Escape, a New Life by David Antocci

breath on her neck and his hand slide under her tank top.  Her mind raced.  She was bound and laying on the ground.  There were not a lot of options.
    His breathing sped up as he massaged her breast under her shirt.  Abby was overcome by helplessness, and anger.  What can I do?   If she screamed or fought, the others would come running.  She could sense his excitement increasing as he rapidly breathed near her ear.  Deep in her gut, she hated herself for allowing this to happen.  Suddenly, her thoughts came into focus.  The helplessness.  The abuse.  Even the fact that she was tied up.  For a split second, everything was clear as two words screamed from the back of her mind, “Never again!”
      In a flash , she snapped her head right and slammed her face into him, sinking her teeth into his cheek.  She was like a wounded animal, lashing out however she could.  He screamed as he pulled away, leaving a chunk of his flesh behind, which she spit at him in disgust.  She rolled onto her knees and launched herself forward, slamming her forehead into his crotch with astonishing force, making herself dizzy from the impact.  The man bawled in pain before dropping to the ground where he began vomiting.
    Abby was in a state of shock herself, not knowing what in the world possessed her to do that.  She spit blood from her mouth and took a quick assessment of her surroundings.  Her eyes struggled to focus.  Her head spun, if not from being assaulted earlier, then from her head on collision with this man’s crotch, she couldn’t tell which.  There were no weapons of any kind.  She saw nothing but trees all around.  She sat and contorted her arms to loop under her feet so that her hands would at least be in front of her.  Grabbing a stone with a dull edge, she furiously rubbed the vine that bound her feet and freed them.  There was no time to worry about her hands.  She heard the voices returning.  They were approaching fast.  The others must have heard him scream.
    She took off at a sprint into the trees , but was barely past the tree line when Sara tackled her from behind.  The two of them fell to the ground in a heap.
    “You just don’t quite, do you?”  Sara was breathing hard. 
    Abby said nothing. 
    The others surrounded them within seconds.  They yanked her to her feet and dragged her back.  A very large man held her arms like his hands were grappling hooks, digging his fingers into her skin.  She winced from the pain and struggled to keep her feet under her.  She thrashed back and forth trying to free herself from his vice-like grip.  When her right arm came loose, Sara grabbed a fistful of her hair, close to her scalp, and made a tight fist.  Abby screamed and stopped struggling, as Sara dragged her by her hair back to the camp.
    One of the women was checking on the man who had been enjoying himself until Abby had put an end his fun.  He was still in a great deal of pain.  He had stopped vomiting, but looked as though he might again at any moment.  He sat holding his crotch, rocking back and forth like a child.  Blood trickled from the wound on his cheek.
    Sara threw Abby down to the ground.  “She’s the tough one,” she said.  “Like I was telling you, the guy, Eric, he basically just follows her around.  She’s definitely the one in charge.”
    Abby looked up . “One in charge?”
    Tom laughed, smiling through his beard . “You can drop the act. We know why you’re here.”
    Abby looked confused.
    “Oh, don’t play dumb,” he said.  “I know who sent you.  You are good, I’ll give you that.  But I’m not going down without a fight.”
    Abby just shook her head . “I have no idea what you’re talking about.”
    Sara spoke up . “Let me go back to their camp and take care of Eric.”  She looked at Abby and smiled. “I know he won’t be a problem without you around.”
    “Take care of him?”  Abby asked.
    “Kill him,” Tom said definitively.  “Then