When Marielle was awakened by a heavy-handed knock on the door, she briefly panicked because she didn’t recognize the room. Then she laughed at herself because the knock hadn’t even been on her door. “Right,” she said with a yawn and a glance around the room that she currently occupied. “I’m at Valorant.” Then she …

Something flickered. An explosion on television startled Marielle awake, even though she hadn’t been aware of falling asleep. She turned; Austin was awake and staring at the love scene on screen. Sweaty, naked bodies were intertwined. She stood, then went down to the ground on her back and tucked her toes under the lip of …

Both Austin and Marielle drank their water quickly, relishing how it quenched their thirst even though they knew Vincent was in much worse shape. Marielle imagined his tongue swelling with thirst and his stomach rolling with hunger, although he probably felt them only when there was a small break in the merciless torture being thrust …

There was pandemonium for a minute as several more people arrived on the scene, including Barbara and Liam. Vincent had fallen to his knees but was still alert, although a fresh cut trickled blood down the side of his handsome face. Austin rushed in between everyone and bent down to Marielle, taking hold of her …

The next day, Barbara met Marielle at the door, gray pistol case in hand, and explained that Marielle needed Sasha to qualify her for its use and sign it out. Since Marielle knew how to use a pistol well, she was annoyed to say the least. Although she wanted to see Vincent, she obeyed protocol …

Shortly after they finished eating, Vincent insisted on being returned to his room, where he quietly took up reading Dracula again. Klara tried talking to him several times, even though he still refused to respond to anyone other than Marielle. She asked, “You’re smart, right? We’ll have to work together sometime.” Klara was this way …

Vincent’s eyes were dry and red, and when tears finally came again, they stung worse than anything he could remember in his adult life. He dreaded crying but knew it was the only form of release he was going to get. Endless hours of sleeplessness had also left his eyes swollen, and he couldn’t remember …

Marielle did not sleep that night. In fact, she forced herself to do anything except sleep. She took her dress off, rinsed her face free of makeup, and removed the jewelry to slip into an oversized T-shirt. Maybe being comfortable would help her think more clearly. She started with cleaning the kitchen by wiping down …

Marielle had no idea how long she’d been biting the pencil eraser and staring at the chart in her hand, but eventually Jamie’s voice broke into her disjointed, Vincent-filled thoughts.  “You’re distracted,” he said casually.  She looked up at him as if jerking out of a nightmare and took him in as he stood at …

Marielle found Sasha waiting for her when she stepped off the elevator at Cellblock Two, three floors down. He stood straight and tall, his gun at the ready. When he saw her, his body relaxed a bit, and he holstered his weapon. “Did they call it in?” she asked, stepping toward him. “Yes, they did,” …