A few more slaps and threats, and we're back on the road. We stop, and Torres and the other men get out to pee. We're somewhere in the jungle, and I reach for my door to get out and run. But the man next to me holds my hands together in his.
As I sob, I begin to beg him to let me go. All it does is entertain Torres and his crew. The humor in their eyes registers with me, and I finally stop the fight.
It's no use. I'm their prisoner. Soon, I will be Carlos's again.
The vehicle moves forward through the bumpy terrain and nighttime falls. Everything turns dark. The howls of the jungle animals mock me. The noises are sad, lonely, and desperate. It creates another bout of anxiety so strong, I grip the man's arm next to me when my heart feels like it's exploding.
And it is. It's bursting into millions of pieces over losing Hunter. I don't know if he is okay or not. I will never see him again. The life I wanted with him is now gone.
Tiredness sets in, but in a haze, I focus on the darkness, wishing it would gobble me up and some animal would eat me alive, if only to prevent my future.
I'm not sure how late it is when the car stops. I don't move and keep staring out the window into the darkness.
Torres gets out, and that's when a new chill forms in my spine and fills my bones so intensely, I start to dry heave.
The door whips open, and when Carlos pulls me out and touches me, the savage beast in me returns.
Hysterically, I punch, hit, and try to kick him while screaming unintelligible things. He's too strong and wraps me in his arms, and it's like a chain shackling me. Torres and Carlos are talking, but I don't hear any of it. I just continue to scream and cry.
Eventually, Carlos drags me through the house and throws me into a cold shower.
The water does nothing to calm me. It throws me into another panic attack, and I sit on the seat in the shower and begin rocking and humming.
I don't remember anything else. When I wake up, I'm in Carlos's bed. The sun is shining, but I can't move. There is beeping, and I turn my head.
The woman I initially confided in about Carlos, who I thought was my friend, is sitting next to the bed. Her name is Esther, and she's smiles.
"Well, you look a bit better. Are you ready to join the rest of society?"
It wasn't a nightmare. I'm back.
"Carlos has been waiting for you. Do you think you can act appropriately now?"
I try to move my body again but can't. The panic in me grows. "I can't move. Something is wrong." My voice is raspy and barely there.
"Nothing is wrong, Vanessa. We had to make arrangements for you since you couldn't control yourself and act like the lady Carlos deserves."
"What? I...?" Tears fall.
She tsks me then pulls back the blankets. "You'll get to move when you can agree to behave."
Slowly, I look down, and a new panic attack starts. From my shoulders to my ankles, white cloth wraps me like a mummy.
He put me in a full-body straitjacket.
22
Hunter
There's so much noise and pounding in my head.
I cover my ears but don't move. Something warm and gooey is oozing down my face.
Go back to sleep. This is a bad dream.
Dream. My eyes fly open, and I throw my head back too fast off the steering wheel. Blood rushes through my brain, and I lean to the passenger seat and throw up.
Where is she?
"Flower," I weakly call out, but I already know she's gone.
They took her.
He has her.
I need to get my ass up and find her.
I wipe my mouth on my arm and try to open the door to the truck, but it's stuck. I have to bring my feet up and kick it several times to open it.
When I stand, I'm dizzy and start vomiting again. I hold the side of the door, and when I finish, I take a few steps.
Where is my gun?
I stagger to open the back door. I grab the backpack from the floor and sling it over my shoulder.
It feels so heavy.
Toughen up. He has her.
I blink a few times, trying to figure out where I am and how to get to my Flower, but something is wrong. My vision is off, and when I try to take a few steps, I fall on the ground. Everything turns black.
When I wake up, I'm in a small bedroom, in a twin-size bed. Pain still fills my head, but I force my eyes to stay open.
Where am I?
What is that smell? Garlic, tomatoes, and onions flare in my nostrils. Pasta?
My stomach growls.
I sit up on the bed and focus on a spot on the wall until my head stops spinning then rise. Cautiously, I step into the hall. There is a bathroom, so I use it and continue toward the smell.
A woman with red hair is cooking, her back toward me.
I clear my throat, and she jumps. When she spins, she looks familiar, but I can't place her. Her bright-green eyes are kind, and my guess is she's in her late twenties.
"Hey, how you feeling?"
"Ummm...fine, I guess. I'm sorry, but where am I? And I know you, but how?"
She pulls out a chair. "Why don't you sit? You're swaying a bit."
I don't have any reason to fight her, so I do.
She stares at me.
"Ma'am?"
She straightens and chirps. "Oh, yes! Sorry. I'm Sadie, the receptionist."
Sadie, the...
"Canadian, right?"
Her grin widens. "That's me."
"How did I get here?"
"My husband, Kyle, and I saw the accident."
My pulse increases. "You saw Vanessa get kidnapped?"
"Yes. Poor girl. We couldn't do anything about that. We were so far away, and the earthquake did so much damage to the road. After you got out of the truck, you dropped to the ground. The hospitals are overwhelmed and...well, I got the impression you were running from something when you checked in to the hotel."
"Why's that?"
"Your face. It was beaten pretty badly before the accident."
If only I hadn't gotten into it with Ryker. We could have been on a plane.
I reach up and touch my forehead and wince.
"You might not want to touch it. I've been icing your face the last few days."
Panic consumes me. "How long have I been here?"
"Three days."
"Three days," I bark, and she jumps. "Sorry."
She nervously laughs. "It's okay."
"I need to go. Thank you for everything, ma'am." I rise, the room spins, and I quickly sit down again.
"Whoa. You might want to stay seated for a bit. Kyle was a medic in the military, and he said he thinks you have a concussion. He's been checking on you as well."
I close my eyes and swallow hard.
Time to pull my shit together so I can find Flower.
Sadie drags a chair out from under the table and sits on it. "Honduras isn't the safest place. Kyle recognized the man in the car who abducted your girlfriend."
"Jonas Torres?"
She nods. "Yes. That's correct."
"Well, thank you, ma'am, for your help, but I need to get Vanessa back." I attempt to rise again, but she puts her hand on my shoulder.
"Sit down. You're going to fall."
I take a deep breath and stay seated. I've never had a concussion before, and it's the first time I've ever been off-balance. I focus on the seat next to me and see my backpack. I snatch it up.