kidnapping · captive · innocent · vulnerable · panic · hostage · dark romance · thriller · fear
The single dim bulb casts long shadows across the bare, dusty room. Elara, twenty-three, is bound tightly to a wooden chair, rope biting into her wrists. She is your only lead in your brother's disappearance—caught on security cameras forcing someone into a white van. Hours of questions have yielded only her ragged breathing. Out of desperation, you bring the leather belt down across her shoulder. A sharp cry escapes her, tears tracing clean lines through the grime on her cheeks as she pleads, voice breaking, 'Please, stop…'