The black Lincoln tore through the empty streets of New York, the engine a low, menacing hum. Inside the cabin, the air pressure was so heavy it felt like a physical weight pressing down on Audra's chest.
She pressed herself deeply into the corner of the leather seat. Her entire body trembled. She stared at the man sitting across from her, desperately searching the harsh lines of his face for any trace of the warmth she used to know.
Eben snapped the silver lighter shut. The sharp click echoed like a gunshot in the quiet car. He leaned forward suddenly, his large hand shooting out to grip her chin.
His fingers dug painfully into her jawbone. "What's the matter?" he sneered, his voice dripping with venom. "Is Anderson Hopper not satisfying you enough? Is that why you're running around the city acting like a lunatic?"
Audra winced, a sharp pain shooting through her face. Tears welled up, spilling over his knuckles. "Kendall, please. You have to listen to me. Back then, I was-"
The moment she said his name, a flash of pure, unadulterated violence crossed Eben's eyes. His grip on her jaw tightened until she felt her bones grinding together.
"Shut your mouth!" he roared, his voice vibrating with rage. "That idiot died three years ago, and you were the one who put him in the grave!"
The limousine slammed on its brakes.
The massive force of the sudden stop threw Audra forward. She crashed hard against the wooden partition separating them from the driver, her shoulder taking the brunt of the impact.
The automatic door slid open. The freezing night wind, thick with the smell of the Hudson River, ripped into the cabin.
Eben grabbed the collar of her black trench coat in a white-knuckled fist. He dragged her out of the car, his movements rough and completely devoid of mercy.
Audra stumbled over her own feet as her shoes hit the wet pavement. She forced her head up, looking around. Her pupils shrank to tiny pinpricks.
They were standing on the edge of an abandoned industrial iron bridge spanning the dark waters of the Hudson River. Right in front of them, a massive section of the rusted iron railing was missing, leaving a gaping hole that looked like the open mouth of a monster.
Below them, the black, churning waters of the river smashed against the concrete pillars with a deafening roar.
It was the exact spot. The exact place the transport van had gone over.
A wave of pure, paralyzing terror swallowed Audra whole. Her PTSD triggered instantly. Her chest tightened so severely she couldn't pull in a single breath. She began to hyperventilate, her mouth opening and closing like a suffocating fish.
Eben didn't care. He kept his iron grip on her wrist and dragged her relentlessly toward the jagged edge of the broken concrete.
Audra's toes slipped over the edge. Half of her foot was suspended over the deadly drop. One wrong move, and she would fall.
She let out a blood-curdling scream. She twisted her body, throwing her arms around Eben's solid bicep. Her broken, bleeding fingernails dug frantically into the expensive fabric of his suit jacket, clinging to him for dear life.
"Scared?" Eben's voice was colder than the wind whipping around them. "Were you scared when you sent me over this edge three years ago?"
He stepped up right behind her. His chest pressed hard against her back. He wrapped one thick arm tightly around her waist, locking her in place. With his other hand, he grabbed the back of her neck, forcing her head down to look at the black water swirling far below.
"Do you know what it feels like when the water fills your lungs?" he whispered, his lips brushing against her ear. Every word was a razor blade slicing into her sanity. "Do you know what it feels like to wait to die in the freezing dark?"
Audra's legs gave out completely. If he wasn't holding her, she would have collapsed. She shook her head wildly, sobbing so hard she choked on her own saliva. "I'm sorry... I'm sorry..."
Eben let out a dark, cruel laugh.
He suddenly released the arm holding her waist.
Audra's center of gravity shifted forward. The sickening sensation of weightlessness hit her stomach. She was falling. She screamed, a raw, primal sound of absolute despair.
In the fraction of a second before she tipped over the edge, Eben's large hand clamped down on her upper arm. He yanked her backward with brutal force, throwing her away from the ledge.
Audra collapsed onto the damp concrete. She curled onto her side, clutching her chest, and began to dry heave violently. Her stomach cramped, trying to expel the sheer terror that had consumed her.
Eben stood tall, looking down at her pathetic, trembling form. There was no pity in his amber eyes. Only the dark satisfaction of revenge.
"This is just a fraction of the interest you owe me, Audra Hill," he said coldly. He pulled a crisp silk handkerchief from his pocket, wiped the fingers that had touched her coat, and dropped the fabric onto her face in disgust.
"I am going to make you feel a hundred times the despair I felt. This is only the beginning."
Eben turned his back on her. He walked toward the waiting Lincoln, pulling the door open, leaving Audra alone in the dark, shivering on the edge of the abyss.
