Chapter 3

I bit down hard, unable to stop myself.

I could taste blood in my mouth.

Anyone else might not know what terrified me, but Drake was supposed to understand.

But of course, he'd forgotten.

So I forced out a reluctant "Alright."

The whole group, excited and noisy, jostled me right into the shadowy, deep tunnel.

Drake gently rested his hand at Lynn's waist and assured her, "Don't be scared."

My mind blanked out for a moment; suddenly, the tunnel before me twisted into a filthy, reeking alley.

The flickering lights blurred and faded, replaced by daylight so vague and hazy, it felt like I was looking through a blindfold.

The happy noise all around shifted into the ugly, leering laughter of grown men.

My legs trembled, and my whole body went cold in an instant.

I clung to the wall, unwilling to take another step forward.

At the end of that alley, I knew all too well what waited for me: the stink, the pain, the choking air.

Out of nowhere, someone grabbed my wrist.

Lynn's innocent voice rang out right next to my ear. "Gail, why are you stopping here? This is just the entrance."

She didn't let me say a word, just dragged me in while I trembled, stammering, "N-No, please, don't."

Lynn looked like she'd spotted something amusing, and with even more force, dragged me deeper inside.

The suffocating heat from that afternoon washed over me all over again—sticky, filthy sweat, and hands grabbing at me without a trace of restraint.

I crouched on the ground, and out of nowhere, couldn't stop myself from screaming, "No! I said no!"

Everyone else had already rushed deep into the tunnel, leaving just me and Lynn behind.

Lynn crouched down, looking at me with curious interest. "So you really went through all that? You're so dirty. And Drake actually wants to marry you?"

I was shaking all over, my throat tight with sobs, unable to get a single word out.

The rage I felt at eighteen came rushing back, mixing with all the pain I felt right now, and I slapped Lynn with everything I had.

Drake burst through the door just as he finished his call. "Gail, what the hell are you doing?"

He hurried in, grabbed my wrist with a grip so fierce I felt my bones might crack. He shouted, "Are you out of your mind? Why did you hit Lynn? Why do you always have it in for her?"

"Are you really this fragile? Is going through this escape room gonna kill you or something?"

I'd lost count of how many times I'd seen Drake look at me with that kind of anxious tenderness.

But now all that care was for somebody else, not me.

Then he turned and caught sight of my face, drenched in tears, and just stopped cold.

He started, "Gail, you..."

I kept sobbing uncontrollably, my body trembling, gripped by fear I just couldn't shake off.

He seemed out of it for a moment, then rushed over, flustered, wiping at my tears like he didn't know what else to do.

It was like when we were eighteen—he'd sit there totally lost, crying with me because he couldn't figure out what to say.

I grabbed his hand and sank my teeth deep into the spot between his thumb and forefinger, biting hard until blood began to seep out.

"Drake, I hate you," I declared.

I flagged down a taxi and didn't look back, heading home.

Lynn's crying echoed behind me, wavering and thin. Drake hesitated, following me for a moment, but then turned around and went right back to her.

Maybe it was the alcohol, but my head was throbbing like hell.

Once I got to my destination, I slumped on the curb, just trying to breathe.

Drake blew up my phone with calls and messages the whole time.

I didn't bother reading most of them, just skimmed enough to see they were all the same crap: [Lynn didn't mean it,] [She had no idea,] whatever.

Her name flooding my screen was enough to drive me insane.

My anger burned away every last bit of reason.

I hurled my phone to the ground in pure hatred.

I knew it was pathetic and useless, just weakness showing through.

But how could I not hate Drake?

When we were eighteen, Drake would get upset over even the smallest frown on my face.

Now, at twenty-six, he just told me to quit being so petty—especially when it was about another girl.

I'd lost the Drake I had that summer.

With a violent crack, lightning split the sky in the distance, lighting up my face for a split second. Rain started pouring down in sheets.

I wiped the rain from my face and frantically fumbled for my phone, desperate to stand up and get moving.

But the very next moment, an arm tightened viciously around my neck from behind. My feet left the ground as I was yanked off balance and dragged deep into the bushes.

My heart thundered in my chest as I struggled with everything I had, fighting desperately for my life.

Before I could even scream, a towel was crammed mercilessly into my mouth, muffling my cries and leaving me helpless, my protests drowned out in desperate whimpers.

I'd just been abducted.

Lightning streaked across the sky over and over, and torrents of rain drenched me from head to toe.

I tried to scream for help but the rain drowned out every sound I made.

Shivers wracked my body—I couldn't even tell if it was from the freezing wet or just pure terror.