Free Through Her Eyes by Amber Morgan

THROUGH HER EYES
     
     
    Amber Morgan
     
    Copyright © 2015
     
     
     
    Chapter One
     
    Cold hands seized her, wrapping round her throat in an
iron grip. The scream that spiraled up in her lungs was crushed from her. He
shoved her hard against the wall, face first. If there'd been any air left in
her that would have knocked it out. The brickwork scraped her cheek and the
stinging pain brought tears to her eyes.
    She felt him push against her, his body hard and
unrelenting. Through the flimsy material of her skirt, she felt his cock strain
against her ass cheeks. Horror turned her stomach and she tried to struggle,
kick, anything that might free her. It was impossible. He was strong and
unyielding. He put his lips to her ear and whispered, "They all try to
fight. They all fail."
    His words were like an icy lance through her heart. She
whimpered, the only sound she could make while his fingers squeezed at her
throat. Her vision was blurring, growing steadily darker as her heart fluttered uselessly against her ribs. He was going to hurt her and
she couldn't stop it. It would be a mercy to lose consciousness.
    And then she felt the blade against her cheek.
    His voice was rough with dark pleasure. "Say
goodnight, sweetheart."
    ****
    White light blinded Keira, obscuring the blood and
lurid graffiti before her. Pain stabbed through her skull as she was pulled
away from the nightmare she'd just witnessed, slamming back to reality, back
into her body.
    She sat up with a scream on her lips, sweat on her
shivering body. Cool night air swirled around her through the open window, and
her bed sheets were tangled around her legs. She'd been thrashing, kicking out.
Just like the girl she'd been watching.
    Vomit rose in her throat. She stumbled from the bed
into the bathroom, falling to her knees in front of the toilet. She puked
noisily, violent images of blood and blades flashing before her eyes.   God, was it starting again? She closed her
eyes, tears threatening. It had been years. She'd put it all behind her. She'd
been trying so hard to have a normal life.
    Tonight meant she'd failed. Worse, tonight meant
another poor woman was dead.
    Footsteps thudded on the stairs. She started, pulling
herself up and wiping her mouth. She was reaching for the mouthwash when Dylan
poked his head into the bathroom. "Keira? What's
wrong?"
    She chewed her lip, torn between answering honestly
and lying. Her housemate only knew pieces of her past. He'd seen the scars, of
course. There was no hiding them. But he didn't know the whole story, didn't
know what really happened to her six years ago. And he was such a rational man
there was no way he'd believe the whole story.
    "Keira," he repeated when she didn't answer.
"What's happening? You're sick?"
    She sucked in a deep breath, gripping the sink for
support. Her knees felt weak, her head pounded. It always did after...After.
"I'm fine." She lied. It was easier to lie. "Must
have been the takeaway." She tried a smile, big and bright and
fake. Dylan came closer, massaging her shoulders. His fingers were warm and
gentle, pushing back a little of her lingering nausea and fear.
    "I thought that beef tasted funny. Why don't you
go and lie down?"
    "Are you still working?" she asked. "I
could do with some company." It wasn't uncommon for Dylan to sit up all
night working on web designs. Once he got absorbed in a project, the rest of
the world vanished. But she needed the warmth and comfort of another person
right now. Maybe then she could pretend she'd just had a nightmare, a
flashback.
    Dylan rubbed his eyes, smothering a yawn. "I
should stop for the night," he said. "It's almost three in the morning
and I'm supposed to be meeting Greg for breakfast." His boyfriend hated
lateness and Dylan was perpetually late. "Give me a minute and we'll go
huddle on the sofa."
    She nodded, relieved. She brushed her teeth, swilled
her mouth out with mouthwash, and stared at herself in the mirror. Her olive
skin was chalky, her