Page 127 of Hidden

My shoulders burn, my wrists are raw, the skin scratched and stinging where the rope bites the deepest. My bare feet are so cold I've stopped feeling them, the concrete floor is pulling the warmth out of me degree by degree.

If they don’t kill me, then I might die from the cold.

I breathe through my nose and count my breaths the way I count bars of music.

One. Two. Three.

Miles told me he'd find me.

Whatever happens, I promise I will find you. Just have faith.

He said it, and I know he meant it. He's alive, he has to be alive. I don't let the alternative form a complete thought, because if I do, I’ll lose hope, and I told him I’d have faith in him.

He's alive and he's coming for me, and I need to still be here when he does, because he found something that was important. He was happy he finally found it. So, I’m going to assume he knows where I am.

I test the rope again. It’s still too tight. I yell in frustration. The bare bulb buzzes above me, casting its flat yellow light, which might give me a headache soon. The camera in the corner watches with its small red eye. I've been looking at that red eye since they locked the door, I’ve been thinking about what Miles said, about feeds and systems and access that shouldn't exist, but does because he built it that way. He'll find the feed. If anyone in the world can find a camera signal in a warehouse in a city he doesn't have an address for, it's Miles Crawford.

I just need to give him something to find.

I look directly at the camera. "My name is Sadie Elliot," I say. My voice comes out steadier than I expect. "I'm at…" I stop. I don't know where I am. I counted turns in the van, but I don't know this city well enough to translate that into a location. "I don't know the address. The building is a warehouse, it’s industrial, has high ceilings, and there's a broken window up high on the north side, I can hear air coming through it." I pause. "There's a red light on a camera in the upper right corner of the room I'm in. If you can see this, you already know that." I look at it for another second. "Come and get me," I say. Then, quieter, "Please."

***

I hear the girl's voice again, she’s crying, but I don’t know where it’s coming from. Maybe it’s the room next to mine or even in this room somewhere.

"Hello?" My voice comes out low, and careful. I don't know who's listening outside the door, which is now stupid, considering I just spoke to the camera. "Can you hear me?"

There’s silence. Then I hear it, a faint, muffled, "Yes.” It’s a woman's voice. She sounds hoarse like she’s been crying for a long time.

"Are you hurt?" I ask.

There’s a pause. "Not…, not badly. They don't… They don't hurt us if we cooperate," she says through tears.

"How long have you been here?" I ask.

Another pause, but it’s longer this time. "I don't know." Her voice drops. "I stopped counting."

My stomach turns over. "What's your name?" I ask.

"Renee," she says finally. "Renee Park."

I know that name, I just don’t know how I know it. Think Sadie, how do you know this name?

Renee Park. Oh my God, she’s a girl Miles is looking for. Nashville. She’s a nursing student, and she was last seen leaving a restaurant shift. She’s the girl whose disappearance brought the case to Miles’ desk in the first place.

I remember seeing her name of the computer, one of a few names, but hers was one hundred percent on it.

She's here.

"Renee." I keep my voice steady. "My name is Sadie. I'm… I know people who have been looking for you."

"What?"

"I know people who have been trying to find you for months." I press closer to the wall, ignoring the ache in my shoulders. "You're going to be okay. I promise you… there are people who know about this place, who are coming…"

"Don't." Her voice breaks. "Please don't say that. I’ve started to lose hope.”

"These people are different," I say. "Trust me."