Chapter 3

"Is this girl crazy? She's literally at death's door and she's still talking trash."

After Marcus took his phone back, he muttered to another man who had just come down from the second floor.

This man was built like a truck. A deformed centipede tattoo crawled up his neck, and he had to duck his head to avoid hitting the doorframe.

He walked over and squatted in front of me. The stench of cheap cigarettes and sweat hit me instantly.

"I heard you're a smart college girl?"

I ignored him.

He pinched my chin with his rough fingers, forcing my face up toward the dim lightbulb.

"Hmm. Good skin, clean eyes. The buyers across the border will love this."

He let go and slapped my cheek lightly, like he was checking a piece of meat.

"But let me tell you the rules. Once you're over there, you are not allowed to cry for the first month. Cry once, and you get shocked. Have you ever seen a taser baton?"

The girl huddled in the corner began to shiver violently, curling herself into a tight ball like a crushed bug.

The tattooed man glanced at her, completely indifferent.

"See that? She didn't listen either. She got shocked three times when she first got here. Now she's much quieter."

My fingers clenched behind my back.

The sedative was slowly wearing off, but the ropes on my wrists weren't loosening at all.

The tattooed man stood up, pulling a syringe out of his pocket. A drop of clear liquid hung from the tip of the needle.

My pupils dilated.

"Don't worry, it's not meth," he said, holding the syringe up to the light. "Just a heavy sedative. We use it when we cross the border. I'm going to give you a test dose now to see how your body takes it. We don't want you dying on us over there. That would be a waste of money."

He knelt down, pinning my shoulder with one hand while aiming the needle at my arm with the other.

I tried to jerk away, but a sharp pain flared in my shoulder.

"Hold still!"

He slapped my bruised shoulder hard, making me gasp in pain.

The needle sank in, and a cold liquid rushed into my veins.

I didn't pass out immediately, but the room began to spin. Sounds became distant, muffled.

"Perfect. That's the right dose." The tattooed man smiled, pulling the needle out. "We'll give her another shot tomorrow afternoon before we leave. That'll keep her quiet for six hours."

He walked out, and the heavy iron gate slammed shut with a loud clang.

Only the two girls and I were left in the dark basement.

After a long time, a tiny voice whispered from the corner.

"Are you... are you really a college student?"

I turned my head. It was the other girl who hadn't spoken before. She looked to be in her early twenties, her lips dry and cracked, with a nasty bruise over her left eye.

"Yes."

"Can you... can you get us out?"

"Yes."

Tears streamed down her face. She choked out, "I've been locked here for twelve days... I thought no one was ever coming..."

I wanted to reach out and comfort her, but the ropes held me back.

"What's your name?"

"Hazel."

I memorized it.

"Hazel, if I get out of here, I'm not leaving you behind."

She cried harder, but she didn't dare make a sound. She buried her face in her knees, her shoulders shaking.

Just then, I felt a faint vibration against my thigh.

It was my West Point Cadet Smart ID card.

It was a small, credit-card-sized device that Vanessa had missed when she searched me.

She only knew about phones. She didn't recognize this high-tech piece of plastic that looked like a regular student library card.

But this card had an embedded, military-grade GPS tracking chip. It was issued to all classified recruits before registration.

It held all my cadet information and a basic emergency communication transmitter. It could send a silent distress signal.

I had exactly one shot.

Should I use it now, or wait?

The sedative was active in my bloodstream, and the edges of my vision were starting to blur.

They would give me another shot tomorrow afternoon before taking me across the border.

Once we crossed that border, there would be no signal.

I closed my eyes, making a decision with the last bit of my sanity.

Not now.

I had to wait another twelve hours.

I had to wait until the exact moment Melanie stepped onto the West Point campus.

That way, none of them would be able to escape.

"Hazel."

"Yeah?"

"Help me keep track of the time. Tomorrow, before 2:00 PM, no matter what happens, you have to wake me up."