Chapter 110
The shuffling footsteps on the stairs terrify Filip.
As long as he was alone in the bar, at least he was unharmed. He has waited and waited, hoping that the police will rescue him. Instead his kidnapper seems to be on the way back.
Filip still has no idea who he might be, but those approaching footsteps fill him with fear.
A middle-aged man appears in the doorway. He has dark hair and narrow eyes, with a big belly beneath a thick, scruffy sweater.
He looks big and strong.
Hard.
His expression is full of such venom that Filip instinctively presses himself against the back of the chair. He has never encountered anyone who radiates so much hatred.
And they have never even met before.
He stares as the man moves closer. He is sure he’s never seen him before, and yet there is something familiar about his face.
The man says nothing, and now Filip sees that he is carrying a green plastic container in each hand. He puts them down on one of the round tables and unscrews the caps, one after the other.
The smell makes Filip recoil in horror.
It is gasoline.
The man ignores Filip. It is as if he is invisible, as if he doesn’t exist.
The man begins to splash the gasoline around the chair where Filip is sitting. Pools of liquid are immediately absorbed by the dark carpet. The acrid fumes fill the air, making Filip cough.
Fear explodes in his chest.
“Mom,” he whimpers helplessly into the gag. “Emily.”
The man continues to ignore him as he splashes the gasoline in a long trail behind him, then disappears down the stairs.
The fumes are nauseating. Soon Filip feels so ill that he has to fight not to be sick.
He tries not to think about what would happen if he threw up into the gag. The fear of choking on his own vomit makes him swallow frenetically, over and over again.
Then the tears come, dripping from his nose onto the gag. All the snot and mucus make it hard to breathe, but he can’t stop.
He doesn’t want to burn to death.
He doesn’t want to die.
“Mom,” he groans quietly.
Save me.