As they pull her away from her family, her husbands last words are, Say nothing!
Check out the books trailer, above, and an excerpt, below both debuting on EW Friday.
The Girl Beforehits shelves Aug. 9.
The sound of gunfire and men shouting and children screaming comes in a tidal wave through the open door.
We huddle in the small space together, and Daisy trembles in my arms.
Daisy cries as the door to the closet opens.
I put a hand over her mouth to muffle the sound.
Our hiding spot is clever, but not clever enough.
Someone taps on the wall.
he shouts, and his hands make shuffling sounds as they grope for a way in.
It only takes a few minutes before the latch is discovered and we are revealed.
Daisy screams and buries her face in my chest.
Whoa, there, a gentle voice says.
I peek at the source, and see a man with kind eyes.
I know it is a trick.
How could he be kind when he has broken into our home?
I lash out again, and he catches my arm.
A little help here!
he calls over his shoulder.
His grip is firm, and I cannot retrieve my arm from his grasp.
I wrap my other arm tightly around a sobbing Daisy and glare up at him.
The man is dressed in black from head to toe, a large gun strapped across his back.
A woman pops up behind the man, her hair pulled back in a tight bun.
Were not going to hurt you, sweetheart, she coos, and I roll my eyes.
I am nobodys sweetheart.
Just come out here so we can talk.
I want to protest, but I dont have many options.
She clings to my skirt, trying to disappear into the folds.
Daisy has only been with us a few months, but we have already bonded.
Daisy isnt her real name.
I dont know what her real name is.
When Glen brought her to me, he handed me a bouquet of fresh cut daisies.
She is like my own daughter.
We emerge into the kitchen, and I sit at the same table as before.
I place Daisy in front of me, retrieve the hairbrush from the floor, and resume brushing.
What is your name?
the woman asks, sitting across from me.
Brush, brush, brush.
Long strokes through Daisys cornsilk hair.
It is almost halfway down her back now.
Sometimes we go out and make dandelion crowns and she looks just like a princess.
She wears those crowns until they are completely wilted.
The woman is still staring at me.
My name is Meredith, she says.
And this is Connor.
She gestures toward the man.
Can you tell me your name?
I bite my lip, wishing for guidance.
As if by divine intervention, there is a commotion from the back door, and Glen bursts through.
His arms are pinned behind his back, and he is surrounded by men dressed in black.
He sees me and his eyes widen.
Saynothing, baby, okay?
Dont tell them anything.
He continues to shout as the men wrestle him towards the front of the cabin.
I love you, baby!
I blush at his declaration in front of these strangers.
The man and woman interrogating me look at me with odd expressions.
Is that your husband?
Brush, brush, brush.
How long have you been here?
the woman wants to know.
The strands sift through my fingers.
The mans eyes narrow.
He looks as if he is concentrating very hard on putting a puzzle together.
I see the moment he comes to his solution.
Is your name Diana?
The brush catches on a tangle and crashes to the floor.
It has been three days since I have been taken.
Glen told me tosay nothing.
The man began an explanation, but I tuned him out.
I didnt want to hear.
I only wanted to see Glen again, but he was gone.
The children tried to run to me, but were held back.
They let me keep a hold of Daisy, but wanted my hairbrush.
Evidence, they said.
I dont know what a hairbrush is supposed to tell them, but I gave it to them anyway.
They pulled up in front of a brick building and took Daisy.
I dont think Glen would have minded that.
It didnt really count anyway, since none of the uniformed men and women heard it.
I was brought to another building, stripped and bathed, and left in this room.
Three times a day they bring food, which I have not touched.
The room smells like antiseptic, and the wail of ambulances keeps me up at night.
I only know it is nighttime because they turn the lights from dim to dimmer.
There are no windows here.
They say it is not jail.
It is a hospital.
They are only holding me here for now.
They want to help me.
I will rot in this room before I tell them anything.
From THE GIRL BEFORE by Rena Olsen, published by G.P.
Putnams Sons, an imprint of the Penguin Publishing Group, a division of Penguin Random House LLC.
Copyright 2016 by Renata Olsen.
