ow, cutting a pale line across the concrete floor. Haley woke up shiver

er twenty-four hours, felt like dead weight. The skin around her wrists

sandpaper down her esophagus. The hunger in her stomach

The rhythmic squeak of a metal cart wheel rolling

an

eavy iron door was kicked open. Haley flinc

topping a few feet from her face. On the tray sat a small, hard piece of black bread with a

without a second thought. Now, her eyes locked onto the moldy crust, her pupils dilating.

spered through the slot. It was a thick,

he floor, trying to sit up so she could reach the tray with her mouth. But her shoulder

She looked at the bread. She looked at

ike a snake, dragging her torso across the dirt until her face was inches from the

of her mouth, tearing the delicate tissue. She chewed a

the tin bowl. She tipped it slightly with her nose and lapped at the cloudy wat

American girl eat off the floor. A flicker of pity crossed Marisol's

ad against the cold iron of the door. She needed information.

down the hallway. "Quiet

ssing her face closer to the slot.

handle of the food cart. "You should be gla

th caught. "

pered, her voice tight with fear. "Sold

ley's mind. A cold sweat broke out on the

lash of deep, unresolved grief crossing her dark eyes. "My younger sister... she was brought here two years ago. She didn't have a tag. They threw her to the cartels. I could

blow. She belonged to him. The map.

esperation leaking into her voice. If she

un shipments. Bea locked you down here to break you b

ing her out of spite, using Axel's absence

there?" Cody's harsh shout ech

cked the metal slot sh

on the floor, the taste of mold and blood in her mo

ying reality, but it was also a shield. She just