Captivate by Vanessa Garden - Chapter Sampler

8132019 Captivate by Vanessa Garden - Chapter Sampler

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CHAPTER THREE

T983144983141 983155983141983139983151983150983140 983156983145983149983141 I came to it was like being woken up

with a twenty tonne punch to the head slamming home

recollections of Lauren the water and the manMy eyes popped open and my body jolted my head

jerking about while I grasped my surroundings

High stone walls and a stone ceiling formed a large

rectangular room around me I was in a king-sized four-

poster bed and the wooden faces that had swirled about my

head earlier were carvings of fishes mermaids and mermen

all twisting and spiralling around the bed posts as if being

pulled upwards by a current My eyes followed them right

up to the roof of the bed where gleaming pearls encrusted

in smooth wooden panels winked at me through strips of

white silkAlthough my body was damp with sweat I shivered

convulsively Nothing made sensemdashthis room this fairytale

bed I needed to find Lauren I needed to get back to the

shack Slo l I inched m self into sitting position the act



18 CAPTIVATE

It was a guy seated in a wooden chair a few metres away

his features shadowed by the dim lighting He yawned

and rubbed at his face his hands making a scratchy sound

against his jaw Then he raised his head to glance in mydirection and sprung from the chair as if somebody had

tipped a bucket of cold water down his back

lsquoWho are you Wherersquos Laurenrsquo I asked hot blood

pounding in my ears My hands instinctively formed fists

which I kept at my chest ready

lsquoYoursquore okayrsquo he said breathlessly and with relief as he

rushed to my side

The stranger was tall had wavy light-brown hair and the

sort of face that made me want to trust him But something

about his overall appearance wasnrsquot right Although he

seemed healthy enoughmdashhis chest was broad and I couldsee the outline of huge biceps below his shirt sleevesmdashhis

skin was abnormally chalk-white as though he hadnrsquot seen

the sun in a long time Like never

Goosebumps prickled my skin

When he leaned over me I caught the stinging scent of

sea saltlsquoIrsquom just going to have a look at yoursquo His voice although

deep had a gentle undertone But it did little to put me at ease

lsquoWho are you Where am Irsquo

lsquoThis will only take a minutersquo he said ignoring my

questions before peeling back the covers to expose my

bather-clad body

I gasped and shrank back into the pillow my hands

fumbling to shield as much as they could

His dark-brown eyes the pupils dilated in the dimness of



VANESSA GARDEN 19

on But when he met my eyes he held his breath and stared

into them for what seemed an eternity before he exhaled

softly and drew back

I clawed at the bedcovers until they were up to my neckagain

lsquoWherersquos my sister Who are yoursquo

lsquoJust one more thing left to do then Irsquoll leave you to restrsquo

He grimaced apologetically rubbing his hands together

lsquoSorry my hands are coldrsquo

lsquoDonrsquot touch mersquo I scurried backwards bedcovers

clutched to my chest until my spine hit the wooden

headboard lsquoI donrsquot need rest I need to get back to my sister

and my grandparents Right nowrsquo

The mattress groaned beneath his weight as he sat on the

edge of the bed and slowly inched forward lsquoThis will bequick I promisersquo

By now my back had almost fused with the headboard

I squeezed my eyes shut and held my breath but gasped

when warm fingers pressed firmly against the pulse in my

neck My eyes snapped open

His lips were moving He was counting

lsquoYour pulse is finersquo he said after a pause sighing as though

genuinely relieved lsquoYoursquore perfectly healthyrsquo

I slapped his hand away The strangerrsquos eyes widened but

he said nothing He seemed nervous and unsure of what

he was doing or what he planned to do next After an

agonisingly long half a minute or so of silence he brushed

his palms against his thighs and leapt to his feet

lsquoWould you like some water to drinkrsquo

Though the inside of my mouth felt like carpet I didnrsquot



20 CAPTIVATE

lsquoYoursquove slept for a long time The drugs should wear off

soon if not alreadyrsquo

At the mention of drugs my stomach clenched Irsquod

heard the horror stories about girls having roofies slippedinto their drinks and knew exactly what went on while

those poor girls were passed out I reached down and

groped my bare flesh for any kind of bruising but my

arms the insides of my legs and stomach felt okay as far

as I could tell

The guy paced the floors for a few minutes before he

stopped at the foot of the bed and rested an arm against one

of the ornately carved posts

He drew in a deep breath and studied the wooden

mermaids somewhat reluctantly resting his eyes on me

the corners of his mouth twitching in a possible attempt atsmiling as he exhaled

lsquoSo whatrsquos your namersquo His low voice came out an octave

or two higher as though he was trying to sound pleasant

and unthreatening But I remained silent and didnrsquot move a

muscle not even to breathe The only conversation I wanted

to have was of the get-me-the-hell-out-of-here varietyHe bowed his head and swore to himself retreating

into the shadowy corner of the room where hersquod sat

earlier

I watched him my eyes travelling down his broad back

and following the length of his denim-clad legs right

down to the long black boots he woremdashboots with daggers

strapped to them Although he seemed roughly the same

age as me give or take a year he outdid me in height and

weaponry



VANESSA GARDEN 21

lsquoNearly a week Yoursquove spent most of the time in and out

of sleep The maids have had to assist you in the bathroom

Unfortunately the drugs didnrsquot quite agree with yoursquo

A week Panic closed in like a tight wall squeezing meuntil it was hard breathe

lsquoWherersquos my sisterrsquo My eyes darted intermittently

between the door and my captor

lsquoI didnrsquot take her just yoursquo he said in a quiet voice which

croaked at the last word

A strange combination of elation and crushing guilt

twisted my insides Lauren was safe and I was beyond glad

but I couldnrsquot believe that it had taken me this long to feel

true heartfelt concern for her wellbeing again Digging

my nails into my palms I closed my eyes My sisterrsquos

stricken face floated about in my mind quickly followedby the faces of my grandparents my parents my good

friend Zoe and Aidenmdashall those I had ever loved Perhaps

this is what dying people meant when they said their lives

flashed before their eyes

I sucked in a deep breath and took mental stock of my

situation I wasnrsquot dead yet If the guy had wanted to hurtme then surely he would have done so already This was

possibly some strange mix up Hersquod gotten the wrong girlhellip

or maybe he thought Irsquod been drowning that night and had

lsquosavedrsquo me

I sat up and tried to make eye contact but he was leaning

forward elbows on knees and head in hands

lsquoWhere am Irsquo I asked trying to control the tremor in

my voice

From the darkened corner he sighed and left me



22 CAPTIVATE

lsquoWhorsquos Sylviarsquo I raked my fingers through my hair

trying to recall anybody I knew by the name of Sylvia

lsquoKeeping me here is illegal You need to take me home

right nowrsquoSilence followed only to be broken by chair legs scraping

against stone when the guy stood up and strode towards the

doormdashmy only way out

I leapt out of bed and ran towards the exit but before I

reached it he slipped through and locked the door behind

him

Beating against the cool metal with my fists I shouted

lsquoCome backrsquo and lsquoLet me out of herersquo over and over again

until the words cut into my throat like razorblades



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CHAPTER THREE

T983144983141 983155983141983139983151983150983140 983156983145983149983141 I came to it was like being woken up

with a twenty tonne punch to the head slamming home

recollections of Lauren the water and the manMy eyes popped open and my body jolted my head

jerking about while I grasped my surroundings

High stone walls and a stone ceiling formed a large

rectangular room around me I was in a king-sized four-

poster bed and the wooden faces that had swirled about my

head earlier were carvings of fishes mermaids and mermen

all twisting and spiralling around the bed posts as if being

pulled upwards by a current My eyes followed them right

up to the roof of the bed where gleaming pearls encrusted

in smooth wooden panels winked at me through strips of

white silkAlthough my body was damp with sweat I shivered

convulsively Nothing made sensemdashthis room this fairytale

bed I needed to find Lauren I needed to get back to the

shack Slo l I inched m self into sitting position the act



18 CAPTIVATE










rushed to my side














bather-clad body






VANESSA GARDEN 19































20 CAPTIVATE








as I could tell













earlier






weaponry



VANESSA GARDEN 21






















lsquosavedrsquo me




my voice




22 CAPTIVATE









him






Like the

Chapter Sampler




18 CAPTIVATE










rushed to my side














bather-clad body






VANESSA GARDEN 19































20 CAPTIVATE








as I could tell













earlier






weaponry



VANESSA GARDEN 21






















lsquosavedrsquo me




my voice




22 CAPTIVATE









him






Like the

Chapter Sampler




VANESSA GARDEN 19































20 CAPTIVATE








as I could tell













earlier






weaponry



VANESSA GARDEN 21






















lsquosavedrsquo me




my voice




22 CAPTIVATE









him






Like the

Chapter Sampler




20 CAPTIVATE








as I could tell













earlier






weaponry



VANESSA GARDEN 21






















lsquosavedrsquo me




my voice




22 CAPTIVATE









him






Like the

Chapter Sampler




VANESSA GARDEN 21






















lsquosavedrsquo me




my voice




22 CAPTIVATE









him






Like the

Chapter Sampler




22 CAPTIVATE









him






Like the

Chapter Sampler




Like the

Chapter Sampler


Captivate by Vanessa Garden - Chapter Sampler

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