EVE's POV
"Eve! Wake up!" A voice sliced through the darkness, jerking me awake. I blinked, trying to pierce the pitch black. An eerie silence pressed in.
"Ooouuh." I grimaced as a monstrous headache slammed into me. I reached for my head and that's when I realized my hands were tied. The memories crashed in – the blinding lights, the masked faces, the sickening lurch as the car swerved. My wedding gown, still clinging to me, felt like a shroud. I was a hostage.
Panic clawed at my throat, but I forced myself to breathe, to think. With trembling fingers, I worked at the knot, the rough hemp biting into my skin. Finally, the rope loosened, and my hands were free, though numb and aching. I strained my eyes, trying to pierce the darkness.
"Lexi! Stephanie!" I called, my voice barely a whisper, but there was no response. Panic clawed at my throat.
My gaze swept the room, searching for any sign of them. Thankfully, I made out shapes huddled on the far side. They looked…still. I pushed myself to my feet, my legs shaky and unresponsive, and stumbled toward them, each step a prayer that they were alive.
As I got closer, the faint moonlight revealed the shimmering beadwork on one of their gowns. Relief flooded me. They were here.
"Lexi, Steph," I whispered, squatting beside them, gently shaking them awake. On the third try, their eyes fluttered open.
"Eve…" Stephanie mumbled, her voice thick with sleep and confusion. "Thank God… Are you okay?" She struggled to sit up, her eyes wide and unfocused.
"Are you hurt?" Lexi asked, concern etched on her face.
I nodded, fighting back the tears that threatened to drown me.
"Thank God you two are okay too." My voice cracked, raw with fear and relief. I embraced them, clinging to their warmth, then fumbled with the ropes binding their hands.
"Where are we, anyway?" Stephanie asked, her voice trembling as we finally stood, surveying our prison. It wasn't a room. It was a cell. Cold, damp cell, the air thick with the smell of mildew and despair.
"We need to find a way out," Lexi whispered her voice barely audible. We both nodded, but how do we even leave this cell? I was about to ask when Lexi's hand moved to her hair. With a swift, practiced motion, she removed a hairpin, her long, luscious blonde hair cascading down her shoulders like liquid moonlight.
"Your hair is really pretty," I blurted, the compliment a fragile attempt to break the tension.
"Let's save the compliments for when we're out of here," she said, a ghost of a smile on her face. She moved to the heavy iron lock, her fingers nimble and sure as she inserted the pin. We stood beside her, holding our breath, the silence broken only by the faint click of the tumblers. I was in awe – I thought this kind of talent was only reserved in films.
She loosened the chains around the door and gently pushed the iron door, which groaned in protest before creaking open. Lexi peered into the hallway, scanning left and right before stepping out. We followed close behind.
Gaining a better view, it was an abandoned warehouse. We turned right and started our escape. It was going smoothly until we heard voices behind us. We quickened our pace, running headlong into the last person I expected: Frederick.
"I really enjoyed your little escape plan, Eve and company," he said mockingly, closing in on us with his men. For some reason, I wasn't as surprised as I thought I would be.
We whirled around, trying to run the other way, but froze at the sound of a gunshot.
"Take another step, Eve, and I'll kill your friends," he warned, his words sending a cold shiver down my spine.
"What do you want?" I asked, as his men retied our hands and shoved us towards him.
"What I've always wanted: you," he sneered, his eyes gleaming with a possessive hunger that made my stomach churn. He reached out, his fingers hovering inches from my cheek. I flinched, turning my face away from his touch, the revulsion rising in my throat.
The rejection sparked a flicker of rage in his eyes. He seized my face in his hand, his grip bruising.
"Don't worry," he said, his voice a low, cruel caress. "Once we're in another country, spending quality time together, you'll learn to love me the way I love you." He smirked, his eyes like chips of ice.
He was still holding my face captive when one of his lackeys leaned in, whispering urgently in his ear. Frederick's smile vanished, replaced by a tight frown, a flicker of anxiety in his eyes.
"Take them to the cars, now!" he barked, his voice sharp with command.
The men, numbering more than fifty, followed behind us, while a smaller group escorted us in three cars to God knows where.
"Where are my friends?" I asked as soon as our car sped away. I was riding with him, separated from Lexi and Steph.
"In the other car," Frederick said, his voice devoid of emotion. "Their life and safety depend on you, so I suggest you don't do anything stupid."
My heart shattered. Tears stung my eyes, blurring my vision. How could this be Frederick? The shy, awkward boy from fifth grade? The gap between then and now was a chasm I couldn't bridge.
My thoughts turned to Chris. He must be frantic, consumed by worry. Today, of all days. Our wedding. Our celebration. Now, we were worlds apart, bound by nothing but fear and desperation.
I turned to the window, tears streaming down my face. I remembered our last video call, Chris's face lighting up the screen, his smile a beacon of warmth and love. I instinctively reached for my neck, my fingers brushing against the cold, hard facets of the diamond pendant he'd given me. A small spark of hope flickered within me. He must be searching for us. I had to hold on.
"What happened to you, Frederick?" I asked, turning to face him. He seems tl consider my question as his expression shifted, a flicker of something akin to sadness crossing his face.
You... you made me this way," Frederick hissed. "If you had loved me like I loved you, maybe we wouldn't be here. I could have given you the world. But what did you do, hmm? You let that damned Christopher fill your head with lies…giving him your body." He spat the last words like poison.
I bit back a retort, the lies burning on my tongue, but I thought of the girls and swallowed them down. The car lurched, throwing us forward as the driver slammed on the brakes.
A sharp knock on the window. Frederick grounded his teeth as he lowered the glass. One of his men leaned in, whispering urgently. Frederick's jaw tightened, his knuckles bone-white around his clenched fist.
*His plan was falling apart. It had to mean Chris, my family, was closing in*. A dangerous spark of hope flickered in my chest. I forced myself to remain still, to betray nothing.
"Turn back," Frederick barked, his voice tight with suppressed rage. "We're moving to the base."
"But boss—" the man started, but Frederick cut him off.
"Turn back. The base is the safest place, for now," he stated, brooking no argument.
The car screeched around, taking an unknown route.
We drove for what felt like hours, deeper and deeper into the forest. Finally, the car stopped in a small clearing, the night pressing in around us.
"Come down," Frederick ordered. I obeyed, my legs stiff and trembling. I scanned the surroundings, relieved to see Lexi and Stephanie being pulled from the other car, roughly shoved toward us.
"Move!" one of the guards barked, shoving the barrel of his gun into my back.
"Don't point that thing at her!" Frederick snapped, and the guard lowered the weapon instantly.
"Are you okay? Did he hurt you?" Steph whispered as we were briefly herded together, the guards keeping a close watch.
We saw one of the men crouch down, his hand disappearing into the ground. A low rumble echoed through the clearing. A square section of the ground began to rise, revealing a metal box. He pressed a button, and two doors slid open with a hiss.
A damned elevator, buried beneath the forest floor.
"Oh, don't worry," Frederick said, his smile a predatory gleam in the darkness. "No one will ever find us here."
For the first time all day, a genuine, paralyzing fear gripped me. The fear of being lost, of being forgotten.
I glanced back, a desperate plea for rescue in my eyes, as Frederick seized my arm and dragged me into the lift. The metal doors slid shut, sealing us in.