Agent 7. The Shadows: Part I

▪️◾️Chapter Eight◾️▪️

As we enter the lobby the black obscurity of the evening fades into blinding florescent lighting and warm perfumed air.

Much to my dismay the vestibule's empty apart from one attendant at a counter along the far wall. We walk past her without being afforded a glance our way. Not that it would matter, at this point I hold very little hope of anyone taking notice of my predicament, let alone helping me.

The belief I'll be rescued has evaded me for years, there's no reason to start putting my faith in humanity now.

I manage to keep my shoulders squared and wits about me the entire walk through the lobby to the bank of elevators. It isn't until we step into the black and gold trimmed cart that I'm overcome with another bout of fear.

I try my hardest to steady my breathing as the elevator closes us in but the moment the doors shut and my eyes lock with my kidnapper's in the door's reflection, my facade shatters like glass.

He's looking right at me.

No, looking isn't the right word for it. His fiercely colorful eyes are scrutinizing me, studying my every blink and wary swallow. It's as if he's watching, learning. As if the more he gains in his perusal, the more he can use against me in time.

My heart thrums faster and louder with every second that his eyes caress me in the reflection. Threatening to beat its way out of my chest. His gaze drags from my eyes to my lips, down my neck to the crest of my breasts and back up again.

To make matters worse, he's still clasping onto my hand like a vice. The feel of his massive hold wrapping around my slender fingers adds to my plight. He doesn't speak which makes me even more uncomfortable.

I'm an anxious wreck.

I blink my eyes away unable to handle his gaze boring into mine a second longer. If his goal is to intimidate me, he's succeeding. I'm scared out of my mind.

I drop my focus to the panel of buttons in front of us, and hone in on the illuminated number six.

By the time the elevator slows and the doors pull open to another hallway my breaths are coming out in harsh shallow quips and my hand is slick with sweat against my captor's rigid hold. He steps out first tugging me roughly behind him.

The walk to the hotel room doesn't register. One minute I'm struggling to breathe in the elevator and the next I'm standing before a dark mahogany door that carries an uncanny resemblance to the one that housed Vladimir's suite.

Oh fuck.

A flashback of walking into Vladimir's hotel room earlier this evening invades my mind. It feels like a lifetime ago instead of a few short hours. Now here I am walking into my own living hell for a second time in one night.

Suddenly black dots fill my vision and my body waivers as if a sail adrift in the wind, as I stare at the curving lines of the door's grain pattern. I feel as if I'm going to faint. Every single synapse in my brain is firing at will, screaming at me that I'm in danger. Warning me with bodily intuition that nothing good awaits me on the other side of that door.

I bite down on my quivering bottom lip and fight back more tears as my kidnapper scans a key card and pushes the door open effortlessly.

He releases my hand to step into the darkened room.

Frozen, unable to move a muscle, I don't follow him. The things that happen to girls like me in hotel rooms like this are deplorable. I-I can't go in there. I won't.

He must sense my hesitation because he turns to peer back at me, waiting for me to enter.

My entire body is vibrating with tension at this point. My eyes flick to my hands. Red rings mar my wrists from the zip ties, as my fingers tremble.

I don't care what he says about not hurting me, I'm not a fool, killers will tell their victims anything just to lure them in. If they told you they had plans to kill you, you'd obviously never go with them.

I've witnessed with my own eyes that he's capable of murder, the last time I walked into a hotel room like this I found him with—

"Alina." The man snaps.

I flinch at the sound of his voice. My eyes blink out of the fog that's over taken me like a bad dream. I let images of Vladimir facedown in a puddle of his own blood disappear into a distant memory and instead I focus on the man's lengthy form.

"I'm going to count to three." His voice is stern as if speaking to a child. "If your ass isn't in here I will—

"You'll what?" I snap at him, cutting him off. "Kill me?" My eyes widen. I don't mean to speak, the outburst's as much of a shock to him as it is to myself, but the words rush up my throat and spill out of me like vomit. I slap my hand over my mouth a second too late.

Maybe the courage comes from the realization that I have nothing left to lose.

Everything, including my will to live has been stolen from me.

Besides, just moments ago he was reassuring me he wouldn't hurt me and now he's threatening me again? This is simply more proof I can't believe a word that comes out of this killer's mouth.

My eyes focus on his elegant onyx suit and perfectly poised stance. Legs shoulder width apart, hands in his pockets leaving his thumbs to peek out the brims. He appears to be posing for a magazine, not on the brink of his second murder of the night.

My eyes rise to his face. The way his eyebrows are tied into knots and his jaw clenches painfully tells me he has no patience for my wallowing.

"Times up."

I suck in a surprised gasp as he advances toward me. Shit!

In a rush I step through the threshold and into the suite before he can put his hands on me again.

When he sees that I've obeyed him, his walking slows until he comes to a stop right in front of me.

I hold my breath as he towers over me. His small scar below his eye ticks as his head dips down to mine.

"That wasn't so hard, was it?" He smirks. His eyes dancing with vile triumph in the meager rays of light shinning in from the window.

I frown.

He has no idea how hard that really was.

Without breaking our stare my captor raises his hand slowly at his side. I feel the brush of his arm as he reaches over my shoulder to push the door shut behind me.

The sound of the lock humming as the bolt slides into its chamber is the sound of my fate being sealed.

I'm trapped.

Author note: Thanks to everyone who has began following along with this story! Be sure to comment with your thoughts along the way! 🖤