As Darkness Fell Excerpt

Chapter One

"Scene ten, take five." Billy shouted before moving out of view of the camera.

I was sitting on the set's floor begging my Lord not to punish me for my treachery. The producer, of an independent film company, had bought the rights to make one of my books into a movie. (Somehow I was conned into being in it.)

I was exhausted by time we got to scene six. I was determined to get this right the first time. Working part time (now) for Enigma Labs, writing, and now acting was wearing me down.

I began working at Enigma a few years ago. I was the chemist. (My degree said so.) We researched new viruses and made vaccines and hopefully a cure. I also made sure to keep notes and inventory lists.

A few months ago a new virus came into our lab. Even now we don't know much about it except that it is highly contagious and deadly. We also know it thrives on radiation. It might take years to figure it all out. (If ever.)

Now with this acting thing my days are much longer and leaves me very little time for writing. If I'm not on set then I am working on the best way to approach the virus and faxing my notes every morning to the lab. (Doing all this on maybe four hours of sleep isn't healthy.)

I was dressed in a simple white gown with long sleeves. The neck line was dipped like a v and there were splits up each side nearly half way up my thighs. (It was way to revealing for me.)

The story line was: I was a lady of the court. She didn't like how he treated his people and didn't want to marry his son so she ran away. She was captured and turned into a servant. Now she was being punished for trying to escape once again.

"Please have mercy on me, my Lord." I begged. (I hope I sounded convincing.)

"I have mercy for no one. You must be punished for what you have done. No one betrays me and gets away with it." Lord Aric said. "Sandor, tie her and give her a taste of the whip."

"No, please." I said as I was tied between two poles.

Although I knew I wouldn't really be hit I was still nervous. It was more than that. I was scared to death.

When he hit me the whip sent pain as hot flames through my body. Once the shock wore off I said, "What the hell?" I moved around to help ease the pain, but it didn't work.

"Sorry." was all Sandor said behind his mask. There was something in his voice that was different. I couldn't pin point it, but it didn't sound like Matt. I was hit again. I bit down on my lip as not to scream. The pain knocked the breath out of me.

I'm not getting paid enough to go through this. I thought. Thoughts of ripping his mask off and slapping his went through my head.

When I was released I fell to the floor. I looked up at Sandor giving him the evil eye. I sat there for a few moments before trying to stand. I waited for the waves of pain to pass. I finally got to my feet.

I started toward Sandor when my cell phone rang. "Who didn't turn off their cell phone?" Dave asked. "You know not to have it on during shooting."

"It's mine." I confessed.

"Why don't that surprise me?" he sighed. "Answer it and make it quick. Make sure you turn it off when you're done. I would like to get a few more scenes in before

"Hey Starla." I said knowing who it was.

"Are you coming with us? Pfreak Show is playing tonight. Beth and I will be there." she asked.

"I totally forgot. I can't. I have scenes to finish, but if I have a chance later I will be there."

"Hurry it up!" Dave shouted.

"I better go before Dave has a conniption." I said quickly.

"Hope to see you tonight. Oh yeah, Brent wants those reports of yours."

"Let him know he will have them tomorrow morning before I come to the studio." I said.

"I will let him know. Talk to you later."

After hanging up with her I called Beth. "How's it going?" I asked when she answered. "Find out anything new about our newcomer?"

"Found out it thrives on radiation and there's now cure."

"I know that much." I said.

"Don't be such a smartass." she commented.

"I apologize. I guess these long hours are getting to me."

"Brent has been asking about those reports. You know how he is."

"I told Starla I will have them on his desk tomorrow morning. I know very well how he is."

"I did found out that the make chemical make up is very strange. It's nothing like we've seen before. You have to see it for yourself."

"I will check it when I come by. If you would print me a chemical make up sheet so I can study it and see if I can find anything."

"I will have for you. I will put it at your station in a folder."

"Thanks. Well I better go. Hopefully I will see you guys tonight."

I dragged myself back to the medieval looking set. It looked like the interior of an old castle from the décor down to the grey bricks. I was very impressed.

I took my place by Aric's throne. "Now people, it's getting late and I want to get this scene done so we can all go home. Tanya, let's take it from where you were tied between the poles." Dave said pointing.

"Oh." I groaned feeling the welts beginning to sting again.

"Now Matt, don't hit her this time. The sound effects will be added later in the editing room." He just nodded his head.

As I stood with my arms spread I looked back at him. "Don't you ever talk?" I asked knowing his speaking parts wouldn't come up for another couple of scenes. (He didn't have to be so rude.)

I closed my eyes waiting to get hit. "Struggle!" Dave shouted. I did as I was instructed. This time Sandor did his job right.

"Okay now untie her. Fall to the ground as you did before. Sandor picks you up and drags you to Aric's throne and leaves you on the ground."

I really didn't want Sandor touching me. I wanted to crawl there myself, but I knew Dave wouldn't go for it. Something about him suddenly gave me the creeps.

Sandor untied me and I pretended to fall to my knees. He dragged me, by my arm, to the throne. He dropped it, and stood there, as I lay at Aric's feet.

"Okay. That's a wrap for tonight. I want to see you back here by seven tomorrow morning." Dave said. "Don't be late." He looked directly at me. I didn't say anything. I just made my way to my dressing room.

In the dressing room I was cleaning off all the make up when some one knocked on the door. "Come in." I said suspecting it was Dave.

It was Sandor. He still wore his mask. "What do you want?" I said not looking at him. He didn't answer. "Aren't you going to talk?"

He moved to stand behind me. I just looked at him through the mirror as I finished removing the make-up. "Either talk or get out." I said into the mirror.

"Well then…" he said removing his mask. I gasped. It wasn't Matt. It was a dirty blonde haired man. (Handsome too.)

Where's Matt?" I asked loudly.

"He had to leave early." he said with a sneer.

"Who the hell are you then?" I asked slowly moving my hand to the phone.

"It doesn't matter who I am. You're coming with me."

I picked up the receiver to call security. "I don't think you should make that call. Come with me and you won't get hurt." he said in a calm threatening tone.

"I'm not going anywhere with you." I said standing. I darted for the door.

He grabbed my arm and spun me into his chest. He held something cold up to my throat. I glanced in the mirror and saw it was a knife. Fear gripped me causing me to go cold.

"Where are my friends?" I asked. I don't know why I thought they were in danger. It was just a sudden feeling.

"You will see them soon enough. It all depends on your cooperation." he replied pressing the blade into my flesh to stress his point.

"What is this all about?" I asked annoyed and afraid.

"You will find out soon. Now come with me." he said pulling me out the door.

I couldn't tell what kind it was. The side door suddenly opened and I was pushed inside. It was too dark for me to tell how many people were in the van. I could tell there were others because of the cramped space and I felt legs against my back. Suddenly my wrists were pulled behind me and cuffed.

Moments later we stopped. I was forced out of the van. In front of me a large building stood. It looked like a warehouse that hadn't been used for a while. "Inside." the man shouted.

It was practically empty inside. There were men and a few crates. Other than that nothing else was there, but Beth and Starla. I was forced to stand next to them.

I was guessing by the way they were dressed they had been taken from the bar I was supposed to meet them at later that night. Starla was in a pair blue jeans and a nice blue tie dye top. Beth was wearing blue jeans and a blue baggy that had always looked nice on her.

"Do you know what this is about?" I asked quietly.

"Your guess is as good as ours." Beth answered. "All we know is Mark pulled out a gun on stage, men gathered around us, and we were forced out of the bar."

"Mark?" I asked shocked.

"We couldn't believe it. Dave thought he was kidding around. So did we. Kevin told him to put it down, but he had a look in his eye that told him he was very serious."

I couldn't believe it. I scanned the room. I spotted him sitting on a crate near the middle of the room. His long, curly hair hung over his shoulders. He was wearing his black jeans and a dark shirt with some kind of colorful design. He just sat there as casual as he ever was. His demeanor seemed like he was proud of what he had done.

"You are probably wondering why you are here." a voice said. A tall Asian man stepped out of the shadows. He was dressed in black casual pants, white shirt, and a black casual jacket.

"You have something I want. I should say your lab has it. My informant has reported you have received a deadly and very contagious virus recently. You girls are going to get it for me." he said.

For some reason as the man spoke I glanced over at Mark. He was the only one, besides Beth, Starla, and I, who knew. (I guess I should have been more careful who I talked to.)

"We won't give it to you." I shouted. A few seconds later, the man who had been speaking, gripped my throat with one hand. I grabbed his wrist as he lifted me off the ground. My feet were dangling. I wanted to kick him, but I couldn't find the strength to while his hand was threatening to crush my windpipe. I was too shocked to even struggle. That shock soon turned to fear.

"I didn't ask." he said in a threatening tone. I quickly dropped my hands. I hung there limply truly afraid. Up to that point I thought it was all a joke. I suddenly realized the seriousness of our situation.

"Does anyone else have something to say?" he asked. There was only silence then he dropped me. I fell hard onto my knees. The fall was hard enough to know that bruises would soon follow the impact. Although his grip wasn't tight enough to choke me I gasped for air. All I could do was look at his black shoes until I could find the strength to get up.

I slowly stood. I was in shock. I never imagined something like that could ever happen to me. I looked at my two friends. They seem in as much disbelief as I. It was one of those moments where you tell yourself to wake up only to find out you never went to sleep.

"Starla is the only one with a key." Beth spoke up. I glared at her. She just shrugged.

"Oh really?" he asked. "Ian, Robert."

"James?" the man who had abducted me asked.

"Take Starla and go get the virus."

The third man reached for me. "Robert, she's the one next to her." James said rolling his eyes as Robert grabbed Starla by the arm. When she tried to struggle out of his grip he put a gun to her temple. She went willing, sort of, with the two men as they led her out the door.

Beth and I were moved to where the other men were. We were forced to sit on the hard concrete floor near the center of the room. It was cold to me because I was still wearing my stage outfit and sandals. Beth was wearing a pair of faded blue jeans, her blue baggy sweater, and a pair of white running shoes.

Mark sat next to me. "Why did you do it?" I asked looking into he blue eyes.

"Money. Why else?" he responded with little emotion in his voice.

"You betrayed me…us for money? That…" I began

"Don't lecture me. Besides it was a large sum of money. You might have even done it for what I was offered." he said.

"Never." I retorted. "No amount of money would get me to sell out my friends."

"Never say that. You never know what you would do." he said walking away. I glared at him until he sat down with other men.

Next to Mark I noticed a young red haired man. He seemed to be the youngest of the group. What a waste. I'm sure he could have done something better than these people.

"Do you think Starla is okay?" Beth whispered to me.

"I hope so. Why did you tell them she had the key?"

"Like you and her I have a family to think about. I thought if I told them we could get out of this alive." she said sounding really worried.

"By the way it looks I don't think any of us will be going home any time soon."

"Maybe once they have the virus they will let us go."

"I doubt it." I said loosing all hope of escape or rescue.

We waited, in tense silence, for the men to bring Starla back. Beth and I kept looking over at the heavy metal door, but there was no sign of her.

Suddenly we heard the door slam. It startled me out of what ever I thoughts I was having. I looked over. It was the two men. They still had Starla. I sighed with relief. I had never been so glad to see her as I was at that moment.

She looked disheveled. Her brown hair was a mess and she looked at if she was in shock. She was like a zombie as she sat down next to us. I placed my hand on her shoulder. Neither Beth nor I spoke. We waited for her.

"They got the virus and the lab is gone." she said in a low tone.

"What do you mean gone?" I asked.

"They blew it up. It's gone. Why?" she asked looking at me. "Why would they do that?"

"I don't know. I really don't." I said although I had my theories. I just wasn't sure what to say in her state of mind.

"They did it to destroy the video cameras and all evidence of them there. Do you think they want to leave anything behind to incriminate them? Don't you ever watch crime shows?" Beth said.

That's just what it felt like. It was as if we were trapped in a mystery show, but in this case it was reality, and not fiction kicking our butts.

"We need to figure out what we are going to do." I said to Beth who was clearly shaken by the news.

"There's nothing we can do. We can't attempt an escape. There are too many of them. The only thing we can do is go along with them." she replied.

"There has to be something we can do. I will figure something and come up with a plan."

"You'll get us killed in the process." she said scooting away from me.

I looked over at Mark who was talking to one of the other men. (Robert, I think.) I couldn't hear what they were talking about, but it looked pretty serious. Suddenly the other men began laughing.

I looked away not wanting anyone seeing me watching him. I didn't want them to think I was trying to over hear something I'm not supposed to. Who knows what would happen then.

I thought about using Mark to help us escape, but I didn't know how I would convince him. Once he has his mind set on something it's not easy to get to change it.

Although I know something had to be done I knew Beth was probably right. They might kill us before we could escape. I knew I had to watch myself. My temper and smart mouth could get us killed to. Beth was right about us needing just to go with it…for now.

Chapter Two

I was forced to sit between Robert and Ian. Starla sat by Corey while Beth sat with the others across from us. James was sitting on a small wooden crate next to the small door that lead into the front seat where Phil was driving.

Ian was cleaning his knife and I noticed the word DEATH engraved on its blade. A sudden chill went up my spine.

"Why is that engraved on the blade?" I cautiously asked.

"Do you really want to know?" he asked looking at me with a slight sneer on his face.

"Sure." I said with little confidence.

"I've had this knife for over twenty years. I used to skin my cat when I was young. I hung the pelt on my wall as a trophy. I threw the carcass to our dogs in the back yard. When my parents found out I was sent to a psychologist. When I was around fourteen my parents got divorced and my dad moved out. I was so angry that I went into a rage and killed her. Then I scalped her and hung it on my wall."

"That's disgusting." I commented.

"I buried it, inside a metal, in the back yard before the cops came to arrest me. I was convicted of murder and sentenced to a mental hospital. I was released a couple of years ago. I dug up my knife and had it engraved. Do you want a closer look?" he asked placing it at my throat.

"That's okay. I saw it just fine." I said fearfully.

"You know I am labeled as a psychopath…or as the court called it a sociopath. Do you have any idea how that makes a person feel?"

"No." I choked out afraid to move my head.

"Ian, leave the girl alone." James shouted.

"I was just telling her a story." he said removing the knife.

"The girls will not be harmed. At least not for now." James said looking at all of us.

I exhaled a breath I didn't even know I had been holding. I was relieved that the knife was away from my throat, but not of the ominous words that James had just said.

I looked over at Starla. She had the frightened look in her eyes as I felt in my heart. I began to feel as if my plan had little chance for success.

"Where are you taking us?" Starla asked James.

"I am taking you to our lab where you will replicate the virus. We have the right equipment and taken all safety precautions." he replied.

"You have a fully functional lab? How could you do that without some one finding out?" Starla said with almost glee in her voice.

"I have my friends and I have my ways. Do you always ask this many questions? If I was in your situation I don't think I would." he said with menace in his voice.

"Well, I don't know about them too but I plan on helping you get this done and needed to know what kind of environment I would be working in. Where is this lab at?"

"It is a secret location. You will see it when you get there."

Silence once again filled the truck. I stared at the plain wood wall trying to at least daydream.

Suddenly there was a roll of thunder that seemed to come out of nowhere. I was startled by the sudden noise. Seconds later rain came down making loud tapping on the aluminum outer shell.

I felt a hand on my shoulder. I hadn't noticed that I when I had been surprised I had moved closer to Robert. I looked up at him. He had a strange smile on his face. I couldn't describe it.

"Get your hands off me." I said.

"I thought I would comfort you since the thunder scared you." he commented.

"I don't need comfort from you." I said glaring at him. "It didn't scare me."

Instead of lifting his hand he gripped my shoulder hard. I flinched in pain. He lowered his head where his lips almost grazed my ear. I could feel his warm breath on my cheek.

"You should be scared. You don't know who you're with. Anything can happen to loud-mouthed girls." he whispered.

"Are you threatening us?"

"I am just warning you to watch your step. We are professionals and can make anyone disappear and never be found."

"Why should I care?" I asked daring him. "It's not like we are going to be allowed to go free."

"I suggest you watch how you speak to me." He warned letting go of my shoulder.

I leaned back on the wall of the truck trying to ignore him. It was difficult. I couldn't get those piercing blue eyes out of my mind. I wanted to keep glancing at him, but I told my self it wasn't his eyes or his looks, but my distrust that made me want to keep a close eye on him.

I watched Starla and Beth doze across from me. I wondered how they could sleep when suddenly I felt my eyes droop closed.

I opened my eyes to find myself in a large empty room. It was dark and I couldn't see anything. I wondered to myself how I had gotten there. Last thing I remembered was being in a truck with my friends and several men.

Suddenly a voice called out to me from the darkness. It wasn't a voice I recognized. It was a man's voice warning me. I wasn't sure from what, but it sounded menacing.

I frantically looked around to find the owner of the voice forgetting the deep darkness that surrounded me. I felt around blindly trying to find some one almost anyone. No one was there.

I called to the voice. No one replied. I called again stepping forward. All I received in return was a maniacal laugh.

My heart beat hard in my chest. The fear I felt was so intense I thought my heart would burst. I knew I was alone because my friends would have said something.

"Your friends will betray you." The voice finally said. "You are all alone. You must survive on your own."

"My friends would never betray me. You are wrong." I said to the invisible person.

"Heed my words. They will have no choice. Things will happen that will be beyond your control."

"It is that way now." I said mocking it.

"Your friends will die and leave you to face everything on your own. It is you who will be blamed for all that will happen. It will be all your fault. No one will believe you."

"I don't believe you. I don't know what is going on but the truth will come out and I will not be blamed. My friends won't die." I shouted defiantly. "We will return to our homes and families. We will be safe."

"You are blind to what is happening to you. You can't even understand how serious your situation is. You can't see what is in front of you, much less what will happen. You have to keep my words in mind if you want to survive."

Suddenly the darkness lifted and I was in a white room filled with different machines. There were bars where the door should have been. I couldn't see any windows or any light source that could have lifted the gloom.

I thought I had movement out of the corner of my eye. When I looked toward that direction nothing was there. At that moment I thought I was losing my mind, from hearing an invisible man to seeing things that weren't there.

Suddenly the lights went out plunging me back into the darkness. I called out the voice. Silence was my only response.

Moments later I felt something swiftly slither over my foot. It felt like a quick moving snake. A shiver shook my body as if I had been hit by an icy breeze.

I sighed with relief assuming it was gone when something wrapped around my leg. With one quick jerk it pulled me to the floor. I didn't have a chance to scream when I fell into what seemed like a deep lake.

I struggled to free myself to avail. Whatever it was still had hold of me and was trying to pull me under the cold water. I flailed until my strength had given out and was pulled into the dark abyss.

I woke up with my head on Robert's shoulder. I jerked my head up. Robert looked down at me with a smirk.

"About time you woke up." he said.

"Go to hell." I said without thinking.

"What did you say to me?" he asked in a threatening tone.

"Nothing." I replied blinking.

"That's a good girl." he said patting my head.

I swung at his hand. I missed and he grabbed my wrist. "Don't do that again." he said twisting my wrist until I flinched.

"Robert," James shouted. "Let her go."

"James, I am not going to let her or any of them get away with smarting off to me. She needs to be taught a lesson." he explained.

"I will not have them harmed. When they have finished their duties you can do whatever you want with her." he said glaring at me.

"Oh wonderful." I whispered to myself.

It seemed like hours before we finally stopped. I had to pee badly. Hopefully there was a bathroom wherever we were. I looked at Starla and Beth. They looked as if they had to go too.

The back door of the truck opened and we were ushered into a liquor store.

"If you need to go, go now." James commanded.

Starla, Beth and I walked into the bathroom. It looked as if it hadn't been cleaned in a while. The blue tiled floor was sticky and the sinks were gray from the dust and dirt.

I walked into a stall. The toilet was just as bad as the sinks but with rust stains added to the bottom of the bowel. The smell of stagnate water and urine was almost unbearable.

Starla and Beth were washing their hands when I came out of the stall. I quickly washed my hands. I turned to the towel dispenser. I saw Ian standing inside the door.

Starla tried pushing her way passed him. He stopped her. She tried to push him back but he didn't move. He grabbed her arm.

"Let me go, you asshole." she shouted. "We don't need anyone to hold our hands while we take a piss."

He slapped her hard across the face. Beth and I took a step back. We could see the deep red mark left by his hand.

"Come. We have to go." a voice said from the other side of the door.

"We're coming." Ian said dragging Starla with him.

We were once again ushered into the truck. Ian, Robert, and James came in behind us. They carried in several bags of liquor.

Mark was sitting in his corner smoking a joint. He held it out to me. I shook my head. He just shrugged and continued to smoke.

In a bag I noticed several packs of cigarettes. I asked if I could have one. James nodded his head. I took a pack out of the bag and lit one. I was glad to have the nicotine since I didn't have a chance to grab mine.

Robert handed me an open bottle of vodka. I took a large swallow of it looking at Mark."

"Slow down." Robert said taking it away from me.

"I know what I am doing." I said blowing smoke in his face. He coughed and waved the smoke away from his face.

He handed me the bottle again and I drank it until he took it away from me. The vodka sent a comforting warmth through my body.

I noticed Starla and Beth were also drinking. I wasn't sure what they were drinking but they looked as if they were enjoying it.

Ian took my finished cigarette and snubbed it on the floor. He offered me some tequila. I refused it. I took the vodka bottle from Robert and finished it. He looked surprised. To my astonishment he opened another bottle.

Starla passed me the rum she had been drinking. I took a couple of large swigs before passing it back. I then took the vodka from Robert and did the same.

I was beginning to feel the effects of the alcohol. I started feeling really good. I looked over at Beth and Starla and winked at them. They winked back.

I handed the bottle back to Robert and took the tequila from Ian. I downed a few swallows of it. Ian smiled. I smiled back. I was at the point that I didn't care what or how much I was drinking. I just wanted to stay this way, knowing I would regret it later.

I reached over, almost falling, to touch Beth's leg. She gave me a suggestive look. I returned the glance raising my eyebrows. Several of the men were watching us. They looked as if they were enjoying it. I moved back to my place.

I took another drink of the vodka. By this time I was drunk. The room was spinning and I was feeling great. I took another drink and clumsily handed the bottle back to Robert.

I looked between Ian and Robert smiling at them. I looked at Mark and winked a seductive wink. He just smiled. I knew he wanted to laugh at me. He's seen me drunk many times before when I would see him in the bar. Sometimes he got a kick from it sometimes he didn't.

I ran my fingers up and down Robert's arm trying to tickle it. He swatted my hand away. I did it again this time looking at him. He grabbed my hand gently. "Don't do that. You might get something you might not want." he said leaning his face to mine.

"Oh really? Do you really think so?" I asked daring him to try something.

"Yes really. You could be asking for trouble."

"Maybe you don't know as much as you think you do. You don't know what I am asking for." I said pulling my arm away from him.

He sat back up. I crawled over to Beth making sure Robert was watching. I lifted her chin and kissed her deeply. She kissed me back. I glanced back at him. The shocked and lustful look was priceless. I smiled to myself as I kissed her.

She placed her hand on my head caressing my hair. I moved closer to her. I stopped kissing her and took a drink of whatever she had. It burned going down and tasted awful but I drank a little more. I handed the bottle back to her and wink before going back to where I had been sitting. Beth frowned then winked back.

"You're a tease." Robert said leaning back.

"You will have to find out, now won't you?" I said giving him a knowing look.

"Don't tempt me," he said leaning toward me again. "Or you will find out what I can do."

"Now who's being the tease?" I asked blowing his a kiss.

I knew what I was doing was wrong, but I couldn't help myself. I wanted to see how far I could take it before he got pissed off at me or took me up on what I was drunkenly offering. I knew he was getting frustrated with me, but I didn't care. I was too drunk to care.

I was expecting James to tell me to stop, but he didn't. He just sat there quietly dozing. How he could sleep with everything going on was beyond me.

I took the bottle from Robert and took a drink. This time I deep-throated the bottle's neck slowly. I swallowed the vodka and handed the empty bottle back to him. He raised an eyebrow at me. I just raised my eyebrows.

Just then he reached down and put his hand on my ankle. He then moved his hand slowly up my leg to my thigh allowing it to rest there. He was waiting for me to respond. I just sat there daring him. He moved his hand higher, and that is where I threw his hand off my leg.

"I knew you were just a tease." he said leaning against the back of the truck.

"Maybe there are too many people around." I commented becoming drowsy.

I laid my head in his lap. I soon fell into a dreamless sleep.

When I woke up I sat up too quickly making myself dizzy. I felt as if I had been hit by a freight train. I knew why I felt that way. I had drunk way too much.

I looked up at Robert and the memories of what had happened before falling asleep came back. "Listen, I am sorry about earlier." I said to him.

"No you're not." he commented with venom. "You knew what you were doing drunk or not. Mark's already told me how you are when you're drunk and how sorry you are when you sober up. So don't try it with me. It won't work."

"What the hell?" I asked shocked by his sudden hostility.

"There is going to come a day when you will get what you deserve and you will be begging me to stop because you can't handle it. You need watch to what you wish for. You might get it."

"Don't you dare lay a hand on me. You will surely regret it." I said glaring at him.

"We'll have to wait and see."

My head was pounding. I knew then I had a hangover and was not in the mood to fight with him. I leaned back against the truck and sighed. I lit a cigarette. The nicotine tasted great but it didn't help my headache.

James had a file sitting on his lap. I wanted to look to see what it was, but I didn't want to cause any more trouble than I already had.

Starla and Beth were dozing peacefully. I don't know how long they have been asleep, but it sounded like a good idea. I didn't trust myself to sleep next to Robert after our little debate. I wasn't sure if he would try to do anything or not. Moments later my eyes closed and I fell asleep.

When I opened my eyes Robert and I was holding hands. He led me to a cemetery where he stopped behind an old headstone. I looked at him wondering why we were there. His deep blue eyes held sympathy there...