The friendly conversation with my new 'friend' Pete, puts me at ease as we continue on to the Underground. I begin to relax a bit as we bump around a van awkwardly parked in the alley he leads me through. I briefly smile at his ire that someone was stupid enough to park there.
“I guess people are alike no matter where you live. Some folks don’t care if they’re in anybody’s way!” I quipped; glad to see he had a sense of humor, too. I made up my mind I was going to ask him to join me for a coffee and a slice of cake as a way to say ‘thank you’ and, hopefully, lead to a little light flirting. The possibility ran through my mind causing me to miss the sound of footsteps fast approaching from behind us.
“Say, would you like to—“I began to speak when I suddenly couldn’t force my lips to work properly.to finish my question. Instead I felt my body explode in a sensation of unimaginable pain. Something jolted through me, causing my body to lock up as if I were having a seizure. I felt gravity take over as I began to fall. I couldn’t breathe, think or move. My torso felt as if it were being crushed, as I slid uncontrollably into unconsciousness.
“Ohhhh…!” I heard a moan, slowly realizing it came from me. My head feels like a truck drove over it. It was pounding and my neck hurt. My body ached like I’d been beaten. Blinking to dispel the unexplained darkness surrounding me, it slowly dawned on me that my face was covered with a bag or something. I shook my head from side to side as if the movement would dislodge the bag or hood someone had tossed over me. I didn’t want to panic but I was fast moving toward that feeling.
What the hell was going on? Where am I? I was in darkness, my head felt like I was concussed and I couldn’t move my limbs. The questions began to bombard my mind. Get up! Get up! I silently screamed at my body, but it was no use. The burn at my shoulders and around my limbs was clear indication I was tied up or secured somehow. Being unable to see, I had to rely on other senses. My senses indicated that I was moving. The movement I felt was the unmistakable jostling of a vehicle in motion. I tried to turn over again. Even my feet and legs felt tightly bound. Someone had been quite methodical in restraining me and it was scaring the hell out of me.
I tried to recall what happened, but the memory was hazy. I was walking…there was a man…nice man. We were talking. Then a van was there--my memory blanked at that point. There had been pain—then this darkness. Had someone kidnapped me?
Oh…god! Had I been kidnapped? What did they want? I was a nobody…just a plain Jane visitor, nothing special. It had to be a mistake!
“Help me! Somebody! Help me!” I screamed as loud as I could, but my words sounded garbled and muffled. Something was covering my mouth! Now I began to panic. My legs attempted to kick. I rocked my body around banging against something hard as the vehicle drove on. I even prayed that this was some terrible prank that had gone out of hand and not some insane kidnapper or worse. I didn’t want to consider what ‘worse’ might be given my circumstances
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