Page 108 of Bad Situation

I Fall

Jen

Lethargic.

I feel like I’ve been asleep for a hundred years. It doesn’t matter how much I want to move my limbs—they won’t cooperate. And my head—shit. The pounding, it echoes and whips through my brain with the ferocity of a tornado, leaving nothing in its wake but carnage.

“Jen.”

My whispered name cuts through the battering of my head and my body is coming to life just enough to feel her touch.

Ellie.

Oh, shit. Ellie.

“Wake up,” she hisses, not just touching, but shaking me. I moan because it hurts my head even more. She shushes me, pulling me in tight.

“Are you almost here? I had no choice.” A familiar voice breaks through my subconscious. “These two together… Fuck, I couldn’t take it anymore. She was going on and on about that other guy.”

“Jen, you have to wake up. Please, wake up,” Ellie panics in my ear. I try to open my eyes and it hurts even worse. What little light there is in the room prickles through the clockworks of my slow functioning brain. Ellie has me up and cradled against her chest, her lips against my ear. “You’re coming around. I know it’s hard, she drugged me too, but open your fucking eyes. I need you.”

Oh, shit. I remember.

I ignore the pain, the pounding, and my body that isn’t being a team player at the moment. It takes everything I have, but I do my best to pry my lids open.

“Oh, thank God.” Ellie’s tear-streaked face is pale—paler than normal—and she jostles me one more time. “I need you to wake up. Whatever she shot us up with wears off pretty fast—you need to try. Fight it because I need your help. She’s on the phone with someone.”

I do as she says and fight the paralysis, craning my neck at the same time.

My normally sweet—even if somewhat anxious—assistant, doesn’t look either right now. Her face is hard, her movements harsh, and her demeanor callous. She’s kicked off her shoes and is pacing the dirty floor, yelling into her phone.

“Why?” I whisper, but Ellie gives me a squeeze and shakes her head to shut me up.

My body aches as my muscles stir and Ellie leans into my ear again. “She’s been ranting on the phone about us. I have no clue what’s going on, but we need to get out of here before someone else comes. The two of us together—we might be able to get away, but we have to act fast.”

The small windows at the top of the room are inky. I don’t know how long I’ve been out but the building feels mustier and gloomier after sunset, not to mention the menace lurking in the air. Our only exit is the door we entered.

Callie turns to us as I push up to my ass and kick off my shoes. She doesn’t even sound like herself when she warns, “Don’t fucking move. I swear, I’ll hit you again and this time I’ll double up. You’ll be out ‘til next week.”

*****

Eli

“Baby, where are you? I’m hungry and dinner’s getting cold. I get you had a busy week, but you were supposed to be home half-an-hour ago. Call me.”

I’ve texted and called. Jen working late isn’t rare but it is for her not to check in. I pull up the app to track her to see if she’s on her way.

She’s not at work or on the road. She’s at her sister’s new building. I toss the phone on the counter. I can’t expect her to tell me where she is every moment of the day, but after all that’s gone on, it makes me uneasy. I’m going to have to get over that because Bree is in jail with no chance for bail.

I flip open the to-go container and toss a steak fry in my mouth. There’s nothing satisfying about it. Instead, my stomach turns as I watch the minutes click by on her kitchen clock.

*****

Jen

Ellie grabs my hand. I thought I knew my assistant well, but I had no clue. I do know I need to do everything I can to keep her talking until we figure out how to get out of here.

Ellie’s grip on me tightens and I lean against the wall next to her. Bringing my hand up to my head, I have to squint when I mutter, “Why are you doing this?”

---