My blood went cold, goosebumps breaking out along my bare arms.
“I’d eat if I were you. This might be the last time he offers you food.” He kicked the plate closer to me.
With one last look past him, at the wall of crates, I knew he was right. Trying to flee at this moment was futile. I needed to plan out my next steps, and doing that while running on zero fuel was stupid.
Reaching for the sad sandwich, I took a bite of the chewy bread and meat, and realized how hungry I was. Before I knew it, I had polished off half the sandwich, despite the gummy texture.
Food. Planning. Take care of Conrad. Escape.
Problem was, I couldn’t remember what Conrad looked like.Damn blackouts. I should’ve asked Winder before it was too late.
My fingers were starting to tingle, a funny feeling racing up my legs. “I don’t feel so good,” I stuttered.
The sandwich must have been laced with something.Shit. I needed to stay awake. I couldn’t fall asleep again. No. No.
No.
My eyes closed of their own volition, and the last thing I heard before I drifted off was the heavy footsteps of the guard walking away.
It was getting harderto tell dream from reality. The lines blurred, images bleeding one into the next.
Winder. There he was. His eyes were so worried. He almost looked like he had been crying.
I didn’t want him to be sad. I wanted to wipe his tears away, to hug him. He was here now, and that was all that mattered.
But here wasn’t the warehouse. Here was a living room, a screened door separating us.
I reached up to touch my face, my hands coming away wet.Tears. I was crying. There was so much I wanted to say, and none of the words would come.
Stay. Don’t go. I love you.
In the silence, Winder gave me one last look. Then he walked away and didn’t turn back.
“Wakey, wakey.”
Someone kicked my foot, sending a twinge of pain up my leg. “Fuck you!”
There was no gentle wake up. There was only the immediate sense of fear, my eyes flying open, my hands coming up to protect myself. Someone must have bound my wrists again while I was unconscious.
“Conrad said you were feisty. I didn’t think you’d be this much fun.”
I looked up from the floor to see another man, with another ski mask covering his face. “Fuck you,” I repeated.
He hauled me to my feet by my arm. “Conrad is ready to see you, as long as you cooperate. And if you don’t, I’ve been given this.” He patted his pocket, where a syringe was just visible.
No. No more drugs. I didn’t want any more. I just wanted to go home. Home to Winder.
Was he looking for me?
“Put these on.” The man shoved a pair of running shoes toward me, sans socks.
Maybe he was expecting me to save myself. I wasn’t even sure how long I’d been gone for. It could’ve been days or weeks.Hopefully the former. I took the running shoes from the guard, and did my best to take stock of my situation. Bringing my shirt to my nose, I tried to see how long I’d been wearing the same clothes for, but I couldn’t tell. My hair clung limply to my cheeks and the back of my neck. The shoes were big, but not too terrible, all things considered. If I needed to run, I could.
“This way,” the masked guard said, pulling me away from my tiny space.
If Winder was expecting me to save myself, then I needed to give it all I could, so I could get home to him. Using all my strength, I stomped on my guard’s foot as hard as I could. It made a satisfying crunching sound beneath me.
“Fucking bitch! I’ll show you.” He squeezed my arm hard enough I thought he would break it, using his other hand to bring the syringe to his mouth, biting off the cap.
