And then her vision swam back into focus and the first thing she saw was the man in the leather bondage hood, standing bare-chested in front of her. She recognized him immediately as the man who had raped and tortured Debbie Martinez in that cabin in a time that seemed like a thousand years ago. The same man who told her how much he liked inflicting pain on other people, and how he enjoyed killing them. The same man who had later killed Debbie, Alicia, and Mandy after shed escaped. She saw him standing there, bran dishing a large butcher knife, sporting a huge erection, and she screamed.
She screamed, scrambled back, and fell, not even aware of the rough dirt that bit into her flesh. She heard laughter and it was all coming back to her. Her escape from the snuff-film makers, how she and Brad had been lulled into a false sense of security at the Luxor, how she thought they would never find her. And then how they had been fooled when that old woman had come in looking so helpless and lost, asking to use the phone because she had been separated from her church group, that old seemingly harmless-looking woman. The same old woman she had seen slitting John Panozzo's throat…
The old woman in question was sitting on a rock, grinning in anticipation. Lisa screamed again, her heart racing. She felt suddenly hot, flushed with adrenaline. She and Brad had been fooled! They had sent an old woman, an old woman that nobody would have guessed to be a killer, and they had done it under the noses of a hotel full of expert security people.
A shadow loomed in front of her and Lisa blinked, her eyes adjusting. A clean-shaven, familiar face grinned at her. Lisa recognized him instantly, even without the beard: It was Tim Murray, the man in the red van who had kidnapped her. "Remember me?" he asked, grinning. "You didn't think we'd let you get away, did you?"
Lisa felt her panic rise as she looked around. Tim Murray was getting behind the camera. The old woman was rising to her feet, her features a mask of gleeful anticipation. Animal took a step toward her, his penis bobbing like a divining rod, the sun gleaming off the blade of his knife. She scampered backward, whimpering. "No!"
"Try to make it last, Animal," Tim said from behind the camera.
They were going to make her suffer, that much was dear from that statement. If that was the case, she was going to go down fighting.
Animal was on her swiftly, pinning her down. Lisa tried to scramble back again, but she only succeeded in scraping her knees. Animal grabbed her hair and shoved her to the ground. She pushed herself off in an attempt to make a run for it and she felt him grab her again. Thenshe was slapped across the face, the blow hard enough to send her to the ground. Her cheek stung, and the slap awakened her. Her face was in the dirt, and she pushed herself up in an attempt to run for it when Animal pinned her down from above. He grabbed her from behind, his forearm getting her in a headlock. She felt his body over hers and she could feel his erection probe against the back of her thighs. She screamed and bucked, trying to throw him off, but that only made him tighten the pressure around her throat. She saw stars, felt her body grow warm, her heart racing. Her breathing was fast, panting. He's going to kill me! He's going to rape me and kill me!
She felt Animal's fingers and hands ripping at her nightgown, tearing it off. A rough hand moved between her thighs, pushing them apart. She struggled, trying to throw him off her back and scramble away, but he had her down. She could feel his penis against her buttocks as he pushed her to the ground, his forearm releasing his grip from around her throat. She used the opportunity to scream, and then she felt the weight off her back disappear and she took advantage of it. She bolted and felt a crash at the back of her head, spilling her to the ground. She tasted a mouthful of sand and grit, her eyes watering. Rough hands ripped her panties off, cool air caressed the back of her thighs and buttocks. Then she felt his bulk over her again, pinning her to the ground. She slapped at him, her fingers clutching leather, and she pulled. She heard a grunt, felt a blow to her chest, her face, and she batted at his face, grabbing his mask again. She pulled the mask off his head just as she felt a blow land on her throat. She fell back, gagging. She dropped the bondage mask, clutching her throat, breathing heavily, and then she was pushed back to the ground on her belly. She caught a brief glimpse of the man she had met back at that cabin, that handsome man who looked like he could have been a young doctor or a lawyer in her firm, the perfect image of the young, good-looking, urban professional. That face now wore a mask of blood lust. She gulped for air and she was realizing that when she pulled his bondage mask off, her arms had probably helped deflect the blow to her throat, otherwise she'd probably have a harder time breathing. She took a deep breath, mustering up her strength for another round of struggle, when she felt the hardness of his penis seeking entry from behind, moving into the rough region of her dry vagina.
No! Fight him! A warm flush flowed into her body; she felt highly agitated, her breathing coming in harsh pants in time with her racing heart. She felt the presence of his body over hers, not as pressed down as before, still holding her on her hands and knees, her belly resting on the ground. He was straddling her, his hips over her ass, his penis working its way between her legs to her sex while he tried to force her legs apart with his hand. His face was six inches from hers, to her right, and she felt him grip her hair with his left hand, tilting her face to his. His eyes gleamed, his All-American boyish features frightening. "You like it, bitch?"
Lisa panted, meeting his gaze. She could feel her anger building as she grew more agitated; she felt like a bundle of live wires. She wasn't going to let these bastards take her down without a fight. The adrenaline pouring through her system was reawakening her; no longer did she have the luxury to cower in fear. She had to fight. She had to be ruthless. She had to survive at whatever cost.
Animal's grip on her hair tightened, the pain in her scalp exploded. He was gathering fistfuls of her hair in his hands as he moved her head close to his, his eyes narrowed slits. "I asked you a fucking question, bitch! Answer me!"
All she was aware of was that blinding pain in her scalp along the back of her head. She could barely feel the presence of his body over hers, didn't even know if he had entered her with that vile thing that hung between his legs. She wasn't aware of anything except that loathsome face in front of her, that loathsome face that probably made women swoon. It was an inch from hers, leering at her. "You fucking listening to me, cunt?"
Lisa answered him the only way she could. She reached out and grabbed ahold of his nose… with her teeth.
And she bit down as hard as she could.
Animal screamed and instantly jumped back, dislodging his position over her. She held on, pulled up by his flailings, and she could feel her teeth slice through skin and cartilage. He bellowed and swung with his fists, striking her side, her back, but she refused to let go. She felt her energy surge, felt that she could run a thousand miles with all this energy, so she used it to her advantage. She brought her hands up to his head and moved her thumbs over his eyes, pushing them in.
This time, Animal howled.
She pushed Animal's eyes as hard as she could, and now she was actually on her feet; he had pulled her into a standing position in his flight to get away from her. She concentrated on one thing: killing this sadistic sonofa bitch who had given her nightmares and made her afraid. She focused her mind on trying to hurt him, using her rage and hate to propel her past the pain from the blows he was raining down on her body. She moved into position, still clutching his nose with her- teeth, her thumbs still pressing his eyeballs in their sockets, and then she blindly brought her knee up into where she hoped his crotch was.