Eve blinked.

Once, then twice.

A small part of her was still hoping this was all just a bizarre, all-too-realistic dream. She wanted to pinch herself. Hard.

Maybe she had fallen and hit her head too hard?

Unfortunately, she couldn't convince herself of that.

'No. No, this is real. You're not dreaming.'

The world was too close, too real, too pushy. The throbbing in her head, the dull pain in her neck that radiated into her shoulders. The dizziness assailed her whenever she moved too fast, and... the blurred vision reminded her that this could not be a dream. Because in her dreams... that terrible accident had never happened, and she was not confined to the sight of half the world. In her dreams, she was free, saw everything... could do everything and be everything.

Dreams went beyond the boundaries of reality.

The sight that opened up in front of her could have come from a crude dream: Dr Jonathan was sitting with her son Liam at an oval set dining table in the room. He smiled at her broadly and happily as if there was absolutely nothing unusual.

Some candles cast a flickering light into the room, which had nothing special about it but still made her feel strangely uncomfortable. On the table was a pot of steaming food, which smelled like stew or goulash. In a basket was sliced bread, and in a bowl, she recognised a mixed salad.

The scenery perfectly matched the surroundings of the hut, even though the strangely modern style of cool colours was repeatedly broken by kitschy furnishings such as yellow embroidered pillows with sunflowers or butterflies. A white leather sofa faced a wall with a flat-screen. Nothing here looked familiar to her. Behind the windows, it was pitch black, and she could only guess at the silhouettes of the trees.

What the hell was going on here?

"Dr. Taylor?" Eve said a mixture of disbelief and confusion on her lips. She felt dizzy again and had to brace herself against the wall to keep from losing balance.

The smile hovering on the doctor's lips seemed to shatter like a vase. The dark crack in the charming man's mask stretched across his face like a shadow, but it had already disappeared by the next blink.

"Jonathan or honey, my love," he said, and the legs of his chair scraped across the floor as he stood up.

Something about his behaviour made her nervous—no, everything here made her nervous. It was a disgusting, queasy feeling that could be reduced to one fact, which was blindingly obvious: danger.

Eve was so sick that she felt like throwing up.

'He kidnapped us and drugged us. And... oh God... Edana...' she thought, and the realisation hit her like a fist. Jonathan was a doctor. That's why Edana had just been lying in her bed. He must have given her an injection... just like he had done to Eve herself.

He had killed Edana.

He could kill Liam and her, too.

Nausea rose in Eve's throat, and she feared she would vomit again.

What should she do now?

What could he do to Liam and her?

How could she not sense anything?

Why did she always end up with psychos?

Eve's whole body tensed as the doctor approached with long strides. Something about him was completely different than usual. She couldn't say precisely what it was, but it wasn't necessary. One could fear a shot without feeling the bullet. It was the same feeling as standing on a lake and ice; the first crack sounded, and you didn't know whether the surface would carry you further or collapse.

"How are you, dear? You were so tired and slept for a long time..." he whispered, stretching his hand and taking hold of her fingers.

Instinctively, Eve flinched, pulled back her hand, and immediately noticed the dark shadows that had gathered like storm clouds over Jonathan's eyes.

"I'm glad you're feeling better," he went on. But it sounded strange, like a line he had memorised and repeated far too often.

His lips and smile dropped noticeably. Then, the corners of his mouth pulled back up as if on strings, and he gripped her hand more firmly. His grip was so tight that his fingers pressed painfully on her hand. Eve knew this kind of grip, and she didn't like it. Immediately, her whole body became stiffer, and she froze into a pillar of salt.

Her pulse quickened even more, and her ears began to ring, which caused black spots to dance in her field of vision again.

No, no, no, she couldn't faint now!

"We've been waiting for you," Jonathan said, reaching for one of the blonde strands. He let it slide through his fingers... and Eve could see his lips curling in dissatisfaction.

It hadn't worked out the way he'd imagined. Apparently, he had wanted her to look like the woman in the photo. Now Eve could feel his eyes on her, heavy as lead. Automatically, her shoulders sank.

That's how she had felt for many years of her life...

No, that wasn't true. She had never felt that way with Dylan. She also had to walk on eggshells in his presence, but she had never experienced that kind of fear. With Dylan, she always thought she knew where his limits were. That he might hit her or lock her in the closet or bedroom again. But the doctor? And this horror movie here...

At that moment, she remembered the missing persons reports hanging in the Bluebird. And for her, too, pieces of the puzzle suddenly fell into place.

All the blonde women...

'Oh God, Oh God, Oh God...'

"I-I feel sick," she forced out, sounding hoarse and rough.

"Oh, really? It must be hunger." He abruptly let go of her hair. The whole thing just seemed grotesque. "But luckily, we have a solution for that: I've cooked. " His thumb glided tenderly over the back of her hand, caressing her fingers, and his gaze wandered from her face to her hand.

"Where's your wedding ring?" he asked, and Eve noticed the dangerous change in his voice, which had suddenly taken on a colder, more polished tone.

Everything seemed to be spinning. A sickening taste, bitter like a rotten lemon, spread in her mouth, and Eve would have liked to vomit at her feet.

"I... I must have dropped it..." she stammered, catching Liam's gaze. Her boy seemed distraught, shifting around on the chair, and if she wasn't mistaken, she saw a glimmer of tears in his eyes.

"Then you'd better go and get him." This time, her abductor's voice sounded as dark and black as coal. He reached for the bedroom door, opened it and stood in the frame, looking around warily.

Eve's steps were mechanical and stiff as she groped along the wall.

"Mommy!" Liam called from the dining table, and Eve saw Jonathan's eyes flicker to the boy. Liam turned pale, slid down a bit in his chair, and pursed his lips into a tight line.

"It's all right, my darling!" Eve wanted to rush to him, take her son in her arms and hold him close. But there it was again. The cracking of invisible ice under her feet, the feeling of standing at the edge of an abyss, not knowing what lurked on the dark ground. "I'll be right back," she promised, trying to put as much soothing sound as possible into her voice.

Evelyn had to force herself to take the next steps. She staggered, almost bumping into the doorframe, and was just able to catch herself.

Shit.

She couldn't run away with Liam like this... he would have caught up with her immediately. Besides, she didn't know where they were.

'Calm down!'

She had to be sensible now. Think clearly... and weigh up her next steps carefully.

It was easier said than done because her thoughts and movements continued to disobey her commands. Threads that kept coming undone at the eye of the needle.

'Stay calm. You have to play along and hope for an opportunity to escape. The most important thing is not to anger him now. Maybe you'll get to a phone and call for help."

Did that make sense? Yes, that sounded reasonable.

Eve's gaze swept the floor, searching for the cursed ring she had thrown away. Finally, she found the gold band next to the dresser. Now that she held it in her hand again, she noticed it was not as detailed and heavy as her former, real wedding ring.

'Cheaply made? Did he always put a ring on the other one, too?' she wondered, and the thought felt disgusting and sticky. 'What happened to the others?'

The fact that they had never been found did not make Eve feel confident. Had the poor women also tried to escape?

"Did you find it?"

The voice tore her out of her thoughts and made her flinch. While her world was still sluggish and felt like it was going through water, he seemed to be standing right next to her in the blink of an eye.

"Y-Yes! Thank God!" she blurted out a little too quickly and even heard how breathless her voice sounded. Again, hard fingers grasped her, pulled her hand toward them and fished the ring out of the other.

"You'd better be more careful in the future, Eve," her captor hummed.

Eve might still be under the influence of the anaesthetic, but she could hear the threat. An icy shiver ran down her spine, and she nodded slowly. She couldn't say more.

"Come." A grip like a vice closed around her wrist.

"Ouch! You're hurting me!" The outcry had come over her lips before she could hold back.