Removed.

Taken.

Chapter 1: Taken.

Raspy, frantic gasping filled the air around me.

Dang, who is that? Only velvety darkness greeted me. I peered around the room, searching for the source. There appeared to be no one in front or behind me. In fact, I was alone in the wide room.

That's when I realized that the painful sound was emanating from my own mouth. I shut it quickly, but my lungs started to burn, my throat itching to let the labored breaths out.

A sickly, wet liquid dripped slowly down my arm, forming a small puddle and rippling beautifully as the drops hit the surface. My face felt hot and flushed as if I had just performed. A trail of sweat rolled down my back, and droplets continued to form on my forehead.

I gazed down at my sticky hands, and was greeted once again by the dark red hue of human blood.

Hundreds of thoughts broke their way past the dull throbbing in my skull. Who's blood is this? Is it mine? Why am I alone? How did I get here? Where exactly is here? Why am I here?

Why don't I remember anything?

I examined my forearm carefully. Yes, it was my blood. Deep puncture marks perforated my skin, oozing blood and thick chunks of deep red. An animal had bitten me? How?

Somehow I felt no pain from the wound; I was numb, unfeeling.

Wiping my hands on the front of my jeans, I stood up. Immediately, my limbs screamed in protest and my vision spotted black. Bad idea.

Instead, I sat down and scanned the room thoroughly. At first, little stood out to me. There was a small, twin-sized bed in the corner of the room. A small bookshelf stood opposite, empty and dusty. A small lamp and a rug occupied the remaining areas of the room, and a door was directly behind me.

Soon, as my mind cleared up I noticed the smaller details: there were no windows, the door lacked a handle on this side, the rug was frayed and limp, the sheets on the bed appeared wrinkly and old, and there were no personal belongings in the entire room. It resembled some sort of prison.

My pulse quickened as distinct footsteps, heavy and slow, approaching from outside the door reached my ears. I backed up, my heartbeat racing at a breakneck speed and my palms beginning to sweat.

Thump. Thump. Thump. The steps were quickly getting nearer, and there was nothing for me to do but wait. The hairs on the back of my neck raised and goosebumps formed on my arms. My face no longer felt inflamed as an icy chill swept down my body.

Thump. Thump. Thump. Stop.

The sounds of metal scraping metal caused me to cringe as what sounded like locks being removed filled the room. A metallic clang reverberated from the floor, followed by sharp clinks of a chain cascading to the floor.

The door opened, the hinges making no audible sound, the light blinding me. I covered my eyes with my sticky hands, shielding myself from the penetrating brightness. When my eyes adjusted to the unwelcome light I discovered two things simultaneously.

One: the figure in front of me was not friendly. Two: I had been taken.