Chapter 9 #2
“Cameras. Every inch of Devil Tower is swarming with cameras, except for the cell. There isn’t even cell reception down there. That’ll be our shot. We can fuck her before they get their hands on her.”
I bite down on a whimper, feeling the tape at last give way. Thank God.
But now what? My ankles are still tied, and anyway, I’m in a locked, fast-moving car.
But the two men are so focused on their conversation, I wonder if I can manage to at least untie my ankles without having them notice.
I edge toward one side, pressing my face against the glass of the window, as if I’m going back to sleep. This also means that if I slump forward, Tony, who’s sitting in front of me, won’t see, and Phil will hopefully be so focused both on talking and on driving, that he won’t think to look.
At the very first bump in the road, pretending to be asleep, I fall against my knees. For a moment I don’t move, feeling Phil glance back at me before turning his eyes once more to the road.
Then I quickly reach around to my ankles, and rip at the tape, biting down on a cry as I feel like I’m also ripping my skin to shreds.
But somehow, I manage to undo the tape tying my ankles together too. At that point, I’m wondering if there isn’t some sort of guardian angel watching over me, because everything starts to go my way.
“Gotta pee,” grunts Tony, while I quickly take my previous position again, my wrists behind my back.
“Fine, but be quick about it. We’re running late. We told the boss we’d be at the airport by seven. And you know that plane is going to be leaving right on time.”
I’m laser-focused as the car pulls to a stop in front of a gas station. Phil unlocks the doors, but not mine. Still, with Tony heading into the station, I have maybe one minute where I’m only facing one man, instead of two.
But what the hell can a skinny girl who’s never done an ounce of exercise in her life do against even one armed guy?
Unless guy number two has left his weapons in the car.
And that’s just what he’s done. On the front seat, lying in full sight, are a gun and a knife.
My heart beats wildly as I stare at them.
Okay, Piper. Think. You’re going to grab that gun, kill Phil, push that button over there to unlock the doors, and then you’re going to RUN.
But I don’t even know how to shoot. There’s a safety mechanism, isn’t there? And what if there are no bullets?
The knife feels like a better bet. But that means I’m going to have to stick it through his skin. Ew.
Just think of what they’ll do to you if you don’t escape! It’ll be worse than death. Fucking do it, Piper. Don’t freeze. Do it!
I don’t know how I manage to overcome my freeze response. My rape at Quill’s friends’ hands is at the forefront of my mind, overwhelming every single one of my senses, as I grab the knife and lunge at Phil before he’s had time to realize what’s happening.
Taking advantage of his surprise, I push the knife into one side of his neck then bring it toward the other, slitting it.
I feel initial resistance as my knife must cut through muscle and veins, but how much force does it take to kill a man? Is this enough? Do I need to go further in?
I push the knife in as hard as I can, because I’m not taking any risk. But clearly, I didn’t need to use so much force, because now his head is half hanging off. Between the pain and the surprise, he doesn’t even make a noise, or try to fend me off.
Who’s got a freeze response now, fucker?
Not me, that’s for sure, as I push the button to unlock the doors, tumbling out, then run away, all while ripping off my gag.
That’s when my luck gives out, because I hear someone yell behind me, “Hey! Stop, bitch!”
Then feet run after me, and even as I’m heading wildly down the road, screaming at the top of my lungs in hopes that one of the rare cars driving by will hear me, I feel a heavy weight against my legs.
A body topples on top of me, and I’m pinned to the ground just as a car comes to a screeching halt on the other side of the road.
A man jumps out uncertainly as Tony crushes my body under his.
“Help me!” I shout. “He’s going to kill me! HELP!”
Then I feel Tony shift over me as he grabs a gun from his back pocket. I guess that knife was the best bet after all. He must have left the other gun in the car because it was empty. But even his knife couldn’t save me.
He aims the gun at the guy and yells, “Fuck off or you’re dead!”
Gulping nervously, my one chance at being saved hurries back into the car and drives away, as I scream after it, “Tell Quill Nelson! Find Quill Nelson and tell him! I’m Piper Day, and they’re going to rape and kill me at Devil Tower!
The plane leaves at seven! Quill Nelson is the only one who can save me! ”
Tony grabs my hair and yanks me back as the car drives away. I stare at it disappear, knowing it’s no use. Even if he did hear me over the sound of the engine, how the hell could he find Quill? And even if he did, what could Quill do about it?
There’s no part of me that can believe, any longer, that Quill Nelson is my silent protector.
That hope is dead.
I know now Quill Nelson is nothing but a cruel, heartless boy.
I lost.
It’s over.