He turns on a light, and I recognize the room. His guest room in his house. “I’ll help you up.”
“Why am I bound to the bed?”
John chuckles. “Oh, Piper, we both know why. Now, let’s get you moved over to this.” He unbinds my left hand and ties it to a tall lamp. Next, he unties my ankles, moving me over until he can tie my left ankle to the lamp as well. Then he releases my other wrist.
I end up carrying the damn thing into the bathroom with me. As quickly as I can, using only one hand, I search the drawers for anything I can use. But he’s already ahead of me. Everything has been removed.
“You all right in there?” he asks from the door.
“Yep. Great.” I open the door, and he hands me a granola bar.
“Here you go.”
I eat the bar then realize whatever he gave me left me dehydrated. As if reading my mind, he hands me a water bottle with the lid already off. How considerate since I only have one hand to work with.
“What’s your plan here?” I nod to the lamp. It’s lightweight, so it certainly won’t keep me here.
“Well, we’ll use that until we don’t need to anymore.”
I finish the water and hand it back to him. “And why won’t we need it anymore?”
“Because you’ll realize how serious I am, and you won’t want to risk hurting those you love.”
His threat is indirect, which tells me he doesn’t have a plan yet.
“What were you talking to my mom about earlier?”
His eyes light up. “Our wedding. It’s Saturday, and she’s taking care of everything.”
“Wedding? Have you lost your mind?”
His smile drops, and he grows serious. “No, and if you know what’s good for you, you’ll play along.”
“John, you can’t expect me to stand up at a wedding, tied to a lamp, likely drugged up, and for everyone to buy it.”
He leads me back to the bedroom. “You will stand up there of your own volition, and everyone will buy it. You have a few days to get yourself ready.”
“A few days? What day is it?”
Friday was when he kidnapped me. But he put me in his car, and it is not a short drive to Montana.
“It’s Wednesday, and it is…” he pulls out his phone and checks the time, “six pm.”
I’ve lost days. Durango should be looking for me. Then I remember the shot.
“Is my cousin okay?” I ask.
John shrugs. “You still worried about what I gave him? Trust me, it’s worn off by now. Now, let’s get you back to bed.”
I glance around the room. There is nothing anywhere I can grab to use to escape. He cleaned this place up before bringing me here. Sadly, I have nochoice but to get back into bed until I can come up with another plan.
I sit down as he unties my ankle from the lamp. He moves them up and reties them to the bed.
“Can you tie them a bit looser? My hands and feet were almost numb.”
He straightens and stares at me.
“You can’t very well explain if I’ve lost a limb now, can you?”
