Page 75 of Coach
My mouth was forced open wide enough for my jaw to scream. But the gag prevented me from doing so.
It tightened around my head, catching my hair in the clasps, the strands tugging at my scalp.
That was the least of my worries, though, as I felt something metal clasp around one wrist.
My other arm was yanked behind my back, making pain shoot through my shoulder as I face-planted into the carpet once again.
The metal tightened around that wrist.
The trunk lid slammed.
And I was alone in the dark.
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
Este
My whole world shrank to fifteen cubic feet of darkness. The trunk pressed in on every side, the carpet rough against my cheek, smelling suspiciously new.
The gag overstretched my mouth, making the corners of my mouth crack. I desperately tried to figure out how to swallow but it led to me choking on my own spit several times.
My lungs dragged air that tasted like rubber and the metallic taste of fear.
Not that it mattered because within a minute or two, my breaths were coming so shallow that they barely expanded my chest at all.
My heart refused to slow. It pounded in my ribs, frantic, louder than the rumble of the engine.
Every swerve and acceleration jolted fresh panic through my veins.
Where were they taking me?
What were they going to do to me once we got there?
My shoulders cramped. My jaw screamed. Sweat slicked down my spine as my teeth ached from having no choice but to bite into the ball gag.
I squeezed my eyes shut, hoping the blackness behind my lids would be less upsetting than the dizzying darkness of the trunk.
My head was getting light, floating.
If I didn’t calm myself down, if I didn’t get more oxygen flowing through my body, I was going to pass out.
And then what?
What if they stopped while I was still unconscious? Any chance at escape could be ripped away.
I had to focus.
Five things I could feel: the gag in my mouth, the steel at my wrists, the scratch of the carpet on my cheek, the bruising rattle of my knees against metal, the sweat dripping down my face.
But all I could truly feel was trapped.
Helpless.
Utterly at their mercy.
Tears pricked my eyes, forcing them open so I could blink them away.
The dark wasn’t just around me; it was inside.
