Page 106 of Who's Afraid of the Big, Bad World

A sob tore from her throat as she lurched for the panic room.

She wasn’t going to make it.

Inside, a well of anger she didn’t know she possessed ripped open. Fury surged through her like a geyser, erupting from every vein.

Not.

Again.

She wouldn’t be taken again.

NEVER AGAIN.

The rage was a cocktail of adrenaline and caffeine all rolled into one. Suddenly, she could move her body. And she took full advantage of it by launching herself like a football player in a flying tackle, straight through the panic room door.

But she wasn’t fast enough.

Eddie came with her.

Annabelle scrambled across the floor, desperate to get away from him. Flipping onto her back as she retreated, anxious to keep an eye on her pursuer. She instantly regretted it, because Eddie loomed over her like the monster in every worst nightmare. A furious, red-faced maniac with blood lust in his eyes and spittle in the corners of his mouth.

He let out a howl and kicked her in the ribs before standing over her, one foot on either side of her body. Annabelle gasped for air, clutching her ribs while trying to wriggle away.

Eddie bent over, madness staring her in the face. “You took everything from me, so I’m going to take everything from you.”

“No!” she shouted as she drew up her leg and kicked him as hard as she could, right in the balls.

He doubled over with a groan and staggered toward the sofa bed.

Annabelle clawed and scrambled her way to the door into the guest room. As Eddie clutched himself and cursed at her, she slammed the button that opened the door. But before launching herself through it, she punched the lockdown code into the panel above it. She threw herself through the door, just a hair’s breadth away from being caught in it when it slammed shut, locking Eddie inside the panic room.

She wasn’t stupid. It wouldn’t take Eddie long to escape the room, even without the code. But it did buy her a little time to get away from him.

And there was only one place left for her to go.

Chapter Thirty-Six

There was no time to hunt down her phone and call for help. Annabelle wasn’t even sure where she’d left it. All she could do was try to buy herself some time until help came. And it would come. She didn’t know why Noah wasn’t in the building, but she knew he’d return for her.

Limping and staggering, she made her way to the stairs leading up to the roof. Behind her were deep, resounding thuds as Eddie bombarded the panic room door. Eventually, he’d calm down enough to use his brain, rather than brawn, to get out.

With her eyes fixed on the heavy steel door at the top of the stairs, she dragged herself upward. Her plan was simple: get to the roof and shout for help. It was the busiest time of the day. Someone would be out on the street. Someone would hear her.

Please…

She inched her way up to the door, aching with every step she took. Hands shaking, she unlocked it, slipped the key into her pocket, and threw it open. The bright summer sun blinded her, rendering her useless while her eyes adjusted.

And then, when they did, she gazed out at the wide-open expanse of the roof.

Of the city.

The sky.

The world…

There were no walls out there to keep her safe. Then again, the walls behind her weren’t doing a great job of that right now, either. Ice-cold fingers of panic clawed at her as her hands curled around the doorframe. There was too much space. Anything might happen out there, where there was nowhere to hide.

Annabelle jumped at the sound of gunfire from below. Eddie had figured out how to disable the panel. Her time had run out.