I don’t know how long I’ve been chained in this room, but it feels like days. I was taken on Halloween, while my children were out trick-or-treating with their friends. I hate to think what happened when they returned home.

A bird pecks at the window pane and flies off, fleeing the disaster that hides in this worn out house.

The rotting flesh of the bodies dumped in the corner is making me feel nauseous, like I’m going to pass out. Every now and then I think I’ve got used to the smell and a wave hits me and I’m right back to holding everything in.

A door slams below me and I hear the soft, slow thudding of footsteps up the stairs, the creaking of the landing as he reaches the top. The door suddenly feels in close proximity. All I can do in this moment is watch the door open and pray there is a distraction.