Chapter 13

ChapterThirteen

RUE

I’m impatient as I sit in this room alone and wonder what I should do. My fingers toy with the end of my dress because I need to keep my hands busy. I’m sure there’s a camera on me, but I don’t want to openly search for it. They might catch on to what I’m going to do next.

Who knows how many people are watching me? With each second that ticks by, my anxiety grows and my mind races with the different possibilities. None of them end well. I hate that Maxim left me here. He was so cold in his order for me to stay put like a trained dog. His mood shifts mess with my head more than anything else.

I’ve really gotten into a bind. I suppose even a cat only has nine lives. I’ve surely used up all of mine, and now my luck is coming to an end. Petty crime is easy, but this is a whole other level. I’m willing to admit I’m in over my head.

There was no sign on the building, and I don’t have a clue where I actually am.

Everything that Maxim told me could be a lie, but what would be the purpose of that? Then again, I didn’t understand why he took me in the first place. He wasn’t arresting me for something I did, so maybe there’s a piece I’m missing? I can flirt my way out of a lot of things or play ditzy long enough to slip away. But this time I think I might have been bested.

Has Maxim played me? What he did to me went past flirting, and it only goes to show that once again, I’m in the deep end of the pool, and I have no freaking clue how to swim. I’m barely treading water, and with each second that passes, I sink further.

After five minutes and more intrusive thoughts, I know I have to get out of this room. Even if it’s only to poke around the building or get myself outside of it. Being in this room alone is too much. I’m cornered, and that’s the last thing I should let happen. Outside would be safer. I could breathe and be able to think more clearly.

I’ll have to be quick. The camaras might only be there to record everything, but someone could be monitoring them. It wasn’t a long walk to this room from the exit. I jump up quickly before I lose my nerve and key in the code to the door. The lock disengages, and I let out a sigh of relief.

Slowly I start to open the door but pause when I hear voices. I can’t make out what they are saying but they keep walking and then the voices grow distant. When I can’t hear them any longer, I peek out into the hallway and glance both ways.

When I don’t see anyone, I look farther out and check the hallway. For some reason, it appears to be a million times longer than I remember. It’s like Stephen King’s The Shining, but thankfully, no creepy twins are at either end.

This is my chance.

I know it, but my hand stays on the handle of the door, and it keeps me in limbo. If I leave, what will that mean? I don’t trust myself not to run when I get outside because it’s all I know. It’s normally my first instinct, but right now, all I can think is, what will it mean to Maxim if I run? Could I really leave him behind? The thought makes my chest ache, and it’s enough to force me back into the room. But as soon as I start to take a step it’s too late.

“Rue.” My heart drops at the sound of my name because I know that voice. Gavin. I swing my gaze to the other side of the hallway and see him standing there with blood splattered on his clothes. This might be worse than the twins from The Shining. “I finally got you, you little cunt!” Gavin shouts before barreling down the hallway toward me.

Scared to get cornered in the room, I dart down the hallway toward the exit door. I run as fast as I can, praying that the door opens without needing a code to get out. I know I won’t have the time to enter it with him hot on my heels.

When I reach the door, my hands slam into it, and it opens. The sun hits my face and gives me a taste of freedom, but my relief is short-lived. I only make it ten yards before Gavin grabs me from behind by my hair and yanks me back.

“Got you,” he seethes, and I let out a yelp.

My eyes sting with tears from the sharp pain that rips through my skull. “No!” I scream, hoping to draw attention. I lift my foot and bring it down on top of his as I swing my elbow into his side with all my might. Gavin grunts but doesn’t release me. Pain shoots through my foot because the thin flats I have on aren’t made for doing damage. Well, maybe to myself.

“Yes!” he hisses next to my ear.

Gavin’s warm breath makes me sick, and when I feel his arm wrap around me from behind, I want to vomit. He lifts me off my feet, and although I try to fight him, it’s pointless. I stop struggling, knowing I’m only going to wear myself out. I need to save my energy for when I might have a real chance to get away.

Gavin carries me over to Maxim’s car, and then my fear spikes higher. He pulls out a gun and uses the butt of it to bust out the passenger side window. It shatters, and he reaches in to pop the trunk.

“No!” I start fighting again when I realize what he’s about to do.

Gavin carries me to the trunk and then drops me inside. The impact knocks the wind out of my lungs, but I have no time to react before he grabs my hair again. He’s enraged as he lifts my head to only slam it back down onto the floor of the trunk. Spots dance in my eyes before they’re replaced by total darkness.

Somewhere in the distance, I hear the trunk close, and I know that I’m alone.

My last fleeting thought before I lose consciousness is, I’m always alone.