“But you can’t scream when my guest arrives,” he goes on, smirking in the darkness. My eyes have adjusted, and I see his bald head as he shoves something into my mouth.
I try to fight, but he digs his fingers into my jaw, wrenching it open. He ties the gag, securing it, then I hear the telltale rip of duct tape seconds before it covers my mouth.
I struggle again, fighting, but with my hands and feet bound together. He laughs again as he lifts me, carrying me effortlessly down the stairs, intentionally dragging my head against the wall.
I cry out, only hearing a barely-there, muffled sound through the layers of gagging he’s secured. My head slams against the side of the wall when he turns sharply.
“Oops,” he says, snickering.
He drops me to the ground, and I whimper, the sound not escaping at all as my elbow hits too hard, along with my hip. The creaking of two folding closet doors becomes noticeable as I see the doors swing open, and he slams his foot into my stomach hard enough to crack some ribs and kick me into the small space.
He kneels as he slides me in the rest of the way, and I twist my head away when he tries to brush the hair from my eyes.
“Enjoy the show, Agent Grace. At least you’ll know what’s coming next.”
With that, he slams the doors shut, and the small, blind-like centers let me see through the slats as his feet move away.
Music filters through the house, a soft, classical song. I can see the front door from here, and I watch, wishing I had never suspected her of anything.
A tear rolls from my eye, feeling like fire licking against my skin.
Logan will be with her. He’ll die right in front of me. And I can’t even warn him.
I can feel my phone in my front pocket, taunting me—so close, yet so far away. No matter how I twist, I can’t reach it.
It seems like hours later the door is finally opening, and I try to scream. Try to warn her. But the small sound I’m able to make is drowned out by the music in the house.
It’s just her as she shuts the door; no Logan. No hope of being saved.
It happens fast.
Plemmons blindsides her, punching her right in the side of the face. She drops the keys and phone she’s holding and slams into the wall from the impact, dazed and confused.
He throws his body against hers, and she cries out as he twists her hand that she tries to hit him with, while simultaneously choking her with his arm. Despite the music, I can hear every word he says.
“Feisty. I like that. And so pretty. Agent Bennett picks them well,” he taunts. “He left you all alone finally. Tell me, princess, are you afraid of the Boogeyman?”
He lifts off her and throws her into the wall across from him. She hits hard before bouncing to the ground.
What has my ears perking up is the sound of her laughter as she slowly lifts herself from the ground.
“Boogeyman,” she says, looking up at him. “Took you long enough.”
His footsteps pause as confusion mixed with anger crosses his face. He gets off on fear. On pain.
Yet she’s acting immune.
Did Logan coach her on how to act?
Or is she really that fucking stupidly unafraid?
He charges her, kicking her in the stomach, before grabbing her by the hair of the head, jerking her up to her feet.
A strangled sound of pain escapes her, and he pushes her into the wall with enough force to crack something. Her face is to the side, and she’s smiling as he comes in behind her.
“Not laughing now, are you?” he asks, reaching down with one hand to start pulling down her pants. “You won’t be laughing anymore tonight.”
“I think that’s enough damage to make this convincing,” she says before he can finish.