Chapter Eight
Camila blinked her eyes open, and for a moment, she was disoriented. She didn’t know where she was. Everything was dark, but she was definitely lying on a soft bed. She stretched her arms out, disappointed to find she was by herself.
Feeling drowsy, she closed her eyes and tried to go back to sleep, only she couldn’t. Because something inside her was telling her that things were very, very wrong. With a frown, she opened her eyes again and looked around, wondering what the problem was. Then, she noticed there was some light coming from under the door.
Wait… where did that door come from? And why didn’t it look like she was in her bedroom? Frown deepening, she slid out of bed. She was in a camisole and shorts, clothes she slept in often, and her feet were bare. She didn’t find anything to put on her feet, so she moved on, though the floor was cold under her feet, making her whole body freeze.
She headed for the door then caught the handle and slowly pulled it open.
Where… am I?
The place she was in was unfamiliar. It was definitely not her apartment, or any place she remembered. She paused for a moment, wondering if she should start to panic. The feeling of growing dread was getting heavier in her chest, and she didn’t want to move forward, but at the same time, something was tugging her to go ahead.
After a moment, she decided to go ahead.
There was a short hallway outside of the room and since the left side led to a wall, she headed right. Her heart jumped in her throat as she instinctively moved carefully forward, trying her best not to make any noise. She came to what looked like a living room. There were two seats surrounding a TV that was on and playing something, though she couldn’t hear it. Her heart felt about ready to jump out of her chest when she saw the two silhouettes on the two seats.
Both were very familiar.
One of them, she would have mistaken for Samuel, but then he looked up and met her gaze like he knew she was there no matter how quiet she was being, and he gave her a wide smirk. The face was the same, but this was undoubtedly Adrien. And then, the other person moved.
No… way…
Camila felt robbed of her breath as the second person turned around and also met her gaze, giving her a grin almost identical to Adrien’s, in that it looked threatening. It was a face she really wanted to forget, and right then, she couldn’t even properly see the features on the man’s face besides his dark eyes and that grin. But she knew who this man was.
Her father.
The man her mom killed to protect them both.
Why am I standing in front of a dead man?
All three of them were locked in place, the two staring her down as she trembled in place like a rabbit caught under the gaze of two frightening predators, too scared to even move to protect herself.
I have to be dreaming,she thought. This has to be a nightmare! she told herself, but it didn’t stop the very real fear that was paralyzing her.
Then, they both stood up as one, as if being pulled by strings. The moment they stepped toward her, she was no longer frozen. Camila forced her body to move, stumbling a bit as she turned, but she caught herself on the wall then launched herself toward the only door. She fell against it, shaking hands scrambling for the door handle. Her breathing was loud and ragged, but not enough to cover the sound of heavy steps coming up behind her, stopping her heart with every loud thump.
“Where are you going, Camila?”
The voice sounded right in her ear. It sounded like Adrien, and at the same time, like her father. She gave out a scream, but finally, her hand managed to push the door handle, and the door opened outside. She practically fell out as she took off running.
Where the hell is this!
Camila had lived in New York City all her life, but of course she’d been out of the city plenty of times, and not always for her job. She didn’t know where she was, though. Definitely not in the city, she looked to being the middle of nowhere, and beneath her feet, she could feel grass and dirt as she ran. Everything was dark, she didn’t even see a moon, and definitely nothing ahead.
“Camila!”
They’re gaining on me!
In that moment, even as she ran as fast as she could, her legs and arms pumping, she felt like she was running through sludge. No matter how fast she was, she was moving too slow, she could practically feel the two of them at her back, wanting to attack her and devour her alive.
No! Please!
Even though this had to be a dream, it was too damn vivid. She didn’t dare look back, but she wanted to close her eyes and pretend none of this was happening to her. If she just closed her eyes, it would go away. She didn’t need to put in so much effort. But she wasn’t sure, and she felt like she was fleeing right into her attackers arms even as she ran from them.
Tears were streaming down her face. Her throat itched, and her limbs strained with the effort to keep moving. With every step, there was the fear that she would lose her footing and fall, and get caught.
Someone,she cried out silently, desperately. Anyone. Please, help me!