Emily’s POV

The phone kept ringing on the dark wood nightstand, buzzing violently like a trapped wasp.

Victoria’s picture lit up the screen in bright, cheerful colors. My mother’s face, smiling from a beach in Miami six months ago, blazed into the quiet, dim bedroom.

I lay flat on my back on the crumpled sheets, completely naked, my body still trembling in violent little waves. My wrists were raw where the leather cuffs had held me, and my throat burned from crying out.

"Daniel... please," I whimpered, my voice raspy and broken. "Don't answer it. Please."

Daniel didn't panic. He didn't even rush.

He sat up slowly on the edge...