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Well, if she couldn’t break the ties, maybe she could break the chair?
Thankfully, he’d left her legs untied, so it wasn’t too difficult to get onto her feet. The cold floor turned her feet numb. Hobbling at an awkward bent angle, she found where the closest wall was. What she could feel of it was as cold as the ground and made of concrete too.
God, was she in an underground bunker of some sort?
The thought of that brought a new surge of panic. If she was underground, what chance did she have of getting out and anyone finding her?
She gave herself a mental shake.
There was no point in jumping to worst-case scenarios. She needed her wits about her. She couldn’t afford to lose it now.
Steeling herself, she moved a foot or so away from the wall. Taking a deep breath, she threw herself at it, tucking her fingers in as much as she could to protect them. The chair hit the wall, sending a judder of pain arcing through her. She gasped, tears stinging her eyes.
She sat back down to catch her breath and had to let the waves of pain subside. Shifting around on the seat, she used her weight to test for any sign of weakness.
But the chair held firm.
Once the pain had lessened to a tolerable rate, she tried again, throwing herself at the wall harder this time. The pain that hit was ten times worse than the first, but the chair made a cracking sound.
When she sat back on it there was a definite wobble that hadn’t been there before. She tossed her weight from side to side, working away at the chair until it gave a final crack and the seat came away from the back.
Her hands were still tied to a piece of the backing, but at least she was free now. She bent over, bringing her bound hands forward as she stepped backward through the hoop of her arms, mentally thanking the yoga classes her mom had insisted she take since she was young that had given her enough flexibility to do so.
Tugging off the towel he had tied around her mouth, she opened her mouth to call for help but stopped herself just in time.
If she was in a basement of some sort,hemight hear her cries and all this effort would be for nothing.
She couldn’t cry out for help, no matter how much she wanted to. Her best chance of getting out of there was by being smart, by learning what she could about her surroundings.
She strained her ears, listening for any sounds.
Only silence greeted her. She couldn’t even hear traffic or anything else that would give her a clue as to where she was.
She needed to get out and flag down help.
Letting the glow of the clock guide her, she worked her way from one wall to another, feeling for a way out. Progress was achingly slow until she came to a wooden door. Reaching down, she scrambled for the door handle and grabbed hold of it just as it turned in her hand!
The door flew open as fresh night air rushed in. Bright light from a flashlight blinded her. She raised her bound hands, trying to block it from her eyes as a smile of relief came over her.
“Oh Thank God! Help me, I’ve been kidnapped…”
The flashlight lowered until she could see the face of her rescuer.
Except it wasn’t someone who would help her at all. The smile died on her face.
“Shut up!” her kidnapper demanded, swinging the flashlight at her head.
For the second time that night, the world faded into nothing.
25
The guests were being questioned and released though some who were close friends of the family and seemed genuinely concerned, remained. Huddled around Stonewall and Mandy in one of the family’s many lounges, they offered what comfort they could at a time like this.
Kane had struggled with the idea of making Lexi’s abduction popular knowledge, worried it could endanger her life, but after consultation with the LAPD, it was decided the best course of action.
She was a celebrity whose face had recently hit the tabs. While she was still so much in the public eye, they should capitalize on her notoriety making life difficult for the kidnapper and hopefully increasing the pressure to release her.
The other alternative he couldn’t think about.
