Page 1 of Abducting Sarah

CHAPTER 1

Sarah

“Iwas followed today,” I told my fiancé over supper.

The grand dining room in the opulent mansion had been silent, outside of the tings of our forks on proper china. Every tap echoed on the wood-lined walls and the chandeliers above. The rose vase in the middle of the table almost blocked my view of Ryan.

He was handsome, with a perfect smile and hazel eyes. Ryan Lakeworth had the good looks of an underwear model and the money of a pharmaceutical heir, because that’s what he had been and what he was now. I couldn’t believe my luck when I met him—I was just a barista at the café where my little sister works. There he was, a former model and heir, and he wanted me. I felt so blessed.

Until things changed.

A year later, he’d had me on so many meds, I wasn’t sure which way was up. It took another six months to get them toa point where I felt safe enough to drive. They helped me—he was right about that—yet nothing ever felt right. I was foggy or confused all the time. And I still saw the ghosts now and then.

Ryan sipped his wine and asked, “What was that?”

“Remember how I told you I was going shopping today in Charleston with the girls? Someone was following me around.”

He sighed. “Sarah, we’ve talked about this.”

His tone sank something inside of me. “I’m not lying, and it wasn’t another hallucination, Ryan. He was real.”

“What did he look like? Faint and wispy?”

“He wasn’t a ghost. He was a man. Solid.”

He sighed heavier than before. The air between us was thick with old conversations and the scars of hurt feelings. “I know you hate when I ask you this, but I need to know. Have you been taking your meds? Consistently?”

I dropped my fork on my plate and the sound was harsh, like his words. My jaw went tight as I said, “You know I have.”

“I don’t know anything at all. For all I know, you could be dropping your pills in the toilet.”

“Don’t you think Iwantto get better?”

“I don’t know what you want anymore, Sarah. I thought you wanted to get married—”

“I do!”

He shook his head. “Then, you know you have to take your meds.”

“I have been!” I shouted, tears filling my eyes. “I’ve been taking all of those stupid pills for months now, just like we agreed! I’ve done everything you’ve asked of me, Ryan. Everything! Why are you doubting me now, when we’re so close to the wedding?”

“You forget that I know you, Sarah. You have made self-sabotage into an artform, so as much as I love you, yes, sometimes, I doubt you.”

“Why?”

“Experience!” he barked. “Don’t you remember the first year we were together? When you took your meds for a couple of days at a time, and then you decided you were better, so you stopped and the next thing I knew, my girlfriend was at a party with my family, talking to people who weren’t in the room! I can’t go through that again! Do you know how embarrassing that was for my family? There were senators there, Sarah! You humiliated me in front of very important people!”

“Oh. Well, since there were senators at a party over a year ago, I guess that’s a good enough reason to yell at me now.” I tried to keep my voice calm, but it wobbled anyway. “I’m so sorry I embarrassed you in front of your family and the senators, Ryan.” I was shaking with anger. “I’ll be sure to send the ghosts away before the holidays.”

The tick in his jaw relaxed a fraction. “Don’t be like that, Sarah…look, I know you have a grip on reality again, and I’m glad you’re doing better—”

I stiffened. “But?”

He swallowed hard and said, “However, you know there are certain expectations when it comes to my family, and hallucinations are not one of them. You want us to keep living the life we have, right? Here in the mansion? The shopping trips, the vacations, all that?”

“Yes, but—”

“Then we have to keep them happy. Do you think talking to your imaginary friends will make them happy?”

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