Moving my elbows in beneath me, I pushed myself up, my back complaining with pain.
“Oh, my God,” I whispered, narrowing my eyes to try to figure out where the hell I was. But it was too damn dark.
“I’m afraid God ain’t here.”
I jolted, my tied legs suppressing my need to run. I glanced over my shoulder at a man sitting in the corner, cloaked within the shadow where the sunrise hadn’t touched the room yet. “Who are you?”
“A friend.” The gruff, guttural voice was familiar, yet it made me shiver, and every hair at the back of my neck stood up.
“It’s you. I recognize your voice.” I turned my face halfway over my shoulder. “You were there.”
Silence.
I glanced down at my tied wrists. “Why am I tied up?” I didn’t turn to face him, cautioned by the warning that clung to my skin after the sound of his voice filled the emptiness around us.
“It’s a precaution. We weren’t sure how you’d react when you woke up.”
“We?”
“Well, me.”
I glanced down at my tied wrists. “Now that I’m awake, you can untie me, then?”
Silence ensued before I heard the slight screech of the chair. Then footsteps. Slow, heavy, threatening. My body shivered, my mind reeling with thoughts of unfathomable horrors.
“I think it’s safer to keep those ropes tied for now.”
A chill slowly penetrated my spine, and I knew he was standing right behind me. His presence mantled every inch of me, my heart nearly exploding inside my chest. “I don’t understand.” I tried to think back to those final moments. “I was being kidnapped, and you saved me. But why…where am I? Why am I still tied up?”
“What makes you think I saved you?”
A soft whimper left my lips, fear coursing through my veins, every inch of me going cold. My hands shook, my stomach burning with fear. “I…um.” I licked my lips, words refusing to come out as I struggled to find my voice. “I’m not sure what you mean.”
“I think you do.” Judging by the sound of his voice, he was standing close, and it made me shudder.
“What…why am I here?”
He remained still behind me, and every second that passed felt like a lifetime. I wanted to scream. I wanted to cry. I wanted to run. But I was too afraid to move. I couldn’t, not with this man standing behind me, his intimidating presence pinning me to the spot.
I heard him move, and I closed my eyes, the sound of his footsteps traveling around the room making my heart beat even faster. When his movement ceased, my eyelids twitched with the need to open. A part of me wanted to look at the man I knew was now standing right in front of me, yet another part of me didn’t—afraid it might be the devil I’d be looking in the eye.
“Open your eyes and look at me.” He didn’t raise his voice, but that didn’t mean it was less threatening. In fact, the low tone that wrapped around his words made it sound more intimidating, and it vibrated through my entire body.
With a deep breath, steeling myself while fighting against the panic that sent my heart racing, I slowly opened my eyes.
At first, I couldn’t make out his face in the dark. But as my gaze moved down, I noticed his broad shoulders, his over six-foot-tall body, and the shit-kicker black leather boots. It was all there, the familiarity of this man. Slowly, I began to recognize him, my mind putting together the pieces, creating the picture ofhim—the man I had been watching through the dark for so long.
I narrowed my eyes, willing the shadows away so I could see his face. “It’s you,” I murmured, more to myself.
“You say that like you know me.”
“I…you are—”
Then he stepped forward and switched on the light. The sight of him took my breath away. His messy curls hung over his shoulders, dark and thick and unruly. His beard was long and unkept, but it couldn’t hide the outline of his strong jaw. It was him. My stranger in the dark.
Briefly, fear and uncertainty fled from my mind, replaced with the memories of nights I spent by my window staring out at the man who always looked up, meeting my gaze with an unspoken promise. A promise that one day he’d come for me. And now it seemed that day had come.
Fascinated, yet scared, I couldn’t look away from his eyes. Green mixed with the subtle tone of honey. After years of wondering what color his eyes were, I finally knew.