Darkness
All around her
Swallowing her whole

She lies on the cold hard floor
Bound and gagged
Whimpering softly

How did she get here?
How long has it been?
She cannot remember

She struggles against her bonds
Rolling and thrashing
The rope burning her wrists

Blood trickles down her arm
And she cries out in pain
But no sound is made

She can barely breathe
Her mouth is filled with saliva
Trapped behind the sticky duct tape

She hears a mouse scurry across the stone floor
And water drip from the pipes above
Then the echoing of footsteps

The old cellar door creaks open
And she is blinded by the light
The only light she’s seen in hours

Her vision slowly returns to normal
She cowers in fear and tries to scream
Tries to crawl away into the murky darkness

But she’s stuck staring at his silhouette
A dark statue in the bright light
A knife clenched in his menacing hand