Page 23 of Trapped (Snowbound with a Stranger #2)

Head Fog

Erin

With the gun held out in front of me, I leaned against the wall and forced myself on. The legacy of my earlier sickness lingered, leaving not only the perennial bad taste in my mouth, but the kind of low-lying headache that never seemed to wane. There was no choice but to ignore the symptoms, and keep moving, though, however clouded my head seemed.

I had to get out of there, had to dodge whatever overpaid lackies Hawkins was sending and find a path to freedom, but first I hoped beyond hope, that I’d find Eli.

Silly.

It was silly and I knew it. I should have been focused on saving myself, but that was no consolation as I pressed on. However ridiculous it seemed, I believed in the fanciful premise that there was a possible future for the two of us. I might survive on my own, might discover a route out and somehow make it back to whatever remained of my life, but with Eli by my side and Hawkins’ sorry interference behind us—I aspired for more than only survival—I wanted to flourish.

His was the mental image in my head as I stumbled forward. His was the voice urging me to take care when the hand holding the gun began to tremble, and his were the arms I imagined holding me up when my feet didn’t feel as though they could take me on. After everything we’d been through together, and all that had happened since I last saw him, I couldn’t seem to get the man out of my head.

Eli.

I longed to say his name, to feel the word on my lips again—just as I yearned to see his face—but in the dark silence of the hall I didn’t dare risk attracting unwarranted attention. I’d managed to avoid running into any unwelcome friends since I’d made my break from Hawkins’ office, but I wasn’t an idiot. I knew my luck would run out eventually and when it did I had to be ready to do the unthinkable, and actually use the weapon in my grasp.

My breaths were labored as my focus fell to the evil looking gun, my shaky fingers trying not to squeeze the trigger. I’d always hated the things, and recalled how freaked out I’d been when Eli had first revealed the weapon he’d been carrying, but in the last few days guns had appeared to become a necessary evil. So much so, that I’d chosen to pluck the one Hawkins had hidden in his desk drawer before I fled from his office.

Lowering the weapon slightly, I glanced along the corridor ahead, wondering which direction to head. There appeared to be a left and right option coming up, and before then, three doorways, all of which were closed. It made sense to press on up the hallway and look for a potential exit, but the thought also occurred that Eli could be hidden behind any of those doors.

As could Hawkins, or any of his ‘friends’.

I shivered at the thought, knowing the reality was far from unlikely. I had to be prepared for anything.

Resuming my journey, I inched along the hall, conscious of the sound of my footsteps along the hard floor. The good news about those echoes was that I’d have heard a potential foe approaching, but the bad news was those enemies would have also heard me.

I paused by the first closed door, contemplating whether it was worth checking inside. I had no way of knowing where Eli had been stashed away and, I accepted, even if I happened upon him, Hawkins could have left an armed goon to watch over him. The fact I was armed too was less reassurance that it should have been. I knew nothing about guns, while the theoretical goon would likely have a lot of experience, but I was determined not to allow my fear to guide me. If I slipped out of Hawkins’ compound without discovering Eli, I’d be alive, but I was condemning myself to a life of not knowing his fate—a life of wondering whether Eli had made it and what could have been between us if I’d only been braver.

I wasn’t going to let that happen.

If there was one thing our short, impetuous and passionate affair had taught me, it was to live for the moment. No one knew what the next day would bring—James, Miles and Chelle’s fates were a glum reminder of that—the only day we had was the one we were currently living.

Seizing control of my bubbling anxiety, I turned the handle of the nearest door and pushed it open a fraction. I had to take the chance and check every room while I was there. If I made it out, I had to know I did everything I could to find Eli.

The door moved in what seemed like slow motion, fear rising to choke me as my gaze darted inside to meet the darkness, and to my relief, there was nothing but silence inside.

“Hello?”

I whispered into the gloom just in case some frightened soul was tied up inside, although I couldn’t imagine the man who’d mastered me being that person. When there was no response, I closed the door quietly, before moving on. There were two more doors before I had to choose which way to go next and I intended to ensure both of them were as empty as the first.

Buoyed by my courage, I was halfway toward the next door when a sudden, perturbing noise met my ears—not footsteps that time, but something far more disturbing.

“Why me?”

The sound of a disgruntled man’s complaint reverberated from somewhere, spiking my heart rate. His voice was coming from the end of the corridor, though I couldn’t discern which direction he was coming from.

“The last thing I need to worry about is baby-sitting some woman.”

“Because that’s the order.”

Another man replied, his voice silently instructing my feet to take me to the nearest door.

“If the boss tells you to jump then you don’t bother asking how high, you just make sure your feet leave the ground.”

“Really?”

The first guy whined.

“Is that how this works?”

“You know it.”

The other man’s response sounded smug.

“Keep doing as you’re told and he might reward you with the pussy.”

My heart stopped altogether at the crude reference. I had no way of knowing if I was the ‘pussy’ the thugs referred to, but I knew I didn’t want to be around to find out. It had been dreadful enough attempting to fight off Hawkins’ advances, but the thought of the hordes of daft followers he had strewn around the place also assaulting me was simply too much. I didn’t know if the next room was occupied or not, but if there was any chance it was empty, I had to take it. I couldn’t be standing there when the strangers rounded the corner to discover me.

Acting on that self-preservation reflex, I reached for the handle and pushed the door open. The soothing black that greeted me was the greatest reprieve yet and slipping into it, I closed the door behind me.

Pressing my back against the wood, I steadied the gun and tried to calm my breathing. Standing there I was glad the contents of my stomach had already emptied itself over Hawkins because the way my belly was cramping threatened to deposit any remaining vomit in the latest proximity. A few deep breaths helped to quell the nausea, though the approaching threat did little to assuage the desire.

For all I knew the two could be heading to the very room I sought sanctuary in, but I doubted it. Their language had spoken of ‘baby-sitting’ and that was how Hawkins had referred to me before he’d scuttled off to the bathroom. I had every reason to believe the two of them would pass right past the door toward Hawkins office, presumably on route to where they expected to find me.

That meant two things. First, Hawkins hadn’t yet realized I was gone, and that was pleasing. No doubt the odious git was too busy cleaning and preening himself to have given me much thought since I’d vomited over him, but it also presented the unmistakable fact that once his goons arrived at his office and found me gone, they were going to sound the alarm.

Holding my breath, I pushed my ear to the wood and waited. Their voices were louder, but with the timber barrier between us, their words were harder to discern. Nevertheless, as they presumably passed directly behind me, I was able to make out more of their horrid exchange.

“… not this time no!”

It was difficult to tell which of them was speaking.

“The boss seems keen to have this one to himself.”

My eyes fell closed. If I had anything to do with proceedings, their boss wasn’t going to be having anything from me.

“I didn’t think it would be like this…”

One of them was still protesting as their voices trailed away toward Hawkins’ office, my senses primed in case they changed their minds and did a one-eighty. I stayed there long after their voices were no longer audible, suspended in the intensity of such a close brush with danger. Even though the apparent risk had passed, I couldn’t compel my feet to move again.

“Come on.”

Whispering the words into my chest, I tried to coerce myself, but the quiet darkness of the room had taken on an odd solace I hadn’t expected. I didn’t know what waited for me outside, but in that moment at least, I was safe in there.

“I have to get Eli and get out of here.”

In the end, I persuaded my fingers to turn the handle, and peeking my head into the corridor, I checked the coast was clear.

They’re gone. This is as safe as it gets.

Stumbling out into the hallway, I blinked at the abrupt light. The shadows had been my sanctuary, but the only way out of the shithole was in the light.

Inching to the end of the corridor, I glanced nervously in both directions, trying to decide which way to go. For all I knew both led to certain doom, and with no new information to guide me, it was essentially a fifty-fifty choice. I opted to stay against the wall that was currently propping me up and turn right, a decision that gripped fresh apprehension in my stomach as I forced myself on.

The new hallway was narrower than the last one, and a quick survey of it revealed there were no obvious doorways. If another of Hawkins’ friends came wandering, there’d be nowhere to hide. The next encounter was going to be a lot messier and there wouldn’t be a damn thing I could do to take it down a notch.

Best keep moving.

It was the only thing I could think as I lurched on, trying to stay as close to the wall as possible.

I wasn’t entirely sure why, but dragging my free palm along the fading paintwork centered me somehow, as though the wall was going to absorb me in any worst-case scenario.

I seemed to have conveniently forgotten that it was the black weapon in my other hand that was likely to be my savior, the gun hanging toward the floor as my journey progressed.

The passageway seemed endless, meter after meter of faded paint, all part of the same never-ending labyrinth sent to torment me.

Glad to be away from the morons sent to supervise me, I was still far from safety and no closer to finding the man who’d smashed into my world and turned everything on its head.

Without Eli, I’d never have found myself in the grim destination, would never have encountered Hawkins or have ended up tied-up in his hideous office, but that was mainly because without Eli, I’d have probably frozen to death in the wilderness.

Eli was both the bane and the solution, the poison and the remedy.

For everything he’d put me through and all the trauma he’d inspired, I should have despised him, but a part of me recognized I was desperate to see him, to know he was okay and see where our fated alignment could lead.

“Keep going, little girl.”

His voice burst into my mind, its timbre consoling.

“You should be proud of how far you’ve come.”

The thought emboldened me, reminding me to raise the gun, just in case, and hold my head up. Eli was right. Why should I hide and feel anxious? I’d done nothing wrong. Armed with a weapon and a purpose, I had every chance of succeeding.

Smiling, I skimmed my fingertips over the edge of the gun. I might not know much, but I knew the thing was loaded and I knew where the trigger was.

The next guy on Hawkins’ payroll who came strutting along to play was going to get a lot more than he bargained for.