This is the sequel to the book A Dangerous Captive, you MUST read that before this in order for it to make any sense. 

I have been overwhelmed with the response on A Dangerous Captive, I was not expecting my very first book to blow up the way it did and for that I am forever grateful. 

But first, I must address certain things about the first book, more specifically the ending of said book. 

I understand that the ending to A Dangerous Captive was abrupt and was something that many of you were not expecting. I made a very conscious decision since the first few words of the book were written that I wouldn't have Adelaide run into the arms of a character she hardly knew anything about and was otherwise hot and cold with her. This book is about HER journey and HER life and I'm frankly sick of wattpad writers having fully grown, capable, and smart women run into very obviously toxic and emotionally abusive relationships which is a harmful demonstration on how relationships should work for the young readership many authors get on this website.  

With all this being said, please stick around for not only the character development of Adelaide but also for ALL other characters. 

None of my characters are perfect people, I've made sure of it.

My updating schedule will not be consistent.

My mental health has significantly declined since the start of writing A Dangerous Captive but I thankfully have support from the single most best person in the world (you know who you are if you ever finish the first book lmao). I will prioritize my personal mental health over regular updates, especially since I will be in my last year of high school while writing and IB is a notoriously challenging qualification. 

If you've read this far thank you for hearing what I have to say and I hope I haven't come off as a horrible person lmao.

All songs mentioned are not mine and can be found on a Spotify playlist called 'A Dangerous Alliance' - Anna Joicey and it would make me happy if you listened while reading. 

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Song: Howl - Alexandra Savior

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Adelaide

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b a n g

I woke up with a start, the gunshot ringing through my head.

Sweat beaded my brow, my heart continuing to patter heavilyn my chest as I sat up, clutching it as if it would be the thing to save me.

I let out a sigh of relief as my eyes met the familiar lavender walls, my breathing slowly returning to a normal pace as I ran my hands through my hair, tugging hard, as if I was trying to bring my being back to reality.

And maybe I was.

The gunshot I took all those months ago had taken a bigger toll on my mind than I initially thought it would and had brought back memories I had thought I locked away with a lock and key.

After all, I had my reasons as to why I never used a gun and in retrospect, I should have never used it, I should have found another way to get my hands on that knife.

But I didn't, I was careless, desperate, and still reeling from the many betrayals that had been sprung on me.

And yet I broke my rule, and here I was, waking up like a child after a nightmare, tears threatening to fall as I forced myself to put my heart back together every morning.

I sat silently on the bed until my breathing returned to a normal pace and my heart no longer hammered in my ribs. I tentatively let my toes down onto the cool wood as I heaved myself upwards, my heart settling in my chest like a heavy stone.

Taking in a deep breath and ignoring the strikingly cool ground, I moved towards the window, gazing outwards at the street below. The lights still shone and people still milled around, each lost in their own troubles and lives.

It wasn't even light outside, the dawn barely beginning to brake which meant I had woken up way too early, again.

With a huff, I turned away from the window and shrugged on some clothes, preparing for chilly weather.

I quickly ran a brush through my hair, completely grown out from the black box dye and returned to its natural blonde hues and I had allowed it to grow out longer than I usually had under anyone else's care.

I hadn't had the heart to cut it short again, the black strands showing me exactly who I was, the person that followed me around wherever I went no matter how well I disguised it. In fact, for the first time in years it was long enough to throw into a ponytail, and so that's exactly what I did.

I tiptoed out of my room, careful to not wake up any of the other inhabitants of the household and quickly swiped a pair of keys before stealthily making my way to the safety of the hallway, only just satisfied with the muted click of the doorway behind me.

I pulled my hood up over my head and shoved my hands into my pockets, pressing the button as I patiently waited for the lift to come.

The shuffling of feet coming from the other side of the hallway should've alerted me, but it didn't. It had taken a while to adjust to living in an apartment building with other people, taken a while to adjust to not looking behind you at every second and not believing that there was someone out to get you at every second. Here, these were normal people with normal lives and normal ambitions, something I had learned the hard way.

I didn't look at the presence as they situated themselves besides me, also waiting.

The hallway was quiet, the loud noises of the city not reaching through the walls, leaving the two of us in a comfortable silence.

I walked gracefully into the lift as it arrived, allowing myself to shoot a glance at the other person, but gave up when I couldn't get a good view, their height blocking me.

I leaned over and pressed the ground floor, before taking a step back so that we stood side by side.

Neither of us made a move to speak.

It only took 1 minute and 48 seconds to get to the ground floor but the time seemed to stretch on, which only made me walk faster to the crisp outside air as soon as the doors opened.

I didn't look back, only moved forward, slowing down a little once I had turned a corner.

Something about that person felt off.

Shaking the feeling off, I took in a deep breath, met with the biting chill lingering in the air from the recent harsh winter.

I shoved my hands in my pockets in hopes to warm them up even if just a little and trudged forwards, ignoring the people loitering around before the sun came up.

Only God knew what they were doing up this early, and I didn't want to be caught up in it.

I continued to trudge on, only slowing to gaze at the closed up shops and a few odd characters still lingering from the shadows the night offered.

New York had an odd sort of charm about it.

I walked until I found the floral shop, luckily open at such an early time and waltzed in, picking out a flower arrangement and making my way to the cashier.

"Is that all?" The young girl asked, stifling a yawn.

"Yes, please," I replied, handing her 20 dollars and waiting for the change.

"Do you know what time it is?" I asked, cursing that I had left my phone at home.

She gave me an odd look before glancing at her phone.

"4:47 AM."

I nodded my thanks before turning to leave, discreetly scanning the street as I walked.

Pushing open the creaky gate which seemed as if it would fall over at a gentle breeze and carefully shut it behind me. I took another breath, eyeing the deserted graveyard for a moment before making my way over to the far corner of the compound.

I walked slowly, taking in the names carved into the stone.

My heart ached for the people, seemingly so far away from me.

Sheila Adams, aged 78

Robert Williams, aged 43

Francine Moreno, aged 32

Lilly Augustine, aged 3

I stopped abruptly, gazing at the tombstone and quickly pulling out a large yellow flower, placing it on the grave.

My heart seemed to grow heavier at the sight but I moved onwards, no longer looking at the graves.

My eyes teared up at the sight of the reason I came, the grave that haunted me every night.

I removed the previous flowers, still desperately clinging to life, and replaced them with the fresh bouquet.

I sat on the damp ground, hugging my body as the familiar prickling of tears behind my eyes began.

"Happy birthday," I spoke, my voice so quiet it seemed lost in the wind.

I reached forward, my hands tentatively tracing the name etched there as if it would dissipate in a second.

Jameson Salham, aged 27.

"Just whisper my name,

And in your heart,

I will be there."

My heart lurched at the sight.

I squeezed my eyes shut, relishing in the eerie silence that only settles in graveyards, the streets of New York long forgotten.

The grave had popped up only a month after I had been living in New York, all the work of Jaekyung who had informed me of its presence through a letter.

To her I would be eternally indebted.

I didn't speak, I didn't dare utter a word in the land of the dead and instead watched as the sun crawled its way upwards, watched as the world went on without him.

Without Jamie.

All because of me.

The crunch of footsteps on the ground jolted me out of my thoughts, and into reality yet again. Without looking up, I tuned my ears to the footsteps, steadily tensing as I realised they were nearing me.

I carefully slid my hand into my jacket, fingering the knife I had stashed earlier, never to leave my side.

I didn't move as they stopped their journey directly behind me.

I clutched the knife with all my might, preparing to go on the attack if needed.

"Long time no see, Sunshine."

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1400 words 

okay bye