Temptation [A Young Writer's Prize Submission]

The Attack

CHAPTER SEVEN

If in the field the man finds the girl who is engaged, and the man forces her and lies with her, only the man who lies with her shall die.

Deuteronomy 22:25

 “What do you say, Esser?” Denny taunted; “You up to a little game?” He nodded his head toward the poker table, leaving me with no doubt as to what they intended to do.

“Sure,” Cain smirked, but he didn’t move a muscle. He was locked in a staring game, both waiting for the other to break eye contact first.

“Cain,” I murmured, “we have to go.”

I’d meant to be quiet, so I didn’t embarrass him, but Denny heard me anyway. Cain forgotten, Denny fixed his gaze on me. I felt shivery as his watery green eyes stared me up and down. His jaw ticked indecisively, as though he wasn’t sure whether to flick me away or simply punch me. I felt Cain bristle at my side. He was tough enough to take a beating – but he wouldn’t let Denny take a swing at me. Denny smiled threateningly, and I worried that he would do it anyway, as provocation.

“What’s she? A decoy?” Denny sneered loudly, for the benefit of the whole bar. “You don’t want to lose again so you drag her along?”

Cain stood, eyes blazing with anger. He could have been angry with me or Denny, I couldn’t be sure.

“Of course not,” Cain shot back. He leaned down to me and muttered: “Go outside. I’ll meet you at the car.”

I glanced across at Denny, still leering down at me. My uncertainty at leaving Cain alone with such a threatening person must have shown in my eyes.

Cain gripped my arm: “This won’t take long, I promise.”

Denny’s frown became a scowl and I narrowly avoided flinching in fear. I simply nodded at Cain, ducking through the crowd of me suddenly abandoning the bar in their desperation to see this game.

As I left and breathed air that suddenly seemed much fresher, a flush of disgust gripped me.

Was this how Cain got his rush? Not sex, but gambling. The pursuit, the victory, or loss – however the cards were dealt. Why was this so appealing to him? What could he possibly gain?

I noticed the Lamborghini at the other end of the street – there I had my answer. But no matter how flashy or impressive the wins, it didn’t excuse anything. He could lose so much; not just money, but everything else too.

His dad would probably disown him if he found out about this… Cain would lose his reputation and even, if he was particularly unlucky, his life.

As a strong hand gripped my arm, pulling me backwards and another clapped hard over my mouth before I even had time to scream, I realised one thing. It wasn’t Cain’s life that could be lost, but mine.

The stranger dragged me across the pavement; his strength prevailed over my struggles. With nobody here and Cain nowhere in sight, I was completely helpless.

The street hadn’t been brightly lit, but that was nothing to the darkness that suddenly enveloped me, striking home my fear. He wrestled me down an alley, knocking me into several of the dustbins in his sadistic eagerness.

My assailant didn’t dare take his hand from my lips in case I cried for help. He forced me back up against the side of the alley, until I felt hard bricks pressing against my shoulder blades.

Then he punched me: once, twice. Swift blows to my cheekbone that stunned me. The pain only began to register once my head had ricocheted twice against the wall behind me.

He punched me again, this time targeting my stomach. I keeled forward, unable to breathe for a few crucial seconds.

My attacker was quick to take advantage. He grasped my shoulders; digging his nails past flesh and knocking me to my knees. Debris and water dirtied my jeans, but that barely mattered as he tried to rip them off me. 

After several unsuccessful attempts, he finally produced a knife, delivering a swift swipe across my burning cheek. Then he attacked my waistband again. The knife gave him claws like a cat, while I struggled; a feeble mouse.

“Where’s your boyfriend now, bitch?” he sounded exhilarated, dealing a quick kick to my ribs. I cried out, but my scream was cut short as she shoved a cloth inside my mouth. It tasted like vomit, but despite my gagging, it would not come away.

“He’s not here to protect you, is he?” he was almost laughing in his excitement. He was ecstatic to have caught me like this.

“But don’t worry bitch,” he continued, breathing more heavily now, “when he hears about this, and comes to get me, I’ll be waiting for him.”

Again, I tried to scream as he grabbed my knee with one hand. He wrenched it away from the ground, using it to roll me, so I was forced to lie on my back. I felt my arms, back and knees shredding against the harsh concrete ground.

A sliver of moonlight fell into the alley, so I could see the night sky; only for a moment, because it was soon blocked by his hideous face.

I intensified my efforts; clawing at his face in my desperation to get away; driven on by the fear of knowing exactly what he could, and intended to do to me.

He laughed at my fruitless attempts, and the sound echoed through the night; occupying my senses. Everything was him; everything was danger; all was pain. Will stood over me, stomping down on my defiant hands with his heavy boots. I felt my fingers burn and, fuelled by the pain, my cries struggled to escape. The gag he’d lodged between my jaws absorbed my pleas for mercy.

Will repeated the action with my ankles as I tried to kick out at him. He chuckled drunkenly as my face contorted with pain.

Leaning down, he forced my legs apart. The evening was silenced; the sound of a zip being pulled down dominated the air. My heart constricted with fear.

“Take. My. Fucking. Car,” Will emphasised each word precisely; each one made me whimper in fear. “I’ll take… his fucking girlfriend.”

Without any fear, Will ran his hands roughly up the insides of my thighs, using the tip of the knife to rip apart my jeans at the crotch. I worried he would do further damage there, just to spite me, but he instead angled the steel blade over my face, warning me of what he would do if I protested. I felt my underwear being torn away. The cold night air settled down onto my bare skin; the most comforting embrace I’d have tonight.

Will’s hand ran down my thighs again until he found my kneecaps. For a moment, I feared he would break them, but he forced them down till they almost touched the ground. 

No, he was going to break the only thing that counted.

I closed my eyes, praying for it to be over. I braced myself, waiting for the invasion that would damage me forever.

Will’s heavy, excited breathing suddenly croaked into nothing. Not allowing myself to hope, I simply winced, wary that it might become worse.

“Unless you want to be beaten worse than her,” a voice spoke over me. I opened my eyes, trying to peer through the gloom to see who else was there.

“You will get as far away from this girl as you physically can,” the voice continued; “Do you understand me?”