Pretending to Get Locked in a Trunk Is Scary!

In Dirty Politics Book 1, “The Politician’s Pawn,” I duct taped my ankles together in order to more realistically portray what Kayla was experiencing.

In Dirty Politics Book 2, “Moves and Countermoves,” I wanted to be waterboarded to better describe what Evans went through. (The friend I asked to help me out in this endeavor declined in no uncertain terms.)

So in Dirty Politics Book 3, “Amateurs Play Elsewhere,” you know I tried to do something equally… ummm… let’s just call it interesting. This time, it was getting locked in the trunk of a car. Which, come on, isn’t as dumb as being waterboarded.

I had it set up perfectly, from start to finish, with every detail taken care of.

First, I asked the same friend who refused to waterboard me. She still wasn’t happy about assisting me, but she agreed on this one. Kind of. She would close the trunk lid most of the way, but not actually latch it. Not even come close to latch it, actually. It would be inches away from clicking shut.

To be perfectly honest, that suited me just fine. The idea of being waterboarded hadn’t terrified me. But locked in a trunk?

My stomach twisted and turned at just the thought.

So one beautiful, sunny, spring day, we took my car out to a deserted parking lot and popped the back of my white Subaru Impreza.

I unlocked all the doors, rolled down all my windows and tested the key in the trunk lock to be on the absolute safest side possible. And then I lifted one foot onto the bumper, my heartrate accelerating noticeably.

I’m pretty short. Five-foot two and a half inches, to be precise, whereas my main character in “Amateurs Play Elsewhere” is six-foot. So while it was awkward for me to arrange myself into a prone position on the trunk floor, I’m sure it would be a whole lot more so for someone taller.

The sunshiny sky above me was gorgeous. And the thought of not being able to see more of it made me panicky, a condition that didn’t get any better when my friend started closing the trunk.

Here’s the thing… I knew she wasn’t going to shut it. I also knew that, if she did, she’d be able to let me out right away. I trust her about as much as I trust anyone out there. Yet I was nothing short of terrified watching that thing close. Both of my hands shot up, and I’m pretty sure I shouted out, “That’s enough!”

So lesson learned in all of this?

Getting locked in a trunk is terrifying. Good to know.