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Chapter 1 – Serena

The hard piece of plastic under my head bumped and thumped as the vehicle rattled over the road. My skull cracked only to jump and drop again. A groan of pain whispered deep inside. The sound was trapped, unable to creep up my throat. My eyes were glued shut. I couldn’t find the strength to peel them open. Another rut in the road sent me jolting, but my limbs were rubber and unresponsive. Whatever they’d given me was strong enough to make me lose consciousness.

But not before I fought with every drop of drowsy strength I had.

Vivid images of my fist colliding with some goon’s smug face flashed through my mind. Right before his hand cracked across my cheek.

On cue, the damaged area pulsed.

I can’t believe this happened—again.

Clearly, Fate enjoyed playing this cruel trick a second time.

Lucky me.

Voices murmured in an Eastern European-sounding dialect. There was too much fog in my mind to pick out the words, not that I knew many aside from the bad ones. Besides, the radio was loud, And the engine of the vehicle gurgled and spluttered. My ears rang with a deafening buzz that probably meant there was some internal damage.

I remembered being thrown into the back seat, and they’d—

Slowly, I reached for my upper arm. Tender, the skin was tender. That was where they jabbed me however long ago.

I have to make a run for it.

Eye crusties and dried tears stuck my tired lids together. The natural lubricant turned the makeup into a caked mess, makingthe already tired muscles work twice as hard to open. It took a momentous effort, but I did it.

It was light out.

Even with the heavy tint of the windows, the amount of sunshine burned my retinas. The world spun. The unpaved road made the vehicle vibrate and shake. A wave of nausea pushed through me.

Oh, shit, I’m gonna puke.

Squeezing my eyes tight, I fought it with every drop of strength left in my aching muscles. If I threw up, I would lose the element of surprise. That was my biggest advantage with these criminals. I prayed to any saint listening that there was someone out there to help me. This wasn’t a situation where saving myself was possible.

The vehicle began to slow and turn.

I had to move!

This time when I looked, the rush of adrenaline kept back the sickness. My clutch was still across my body, although some of the contents had spilled onto the floor. I grabbed for the nail kit. While the file was just a flimsy emery board, the clippers had an extendable metal scraper, barely over an inch. It wasn’t a lot, but if I struck the right place, it would do some damage.

The vehicle stopped.

A war cry rang through my mind as I surged forward, arm extended. The slim piece of metal sank into flesh. I did it!

The passenger yelled and swatted at me.

The driver reached back, and the vehicle jerked as his foot lifted from the brake. I struggled and fought, stabbing at the soft flesh until the nail clippers was taken away. That didn’t stop me. My nails scored their faces. Back and forth, I continued to attack!

Stars exploded across my vision as pain bloomed along the side of my face. The blow landed right on top of the first one.

I crumpled.

“Pull ahead, pull ahead!” the passenger shouted at the driver.

“My eye’s bleeding!” the driver protested. The vehicle lurched.

A satisfied grin twitched on my lips. It was hard to judge how fast or slow the SUV was traveling. But I was fairly certain we weren’t speeding at cruising altitude.

The last-ditch effort was to run for it, and hope we weren’t in the wilderness.