Taken Over

   This was it; this was the way it was all going to end. I didn’t find peace in that thought, my life did not flash before my eyes, and I did not feel terror. All I could see was the bright lights popping before me, and all I could feel was the excruciating pain. A pain so intense that I felt as if I were being ripped apart from the inside out; felt as if I were being flayed alive and stripped to the very bone. I wanted to scream, wanted to let all the pain out but I couldn’t. I felt as if I were being wrapped within a spider’s cocoon, and encased to the point that motion and sound were no longer possible as the spider exsanguinated me.

   My release came so suddenly that I didn’t even recognize it for what it was, even as I tumbled back. Normal feeling and sound came rushing back to me as I bounced off the road, bruising my elbows and tailbone. The hard, unforgiving asphalt felt like a cushion of bliss after what I had just experienced. The hard pop of guns slammed into my ears, causing me to wince in pain as normal sound blazed back into my tortured ears. I gasped, rolled over, tried to get up but found that my weak, wobbly legs would not support my weight.

   “Grab her!” I heard Lloyd shout over the raining clatter of gunfire.

   Hands ensnared my good arm; the other one hung uselessly against my side. “I’m sorry about this.”

   Before I could question what Bret was sorry for, he heaved me up and tossed me over his shoulder. I groaned as my wounded shoulder protested the movement, but even this small measure of pain was nothing compared to what I had just gone through. I bit my bottom lip hard enough to draw blood, but I did not wince at the sharp, fleeting sting. Bret broke into a brisk jog as he hurried down the street with me.

   “The gunfire will draw them here. We need to get away. Now,” Lloyd commanded hurriedly.

   I could not see him as I bounced against Bret’s back, but his boots came momentarily into view as he crossed the road behind Bret. I could feel pain, normal pain, stealing through my body. My shoulder ached; there was blood seeping down my arm. I knew that it was dripping off of me, but I couldn’t see it landing on the dark street. The shock was slowly wearing off and I was begi

   Not only was I dead weight, but I was also easily tracked.

   “Bret put me down,” I managed to mutter through the bouncing impact of every step he made as we plummeted into the woods. “Bret…”

   “You can’t walk.”

   “I’m bleeding all over the place, they’ll find us.”

   Lloyd’s boots reappeared beneath my bouncing head. I could barely see through the jarring impact that every step caused. “Stop,” Lloyd commanded. I felt his hands upon me as he helped to lift me from Bret’s back. “We have to staunch the wound.”

   I felt slightly dizzy, and a little woozy, as they lowered me to the ground. Je

   “The shoulder’s dislocated,” Lloyd mumbled. “We have to get it back into place before we can cauterize the wound.”

   “Before we what?” Bret demanded as my mouth dropped in horror.

   I wanted to squirm away from them, wanted to pull out of their hold but my strength was waning, my head was spi

   “Stitches…”

   “Do you have a needle and thread?” Lloyd demanded fiercely. His jaw was clenched tight, it was obvious that he did not want to do this either, but he wouldbe the one.

   “What about infection, pain.”

  “Penicillin…”

   “Allergic,” I managed to grate out between my suddenly chattering teeth.

   “Good to know.” Lloyd dug into his pack, rooting around as he searched for something. “We’ll find something for you, but we can’t wait to stitch it. They’ll track that blood…”

   “I know.” I was trying to sound brave, but my weak tone and trembling body gave me away. “Fine.” I swallowed heavily trying to wet my parched throat. “I’ll be fine.”

   “Are you cold?” Je

   “She’s in shock.” Lloyd turned back to me, and though his face was hard there was kindness and worry in his sky colored eyes. “And if we don’t stop the flow…”

   “I’m sorry, I’m so sorry,” Je

   “It’s ok,” I chattered out unable to stand her guilt. “Not your fault.”

   “But it is!” she gushed leaning closer to me.

   “You have to move back.” Lloyd shouldered Je

   After what I had just experienced, with that thing ,I was fairly certain that nothing could truly hurt again. But to be fair, if I had been able to scream when it had a hold of me, I would have shredded my vocal cords with my agony. I didn’t know if I could keep back a cry of pain now. I stopped fighting against the gag, closed my eyes and bit down hard as Lloyd seized hold of my wounded shoulder.

   “What are you…?”

   Bret’s question was cut off as Lloyd jerked sharply on my shoulder. A loud snap, much like a bat hitting a ball, split the air as my shoulder was wrenched painfully back into place. I cried out against the gag, unable to keep the sound suppressed. Thankfully, the gag did. A wave of blackness washed over me, nausea surged up my throat as I teetered on the edge of passing out.

   “Some warning would have been nice,” Bret snarled.

   “There is no time for niceties.” My eyes rolled slightly, I wanted the foul tasting gag out of my mouth, but I knew that wasn’t going to happen. Not yet anyway. Lloyd was kneeling before me. “The shirt has to come off.”

   My eyes widened, the last thing I was going to be able to do was lift my arm at this moment. Bret started to protest as Lloyd brandished a knife and slit the front of my shirt deftly open. Bret’s face flamed red as he turned hastily away, but Lloyd remained analytical and distant as he tugged the tattered remains of clothing from my wounded and beaten body.

   There was a time when I would have been just as red as Bret, but not anymore. Now I didn’t care that the only thing covering me was a bra, a bra that was white, tattered, and dirty. Modesty was something I didn’t give much thought to anymore, and though I wasn’t about to go wandering around nude, this bit of skin wasn’t going to affect me even a little.

   Lloyd’s hand rested on my good shoulder, his gaze was intent on me. I blinked as I tried to bring his face into focus. “This is going to hurt Bethany.” I nodded, had anything felt good in the past half an hour? I was certain that I could take this, certain that I could take anything after what that thinghad inflicted upon me. “Scream if you need to.”

   My eyes widened as Lloyd turned away and pulled a long lighter from his bag. “What are you doing?” Je

   Lloyd didn’t answer her as he tugged his belt off. I watched in wide eyed horror as he dug a small hole underneath a stone and built a quick fire beneath it. The stone blocked the flame from above and helped to keep the smoke from rising. When the flame was a decent enough size and glowing red with heat, Lloyd placed the large belt buckle into the fire. The buckle was square and flat, but I was fairly sure that I had once seen a horse engraved upon the front of it. I was about to be branded by a freaking belt buckle, and tattooed with a horse. Or at least I hoped it was a horse, it may have been a camel for all I knew I had only glimpsed it once.