Rhea’s POV
I breathed in sharply, then turned the doorknob again. Locked.
I had been locked in.
I quickly reached for the chair close by and sat down, trying to think. My phone — I had given it to Lyra. Of course, I had.
“Damn it.” I grabbed my purse and flung it across the room.
Then the lights went out.
My throat went dry instantly. I pressed my back against the chair and squeezed my eyes shut, lips moving around the mantra my therapist had taught me, the one I learned after my father’s girlfriend locked me in the basement for an entire afternoon. Breathe in. Breathe out. You are safe. You are not there.
But it wasn’t working. Anxiety had its hands around my chest and it was squeezing.
Just when I thought my legs would give out, the door opened.
And there he was.
I didn’t think
