The Abduction of Stephanie

Chapter 8

                Helen comes down the stairs carrying chocolate frosting, icing and a big red bow, all the elements necessary for a birthday party. Stephanie, who has been moved from the bed and chained to the wall, again, gives a Helen a puzzling look. Helen removes the gag from Stephanie’s mouth and Stephanie says, “What are you doing?” “Why today is my daughter’s eighteenth birthday party and I want everything to be just right” says Helen. “I can’t believe these people procreated”, thought Stephanie. “Oh I almost forget to get a knife. How are we going to cut the cake without it. Silly me.” Helen sets the cake supplies down on the ground and retreats back up the stairs.         

    When Helen is gone the girl reappears in the television for the third time. “Who are you?” asks Stephanie. “What do you want from me?” The image of the girl suddenly becomes very clear, revealing a woman more beautiful than anything or anyone she has ever seen before, all her facial features are perfect as if she were hand crafted by God himself. The room becomes very bright and the girl says, “My name is Pythia. I am an oracle. The Gods have sent me to guide you on your journey.” “What journey?” shouts Stephanie, but again the oracle disappears without giving an answer.          

    Helen returns with a knife, sets it down with the other cake supplies and walks back over to Stephanie. She unchains Stephanie from the wall and guides her to the bathroom. Stephanie does her business with Helen just outside the door and knows that this is the closest she has come to being free in nearly a week. Stephanie pushes Helen, knocking her to the floor and heads for the stairs. With the old woman still down, Stephanie makes it to the top, she opens the door, where Ray is wielding a knife waiting for her. He grabs her by the throat and says “You’re not going anywhere little lady.”         

     Stephanie feels defeated, having come so close to escaping that place. Ray drags her down the stairs leg a rag doll; her body writhing in pain as each step hits her flesh. He takes her by her blonde hair and drags her across the concrete floor. Stephanie feels a kick to her stomach making it difficult her to breathe, the knife is now at her throat and her life flashes before her, her parents, her friends, her dream of being a singer, it was all going to end. She could feel herself getting weaker as each day went by, there is only so much fight a person has in them and she is about at her limit.       

      Ray still holding the knife takes a paddle to her behind, leaving a furious imprint and causing her behind to feel like an inferno. She knows now that she is going to have to play along to survive. Ray drops the paddle to the floor and removes the knife; Stephanie can feel his hands on her throat making it difficult for her to breathe. He throws her up against the wall, her back hitting it first, and few a few minutes she was paralyzed, unable to move, unable to speak. Ray just stands over her waving the knife and grinning.             

With Stephanie out of commission, Ray helps Helen who is still lying on the concrete to her feet. He puts her arm over her shoulder and helps her to the rocking chair. “Are you ok?” asks Ray. “I’m fine but that little hussy won’t be when I’m done with her.” “You just sit and rest dear and I’ll take care of her.” Ray gives his wife a kiss on the forehead and again tends to Stephanie.      

       Stephanie feels Ray’s rough hands against her throat as he lifts her up from the floor. She is again slammed into the wall and Ray quickly fastens her chains and wrists tighter than he ever has before, Stephanie feeling as if her extremities were placed in a vice. Changing her mind about playing along, Stephanie spits in Rays face. Ray slaps her hard with his right hand, numbing her jaw with pain. “Don’t ever disrespect me or my family again” shouts Ray.          

    On that note Ray returns to the kitchen leaving Stephanie alone with Helen. Helen picks up the cake frosting and limps over to Stephanie. She opens the lid and dips her hand into the chocolate and begins spreading it all over Stephanie’s naked body. “What are you doing you freak?” asks Stephanie. “I told you it is my daughter’s birthday today, what kind of birthday would it be without a cake?” Stephanie is confused, wondering what would possess someone to create a human birthday cake.              The old woman continues to spread the frosting all over Stephanie’s body, up and down her legs and finally onto her breasts, making Stephanie really uncomfortable as she has never been felt up by a woman before. The cold frosting on her skin causes her to shiver and she could feel her nose starting to run. She watches as Helen with chocolate still covering her hands picks up a tube of blue icing.  Her eyes remain on Helen as she writes the words “Happy Birthday” across Stephanie’s stomach. Below that Helen writes the name of a person, probably that of Helen and Ray’s daughter but Stephanie was struggling to read upside down and only could make out the letter A.