A holiday drive to Florida ends tragically for Izzy and Maria when their car breaks down outside a rural North Carolina bar. Kidnapped by two brutally sadistic men, the sisters are held captive in a remote fishing cabin. As the men become increasingly unhinged, their savagery intensifies, propelling the young women into a desperate fight for their lives.
Decades and distance have healed their physical injuries, but Izzy and Maria's once-close relationship has failed to survive in the aftermath of their nightmare. Estranged and living on opposite coasts, they rarely see or speak to each other.
Now, one of the kidnappers has been released from prison, vowing to exact his revenge on Izzy and Maria. As a hurricane rages around them, the sisters endeavor to repair their bond, confronting many hard truths in the process. Can they reconcile in time to defeat the demons from their past?
A holiday drive to Florida ends tragically for Izzy and Maria when their car breaks down outside a rural North Carolina bar. Kidnapped by two brutally sadistic men, the sisters are held captive in a remote fishing cabin. As the men become increasingly unhinged, their savagery intensifies, propelling the young women into a desperate fight for their lives.
Decades and distance have healed their physical injuries, but Izzy and Maria's once-close relationship has failed to survive in the aftermath of their nightmare. Estranged and living on opposite coasts, they rarely see or speak to each other.
Now, one of the kidnappers has been released from prison, vowing to exact his revenge on Izzy and Maria. As a hurricane rages around them, the sisters endeavor to repair their bond, confronting many hard truths in the process. Can they reconcile in time to defeat the demons from their past?
LATE SATURDAY, DECEMBER 29, 1979, FAYETTEVILLE, NORTH CAROLINA
The engine of the aging yellow Subaru sputtered a bit, shimmying the steering wheel in Isabellaâs hands. âWhat the hell!â she exclaimed, pressing hard on the brake pedal.
Looking up from her fashion magazine, Maria sighed and said, âDonât tell me weâre out of gas.â
âNot according to the gauge, but weâd better fill up, just in case.â
Signaling her move into the turning lane, Isabella cut in front of a jacked-up pickup. The bearded driver honked angrily, flashing his middle finger.
âScrew him,â Maria said as Isabella pulled into a brightly lit Hess station. Looking around, she asked, âWhere are we, anyway?â
âSome town in North Carolina. Fayetteville, I think,â Isabella replied.
Squirming in her seat, Maria drawled, âOtherwise known as Hicksville. Do yâall think the johnâs clean here?â
Looking askance at her sister, Izzy said, âOnly one way to find out. Go ahead while I pump.â
Maria made her way into a grimy, glass-fronted office where a mess of a man sat behind a battered metal desk overflowing with NASCAR and girlie magazines. His scraggly, yellowed mustache accented a mouth with few remaining teeth, and his eyes were red-rimmed and rheumy. More hair sprouted from his nose and ears than his scalp, and what little there was of that was an oily shade of gray.
âWell, hello there, missy,â he said, leering at Maria. âWhat can I heâp you with?â
âIs the restroom unlocked?â she asked, trying her darnedest to avoid looking at the manâs teeth or the center- fold of a naked woman on the desk in front of him.
âNaw, but hereâs the key,â he answered, reaching back to grab a ring from a hook on the wall. âLadiesâ is the second door âround to the side. Be sure to bring that back when yer done.â
âYes, sir, thanks,â Maria assured him. Turning, she collided with Izzy, who was making her way into the office.
âDone already?â Maria asked.
âYeah, only took a few gallons. Donât know why it was acting up, but we should be good to go.â
The girls took turns using the single-stall bathroom, which wasnât terribly dirty after all, although a disgusting cockroach had been desperately trying to extricate itself from the toilet bowl until Maria flushed it away. After they returned the key to the office, the old man called out to them, âStop on back, ya hear?â
On the second try, the ignition caught, and with sighs of relief, the sisters pulled back onto the crowded four-lane road. Daylight was quickly fading, and colorful Christmas lights could be seen adorning buildings and streetlights on both sides of the road. Everyone in Fayetteville seemed in a hurry to get somewhere on this late winter afternoon, and Izzy swore under her breath when a low-riding El Camino braked abruptly in front of them.
With red lights stopping traffic at just about every inter- section, it was slowgoing as the girls made their way south. Braking at what appeared to be the last crossroad heading out of town, the Subaru once again coughed and jerked disconcertingly.
âShit!â cried Izzy, banging her fist on the steering wheel. âThis is ridiculous!â
âWhatâs wrong with it?â
âHow do I know?â Izzy answered angrily. âWeâre gonna have to pull over again.â
âWhere?â Maria asked, peering nervously out the window. âThe gas stations are all behind us.â
âThere,â Izzy said, pointing to the dirt parking lot in front of a low, red-brick building that had seen better days. The glass front door, framed by a portico of rotting wooden columns that bowed haphazardly, beckoned passers-by with a flickering neon Budweiser sign.
Maria sighed heavily as Izzy steered the dying car to a stop beside a stand of unsold Christmas trees. A hand-lettered sign, originally reading All Christmas Trees $59, had been corrected with red paint to read All Christmas Trees $19. The next stop for the remaining few would be the mulch pile.
âWhat are we gonna do now?â Maria asked, sounding a bit panicked.
âI donât know.â Izzy shrugged, watching the neon beer sign flash on and off. âLetâs go in and see if thereâs a phone we can use.â
âThis sucks! Weâll never make it to Florida tonight,â Maria complained. âFirst we drove twice around DC, and now this.â
âShut up!â Izzy snapped, though sheâd been feeling crappy about missing that earlier exit in northern Virginia, a diversion that had added over an hour to the already inter- minable trip. âLetâs just see what we find inside.â
The girls exited the car, pulling their purse straps over their heads and hugging them tightly to their bodies. With temperatures in the thirties when theyâd left Pennsylvania that morning, they were wearing jeans and flannel shirts. Having left their heavy winter parkas at home, theyâd tossed their lightweight jackets into the back seat when theyâd stopped for lunch earlier in the day.
The parking lot was nearly deserted, with a single tractor trailer off to the left and a rusty old pickup truck parked directly in front of the door. As the girls approached the entrance, Maria read aloud the faded sign above the door: âJimmyâs Joint.â
A haze of cigarette smoke, backlit with tacky Christmas lights and buzzing neon signs, greeted them as they entered the building. Johnny Cash could be heard singing "A Boy Named Sue" on the jukebox in the back corner behind a pool table. Three men sat at the bar, their backs to the door.
Resisting the urge to turn around, the girls approached the aproned man wiping down the bar top. He was big and tall, appearing to be in his late forties. A ruddy face and hair graying at the temples highlighted his need for a shave and a haircut, but he reminded Maria a little of Buford Pusser, or at least Joe Don Baker as Buford Pusser. Looking up, he tossed the rag over his shoulder and asked, âWhat can I get you, ladies?â
âUh...,â Izzy started, hesitant at first to continue. âWe were wondering if you have a phone we can use.â
Hearing the short exchange, the two nearest men stopped their conversation and turned to check out the girls.
âHello, pretty things,â drawled the slighter of the two. Small but mean-looking, he sported a jagged scar across his pock-marked right cheek and beady eyes that darted from under the bill of a green-and-yellow John Deere cap. His unruly black hair, which heâd shoved behind his ears, hung to his shoulders. Dirty denim overalls and a jacket with âStudâ crudely stenciled on the back completed the package. Noting that last detail, Maria shuddered as she grabbed Izzyâs upper arm so tightly she winced.
âMind yer business, Billy,â the bartender warned.
âOh, youâre no fun, Jimmy. Iâm just being nice. Right, Frank?â he asked the man sitting to his left, who, like Billy, was wearing grimy overalls. Unlike Billy, Frank was soft and pudgy with eyes that didnât seem to focus all that well. His hair was buzz-cut short on top and longer at the collar, a style the girls knew to be a mullet. Maria was right, thought Izzy, we are in Hicksville.
Stubbing out his cigarette in the overflowing ashtray, Frank slurred, âYeah, thatâs right. We donât get many pretty ladies in here. Nice change of scenery. No offense, Jimmy.â
âSure is,â agreed Billy, but before he could finish, Jimmy waved the girls around to the side of the bar, telling them, âIgnore those boys, ladies, and tell me whatâs going on.â
With fear threatening to get the better of her, Izzy strug- gled to calm her voice as she explained about their car. âMaybe we could call a tow truck or mechanic to see if they can fix it.â
âWell, honey,â Jimmy replied, âthat would be nice, but seeing how itâs Saturday night, there ainât nobody open to come help you. Itâs probably gonna be Monday before we can get somebody to take a look.â
Eavesdropping on the conversation, Billy chimed in, âOr even Tuesday or Wednesday. Case you didnât know it, Mondayâs New Yearâs Eve. Wonât be nobody working over the long weekend.â
As Billyâs words sank in, the color drained from Izzyâs face, and she pulled Maria toward the door. âLetâs go,â she whispered, her voice a mix of fear and anger. âWeâll find someone else to help us.â
âDamn you, Billy,â snarled Jimmy, snapping his dishrag at the man. âI told you to mind yer business!â
âStop âem,â hiccupped Frank, leaning unsteadily toward Billy. âWe can fix their car.â
âYeah!â Billy agreed, jumping off his stool and stumbling after the girls. âWait, little ladies!â he shouted. When he grabbed Izzyâs arm, she turned and slapped him hard across his scarred cheek.
âKeep your grimy hands off me!â she growled.
âWhoa, now, pretty girl. We was just gonna offer to help you,â he said, rubbing his smarting face. âNo need to get yer knickers in a knot. My friend Frank here and me know a lot about cars. Why donâtcha let us take a look?â
Izzy and Maria exchanged doubtful looks, but with no other assistance coming their way for who knew how long, Izzy asked, âDo you really know about cars?â
âAbsolutely!â Billy replied, drawing out the word as he attempted to corral the girls out the door without touching them again. âCome on, Frank, letâs give these two pretty ladies a hand.â
At the door, Maria glanced back in Jimmyâs direction with a look that seemed to say, Thanks for nothing. Jimmy gave an almost imperceptible nod, then shifted his eyes down the bar where the other lone patron had just called his name.
Iâm not sure if Iâm just punishing myself by pushing away everything I used to love.
Izzy and Maria are best friends as well as sisters who are travelling from their home in Pennsylvania for a holiday with friends in Florida. On the way, their car breaks down, sending the girls to a dodgy bar in hopes of finding a mechanic to help them. What happens though, destroys their once close bond, and leaves the girls fighting for their lives.
I really liked Maria. She's a fighter, someone determined to survive no matter what's thrown at her. I didn't really connect to Izzy, but the story doesn't follow her life so we don't really get to know her. However, both sisters fiercely love one another and are determined to survive the horror that they've been through. I also understood why they drifted apart, and was really hoping that they reconciled in the end.
I am angry with everyone and no one at the same time.
Billy and Frank were horrible monsters, and I was shocked by their crimes. However, they were real people, with terrible pasts that may have driven them to do what they did to Maria and Izzy. That doesn't justify what they did at all, but it makes them real, and not just characters who are evil just for the sake of the story.
One thing that could be changed, maybe, was seeing their interactions with Frank's sister or maybe some of their friends. The only reason Frank's sister had any role in the story was to testify, but it would have been interesting to see how Billy and Frank acted with her or their friends when they were sober. Their past was interesting, but it would help make them more believable characters if we had an idea of what they were like on a normal day.
I loved how thrilling the story was. I couldn't put the book down until I finished Part I, and even then, I was still wondering and very excited to know what happened next. I'm a big fan of criminal trials, and the legal aspect of the story made me love it even more. The second half was just as good as the first, and I really enjoyed it. The ending was great; sad, but still very good, and I liked how Izzy and Maria were strong despite everything. The writing was also amazing!
In the end, this was an incredible fast-paced debut, with great characters, and a captivating plot.
Content Warnings: sexual assault, abuse, kidnapping, and explicit content