It only felt like a minute had passed before the alarm disturbed her sleep.
It took Herculean effort to get ready and go to work.By noon, she was tired of people asking what was wrong and telling her to go home whenever she said she didn’t feel well.She spoke to her boss and decided to spend the rest of the day in the library drafting briefs.
She tried to eat some crackers she’d found in her desk and was glad she kept them down.Her stomach had been rolling all day, and the condition worsened with every cup of coffee she drank, but it was the only thing keeping her up.
“I don’t want to see you here until you’re feeling better.”
Myla’s head snapped up to stare at her boss, John, standing next to the conference table.
“But I’m fine.”
He stuck his hands in his pockets and stared at her.“No, you’re not.I don’t know what’s going on with you, but if you’re sick, I certainly don’t want it, and if it’s personal, I don’t want you working on briefs because you’re liable to miss something.”
She set down the file.“I’m being careful.”
“No.Go home.If I see you back here before you’re better, I’ll fire you.”
She glanced up at John, and a smile tugged at her mouth at the grin on his face before he got serious again.
“No, really, I’m serious about you staying home.Not much is going on here right now, so you won’t miss anything.”
She nodded tiredly, pulled her purse out of her desk drawer, and stood.
“I’ll get better.”
“Good, because I don’t want to lose you.Now go.”
She waved to a few people on her way out of the building.She climbed into her car and sat for several minutes, her head leaning against the headrest, her eyes closed.She finally got up the energy to start the car and carefully drove home.
She sighed in frustration when she went to pull into her parking spot, and a maintenance truck blocked it.She drove around the block a few times until she found a parking spot on the other side of the road, behind another apartment building.
Myla grabbed her purse, keys, and pepper spray and walked around the building.Her focus was to get into her apartment and lie down.She was hoping sleep would help make her feel a little better.
As she passed the two large garbage containers, two arms surrounded her.One hand pressed over her mouth, and the other around her waist.She was in shock when the guy started pulling her deeper into the shadows.She was paralyzed with fear for a brief moment, and then she started fighting with every bit of energy she had.
“Fucking bitch.You got me sent to prison.”
He hit her on the side of the head when she struggled.
“No, please,” she begged.
“Fuck that.I’m going to do to you what happened to me.And I’m going to do it until you bleed and then slit your fucking throat.”
Her struggles intensified, only pausing when he would hit her.He spun her around and pushed her up against the brick building.The brick scraped against her face as she continued to fight.
When he started to pull off her clothes, her eye caught on the pepper spray she clutched in her hand.She pressed the button, aimed behind her, and sprayed.Right away, she heard the attacker scream and release her.She turned and hit him again with the aerosol as he tried to stand.
“Fucking bitch, I’m going to cut you up!”the man shouted as he choked and spat.
He tried to take a step toward her as he wiped his eyes.
She pushed at him and went to run, but her legs were tangled in her pants that he had gotten around her knees.She fell flat on the ground and crawled a few feet away from the raging man.She stood and yanked at her pants, getting them high enough to run.She resprayed him as he came toward her, dodged his fist that he was swinging, trying to catch her.She fell a few times but got up and raced to her building.She tried to scream several times, but she couldn’t get enough air in her lungs to do more than run.
“Jesus Christ, lady, what the hell?”
She had been looking behind her and ran right into the maintenance guy, almost knocking him over.
She pointed across the street.“He ...he attacked me.”
