Crouched behind the cold metal bumper of the parked SUV, the two young women were completely frozen in absolute disbelief. One fleeting moment, they were safely drinking coffee in a warm cafe, entirely removed from the dark realities of the city. Now, they were paralyzed by the terrifying realization that they might actually not live to see another day.
Both of them had endured incredibly frightening, life-altering experiences before. Cindy still carried the heavy, lingering trauma from when she had desperately gone on the dangerous search for Abby, walking blindly into the dark corners of the underworld and finding nothing but despair. Sheri bore her own deep psychological scars from the terrifying day when she had been ruthlessly kidnapped by the Black Hounds—she still vividly remembered the cold steel of the van, the smell of damp concrete, and the suffocating feeling of absolute helplessness.
