*Audra's POV*
The first thing I noticed was the stillness.
No hum of tyres. No rattle of loose metal. Just the faint creak of old wood breathing around me. For a moment, I thought maybe I was still in the van and the silence was a trick of my brain. But then the smell hit: damp wood, dust thick enough to taste, the sharp, oily tang of gasoline seeping through the air.
I kept my eyes closed. Not because I was calm. Because I wasn't. I needed to know what was around me before he realised I was fully awake.
Something rough scraped against the floor. A chair leg. My chair leg. The rope, or maybe zip ties again, bit into my wrists, sharper this time. They were behind the backrest, forcing my spine against splintering wood. My ankles were tied too.
A door creaked open, then clicked shut.
Footsteps.
I opened my eyes.
