There's an Invisible Man Sleeping in My Bed

Chapter 49

            Thalia stepped away from the door and bit her lip, doing her best to ignore the way Colt’s hand had disappeared. She had a few options, but the incessant banging was making it hard for her to think. Maybe blockading herself in her room would work…

            The sudden quiet had her flinching. For a second, all she could hear was the ticking of the clock. Then a disturbingly familiar voice called out “Open the door, Ms. Quinn. We know you’re in there.”

            She shook her head, her very real fear showing in the paleness of her skin and faint tremor she couldn’t stop. “Go away!” She cried, taking another step away from the door. “I don’t know who you are, but if you don’t leave me alone I’m going to call the cops.”

            “We only want to talk to you,” MacQueen’s voice said again, overlaid by a faint scratching noise. “We’ve become aware that you’ve been hiding things from us. Now, don’t make this any more difficult than it needs to be. Just open the door, and we can discuss this calmly.”

            “I’m not letting strangers into my house! I’m warning you, if you don’t leave, I really will phone 911.”

            She barely heard his sigh, muffled as it was by the thick wood of her front door. “Please Ms. Quinn, you’re being overly dramatic. I ask again, please open the door so we can speak properly.”

            “No! Go away!”

            “You’re being quite unreasonable. You know we don’t want to hurt you, or anyone else in your family.”

            Thalia shook her head again, taking yet another step away, her back running into the hallway’s wall. “That’s it! I’m calling the police!”

            She’d only made it a few feet when she heard a rattle and creak from behind that had her feeling like someone had just dropped an ice cube down her back. Thalia turned slowly, eyes widening at the sight of her front door open. Five men stood in the doorway. MacQueen was in front of the others, smiling at her.

            That had goosebumps rolling across her skin and her heart pounding in her ears. She spun back towards the kitchen and the nearest phone. Thalia managed four running footsteps before she was brought up short by a hand closing on her wrist. She twisted, trying to break the hard grip.

            The man holding her yanked her forward, making her stumble. Thalia struck out with her free hand, trying to remember what she’d been taught during their school’s mandatory self-defence course. Put he caught her blow with apparent ease, squeezing the hand so she couldn’t pull away. Thalia screamed then.

            Before any of the others could close in, she brought her knee rushing up to her captor’s crotch. Now he was the one to cry out, his hold loosening. Thalia wrenched away from him, feeling his nails score scratches across her hands. She spun, again aiming herself towards the kitchen and the promise of the phone.

            But one of the other men lunged forward, putting himself between her and potential help. Thalia froze, then backed away, her glance flickering between the man that blocked the way to the kitchen, and the other three who were surrounding her in a loose semi-circle. With the back of the couch behind her, she knew she was trapped.

            MacQueen took half a step forward. “Now, Ms. Quinn, I’d very much appreciate it if you were to listen to what we have to say.”

Thalia inhaled deeply and screamed again, just like they’d been told to in the self-defence course. She put her back against the couch and brought her fists up, trying to ignore the way her muscle trembled and her heart was hammering against her chest so hard she was surprised her bones hadn’t broken.

With a brief flash of irritation crossing his face, MacQueen raised a hand and waved it in her direction. Immediately, the two men flanking him hurried forward, splitting so they came at Thalia from opposite directions.

She waited, her eyes twitching between the two of them, flinching every time one of them moved even the tiniest bit. It was awful, standing there, waiting for them to attack her, her fear feeling like a rising tide of icy water inside of her.

It was almost a relief when one darted forward. Thalia leapt away. But that put her within reach of the other man, one of his arms shooting out and snagging her arm. She spun, but he was able to keep his grip.

A second hand closed on her free wrist while and arm wrapped itself around her waist. Thalia jerked, staring as her other attacker pulled his hold tighter around her. She screamed again, trying to lash out with her feet.

But they’d learned a lesson from the first man to grab her. The man in front of her dodged, his hand snaking out and catching one of her ankles. With only one foot as support, Thalia’s struggles lacked strength. She tried letting her weight rest fully on them, but that did nothing except give them the opportunity to shift their holds into better positions.

Thalia struggled to keep her breathing from going into full hyperventilation, feeling her whole body tremble. She was trapped. There was no way she could escape from this by herself. Like he’d heard her thoughts, MacQueen moved until he was in front of her. “I do hope you have that out of your system, Ms. Quinn. We have much to discuss.”

Struggling again, Thalia screamed, hoping she burst their eardrums. A hand clamping over her mouth stopped that. She fought it, but knew the truth. She was truly trapped.