The Secrets We Hide (The Four #2) - Becca Steele Page 0,5

seemed like a minor scratch. Turning on the tap, I put my hands under the brownish-coloured icy water that came spurting out, and when it ran clear, I used my hands to gently clean the cut as much as I could, then dabbed water over my face.

Once that was done and my skin was numb from the cold, I felt my head, where there was a sizeable lump, which sent throbbing pain through me as soon as I touched it. Quickly dropping my hand, I made my way back to the mattress, collapsing down onto it, barely caring about the springs digging into me as another wave of nausea and dizziness overtook me. I pulled one of the blankets from the pile over me, resting my sore head on another, and somehow managed to fall asleep.

I had no idea how much time had passed when I awoke, but my stomach was painfully empty, and I gulped down another third of my water, forcing myself to stop and save some for later. I wasn’t sure if the tap water was safe to drink, and the last thing I needed was to get ill on top of everything else.

What to do? I was in no state to try to escape, with my head all fucked up, but I had to try something. A slow circuit of the room proved fruitless—the other door next to the stairs had a heavy-duty padlock that I had no way of opening. I stood next to the stairs, leaning against the wall, trying to get my brain in gear so I could think. My only chance was to make a run for it when the man returned next. Could I even run in this state? I had to try.

Mind made up, I decided to try the classic trick of arranging my blankets in a lump in the hope it would look like there was a body under there. Obviously there was no way it would actually fool him up close, but it might buy me enough time to get up the stairs and out…where? My guess was that I was still at the docks. I had to take it one step at a time. First, get out and find a hiding place, then take it from there.

I arranged my blankets and turned on the bathroom light, leaving the door ajar, so that if the blanket trick failed straight away, he might think I was in the bathroom. Yeah, it was a pretty horrendous, flimsy plan, but it was the only one I had.

Hiding in the shadows by the stairs, I waited.

The scraping of metal echoed through the room, and the throbbing in my head increased at the sound. I battled another wave of dizziness—there was no way I was going to let anything stop my escape attempt.

Footsteps descended the stairs, and once they hit the floor, I counted to five under my breath, then made a run for it. Scrambling up the stairs as fast as I could go, my ears ringing and my heart pounding, I reached out with my hands to touch the pitted metal surface of the hatch opening.

My fingers made contact, and at the same time I was grabbed around the legs and yanked downwards, my cheek smacking into cold stone as my face connected with one of the steps. Arms caught me, and I felt a sharp jab in my neck.

I knew nothing else.

FOUR

Two and a half days.

Sixty hours, give or take.

No Winter.

The four of us were going insane. Kinslee was blowing up our phones, wanting to know where she was. We’d told her Winter was ill and would be in contact when she was better—anything to delay her while we searched.

“Anything?” I asked Weston for the tenth time, and he shook his head, frustration clear in his eyes.

“Nothing.”

None of our contacts had been able to find any trace of Winter. Best-case scenario, she was still at the docks, and we’d somehow missed something important. Worst case—she’d ended up on the Argo Navis, which we still knew fuck all about. Or…no. I wouldn’t let my mind consider anything else.

Down in the basement gym, West and I spotted each other on the weights, both of us trying to focus on anything but the problem of Winter going missing. I’d never felt so fucking helpless in my life. Every minute we went without answers was another minute where she could be in danger, or worse.

“Car. Now.” Zayde burst into the gym, where I’d just