"Broken Pieces"

Short Story | Fiction | by ReDDVoice

Journey to Hollywood...
Hannah was a runaway. At sixteen, she took a bus out west from her rural hometown in Texas. She had dropped out of high school, took all her allowance money and left her parents' home in pursuit of a career in the entertainment business. Hannah was a naturally talented actor and singer, but back home she felt like a big fish in a small pond. She had big dreams! Dreams of becoming rich and famous. Dreams of one day starring in movies. Despite her parents contempt, Hannah figured she could catch her break by moving to Hollywood. And she got lucky. For the first few months, she sought refuge with a couple she met at the bus station. They seemed very nice and allowed her to stay with them in a spare room over their detached garage. The room, which was being used for storage, was dark and dusty. Above the bed, there was a small window. Hannah broke it by accident trying to open it. The place was almost uninhabitable. She was not exactly pleased with her accommodations, but she decided to make the best of it. She was looking forward to living her dream. However, her naivety would be her downfall.

A Dreamed Deferred...
In her haste to run away, Hannah didn't fully consider how she was going to take care of herself without her parents. The couple had been helping her, but she needed money to contribute to food and toiletries. In desperation, Hannah found a job working as a waitress at a busy restaurant in SoHo. It was her first job and it was tough. She was on her feet all day and by the time she made it home, she was too tired to even search for auditions. As each day went by, her dreams had become more distant. Until one day during her shift, she met a big time casting agent. He was having lunch and had been assigned to a table in Hannah's area. As soon as he saw Hannah, he wasted no time flirting with her. He asked her age and if she had ever acted before. Not wanting to disqualify herself, Hannah lied and said she was 21. He gave her his business card and asked her to call him the next day. Hannah was so excited. She was finally one step closer to her dream. The next day, she called and met the agent for coffee. He said he had the perfect role for her and asked if she was interested. Of course, Hannah was overjoyed by the proposition. However, what he didn't tell her was what she had to do to get it.

Living a Nightmare...
Hannah was so concerned about the gig that she was unaware that her life was in danger. The man, she thought could make her famous, was not all he claimed to be. He was actually a serial killer who preyed on young runaways. He took Hannah to an abandoned-looking building, where he subdued her and tied her up. He then proceeded to a locked room where there was another woman handcuffed to a bed. Hannah was horrified! Her feelings of excitement were quickly replaced by feelings of fear. In that moment, she thought that she was going to die and she couldn't be more right. The man had just killed one woman, smashing her head with a tire iron before cutting her up into pieces. Blood was everywhere! It was like a scene out of a horror movie.

Hannah was now living a nightmare. All she could do was cry and pray she could get away. For several days, the two women were beaten and tortured. They were covered in bruises and smelled badly because they weren't allowed to even bathe. Though Hannah was exhausted, she was a fighter and hadn't given up. While the killer was preoccupied, Hannah planned to attack and make her escape. Unfortunately, her plan backfired. As soon as the killer saw her coming towards him, he knocked her in the head with the tire iron. Hannah fell to the floor in pain. Still dazed, she remembered a piece of glass she still had in her jacket from the window she broke at home. As the killer attacked the other woman, Hannah mustered the strength for a second attempt at escape. But this time, she was successful. With all her strength, she jumped the killer from behind and stabbed him in the neck. The two women escaped and left the killer in the building, bleeding to death. After the incident, Hannah was no longer interested in an acting career. She was traumatized, but glad to be alive. Hannah contacted her parents, who immediately flew out to California to get her. She moved back home to begin putting the pieces of her life together. Hannah never ran away again.