her eyes then.

Her father.

A year before that auto accident.

The ten year-old Ashley stood and watched with fascination as he attempted stem the flow of water streaming out of a broken pipe under their kitchen sink.

She often thought of that moment. The almost comical vision as he lay there flat on his back, his large frame wedged in amongst the plumbing, legs flailing as the water soaked both him and everything else.

That look of triumph when the torrent was finally stemmed.

Ashley had squealed with laughter at the sight of him. He just laughed back at her before saying those words that Ashley would always remember.

"Sometime's you just have to get a little dirty if you wanna get it done right."

7

E-mail received January 22nd

From: W J Taft

ATTN: Officer William Harper