Shay:
The ropes were tight around my wrists when he untied me, the marks from where they had cut into my skin stinging as I rubbed at them. The burning was nothing compared to the panic coursing through my veins. I stumbled back, trying to put some distance between Shawn and me, but my body was shaking too hard to steady myself.
He was pacing around the room, his movements erratic. I could hear his voice, but his words didn’t make sense. His eyes were wide, almost frantic, like a man who’d lost control of his mind and was clinging to some delusional thread of hope.
“We could leave. Just the two of us. Go somewhere no one knows us. We can start fresh, Shay. You and me, we’ll be happy. We’ll be free.”
His words felt like a slap to my face, but I couldn’t react the way I wanted. My thoug
