I gagged and yanked away, only succeeding in slamming backward into Cut’s arms. The cool metal on my tongue sent spasms through my body. Water sprang to my eyes as I choked.
His elbows landed on my shoulders, keeping me pinned. “Don’t struggle, Nila. No point in struggling.”
I fought.
But he was right.
Therewasno point.
All I could do was ignore my body’s begging to gag and do my best to breathe.
Bonnie brought the back piece of the mask behind my head, securing it with a tiny padlock by my ear.
The instant it was locked, the worst claustrophobia I’d ever suffered swallowed me whole. Vertigo entered the darkness, spinning my brain, throwing me to the floor. I gagged again.
It terrified. It degraded. I was trapped.
My nose blocked worse.
My head pounded.
My ears rang.
My fear consumed me.
I
Lost
Control.
I screamed.
And screamed.
And screamed.
Cut let me go.
I no longer saw, heard, or paid attention.
My cries echoed loudly in my ears. I gurgled and coughed and lamented for help. My blocked nose stopped oxygen from entering; I inhaled and exhaled around the silver tongue press, recycling my screams in a rush of poisoned air.
I suffocated.
I panicked.
I spiralled into craziness.
My world reduced to blackness. Hawksridge Hall, with its sweeping porticos and acres of land, condensed into one tiny silver mask. Condensation rapidly formed from my breath. I gagged again and again.
I lost everything that made me human.
My screams turned to whimpers.
I’m going to die.
Each breath was worse than the one before. I fell to my side as vertigo got worse.
