8. Ferris Wheel

Despondent and alone,Tallulah was unsure how much longer she had to remain in hell. She was exhausted from her masked tormentors' repeated abuse and continuous chase.

"You're doing wonderfully, Tallulah. Only a little longer. The sun will rise soon." His words gave her hope. "Think of your prize and the financial independence you will gain through this experience."

She honestly hadn't thought of the money once since she'd woken in the grave. In theory, it seemed so easy when no real stakes were involved. But now, it was a matter of survival. The prize money was the least of her worries.

Financial independence was hard won in this twisted game. Every inch of her body and willpower were being pushed to their limits. Would it be worth it if she couldn't face herself in the mirror afterward? What about recurrent nightmares from trauma?

Was it the drugs or her own fear that caused hallucinations? Reality blurred around her, and it had never been so appealing. Would any future experience offer her the same thrill?

"That's right, my sweet. Embrace the chaos."

"Where are you, Lucien?" she asked.

"The most ruthless of the group is on your trail. Run!" he shouted, ignoring her question.

Tallulah hesitated. "Where?"

She looked around for a clear path as a Viking horn sounded in the distance. She faced unknown peril, but nowhere Lucien had led her to that point had been safe.

She wanted to believe him. There was an inexplicable connection. But was he a savior or villain? What if he was there to torture her psychologically? He was the horror movie hero who convinced the heroine he was a good guy who stabbed himself to throw suspicion off. In the third act, he reveals himself as the bad guy, and she would be sorry if she didn't kill him.

What if he was genuine? He'd carried her ever so tenderly from the house of broken mirrors. The man in the royal mask, her prince. The man who'd lent a hand when she stumbled off the carousel.

Following the prince's advice, her feet found a flight of their own volition. Eventually, she came to a tall chain-link fence. Laughter bubbled from her chest as she realized it was the perimeter of the fairgrounds. It was surreal, seeing that the walls of her prison weren't walls at all. Anyone could scale the tall fence in or out.

Tallulah wrapped her fingers around the wire. The metal clinked as her body involuntarily sagged against it.

The alarming low mournful wail of a war horn sounded somewhere behind her, signaling it was time for the kill. It reverberated through her skull. She wanted to cower and cover her ears. Instead, she moved, intending to scale the fence.

"If you leave the boundary, it is an automatic forfeit."

Somehow, she knew she was the only one who could hear Lucien. It was as if he spoke directly using telepathy. That"s not possible, she thought.

"And yet, that's exactly what"s happening," he purred seductively. "You need to move, Tallulah. When you touched the fence, a perimeter alarm was triggered. Your location was compromised. Run west toward the Ferris wheel. If you make it to the warehouse, you can hide until your time runs out."

"I can't," she cried. "I can"t do this anymore. I"m sorry."

She returned her attention to the fence. Where would she go? What would she do? Returning to the life she had before didn't seem possible anymore.

"You are so close. I promise to come for you. Just wait for me in the warehouse. Now run!"

Tallulah gathered the strength she no longer had and ran. As the Ferris wheel came into view, Tallulah was amazed the thing remained standing. Several pods were missing. Snapped cables dangled freely, and the axle appeared cracked. The enormous structure leaned menacingly. One strong gust of wind seemed enough to topple the entire structure.

She turned away and focused on the warehouse—approximately 100 yards away. A wolf-whistle caught her attention from the lower deck of the Ferris Wheel.

The structure groaned, and a spoke broke free, plummeting to the ground. It landed a foot in front of her. It was followed in rapid succession by half a dozen other spokes. They blocked her path and allowed the ghost-faced man to catch her.

"Where do you think you"re going?" he asked in a raspy voice as though he'd smoked for hundreds of years.

He moved swiftly, causing Tallulah to fall to her knees. He grasped the ring around her neck and tugged. "I love a girl on her knees. But I have other plans first."

He grabbed her hair and twisted it in his fist. "Follow me."

Tallulah had no choice but to follow the ghost-faced man. He yanked so hard that a clump of hair tore from the roots, leaving her scalp on fire. She bit her lip to keep from screaming.

"I'm sorry, Tallulah," Lucien said. "Wait for me. I"ll find you no matter what."

Instead of providing comfort, his words were an ice bath to her tortured soul. She felt numb and empty inside, like all the hope and warmth had been sucked out of her. Tears welled in her eyes, and her knees became weak. For the first time, Tallulah felt like she was in actual danger.

"The collar in your neck tracks your vitals. If they detect an arrest, you will be extracted immediately. You have your safe word. Don"t be afraid to use it if you need to."

Tallulah steeled her resolve. She wasn't going to quit. She was so close to achieving her goal that she could taste it. The hellish night was testing her strength of character, but she would prove unbroken.

The ghost-faced man dragged her to the base of the Ferris Wheel. He threw her to the ground and laughed.

"I like my prey to show some fight. You"re just pathetic. Let"s see if we can wake you up."

He kicked her hard enough that it knocked the wind out of her. Tallulah planted her palms on the ground as she sputtered and tried to push herself up.

But he climbed over her back and wrapped his forearm around her throat. He pulled her back against his chest and increased the pressure. His clothed erection dug into her lower back, making her feel his excitement.

"Fight back," he growled.

Tallulah clawed at his bare arms, digging her nails in so deep they broke skin, but he didn"t relent. She fought like hell and attempted to elbow him, but his sleeper hold deprived her brain of the necessary oxygen to allow her muscles to move. His laughter in her ear was the last thing she heard as her body went like a rag doll.