He Didn’t Kidnap Me. Not Exactly novel Chapter 16

Chapter 16

I stared at him.

“No, I’m not.”

“Yes, you are.”

“No,” I repeated, shaking my head. “I feel like that’s something I would know.”

A third voice cut in.

“She’s the girl from the video.”

There was a pause. A shift.

Then, “Take her.”

“Okay, wait- hold on-” I started, stepping back but hands grabbed my arms.

“Okay-nope. This feels very familiar and I don’t like it.” I protested as they pulled me forward.

Ignored.

“I’m telling you, I’m not who you think I am!”

Still nothing.

They dragged me toward a car, the smell of smoke and burning metal still thick in the air behind us.

The door opened. I was shoved inside and landed awkwardly across the seat.

“Fantastic,” I muttered, pushing myself upright as two men climbed in beside me.

Doors slammed, engine roared. And just like that, we were moving.

Again.

I stared ahead for a second.

Then exhaled slowly.

“…this is the second time I’ve been kidnapped this week,” I said. “I feel like I need to be given a loyalty card.”

No response.

I nodded to myself.

Right.

The car sped forward, leaving everything behind.

The fire, the bodies, the fact of him leaving me behind…

My chest tightened slightly and I looked out the window.

He didn’t come back. Didn’t even hesitate.

Just… left.

I swallowed.

“Nope,” I muttered under my breath, shaking my head once. “Not thinking about that.”

I straightened slightly, glancing between the two men beside me now.

“Okay,” I said. “New kidnappers. Same energy. Do you guys a least talk, or is this like a shared business model?”

I sighed and leaned back against the seat.

“Cool.”

The place they took me to wasn’t… flashy.

No gold. No dramatic chandeliers. No billionaire-villain aesthetic.

Just structure.

Clean and efficient, which, somehow, felt worse.

They led me inside without a word, directing me through the space,

People moved around us with purpose.

No one stared or hesitated, like I wasn’t unusual.

Which felt… unsettling.

“Okay,” I said as we walked. “Where are we going?”

No answer.

I glanced sideways.

“Right. Silent treatment. Again. Different location, same policy.”

We turned into another section filled with computers and screens. They stopped me in front of one.

A man typed something quickly, then turned the screen toward me.

“Is this your mother?”

I looked and everything in me stilled.

It was her. Younger, but still her.

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