Aliss finds her strength

She struggled through the fog inside her head, as she swam her way up from unconsciousness she slammed into a wall of pain. Her headache was blinding hot and her vision was blurred as she saw through clouds and sparkling lights. Every limb felt light a dead weight and she just couldn't muster the strength to move, her eyelids alone took a monumental effort to open. The dizziness and nausea were overwhelming her but she didn't have the strength to gag.

She felt she was laying on a soft surface both underneath her and behind her. She realized she was probably on a couch. She thought about fighting more to gain more consciousness but couldn't quite get there. Soon enough the sweet comfort of oblivion took her again.

Across the room he was preparing for his evening with his lover. His music was playing in the background and he was putting out his special tools. He didn't notice that Aliss was waking behind him.

Aliss forced herself to wake once more. She opened her eyes and allowed herself the few moments it took to clear her vision. She felt like she hadn't slept in years and spent a week at the gym, every muscle aching. She had to fight to wake up enough and she was determined to succeed.

She heard sounds, what was that? It was music and it was a familiar song. She strained her hearing to try figure out his location because she couldn't quite see him. There was shuffling beyond the half wall in front of her, so he must be there. She struggled as quietly as she could and soon enough found herself half sitting, she swung her legs to the floor, surprised to notice he hadn't bound them again.

She took a look at her surroundings. It was a small simple wood room. There was a half wall in front of her that opened on the left side. She leaned to her left and could just see the edge of the door. There was garbage all around her that somehow looked purposefully placed. None of the garbage had food waste, so there wasn't any rotten food scent.

She struggled with her binds on her wrists trying to see if there was enough space to pull them apart. With great effort she felt a slight slip upwards on her right hand. She made a narrow cone shape of her palm to try to make it so she could slip the band further down. It felt like burning while she strained to pull her one hand out of the zap strap. Slowly it slipped down until she was able to pop one hand out of the bindings.

That was when she heard him walking in the other room. She quickly lay back down keeping her hands behind her back, feigning sleep.

When he entered the room, he looked at her and said, "Oh Sandy, I promise I will help you. You rest now, I will be back soon." He looked at her with pure love in his eyes. He knew she was special. With that he exited the room and went out the front door. He was careful to lock it behind him.

Aliss sat bolt upright. What a mistake that was, she was swimming in dizziness and had to take a moment. As soon as she could she stood up and checked around her. There were no windows or doors in this room, and other than the garbage only a couch and a small table.

She walked towards the open end of the room and headed for the door. She grabbed the handle and shook the door. It was locked tight. She cried out in frustration, then worried that he was outside and would hear her, so she quickly clamped her own had on her mouth.

She turned and looked around the room where she saw a make-shift kitchen under a boarded-up window. In the corner was a small table and chair. On that chair was a backpack. She walked over to the backpack and rummaged through the pockets. Every few seconds she would look back at the door, terrified that he would return at any second. When she unzipped the top she found inside a change of clothes, a tub of Lysol wipes and at the bottom a metal bin. She ignored these things and tried the inside pocket. She was shocked to find a cell phone.

Her hands shaking she tried to use it, but it was locked. She tried swiping several common figures at the screen and one worked! It was unlocked!

God knows why she didn't dial 911, but her only thought was to call Mark. He and her son were always first on her mind. When the phone rang, she heard Mark answer.

She cupped the phone inside her hands and whispered, "Mark?"

It was then that she heard the key in the door. She turned with the phone in hand and ran back to the couch, her heart pounding in her throat. She had never felt terror like this before in her life. She stuffed the phone under the cushion and lay down again with her hands behind her back.

At that exact moment the door opened and he walked in. He had his hands full with tarps, duct tape, garbage bags and other items inside a bag.

Her heart was pounding so hard she thought he must be able to hear it. Her breathing was faster than someone asleep, thank God he was busy and didn't give her more than a cursory look. He continued on his way into the kitchen area with his package.

As soon as he was tucked around the corner Aliss stood up and bolted for the open door. As fast as she could, she ran, she felt the fresh air of the outside as she ran towards the trees, all she knew was to go as fast as she could, faster than ever before. Her legs were pounding on the ground while branches struck at her face. What she didn't know was he was hot on her heels.

"Sandra, what do you think you are doing! Get back here!" He shouted at her while chasing her through the trees.

She didn't get far before he caught up to her and yanked her back by her hair. Slam! She went down on the ground! The wind was knocked out of her and she rolled onto her side trying desperately to gain her breath.

His hard kick to her ribs made things worse. She couldn't breathe and lay writhing on the ground. She finally took a large gasp of breath. This helped to clear her mind a little.

He was strong as he picked her up, threw her over his shoulder, and carried her back towards the cabin. She tried to break free, kicking him in the thighs, but his iron grip wouldn't loosen.

"Sandra, stop or I will have to hit you over the head again. You wouldn't want that, would you?" he said to her eerily calmly. She slowed her kicking, not wanting another physical assault.

His strong stride was marching towards the cabin. Aliss slightly calmed herself because she needed to stay conscious. She had to keep her wits about her so she could figure out a way out of this. She took notice of where she was, the car parked to the right and the cabin. There were no signs of any other cabins or homes in her eyesight.

"What do you want with me? And why do you call me Sandra?" She asked him.

He ignored her questions and in moments he was inside the cabin where he dropped her on the floor. He turned and reached up towards the top of the door. There was a hasp and padlock that he closed tightly. Then he turned and reached down, grabbed her shirt collar, and dragged her to the couch. He pulled her up and put her on the couch, where she sat.

"Sandra, stop pretending! You know why you are here!" He yelled at her spewing spittle into her face, his hand pointing at her. In a matter of seconds, he calmed himself, smoothed down his hair and put a creepy crooked smile on his face.

"I am here to help you. It might hurt a bit, but you will see, its for the best."

Liquid fear ran down her sternum she was shaking and struggling to understand everything that was happening. Aliss knew that fear was her enemy as much as this man in front of her was.

She also knew that anger helped her focus. So, she channeled all of that fear into anger, controlled anger. That helped her clear her mind, and she finally got a good look him. She was marking everything down in her mind. She knew every detail was important.

He looked very average. Nothing special about this man to make him stand out in a crowd. He was wearing a dirty sweat shirt and pants. His mousy sweat filled brown hair was hanging partially in his eyes and they were as mousy brown as his hair.

But what she saw inside those eyes brought terror to her. She lost her focus when she saw his face twisted into a menacing grimace. It was that look that horrified her. She scrambled as far back into the couch as she could and she dragged in a breath to let out a scream. Just as she did, she felt a strong punch to the side of her head. Down she went one more time.