Sam: Imprisoned (Book 3)

Here We Go Again

  Unfortunately, the weekend didn't last very long as Monday rolled around. To say the least, I was not ready for school, but I went anyway. In the morning, I did the usual routine of getting dressed, brushing my teeth, packing my school bag, eating breakfast, etc. Finally, I grabbed my car keys and waved bye to Pepper - since Tony was already starting his work.
  "Have a good day at school, Sam," Pepper smiled.
  "Bye, Pepper," I beamed back, then turned and went to the elevator. Once inside, I pressed the car lot level so the doors of the machine closed. As the elevator started moving, I took a deep breath then leaned back against the cold, metal walls and slipped out my phone. I swiped through my phone until the doors opened up to reveal the dim parking lot. This place was kind of creepy, especially with how quiet it was down here. The thought quickly passed as I made my way toward my car. The only thing I could hear was my own footsteps.
  Until, of course, I heard a second pair of footsteps racing towards me. I tensed up until I heard someone call my name, "Sam!"
  The familiar voice allowed me to relax slightly so I turned around to see Tony jogging toward me. He reached me then he bent down, panting. "Did you take the stairs?" I wondered, raising my eyebrow.
  "Yes." Tony breathed heavily as he tried to catch his breath then he held something out in between his fingers. The light flickered off of the silver metal and it looked even thinner and tinier in his hand.
  It didn't take me but a second to realize what it was, which made me touch my wrist. It was my bracelet. How could I forget it? I reached out and gently held the metal in my smaller fingers, then I slipped it onto my wrist. "Thanks, Tony."
  Stark was still huffing a bit but he smiled and dipped his head in a nod, "No problem. Just promise me you'll use it if you need it?"
  A slight, genuine grin appeared, "I promise."
  Tony stepped forward and wrapped his arms around me, "And have a good day." His chest vibrated as his voice rumbled from his throat. 
  After hugging him back, I glanced up at him, "You too, Tony."
  The man finally pulled back as he cleared his throat, "Well, you don't want to be late... Which is a responsible thing to say."
  It caught me off guard at first but I laughed and rolled my eyes. Obediently, I nodded and turned back toward my shiny, black car that Tony bought me last summer. After waving bye, I slid into my car and turned it on. Soon, driving toward my high school.
  The ride there wasn't long and eventually, I was finding a place to park in the packed lot. I slipped my floral bag around my shoulder and headed toward the large building in front of me. There were footsteps beside me so I turned my head to see Cassie walking alongside me and smiling. It was a normal start to school.
  I won't bore you with the details, so just know that the school day was pretty normal. I went to Economics. Then Debate. My third class was English 12. Until, finally, lunch. Which was, yet again, normal. After lunch was Calculus. Then Statistics. I had two maths because I didn't need to take any science this year. Finally, I ended the day with Business Management, since it looked good on a resume - or a scholarship so Tony liked to think.
  Finally, the bell rang to signal that the day was over. I let out a sigh to show that I was relieved that school was over and I made it. No one talked about Friday, so I figured that everyone was trying to forget that day. I headed to my locker and switched some of my books from my locker to my bag and from my bag to my locker.
  "Hey, how was the weekend?" a voice abruptly came from behind me.
  Almost startled, I turned my head to look at Cassie then shrugged, holding back a smirk, "Great. How about you?"
  Cassie lifted her shoulders too but her cheeks turned into a rosy color, "Oh, you know... normal."
  "Except?" I challenged catching a hidden tone.
  Which made Cassie smile dreamily, "Except Derek and I had a fantastic, romantic night Saturday."
  "Hm," I raised my eyebrow.
  However, Cassie glanced at my eyes then rolled hers, "No, we didn't do anything. Just a romantic dinner and a movie."
  So, I smiled in reply, "Well, I'm glad you two are happy."
  Except Cassie pouted, "You could be happy too, Sam."
  "Forget it Cas'," I blew the suggestion off as quickly as it came up. "I got to go, okay?"
  Cassie rolled her eyes and tried to hide how agitated she was at me, "Avoidance... Whatever, I'll text you later."
  Allowing the subject to change, I beamed, "Sounds good."
  When Cassie left down the hall, I went the other direction toward the parking lot. The hallway was thinning out so it was much easier to get to the double doors that lead outside. Most of the walk, I trotted on the sidewalk but eventually had to veer into the grass while keeping my car in sight. As I walked, I glanced down at my purse and fumbled around for my keys since I was getting closer. I was so focused that I was oblivious to my active surroundings.
  A horn jarred me out of the action so I gasped and glanced up. Realizing what it was, I sighed and rolled my eyes, mumbling, "Jerk," as a teen in their rusty old truck sped past me.
  Finally, I found my keys so I pulled them out then looked for the unlock button of my car. Since it was a few feet away, I still had to walk but it wouldn't hurt to unlock it now. Then I felt my phone vibrate so I knew that I got a message. I was about to check it as I glanced back down at my purse but then I felt myself bump into someone.
  "Oh, I'm sorry," I glanced up at an unfamiliar adult who looked like they meant for me to run into them. Then I awkwardly shifted my gaze from their hard stare, "Um... excuse me."
  However, the person didn't move, "You know, I heard the school tried to make their security better," their voice was cold and sarcastic. Then there was a heartless chuckle from the man, "It doesn't seem like they did a good job."
  My body froze at a bad time as I tried to get my scrambled thinking into one sane thought. At that moment, I had no idea what to do; shout a sarcastic comment back, run, fight, scream. What? So, like an idiot, I stood there, frozen. Unsure.
  The man raised his eyebrow, "Not what I expected from you..."
  Which made me clench my hands so I wouldn't start shaking as I spoke, "I don't know who you are, but I'd really like to get to my car."
  The stranger smirked then stepped closer to me so that his breath was right on my neck, "Actually, here's what you're going to do. Since we're in a public place, I don't want to cause a scene, so I'll give you the opportunity to follow me and get into the vehicle."
  "And if I don't?" I muttered, trying to control my tone. The last thing I wanted to do was make this guy ticked. 
  The man got closer to my ear which made the hairs on my neck stand up, "Then someone here is going to get hurt. I'd suggest you listen to me."
  My heart was pounding as I bit my tongue and started reaching for my bracelet but the guy must've known because then he snatched at my wrist. Stunned, I gasped and turned my gaze to look into the sinister man's eyes which were forceful and twisted.
  "I wouldn't do that if I were you, sweetpea," the voice was mocking. A few moments passed by until he spoke, "I'm going to start shooting in five-," he started counting while looking around at all of the innocent teenagers walking home or to their car. "Four-."
  But I didn't let him get far, "Okay, fine. I'll go with you."
  "Mm, now there's a good girl," the man grinned and touched my cheek.
  In disgust, I wretched back but he yanked at my wrist so I reluctantly followed the man. Too many thoughts were buzzing in my head and my stomach was twisting into knots. The biggest question that kept coming up was; what did he want from me? Was this kidnapping random or did he have some purpose for me? Was this - at all - related to the incident on Friday?
  Unfortunately, I couldn't think of it for too long as a black van came into view. How predictable, the thought popped into my head. The man opened the car door and shoved me inside before I could even think another thought. I gasped and fell onto the leather seats inside the van. The man got in beside me and shut the door behind him.
  "Alright, go," the man told the other guys upfront. Then he turned to me so I was about to start backing away the best I could but he was quick to grab me. The man was strong as he pulled at my wrists. Then he slipped my bracelet off and into his pocket before taking my purse. After taking my only means of escape, he pulled out some handcuffs and slapped them onto my wrists. "Better get comfy, sweetpea."
  Which made me lean back in the seat and take in my surroundings. The windows were tinted which meant it was hard to see out of them so then I glanced at the men. There were three of them; one driving, one in the passenger seat, and the one beside me. All of the men in the van were large and buff looking, which meant fighting my way out seemed like a stupid idea. However, it was better than just sitting back and doing nothing. My fingers slipped to the window as I tried to press the button but the window wouldn't work; stupid child lock. Then I glanced forward. I was behind the driver, so maybe if I attacked the guy then the car would spin out of control.
  The man beside me reached over and slipped the seatbelt on me which covered my arms, making it harder to move, "Let's put that on so you don't do anything crazy."
  That was it. I was stuck in this van and there was nothing I could do at this point. What did they want from me? How could this have happened? And most importantly, how was I going to get out? I was stuck in handcuffs in the back of the car with a bunch of muscular men that I wouldn't even try to take on. Gah, this week just keeps getting better and better, the sarcastic comment popped up into my head.