Chapter Eight
EVIE
When Red leaves, I’m still riding the high of being with him. For a while, I don’t register what his words really meant. It isn’t until he’s been gone for an hour that I start running over the conversation we had before he left.
He doesn’t want me to leave, which I guess is okay. I do like him, and I feel like he’s my forever. But I don’t want to be trapped here, and I’m pretty sure that’s what he was implying.
I groan, closing my laptop. I can’t focus on my accounting homework right now. What if Red kidnapped me? What if I willingly walked into my captor’s arms?
God, I thought I was smart. Maybe I am just a stupid, small-town girl who’s way out of her element. I must have just gotten lucky before I met Red. The only reason I haven’t ended up in a situation like this before is because I’ve only met guys who don’t pose a threat to me.
I stand up from the comfortable recliner in the corner and begin pacing the room. It’s nice, don’t get me wrong, but I can’t help but imagine this place as a prison. How long until Red comes, and what will he do to me when he gets back? Is he going to use whatever seductive magic he has to make me forget about the life I led before we met?
“Shit!” I exclaim, the curse word feeling foreign on my tongue. I cover my face with my hands and ask myself, “What am I going to do?”
At a loss, I go to the door. Maybe I can just turn the handle and get out. Memories of the closet door that locked from the outside flash through my head, but I have to believe that I can leave. Unfortunately, those dreams are dashed when the handle doesn’t move at all.
I take a few steps back, staring at the offending door. As I’m trying to figure out my next steps, it creaks open, and I’m faced with a large, bald man. We stare at each other for a beat. Red has me on lockdown. I’m being monitored.
“Can we get you anything?” he asks, his voice gruff. He’s clearly not used to hospitality.
“Uh, no,” I say, giving him my most convincing smile. “Just… forgot where the bathroom was. I got a little turned around.”
I can tell that he doesn't believe me, but he’s kind enough not to call me out on it. With a curt nod, he pulls the door closed again. This time, I hear the lock engaging.
Blinking back tears, I turn around and survey the room. There has to be another way out, right? A lightbulb goes off in my head when my eyes land on the window. We’re only on the second floor. Even if I have to jump, I shouldn’t get hurt too badly.
I rush over, throwing the window open and pushing the screen out. I watch it drift down to the ground below. Then, I spot lattice work up the side of the building. I don’t even have to jump! I can climb down.
With my mind made up, I glance back at my pile of things. As much as it’ll pain me to replace everything, that’s what I’m going to have to do. My safety is more important than material things, and the longer I stay in this room, the more I’m convinced that I’m not safe here.
I take a deep, steadying breath before lifting myself onto the ledge and swinging myself out. Somehow, I easily catch the wood, and my grip tightens. Once I’ve got a good hold, I start my descent to the ground.
My feet hit solid earth, and I turn around, checking every direction. Surprisingly, there’s no one watching me as I make my escape. I take off toward the line of trees at the edge of the property.
When I reach the trees, I’m not surprised to find a fence hidden behind the foliage. I sigh and start walking along the edge of the property, checking for any weak spots. There’s nothing obvious, but I find a section that’s overgrown with vines. After a brief pep talk to myself, I start climbing the metal fence.
As I walk away from the house Red brought me to, my heart pounds. I’m sure any minute now, he’s going to appear and drag me back. I’ll only have a few more minutes of freedom before he catches up.
My shoulders stay tight, but the further I get from the house, the more my body relaxes. Eventually, I let out a small giggle. I can’t believe I managed to escape. It feels almost criminally easy. I shouldn’t have been able to climb out of a window and over a fence like that, but somehow, I did. My luck must still be with me. I just need to get home, and this will all be a bad memory. Maybe I’ll even unpack it all in therapy one day.
By the time I’m two blocks away from the house, I realize I’m in a part of town I don’t recognize. Groaning inwardly, I stop and take a proper look around. I don’t know any of the street names. I glance up and take note of the skyscrapers in the distance. I start heading toward them. Once I hit the numbered streets, I’ll have a better sense of where I am.
Honestly, I’m a little embarrassed that I don’t know where I am. I can’t believe I let myself get so distracted by Red that I didn’t even realize where we were going. This is definitely a learning experience. I can’t let anything like this happen again.
I’m so caught up in my thoughts that I don’t hear the sound of footsteps pounding down the sidewalk behind me until it’s too late. I spin around, eyes wide. Instinctively, I raise my hands to protect my face, but it’s useless.
The man in front of me grabs my wrist hard, and a sharp pain shoots through my arm. I’m terrified he might break it, but I try to pull myself out of his grasp. It’s futile. He’s so much stronger than I am. Still, I won’t give up without a fight.
“Let me go!” I shout, stomping my heel down hard on his toes.
He hisses in pain, but his grip tightens, pulling me against his chest. I can feel his hot breath on my neck, and my stomach turns in disgust. I squeeze my eyes shut, trying to block out the intimacy of the moment.
“You’re the whore that Red brought home, aren’t you?” he growls. I bristle at the name but can’t force myself to speak. My whole body is frozen in fear. “Maybe we can use you for negotiations. Hit him where it hurts, huh?”
Panic surges in my chest as I realize that this man isn’t one of Red’s men. Instead of being taken back to the safety of Red’s house, I’m going somewhere much worse. The realization is almost enough to paralyze me.
I fight against the fear, throwing my head back into his chest. He grunts in pain, the wind knocked out of him. I take that moment to twist out of his grasp, and while his grip on my wrist is still firm, I land a quick, hard kick right between his legs.
For a second, I feel the sweet rush of freedom. I turn on my heel, adrenaline surging, and sprint down the road. I make it less than half a block before I feel arms wrap around me again. Whoever this is, they’re stronger than the first guy, their hold even tighter. Before I can scream, a rag is pressed over my mouth.
I gasp for air, but it’s no use. I know what they’re trying to do—knock me out. My head spins as the rag covers my face, my body fighting the urge to surrender to unconsciousness.
I kick and twist, holding my breath, trying to fight the darkness. I can feel myself slipping, my vision blurring, but I keep pushing, keep fighting. I have to stay awake; I have to get away.
The world goes black.