Chapter 45
GRAE
I groaned as I rolled over. My muscles flared with a deep ache as if I’d been caught in an especially vicious wave and knocked against a few dozen rocks.
My eyelids fluttered, and light burst through my vision in flashes that made my head pound. What the heck had happened? I tried to search my memory. Had I had a rough blood sugar night? Too much to drink?
And then the memory I’d been searching for slammed into me. The face I’d always recognized as a friend. The jab of a Taser. Going down.
I shot up to sitting, and the world swam in a blur around me as I tried to get my bearings. Bile crept up my throat. The room I was in was bare. I sat on a mattress on the floor with blankets and pillows, but the space had nothing else.
Struggling to my feet, I hurried over to the door. My hand stilled on the knob, and I listened. I didn’t hear anything outside. I turned it—locked.
I let a dozen very real curses fly and then turned around.
There were two windows in the room, and I quickly crossed to the nearest one.
I took in my surroundings. I appeared to be on the second story of a cabin surrounded by woods.
But there was an overhang just outside this window.
It covered a porch. If I could get out onto it, I could lower myself to the ground without risking too much injury.
Studying the window, I unlocked it and shoved all my weight into opening it. Nothing moved. I tried again—still nothing.
I straightened and set to work examining the pane. That was when I saw the tiny flashes of silver. Nailheads. He’d nailed the window shut, planned for this.
Tears stung my eyes as pressure built in my head. This couldn’t be real. It had to be a nightmare that I would surely wake up from.
A beep at my hip sounded, and I glanced down. A warning from my insulin pump.
I let another curse fly. I’d meant to change it out last night, but I’d been distracted by Caden and his proposal and losing myself with him all night long. I’d completely forgotten about it this morning. This was so bad.
The sound of a key in a lock had me spinning around to face the door, hands fisted in preparation.
The door opened, and Eddie filled the space. He grinned that same easy smile he always gave me, as if nothing was wrong. “Good, you’re up. You were out for like an hour.”
I blinked a few times as if that would somehow right the situation in front of me. “What’s going on?”
He extended a bottle of water to me. “Thirsty?”
I didn’t take it. He could’ve injected it with drugs for all I knew.
Eddie shrugged, opened it, and took a sip. “What do you think of the new digs?”
I’d been to Eddie’s apartment in town more times than I could count. He’d always said he liked being in the middle of things. This place was none of that.
“Why?” I croaked.
Eddie’s expression went stormy. “You can’t be trusted out there anymore.”
My heart picked up speed. “Can’t be trusted to do what?”
“You’re mine. You always have been.”
“Eddie…we’re friends.”
Rage flared in those familiar amber eyes. “You’re mine. You promised me.”
Confusion swept through me. “I promised you?”
“You promised after Megan died. Promised you’d always be there.”
“And I have been…as your friend.”
Fury burst through Eddie, and he slammed the water bottle against the wall. “No! You told me you loved me.”
I froze, fear pulsing deep. I’d told Eddie, Noel, and Jordan that I loved them countless times, but I didn’t mean it like that.
“You get coffee and treats just for me. You take care of me. You make sure I eat and sleep. You said we’d always be together. You promised. But you broke that promise.” He snarled. “You can’t be trusted. Gotta keep you here until you remember.”
My mouth went dry. Eddie’s mind had twisted. Maybe from the trauma of losing Megan, but maybe not. Maybe it had always been this way.
“I can’t stay here, Eddie. I need to go to work. See my family. I need my insulin.” My pump beeped as if to punctuate my point.
Eddie glared at the device at my hip. “You don’t need that. You’re strong without it. You always have been.”
That panic was back. “If I don’t have my insulin, I’ll die.”
“You will not,” he growled. “That’s the people in your life trying to control you. I see it. How annoyed you get when they ask about it. When they say you can’t handle things.”
Blood roared in my ears. Eddie had taken me without any preparation for the things I needed to stay alive. I glanced down at my pump. It was already running on empty. How long did I have before I started feeling the effects? Maybe an hour if I was lucky.
“Eddie, please. At least get me some insulin. You can sneak into my house. There’s still some in the fridge.”
“That’s not your house!” he screamed. “This is your house. You’re home now. With me. We’re going to be happy here. You and me. I’ll take care of you.”
“Were you the one at my house? Outside my window?” It hurt to ask, but I had to know. Had each and every occurrence been Eddie and not Gabe?
Eddie’s jaw tightened. “I just wanted to make sure you were safe. I miss you when we aren’t together.”
My eyes burned; the urge to cry was so strong. “Did you take my pajamas?”
“I needed to feel close to you.” His voice had gone almost childlike, and it turned my insides. But that innocent tone disappeared as anger flashed in his eyes. “But then you had to let him touch you.”
I swallowed as my mouth went dry. “Eddie…”
“He shouldn’t be touching you, ever!” His voice vibrated with fury as he started pacing. “I had to set the fires then. They help me let out my anger so I don’t hurt you. I don’t want to hurt you, even when you make me mad.”
“The pictures?” I croaked.
Eddie turned those furious eyes in my direction.
“You had to know that it wasn’t okay. That you couldn’t be with him.
” He tapped his fingers against his legs as he paced.
“You’ll learn. Once you realize we’re meant to be, everything can go back to normal.
Once you realize you were always meant to be mine. ”
“I’m not yours,” I whispered.
He charged, shoving me hard against the wall. “You’re mine! Say it!”
He slammed me against the wall again, making my ears ring and my head spin.
“I’m yours,” I croaked.
Eddie shoved his forearm across my throat, making it hard to breathe. “I don’t believe you.”
“Can’t. Breathe.”
He released his hold on me and threw me onto the mattress, beginning to pace. “She lies. He changed her.”
“Eddie, please. Just let me go. I won’t tell anyone.” Tears burned my eyes.
“Liar!” He flew at me, pinning me to the mattress. His eyes flared as they zeroed in on my hand. On the ring. “It’s all been lies, hasn’t it? You’re just like the rest of them. Can’t be trusted. Never as good as my Megan.”
“I’m sorry,” I wheezed, terror pulsing through me.
“You’re not. But you will be. Because I’m going to make you burn.”