CHAPTER NINETY FOUR

ELIZABETH:

The room was spinning, and I could barely keep my eyes open. Everything hurt. My ribs felt bruised, my head pounded, and I hadn’t eaten in days. I could feel the bruises forming under my skin, the sharp sting of every breath a reminder of how long we’d been trapped in this hell. Three days. Three long, agonizing days since my father had taken us, since he’d dragged me and Adam into this nightmare.

I tried to move, but my body wouldn’t cooperate. My muscles screamed in protest, and I had to bite back the cry that threatened to spill from my lips. I didn’t want Adam to see how weak I was. Not now, when he needed me to be strong. I couldn’t let him see me like this.

“Stay with me, Elizabeth,” Adam whispered beside me, his voice barely audible in the stale air of the basement. I could hear the desperation in his tone, could feel it in the way his hand brushed against mine, even though we were both tied to the chairs. “Just keep breathing, okay? We’re going to get out of here.