I lose track of time. Ash keeps me in this room day after day.

It doesn’t help that I feel so ill all the time. I sleep so much, I don’t know how many days have passed.

When the door opens, I roll my eyes and sit up, expecting to see Ash. My heart leaps at the sight of Julia.

“Constance,” she says. A look of relief sweeps her face.

“Julia, what are you doing here?”

She grins. “Ash has had you locked down so insanely tight. No one was allowed in or out except for his select few. But I worked out how to get in.”

I embrace her when she sits on the bed. “I’m so glad you did. I’ve been so alone in here.”

“You were free. What happened?” Julia asks.

I let out a loud breath. “Ash brought me back.”

“He found you?”

“I made it as far as next door. Fell in love with Corey Campbell, the man who lives there, and that’s where I stayed.”

Her lips twitch in amusement. “I shouldn’t smile, but that’s so awesome. What’s he like? I haven’t met him, but I have met his brother, Drew, and he’s gorgeous.”

“I never got to meet Drew, but if he’s anything like the rest of their family, they’re all gorgeous. Especially Corey.” I sigh.

“What does he want? Ash, I mean.”

“He wants me to go through with what he originally had planned for me.”

Her eyes widen. “No way.”

I nod.

“We need to get you out of here.”

I shake my head. “It won’t work again. He’ll make sure of it.”

She stands up straight. “We’ll see about that.”

I flop backward onto the bed. “It’d help if I didn’t feel so awful.”

“What’s wrong?”

“Tired, nauseous. Sometimes a bit dizzy.”

She frowns.

“I’ll be back in a minute.”

I swear to god that this woman is Houdini, the way she slips out of the room the same way she slipped in—unnoticed.

My stomach rolls again, and I make a dash to the bathroom. I dry-heave, but nothing comes up. What the hell has Ash done to me?

“Here,” Julia says, walking over to hand me a white stick. “Take the end off it and pee on it.”

“What?”

“Either Ash has poisoned you, or you’re pregnant. I know he’s nuts, but I’d bet anything it’s the latter.”

I stare at her. “Pregnant? But he and that doctor of his made sure I got a contraceptive injection before I was due to do that little job of his.”

Julia laughs. “Do you really think they have access to anything like that? That guy isn’t a real doctor. I got the boys to check him out.” She puffs her chest out proudly.

“The boys?”

“The undercover cops that are here. I’m assuming you know all about them given you’ve been living next door.”

I nod. It’s all coming together. “Kane and Jared.”

“Yes.”

“But why the subterfuge?”

“Ash likes to show everyone he’s in control. I noticed that despite everyone getting these injections, there were still members of his little harem who got pregnant.” She sighs. “Including me.”

“That’s screwed up.”

“When it happens, he puts it down to how it was meant to be and how manly it makes him. He doesn’t give a crap who he hurts.” She nods at my hand. “Pee on the stick. I’ll be outside.”

I pull myself to my feet, and take a look at the test in my hand. Sighing, I pull the end off it, and do as Julia’s told me to do.

The test sits by the basin. I wash my hands and take it back out to the bedroom.

“Well?” she asks.

“I haven’t looked yet.”

“Let’s do it together.”

Two lines.

“Two lines is …?” I ask, but I already know the answer.

“You’re pregnant.”

I gasp, slapping my hand over my mouth. Corey.

“He trusted me. I betrayed that trust.”

Julia wraps her arms around my neck, and I fold into her. “No. You weren’t to know. You were caught up in Ash’s demented game. Ash wanted to show you he could exert control over you, but the truth is that you’re in control. Don’t let him win.”

“What will he do if he finds out?”

She shrugs. “We need to get to the bottom of all this once and for all before that happens. If you’re feeling well enough, let’s go for a walk.”

I clutch at my stomach. “I can’t get caught. If he hurts me, he’ll hurt my baby.”

Shaking her head, she cups my face. “He won’t catch us. I still have access to this building; I’ve found all of the ways out of it. It’s too big a complex for him to guard the whole thing.”

I stare at her. “Who are you and what did you do with Julia?”

She laughs. “What do you mean?”

“I mean, I remember when you came here. You were so meek and mild.”

“Do you really want to know what happened?”

I nod.

“Ash happened.”

Julia and I manage to sneak outside the house.

This place was once used for communal living, and there are plenty of interconnecting rooms. You just need to know which ones connect with which.

Turns out she’s done a lot of exploring.

“Where are we going?”

“Most people are at dinner. It’s still early, so we’ve got enough light to go and check out the bunkers. I think they’re the key to whatever’s going on, and you know them better than anyone else I know.”

I swallow. “Isn’t that what Jared was investigating when he disappeared?”

She nods. “Michael, too.”

My mouth falls open. “No.”

“Ingrid’s been beside herself.” She grimaces. “Ash offered to keep her company.”

“Ugh. He’s disgusting.”

“That’s what she said. And that’s why she’s currently shut away in her house as punishment.”

“For what?”

Julia sighs. “Telling the truth. Anyway, we have to make this quick. If Ash finds out you’re out of that room …”

“He’ll go after my parents.”

She nods.

We make our way to the greenhouse without any trouble. The workers have long since packed up for the day and are in the food hall having dinner. I look across to the maize field. Is the gap in the fence still there?

“Constance.”

I turn back to face Julia. “Maybe I could try and go through tonight?”

She shakes her head. “I wouldn’t risk it. He tightened security at night since you left the first time. There’s a much higher risk of getting caught.” Julia grabs my hand. “We need to be fast. Once dinner’s over in there, Ash will get a tray taken to your room.”

“That’s not a lot of time.”

“Then, we need to get going.”

I swallow and nod. “Come on.”

Julia follows me down the concrete steps that lead to the outer door.

“I always thought this was just a storage room.”

Shaking my head, I turn the handle, grunting when it doesn’t open. “It’s locked. It never used to be locked.”

“I’ve got a key.” From her cleavage, she pulls out a key on a long string.

“Where on earth did you get that from?”

“Ask me no questions and I won’t tell you I cosied up to one of the Ash’s friends.”

“He knows you have it?”

She grimaces. “No. I stole it. He was dumb enough to have a label on it.”

I bite down a laugh. “Let’s get this done quickly.”

She hands me the key and I unlock the door.

We step into the storage room, and I push the door shut before turning on the light.

Julia looks around. “This is just a storage room.”

“That’s what you’re meant to think.”

On the left-hand side of the room, is a board with tools hanging on nails. I find the edges of the board, sliding it sideways.

“Holy shit.” She gasps.

There’s a corridor. Soft lighting illuminates closed rooms on either side of it.

We used to bring torches down here, it was so dark.

“Come on,” I say

We set off down the corridor, opening doors and looking for anything odd as we go. The corridor turns left and then right before forking. We go left first.

“How on earth can you find your way around this?” Julia asks.

“We used to play down here all the time as kids. Ash and I both know this place like the backs of our hands.”

“Do you think we’ll find anything down here?”

I shrug. “Who knows? These are all bedrooms. There’s a storage room at this end.”

We reach the end room, and I try the door handle.

“This is locked, too. Got any more magic keys?”

Julia shakes her head. “We could try this one again.”

I shrug. “A lot of the locks inside are the same. Ash’s father used to say it was easier to keep track of one key, and no one around here locked anything. You could give it a go.”

She slides the key in, and her eyes widen. “Thanks, Ash’s dad, for being lazy.”

I chuckle, and she pushes open the door.

We gasp at the same time.

Sitting on the floor, their hands and feet bound together, are Jared and Michael.

“Michael?” I whisper.

Relief is written all over his face. “Constance. What are you doing here? And thank God you are.”

“It’s a long story.” I look around for something to cut the ties holding the men’s hands together.

“Jared.” Julia runs to him. She cups his face, and the longing is clear in her eyes.

When did that happen?

“I’m sorry, Julia. I know you must have been worried.” He presses his forehead to hers.

“Can you get up?” I ask.

He nods. His lips are cracked, although he seems to be in generally good condition.

“We need to get you somewhere safe.

Julia shakes her head. “We need to get him to Kane.”

“That’s the first place Ash will look. He knows they’re friends.”

“She’s right,” Jared says. “If I can find somewhere to hide until it gets dark, I’ll go through the fence if the gap’s still there tonight.”

“Jared.” Julia gasps.

“He can’t stay here. As far as I know, the gap in the fence is still there. Ash seems to think I sneaked out with a delivery, and I didn’t correct him.”

Jared chuckles. “Ash thinks he’s a lot smarter than he actually is.”

I nod. “Even if anyone else notices it, no one will want to go and fix it. Ash and his men are the only ones who wanted the fence in the first place.”

“We all need to go,” Julia says.

Corey. I’m only surprised he hasn’t turned up here yet. Not that I would know if he had. My stomach churns at the thought of him being somewhere within this complex.

“Is it just the two of you?”

Michael nods. “I brought Jared down here to check on a lead, but we got caught.”

“Did you find out what Ash is doing?”

His expression tightens. “We need to get Jared out to his people as quickly as possible.”

“Are you going to tell us?”

“Ash is bad, Con. Really bad. He’s up to his eyeballs in illegal shit. You and Julia need to get out of here too. I’ll help Jared.”

“But—”

“Go, before you two are missed.”

“Let’s get Andrew and get out of here,” Julia whispers.

I nod. We have to risk it. She sneaks back up the concrete steps, and looks around to see if anyone’s watching.

We make it back to the house, and as we get back inside, I breathe a sigh of relief.

And then I see him. Waiting by the door to the room he’s been holding me in, a small dark-haired boy in his arms.

“What are you two ladies up to?” Ash says. He chucks Andrew under the chin, and the little boy laughs.

“Just getting some fresh air,” Julia says.

“And that involved breaking Constance out of a locked room?”

Her eyes dart between Andrew and me. “It’s stuffy in there.”

“Go back to your room, Julia. I’ll deal with you later.”

I turn my head, but his goons have us surrounded, and there’s nowhere to run.

“And you can go back in there. Your special visitor’s here tomorrow, and I need to make sure you’re safe and well looked after.”

The men close in.

Fear makes my heart race. But I won’t show him that.

“I made a promise, Constance, and when you left I had to break it. He picked you.”

“He never even met me. You made the choice. I already know that.”

Scott and Liam grab me by the arms, and pull me back to the room. They at least have the decency to be gentle when placing me on the bed.

“Scott Abernathy. Your mother would be so disappointed in you.”

“Stop it,” he says through gritted teeth.

But I can’t. “Your father would kick your arse for treating me with so much disrespect. What’s wrong with you?”

His tough-guy look cracks, and for a second I get a glimpse of the boy I grew up with before it hardens again.

He turns and leaves the room. I pick up a pillow and try to throw it at his head. It hits the wall with a soft thud and falls to the floor.

Ash closes the door behind him, and I finally let go of the tears of frustration.

There has to be a way out of this.

Corey.