Page 104 of Camera Stays On

“Not just in it. He set himself up a little bunker. That camera room on the second floor everyone has access to? That’s a decoy. He wanted you all to believe you were involved in the making and cutting and editing of the movie. It was all a lie. The real setup is downstairs. I wasn’t supposed to mention it, but—” She waved her foot in the air. “Fuck him. Good luck, Asher. I wouldn’t go down there unarmed if I were you.” Bea limped away, and there was nothing I could say or do to keep her here. There was nothing I wanted to say or do, really. While it would be a slow, laborious trek for her, I hoped she made it out and told the fire station to come for us.

Carefully, I stalked back to the house, pausing at my truck to look for something to smash the front door open. I found a rubber mallet. It wasn’t great, but I didn’t have many options past crawling through the second-floor window again. I stalked up to the front door and swung the mallet at the door, over and over until finally, it gave way and burst open. Wood and splinters went everywhere as I kicked it the rest of the way open and stepped through.

I didn’t bother trying to stay quiet. If Sawyer knew about the basement, then he most likely saw us go into it last night. As soon as I crossed the threshold, I sprinted toward the private wing, bumping into tables and accidentally knocking things over as I went. I no longer cared about my props and decorations getting damaged. We’d be lucky if this place didn’t go down in flames. Knowing Sawyer the way I did, it would be no surprise if, in his last moments, realizing he had not won Andi back, he chose to take a match to the place.

I unlocked the basement door and started down it, but then returned, locking it again. While it was pointless to keep my brother out, I didn’t want Mick or Juliet to find us either. Rushing back down the stairs I shoved my way through until I reached the room we’d stayed in last night, only to find it empty. I tossed blankets aside and went to the bathroom, pressing on the walls, hoping for some secret door to pop out.

This was owned by the fucking mafia, there had to be another secret tunnel.

Finding nothing, I slammed my fists into the tile, causing one to crack. I let out a cry of anguish and turned back. As I returned to the bedroom, the door leading out slammed shut, and I heard the click of a lock.

I stared for a long moment before rushing forward, trying the handle. I twisted and pulled and shook the door, but it didn’t budge.

Fuck.

He knew I was down here.

He knew I had no food.

He had Andi.

And he’d locked the door.

Chapter 47

Andi

“SUCKS TO BE him.” Sawyer cackled when he returned to the bunker he’d trapped me in when I’d stumbled into it. “How’s your leg?” he asked, going to the fridge, opening it, and pulling out a beer. I stared at him in irritation and disbelief. Lifting the skirt of my wedding dress, I raised my leg and shook it. The ankle shackle he’d placed around me jangled with the chain scratching against the floor.

“It’s been better. You’re back now—can you take this off?” I asked. “It’s not like I can run. You know, since you shot me.”

“That was days ago. And you seem pretty active despite it.” He snickered. Shutting the fridge, he leaned against it. It was then that I noticed he’d taken off his wedding clothes. He was back to his normal urban cowboy gear. Popping the tab on his beer, he took a long sip and then looked over at me, smirking. “Nice try, you’re not going anywhere, Purdy Doll.”

“Why are you doing this?” I asked, shifting on the bed.

“Doing what?” he asked, as if we were in a normal home, on a normal day, under normal circumstances, and he wasn’t trying to murder everyone.

“Keeping me hostage,” I said. “Locking Asher in that room.” I nodded to the computer screens. “Any of this. Why?”

He finished his beer and crushed it in his hands before tossing it into the garbage nearby. “Why? Because you left me, that’s why.”

I flinched as he stormed over to the bed and grabbed me by the shoulders. Yanking me to him, he pressed his lips against mine, forcing the kiss on me. I whimpered and tried to push him away, but he dug his fingers deeper into my skin, causing me to cry out. The moment my lips parted, he shoved his tongue inside my mouth. I tried to clamp it shut again, but he was persistent, pushing me down so my back fell onto the comforter. He climbed on top of me, and finally, pulled away from my mouth.

“God, I missed the taste of you, Purdy. We were always so good together. Don’t you remember? You shouldn’t have left like you did.”

Using all my strength, I shoved his chest.

“What other option did you give me?” I asked incredulously. “You publicly shamed me in front of the entire town. With no proof!”

His eyes narrowed. “I had proof. I showed you the proof.”

A loud laugh escaped my throat. “You didn’t show me shit, Sawyer. You showed the whole town a lie.”

The silence stretching between us was making me uneasy.

Sawyer slowly cocked his head. “You asked why I did all this. Why I gathered you all here. I wanted to force you to confess. Confessing the truth would heal us. We could finally be together, with everything behind us. Who was it? Was it Gavin?”

I let his words sink in. His eyes lit up, hopeful, hanging on to that last hope that I’d admit to everything he believed. Swallowing hard, my heart racing, I responded slowly.