Bury Me with Lies (Twin Lies #2) - S.M. Soto Page 0,44

Zach truly is here. In the flesh.

He’s glaring down at me, a wicked gleam in his eyes, as he takes in my battered body. His hair hangs out of his bun, shadowing his face. “You really must have a guardian angel on your side, don’t you? You just never fucking die.”

My whimper is muffled beneath his hand. Tears leak down my face, rolling down my temples and into my hair. Fear has seized my body. It’s clawing at my chest, lodging a lump in my throat that makes it impossible to cry out. Not that anyone would hear me.

“You think you’re safe here, Mackenzie? Think again. I’m going to make your life hell. I’m going to make you wish you were you dead. That’s a promise.” He moves so quickly I can’t even stop him from what he does next. He rips one of the pillows from beneath my head and slams it over my face. I panic, trying to suck in air, but the pillow clogs my mouth and my airway. I thrash on the bed and try yelling for help, but the suffocating material muffles it. I feel a sudden pressure in my abdomen, and I gasp, spasming on the bed at the way Zach is pressing on the wound. The wound Vincent caused by stabbing me.

I choke on my pain, my tears and snot, and the pillow blocking my airway have that black tunnel racing toward me. I try to fight it, but it swallows me in a fit of panic, until I can feel nothing at all.

When I come to the next morning, my eyes spring open, but only darkness surrounds me. I try to suck in air, but I feel a soft weight on my face. Panicking, the events of last night slam into me, and I use my free hand to feel around and pull whatever it is off my face.

My heart stalls, and my stomach churns when the pillow moves off my face easily. My chest wracks with a sob, and I cry out, thinking about last night, knowing it was real. He was in here. He was in here and damn-near suffocated me with a fucking pillow!

I dart my gaze around the room, looking for help, checking to see if he’s still here. I’m alone. I glance up at the ceiling, hoping there’s a camera in here, something that can show he tried to kill me. I need proof. Something tangible I can use against him. Because if I don’t do something, he’s going to kill me.

Costas was right. I’m in more danger than I thought. The enemy wasn’t all that far. He’s here.

I must be sobbing a lot louder than I expected because the door is suddenly thrown open and in run Gary, a nurse I’ve never seen before, and Stephanie. Her eyes are wide, panic written all over her face.

“Ms. Wright, what’s wrong? Are you hurt?”

I pound at my chest with my free hand through my sobs, trying to get the words out, but they don’t come. They’re stuck in my throat, refusing to escape. One of the nurses says something into a walkie, and in the distance, I hear pounding footsteps while I have a panic attack. The blood is roaring in my ears, making the noises in the room fade, and all I can seem to focus on is the fact that my chest is tightening, restricting air. My vision blurs. Faces blend as they close in on me.

Dr. Aster’s face comes into view. She’s saying something, her lips moving, her eyes panicked while she looks down at me.

“H-he’s here,” I manage to get out, between my panting and sobbing. She motions for something behind her, and next thing I know, an oxygen mask is being placed over my mouth and nose to help me breathe.

I close my eyes, waiting for the pain in my chest to subside. I don’t know how long I sit like that, but after some time, the restricting sensation in my lungs dissipates, and I’m able to suck in a large breath. Slowly, I blink my eyes open, my heartbeat returning to normal and the roaring in my ears settling just enough that I’m able to hear what’s happening around me.

“Mackenzie? Can you hear me?” Dr. Aster asks, her face coming back into view. I jerk my chin, the indication that I can hear her. “Can you breathe on your own?”

I nod again, and she pulls the mask off, handing it off to