Consumed

TOMORROW

Her dark hair, stuck to her pretty but pale face, was matted with dried blood from where they had hit her earlier; not hard enough to kill her but hard enough to ensure she stopped running and screaming from them.

Her eyes opened as she slowly regained consciousness and fear set in almost immediately as she realised she was bound, naked, to a dining room table. The blow hadn’t robbed her of the memories of landing on the table — her bruised and battered body aching all over. She managed to fight her first reaction — to scream out in pain and alarm — she knew screaming wouldn’t do any good; it would only let them know she was awake.

She needed time to figure out an escape.

She fought the pain in the side of her head, throbbing from the earlier blow, and started to struggle against the restraints. A dazed look down to her ankles revealed them to be bound by leather straps — perhaps fashioned from old belts? A buckle system around her ankle, she couldn’t see how it was keeping her on the table — perhaps a buckle system around the table leg too? A few more seconds of struggling against the straps and it dawned on her they weren’t about to snap anytime soon.

“Shit,” she muttered under her breath.

She looked up at her wrists.

A similar set-up.

“Shit!” she repeated.

Footsteps beyond the old, wooden door in the far corner of the room. They’re coming. Her heart skipped a beat and she screamed when the door was pushed open.

Out of time.