The Cutting Edge Page 3

  “Honest,” Leslie angrily snapped back, “I don’t do drugs. You can search all you want to, but you’re not going to find any.”

  “Hey Jake,” the driver informed the man obviously in charge. “The alley behind the old Wilburn Building is up ahead. No one is ever in there. How about parking there?”

  “Yeah,” Jake responded, “That’ll work.”

  Up until the car turned into the alley, Leslie had managed to stay fairly calm. It had all happened so quickly and unexpectedly she hadn’t felt any real panic or fear, only anger and impatience. But now, the reality of what was going on hit her like a ton of bricks. These four men were not only going to rob her, but if she didn’t give them enough of what they wanted, they might rape her. At this moment, her magazine cover was actually making her appear to be something she wasn’t—rich and worldly. She had to convince them that they had her all wrong.

  6

  I don’t know what you think,” she began, her voice quavering, “but just because I’m on the cover of Fashion and Style doesn’t mean I’m loaded. I barely had the money to fly home. I work hard and I use everything I pull down just to live on.”

  “Sure,” Jake replied, “and I bet you eat on food stamps.”

  “Seriously,” Leslie pleaded, “you’ve already got it all. So why don’t you just let me go.”

  “Listen, lady. I decide when we’ve got everything we want. You have no power here, so you just shut that pretty little mouth of yours.”

  The car rolled to a stop in a dark alley where three buildings joined to make a dead end. Even before the motor had been killed, Leslie was pulled out of the vehicle and roughly tossed up against a dirty brick wall. Within seconds, the flashlight was again shining in her face. She had yet to see any of her captors’ faces.

  “OK, pretty baby,” the man holding the light was once again doing the talking, “If you’re on the cover of Fashion and Style, then no matter what you say you’ve got to be loaded. Where’s the rest of it? You wouldn’t travel with just pocket change like this.”

  Leslie, now beginning to feel real fear, just shook her head.

  “Go through her bag again, Jim,” someone growled, “and look everywhere, maybe she’s hiding it in there.”

  As the two men who had been in the back seat with her looked through her things one item at a time, the other two stared at her in the light. Time crawled by as the search continued. Deep down she was praying that when they found nothing, they would just leave her alone, taking the money she had brought and running, but try as hard as she could, she couldn’t convince herself that they’d be satisfied with that now that they had seen the cover.

  “Nothing, just clothes and makeup,” one of the searchers informed the flashlight man. Rather than give up, he offered another possibility. “Of course, she could be hiding something on her. I’ll search her. I’ll do a good job, too.”

  Leslie didn’t give any of the men a chance to move any closer to her. Tears now beginning to stream down her face, she blurted out, “I don’t have anything—nothing except that money and this watch!” She hurriedly pulled the small gold-chained timepiece from her arm. “Here, you can have it. It’s bound to be worth something!”

  Grabbing the watch from her hand, the leader looked at it in the light, tossed it to one of the others before turning back to the woman. “Not good enough, Sugar, let’s see the rest.”

  “I tell you,” Leslie’s words were now coming out in between small sobs, “I don’t have anything. You’ve got it all.”

  For a few moments, no one moved or said anything. Pulling a bottle from his coat pocket, one of them took a long draw, and then passed it on to the one they called Jake. Taking the last swig in the fifth, he threw the empty at Leslie’s feet. The bottom broke off as it smacked the wall, rebounding off the brick and hitting the side of her shoe. Glancing down, she could see it slowly spinning beside her foot. Even in the dim light, she recognized a buffalo on the label. So this is the customer she was selling to. Classy group!

  “Well, baby,” Jake was speaking for the group, “you’d better come up with a way to make this little job more profitable or we might have to do something that none of us want to do.”

  After taking a deep breath in an effort to steady herself, in as slow and calm a voice as she could manage, Leslie said, “I just don’t have any more. Even the earrings I’m wearing are fake.”

  Jumping quickly forward, Jake shined the light directly into her eyes, and screamed, “You’re on the cover of this flipping fashion magazine. You have to be making big money. Now, where is it?”

  Leslie, once again sobbing, just shook her head.

  As she pushed her back flatter against the dirty wall, the other men began to grumble. “Let’s kill her,” one offered.

  “That’s stupid, man,” another cut in, “She hasn’t seen us. She couldn’t make a positive ID. Let’s just let her go and get out of here.”

  “What?” said the driver. “You want to let a prime piece of meat like this go without trying it out. You’re crazy! If she can’t pay with money, then I’ll take that body. Let’s all take it! She’s a model. She’d probably even enjoy it.”

  Rape? the thought scared Leslie to death. She could take the humiliation of being robbed and terrorized, but not raped. Anything but that! Coming completely unglued she jerked away from the wall and tried to make a break for the open end of the alley.

  “Jake, she’s trying to run!”

  Her long legs carried her only twenty feet before she was caught and pushed to the ground. Grabbing her by the collar, someone dragged her back to the wall.

  “Now, don’t try anything else, or we’ll kill you,” Jake warned as he put the light back in her face.

  “She’s a looker, isn’t she?” one of the men laughed.

  “And she’s got some spunk,” another offered.

  “Yeah,” Jake barked as he backed off and let the light play down her body. “This’ll be worth a lot more than the few bucks we picked up.”

  Shining the light back in her face, he asked Leslie, “You will make it worth our while, won’t you?”

  A voice inside Leslie was now telling her to fight, to go down with all the honor and respect she could muster. She figured that when they were through with her they would kill her anyway, so why make it easy for them? She’d scratch and claw for as long as she could.

  “You’re first, that is if you can handle her,” Jake said to the driver. “I’ll hold the light, but first I want a show. OK, cover girl, take off your clothes.”

  Leslie didn’t move.

  “Come on, get it in gear. You heard what I said. You models parade around naked all the time. Take ’em off, real slow.”

  Biting her bottom lip, she stood silent, ignoring Jake’s request.

  “Hey, chick, this is your last chance. If you don’t pull off those clothes now, I’ll cut ’em off. It’s your choice. But you sell your body all the time, so this should be an easy gig for you. You’re getting off cheap.”

  Looking back at the four shadowy figures waiting on the other side of the light, Leslie just shook her head and whispered, “Not for you or any amount of money.”

  “Hold the flashlight,” Jake ordered. Moving in front of her, he grabbed the neck of her silk blouse and in one swift move tore it clear to the waist. But before he could even look at what he had unveiled Leslie raised her knee and with a quick kick sent him to the ground.

  Stepping forward, the driver struck her with a raised fist, the blow glancing off her right cheekbone and forcing the back of her head to ricochet off the wall. Bouncing up, Jake stopped the slugger before he struck her the second time. “I’ll take care of this,” he screamed, an animal rage now consuming his voice.

  “Don’t kill her Jake,” the driver warned. “She’s not worth a murder rap.”

  “Don’t worry, I wouldn’t kill her,” Jake growled. “Killing’s too good for her. But when I’m done with her, she’ll wish she was dead. Grab h
er arms.”

  The two men from the back seat pinned Leslie against the brick wall. Now all she had left were her legs. Kicking out, she tried to reach Jake first and then the others.

  “Grab her legs,” Jack yelled. “See that she stays still!”

  After thirty seconds of fighting, they finally had Leslie completely secure, completely pinned to the damp wall. Now there was nothing she could do but wait. She had never felt so helpless. She knew that somewhere behind the light, Jake was readying his attack. But she had no clue as to what he had planned. Realizing she couldn’t change whatever was about to happen, Leslie began to silently pray.

  Dear Lord, I don’t want to die. I can take anything, but don’t let me die, not like this.

  7

  Hold the light squarely on her face,” Jake ordered. As the spotlight closed in, a strange, almost demented laugh accompanied his next words. “OK, if a rich broad like this says that she doesn’t have anything worth giving us and she’s too perfect to put out, then I guess that I’ll just have to bring her down to our ugly level.”

  “What are you going to do, Jake?” the driver asked.

  There was no answer as a jagged piece of glass came out from behind the light toward Leslie’s face. It was the bottle that had been broken at her feet a few minutes before and now was hovering inches in front of her eyes. The harsh yellow spotlight caught every sharp ridge—every facet—of the shattered bottle. It was so close to her face she could even smell the lingering aroma of the scotch. Slowly, Jake passed the bottle back and forth in front of her eyes. As she followed it, he laughed. With each swing, the brittle points inched closer to Leslie’s soft skin. Then, the motion stopped as Jake held the bottle directly in front of the model’s throat. Out of the darkness, Jake’s other hand produced the issue of Fashion and Style.

  “Take a good look, Sweetheart. Take a last look at your pretty face and just remember if you’d just done what I’d asked, you would’ve still looked like this tomorrow.”

  Leslie stared at the vision of female perfection that the man was holding. For what seemed like minutes, she focused on the face that was now featured on Fashion and Style, and also the ads from Buffalo Scotch and soon as the star of the Passion Nights spreads. What a perfect face it was! It had always defined her. It had opened doors for her since she was a little girl. Now it seemed perfection was condemning her as well.

  “Well, Sweetheart,” Jake’s tone was now cold and harsh, “Have you memorized the details? I hope so.”

  As the last of his words eased from his mouth, he dropped the magazine to the ground and yanked the bottle back behind the light. For a split-second Leslie relaxed thinking Jake was just playing a sick little game and he had no intention of following through with his plan. He just wanted to scare her into submitting. And if sex was what he wanted, then she might as well give it to him. But then, in a blinding flash, the bottle came back from behind the light and she saw the jagged edge coming at her face. Jerking her head to the side caused the bottle to miss her eye and, for an instant she thought it missed her, too, but as the weapon was withdrawn behind the light she felt a warm liquid rush down the side of her face. It was followed by a sharp pain quickly working its way down her cheek to the inside of her mouth. Unable to see or move, she didn’t know just how badly she had been cut, but from the angle of the blow and the uneven edge of the bottle, she guessed that it was probably a pretty mean gash.

  Shaking her head, she whispered, “Well, you extracted your price. I hope you’re satisfied.”

  A wicked laugh greeted her remark. “Satisfied? I’ve only just begun.”

  Looking back to the left, she saw the bottle coming at her again and this time blood was dripping from the bottom. Before it struck, she fainted.

  8

  What is that moaning? Where is it coming from?

  While shaking the cobwebs from her mind, the moans stopped. Still, unaware of where she was, Leslie once more let her mind ooze back to the darkness of sleep. Then she heard the moans again and this time they sounded closer.

  Wake up, kid. The day’s a wasting. Time to get up and see the world. But still the moaning and drowsiness kept her just beyond the realm of understanding, her mind protecting her for a few more minutes as she sank back into a deep, if troubled, slumber.

  A few moments later, when a flash of light reflected above her closed lids, Leslie once again came close to trekking back into reality, but in her mind she was so far from the alley where she lay. She still believed she was in her New York bed. It was just another morning as she struggled to find the cover and pull it over her head. A strong force inside her tried to pull her back, not allowing her to enter the reality that was too horrible to consider. That force was trying so hard to protect her, but pull as it did it was doomed to fail. The real world wanted Leslie and it was bound to have her. It was time to get up.

  As she attempted to rise sudden and severe bursts of pain shot through Leslie’s face, jerking her back to the ground. Crying out, she suddenly and surely realized that she was not in New York nor was she in a bed. While she still didn’t yet understand what had happened, she now began to sense that the moans she had heard were her own. Letting this fact sink in, she slowly tried to assimilate the events that had placed her where she was and how she got there.

  Rolling over, she opened her eyes and tried to focus, but no matter how many times she blinked and strained, she saw nothing.

  What kind of strange dream was this? Why couldn’t she see? So many questions and no answers!

  Shooting her arms in all directions, she tired to find a light to turn on or something to grab, but all her hands touched was the cool, humid air. A sudden wave of panic—a panic not unlike the kind a drowning victim feels when reaching for the surface while sinking deeper and deeper—caused her to violently jerk her head to the right sending a numbing pain straight to the depths of her brain. And now, facing to her left, she made out a blurry light. She couldn’t tell where the light was coming from, or even what it was, but at least she knew she could see something. She wasn’t blind! For a moment this stopped the rush of her heart and the fear in her mind. As she calmed her nerves, she tried to think logically again.

  What happened? Where am I? How did I get here?

  For several minutes she tried to remember—to come up with an explanation, but no matter how hard she thought, no matter how many scenarios she imagined, she couldn’t put together the answers to her questions. What’s wrong with me? Why do I hurt so much? This has got to be a dream, but why does it feel so real?

  Raising her left arm, she attempted to read the lighted dial of the watch that she never took off, but it wasn’t there. Using her right hand, she searched her wrist for it, but found nothing. Puzzled, she let her arms drop back to the pavement. Resting for a moment, she once again attempted to clear her mind and not only remember what had happened, but to try to figure out what to do.

  The sound of a car interrupted her thoughts. Turning her face to the point where she had seen the blurry light, she watched a vehicle pass by the end of what appeared to be an alley. The steady purr of the engine made her begin to question if this was a dream. Now it seemed too real! But, then again, a lot of her dreams seemed real.

  “OK, Les,” she whispered as if she were a bystander, “let’s get up and walk over to the street. Another car is bound to pass by again and then we can find out what is going on.”

  Using her left hand to push against the damp pavement, she tried to move to a sitting position, but before she had even gotten her head six inches off the ground, dizziness overcame her and she fell back against the street. Not able to stop the queasiness and motion, she refrained from moving for several minutes until she regained a sense of balance. Then she repeated her efforts, this time managing to sit upright before the lightheadedness caused her to sink against the wall of the building. Her breathing had now accelerated and the world was spinning even more rapidly than it had before. She brought her knees up
and in front of her body and propped them against her chest, using the heels of her shoes to keep herself from falling. Turning her eyes to the left, she tried to find and focus on the light she had seen just minutes before, but even it wouldn’t stop moving. So, rather than attempting to catch and subdue it, she let her face fall against her hands and once again closed her eyes.

  9

  For the next few moments, she drifted into a light sleep, exhaustion and shock causing her to relax and forget about the pain. It was the noise of another passing car that stirred her back to consciousness. It was also when she felt streams of a warm liquid steadily rolling down her bare arms for the first time.

  Was it raining? Raising her head and opening her eyes changed the course of the flow, causing it run down her face and enter her open mouth.

  That wasn’t water—water didn’t taste like that. As she began to choke and cough, she suddenly realized her mouth was filling with blood.

  Ignoring the dizziness, she spit and quickly pulled her right hand and arm from around her knee and touched her cheek. Her fingers practically stuck in the blood that was oozing rapidly down her face. She deliberately moved her hand along her jaw until two of her fingers slid under the skin and touched first her gums, and then her teeth. Extracting her hand from the wound, she eased it farther and discovered there was another huge gash just below her eye.

  My God, what happened?

  Afraid to touch or discover anything else, Leslie lowered her hand back to the ground and let her head fall against the wall. When she did, a new burst of pain sent another round of shock waves up and down her face. Moaning, she closed her eyes and dropped her other hand to her side. She felt a sharp prick when it hit the ground. Forcing her eyes open, she looked down, and after almost a minute of straining, managed to make out the jagged image of a broken bottle. Retrieving it, she brought it to eye level, but the darkness kept her from distinguishing anything more than what it was. Still, sensing it was something important, she held onto it, letting both it and her hand rest atop her knees.