So Long

Chapter 3: You Are Mine

It was completely dark around her as Skye woke up, her head pounding and her side hurting. She tried to move, but quickly realised that a thick layer of duct tape was tying her arms and legs to the chair she was sitting on, preventing her from getting up. She struggled briefly against the restraints, but soon found that it was pointless. Not even trying to move with the chair was doing anything, as it seemed to have been bolted to the floor, rendering her completely stuck.

While she was still trying to adjust to her terrifying new situation, a cold shiver went through Skye and she noticed for the first time that the blouse and jacket she had been wearing earlier had been removed. Instead she was sitting only in a thin tank top, her arms and shoulders being exposed to the chilly air.

Not that the low temperature was her main concern right now, obviously.

Her first priority at the moment was to try and figure out where she was, but as she couldn't see a thing, that wasn't a particularly easy task. There were no sounds she could make out, either, only the smell of dust and machine oil in the air around her, indicating that she might be in some kind of factory.

She didn't have a clue how she had gotten here, though. The last thing Skye remembered was being in that hotel room and in radio contact with Ward as the signal had started to break off. She had tried to fix the connection, but had ultimately lost it completely which shouldn't even have been possible.

Before the young woman could try to make any more sense of her situation, however, the door in front of her, which she hadn't even realised was there so far, suddenly opened and a bright light shone into the room, momentarily blinding her.

Skye averted her gaze to protect her eyes from the sudden glare, but then a dark silhouette blocked part of the light again and slowly stepped into the room. She could tell by the heavy footsteps that her visitor was male, but she couldn't make out his face in the shadows.

"The famous hacker Skye; nice of you to finally join us," a friendly voice greeted her, causing the young woman to tense up, her arms once again straining against the tape holding her. "I will ask you some questions now and I am counting on your full cooperation. Otherwise this will become a lot more unpleasant than it has to be."

Despite the obvious threat in his words, the man's voice remained calm, almost amiable. Yet Skye didn't doubt the very real danger she was in even for a second. She sure as hell wasn't going to tell the person who had kidnapped her anything, though, and so she looked up at him defiantly, her head held high.

"You are making a very big mistake here right now. I have friends – very dangerous friends – who are looking for me at this very moment and if you don't let me go immediately, things are soon going to become very unpleasant for you."

Her kidnapper let out a soft chuckle at this, apparently amused by the young woman's boldness. He was immediately serious again, however, as he suddenly leaned forward so that his hands were next to Skye's on the armrests of the chair. His face was only inches away from hers now, but his features were still hidden by the sharp contrast of the light behind him.

"No-one is looking for you. As far as your friends at SHIELD are concerned, you bailed on them and betrayed their trust once again. Nothing unusual for you, right?"

Skye swallowed hard as her kidnapper's words sank in, but a part of her adamantly refused to believe that he was telling the truth. She shook her head decisively as she replied.

"No. No they would never believe that! They wouldn't..." she tried to argue, but in the end the young woman's voice trailed off as she finally realised how much this actually sounded like her after all.

"Oh, they wouldn't? Are you so sure about that?" the man in front of her asked in return, his tone smug. "There was no sign of struggle, nothing, you just got up and left, you ran like you always do when things get too rough. Only this time you were at least so thoughtful to leave your team a note to say goodbye."

At this point Skye's kidnapper lowered his voice, for the first time sounding actually intimidating as he continued.

"So believe me when I tell you that no-one is coming to save you. You are mine until I decide that I'm through with you."

Skye barely dared to breathe as her captor remained right in front of her for a few more seconds, unmoving. She knew he was staring right at her, as if to make sure that his point had been understood, even though all she was able to see was a face hidden in darkness. When he finally got back up and turned around to head for the door, she gasped for air, feeling utterly horrified.

"Maybe a few more hours in the dark will help you see the truth more clearly," he declared. "Call, if you're willing to talk."

He was almost out of the room again, when Skye called after him, fighting to keep her voice from trembling.

"What did it say?" She couldn't make out the look on her kidnapper's face in the darkness, but judging from his silence, she figured it was one of confusion right now.

"The note, what did it say? What did you write that my friends would believe I just abandoned them like that?"

Even having nothing but his voice to go on, Skye could easily imagine the malicious grin the man in front of her was wearing when he answered her, as it clearly transcended into his words.

"So long," he simply replied before he closed the door behind him, leaving Skye alone in the darkness once again.

To be continued...