Page 4 of Twisted Devil

I remembered clearly the man coming out of the shadows and snatching me from the sidewalk. After that, everything was a blank slate. I didn't remember seeing his face, and I don't think I ever heard him speak. There was no memory of the trip here, only him choking me until everything went black, then waking up in the cold room.

I gingerly stood and stared down at the mattress. Even in the dim light it appeared filthy, stained with dirt and… Was that blood? Bile rose in my throat and I fought the urge to gag. I shook off the revulsion and quickly averted my eyes, taking in the rest of my surroundings.

In the corner, just a few feet from the revolting mattress, sat a plastic bucket. It was the kind that home-improvement stores sold for odd jobs, and I had a sick feeling I knew exactly what it was for. Like everything else, it was splattered with dirt, the handle missing. That was a shame. I was sure my abductor had thought ahead and removed it so it couldn't be used as a weapon or a tool of some sort.

I was vaguely surprised that whoever had captured me hadn't tied me up or at least bound my hands. That was more than a little unsettling, because that meant the person was positive I wouldn't be able to escape. That only served to strengthen my resolve and find a way out of this Godforsaken place. I was barefoot, though, and I didn't see any signs of my shoes in the immediate surrounding area. I assumed the man had taken them, and it would definitely be a hindrance not having shoes to run in. I didn't care. I would do whatever the hell I had to do to get out of here.

Directly across from me, a solid steel door was situated in the middle of the stone wall. While the rest of the cellar appeared to be ancient, the door looked almost new. Which meant it would be strong, impossible to break. I knew it couldn't be that easy, but I had to check. Cautiously, I approached the door, wondering if someone waited on the other side. Keeping my body positioned to the side so I wouldn't get hit by the door if it swung open, I gingerly touched the handle, testing to see if it was locked. It was.

My heart dropped though I hadn't expected any different. I pressed my ear to the steel and held my breath. Nothing came from the other side. I wasn’t sure how thick the door was, but if I couldn’t hear anything from the outside, then no one would be able to hear me in here. It was a setback, but I truly expected no less. The man had clearly considered every angle, and the thought sent fear streaming through my veins.

I padded away from the door and began to make a slow circuit of the dim room. As I moved farther away from the single bulb over the mattress, it became harder and harder to see. I kept one hand on the stone wall for guidance as I waited for my eyes to adjust. I moved slowly, putting one foot in front of the other, gradually working my way toward the opposite end of the room.

There was almost no light to speak of except from a dingy window so coated with dirt that I almost missed it at first. It was so high that my fingertips barely brushed the sill. Even if I could get my body up there, I doubted my shoulders could fit in the small rectangular space. Either way, I wouldn’t know until I tried.

Placing my hands on the lip of the sill, I braced one foot against the stone wall. It was uneven, which was actually advantageous, and I curled my toes around the top of the stone for balance. I pulled my body up so my chin peeked over the sill. My arm and core muscles shook as I fought to hold myself up. Maneuvering myself as best I could, I braced myself against the wall and ran one hand around the inner edge of the window.

My fingers hit a bump, and I traced the small object. Smooth and cool, the top was flat where it stuck out of the frame at a slight angle. A screw. The window had been screwed shut. I swore softly, not ready to give up yet. My muscles ached, shaking under the strain. The window was narrower than I thought, and even if I tried to break it, I doubted I could fit through the opening.

I readjusted my stance, and my fingers hit a rough patch of stone. I ran my nails along it and found a tiny crevice. I dropped down from the window and shook out my arms. After I’d rested for a second, I reached back up, fumbling blindly at the spot. It felt like a piece of stone had cracked and come loose, and I picked at it until it finally came free.

I turned it over in my hands, feeling along the sharp edges. Thinking it might come in handy later, I held onto it then continued around the room, ending back at the stained mattress where I’d started. Now that I could see the piece of stone a little better, I held it up to the light and inspected it. Closer up, it appeared to be a sliver of mortar that had once held the old stones together. One side was a sharp point, and it widened slightly at the opposite end.

An idea began to brew in the back of my mind and I glanced between the mortar and the mattress. One way or the other, I was getting the hell out of here.

CHAPTER FIVE

JASON

Several hours later, we had a photo of the captor in hand. Kennedy and I headed back into the coffee shop once more to review their system. Now that we had an idea of who we were looking for, I wanted to see if the man had been in the shop earlier that day.

The manager gave us permission to view the files, and we began yesterday morning as soon as the shop opened. It was a painstakingly long process, scouring the footage for the man in the ball cap. He never showed.

I was frustrated but not surprised. As careful as he seemed to be, it would have been stupid for him to show his face inside. Still, I wanted to check with the workers. One never knew how psychopaths’ minds worked. If it was the same guy, he’d clearly gotten away with it several times already. The longer he continued, the cockier he would become—and hopefully he would slip up.

The young woman who’d been working with Chloe last night was here again today, and I wanted to check with her first. “Do you remember anyone out of the ordinary here yesterday? Anyone who stood out?”

She glanced at the screen and shook her head. “Not that I can remember, no.”

I showed Sara the photograph. “Does this man seem at all familiar?”

“Do you think...?” Her teeth cut into her bottom lip. “Oh God, I never thought...”

“It's okay,” I reassured her.

The young woman’s eyes filled with tears. “I never should have left her. I should've stayed so we could walk out together.”

“You didn't know this was going to happen,” Kennedy soothed her. “In the meantime, though, it might be better to stick together at all times.”

She nodded and swiped at the tears sliding down her cheeks. I met Kennedy's gaze and tipped my head to one side, letting him know to join me outside when he was done. I stepped out the front door and glanced around the parking lot and surrounding area again, trying to see it through fresh eyes. At the moment, we only had the footage from the coffee shop and the ballet studio across the street. It would take a while to get a warrant to search the other camera systems from the local businesses.

I fucking hated red tape. Why couldn't people just cooperate? The guy had avoided the cameras all around the coffee shop, solidifying my theory that he had staked it out before making his move. Whoever this guy was, he was smart. He researched. Took his time. He'd gotten away with it before, and he would get away with it again unless we stopped him. What was his weakness?

I propped my hands on my hips and glanced around. A group of women milled around a corner a few blocks west, and I stared at them for a moment, my mind whirling. I tried to put myself in the man's shoes. What would I have done?

He would have stayed far enough away so as to not draw attention to himself, yet close enough that he could see Chloe when she left the coffee shop. It was pure luck for him that Sara had headed out earlier than expected. The man had probably parked down the street so he could fall in behind her when she pulled out of the parking lot. It was pure speculation, but it was all I had to go on at the moment, and I couldn't afford to leave any stone unturned.

I threw a quick look over my shoulder and met Kennedy's gaze as he stepped outside. “Walk with me.”

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