Page 17 of Finish Line

Everything goes black.

CHAPTER FIVE

SHELBY

Iblink my eyes open, all I see is white walls. Where the hell am I? I look around and see a pole with an IV bag on it with tubes running to my hand.

Am I in a hospital? It’s not a very nice hospital with the white paint chipping off the walls. The IV must be helping because I’m not so run down.

When I sit up, my stomach drops because my leg is tied by a rope to the bed.

“Good, you’re finally awake.” Roger comes into the room. “How are you feeling?”

Why is he acting like he cares?

I don’t say anything. I just watch him check on the bag.

He growls, lets go of the bag, and grabs the back of my hair. His face is inches from mine. “Answer me, dammit.”

“I’m fine.”

“Good, I guess I didn’t feed you enough, and you were severely dehydrated. That’s what the Doctor said anyways,” he rambles as he unhooks me from the IV.

“Get up, Monkey. It’s time for you to return to the basement.” He unties my leg and grabs me by my arm.

I walk with him out of the spare room and through the living room. Lying in the middle of the floor is an older guy who wears a white doctor’s coat. Blood is sprayed all over the wall.

When I see the mess, I stumble. Roger just smiles at the body and continues to drag me down the steps to my hell.

This time, he hangs me up by my arms with two chains that are bolted to the ceiling.

Once he has me hanging, he stands in front of me with his arms crossed. “How did you break my hypnosis?”

When I don’t answer him quick enough, he punches me in the stomach.

“How did you break my hypnosis?” he asks again.

“I don’t know.”

He hits me again.

“How did you break my hypnosis?” he asks louder this time.

He does that two more times, the last one a hit across my jaw.

I glare at him. “I don’t know how I did it, but I’m glad I did. I told you I wasn’t going to let you control me this time.” I spit in his face.

“Aaahhh!” He pounds the shit out of me until everything goes black.

When I jolt awake, I’m still hanging by my arms.

Fuck how long have I been hanging here. Damn, my joints are killing me. I can’t see out of my eye.

His stomping upstairs echoes through the basement. I guess he’s afraid to go out since Frank caught me. It gives me some sick satisfaction that I screwed up his plans.

What was in that tube? Was I just a distraction while he went and got something?

The door to the basement opens, and Roger’s heavy footsteps signal him coming down the steps. He walks around the corner and runs his hand over his bald head.

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