Hailee's POV
"Fredrick?" I whispered again, my voice shaking.
He didn't answer.
He just watched me, like I was a puzzle he had already solved.
My heart hammered painfully against my ribs.
"Fredrick?" I called once more, louder this time. "What… what are you doing here?"
For a split second, hope tried to rise in my chest. A foolish, desperate hope.
Maybe he's here to help me.
Maybe Nathan sent him.
But that hope died the moment Fredrick finally moved.
He stepped fully into the room and closed the door behind him with a slow, deliberate click.
The sound echoed like a gunshot in my ears.
My stomach dropped.
Fredrick walked forward calmly and took the chair in front of me, sitting down like this was a casual meeting—not a dark room, not me tied up, not a choke collar burning cold against my skin.
He lifted one hand slightly.
The men behind him moved immediately.
My kidnappers.
They came toward me without a word.
Panic surged through me.
