Superstalker: A Lady G Thriller

Chapter 4 - Trappings

Marla Henks would probably lose her right hand, the way she'd been twisting it around and around in these handcuffs for what seemed like hours now. Both hands were cuffed behind her, wrists raw, arms wrapped backwards around some stanchion pressed against her spine. Her naked spine – her trapped body was stripped bare. Her legs kept cramping no matter how much she tried to move them, or squat up and down. And the way she was gagged, she couldn't do too many squats without running out of breath.  

But even with the pain, stabs of it that were making her cry and almost vomit, she had to keep working that hand – work it loose and get herself out of this hellhole. The sick prick who'd gotten her stoned and brought her here – slipping it to her and then afterward punching her, not because she didn't perform, but because she screamed when he brought out that freaky collection of tongues, hookers' tongues from all five boroughs and Long Island, he said – could be back any time now.  

Why hadn't she listened to Szu? Smartass little Szu who always knew best. Well, this time she did know. Like, who lets themselves get led by some asshole she had no clue about down into some friggin' cave? Some subway line nobody ever heard of that seemed cool when the guy described it, after those drinks and the ludes he kept feeding her. Made it sound like some Never-Never Land he discovered and was beating the high rents with. 

There had to have been more in those caps than just ludes.  

The place had actually looked cool at first (her being zoned), this bunker with its mysto red lighting he'd made into some kind of porn pit. Big flat screen and computer that he must have tapped into some power line to run. She looked over at the video camera on the tripod there, didn't want to think about what kind of hideous shit he must have shot with it.  

Stuff she'd be performing herself if she didn't get out of these cuffs.     

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When Szu dropped that bomb about Tanya, her being pregnant, I forgot about having another breakfast pizza. Paid the check and waved thanks to Wilma, squeezed my way with Szu around the tables, out of Khave's onto Ninth Avenue. Rush-hour traffic was doing its waltz to downtown, us turning and walking in the same direction back toward the house. 

"When did you find this out?" I asked her. 

"Find what out?" 

"What do you think?" Jesus she could be frustrating. "About Tanya being pregnant." 

"Couple weeks ago, just before she died." 

"She say anything about an abortion?" 

"No. All she said was, she wanted to have the baby." 

"She wanted to have it? Why would she... I mean..." 

"I think she liked the guy." 

"What guy? There was a guy?" 

"Of course there was a guy. " 

"I mean a guy in particular." 

Much as I liked our arrangement with the key, communication with Szu could be flaky.           

She said, "There was one she'd been seeing for a couple months." 

"You mean like a boyfriend?" 

"Something like that." 

"Who was he?" 

"She never said his name. But he had her set up in an apartment where they'd meet pretty often. I mean, she hardly stayed at the house anymore. He didn't want her going with other guys."