THIN ICE |BOOK I |BWWM|

•ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀ 32•

•SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA•

Julia's POV

A distant instrumental melody resonated from one ear to the other as my eyes fluttered open, and my obscured sight struggled to make out the dimmed view around me. Playful moonlight danced over the Egyptian blue comforter while my feet and toes stretched across the cool side of the blanket.

I arched my aching back and sat up allowing my vision to clear and scatter over the floor to ceiling windows that gave an overwhelmingly lofty view of San Francisco.

Sapphire curtains that hung from iron rods placed above the window just barely graced the glossy wood floor while the soft grey walls proudly held adroit art pieces and a few Maniscalco family portraits.

Reminders of the events at the hospital replayed in my mind like a horror film on the big screen; and my eyelids went haywire as I rubbed my palm against them. The weight of the day fought me to stay put, but my thoughts and I had other plans.

Where is Nicolai?

I gritted my teeth while sliding off of the bed-my focus fanning out to find the bedroom door. My bare feet wobbly led me to the closed frosted-French doors.

I wrapped my trembling hand around the polished knob as it resisted my turn.

Locked.

Disappointment poured over me like hot wax as I resisted the urge to tear down the door with my bare hands.

Be calm. You're in control Julia. You're... in... control.

My breathing steadied and my attention lasered in on my purse that was surprisingly waiting atop the dresser on the wall nearest to the bathroom.

Reluctantly, I padded over the Bohemian area rug towards the dresser and rummaged through my bag, finding everything inside- including my phone.

It was fully charged and had a strong signal for making outgoing calls. I unlocked it, scrolled through my settings and phone calls for any sign of tampering, but came up short.

Was I being punked?

Did Andres do this?

I quickly brushed that thought away. After the fight we had, I doubt if he's even in my corner anymore.

My heart pounded and I checked the empty surroundings as my pupils grew with the desire to call for help.

No cameras in the room.

No tampering with my phone.

What if this is my only chance to get help, and I miss it because I watch too many kidnapping documentaries.

I took a breath so deep my lungs hurt as I hurriedly found Olivia's contact and prepared to hit call.

"Stai attento (be careful). It's bugged tesoro." Adrian's husky but relaxed statement broke the silence.

My entire body spiraled as my never- coordinated feet tangled within themselves and slammed my back into the sturdy dresser.