The girl came to consciousness slowly. It was dark. Her right cheek lay against the cold floor. She could hear a steady drip, drip, drip from somewhere in the room. She shivered. So cold. Her arms hurt. She tried to move them. Bound. Terror caused her mind to come to full awareness. She struggled to sit up. Her heart pounded. She could feel herself start to hyperventilate, and forced herself to slow her breathing.

A glimmer of light came under what she presumed was the door. She could vaguely discern the murmur of voices, but could not make out the words.

She and her friend Andrea had been walking to their car after leaving the mall. She remembered laughing at something when a white cargo van had pulled up next to them, the sliding doors flung open and two men with black ski masks on had grabbed the girls and hustled them into the van. It had all happened in less than a minute. Where was Andrea?

“Andrea?” she whispered. Silence. “Andrea?” Nothing.

Slowly, slowly she crept around the room, reaching out with her toes. Nothing. The room was devoid of furnishings and devoid of Andrea.