CARTER

XX

LILLY

I climb up the stairs to my apartment with a podcast on sex playing in my ears.

"Partners should make each other comfortable, their energy should match. When you stand in front of them, you need to feel as if there's nothing in the universe except for you and your partner. Your bodies should feel like you're in heat and you're ready to pounce on them and-" I take the earphones out. I don't want to pounce on Josh. I keep praying this night goes right.

Instinctively I touched my cross necklace and sigh, "You're not invited to sexy time tonight."
When I reach my floor, I look up and stand straight. The boot mark on my white door was unnerving. I look around and nothing. Didn't help with the feeling that I lived on the last floor with no neighbors. Just one apartment. Mine. Just one door in the dirty white walls.

I make a run for it. I'm running down the stairs and I'm running out, dialing 911 and I'm pulled into the dark alley. I scream and there's a hand on my mouth and something on my throat. "I've got you now, sweetheart." The man chuckles and presses something cold even more. Felt like a blade. He says in my ear "Don't swallow, the sharp blade will cut through anything that moves. That's how swiftly you can die by your dumbness." I grab his wrist that covered my mouth. I bit my tongue and could taste the blood in my mouth. He says calmly "I'm gonna remove my hand now, okay? You need to be a good little girl and not scream." I don't move my head, I just whimper in agreement. My phone is gone god knows where.

He removes his hand from my mouth and presses me against the brick wall. The bricks shred my elbows and I screech in pain but he presses himself on me, keeping the shiny blade right on the artery. He wore leather gloves and smelled like mint. I try to say "Listen, I have diamond earrings in my apartment, you can have those and you can go. I won't tell anyone anything." He laughs in my face, "Funny bitch. You think I'm hungry for your stupid diamond earrings?" He chuckles with his deep voice and closes into my face "I can see why Carter was fond of you." As soon as the person says his name, my body goes stiff. He notices "Yeah, that's right. I'm looking for Carter. Where is he?" He pressed the knife even more and I hiss as I feel the burn of the slight cut "I swear I don't know! I haven't seen him."

"Yeah, but you're the last one who saw him. Where is he? One swipe and I'll leave you to bleed out here. It's no use trying to save that dickhead. Where is he?" I control my breathing before I could have a panic attack "I don't know. I swear I don't know!" I could feel the drop of blood running down the side of my neck, I could feel that he pressed the knife, even more, I'm done for.

And I don't wanna die.

He says "Do you think that if I take you right now, torture you a little," he pulls the string of my scrubs and it comes undone, but thank god I was wearing an undershirt. He looks down at my chest and smiles "slice this perfect skin and shoves rock salt under it," trailed his knife down the middle of my chest "do you think he'll come running?" He presses his temple to my temple and I close my eyes, a panic attack setting into my soul "Do you think he'll come to save you?" I shake my head, swallow the bile, and say "He won't." His head tilts, "Prey, do tell." I gag but I swallow the bile again "He left me six months ago. I haven't seen him since. He won't come." A strand of his blonde hair kissed his forehead and a scowl set on his lips "Six months?" I hardly could nod but I do.
He growls and pushes me on the ground "You're a fucking dead end." I stay there no matter how badly my palms burned with the rocks under them, I stay on the ground with my head bowed. He nudges my hips with his boot "If you tell anyone about this, I will find you, I will torture you, and then I will sell you. Got that?" My breath shivered "Yes." He rubs his leathered hand on my head and then he walks out of the alley as if nothing happened. I stay. Calm and quiet. I wait for him to move out of sight and then I throw up on the grass that was growing through the concrete.