Jacob came to with a start, suddenly aware of how cold he was. His head was pounding, his neck ached, but it was his shivering limbs that demanded his attention. He could feel goose bumps on his exposed forearms and moved to rub them away … only to discover that his arms were secured behind him. He tried to stand, but his bare legs were similarly bound. To his horror, he realized that he was tied to a metal chair, naked, vulnerable and alone.
Now it started to come back to him. The cellar. The masked face. That awful feeling of suffocation. A terrified whimper escaped from his lips and, realizing there was nothing over his mouth, he cried out:
‘Hello?’
He was met by silence. He scanned the dingy room, but it appeared to be empty.
‘Please … can anybody hear me?’
The sound rebounded off the walls, but there was no response. Wiggling his frozen toes in a feeble attempt to keep warm, Jacob now noticed something else. There was something beneath his feet. It was cold and smooth, and crinkled noisily when he moved. Confused, he looked down. And now his blood froze. The chair he was tied to was positioned in the middle of a large plastic sheet.
Panicking, he started to buck furiously, trying to move the chair forward. Terror drove him on and he strained and hopped violently. The chair moved forward an inch, then another – then suddenly his head snapped sideways. For a moment, he was dizzy and disoriented, unable to comprehend what had happened, but as he righted himself, he realized that someone had struck him hard on his right cheek.
‘Sit still.’
The voice was calm, sending fear arrowing through him. It was coming from behind him and Jacob strained to get a glimpse of his attacker. But with his arms and shoulders firmly secured, he couldn’t turn far enough around.
‘Please,’ Jacob gasped. ‘I’ll give you whatever you want –’
‘I have everything I need,’ the voice hissed quietly.
The man came to a halt behind him. Immediately Jacob stifled his moaning – something cold and smooth had come to rest on the side of his neck. Slowly it inched upwards, then stopped, turning on to its side. A second later, Jacob felt a short, sharp sting, then a warm feeling, as blood started to trickle down his neck.
‘Please don’t do this,’ he begged, tears pricking his eyes. ‘I’m going to be married …’
A firm hand gripped his shoulder. Jacob bucked again, desperately trying to move his chair, but he could make no progress. And now he felt that awful sensation once more … cold steel caressing his skin.