"Then we'll let you dry off. We're glad everything is okay. Talk to you later."

"Yes, talk to you later," said Vivian. She wanted to open the curtain to peek at them, but she didn't want them to see her peeking.

The only way that could've gone worse was if they were actually the cops and they kicked down the door. She'd babbled her way through that conversation and she knew with one hundred percent certainty that they were going to call the police as soon as they got back home, if they weren't dialing 911 already.

She'd have to kill them.

No. That was stupid and psychotic. She couldn't believe her mind had gone there. She couldn't just chase after them and stab them to death right in the front yard. What if there were other people at their house? What if they had kids? What if they successfully fended her off? Committing a long string of murders was not the way out of this.

She could still claim innocence. Could still pretend to be the oblivious wife who was completely unaware of the sinister activities of her husband and son.

Only two people could contradict her story.

She couldn't wait them out. She didn't know how difficult it would be for the authorities to get past the two electronic locks, but she assumed that they could do it before Charlene and Gertie died.

Vivian had to get rid of them as quickly as possible.

* * *

Charlene tensed up as she heard a beep on the other side of the door, followed by a click that she assumed was the lock disengaging.

The door didn't open.

She waited.

She wasn't sure if she'd shoot at the first sign of movement on the other side, or if she'd wait to be sure it was Vivian. She didn't want to survive this nightmare only to accidentally murder a police officer who was there to rescue her.

Charlene continued to wait. Was Vivian out there working up the courage to come inside? Was it a trap?

Of course it was a trap. Vivian wasn't going to simply set her free. This was absolutely without question a trap. But Charlene had to go out there, even with a trap about to spring, because her other choice was to bleed to death in the basement.

She very slowly turned the doorknob. Then she shoved the door open as hard as she could, hoping that if Vivian was standing outside it would bash into her.

The door didn't bash into anything.

Charlene listened carefully for the sound of breathing, though it would be hard to hear over her own gasps for air.

The only light came from the cage room. Charlene could see up the stairs, which were empty, but not much to her left or right. There was a light switch right next to the door, but when Charlene flipped it on and off nothing happened.