The Lake

He grinned. “Smart kid, ain’t ya? Oh, I bummed around ’Frisco, working bars—pumpin’ iron. Knew all the gyms in the Bay Area. Boxed a little; this ’n’ that. Then Mom got sick. She was an old lady by then. I went back to Wahconda, but she was dead already. Only inheritance she left was the cabin I was born in—and that letter…”

Deana almost felt sorry for him. He sure was a mixed-up guy. Yeah. Sick. Dangerous. But sad, too.

Suddenly, he was on his feet, staring out the window again. His hands went up to his hips, his jacket lifted, and she caught the bulge of his hip holster.

“Mace?” she ventured quietly. “Why don’t you let me go home? Keeping me here isn’t gonna do you any good. People’ll be looking for me. They find me and—”

“Find you? What makes you think anybody’s gonna find ya, sweetheart?”

“Well, they’ll search for me. Probably trace me to here.”

“No way. Nobody saw you go. Nobody’ll find you here. Reason I use this place is because nobody ever comes up here. ’Cept me.”

Then he was standing over her. His legs apart. Grinning. Stroking her hair. Smoothing the dark strands resting on her shoulders. Over and over again.

She winced.

Too scared to move.

Her eyes leveled with his crotch.

Saw him jerk inside his pants.

God, no. He’s gonna rape me. Please God. NO!

He grabbed her head, pressed it to him. His hard-on rose some more. She felt it throb against her face.

Breaking away, she squirmed back across the mattress, edging off it, landing on her knees.

She scrambled to her feet.

“Just let me go, Mace. Before we both do something we’ll regret.” Her eyes wandered to the chair. One quick smash and it’d be in pieces.

I could use one of the legs to hit him with.

Kill him, if I have to.

Oh yeah? You an’ whose army?

His eyes mocked her. “Don’t do anything stupid, Deana. Remember, I could break ya pretty li’l neck, just like that.”

He swiped the air with a swift karate chop.

She blinked. Picturing his hand coming down, whistling toward her.

Watch it, Deana.

Maybe I’ll get him while he’s asleep…

If he falls asleep…

She shivered, suddenly getting the feeling he was reading her mind.

Instead, he looked confused, bewildered. Shaking his head. Heaving a sorrowful sigh.

“I’m gonna have to put y’away, Deana. Y’know that?”

“Put me away? Whaddya mean, put me away?”

“Put you someplace where you’ll come to no harm. Where you’ll be safe. Come to Uncle Mace, li’l girl.”

He beckoned, smiling. Like he was offering candy to a baby.

She glared back. Not moving.

“C’mon, sugar. Uncle Mace might turn nasty if Deana doesn’t come when she’s called.” His voice had a singsong lilt to it.

“So, whaddya gonna do, Mace?”

“Something I shoulda done right from the start.” He picked up the twine from where it had fallen earlier. She watched him advance, slowly, winding it around his hands.

She backed away, stumbling against the cabin wall, her arms shooting out, spread-eagled against the wood slats.

“C’mon now, Deana. There’s a good girl.”

Fascinated, she watched him twist the twine around his fingers. Her hand rose to her neck.

“No, Mace. Please don’t,” she panted. “DON’T DO IT, MACE!”

She lost it…somehow got caught up in a swirling black cloud.

Screams rang out, shattering the deathly quiet…

Vaguely, she wondered who it was, crying out like that.

The screams died.

Then she heard sobs…tiny, whimpering sounds.

FIFTY-SEVEN

“Just calm down now, honey. Uncle Mace ain’t gonna hurt ya. Yet.” He stood over her, busying himself with the twine. Wrapping it neatly, tightly, around her legs. The way he went about it, she could tell he’d done it before.

Probably many times.

She struggled, trying to kick out at him, but all she did was make futile little scuffles with her feet.

Goddamn shit’s hobbled me—like a horse!

Tears of frustration streamed down her cheeks.

Mace’s mouth curved in a bright smile.

“Now, now, darlin’. No struggling. A gal could get hurt that way.”

He slapped her face. Her head jerked up, sideways, then flopped. Her hair swung around her shoulders. Giving a little cry, she gasped, ready to give him a mouthful.

Thinking better of it, she clamped her lips tight.

No use goading him. I could wind up dead.

Gonna wind up dead anyhow.

“Hey, sugar,” he whispered. “Didn’t y’care for that?”

No reply.

Catching the defiance in her eyes, he whacked her again. With the back of his hand.

Seems like Uncle Mace is having himself a rare old time.

Stay with it, Deana

He wants you to crack. Break up. Plead for mercy. Okay. Like he’ll wait forever. No way is the shit gonna see I’m scared…