Free Held by Kimberly A. Bettes

for the therapy I was going to need to deal with this trauma.
    The next time I woke, it was to the loud clanging sound of what reminded me of metal striking metal. I quickly sat up and scooted backward until I felt the cold wall at my back. From there, I watched Ron work.
    He had an axe high above his head. I watched as he brought it down hard, slicing through Stephanie’s outstretched arm near where it connected to her shoulder. I gasped, but if he heard me, he ignored me and kept on chopping. First one arm, and then the other. Then, he moved to her legs, chopping each of them off close to the hip.
    With each strike of the axe came the sound of a snapping bone, followed by the clink of the metal striking the concrete floor. Also with each strike of the axe, I jumped and closed my eyes.
    After decapitating the torso, he tossed the axe to the floor and wiped his forehead with the back of his hand.
    He glanced over at me and saw that I was watching him. “Dirty work,” he said.
    I could only nod stiffly.
    After unlocking the restraints of her wrists and ankles, he placed each of her limbs in a separate black trash bag and tied it tightly. He did the same for her head and torso, though the torso wasn’t as easy for him as the smaller pieces had been.
    Two by two, he carried the bags up the steps while I watched in silence.
    When all the bags were gone from the basement, he returned. Exhausted, he sat on the bottom step, facing me.
    “Are you afraid, Nicole?”
    I wasn’t sure what to say. Did he want me to be afraid? The wrong answer may be my ticket to a trash bag , so I weighed my words carefully.
    “I’m afraid that you’ll end up not liking me enough to put me in a trash bag like you did her.”
    “Nonsense. I told you, I didn’t like her from the beginning. She wasn’t you. And you aren’t her. As long as you don’t make the same mistakes as she did, you’ll be fine.”
    “I’m thirsty. And hungry.”
    He pointed to the bowl of rotten dog food. “You have food right there. As for water, I’ll get you a drink in a moment. I must rest now. I’m afraid I’m not as young as I used to be.” He laughed. “That’s a silly expression, don’t you think? After all, none of us are ever as young as we used to be. In fact, I’m not as young as I was when I said that.” He laughed again, more to himself than anything. Then, he said, “Tell me, Nicole. Did watching me with her stir up any feelings of jealousy?”
    I stared at him, confused as to what he meant.
    Seeing my confusion, he elaborated. “I mean, were you jealous that I was being with her in that way? Did you wish it were you underneath me?”
    I felt there was no right answer here. To say yes might make him rape me. To say no might make him angry enough to use the poker on me. It was a no-win situation. No matter what I said, I was certain it would be wrong. But I had to say something, so I went with, “No.”
    He shook his head. “That’s a shame. But you know I wanted it to be you. I came to you, needing to be with you in that way. And you denied me. What was I to do, Nicole? I am only a man with manly desires. I have wants and needs. These are things you must understand. You have a husband, after all. Surely, you know how it works.”
    “It’s different with my husband.”
    “Different? How?”
    “With him, I want him just as much as he wants me.”
    He thought for a moment and then asked, “Are you saying that you don’t want me?”
    Another trap. Unsure of what to say, I said nothing.
    “Nicole?” he shouted. “Are you saying that you don’t want me?”
    His voice echoed off the walls of the basement. His eyes were getting that wild look to them again.
    Not wanting to enrage him but not wanting to encourage him either, I said, “No. At least not yet.”
    He calmed a little and asked, “What do you mean by not yet?”
    “Well, I haven’t known you that long. What kind of girl do you think I am? I can’t just go around giving