Chapter 252

Aurora 's Perspective It was the cold that woke me. That, and the lingering stench of cheap disinfectant and damp mold. The spot on the back of my neck where the stun gun hit still throbbed dully, a sickening pulse keeping time with the ache in my skull. I opened my eyes. It took several seconds for my vision to adjust. Not to light, but to the absolute, suffocating weight of the dark. No windows. Not a sliver of light. I was lying on a thin, lumpy mattress, the cold, rough texture of concrete beneath me. The air was stagnant, thick enough to choke on. I wasn't tied up. A small, shaky wave of relief, immediately followed by a sharper spike of fear—they were either confident I couldn't escape, or they simply didn't care if I tried. I pushed myself up to sit, every muscle protesting, especially where I'd hit the ground during the crash. I checked myself over. My leather jacket was torn in a few places. I had bruises and scrapes. Miraculously, that seemed to b