Prologue
-Sera-
The alley smelled like trash and asphalt, but it's the quicker way around. I keep my head down, shoes clicking too loud against the wet pavement. I don’t see him until I’m almost halfway through.
He’s leaning against a black SUV. He doesn’t move when I pass him, but I can see the way his eyes watch me.
“You’re exactly what I’ve been looking for,” he says.
I stop, stupidly. “Excuse me?”
His mouth curves. “Perfect.”
Something tightens in my chest. “Do I know you?”
He pushes off the hood with slow, deliberate steps. “Not yet.” He smells like cinnamon when he stops in front of me. “You shouldn’t walk alone,” he murmurs, as if it’s advice.
“I’m fine.”
“I know you are.” His voice lowers. “That’s the problem.”
Before I can step back, his hand catches me. I feel the sting at my neck before I even register the movement. I gasp, trying to swat at him, but my limbs go numb, my vision blurring. He catches me before I hit the ground.
“You’re not who I planned to take.” Relief floods my chest. “But I think I’ll keep you anyway.”
He lifts me easily, carrying me toward the SUV. “You don’t know it yet,” he says, laying me down across the seat, “but you’re a blank page. And I’m going to write every filthy thing I want until there’s nothing left of the former you.”
The humming of the engine pulls the fogginess closer, luring me to sleep. As the door slams shut, the world goes black.