Chapter 29

I felt trapped. Like I was a prisoner in my own life. Day bled into night and I barely left my room, let alone my apartment. I couldn’t stop thinking about the night I’d found Scarlett—what I’d seen, what had happened between Preston and I, and finally, what I’d had to do to ensure his safety.

It all made me sick to my stomach.

“Why can’t life be more like a Channing Tatum movie?” Zhara asked as he lay bundled up beside me in my bed.

“Your life sort of is,” I said flatly, as we watched the ridiculously good-looking star gyrate to music on Zhara’s computer screen. “You’re half-naked most of the time and obsessed with dancing. That could be you up there.”

“Preach,” he said, nodding.

It was eight in the evening and we’d been stuck inside my apartment for three days. After discovering Scarlett’s body, the FBI had put me on house arrest until Kyle was apprehended. Agent Walker had quickly agreed with my theory that Kyle had targeted Scarlett to get to me. But in this particular instance, I would’ve rather been happy than right.

After that, I’d tried to convince Zhara to leave me alone too. Or at least to act like he wasn’t the most important person in my life. But he wouldn’t have it. And the truth was, he was probably safer with me than out there on his own anyway.

“Besides,” he’d explained, “I’m too cute to get all cut up.”

So for the time being we were stuck together, in hiding. Which for Zhara, meant a binge-watching movie marathon. For me, it was pure misery.

“How do people do this?” I asked him with a sigh.

“Do what? Strip for cash?” he asked, his eyes trained on Channing’s abs.

“No. This,” I said, gesturing around my bedroom. “Sit around waiting for life to just happen, with nothing to do except watch TV. It’s so boring! And sedentary. Aren’t you itching to go somewhere? Move around? Do something? How is this not torture to you?”

I was beginning to think I might actually be going crazy being stuck here. Not just stir-crazy, although I was feeling that too. No, I’m talking white, padded-cell crazy. Every noise I heard and every shadow I caught out of the corner of my eye had me convinced that Kyle had made it past the detectives and was coming to get me. Or worse, Zhara. A few times, I’d woken up from dreams so vivid that I swore I saw a figure standing in the corner of my bedroom. And I’d begun to grow hysterical, asking myself what would happen if they never caught Kyle? Would I have to stay hidden away forever? Without the ability to go outside alone? Without ballet? And without dance, then who was I and what was I supposed to do with my life? I’d be lost.

And then there were all the other people I cared about. What if Kyle found out about Preston? Or went after my family? My whole life felt out of control and I couldn’t see a way to make things right again.

As Zhara cat-called the guys on the screen, I felt my phone vibrate on the bedspread beside me. Absently, I picked it up and looked at the text.

Meet me if you don’t want that boy of yours to die.

A wave of dizziness fell over me and I blinked a few times before reading the message again. When I was sure that I was seeing it correctly, I began to hand the phone to Zhara to show him, but stopped.

This was it. The answer to everything. All Kyle wanted was me. And if I gave him what he wanted, nobody else would get hurt. Given his feelings for me, there might even be a chance I could convince him not to kill me.

It was a small chance, but it was enough.

I made a quick decision and texted back.

Where?

A few seconds later, my phone vibrated again.

Studio. Now. Come alone.

“Who’s blowing your shit up?” Zhara asked, annoyed he was being distracted from his new favorite movie. “Is that Preston? I don’t know why you don’t just give the guy a chance.”

I hadn’t told Zhara what had happened with Preston the night Scarlett had been killed. I probably should have. It was the first secret I’d ever kept from him and part of me felt awful about it. But I didn’t want to have to explain why I’d then pushed him away. I knew Zhara would try to talk me out of it, and I didn’t want to feel worse than I already did.

“We’re not good for each other,” I said, without correcting him on who was texting me.

“Chicks,” Zhara said, rolling his eyes.

“We need more snacks,” I announced suddenly. “It’s your turn to get them.”

“Ugh. Fine,” Zhara whined. Then he closed his laptop with a clang. “But no watching ahead.”

With a flourish, he left the room, muttering the whole way down the hall.

Once I heard him banging around in the kitchen, I threw the covers off and got out of bed. Tip-toeing over to my door, I quietly closed it and then got dressed.

What did one wear to die?

It seemed like this should’ve been a big moment. My last chance to control the outcome of something. But the bottom line was, there wasn’t any time. Kyle was expecting me, and I didn’t want to make him angrier. Not if I wanted to make it out of this alive.

Before I could talk myself out of it, I walked over to my window and unlatched the lock. Slowly pushing the wooden frame open, it struck me that I’d never snuck out of my room before. I’d never had to. Then again, I’d never done a lot of things before.

I poked my head outside the window and surveyed how far I’d have to drop to reach the ground. If I fell wrong, I could break something. Then, I might never dance again. But if I didn’t…well, my dance career might be over either way, depending on what Kyle had in store for me.

With a deep breath, I hoisted myself onto the window sill and maneuvered my tiny body until I was hanging out the other side. After saying a little prayer, I pushed myself away from the building and let go completely.

The ground came much quicker than I’d expected, and I barely registered the fall before I was landing on my butt with a thump. It was more jarring than painful, and I quickly picked myself up and took off for the path, avoiding the courtyard where the cops were stationed.

Walking at a brusque pace, I was at the studio in under five minutes.

I looked around the empty parking lot desperately, wondering how I’d gotten here. My life had become so crazy, I barely even recognized it now. Barely recognized myself. The old me never would’ve come. The new me…well, I had no choice. It had to end.

Stepping inside the studio, I realized I was the first to arrive and turned on just enough lights to illuminate the place without being obvious. It was silent inside, almost too big and cavernous for just one person to inhabit, and it made me feel tiny and insignificant.

Forcing myself into action, I began to look around for something I could use to defend myself if I couldn’t convince Kyle to spare me. There were very little options in the main part of the studio, but I knew the storage area held all the company’s past props. With a glance at the entrance, I bolted for the back room.

I’d barely had a chance to look around when I heard the front door open. I froze with fear.

“Bitch you better be dead, because I’m gonna kill you!” a voice called out loudly.

Zhara.

I scrambled back to the storage room door and found Zhara standing in the middle of the floor, his hands on his hips angrily. My mouth was open in shock, even though my stomach was sinking like the Titanic.

“What the hell are you doing here!” I hissed at him.

“What the hell are you doing here?” he asked me pointedly. “I read your text, only I was hoping you weren’t stupid enough to meet with a psycho killer alone. But here you are. Stupid.”

“Zhara, you have to leave,” I said, panicking that Kyle would be here any minute. “Don’t you understand? Kyle will kill you if he finds you here.”

Zhara pursed his lips at me. “No shit. They always kill the black man first,” he muttered, sarcastically. “And as stupid as you are, you’re still my partner. If anyone’s gonna torture you, it’s gonna be me.”

My head was screaming that time was running out and I knew I couldn’t keep fighting with him. As much as I wanted my friend as far away from here as possible, the truth was, it was probably already too late for him to leave.

“Fine!” I said, frustrated. “But at least hide, okay? And find something to protect yourself with.”

I ran back inside the storage room and started sifting through the large bins and shelves, looking for something sharp or heavy. Anything I could put between me and Kyle. When Zhara didn’t join me right away, I started to get pissed.

“Zhara, get your ass back here!”

The speakers in the main room crackled on and music began to play softly throughout the studio. Music that I knew. Goosebumps broke out all over my body as I recognized the piece.

Sleeping Beauty.

No.

“Zhara,” I called out again, this time much quieter than before.

I took a few hesitant steps toward the storage room door, hoping I wouldn’t see what I feared inside the studio. I didn’t want to go. My heart was pounding and alarms were going off in my head. But what was I supposed to do? Leave him out there?

I couldn’t do that.

When I got to the doorway, I nearly screamed as I saw Zhara’s body sprawled across the floor. Without thinking of the repercussions, I rushed toward my crumpled friend.

“Zhara!” I shouted, checking for signs that he was okay. A gash above his eye dripped fresh blood, but there were no other wounds that I could see. His pulse was steady but he was out cold. “Wake up!”

My eyes swept around the room, searching for the person who’d done this to my friend. Finally, I found who I’d been looking for. He was crouched in the corner, his back to me as he looked through the music selection on the studio computer. It was clear he wasn’t worried about what I might do, otherwise he wouldn’t have left himself open to an attack like that.

“I see you brought a friend,” he said, without looking at me. But he didn’t have to turn for me to recognize who he was. “That’s okay. The more, the merrier.”