Page 85 of Jessica's Hero

And why?—

Then it hits me. We’re in a missile silo. An abandoned one, like I saw in a documentary a few years ago. Apparently there are hundreds of them scattered around the country, most of them locked up and empty.

And with the first realization comes a second. This is where he plans to kill me. In this abandoned silo, where no one will venture for years.

“Aha. So now you get it.” Adam yanks a knife from his pocket and cuts the rope away from my ankles. Then he stands and jerks me to my feet, clutching my arm hard enough to bruise. “Isn’t it creative? Dumping you here? I always try to come up with unique ways to kill my victims. One whore, I tied up and left on a remote island off the coast of Maine. They still haven’t found her. Although I bet the animals have. And another; I tied her to the back of my boat and drove around until she drowned.” He laughs. “Poor girl. She really tried to last. But eventually, she gave up. Then I let her sink to the bottom of the lake.”

Now that I’m standing, I can see over the edge of the railing and down into the pit where the missile must have been stored. It’s filled with water, but there’s a good fifteen feet between the surface and the walkway, and the lone ladder attached to the wall has all the footholds broken.

Adam follows my gaze. “I did that,” he brags. “It wastricky, let me tell you. I had to set up a harness and everything. But I couldn’t very well dump someone in there if there’s a way out, could I?”

With the same punishing grip, Adam drags me towards a gap in the railing. I try to pull against him, but he’s too strong. He glances back at me and says, “There’s no escaping, Jessica. But look on the bright side. You won’t die right away. It’ll probably take hours before you run out of energy. Unless you want to give up right away.”

He angles his chin at a blinking red light on the wall across the pit. “Camera,” he explains unnecessarily. “So I can watch. I wish I could stay, but I’m on the evening shift tonight. So I’ll have to be satisfied with watching you die on the video feed instead.”

I’m so horrified, I can’t form words.

He’s going to throw me in the pit. Into that dark, dank water, and leave me there.

I’ll never see Kane again.

Never have the life I dreamed about.

Tears spring free again. “Please,” I beg. “Just let me go.Please.”

“I think it’s a little late for that, don’t you?”

Then.

He drags me towards the edge. Foot by foot, I watch my death approaching.

And then what? He’ll do this again? To another woman he deems a whore in his screwed up mind?

No.

If I have to die, I’m taking him with me.

“Well,” Adam says, once he has me inches from the edge. “I guess this is it. I’m not sure how well you’ll do staying afloat with only your feet, but I’ve heard peoplecan float for a long time. Hours. Maybe you should try that.”

Then he grabs both my arms and gives me a hard shove.

But I’m prepared this time.

I loop my leg around his, hooking him behind his knee.

I throw all my weight into him.

And instead of just me falling, we both plummet into the water.

I hit the surface with a breath-stealing smack. Instinctively, I close my mouth and hold my breath as I sink into the icy water. With my arms still bound behind me, there’s a few moments of sheer panic, when I think I’m going to keep going down to the bottom, that I’m going to die in minutes instead of hours.

But.

I used to be on the swim team in high school, back before everything went bad. And I still remember the coach making us tread water with just our legs, telling us how great of a conditioning exercise it was.

So I kick. And kick. Until my head bursts above the surface and I draw in a gasping breath.

Then I spin around, searching for Adam. Waiting for his inevitable attack. Fully expecting him to drown me for what I did.