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I flipped the rug up and grabbed the pull pin. The hidden compartment in the floor opened with a pop. I stared inside and a sob almost escaped my throat as I saw what was there. Nothing. Empty. It should have had a wad of one-hundred-thousand dollars, a pistol with two spare ammo clips, and most importantly, the specialized key to remove the devices. I’d been betrayed. Sam had cut me off. Now I’d become nothing more than a doll in the dollhouse. Despair washed over me like rain. Despair and rage. Uncontrollable and fiery rage.
Chapter 19
DAHLIA
Even before the day truly got started, Sam made it clear we were in for something strange. Walking in for breakfast, the first thing I noticed was the chairs. Elise’s seat had been removed, but a new one had been placed beside Payton’s typical spot.
"What’s this shit?" Bri asked, pointing out what I’d already noticed.
"I don’t know," Drake said.
Drake’s voice rang hollow and tired, like he hadn’t slept the entire night. His face was pale and drawn—a strange haunted expression lingered on his face that had been there since the moment he emerged from his room a few minutes prior. I’d never seen him look like he did now. Exhausted and drained. Maybe waking him the night before and telling him my plan had filled him with enough fear to do this? If so, it meant he was more scared of Sam than I ever realized.
Our answer to why the seat had been moved came moments after we sat. A hesitant and chattering knock came at the front door. All four of us spun in our seats, staring in shocked silence at the sound.
"Now?" Drake whispered to himself.
My device buzzed, and I yelped in surprise. No one else received a message. Whatever Sam had sent was for me, and me alone:
Answer the door, Dahlia. We have a new guest.
"Oh shit," I muttered.
"What?" Payton leaned toward me, noticing my device had buzzed.
Before I could answer, another knock pounded on the door, this one more insistent and powerful, followed by a muffled shout. "Please. Help me. Someone. Please?" A woman’s voice.
"I’ve got to answer it. I think we have a new person," I said as I rose from my chair.
"You’ve got to be shitting me," Bri said.
I didn’t answer, instead I moved forward. This could throw everything out of whack. We’d need to get to know this person, calm them down, show them the ropes. It might take days for us to get her on the same page for escape, and by then Sam may notice the robes were covering the vents. Damn it, this was bad.
With a trembling hand, I opened the front door, and what I found outside broke my heart. A woman, no, not a woman, more like a girl, barely eighteen if even that old. She sat on the porch hugging her knees. Tears streaked her face, and when she looked up at me, there was a terror there. The same terror that had probably been on my face my first morning here.
"Where am I?" she sobbed.
"You’re, uh, you’re okay. Come here," I said, kneeling down to help her up.
When we stepped back through to the dining room, the others still sat, staring toward us. Drake looked at the girl, and the anger on his face radiated outward in waves. I thought he might jump up and tear the cameras off the wall with his bare hands. The girl was young. Maybe that was probably what made him angry? That would make sense. It thoroughly pissed me off too.
The smell of sausage and biscuits made my stomach roil. Any lingering hunger vanished at the sight of the girl. Payton pushed out the new chair for her and then she collapsed into it.
"What’s your name?" I asked.
She took a trembling breath, eyes dancing around, taking in everything. "Ashley."
"Welcome to hell, Ashley," Bri said and took a bite of a banana.
"God damn it, Bri," Payton said.
Bri shrugged at him, mouth open as she chewed. "What? Like it’s a fucking lie?"
Ignoring the two of them, I went down on my knees, eye level with the girl. "Are you okay? Are you hurt or anything? Um, are you hungry? We have food."
The girl eyed the platters of food, the desire evident in her eyes. The same look I’d had at the sight of food my first morning here. Instead of reaching toward any of the items, she wrapped herself up in a tighter hug.
"What is this place?" she asked, then the words tumbled from her. "I woke up, uh, in a cemetery. There was a church or something. I’ve been walking around since last night. I thought I would never get out. There was this, like, fence too. I almost touched it but it sounded like electricity coursed through the thing. Why are you all here? How can I get home?"
