The ceiling was low enough that I could reach the light fixture on my tiptoes. I stripped off my sweatshirt and used it tounscrew the bulb in case it was hot. The room went pitch-black as I removed it.
My heart caught in my throat when I lost grip of the bulb. It slipped from the sweatshirt, and I held my breath and listened for the dreaded sound of breaking glass but was met with only silence. The bulb must have fallen onto the mattress. I took this bit of good fortune as confirmation that I was meant to move forward with the plan.
Carefully, I groped around for the bulb, then crawled to the opposite side of the mattress and broke off its tip against the floor. I set it aside and put on my sweatshirt, along with the slippers. I laid on my back and placed the bulb on my stomach so that it could easily be located for Maxine’s arrival. The instant I heard them outside, I’d be on my feet and hiding behind the door.
Now, all I’d have to do is wait.
22
Sometime in the middle of the night, the door flew open with a crash. I bolted upright, scared wide awake.
The lights from the house were bright enough to see that my visitor, Jason instead of the anticipated Maxine, held a syringe of murky yellow liquid. The pale moon highlighted it in the most gruesome way. He held the syringe away from his body cautiously, as if terrified of being pricked with poisonous liquid.
He’d come to kill me.
I screamed.
Jason mumbled confusedly when he fiddled with the light switch and the room remained dark. I frantically pawed around for the light bulb, feeling its cool glass against my fingertips as I closed my palm around the metal end. Hyped up on terror and rage, I got ready.
Grunting, Jason lurched forward, a personification of the worst nightmare I could ever imagine. He sounded winded, like he’d sprinted to the shed in a panic. He fumbled around for my limbs, disoriented by the darkness. Unlike him, my eyes had already adjusted.
“I’m sorry, I don’t want to do this, but I have to,” he said, his voice eerily calm despite his heavy breathing.
“You don’t have to do anything!” I shrieked, scrambling away from his grasp. I yelped as he seized my ankle.
“They’ll kill me and my family. I’ve got a wife and kids. I can’t let you go. I can’t.”
I kicked out at him with all my might, careful not to knock the needle. I hit his nose squarely and it crunched sickeningly under my foot. All those hours I’d spent doing old-school kickboxing videos had paid off—thank you, Billy Blanks.
Jason cried out but did not release me. “Now, stop it, girlie! It will hurt a lot less if you don’t struggle,” he said, jabbing the syringe at me.
“No! Please! I’m pregnant!”
“I’m so sorry. I’m so sorry,” he kept chanting, as if it would make a difference to me when I was dead.Yes, though he did murder me, he was awfully sorry about it.
“And I’m sorry about this!” I roared.
Shrieking like a Viking warrior princess, I thrust the light bulb at Jason’s neck. Unlike Jason, I had fear and adrenaline on my side, giving me almost supernatural strength. For a hideous moment, I thought nothing would happen as the bulb met his elastic flesh, but it shattered once it hit the underside of his jawbone. It was the greatest sound I’d ever heard in my entire life, that shattering.
Groaning, Jason staggered away from the mattress, arms flapping wildly. He was probably more shocked than anything, but he dropped the syringe all the same. I could hear shards of glass pinging down onto the floor as he groped at his throat. His injury certainly wasn’t lethal, but it must have stung a little. Or a lot.
Good.
Gaze fixed on the giant moon outside, I made a run for it.Chest burning, I sob-inhaled gulps of fresh air as I neared the door. My ears rang with horror, but my hysterical shrieks frightened me most. I sounded like a wounded animal running for its life.
I tripped as one of my slippers flew from my foot. I almost managed to right myself, but Jason’s giant meat hook flew up from the darkness and seized my calf. He yanked hard, and I lost my balance.
Instinctively, I threw my hands out in front of me as I fell to the floor. White-hot bolts of lightning shot up my left arm from where I’d landed on my wrist. I also tasted blood, having bitten down on my tongue.
Jason pulled me toward him. He had the syringe clamped in his teeth. His breath was coming out in agitated snorts as he straddled me. I clawed out at him, and he slammed my skull down on the floor.
“Stop fighting, damn it!”
I screamed and screamed. “Please,” I begged. “I won’t tell anyone who you are! I swear! I won’t tell?—”
Bang!
Jason’s mouth fell open. The syringe tumbled from his teeth and bounced down on my face. Fortunately, it was capped, or else it would have stuck into my forehead like a unicorn horn.
