Chapter Two

Nicholas stared at the unconscious girl sleeping in the passenger seat. He injected her with something to make her unconscious.

He hated loose ends which was why he had no idea why he was planning on doing what he was about to do.

Even while asleep, she braced herself in such a way that she was ready to fight even though it was pretty obvious she wasn't going to win.

Nicholas felt his phone buzz in his trousers. He grabbed his phone from his pockets. It was a text from Adrian Castellano.

“What's the update-is it done

“Still confirming loose ends” He typed before putting down his phone. He knew he was probably making a mistake. It was foolish to lie or betray the Castellanos, especially Adrian.

 A part of him was telling him to hand her over to Adrian and not make things complicated but it couldn't help feeling it was a big mistake. He knew Adrian would hurt her, not that he cared; she is practically a stranger to him, and he's been killing the Castellanos for years.

But he couldn't shake the fact that she reminded him of someone–a different girl, a different time, a similar situation. He thought he buried those memories but he was reminded about it today.

—

Alison woke up with a splitting headache. The stench of rotting pine, along with damp wood, overwhelmed her. She rubbed her eyes, trying to adjust to the dimness around her. 

She quickly came to the harsh realization that she was situated inside a rustic cabin. 

The structure of the place resembled a log cabin with only a rickety old couch along with an oak table as sole furniture. A window was barely present, with a fleeting bit of moonlight seeping through, making the whole room upload an ominous aura. 

She recalled the restraints on her arms, and when she attempted to get rid of her panic by moving around, she figured out she was zip-tied from the front. 

“Stop,” A familiar voice said. She recognized the voice. She looked up and saw the man from earlier.

“ Let me go!” She yelled at him, shaking her hands.

“What were you doing awake so late in the night?” he asked, ignoring her question.

“Painting”

“Painting” he scoffed in disbelief.

“I'm an artist; I paint,” she said aggressively. Nicholas found himself a bit amused by her display of anger.

She was probably the unluckiest person on earth to have entered the Castellanos's bad side.

“Let me go” she yelled once more.

“ If I hear your voice again, I will chop off your tongue.” His gaze hardened on her, and she kept quiet.

Alison felt like crying. She should have just slept. Why did she choose to paint at that time? She should have just ignored the sound and continued with her painting. But no, she chose to follow her curiosity, and now look where her curiosity has led her to.

She was a bit confused as to why he kept her alive; she knew she was supposed to be dead by now. She watched as he made calls, and he told the person on the other line she was dead, which confused her the more.

She didn't seem to understand him at all. She just wanted to go home and sleep but she couldn't. Her mind was racing with different thoughts flooding through her head at once.

“No phone calls, no texts or internet while you are here. To the world, you're dead, Alison,” he said, waving her phone in his hand.

She wondered how he knew her name but she was too scared to ask. “Disobey me, and you’ll die,” he said, and she nodded in fear.

He untied her and walked her to a room.

“Don't even run; you won't get far,” he said, his face devoid of any emotion before leaving her in the room to think about her situation.

A rustling of leaves broke her train of thought, she looked out the window, and she saw a shadow passing.There's no way it could be Nicholas who just left now. Her heart raced when the shadow came closer as if trying to peep through the window.