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I sit up, when I find out I'm lying on a bare mattress covered with old yellowish and brown-orange stains.Disgusting.As my memory further clears, I recall what happened, and fear strikes like a cannonball.
No! Please, no!
My breathing explodes, and a second later, I run my trembling hands through my locks as I reminisce.
After getting the text from Cole, I rushed to the diner and parked my car in the place I often do. I took a deep breath when I became aware how dark this area gets at night. But the urge to see Cole overtook the sudden anxiety, and I stepped out.
I paused outside my BMW, and when I locked the doors, a skin-chilling humming sound coming from behind me makes me pivot. A familiar man's voice, that haunts my dreams flowed out of the shadows, saying, "Hello, doll face."
This simple statement awakened the deep, bone-infiltrating fear and catapulted me straight into fight-or-flight mode. I rotated and pressed the key to open the car doors, but it was too late. A wave of nausea hits me as I remember how he vigorously yanked at my clothing, which made me fall back. The second my body hit his chest, he snaked one arm around my neck while using his other hand to cover my nose and mouth with a stinking cloth. I squirmed in an attempt to free myself, but it didn't work, and he tightened his grip. Panic had set in as my lungs screamed for oxygen, and moments later the strength left my muscles, and darkness took over.
What is this place?
I squint my eyes in the harsh light to take in the location, consisting of plain concrete walls and a high ceiling. The moment I slide off the mattress, I sense something’s wrong with my ankles, and when I glance down, I get my answer.What the hell? Steel shackles.I stand, and shuffle forward, feeling light-headed, I come to an abrupt stop. My heart rate spikes as I take in what is in front of me. As my vision clears, I can see thick glass panels secured to the concrete wall, with a door, and a glass panel above me. A black curtain obscures my view to one side of the room.
Oh my god. This is a cell!
I look around and my lips twist in disgust at seeing an old worn-out toilet in the far left back corner of this vault, but when I take in what's on the other side of this see-through divider, my breath halts, and I open and close my mouth like a goldfish. There's a beige carpet with two armchairs and a couch. On the right side stands a wooden dining table with chairs. But what alarms me most are the life-size pictures of me on the concrete wall.
It wasn't my imagination. He's been following me.
I recognize a photo of me and Amanda standing in the parking lot and one where I walk hand in hand with Cole. But someone cut out his head.I stumble to the door and push, but it's locked. With my fists, I slam on the material while shouting, "Please, anyone? Hello."
I stop but hear nothing. With lips trembling and tears pricking in my eyes, I rest my forehead against the cold surface as I get overwhelmed with emotions when I realize that I'm being held in something that is the equivalent of a terrarium.
A sudden weak, muffled noise makes me lift my head. The sound resembles that of someone humming with their mouth closed; and when it returns for a second time, I identify that it's coming from the right. I swirl around and make my way over there. I inspect the ceiling to wall black curtains hanging on the other side of the glass panel. My heartbeat throbs in my chest.What is that noise?I open my mouth to speak, but I halt at the sound of incoming footsteps.
"Good morning."
My head whisks sideways, and my nerves fly to a brand-new level when I see who it is.
"You're beautiful when you sleep," the man says as he walks up to the front glass panel.
I instinctively move backward, and it isn't until my back hits the cold concrete wall that I examine him. The guy's wearing a neat, grey business suit with a white v-neck shirt underneath. His face is clean-shaven, and his dark, cocoa brown hair is styled in a messy, faded haircut. My breath stagnates when my eyes meet his. Lust and pride whirl inside the grey orbs that have haunted me in my dreams.
"Did you sleep well, my doll face?"
An icy shiver glides through my spine, hearing that name and knowing he's been observing me while I was asleep. To hide my raging nerves, I cross my arms and place my trembling hands underneath my armpits.
Don't freak out, and don't show him you're terrified.
"I didn't sleep well. Have you seen that?" I say, gazing at the dirty mattress on the floor.
"I'm sorry, precious. It's only temporary. Soon you'll have a beautiful room."
"Why did you kidnap me?"
"I didn't. I simply brought you home."
My mouth drops, and I place my hands against the wall as a wave of nausea hits. "Why are you doing this? Please, you need to let me go. I've got a family to return to."
He smirks with confidence. "I'myour family!"
My knees wobble at his words.No, he can't be serious."I bet my friends and the police are searching for me."
I take a step back as his aphotic, evil laugh bounces through the room. "Oh, they can search all they want. They will never find you. And if you hope Mr. Walker is coming to rescue you, you can stop expecting it. He's what I'd call… tied up at the moment."
An ice-cold sweat breaks free, chilling me to the bone. "Cole? Where is he? Did you hurt him? Please tell me!"
