Chapter 3 #2
“Next time,” he whispered coldly, “I’ll just shoot you in the back.”
It made me shudder, and it made him chuckle.
We walked for miles and miles. I kept close behind the woman, who was softly talking to the driver now and again.
There was no way to hear what they were talking about, but their mannerisms towards one another made it clear they were together.
Grayson was deathly quiet at my back, my hair standing on end every time I felt him close by.
My breathing was uneven, not from the walking, but the panic coming up my chest.
I beseeched the forest to keep me safe and alive. I begged the trees to show me a way out and lend me their calm.
I distracted my mind with the plant life we passed to keep myself together, reciting their scientific name and then their common name. It kept me from spiralling. Up ahead was a meadow filled with beautiful pink, purple and blue flowers.
Verbena hastata or Blue vervain. Rosa gymno… I paused. Vervain. It is commonly used to make tea or tinctures for its sedative effects on the nervous system. But what most people didn’t know—mixed with Jimson Weed in the right doses, it can render a person unconscious for hours.
My heart lurched. There was Jimson Weed all over the place. It might help me get away. I didn’t know how I would give it to them, but it was something. It was hope.
As we neared the meadow, I made a show of stopping and looking at the flowers in it.
The overwhelming fear in my gut made me swallow involuntarily, my heart beating in my throat.
As calmly as I could manage, my feet wandered over to the Vervain and I picked a handful of flowers, being careful to leave as much of the stems as possible.
I needed as much of the plant as I could possibly get without it raising suspicion.
Turning back, I kept my eyes on the flowers, as if admiring them.
The woman and driver were still walking and didn’t seem to notice my deviation, but Grayson was watching me intently, his brow furrowed. My hands started to shake.
“For my grave,” I rasped, my throat closing with panic.
Grayson arched a brow and one side of his mouth quirked up, just a bit.
Did he buy it? I kept walking, keeping my eyes on the forest floor.
I needed to find Jimson Weed. There was a bush to my right, but I couldn’t walk over there and just pick at it.
It had no pretty flowers. He would definitely know something was up.
About a mile farther, the forest answered my prayers.
Up ahead, laid two seed pods in our path.
Excitement welled in my chest. When I reached the seed pods, a Vervain stem slipped from my hands.
I bent to pick it up and quickly grasped the two seed pods as well.
My heart thundered. Did he see it? My clumsy sleight of hand?
The spikes of the seed pods pressed painfully into my palms, but I welcomed it.
It kept me distracted. Kept me from writhing out of my skin with terror.
And a small dose of its toxins would be good for my frayed nerves.
For a while, I kept anticipating a hand on my shoulder, a voice demanding to know what I was up to. But there was no hand grasping me and he never spoke a word. We continued walking in silence. I focused on my breathing, telling myself over and over to stay calm, to keep control.
The breeze started to turn chilly, and the last rays of sun barely reached our path.
The forest sounds started to change. The chirping of the birds died off and the small animals that scurried in the forest canopy had found a hiding place.
The sounds at night in Frostford Forest had always made my skin prickle. And for good reason.
It seemed my kidnappers were also aware of the ‘No wandering around at night’ rule. They were also on edge, increasing their pace with the setting sun. Our loose group became tighter and on alert.
I enjoyed their unease. It felt good having them feel just a smidge of what I’ve been feeling.
From the sounds echoing around us, I knew we were deep inside Frostford Forest. Where most people didn’t dare venture.
Dad never took us this far in. We always stayed near camping grounds and other human settlements. This was insane.
There was a sudden clearing in the canopy. A beautiful cabin appeared out of nowhere.
“Finally,” the woman said, her shoulders visibly easing.
She hopped onto the porch and opened the front door.
I froze before the steps. Which place was more hazardous?
The woods at night or inside that cabin?
My feet wouldn’t move. Grayson grabbed my arm and dragged me into the cabin.
I was doing my best to make it hard for him, leaning away with my bodyweight and digging my heels into the ground but he didn’t even seem to notice my struggle.
“I will take her up,” the woman said to Grayson, taking hold of my other arm.
He stared at her for a few seconds, not letting go of me.
“Fine,” he grumbled and released me. I let out a breath.
The front door was still open. Gods, it was so close.
Grayson stepped in front of me, blocking my view. “Running again, are we?” His voice was icy yet enticing. Like he was daring me to do it.
I shook my head and quickly turned away, trying my best not to burst out into a sprint up the stairs. To get away from him.
The cabin was still dark, no one had switched on any lights. Or maybe there was no electricity. It was so far away from civilisation.
Only the contours of the rooms were visible in the low light of the moon, but I tried to take in every visible detail.
It was a large open-plan cabin, with the living room area on the right as you enter the front door and the kitchen on the left.
In the middle of the room was a staircase that led to an upstairs area with three closed doors, spanning the area of the kitchen and living room.
It was to one of those doors, the one on the far left, overlooking the kitchen, that the woman led me to.
Inside the bedroom was a large bed, dresser and vanity, made from the same heavy wood.
There was another door that led to an ensuite bathroom.
Moonlight streamed through a large window looking out on the dark forest, taking up most of the wall opposite the bedroom door.
There were no curtains or blinds for the window.
It probably wasn’t necessary. This deep into the woods, there would be no soul to look inside anyway.
“This will be your room,” the woman said. “I’m going to go get you some warm clothes. You must be freezing.” She turned and walked to the farthest door.
I quickly closed the door of the room. It had no key and no other locks I could use. I sunk to the ground, with the door against my back. How did this happen to me? My head was spinning, and my breaths came too fast. The walls caved in on me. Trapping me.
The flowers were still clutched in my trembling fingers. I opened my hands to see the seed pods. The dots of blood on my palms had already started to dry. This might be how I survive, how I could escape.
Pull yourself together, Ava. You need to make it out alive.
I inhaled deeply. Panicking like this wasn’t going to help me. I needed to be strong. I had to fight for my life. No one else could get me out of this. No one would know to look for me here. I had to save myself.
There were footsteps on the creaky floorboards of the passage, and then hushed voices, one of which was the woman.
It sounded like an argument, but it was too low to hear what was being said.
I quickly got up and hid the seed pods under the mattress, as deep as I could reach, and placed the flowers on the nightstand.
Moving around the bed, I sat on the opposite side, so the bed was between myself and the door. It made me feel a tiny bit better.
The door creaked open, and my heart sputtered.
I had expected the woman, in her mask, but instead, there stood Grayson, holding a heap of clothing, his expression blank.
He walked to the dresser and placed the items on top, then turned and leaned against it, his eyes on me.
There were still smudges of blood over his face.
He had taken a knife from his pocket, which he kept flipping from handle to tip, almost absentmindedly while he stared at me.
Was he planning on how he was going to use it on me?
Even more unnerving than the knife, was his stare. Danger was what the little voice in my head screamed. Death lurked behind those eyes.
Grayson held my gaze for a long time before his eyes started roaming down my body.
Every part of me was shaking. I quickly pulled my dress down towards my knees, suddenly aware that it was hitched up at my thighs.
Crazy how a dress that made me feel so beautiful, now had me feeling exposed.
It felt a little too short, a little too tight.
Grayson pushed off the dresser and walked towards me. My body hunched into a ball, trying to make itself small, unnoticeable. But it was too late. He had noticed.
“Such a pity you tore that dress. It suits you.” He was standing in front of me, his hands in the top pockets of his black cargo pants, a small bag dangling from one of his wrists. It had a red cross on it. A first aid kit. I couldn’t make myself look at his face. What would I see there?
His hand, deceitfully gentle, grasped the underside of my chin and forced my head up. My bottom lip started to tremble. I didn’t want him touching me. I wanted to throw up. My eyes still wouldn’t look up at him. I looked past him, focusing on the blank wall.
“We’ll be here through all of winter. It’s up to you what that time will be like. It could be easy, or hard. Either one is fine by me.”