Silent Daughter 2: Bound by Linnea May, Stella Noir

Chapter 1

    LIZ
     
     
    I tried to convince myself that this was still part of the game. That he would return any minute to put me out of my misery. That he would tell me he was playing a part, because he knew this is what I wanted, because he knows I have been fantasizing about being in a situation like this and he wanted it to be believable.
    That it was all a game.
    He would come to me and say that I am not really his captive, and I could leave at any time if I wanted to.
    I sat on the bed for an eternity, a collar locked around my neck, my ankles still tied to the bed posts, staring at the door, waiting for his return.
    It is dark outside. The sun is long gone and night has set in. I have no idea what time it is or how long I have been sitting on the bed like this.
    There is no light in my room; it has turned just as dark as the night outside. I look at my tied up feet and wonder if I can untie the knots by myself. It is not so much a question of the rope itself, but rather if I can reach them properly.
    My legs are spread apart wide, and I am not a gymnast. Plus, I have that damn collar. The leash is pretty long and allows some leeway, but I am unsure whether it will be enough to lean forward that much.
    I have to try.
    I lean forward to the right side to see how far I can get and find out that my hands reach my ankle without my legs hurting too much and without the collar suffocating me. I begin fiddling with the knot.
    It is a lot tighter and more sophisticated than I expected. I am breaking a sweat attempting to unfasten it, but my efforts don't seem to get me anywhere.
    "Fuck," I hiss in the silence. It is the first thing I have said since Leonard left the room. I can tell that there is no point in screaming for help; he would have silenced me if he was worried about anyone hearing me. In any case, I have no inherent desire to scream.
    I loosen the knot a little, but not far enough to free my foot. It is frustrating as hell, and my efforts turn more and more violent by the minute.
    I am sweating and gasping for air and need to take a break as my legs and arms start hurting too much from the unfamiliar position.
    I freeze and hold my breath when I hear something outside the door. My head turns left, spying the door in the dark just before it opens from the outside. Light from the hallway floods into the room and with it comes Leonard, who is carrying a silver tray with food and a small bottle of water on it.
    My stomach growls when the smell spreads through my room.
    "Good evening, little Liz," he says, placing the tray on the table at the other end of the room. "I'm sorry this took so long. I wanted your first meal to be something special."
    I frown at him through the dark.
    "Let me turn on some lights for you," he adds. The sweet tone of his voice makes me furious.
    He switches on a floor lamp next to the dining table and lights the candles on the table. The lamp light is warm and soft, providing an amber glow to the clinically white room.
    Leonard walks back to the door and locks it. That bastard.
    He turns around to me, looking just as handsome as he always has. He has changed again and is wearing another black suit. His hair is gelled and combed to the side, very much like it was on the day of the party.
    "You are hungry, aren't you?" he asks as he approaches the bed in wide and confident steps.
    In truth, I am starving. Somewhere between drugging, kidnapping, and imprisoning me, we never got around to lunch, and it is beyond dinnertime by now. But I won't give him the satisfaction of a truthful answer.
    "I want to go home," I hiss.
    "You are home," he insists. "For now, this is your home."
    "For now?" I probe. "How long do you intend to keep me here?"
    He shakes his head. "Don't make this harder on you than it has to be."
    What the hell. Can this man not answer one single question like a normal human being?
    Then again, if he thinks that kidnapping and confining another person is acceptable behavior, he is