ANNABEL

Just then I heard a gunshot - loud and sharp, cutting through the night like thunder. I wasn't fully conscious, but I swear I felt my body dropping to the ground. I closed my eyes, ready to feel the impact of concrete against my skull, but two strong hands caught me instead.

They secured me so tightly, pressing me against what felt like a brick wall, and then that scent hit me - that woodsy, expensive scent that made my heart skip and my knees go weak even in my terror.

I closed my ...