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I lean my head on his shoulder, grateful for his presence.
“I don’t know what I would have done without you, Andreas,” I say, my voice barely above a whisper.
“You don’t have to thank me,” he replies, wrapping his arm around me. “I’m just glad we won. We got the hell out of there. Now, we’re here together.”
We sit in silence for a few moments, and I can feel the weight of what we just went through settling in. I close my eyes and take a deep breath, trying to calm my racing thoughts. “Andreas?” I say after a moment.
“Yeah?” he utters.
“I know this might sound crazy, but…do you think he’s really dead?”
Andreas lifts his head to look at me, confusion etched on his face. “What do you mean? We saw the body, Alana. He’s dead.”
“I know, it’s just…I can’t shake this feeling. Like he’s still out there, watching us,” I say, my voice trembling. “Every time I walk outside, I feel eyes on me. I see shadows move outside the windows at night, and I swear the same black car has parked in front of the house three days in a row now. I’m going fucking crazy, Andreas.”
Andreas pulls me closer to him, running his fingers through my hair. “I understand why you might feel that way, but I promise you, Darien is gone. You don’t have to be afraid anymore. We watched them bring him out of the house. He’s most likely already cremated by now.”
I nod, knowing that he’s right. But as I settle into his embrace, I can’t help but wonder if I’ll ever truly feel safe again. Darien effectively took all sense of safety from me. The rage I feel when I think about that makes me wish he was alive so I could kill him again.
“Why don’t you go take a shower so we can get some sleep?” he suggests.
I take a deep breath before nodding and standing up. I walk into the bathroom and turn the water on as hot as I can stand it, letting the steam fill up the room. As I step into the shower, I can feel my body melting into the warmth of the water. It’s almost meditative, allowing me to clear my mind of all of my worries for a few moments. The heat washes over me like a blanket, and it feels like it’s cleansing away all the pain that I’ve experienced.
I close my eyes and flinch. Darien’s wild, unhinged gaze is all I can see, and it’s almost like he’s here in the shower with me. The first sob escapes my throat, and before I know it, they’re violently wracking my body. I have to kneel and sit on the tiled shower floor. And that’s how Andreas finds me. Curled into the fetal position, desperately holding my knees to my chest, sobbing.
Andreas rushes to my side and wraps his arms around my wet body, pulling me into his chest. “Shh, it’s okay, Alana. I’m here. I’ve got you,” he whispers, his soothing voice lulling me into a sense of safety.
He holds me until my sobs turn into sniffles and I’m able to stand on my own. He wraps me in a fluffy white towel and carries me to bed, where I finally allow myself to drift off into a dreamless sleep.
59
Epilogue
Alana
Three Months Later
“You really shouldn’t make fun of him like that,” Ricole playfully admonishes Andreas. “He’s supposed to be your best friend.”
Andreas let out a rumbling laugh that sent tingles up and down my spine. His deep blue eyes sparkle as he shares jokes with my friends, and I can’t keep my eyes off of his ruggedly handsome face.
Ever since the authorities saved Andreas and me from Darien’s horrible farmhouse, we’ve been together day and night. I moved all my belongings out of storage and now live with him. My therapist is worried that it’s codependency from the trauma of our shared abduction, which is a fair assumption for a professional. But she’s wrong. Things with Andreas have been too easy, and we mesh entirely too well for this to be a trauma response.
As I watch Andreas laughing and joking with my friends, I can’t help but feel grateful. Grateful for Ashley and Ricole’s unwavering support, grateful for Andreas being my rock during this healing process. I’m not back to a hundred percent, but I’m doing much better than I ever could have expected.
“Alana, you alright?” Ashley asks, an edge of concern in her voice. “You’re staring off into space.”
I shake the thoughts of therapists and Darien out of my head and smile back at my friends.
“I’m fine. Actually, I have an announcement to make.”
Ricole and Ashley shift their gazes to me expectantly, and Andreas looks up from his phone with a knowing grin on his face.
“I got a job,” I say, beaming.
“That’s great!” Ricole congratulates me, “Where at?”
“The Indianapolis Star,” I reply proudly. “My first day is Friday!”
