The ties that bind

Serena pressed herself deeper into the corner of the room, her back against the cold wall, her grip on the knife tightening with every passing second. The air was thick, stale—the kind that settled in places meant to be forgotten.

The only sound was her own breathing, uneven despite her best efforts to steady it.

Above her, the old ventilation shaft stretched across the ceiling, its narrow slits barely wide enough for airflow. But she wasn't stupid. The shift in pressure, the faintest scrape of movement—someone was inside.

Watching.

Waiting.

She angled the blade in her hand, her fingers flexing around the handle, adjusting her stance. If they thought she was weak, if they thought she would just sit there—they were wrong.

Then, the whisper came.

"You look so small from up here, Serena."

Her stomach twisted, but she didn't react. Didn't even flinch.

"Left alone again, are we?"

The voice slithered through the room like a snake, curling around her spine, filling every corner of the suffocating space. It wasn't rushed, wasn't taunting—it was calm. Collected.

And that made it worse.

Serena's grip on the knife tightened. She exhaled slowly, focusing on the vent above her.

"You always wanted to come home, didn't you?"

She remained silent. Calculating.

"And now that you're back, look at you." A pause. "Locked away. Forgotten."

Serena shifted slightly, just enough to change her footing, the knife still poised in her grip.

"You're waiting for them to come back," the voice continued. "Waiting for someone—anyone—to check on you. But they won't."

A chill spread through her chest, but she pushed it down. Focus.

"They sent you here to die, Serena."

Her pulse slammed against her ribs.

"And you know it."

She clenched her jaw. "You're lying."

"Am I?"

A subtle shift in the air—movement. Whoever was up there wasn't just speaking to her. They were watching her reaction. Studying it.

Serena willed herself to stay still.

"You were a problem from the beginning. A stain on their perfect little world. Seven years locked away, and what happened when you came back?"

Silence.

"Did they protect you?"

She swallowed hard.

"Did they even fight for you?"

Serena exhaled sharply. "You think I'd believe anything you say?"

A chuckle.

"I think you already do."

Her fingers twitched against the handle of the knife. Don't react.

"They don't see you as family. They see you as a weapon. A convenient sacrifice."

A pause. Then—