“Move!” one barked.
A shove from behind came hard, and her world tilted. She hit the metal floor of the van on her side, pain cracking up through her ribs, hip, and shoulder. Before she could scramble to her feet, the first man was already climbing in, grabbing her ankles. The second pushed her shoulders down. She barely got out half a shriek before a hand clapped over her mouth again.
“Quiet!”
The door slammed shut, blocking out most of the afternoon sun. There were no windows in the back. It was hot in there and smelled of grease, sweat, and gasoline. A glance around revealed nothing she could use as a weapon.
Before she had time to register the van moving—fast, too fast—a hood was aggressively pulled down over her head. Darkness swallowed her. Zip ties cinched around her wrists, digging deep, the ratcheting sound, sharp and unmistakable. Another set clamped around her ankles. She kicked on instinct, but her legs barely shifted before the plastic dug in harder. The floor vibrated beneath her, every bump and turn sending her rolling like loose cargo.
“No—please!” She choked against dirty fabric over her face, wild panic clawing up her throat. “Help!”
No one heard her.
The van lurched to the left so violently that her head snapped back and banged the floor. With her hands behind her back, she couldn’t grab onto anything to stop her body from sliding.
Her pulse thumped wildly, becoming white noise in her ears. Her breath came fast and useless, like her lungs didn’t know how to work anymore. She tried again to kick one of them, but her feet didn’t make contact.
The vehicle whipped around a sharp turn, and her already bruised shoulder impacted with something hard and metallic. Pain shot down her arm.
“What do you want?” she begged. “Please—what do you?—”
“Shut up!” one of the men ordered. His voice was low and threatening.
Her thoughts skittered everywhere, incoherent at first—Dr. Hansen? Patty? Someone saw, someone must’ve seen?—
But the parking lot had been nearly empty, and no one else had been around.
Oh, God! No one knows what happened to me!
Tears slid hot down her cheeks, but she didn’t stop struggling—not even when her muscles groaned in pain, not even when her chest burned with terrified breaths she couldn’t control.
“L-let me go!” she tried again, her voice muffled and breaking.
No one answered her.
Tess’s stomach swooped with each curve and turn they took too fast. The van’s undercarriage rattled with every bump.
Her mind raced. Why her? What did they want? Who were they? Were these the same people from the Escalade she’d kept seeing? Would she ever see Andy again?
She didn’t know. God, she didn’t know anything. And she couldn’t see their faces. Couldn’t see anything but shadows through the thin material covering her face.
Her heart twisted painfully.
She squirmed, trying to get her hands free, but it was useless. She changed tactics and kicked her bound feet out, this time striking a leg or arm.
“Knock it off!” Hands shoved at her, knocking her off balance again.
“Go to hell,” Tess spat, her voice thin and shaking.
He hissed a laugh. “You’ll want to save your strength.”
Fear cut through her like a blade.
She swallowed it down. She needed her head clear. Panicking would get her nowhere. She forced her breathing to slow—barely. Just enough to keep from hyperventilating.
She memorized every sound. Every bump. Every turn. If she lived through this—and she had to—she needed details. Anything she could use to escape.
Over the years, she’d trained herself not to react too strongly when dealing with bodies. With death. With tragedy.