Chapter 5: Sierra

I woke up with a loud gasp and a racing heart as I sat on the bed, eyes finally wide open. I had been trying to escape the nightmare where I was being kidnapped by a man who'd killed a defenseless guy in the alley outside the club.

It was about time my spirit regained control of my body, prompting me to wake up.

I let out a sigh, placing one hand on my chest while the other rubbed my sleepy eyes. I jerked my head at the wall clock in my dimly lit room, but it wasn't there. My hands reflexively wiped my eyes as though the remnants of sleep were the reason I wasn't seeing clearly.

I shifted toward the nightstand and turned on the lamp resting on top of it. The moment the light illuminated the room, I felt my heart skip a beat, and my brows rose at the setting of the space. That was definitely not my room.

"What the hell?" The words escaped my lips as I flung the sheets to the side and got out of bed.

The marble floor was cool beneath my feet, and I took a minute to look around. The room was quite big, beautiful with plush furniture and a nice interior decor.

"Where am I?" I wondered out loud.

Just then, I felt a pang at the back of my head, and with an instinctive move, my fingertips massaged the spot, and then, the memory hit me. "Fuck!"

My eyes bulged out in shock, and my breath ceased at the realization of the fact that what I'd thought was a nightmare was actually a memory . I had been fucking kidnapped. The strange and twisted part of all this was that I was taken by the same man I crushed on back at the club.

"Shit." I threw my hands into my hair, my stomach just about ready to empty itself. "This is real."

Panicking, I started scrutinizing the room; this time, I was looking for a means of escape. There were no windows at all, and the door was clearly locked.

Are you sure? Why don't you try it first? a voice in my head said.

But it didn't make any sense. Why would I be kidnapped, and the kidnappers would leave the door open? It was locked; I was certain of that.

There's no harm in trying, the voice persisted.

There was no other way out anyway, but I was still skeptical about trying something as silly as that because if I were the kidnapper, I'd never leave the door open.

Once I was done overanalyzing the situation I had no control over, I decided to head to the door but hesitated before grabbing the knob.

Open it.

My heart was racing, and I was already starting to sweat under this stupid dress. With a gentle twist over the knob, I pulled the door, and it began to creak, revealing a dark hallway. I almost smiled when a sense of achievement crept into my heart.

Told ya.

I really needed to start listening to that voice more often.

My shoulders yanked up as I squinted my eyes while gently pulling on the creaking door as though my actions would make it creak less noisily. At long last, the space between the door and its frame was enough to accommodate my figure; I stepped out in silence.

One of the perks of being slender was that I could pass through tiny spaces.

Now what? I asked myself, hoping that voice would direct me again but it was radio silent in my head. Great. Now, you leave.

The hallway was dark, with flickering lights in the ceiling that momentarily flashed glimpses of the empty corridor. It looked like one of those haunted hallways in a horror movie, and that gave me the creeps.

I swallowed hard and contemplated going back into the room—at least it was bright in there. But no, I had already passed the first stage. Onto the next one.

You got this , I encouraged myself. It's just like bypassing a series framework. You can do it.

With a sharp exhale, I summoned the courage and took the first step forward, then the second and the third, until I found myself at the center of the hallway, tiptoeing my way to God-knows-where.

As I moved with silent footsteps through the hallway of the shadow of death, I feared the evil that lurked in the dark. I saw glimpses of some portraits hanging on the walls on both sides, but I didn't have the luxury of pausing to examine them more closely.

After a short while in the hallway, I stepped out, and I saw the living room downstairs. It was still dark, but the dim light from the moon outside filtered into the luxurious space. I rushed to the curved staircase against the discomfort of the dress that wouldn't let me run. It was in situations like this that a pair of jeans always came in handy.

I walked down the steps and got to the living room that exuded wealth and comfort. The fine furniture and every other thing in the space were all strategically arranged to reflect the status of the owner. It was simple but classy. For a second, I paused to admire the grand setting of my captor's living room. However, I was quick to snap out of it. I needed to find a way out of this dark mansion; that was the mission, and I couldn't afford any type of distraction, no matter how beautiful.

Hold on a second , I thought to myself. Where's everyone? It's a fucking mansion, but I don't see a soul. The man from the alley wasn't alone, so even if he's asleep, why is there no one else trying to stop me? This is too simple.

Something was off about this. I could feel it, but that wouldn't stop me from trying to escape.

I wandered the living room for a few more seconds before finally finding a door. Before that, I'd checked the windows, but they were all locked.

Now, standing in front of this door, I wondered where it would lead if I were lucky enough that it wasn't locked. As I pondered on that, I heard footsteps approaching from behind, and I almost jumped out of my skin. Quickly, I grabbed the door handle, but after a couple of twists, I realized that I had run out of luck; the damn thing was locked.

The footsteps, slow and menacing, drew closer by the second, each click against the floor crippling my legs.

"Oh, God, no," I muttered, struggling with the door handle, my hands shaking as they slipped against the cool metal.

"You're wasting your time," the creepy figure in the shadows behind me said, halting in his tracks. "There's no way in hell you're getting out of here."

I trembled at his voice, shutting my eyes at the gravity of his words, and with immediate effect, I stopped struggling. There was a dryness in my throat that made it difficult to swallow any spittle, but I managed to push down the lump as I slowly turned in his direction.

It was somewhat dark, but the glow from the moon captured his face as he stepped closer to me. I had forgotten what an attractive man he was, and he was even hotter tonight. He stood before me, stripped from the waist upwards, with a pair of black pants on, also barefoot.

His dark, hollow eyes revealed no emotions as he towered over me, his imposing masculine build catching my eyes like a magnet.

I was right when I thought back at the club that his body would be covered in ink; it was. The tattoo painted his skin like a tight shirt, and my God, he was so hot.

He grabbed me by the waist, and I suddenly became breathless and defenseless at his touch. His cologne filled the air around us, and his eyes wouldn't shift off of mine.

I stared back at him, my mind wondering what exactly had me crippled, his touch or the fear of the darkness I saw in his eyes?

Our bodies collided, his bare skin brushing against the fabrics of my tight dress.

He'd captured me with his threatening masculinity and attractiveness. How could someone so handsome be so evil and cruel at the same time? Truly, looks were deceiving.

He gently brushed the back of his fingers over my face, and I struggled to stay composed despite the shock coursing through my trembling body.

It was difficult to breathe in such close proximity to him, and my heart was pounding in my chest like it was about to give out.

"What're you gonna do to me?" I managed to ask in almost a whisper.

"We've gone this road before," he said, his eyes trailing my body.

I gasped when he pulled me tightly to himself.

"I'll do whatever I want." His hand traveled along my figure.

I battered my lashes in an attempt to slow down my racing heart. His touch was weakening me, breaking down my defenses and leaving me vulnerable.

He smirked at my reaction and slipped a hand to the back of my neck. Clutching a handful of my hair, he pulled on it, jerking my head in the process. "You're in my house, which means you're at my mercy," he said, looking right at me. "And I don't like people snooping around my house, especially in the dead of night. Do you understand?"

I didn't let him finish his question before nodding rapidly.

"Good." He let go of my hair, but his eyes still lingered on me.

I stood there, unable to move for fear of angering him further.

"Go back to your room," he instructed, and although his voice was calm, I knew he wasn't someone I'd like to disobey. "I can guarantee you that what will happen next will be awful if you stand before me a second longer," he added.

Without second thoughts, I took off running, and despite the darkness in the house, I found my way back to the room. I got inside and slammed the door shut behind me, feeling the weight of the mess I'd gotten myself into.

With my back against the door, I let myself slide all the way down to the floor, where I threw my hands into my hair and wept over my current situation.

I'm fucked.