"You girls are coming with me," the man said, a sinister smile tugging at his lips. "You scream, and I shoot."

They'd had no choice but to follow.

Pulling herself from the memory, Nicky gasped for air. She was still on her couch, alone in her apartment. She peered out the window at the skyline and sighed.

The fact that she'd escaped, and Rosie hadn't, was something that had haunted Nicky every single day since. It was a major part of why Nicky had become a BAU agent with a focus on missing girls. Part of her even hoped that one day, she'd find Rosie, somehow, lost among those missing women.

The man who'd taken them was never found either. Nicky had described his van the best she could, but it was a generic make. He had gotten away with what he'd done, and Nicky hated that more than anything.

She went to lie down in her bed and stared at the ceiling, thinking about Masie's body again.

Nicky felt like the ultimate failure for not saving her, and clouded by that failure, she had turned Senator Gregory down. She thought of how compassionate Amara had been earlier. How even in the direct wake of her daughter's death, she was still holding strong, and didn't shed a single tear, not in front of Nicky. She was a strong and admirable woman, and Nicky felt honored that she had chosen her, of all people, to spearhead her team.

Nicky hated that she wasn't able to save Amara's daughter. This loss was a bigger blow than anything she'd experienced in her career so far. But at the same time, Nicky needed to remember why she'd started doing this job in the first place.

Those girls were missing, and they needed help. Like Rosie needed help.

Nicky knew what she had to do next.

CHAPTER FOUR

Meghan never thought she would be wearing a white dress so soon. The gown was long and flowing, like a mermaid's tail on the floor of the cabin. The sheer fabric gleamed like diamond. It was heavy, almost oppressive. The expensive, pure silk scent of the gown had no smell, like a statue of a bride.

"You look so radiant," he told her, wearing a smile. His smile was yellow, contrasting against the white shirt he had beneath his crisp suit jacket and tie.

Meghan tried not to tremble.

He hated when she showed fear.

"I simply can't wait for our big day," he told her. "I know a husband is not supposed to see his wife in her wedding dress beforehand, but I just couldn't resist..." His brown eyes slithered up her. "You are just so perfect."