Chapter One: Tabby

If her life were any more boring, she’d be six  feet under. Tabby Stuart had this sobering thought  as she looked past her reflection in the large plate  glass window and out into the dark night as  snowflakes started to fall slowly onto the city  street below.  

Another Friday night and Tabby was still sitting  at her desk in the high-rise office building that was  home to many companies, including the accounting  firm that employed her. She’d always been a hard  worker but lately it had become an absolute  obsession. She’d needed to work harder, longer  hours to make partner. She’d given up her social  life in order to accomplish this goal, but in doing so  had managed to give up all other goals in her life.  Goals like finding love and having friends. This  year, she’d set out to change things.  

She looked down at her desktop calendar and  noted that it was already the first of February and  she wasn’t any closer to accomplishing her New  Year’s resolution than she had been a month ago.  She thought back to the office party during which  she’d leaned against the back wall and watched her  drunken co-workers battle it out with the worst  karaoke of all time.  

She’d made a promise to herself that this year  would be different. Now that all her hard work had paid off and she’d been named a partner, she’d  resolved to lead a more exciting life. She’d try to  be more like her sister. She thought of her sister  and how she lived a seemingly carefree life. She  was always on the go as a fashion photographer.  She brushed elbows with famous people on a daily  basis. She had a zest for life that Tabby had  somehow never achieved. Tabby had always been  the diligent, hard worker of the two sisters, the  responsible one.  

While Tabby had gone to college and then  studied hard for her CPA exam, her sister had never  attended college and instead had used her tuition  money to buy a bunch of expensive photography  equipment and take a tour of the world. She’d  come home and turned those photos into a  portfolio and had been quickly working her way up  as a hotshot photographer ever since.  

Meanwhile, Tabby was making a good living as  a financially sound accountant in one of the most  prestigious accounting and investment firms in New  York City. She had wanted to be the first woman  partner in the firm and she was willing to put in the  long hours necessary to accomplish this goal. In  order to do this, she’d had to sacrifice her social  life completely. She couldn’t remember the last  time she’d had a date and as far as sex was  concerned…she wasn’t even sure that she’d  remember how the pieces fit together.  

She sighed as she pressed her fingertips to her  temples and then looked at her waiting computer screen. The cursor mocked her as it waited for her  to input more figures into the accounting  spreadsheet that she was creating. Her eyes felt  blurry from staring at the screen too long. The  clock read eleven-thirty and she was ready to call  it quits.  

She stood and gathered her purse from her desk  drawer and her coat from the back of the door. She  locked her office and headed for the elevators. As  she made her descent, she watched the numbers  count down from fifteen to the parking levels  below the building. She was parked on G3 and  when the elevator finally came to a stop with a  small bounce, she exited and made a left turn  towards her car.  

She took a few steps and then realized that her  silver BMW was not there. She stopped and looked  around. Her car was nowhere to be seen. She  started to walk towards the ramp that led up to the  next level, but she knew she’d parked here this  morning. She was sure of it.  

She took a few tentative steps up the ramp,  thinking maybe she had parked one level up. If not,  then there had to be some other explanation.  There was a guarded booth at the top of the  parking deck and Sam would be on duty. If she  couldn’t find her car she’d have to get Sam to call  the police. How could anyone have stolen her car  out of a secure parking garage? Her mind suddenly  felt tired and bogged down with stress. 

Just then she heard the sound of screeching  tires and she turned to see a black Mercedes  bearing down on her at an unsafe speed. Her mind  started screaming, “Run! Move!” but her legs were  frozen in place. She just stood there with her  mouth open in disbelief.  

She saw the car come to a screeching stop just  inches from her legs and she heard the sound of the  door handles clicking as both the back doors swung  open simultaneously. She didn’t wait to see who  was about to exit the car. Something about that car  seemed ominous and without another thought she  turned and started to run up the ramp.  

She didn’t make it very far when a strong pair  of arms engulfed her from behind and she felt a  hard chest being pressed into her back. The arms  pressed her chest so tightly she thought she might  faint. It was difficult to gain the air needed to let  out a scream when her lungs were being  compressed by the vice-like arms.  

Then she felt something sharp and cold touch  the back of her neck and she saw nothing but  darkness.