Hidden

Chapter Two

It was harder than I thought it would be.

The moment I stepped out of that horrid room, I tried to do as Agent Floyd said and forget all about the person I used to be.

'My name is Nicole, my name is Nicole, my name is Nicole', I chanted in my head over and over. It felt like if I stopped saying it then Tanner would somehow find me. It was stupid but I did it anyway.

Agent Floyd began to lead me to another room. Once I stepped out of the hospital room, I examined my surroundings.

There were dozens of rooms all placed evenly beside each other in one of the longest hallways I've ever seen. Everything seemed to be a shade of gray - the floor, the doors, and even the ceiling - making it appear dull and solemn. It made me nervous considering it was completely empty and you could heard nothing but the sounds of our footsteps.

I didn't know what the other rooms held but I figured enough not to ask; most of them had big signs that had 'CAUTION: DO NOT ENTER' plastered on them and padlocks.

The agent came to a stop about ten doors down from the one where I previously stayed. He held the door open for me and I peered inside.

Darkness. It was completely dark.

I shook my head, willing myself not to crack. Was it bad that even darkness reminded me of him?

"Can you turn on the lights first? I can't, um," I cleared my throat, "I don't like the dark."

His eyebrows pulled together for a second before realization washed over his features. He nodded.

"I apologize."

"Don't worry about it." I made an attempt to smile but it ended up as a deformed grimace. Taking a step behind him, I watched as he leaned forward into the room and flicked on the light switch. Relief filled me as the light flickered then held strong, illuminating the room.

It seemed like some sort of salon - there were sinks and mirrors placed along the wall on the left side and stacks of hair dye packages filled the shelves that stood on the right. Black couches covered the back of the room, facing away from the agent and I. As soon as I took a step in, I heard a groan come from within the room.

I jumped and whipped my head up to look at Agent Floyd with wide eyes. But he didn't look alarmed. He just looked annoyed.

"Don't worry, that's just Taylor."

Taylor?

My eyes traveled back to the couches where a head popped up. A guy, probably in his early twenties, sat up from one of the them and was rubbing his eyes.

"Dammit, Keith." The guy - Taylor - grumbled.

As we got closer, I took in the guy's appearance. His face was incredibly handsome, with shaggy black hair shadowing a sharp jaw and a strong nose. Muscles lined his arms, giving him a rough and dangerous look. Intimidating was the only word that came to mind when I looked at him.

"Come on, Jennings. Time to work," Agent Floyd said, shaking his head. "This," He pointed to Taylor, "is your bodyguard.

I just nodded and moved my gaze down to the tiled floor.

"Taylor, -" He paused. "Nicole. Nicole, Taylor." Taylor extended his hand at the introduction but caught a glance at Agent Floyd not-so-discreetly shaking his head and dropped it.

"Nice to meet you." He flashed me a smile and I nodded in return.

"Time to get started. I don't want to waste all day on this," Agent Floyd said before turning to the shelves lined with hair dye.