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‘no.’ You see? He is not a lost cause! I am not giving up on Daniel!” I hoped my little speech had convinced this man how urgent the situation was. I drained the last of my Coke and sprang up from the sofa. An instant head rush caused me to topple back down, landing with a thump on my coccyx.
    “Whoa, be careful.” His hands shot out to steady me. “Easy, baby, you don’t want to bash your head again.”
    His word, ‘baby’ filled me with fury. How dare he talk this way to me? My eyes were daggers, my twisted mouth poison. “You make me sick,” I mumbled, “doing something like this for money.” I wanted him to hear me, but at the same time talking to him this way was risky. All I could think about was getting to Daniel, but I was probably going about it the wrong way.
    “It was the money, I admit. But being holed up in here with you gives me a whole lot to look forward to.” He smirked. “Get it? Holed up? A hole lot to look forward to, as in a ‘ hole’ to look forward to? Your sweet pussy bein’ that succulent little hole.” He laughed again, his straight white teeth making me wonder why he was involved in shady dealings when he could have practically found work as a fashion model.
    I screwed up my face as if I’d eaten lemons and cockroaches all in one go. “You disgust me,” I muttered. I looked around the room for a weapon. My purse was hooked on the edge of a wooden chair. It wasn’t that heavy though. I wished I’d been wearing spiky heels, but my Converse sneakers were useless. There were no ornaments, no lamps, no fork or knife accompanying the sandwich he’d brought me. The room was sparse, except for this sofa, a table, two chairs, and one of those oversized beanbag loungers on the floor.
    He stroked my cheek with the pad of his thumb. “You and me will fuck, baby, you’ll come a thousand different ways, then you’ll forget about this Daniel dude, I guarantee.” He took my empty plate and glass away, and swaggered toward the kitchen, and I instantly regretted that I hadn’t thought of smashing them over his dumbass head.
    There was no point arguing with this half-witted jerk, nor trying to convince him. So far, he hadn’t manifested a violent side, but that didn’t mean I was safe. He was strong and muscular and could overpower me with his little finger. I needed to find his Achilles’ heel, or win him over in some way to get the information I needed, without compromising myself.
    And get the hell out of here.

7
    Daniel.

    A KALEIDOSCOPE OF colors is fragmenting my brain into puzzle pieces. I am trying to fit them into the right places. I see my father, and my childhood dog, Smokey. They’re waiting for me, calling my name. It’s getting brighter now, a white light looming around my head like a halo.
    A then a burst of pale gold engulfs my whole body . . .

8
    Janie.
    I GOT UP from the sofa—slowly this time—and cased the room. The exit door must have been in the kitchen, where the guy was right now. I realized I’d never asked him his name. I found him washing up my plate. His tall frame towered over me.
    “Hey, gorgeous,” he said, winking at me.
    The exit door was right in front of me.
    “Don’t even think about it,” he warned, reading my mind. “It’s locked and I have the key.”
    “What’s that noise?” I asked.
    He cocked his head. “I been wonderin’ the same thing.”
    “Where does this door lead?”
    “Corridors. Laboratories. This is where Dr. Jürgen works.”
    I pressed my head up against the door. “Sounds like a bunch of animals. Locked up animals.”
    “You freakin’ me?”
    I looked at him. “She’s a neurologist. You know what they use animals for, don’t you? Vivisection? Experiments? But I guess if what you said is true about not having any morals, you wouldn’t give a damn.”
    “Fuck!” he said. “I knew I shouldn’t have gotten myself involved in this!” His face changed from menacing man to concerned guy in a