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One month ago
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“Remember, Lily, don’t leave the house and don’t go into my office,” James repeated. “I’m trusting you.”
Lily threw her arms around his neck and stood on her tiptoes to kiss him. Excitement pulsed throughout her body. She could barely contain it, but she needed to, so he didn’t suspect anything was amiss.
He chuckled and kissed her back. “I left a new puzzle for you in the living room if you get bored. Please don’t forget to have dinner ready by the time I get home,” James told her.
“I will, James. Have a good day at work. I love you!” Lily said as James left the house.
“I love you too!” he yelled from outside.
Sitting cross-legged on the rug in the family room, Lily worked on a puzzle. She planned to wait ten minutes to ensure he was really gone. It was the first time he had let her freely roam the house while home alone. The two warnings he had reiterated to her were to not leave the house and to not go into his office. Of course, she had tried to get into his office after he left that day, but the door was locked and she couldn’t find the key.
After eleven months of living with James, the constant thought in her mind was about how she could leave. In her old life, Lily didn’t have any friends. She never had a boyfriend. Her parents and sister didn’t pay attention to her. Rose was the one always getting into trouble, so their parents worried about her all the time. Lily was the perfect child who did nothing wrong. Her parents stopped worrying about what she was doing. They stopped checking in and making sure she was okay, and that’s when she had met James.
But now, she was trapped in this house with the man she had thought she loved. Today she planned to leave.
James promised that after she turned eighteen, they would get married. That was a while away, though, as she had just turned thirteen in January. Before that, he needed to save more money. But he told her they would change their names and move somewhere far away, maybe even leave the country. Lily had gone along with his plans, pretending that was the future she wanted too. She had to pretend so she could survive.
Lily heard the doorbell ring and froze after jiggling the office doorknob for the second time. Her gaze went to the front door, which was solid oak and didn’t have a peephole, so she couldn’t see who was there. She cautiously moved down the hallway and toward the front door. The doorbell rang again.
With shaking hands, she reached for the deadbolts and unlatched both of them. This was it. Her chance to escape. She opened the door to reveal a petite, blonde teenager.
The girl’s ice-blue eyes widened when they made eye contact. “Lily?”
Lily stared at the familiar face for a moment, letting it sink in. She had so many questions.
“Holly? What are you doing here?” Lily asked, squinting her green eyes in confusion.
“I came here to talk to Ja—Mr. Mortensen. Fuck, Lily, why are you here?” Holly asked, trying to peer into the house. “Is he home?”
Lily shook her head and grabbed Holly’s hand. “Quick, get inside now before someone sees you.”
Lily pulled Holly inside and slammed the door. “You have to help me get out of here. James kidnapped me last summer, and he’s been holding me hostage here.”
Holly gasped and placed both hands over her mouth. “Oh my God, Lily! You’ve been here this whole time? Why did he take you? I can’t believe—”
“There’s no time to explain. Can you bring me home? I need to leave while he’s gone.” Lily reached for the doorknob.
Holly held her palm out in a ‘stop’ gesture. “Wait, there’s something I have to tell you first. Have you heard of The Midnight Flower?”
Lily shook her head. “Who is that?”
“This will take too long to explain, but I swear, I didn’t know Mr. Mortensen was the one who kidnapped you. I’m working with him on . . . something else. I promise I’ll help you get out.”
Lily crossed her arms over her chest. “I’m not stupid. You’re up to something. Why else would you be at the house of your former teacher? I don’t know if I should trust you. Are you and Rose still together?”
Lily had missed out on so much while being trapped there. It felt weird not knowing who her own sister was dating.
Holly sighed and rubbed her face. “No, she broke up with me in August. There’s something I have to tell you, though. I know the truth about the night you disappeared. About how Rose and Spencer saw you that night and told you to go home.”
“She . . . she told you about that? Then why haven’t the police found me?” Lily’s voice became high-pitched.
Holly bit her lip and dropped her gaze to the ground. “Rose didn’t want to get in trouble. The more time that passed, the worse it would have been for her to come clean with what really happened. I’m the only one she told about seeing you before you disappeared. She trusted me with the truth. But the guilt has been eating her alive for the past year. She regrets not walking you home, not telling your parents what happened—all of it. You have to believe me, Lily. All Rose wants is to find you.”
“If she told you all that, then she must have really trusted you. We need to come up with a plan while James is at work. But first, tell me about The Midnight Flower. I need all the information I can get,” Lily said.