Page 10 of Beautifully Ruined

And why the hell is Jean so special she’s been held this long?

I’m not sure why I believe her on the eight months. But I do. Because I’d remember the date I was stolen, too. Forever. I might not notice time passing, but being taken? When? Where? Day? Time? Year?

Absolutely.

So, I shut my mouth.

I won’t speak to her, and I won’t sass the captors, either. Not for my own sake. But for Jean’s.

The girl has been into hell. And she knows there are deeper layers of hell waiting.

I’m not about to push her into them.

Or myself.

My door swings open, slamming against the wall.

As a man steps in, his frame almost the size of the door, my heart hammers in my chest.

He strides over to me and drags me up.

“The boss wants to see you.”

I tremble as his hand clamps about my upper arm, and I’m dragged from the cell. I try to look to see Jean’s door, but another sack is pushed over my head as we take the first step, and I’m blinded once more.

Oh, god. Why didn’t I push Jean for her name when I asked and didn’t quite catch it? Why didn’t I push for more of her story instead of letting her ramble?

There are basic questions I didn’t ask, like her age, where she’s from, her parentage. Mybe they’re known or important or maybe I’ve read about her.

All those things that might help me identify her if I get out of here. What she looks like, for starters. All I have is pretty.

What if they never take me back to that same cell? I might never know. And if I am taken back, what if she’s gone?

I start to struggle, earning a hard slap across my face that whips back my head.

After that I comply, and I’m led down the corridor for what seems like an endless distance, and then we turn.

Then the hood is ripped off as I’m thrown inside a room, barely managing to stay on my feet.

It takes me a moment, but then I zero in on the one man I want to see.

My heart crumples and throbs painfully. My hand flies to my mouth even as I want to reach out to him.

“Cade…”

He’s battered, bruised.

But he’s alive.

And he offers me the smallest smile that makes my heart skip a beat.

There’s another man in here. A body, too. And suddenly, a thousand things swirl around me.

And then I get what the smile was.

He wants me to know he’s alive, and to be quiet.

I focus on him.