#Chapter 34 I reject you, Bastien!

Selene’s POV

My body crashes into the door with a dull thump, and I bounce away from the wood for the dozenth time. If I ever get out of this tinderbox, I’m sure I will have bruises all down my sides– but getting out is seeming less and less likely.

I did not waste a single moment after Arabella locked me in the closet, immediately beginning to scream and yank at the immovable door knob. When that didn’t work I tried climbing the shelves to reach the vent in the ceiling, but they collapsed beneath my weight and built a veritable pyre of linen on the closet floor.

At least when the fire reaches me I’ll go fast.

A sob wrenches from my throat, true terror enveloping me as the reality of my circumstances set in. When Arabella first struck the match, I thought only of what I must do to escape. I did not let myself dwell on what would happen if I failed. I did not contemplate the agony awaiting me.

I throw myself into the door again and again, the prospect of burning to death riddling my bo