“’Night dear, sleep tight,” Gladys replied.
I turned on a small wave and headed back and as the night enveloped me quickly in its bizarre, dense darkness, the thoughts I’d kept at bay all day flooded my head. Thoughts about how, this time, I’d been the one who made the good part of a new relationship go bad. How, this time, I’d been the one who had a good thing and didn’t take care of it. How, this time, I thought I was guarding against something bad when someone should have guarded Max against me.
With some effort (and not entirely successfully), I shoved these thoughts aside as I carefully made way through the darkness, found my cabin by what could only be considered a small miracle and then another miracle occurred when I found the lock in which to insert the key.
When I opened the door I was making a mental note to turn on the porch light next time if Norm and Gladys invited me over again when I was suddenly shoved through it. I emitted a small, surprised cry but had no time for any other reaction when I was jerked away from the door, slammed against the wall, my head cracking painfully against it then I had a strong, man’s forearm tight against my throat.
“Ain’t no Maxwell here to have your back, is there?” Damon snarled in my face, I couldn’t see him, not really, but I knew it was him.
I made no retort because I couldn’t. I was choking.
This went on for awhile as I scratched at his arm and kicked out as his legs, the whole time desperately fighting for breath. But he was stronger than me and the only time I connected with his shin, he pushed his arm deeper into my throat and the pain was excruciating.
“Been waitin’ awhile, English, to get mine back,” he whispered then stepped back and released me.
My hands went to my throat as I started to bend double, my lungs on fire. I was drawing in a deep breath but he wasn’t done.
As I bent, his hand came up and he clocked me backhanded on my cheekbone exactly where he’d connected before. This time, still breathless and nowhere near recovered from his choking me, I fell to my hands and knees.
I barely landed when he kicked me in the ribs and my body jerked with the blow as the pain, such pain I’d never experienced, not even at the hands of Brent, knifed through my middle like a wide, hot blade.
Focused on the pain, I didn’t have it in me to evade or even struggle when his hands went under my armpits to pull me up to my feet. As I was favoring my ribs, my arm wrapped protectively around them still trying to catch my breath, I couldn’t even lift a hand to defend myself as his fist connected with my nose and I felt the pain followed by an instant flooding of fluid in my nose. He righted me for a better target and then his fist came back for the second round. The pain blew out in an array from my eye and I went back down to my knees and one hand, the other one still cradling my ribs, blinking away stars and sucking in breath.
Damon leaned over me. “Teach you, English. Yeah?”
Then, as quick as he came on me, the door closed and he was gone.
I pulled in breath, the ache in my ribs stabbing as I did it, but even so, I drew in another then another. Then I crawled to the door, locked it and then, using the handle, I pulled myself up to my feet.
I stumbled to the bathroom and turned on the light, seeing the blood running from my nose, down my mouth, off my chin onto my sweater. I grabbed a towel, pressed it to my nose, peered into the mirror and saw the swelling around my eye and cheekbone had already started.
Tears slid up my ravaged throat but I swallowed them down and tasted blood.
Sweetheart, put ice on your eye, now, sit still, get your head together then go to Max, Charlie said into my head.
I did what he said, though not all of it. I got ice and I lay on the bed holding the pack on my eye and cheek with one hand, the towel to my nose with the other and I knew if I fell asleep without taking the ice to the sink there was no one to take it gently out of my hand. Instead, tomorrow, I’d wake up with a puddle in the bed.
But I fell asleep all the same. This was because, while I was lying there, I cried horrendous, body-wracking sobs that really, really hurt my ribs.
And crying always exhausted me.
*
My body jolted awake when the pounding came at the door and I blinked into the darkness as fear shafted through my system.
He was back.
God, what was I thinking? I should have left. Driven to Denver. Gone anywhere. Why did I stay where he knew I was?
My mind blanked of thought and I jerked agonizingly upright in bed as I heard the door open.
Oh my God.
I was now really in a horror movie with a crazed, mountain man gone bad stalker after me, in a cabin in the woods all alone. Everyone knew you steered clear of cabins in woods! They even had some crazy psycho serial killer who owned cabins in woods and tortured couples in one on an episode of Criminal Minds.