G.D. Sanders - The Victim

‘If you want sex why haven’t you done it already?’

A brief look of shock appeared on his face and he spoke quickly.

‘No, you misunderstand. I don’t want sex, that is, I don’t just want sex. I don’t want to force you. I don’t want you to submit, to surrender yourself. Your willingness won’t be enough. I want the gift of your love more than I want the act itself, but your desire to give must match my desire for the giving. You must want me as much as I want you.’

He stopped speaking as abruptly as he’d started.

Gina looked at him aghast. The man was deranged. ‘Love you?’ She took a step back. ‘Never!’

‘You’re shocked, surprised, you’re thinking it won’t happen. You’re wrong, Gina. All we need is time.’

She had to get away. She couldn’t get out of the flat, but anywhere would do as long as it was away from this madman. Doing her best to adopt a professional manner, Gina stepped into the hall and faced him directly.

‘I’m going to rest on my bed. Promise me that you won’t come into my room.’

‘We’ll talk again when you’re feeling better. Leave your door open, I’ll not wake you.’

Gina moved past him towards her room. The moment he was behind her, the cold tension returned between her shoulder blades. Quickly, she walked into her bedroom. There was no lock on the door so she did as he’d said and left it half open. She kicked off her shoes, climbed onto the bed without undressing and pulled the duvet tightly around her shoulders. Despite the cover, her body felt like ice.

Why me? Why? Why me?

When they’d left Dover and were on the A2 back to Canterbury, Ed asked Jenny what she’d managed to get from the dead woman’s parents.

‘Very little. The husband, Tony Jenkins, did most of the talking. I didn’t push Pat, the mother; she was very upset. Actually, Tony’s the stepfather.’

‘And the daughter …?’

‘Kayleigh Robson, 23, an only child. They’re not from around here; they come from Strood.’

‘Where’s that?’

‘Part of the Medway Towns – it’s across the river from Rochester.’

‘So, what was Kayleigh doing in Dover?’

‘She moved out of the family home when her mother remarried. According to the stepfather, they hadn’t seen Kayleigh for three or four years.’

Ed waited while Jenny negotiated a roundabout.

‘If they’d lost touch with the daughter, what were they doing at her flat in Dover?’

‘They had an arrangement. Ever since Kayleigh left home, her mother has paid for a mobile contract. In return, Kayleigh promised she would always call between 5 and 6 p.m. on the 21st of every month. When she hadn’t called by 6.30 today, the mother tried to call her, but she couldn’t get through to Kayleigh’s phone. This had never happened before. She got increasingly worried and finally insisted Tony drive with her to Dover. They had a key to the flat, let themselves in and found Kayleigh dead.’

‘Poor woman – to find your child like that must be an unimaginable experience,’ said Ed.

The two detectives drove in silence, each with their own thoughts, until Ed added, ‘We’ll know more when we get the post-mortem report and hear from forensics.’

Gina tried to turn over in bed but couldn’t; something was holding her right arm. She pulled. It tightened round her wrist. Now fully awake, she opened her eyes in time to see the Decorart man loop a cord around her other wrist and pull it towards the head of the bed.

‘What the … You bastard! ’

Anger, not fear, rose within her. Colin was standing by the bed. She kicked out, but he stood back and her struggles tightened the cords at her wrists.

‘Gently. Don’t mark your skin. The cords are velvet-covered but even so you’ll not want them too tight. Struggling is pointless. You’ll not escape.’

‘You bastard. Let me go. You promised not to come in here.’

‘I said I wouldn’t wake you. I’m sorry that I did. Please don’t struggle. I don’t want you to hurt yourself. You must see that it’s pointless to struggle.’

Gina saw this only too well. The man who called himself Colin Smith stood at the foot of the bed with two more cords. Unless she could talk him out of it she would soon be spread-eagled, arms and legs stretched to the four corners of her bed.

‘I know I’m in your power. You don’t need to tie me down.’

‘Ah, but I’m afraid I do.’

‘Why? I accept that you’re stronger. I know I can’t escape. You said you didn’t want to hurt me. I trusted you, but now you’re doing this !’

‘More to the point, Georgina, how can I trust you? I may be stronger, but I need to sleep. You must see that it would be foolish for me to leave you unrestrained while I slept.’

He bent, swiftly looped a cord round her ankle and secured her right leg to the foot of the bed. Moments later, her left leg was also tied.

‘Don’t struggle or you really will hurt yourself. I’m going for a short walk to clear my head. Don’t worry. I’ll be back soon to get some rest. I suggest you do the same.’

Gina heard him walk to the outer door. A key turned; the door opened and closed. She pulled at her bonds. They were secure. Her fear returned. Left alone in the flat she felt more afraid than when he was with her. What if he didn’t come back? She’d starve or die of thirst.

Immediately, Gina felt very thirsty. Her mouth was dry. She turned her head to look at the bedside table. The near-empty glass of water was still there, but it was impossible to reach. She closed her eyes, trying to put water from her mind. The dryness in her mouth intensified. With her body stretched to the four corners of the bed, her arms and legs began to ache. She longed to turn on her side, to pull up her legs and wrap her arms around her knees.

Eventually, Gina heard him return and she feigned sleep. The dryness and thirst had disappeared. His footsteps came to the bedroom door, paused and moved through to the sitting room. Despite her bonds, she felt reassured now that he was back. She was no longer alone. He would come if she called.

Although she felt safer with Colin in the apartment, Gina was still struggling to come to terms with the horror of her position. Screaming and shouting for help had achieved nothing; he’d calmly waited for her to stop. Clearly, he was confident that no one would hear her cries. With no one immediately likely to come to her aid, and no one who would raise the alarm for at least a fortnight, she had to do something. To do nothing left Colin in control. Do nothing and any change would come from him. To improve her position, she had to know what best to do. Despite her ambivalent feelings of safety and threat in his presence she must get him talking. She needed to ask questions and use his answers to formulate a plan.

Tomorrow morning she’d make a start. She’d try talking with him at length. How did he know so much about her? How did he organize getting into her home? Despite her desperate situation, part of her really wanted to know and she was certain he’d enjoy revealing how clever he’d been. Her interest would flatter his ego. She must steel herself to play a game, act a role, gain his confidence and find a weakness, a weakness that would offer a means of escape.

Tied to the bed, half dozing, half planning, it slowly dawned on Gina that her best chance of escape, probably her only chance, would involve submitting to his desires. She cringed at the thought of him touching her. Her mind recoiled at the idea of submission. Nausea threatened to overwhelm her as she fought to keep images of the likely scenario from her mind. She knew she could disengage during the physical act, but the horror of the experience would remain. In taking her, possessing her, he would rob her of her self-esteem. She might choose submission as her safest option, but it wasn’t a genuine choice. The choice had been his. By engineering this situation, he was forcing her to do something her whole being screamed against.