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I reach the door just as she’s trying to get it closed and push on it while she does the same from the other side. I know that if she closes it, she’ll lock it, and when she does, I’ll be left here…again. I can’t let that happen.
“Please, just tell me if my daughters are safe!” I shout, desperation creeping into my voice.
No response.
My hands grasp the edge of the door, fighting to keep it open as the maid pushes back with surprising force. “I won’t let you lock me in here like a prisoner! I need to know they’re okay!”
As the struggle continues, our breaths come in ragged gasps, the air heavy with tension and fear. The door groans under the pressure of our efforts, the sound mirroring the ache in my heart.
“Please,” I whisper one last time, my voice breaking as the weight of it all threatens to crush me. “Please help me save them.”
“I’m sorry,” are the only words she says. In that split second, the maid summons her strength and delivers a final, powerful push. The door slams shut, and I hear the click of the lock as it seals me out. Her victory is swift and merciless.
“NO!” I scream, my fists pounding against the cold, unyielding wood of the door. “Don’t you dare leave me in here!”
My voice breaks into desperate sobs, the anguished cries echoing through the room like the tolling of a funeral bell. The pain is unbearable, a crushing weight on my chest, stealing my breath away.
“Please,” I gasp between sobs. “I need to find them. They’re all I have.”
But there’s no answer from the other side of the door, only silence—a deafening, mocking void that feeds my mounting despair.
Bitter tears stream down my cheeks, their hot tracks burning like acid against my skin. I slide to the floor, my legs giving way beneath me, my body trembling with a volatile mixture of fear, frustration, and a deep, profound longing to be reunited with my daughters.
I sit on the bed, my back pressed against the cold wall. My legs are drawn tightly to my chest, arms wrapped around them. I don’t know how long I’ve been sitting here, staring straight at the wall.
“Annalise.” Nikhil’s voice cuts through the silence like a knife, startling me. He enters the room, leaving the door open behind him. My eyes flit to the open door, and he catches me. “You can leave if you want, but you won’t know where your children are.”
His words grab hold of me, freezing me in place. I can’t leave without knowing where my daughters are, but staying with these men feels like a trap I may never escape. My thoughts race, trying to come up with a plan, but every idea ends in failure.
It’s not worth the risk where Franny and Gina are concerned.
Nikhil’s imposing figure towers over me, his icy gaze piercing through my soul. “You really scared Portia.” Portia? That must be the maid. “She wanted to cheer you up, and you ran her off.”
“Portia wouldn’t tell me the truth.”
“And what truth are you looking for?” He already knows the answer to that. He’s toying with me.
“Where are my daughters?” I demand, refusing to let fear consume me.
“Annalise.” His voice is cold, almost robotic. “You haven’t eaten or taken care of yourself in days. If you continue like this, you will die. Is that what you want?”
His words hit me like a slap in the face, but I refuse to cower. All I can think of are my precious girls, held captive somewhere beyond these walls. “No,” I snap, my voice laced with anger and desperation. “I just want to be with my children.”
“You can’t do that if you’re dead.”
“Why are you here?”
“I’m inviting you to dinner.”
“You’re kidding, right?” I laugh, but it lacks amusement, and I summon just enough strength to spit on the ground beside his feet. The truth is that there’s only one way for him to hurt me now…and that’s through my kids. “I’d rather die.”
Nikhil looks far from pleased, but remains composed. “If you want to know about your daughters, I’d suggest you reconsider.”
My nose twitches. I don’t want to be anywhere near this man, but if that’s what it takes to get the information I need.
“Fine.” I give in.
“And you’ll actually eat. You’re not going to starve yourself. You look like crap.”
