Page 123 of Cherish

I’m sitting with my back to the wall of whatever they’ve got us in, and even though I try my hardest to remain alert, at some point I end up resting my head back against the cool metal. And some time after that, I find my eyelids drooping and my whole body feeling heavy.

I try to fight off the lethargy, but in the end, I just give in to it. After all, if I’m asleep, maybe I can stop counting every second that passes like it’s going to be my last.

I don’t know how long I doze, but I jerk awake when the vehicle we’re in comes to a shaking, shuddering stop. My heart is beating superfast now, and I strain to hear any sound that means they’re coming for us.

At first, I don’t hear anything. And then there’s the sound of shoes crunching on gravel right outside our vehicle. I hold my breath, feel everyone around me doing the same thing.

For long minutes, though, nothing happens. We just sit in silence, waiting and wondering what’s going to happen when the door finally opens.

The longer we wait, the tenser I can feel myself getting. The tenser I can feel the others getting, too, until I expect one of us to explode at any second.

Maybe that’s the point, though. Maybe they’re just waiting to see which one of us freaks out first. If so, they’re doing a good job of it. With every minute that passes, I can feel myself getting closer and closer to being the winner here.

I think it’s the total loss of control that’s doing it. It’s not about being locked up, per se. But having my sight taken from me? Having my ability to communicate with my mate and my friends ripped away?

Yeah, that is putting me very much on edge.

It makes me wonder how Hudson handled being locked in Descent for all those years without losing his sanity completely. I don’t think I could take this for even a few days. If I was trapped like this year after year, decade after decade?

I shake my head.

As I inhale another steadying breath, I have even more respect for him than I did just a little while ago, and I didn’t think that was possible.

In fact, I—

There’s a sudden scraping at the door that has me leaning forward, heart once more exploding out of my chest as I strain to hear what’s going on, what’s going to happen next.

More scraping, followed by the sound of metal clanging against metal.

Voices murmuring.

A key turning in a lock.

And then the door swings open and ice-cold air floods the space.

66

Fit to be Tied

“Get up!” someone growls harshly at us.

I try to follow directions, but it’s not exactly easy, since my legs fell asleep hours ago from being in the same position for too long.

The others must be having the same problem, because someone keeps cursing at us. Then there’s the pounding of feet against metal in rapid succession. Someone is climbing into the cage to get us. Several someones, if the number of feet I count coming up the steps can be trusted.

There’s the sound of clothes rustling close to me, and then Heather cries out. Seconds later, Eden makes a low growling noise. I try to ask them what’s wrong, but before I can get out much more than a lowmmmmsound, someone grabs my hands and yanks me to my feet.

It’s my turn to gasp as feeling comes flooding back into my legs, pins and needles jabbing at me until my eyes fill with tears. Whoever yanked me up starts propelling me toward the door, and each step is agony.

I refuse to give them the satisfaction of showing how much it hurts, though, so I keep my mouth closed even as they drag me down the steps.

When I get to the bottom, I keep walking until I bump into someone. Flint, I think, since the back I crashed into felt wider and more solid than Jaxon’s or Hudson’s.

Heather makes a small sobbing sound from right behind me, and I turn toward her instinctively. “It’s okay,” I try to say, but of course it doesn’t come out sounding anything like that.

The guard holding my hands yanks me back around roughly. “Look forward,” he barks at me.

I want to tell him I’m blindfolded and can’t look anywhere, but I can’t. So I just clench my teeth and promise myself that when we get out of this, I’m going to have a whole hell of a lot to say. And no matter how this ends up going—or what we might have to do in the future—I am never, ever letting anyone tie me up like this again. Not without putting up one hell of a fight.

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