With there being little to no light, it’s hard to make out any features aside from the messy hair on top of his head. This guy probably has some intel that might be useful to me, so getting to know him might work in my favor.
“So, what did you do to piss them off?” I ask softly, not wanting anyone else to hear, although I’m fairly certain there’s no one but us down here.
His head jerks in my direction, and if I could see his face, I’d think he’d be shocked to see someone else. I guess that tells me not many men come down here.
“More like what didn’t I do?” he mumbles and lets out a deep sigh. “Who are you?”
“Emris,” I state, not giving him anything else. I have no idea who the hell this man is, and I can’t trust him so the less he knows, the better.
“Jasper.” He nods but doesn’t say anything else, either. A few minutes pass, and the room is silent. Images of Brielle run through my mind, and I’d do anything to get to her right now.
“How did you get here?” Jasper asks, his voice rough as he picks something up from the ground and messes with it.
“One minute I was at home with my girl. Next, I was drugged and brought here.”
“Well, any idea of escaping, let it go because there’s no way out. Trust me. I’ve spent the past seventeen years trying to get out of here. It only ends in getting thrown down here with no food or water for days, or until Peter needs you for some random tasks he doesn’t want to take care of.”
He doesn’t understand the gravity of this situation. I don’t have a choice. I have to get out of here and get Brielle. She doesn’t deserve this. None of it. And I can’t let her go through this. Iwillget out of here, and when I do… anyone who stands in my way will die.
42
BRIELLE
I don’t openmy eyes. I’m not ready to accept the truth. If what I think happened is correct, then my fate is worse than death. This is the worst nightmare anyone could wake up to.
It takes a few minutes to gain the confidence to open my eyes and to get my vision clear, but once it does, I wish I’d never opened them.
Women.
At least a dozen of them, all chained up to giant hooks in the ground. Metal shackles are attached to their wrists and ankles, like they are some kind of vicious animal. I look down and find myself in the same kind of chains. I pull as hard as I can, but they don’t budge.
Where the hell am I? My stomach rolls with unease because I know exactly where I fucking am.
My ribs ache with each breath from Susie kicking me, like I did to her. Fuck. This was the last thing I expected to happen. Emris will find me. I know he will, but at the same time I’m not sure that’s going to happen. He was in the car with me. They took him as well, which means two things—he’s either here or he’s dead. And I won’t entertain the idea of him being dead. He’snot. At any moment, he’s going to bust through those doors and rescue me.
Yeah, that’s what will happen. This is just one big nightmare and he—he... he’ll be here. I can feel my chest tightening and heaving. I can’t breathe. I can’t?—
Someone grasps my hand and squeezes, pulling me back from the panic that was dragging me down.
“Hey. It’s okay. Look at me,” she talks quietly as if she’s going to spook me or maybe worried about getting in trouble. Her eyes keep darting to where the armed men are. “You’re okay. Just breathe. Ready?” She takes a breath in, and for whatever reason, I follow.
In and out.
In and out.
In and out.
Once everything settles, I look at her. Wow. She’s beautiful.
“I’m Delaney,” she says, giving me a small smile even though it doesn’t reach her eyes. Her voice is so quiet, and I wonder if it’s that way because she’s not used to talking much.
“Brielle.” I give her a small smile back as I try to keep my hands from shaking too much.
“I’m sorry you’re here, but the calmer you try to stay, the better it is.”
I’m not sure what to say, so I only nod. She releases my hand, and I let out a deep breath. It’ll all be fine. Someone will come, and this will be over soon.
My body wracks from both nerves and from how freezing this room is. There are a few girls who are huddled together. Some are naked, and that alone makes me terrified to know how long they’ve been here. My eyes land on a few of them who are openly shoving needles into their arms for whatever release they need, and I won’t even pretend to understand what they must feel.
