The sound jerks me awake for half a second before fading into black. It feels like I’ve been asleep for hours when the car finally revs back to life, jostling me. We accelerate. A new song plays, a retro lullaby that triggers another wave of sleepiness. My eyes remain closed as we careen out onto the main drag, going faster than I’d expect given the weather conditions.
The brakes tap. A sharp jolt forward causes us to fishtail. I spill across the seat, confusion racing through me.
Someone growls, “Fuck.”
Eyes flying open, I lift up on my elbow, my vision glazed and unfocused.
Tires squeal. A hand smacks the steering wheel.
Another round offucks.
I snap my head up as I launch into a sitting position, now fully alert.
My gaze flicks to the rearview mirror.
Two startled eyes stare back at me. Wide, panicked, and decidedly unfamiliar.
I blink.
Blink again.
And then I scream.
“What the—” The stranger loses control of the wheel, veering off the road and careening toward a ditch.
Holy shit.
I think I’ve just been kidnapped.
Chapter 2Annalise
“Who theshitare you?” I scramble in place, grappling with the seat belt as the car skids in and out of the ditch before ungracefully finding its way back to the main road.
The vehicle jolts left and right, vying for stability, and I topple sideways, nearly face-planting on the floor.
“Fuck. My. Life.” The driver slaps a flat palm against the wheel.
My eyes dart around as I try to gather my bearings: familiar gray upholstery, a stain on the back seat from the Blue Slushy Fiasco of 2019, and a little red guitar charm swinging from the rearview mirror.
I’m still in Tag’s car.
But the driver is most certainlynotTag.
Instinct has me searching for my phone, but I already know that my brother has it.
An unfortunate consequence of drunk texting.
Shit.
I manage to prop myself upright, dragging the belt across my chest andlocking myself in. “What the hell? Who are you? Where’s my brother?” The evening’s alcohol haze is gradually replaced with confusion and terror. “Let me out!”
I scream again, tugging on the door handle.
“Whoa!” The stranger cants his head over his shoulder, his face ashen, eyes wild. “Hey, hey, I’m not going to hurt you, okay?”
“Bullshit!” I gape out the window as starlight blurs with the occasional streetlamp and snow barrels down in angry white swirls. “Stop the car!”
“It’s blizzarding!” he yells back, voice pitching. “There’s nothing but snow and woods for three miles.”
