Before I lose my nerve, I crawl out on all fours, knowing from previous experience that it would be unwise to try to stand at the moment. Once I make it to the door, I press up on my knees to twist the handle, still not trusting my legs.
“No way.” I watch as it turns easily in my hand. Just before I push the door open, I pause, unable to do it. Even now, when I’m so close to freedom, a small part of me wants to turn around, to stay—to be with Seven. But that part of me is illogical.Mad. I can’t allow myself to listen to it.
I wobble to a standing position, using the knob for balance—and when I’m positive my legs will hold, I let go and slip out of the white room.
My heart hammers against my rib cage as I silently make my way down the long hallway, my head on a swivel as I look for any sign that Seven is following me. I keep waiting for him to show up, or for some alarm to sound, but that never happens.
I jam my thumb into the button to call the elevator, shifting from foot to foot as I wait out the torturous seconds it takes to arrive. There’s a ding, and I rush onto the elevator as soon as the doors are wide enough for me to slip through.
Breathing heavy, I search the panel for the ground floor, then jam my finger into the button the same way I did outside. Only, this time, nothing happens.
“What the hell…?” I press it again and again, but the elevator refuses to move. Desperation claws up my throat, and I try the button for the second floor, then the third—all the way up to the thirteenth floor, which miraculously lights up.
The metal box jerks, then begins rising, and I can do nothing but watch as the numbers tickup, up, up.
“This is fine,” I mumble under my breath. “I’ll just… use the stairs.”
The elevator dings, the doors slide open, and I step out, my eyes going wide as I take in my surroundings. The entire floor seems to be under construction, with randomly arranged tarps, unfinished walls, and long, darkened, disorienting hallways that seem to lead nowhere and everywhere, branching off in all manner of directions.
I’m in a fucking maze.
I back up a few steps, my heart hammering as I head back in the direction of the elevator. Only when I turn, I find I’m no longer alone.
Seven is standing in front of the elevator dressed in his tactical gear and bloodred mask, his arms crossed over his broad chest in a clear show of displeasure.
“You failed the test, angel.”
“I… I didn’t know…” I take a step back, my voice caught somewhere down my throat. “I…”
“You’d better run.” His arms drop to his sides, his chest rising and falling like a predator on the hunt. “You won’t like what happens if I catch you.”
Losing my mind, I turn on my heel and take off in the opposite direction, my stomach twisting with dread as Seven’s cruel laughter echoes throughout the space.
When footsteps ring out behind me, I pick up my pace, ducking left down one of the hallways. I run and run, not knowing where I’m going, not caring as long as it keeps me away from the beast at my heels.
My lungs burn, my muscles ache, and my vision lines with dark spots, but still, I keep going. And those footsteps get closer.
Urging my legs to go faster, I make a right down another darkened hallway, then a left, hoping somehow I can lose him in the maze. But no matter how many twists and turns I make, Seven follows just behind, and at one point, I can even feel him breathing down the back of my neck.
Desperation claws up my throat, and I make one more left, but my heart freezes in my chest when I come face-to-face with a dead end.
“No,” I whisper. “No…”
“Yes.” That cruel laugh rings out just over my shoulder, and a shiver travels the length of my spine—but I’m not sure if it's from fear or excitement.
Seven steps closer, his movements smooth, predatory. “Why do you keep trying to leave?”
He circles me, pushing me back into the corner. My back presses against the wall, and I swallow hard, gazing up at Seven’s faceless red mask.
“I don’t… I don’t belong here. I can’t… I need to get out. I can’t be here anymore. I’m scared of these—thesefeelings.Ishouldn’t want you. I shouldn’t fucking care about you! I should hate you with every fiber of my being!” I’m shouting now, but I can’t seem to stop. “You…you’re mad! You killed all those people, you stalked me, lied to me,kidnappedme…” I shake my head, unable to believe my heart is thrumming for him, even now. “I should hate you,” I whisper, lowering my eyes. “I should hate you, but I don’t. I can’t.”
“So stay.” He reaches up to cup my face. “Be with me, sweet girl. I’ll forget all about this if you agree to stay, to be mine fully. I won’t even punish you… unless you want me to,” he adds, his voice a seductive growl.
Instead of leaning into him like I so badly want to, I force myself to jerk away, and my chest clenches at the heart-stricken look on his face. “I can’t, Seven. I have a life and friends who are probably worried sick about me. You… you need to let me go.”
He slams his fist against the wall, so close to my head, but I don’t flinch. If I know one thing about Seven, it’s that he won’t hurt me. Not unless I ask him to. “Goddammit, I can’tbreathewithout you, Grace! I don’t want to!”
“You’re going to have to learn how to, then. Because I’mnotyours, Seven.”
