Animal didn't say anything. His eyes were wide with surprise at the sight of the old lady. He looked at Tim.
"Relax," Tim said, as he opened the door to the SUV "Rick hired her to take care of getting rid of their security. You ain't gonna believe the shit I seen this lady do."
"I want the eyes," Mabel said. She walked up to Animal, looking at him as an elderly schoolteacher might look up into the face of the school bully as she chastised him. "Rick Shectman said I could have an eye!"
Animal looked at Tim. "What the fuck?"
"She's cool. I'll tell you all about her later. Now, come over and help me get Lisa out.'
Animal joined Tim, and together the men hoisted the box out of the SUV Tim produced a box cutter and sliced the tape that bound the box shut. He opened the flaps and grinned. Lisa Miller lay curled inside, still knocked out. "I'll carry her out to the site if you carry the equipment. Camera and stuff is in the back" He reached into the box and grasped Lisa beneath the armpits and hoisted her up.
Animal reached into the rear of the van and grabbed the tripod and the black leather carrying case that contained the camera.
"You bring what you need?"'ISm asked. Lisa was out of the box now, and he threw her limp, unconscious form over his shoulder.
"Yeah" Animal motioned to the Saturn. In my car."
"Go get it!
• Tim and Mabel waited while Animal retrieved a duffel bag from the backseat of the Saturn. The hooded sadist slung the strap of the carrying case over his shoulder, picked up the tripod with his left hand, and the three of them trudged up the hill.
It was slow going. They had to stop halfway up when it became obvious that Mabel was going to have a hard time making it up the incline. Tim felt a flash of irritation as he marched behind her. Rnally, he stopped and put Lisa down. "Why don't you go over the incline and set the shit down and then come back for us;" he called out to Animal. "I can't watch after this old bag and carry this bitch at the same time."
Animal nodded and trudged up the hill.
He returned ten minutes later and, with Tim's help, the three of them made it over the incline into the little valley. Animal helped Mabel step carefully down the indine, guiding her down by gripping her arm, steering her down a safe path. Mabel talked to him the whole time, relating the same background she had given 75m on the way over. Several times Animal glanced at Tim as if to say this woman ain't shittin' me, is she? And each time Tim had nodded. She ain't bullshittin'you, buddy. She is what she says she is. By the time they reached the bottom of the incline, Animal was treating the old lady as if she were his grandmother.
Tim motioned to a rock set against. a small rise. "Why don't you have a seat and enjoy the action, Mrs. Schneider`
Mabel maneuvered herself to the rock and sat down. She was perspiring, and she looked happy. "My pussy's getting wet just thinking about-this."
Tim tried not to show his distaste at the image she'd just presented to him, and helped Animal set up the camera. Lisa lay slumped on the ground, her hands and feet still bound together. Once the camera was set up on its tripod and Tim had checked to make sure he had a fresh tape, he turned to Animal. "You ready?"
Animal nodded. He opened up his bag, brought out a large hunting knife. He grinned. Tim nodded, catching the rise of the sadist's penis from the open crotch of his leather chaps. Why Animal chose to wear leather chaps at these gigs, Tim could never understand. He always got blood on them, and blood was hard to wash off of leather.
Tim moved Lisa into position, then went back and checked his camera angles. Animal stayed out of camera range, poised and ready. Tim lined up the shot, made some adjustments, then hit the Record and Pause buttons. The tape was set. Now all that was needed was to wake their star up.
Tim reached into his bag and pulled out a syringe and vial. He filled the syringe, being careful not to draw too much of the Narcan in, and then lightly tapped it with his forefinger to get the air bubbles out. "I fixed this stuff up before l set out this morning. Should wake her right up."
"What is it?" Animal asked.
"Narcan. It reverses the effects of morphine-based drugs. They use it in ERs when people OD."
Animal was watching intently. That needle doesn't look big enough. Aren't you supposed to jab her in the chest? You know, put that shit into her heart?"
"Nah,"Tim said, finding a vein in Lisa's forearm and injecting the drug. "'That's only in extreme cases, when somebody's flatlined. They use adrenaline shots for that. This'll wake her up fine." He pulled the needle out and waited for a reaction.
The three of them watched Lisa, waiting for her to wake up. After thirty seconds, Animal said, "V. ll?"
"It could take about five minutes; Tim said.
"My flight leaves in four hours," Animal said." he faster I can fuck this bitch up and kill her ass, the quicker I can clean up and get the fuck out of here"
"Okay, okay, hold on.' Tim Murray felt the time pressure, too. He fixed up another dosage of Narcan, measuring out two milligrams' worth, searched for a vein, and slid the needle in. He injected it into her system and then sat back, waiting.
"You gonna untie her?' Mabel asked, grinning.
"What the fuck for?"
"Not much fun watching her die tied up," Mabel responded. "At least loosen the knots a little. Make it more exciting. After all, isn't he going to fuck her first?"
Tim turned to Animal. "What do you think?"
"What's this shit supposed to do to her?"
"It's supposed to block out all the effects of morphinebased drugs," Tim replied. "I only gave her enough morphine to knock her out a little. The Narcan should wake her up long enough for our film. She'll be conscious, but she might still be fucked up from the smack. She won't be much of a fight. Your call!
Animal nodded. "Untie her. I can handle her."
Tim set the syringe down and leaned over to untie Lisa. He laid her arms down at her side, her legs lightly spread. "You want her clothes off?"
Animal shook his head. "No. That's what knives are for."
Lisa's eyes flew open and began blinking rapidly as she began taking rapid breaths. Tim stepped back, picking up the syringe and his bag. He moved behind the camera to get started. He wasn't even able to start the film rolling before he heard Lisa Miller's first piercing scream.
When she came awake it was with a sudden rush.
She'd been swimming in a syrupy lake of deep, clogging sludge. She didn't know how she'd gotten there, but she knew if she stayed down much longer she'd never wake up. She had been struggling to break to the surface, fighting to break free and breathe, but her arms were pinned to her sides and it had been hard to break through the current. The lake she was in was so thick, so resisting, it was like fighting quicksand.
And then she was suddenly shot out of the quicksand and her eyes were open, the sunlight glaring in her eyes. She felt the heat of the sun on her bare skin, felt the air caress her body, felt the sting along the inside of her elbow, and for a moment she didn't know where she was. Her eyes watered in reaction to the sudden light. Her heart raced madly as she tried to remember what happened. She had been sitting in front of the TV vegging out, trying to stay out of the dark place that was the memory of that awful weekend when she had been kidnapped by that perverted psycho and almost murdered. That weekend she had seen Debbie Martinez horribly violated, then she'd lost her baby. The images of that weekend flashed through her memory as her eyes adjusted to the light and she was no longer swimming in that deep pit of quicksand. She was aware, she was conscious, and she was being confronted with what had happened for the first time since she had been knocked out. And what she saw brought it all back to a screaming reality.