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“Yeah, sorted. Fucking camera on the gate was on the blink, and the ones in the docks were facing the wrong way. All seems too convenient, if you ask me.”
What the fuck was going on in this place?
When Zayde returned to us, the van speeding away, he motioned with his head towards the road, and we jogged towards Cassius’ SUV.
“What are we gonna do about Winter’s car?” Cass paused by his open door.
“Already thought of that. I’ll take care of it.” Weston dug around in his pockets and held up his key ring, grinning triumphantly. “Still got her spare car key. I never gave it back after the respray. I’ll follow you back.”
“Meet ya back at the house.” Cass swung up into the driver’s seat, and I jogged around to the other side. Zayde slid into the back, while Weston got into Winter’s tiny car. I smirked, the worry temporarily pushed from my mind as I watched him try to adjust the cramped seat to fit his large frame.
“Hold on,” Cass muttered and threw the car into a U-turn, the tyres screeching in protest. He shot down the empty road, Weston following behind, keeping up as best as he could in Winter’s car.
“Anything?” I already knew the answer before I even asked Zayde the question.
“Sorry, mate. No sign of her, or of whoever was on duty. Only place we didn’t look was the building you and Cass already checked.”
“Yeah, she was long gone from there.” Cassius’ voice was sombre. “Where is she?”
“My boys will keep an eye on the docks. But…fuck,” Zayde muttered. “We need to find her.”
Yeah. We did.
Before it was too late.
THREE
It’s so dark.
Slowly, carefully, I blinked my eyes open, becoming aware of an intense, throbbing pain in my head. I groaned, holding myself as still as possible to minimise the agony I felt in my skull if I moved. As my eyes adjusted, I gingerly looked around, moving my head as slowly as possible.
Where was I? My heart started racing, and I squeezed my eyes tightly shut, curling into a ball. My breathing grew shallow, and a sob tore from my mouth before I was even aware of it.
I fell apart.
Eventually, my cries turned to whimpers, and I concentrated on breathing slowly and deeply, in through my nose, and out through my mouth. When I finally felt calm enough to take stock of my surroundings without panicking, I raised my head.
It was difficult to make out much. The only light came from a single oval-shaped bulb on the wall to my left, hanging over a wooden door which was slightly ajar. I could feel a very faint breeze blowing in from somewhere, so there must’ve been a vent or air shaft in this room, although I couldn’t see it. Other than that, I was surrounded by solid stone. Floor, walls, and ceiling. No windows. If I had to guess, I’d say I was underground somewhere, possibly in a cellar of some sort. It had that kind of damp, cold feeling. Stone steps in the corner of the room ascended to the ceiling where there was what looked like a hatch opening, and next to the steps was another wooden door with a padlock. I was sitting on a mattress which had a pile of blankets at one end, and there was a small metal table next to the mattress with a bottle of water on it.
I peered at the bottle suspiciously, debating whether it was safe to drink. It didn’t look like the seal had been tampered with, but I wasn’t about to risk it, despite my parched throat. I needed to get out of here.
Flexing my wrists, I climbed to my feet, using the cold stone wall to support me. A wave of dizziness overtook me, and I swayed on my feet, nausea rising up in my throat. Fuck. My legs suddenly gave way underneath me, and I crashed back down onto the mattress.
Okay. I wasn’t going anywhere. Yet. I pulled my legs up and rested my chin on my knees, closing my eyes until the dizziness passed. How could I stay positive? Was there anything positive? There didn’t seem to be any blood coming from my head, at least—I guess I could be grateful for small mercies?
Unfortunately, that thought did nothing to comfort me.
Footsteps sounded overhead, and my heart pounded, drumming loudly in my ears as there was a loud screeching of metal against metal, and the hatch opened, revealing a pair of black shoes.
They stepped onto the first step.
Then the next.
Then the next.
I huddled on the mattress, my back against the wall, biting down on the sleeve of my hoodie to stop myself from doing anything stupid like screaming the fucking place down. I’d never been so terrified in my life, and if I hadn’t practically collapsed when I’d tried to stand, I’d have been trying to make a run for it.
A man came into view—short, stocky, pale, dressed in the uniform of a security guard, complete with a black cap. He paused for a moment, closing the hatch behind him, before he descended the rest of the way down the stairs. When he saw I was awake and watching him, his lip curled, and he quickly strode across the floor, grabbing me and pulling to my feet. Another wave of dizziness hit me, and only his arms around me stopped me from falling. He gripped me tightly around the waist, my back to his front.
