A/N: Warning about a few words and descriptions in this chapter. I love vulgarity so so much, but I know some people get iffy so I'm just giving you a heads up.
You know what I want to see on GMW sometime in the future? Lucas and Farkle cross dressing to get into a secret girl's club or something to spy on Maya and Riley! That would make my life! Hahahaha Lucas dressed as a girl will kill me.
And finally, sorry if this chapter is all over the place. I restarted writing it three times before I felt I got it right and even then when it was done, I didn't like it so I rewrote it all over again. Even now, I'm debating rewriting it again. Basically, this chapter was a bitch...
I love you all! Thanks for reviewing! :)
Disclaimer: I do not own GMW otherwise Maya would be kicking asses for real.
When Maya was on the cusp of womanhood, she and Riley had watched a procession of whores being herded and marched over to the mayor's mansion for a town council meeting. They had traveled from the saloon through the streets of the town and all the way out north where the mayor's mansion was located. Each woman, dressed provocatively, walked regally, heads held high as the town folk stood on each side of the street, jeering and shouting profanities and insulting every single one of the women.
It was a shaming process. A way to tear down the confidence of the women and remind them that they were nothing in their town as long as they remained tethered to their debts.
She and Riley had been told not to ever participate in the dastardly mocking with the other townsfolk by Topanga. She had told them to always respect these women, because they had been dealt a rough hand in life and the fact that they were still standing, even through it all, was plenty enough reason to respect them. A profession did not make a person, Topanga had said. The younger Maya had written off Topanga's words, not particularly caring, but also not interested in shouting at the women. Indifference was pretty much the only thing she felt. She had vaguely wondered why they couldn't just leave if their lives were so hard at the saloon. She hadn't known any better back then.
If someone had told the younger Maya that years from then she would end up dressed like them—hair curled wantonly, face caked with provocative makeup, lips bright red and demanding attention, sultry and tight black dress barely covering her tits, and unbelievably high heeled boots on her feet—waiting in an abandoned stable to join said procession into the mayor's mansion, she would have laughed in their face.
But here she was.
And standing, watching the horizon for them to arrive from inside the door of the stable, Maya suddenly felt wholly exposed and nervous and ashamed of herself, and she was only standing in front of two men. She couldn't imagine what it must have been like for those women who had to make that trip time after time after time and endure the hatred and caustic sassing and mockery from all the people in town. She vaguely wondered if perhaps one time… she'd seen her mother but never known…
Her fists clenched.
"Does your uh… does your horse bite people?" Billy asked nervously, watching Clutterbucket warily as the horse bucked and snorted at him. "You okay, Maya?"
"A little nervous. But ready as I'll ever be, I suppose." She nodded, finally turning away from the lantern illuminated night and facing him.
"For the record, you look like a whore, if that makes you feel any better."
Maya's face pinched, and she gave Billy an incredulous look, "Not really…"
"That was supposed to be a compliment!" He quickly clarified, realizing what he had said. "Your disguise is really good. I almost didn't recognize you when you rode up."
"In that case, thank you."
Maya felt pinpricks against her neck and goosebumps rising on the exposed skin on her body. She sighed and turned around, feeling Lucas was watching her. He was casually leaning against the wall, chewing on the end of a blade of wheat, eyes resting on her. She couldn't tell what expression he was wearing on his face.
"Why are you looking at me like that?" Maya said, her cheeks flushed a light shade of pink. She still had a very vivid memory of the kiss he had given her, and it was making it harder to look him in the eye. Why the hell had he kissed her?
"I'm just surprised to see you actually looking like a human, and not some wild animal." He replied in monotone, sea-green eyes dancing.
Maya's eyes narrowed, and she turned to Billy, "After we're done with this shit, I'll never have to see his stupid ass again, right?"
But she noted that his comment had killed any nerves that had been plaguing her. She felt more confident, like this mission wouldn't be so difficult. Damn him for knowing what to say to quell her fears. He pissed her off.
Billy laughed and patted her back in support, "Good luck, Maya."
And then he peered out the door and nodded, "They're coming. Get ready to leave."
She walked back to Lucas unsteadily, a little unstable on her feet from the tightness of the dress. He watched her with a raised eyebrow, arms crossed over his chest.
"It's every man for himself, you got that? I'm not going to save your ass if you get shot by someone." She said, trying to quell her racing heartbeat. She really hated his gaze… It made her feel like he knew everything she was thinking.
"Likewise, Maya."
She bent low and took her bayonet out of her garter before handing it to Lucas, "Here. Take this."
"Don't you think you should hold on to that?"
"If he gets his hand under my dress, he'll be suspicious as to why I have a weapon in the first place." Maya said bluntly, "It's better that I don't have one at all."
"Let's hope it doesn't get that far then." Lucas said softly, taking the blade and pocketing it in his holster.
Maya licked her lips nervously and nodded.
"They're almost around the bend. Now would be a good time for you to head out, so they don't see you hopping into their line." Billy said from behind her.
"Alright." Maya said at length, turning away from Lucas with a last lingering look, "I'll head out then…"
She took a deep breath, preparing for something she knew would be a turning point in her life. She just had to remember that this was only a minor obstacle on her path to officially reuniting with her mother and finally getting the life she had dreamed of. All she had to do was get a key. A key that could be on the mayor's person, but a key no less. As long as she remembered that, she could keep her nerves at bay.
"Maya." Lucas said.
She turned back around.
And he took her face in his hands, capturing her lips without prelude. Nothing could have prepared her for it. Eyes drifting shut, she could do nothing but grab the lapel of his jacket and pull him closer, loving the body numbing, toe curling sensation of his lips against hers.
What the hell was she doing?
When he pulled away, Maya teetered on her feet, breath taken from her and her lips plush and swollen and cheeks flushing. She blinked up at him in confusion, trying to ignore the way her heart was hammering in her chest with reckless abandon.
"Don't die." He whispered, that annoying smirk back on his face. "Otherwise we can't elope."
"We aren't actually going to elope!" she sputtered indignantly, flustered by his actions.
"I know." He let go of her face and straightened, the smirk gone and in its place a genuine smile that managed to flip Maya's stomach completely on its axis, "Hurry up and go before you ruin our chances. Again."
Maya scoffed and gave him a dirty look, before turning around to leave and join the other women. As she walked out of the door, Billy gave her a smug, knowing look and raised eyebrow.
"Shut up." She quickly said, trying to ignore his hearty laughter.
And then she walked rapidly through the underbrush and dead bushes to the end of the line, joining the rank of girls walking to the porch of the mansion. She knew she should have been seriously focusing on her mission and what she should do once inside, but she couldn't help the smile tugging on her lips.
And then they reached the porch. The first girl in the line knocked on the door, and Maya sobered, knowing the real challenge was starting now. Time to get to work.
~.~.~
It seemed the town council meeting, while supposed to be about work, in the first hour, focused mainly on play, drinking, trysts and debauchery. After all, what would be a town council meeting of some of their town's most vile and lewd men without other women for them to have affairs with? Maya growled in disgust as she watched the inn keeper's husband pull one of the whores onto his lap and bounce her up and down. It was an atrocious sight, and she was glad women were not allowed in councils because seeing this abomination would probably infuriate several of the married ones.
She stood back and thought out her plan. She had gotten inside, but now came the difficult part. Maya knew above all, her job was to make herself a convincing and attractive whore, but not to any of the other men. To the mayor and the mayor alone. If someone else desired her and she refused, that would cause major problems because the women were not allowed to refuse servicing any of the men.
While many of her companions were already seated on various men's laps and being fondled inappropriately, Maya focused on making herself a little bit invisible, or at the very least, keeping herself mostly out of sight of any unoccupied men who looked three sheets to the wind or very aroused.
The other unoccupied whores were to be hostesses until they were plucked from the group by one of the men. They were treated like cattle, being eyed and circled by the men, forced to endure their harassment until the man decided he wanted to brand her. It was disgusting.
So Maya did not hostess either. She rested near a corner of the living room, trying not to draw any attention to herself and keeping out of everyone's general line of sight. From her position, she had the perfect view of Mayor Jed's position and movements. He had been eyeing some of the girls for a while, but seemed to have lost interest and rejoined the conversation with the men he was conversing with. He wasn't attempting to pick up any of the whores, which meant that he was available. And he had drunken just about enough that he was not fully alert or aware. She had to give it a shot. It was now or never.
"I guess that's my cue to go…" she muttered under her breath, pushing her tits up so more cleavage could be seen and fluffing her hair so it could regain its promiscuous bounce.
Maya stepped away from the wall and recognized Winny, the youngest of the women there that night. She was acting as a hostess, hands shaking nervously and eyes downcast as she carried two glasses of ale in her hands. Winny did not look comfortable in the least. She was headed in the direction of the mayor and his group. Maya sauntered over to her quickly.
"Winny, can I take those for you?"
The girl frowned in confusion, watching Maya as if she couldn't quite pinpoint where she'd seen her before. Maya wondered if it was because she and Katy vaguely resembled each other or if Winny slightly recalled her as Micah.
"I-I can't…" she hesitated, averting her gaze.
"It's okay. I know you're scared of the mayor." Maya said softly, looking around quickly to see if anyone had noticed them. The women were not supposed to converse with each other. Conversation could result in them getting punished with the jurisdiction of the punishment given to the men who had bought them. "Let me take those to him for you. You won't have to make contact with him at all."
Maya had guessed her fear right and with a grateful look, Winny shoved the ale in Maya's hands and turned quickly to attend to other guests. Maya mentally celebrated her victory in her mind and then spun on her heel to continue on route. This had to be done fast. She had to go through the parlor to get to the mayor, and unfortunately, Cory was sitting in the parlor with a few of the other more honourable townsmen, politely turning down any women who approached him. In addition, Maya was not accustomed to the art of feminine walking and was aware she did not have the same graceful finesse when walking like the other women. That was a sure cause to draw attention to herself if she didn't get this done quickly. Sure, she had picked up a few tips from watching Riley be the ideal woman over the years, but without practice, it didn't do much.
She slinked quickly through the parlor, lifting up one of the drinks to cover up her face as she walked by the group Cory was conversing with. She did happen to catch the eye of one of his companions though, who squinted in confusion, as if he couldn't quite place who she was. She gave him a coquettish and devious smile before turning her head and continuing on her way.
She approached the mayor's entourage carefully, and then realized she had no idea what to say. And the matter became even worse when she saw Clint standing in the circle with the men.
Fuck it all!
What the hell was he doing in a town council meeting?! With a defeated sigh, she realized he was taking over his father's farm come winter. Of course he'd be here in place of his father.
There was no way he would not recognize her. Especially after having had supper at the Matthews place the night before. Maya had been practicing putting on her mother's make-up and hadn't had any time to remove it before supper. So if anything, Clint could probably recognize her, even with this outlandish makeup lathered on her face.
She shuddered in disgust, remembering how he had tried to kiss her at the end of the evening, though she'd firmly told him no and avoided it. He had called her a whore and had insinuated that she was spreading her legs for Lucas. Maya had given him a swift kick to the shins after that, and he'd left in a stormy mood, but not before telling her that once he married her, he would tie her to the bed and whip her until she submitted to his will. She shook her head in disgust. He was revolting and a terrible person. At least one good thing about Riley thinking Maya wanted to marry Lucas was that she had forced seating arrangements so that Clint could not be next to Maya. So Maya hadn't had to deal with his lewd gestures and inappropriate fondling all night.
But it wasn't like she could just turn around and go back into the parlor. Some of the men had already seen her approach.
"Well who do we have here?" One of the elders asked, a look of lust crossing his face.
Everyone turned to her, and she tilted her head down, looking at the ground so her general features were indistinguishable.
"W-would anyone care for some ale?" she tried to disguise her voice as best as she could, making it sound meek and humbled. Her usual bold, audacious manner of speech would not do in this situation. Clint would pick up on her voice.
One of the men took one glass from her without a word.
"I'll have the other." Clint said, shifting in his position and taking it from her. His hand trailed softly against hers as he took the glass. She growled in annoyance under her breath. Even from her downcast eyes, she could easily see he was eyeing her exposed cleavage with lots of interest.
"I like the tits on this whore. Reminds me of my bitch." Clint drawled, licking his lips perversely. Maya fought the urge to drive her heel onto his foot. She was absolutely not his bitch. "Think I'll take her for a test ride."
Fuck!
Her plan would be totally destroyed if she didn't find a way to make him lose interest right away.
But before she could come up with anything, the mayor took her wrist and pulled her aside. "Actually boy, I think I'll be taking her for the evening. This girl is a virgin." He sneered disgustingly, "Just my type."
Her skin crawled in disgust when he touched her. This pig of a man was most likely the one who personally deflowered the new whores at the saloon. The exact type of clown who would get aroused by demure, innocent women.
"If you'll excuse me gentlemen."
Without another word, he turned around and tugged Maya away from the others, further into the mansion. His hand was all but squeezing the life out of her wrist and cutting off her circulation. He was rough and a little brutal and for a quick second, Maya's pulse skipped in trepidation when he didn't bother slowing his pace even though she had tripped.
He dragged her up the stairs in the corridor and pushed her harshly into a room, walking in with barely concealed malice in his features and closing the door behind him.
"Tell me. Have you ever been touched by a man?" he asked in amusement, a mocking lilt laced in his words, looming over her predatorily. "I can smell the virgin in you."
Maya knew he was of tall height and wide girth, but for the first time in a long time, she found herself really cursing her small stature. She hadn't realized just how imposing he really could be.
"I'll break you into this line of work nice and easy."
She looked up defiantly then because his words sounded like something Clint would say, and she would be damned if she let this ass licker touch any part of her. She took a small involuntary step back when she saw his hand reach out toward her. It was an unconscious reaction, and she mentally cursed when he rose a brow in amusement. She wasn't supposed to be Maya. She was supposed to be the new person subjected to a life of prostitution in the saloon. The dark haze in his green eyes turned almost menacing.
"You seem familiar." He chuckled, removing his watch and a few of his rings, setting them on the table nearby. The jagged scar on his right cheek almost looked like a creepy extension of his mouth. "Now where have I seen that expression before…"
And that was when Maya saw a key. A key dangling from the empty holster hidden behind the lapel of his jacket. A small silver key that looked like it could open a door. Of an office. He was scrutinizing her curiously, that same dangerous look in his eyes, and Maya knew if she wanted to snatch the key and salvage this plan, she had to do something drastic. She needed to distract him. And there was only one way.
She stepped up to him fluidly, stood on her toes and forcefully pressed her lips to his. Eyes on his the entire time, she continued to walk forward, even when his hands landed heavily on her waist until she had pushed him against the bed. He fell back, dragging her on top of him. He tasted of stale beer and pungent cigar smoke. His tongue was revolting and his hands on her bum made her wish she still had her knife so she could snatch it out and stab his hand with it. She tried to imagine it was Lucas and his soft and gentle lips underneath her and not the dirty brute who she was attempting to seduce. Maya felt entirely stupid for using Lucas' image, but it was the only thing that could keep her from vomiting in disgust at this unfortunate turn of circumstances.
But her distraction was working. She carefully slid her hand through the little gap and snuck the key out from his jacket. Pulling away from the kiss, she quickly sat up and hid one arm behind her back.
"I-I need to use the toilet." She said, trying to put that innocent warble back into her voice.
He looked a little stunned at her, and she knew she had definitely gotten the right reaction out of him, judging by the slight bulge in his pants, but he nodded slowly nonetheless, eyes narrowed and trained on hers. Maya vaguely wondered if anyone had ever rendered him speechless before, but she kept a smile from coming on her face. She was a little smug and proud of herself for her ability to seduce someone even though that had been the first time she'd ever kissed someone. Well, technically the third, if she counted Lucas' stolen kisses.
Maya hurried out of the room and snuck back down the stairs, making sure that she stayed in the shadows so the raucous men celebrating in the main hall could not see her. She ran down the corridor past the staircase, hoping so badly that this key would actually open the door, because despite Lucas' warnings, she had forgotten to wear any pins in her hair to try to open the lock if the key didn't fit. At the end of the corridor, like Lucas stated, there was a door with a long scratch on the brass doorknob, as if someone had taken a key to it. She still wanted to know how he could have possibly known such a distinct detail, but she pushed it to the back of her mind and shoved the key into the lock. It twisted without problem and the office door was unlocked.
Cheering triumphantly in her mind, Maya made her way in. The office was lavishly furnished with a comfortable leather chair resting behind a shiny oak desk. It looked almost exactly the way Lucas had described it would, save for the disgusting portrait of Jed hanging behind the desk. Whoever had painted the portrait had made him out to look trim and quite benevolent. The green eyes of the portrait just didn't reflect the malignance that seemed to drip from Jedediah's very character. As she headed over to the farthest window, she wondered whether Jesse Carson had looked quite similar to his brother when he had been alive.
Grunting in effort, Maya pried the window open and leaned out, whistling with two fingers for Lucas and Billy. She knew they should have been somewhere in the area.
"All clear, Maya?" Billy asked, popping his head out of the brambles underneath the window.
She nodded, reaching down to give him a hand up. With a bit of effort, they managed to get his hands on the sill, and Billy hoisted himself up, groaning when squeezing through the window took a bit more effort than he would have liked.
"How's Missy?" Billy asked, reaching out of the window to give Lucas a hand.
Maya shook her head, "I'm sorry. I wasn't paying attention to that."
"That's alright." He patted her shoulder, a little dejectedly. "I guess I'll just hope for the best. At least that asshole Holstein isn't here. He'd use it as a free pass to paw at my woman."
Lucas pulled himself through the window, "We'll get her out soon enough, Billy. And then you won't have to worry about that again."
Billy nodded gratefully, "I know. Anyway, how are you doing right now? You okay?"
It was a question that had been directed at Lucas, and Maya wondered why Billy had asked that in the first place. She glanced at Lucas and grew a little shocked to see that the expression in his eyes was cold and hollow as he took in the room. His lips were pursed when he stared at the portrait. She couldn't tell what he was thinking, but clearly this room was having a pretty bad effect on him. He looked like he was two seconds from destroying everything in the room.
"Just reminding myself that when all this is over, Jedediah Carson will be buried six feet under…" Lucas drawled, something unsettling growing in his eyes and voice.
Maya nudged Billy in worry, and he seemed to have also picked up on Lucas' stormy mood.
Billy laughed nervously and quickly changed the subject, "So Maya. How's everything on your end? Everything good?" he gestured to her disheveled dress and the smeared lipstick and makeup, "Looks like things are going pretty well for you."
Embarrassed and peeved by his inappropriately timed comment, she punched him in the gut with a snarl.
"Shut up, Billy." She said, darting her gaze away from Lucas' inquisitive raised eyebrow.
Billy grunted and bent over, holding his stomach, "You have a mean right hook…"
"Never mind that." Lucas said, facing Maya. His face was carefully inexpressive, but his jaw and fists were so clenched she could see the veins, and Maya realized it was taking him a lot to hold back his previous anger. What the hell was up with him? "You need to get back to the mayor. We'll take care of things here. Get to the rendezvous point through here when you're done."
"I know that." She snapped, "You guys hurry up. As soon as I put that key back, I'm ditching the motherfucker so you better find the shit fast."
Then Maya spun around on her heels and left the office, hurrying back down the corridor to get to the stairwell. She was just a little bit giddy, or at the very least, excited about the prospect of a successful mission. She had successfully gotten the key, and Lucas and Billy were finding any evidence necessary to drive Mayor Jed into the dirt. Her mother would soon be free. All she had to do was make sure she got away safely.
And then she got to the top of the stairwell and froze.
Jedediah was standing on the landing in front of her, arms crossed and a treacherous smile on his lips. His eyes were glacial green.
"Tell me wench." He said, his smile growing dangerously, "How exactly are you related to Katy?"
Before Maya could even react, his arm shot out and grabbed her around the throat, cutting off her air supply. Maya choked, gasping and clawing at his hand as he lifted her by her neck and rammed her against the wall. Pain shot through her body, and she tried to scream, but she couldn't find the breath nor hear her own voice. Her legs were dangling and pulling her down, and with each passing second, she found herself slowly losing her ability to fight. Her vision was starting to blur. Why the hell hadn't she been more careful?!
"And look what's in your hand. My key." he said playfully, snatching it out of her hand. Then the smile dropped off his face, and he got in her face. "Let's have a chat and maybe if this all goes well, you won't have a bullet in between your eyebrows."
Then he dropped her unceremoniously on the ground, and Maya heaved in heavy breath, rubbing her neck and trying to clear the haziness that had crept in the corner of her eyes. Before she could fully recover, Jed grabbed her by the hair and yanked her backwards, dragging her back to the room. Maya screamed and gripped her head, trying to diminish the pain.
He slammed the door shut and pulled her up slowly. Searing pain running through her head, Maya could do nothing but follow his will. He wrapped his thick arm around the front of her neck, holding a knife she hadn't noticed in front of her face.
Maya struggled against him, her voice raspy from the pressure against her throat. "Let me go you piece of shit!"
"I've heard that one before…" he chuckled dangerously, directly in her ear, "I don't know why I didn't see it immediately. Your resemblance to my Katy is uncanny. Are you her sister? Or daughter perhaps?"
"She's not your Katy!" Maya shouted, scratching at his arms.
"I own her." He barked with laughter, "I've defiled her and marred her and torn her up and fucked her until she was bleeding, and there's nothing she could do but crawl on her knees and come back for more."
"Shut up." Maya's lower lip trembled in rage, and she closed her eyes, her breathing coming out harshly.
"Over and over and over and over and all she can do is spread her legs like the whore she is and let me have my way."
"Shut up!" Furious tears pooled in Maya's eyes, and she ground her teeth together, "Shut the fuck up! It's your fault you dirty prick!"
"But of course." He said with pride, as if his worst offense was taking someone's horse, "I will never forget the day I laid eyes on her. Can you imagine? An Easterner comes to live in my town with an absolutely beautiful wife. It was simply criminal for him to keep the loveliest woman of all the hags in the town to himself. Of course, I myself wanted her. And there was no way I was going to pass up that opportunity. So I did what I do best and got rid of him."
Maya let out a ragged scream and thrashed about, fighting with everything she had to get free. She was going to kill this motherfucker! She would kill him if it was the last thing she did!
"You needle dick piece of horse shit!" she shouted, "I'm going to make you wish you'd never been born!"
"A ridiculous threat, really." He tightened his hold on her neck, and bellowed with laughter, "You're that little girl who used to go sell the milk with Riley Matthews, correct? Maya was it not?"
The knife dropped down to Maya's throat, and she sucked in a sharp breath when Jed pushed the tip slightly into her flesh. She could feel her blood trickling down the front of her chest.
"So what I want to know is why the daughter of Cory Matthews is acting as a whore and stole my key during our council meeting of which he himself is in attendance."
Maya's eyes widened, "It has nothing to do with him! Leave him out of this!" Then she cried out when he increased the pressure of the blade against her neck. She could feel the knife tearing through her flesh, bit by bit, and tears leaked from her eyes. The arm wrapped around her neck was increasing her pain and squeezing more blood out.
"Oh but it has everything to do with him. And I'm going to find out what this plan is." And then she felt it. The unmistakable hardness against her back. He leaned into her, speaking slowly directly into her ear. "Right after I tear your little virgin pussy apart and use your dishonor to get your father's ranch. And his wife. And that delicious, virginal younger sister of yours."
Jed cackled, his frame shaking her with each peel of his laughter, and Maya froze, manic fury pulsing through her veins. She growled under her breath, her chest heaving in anger. It was unacceptable. He could do whatever the fuck he wanted to do with her, but Riley? Never.
With a sharp cry of anger, Maya jammed her heel into his foot and sunk her nails as viciously as she could into his arms until they had pierced the skin and drawn blood. He howled in pain and almost entirely let go of her. Frantically, Maya rammed her elbow behind her at his chest, once, twice, until he doubled over, and Maya swooped out from under his arm. She threw a punch, aiming to get one good hit in and at least slow him down in her getaway.
But her hand never made contact with his body.
In horror, she realized he had caught her punch and was gripping her fist in his hand. His eyes were glinting with loathing and boredom, and Maya's breath caught in her throat when she realized she recognized the dead, empty, dangerous look in his eyes. It was the one she had seen Lucas wear when he spoke of Jed. The one she knew meant business. She tugged on her arm and his grip grew tighter.
"You're a feisty one…" he said, a psychotic look of excitement crawling into his gaze.
He spun her around by her arm, using her momentum to propel her around and then let go, sending her flying into the dresser on the other side of the room. Maya smashed right into it, her face banging painfully against the dresser and her nose directly hitting the edge. She cried out as she tumbled to the ground on her stomach, gripping her nose in pain. Her eyes were throbbing, and she was seeing spots. Maya coughed and gasped, watching as blood trailed out of her nose and onto the ground. She was certain her nose was broken.
All Maya could feel was mind-numbing pain. And there was so much blood dripping out of the cracks between her fingers. Blood dripping from her mouth. Blood dripping from her neck. Blood matted in her hair. Blood drenching her hand.
She was going to die.
She was going to die if she didn't get the fuck out of this mess and now. Her eyes wide, Maya knew she needed help. She had underestimated the mayor. He was brutal and merciless and uncontrollable and utterly violent. For the first time in her life, fear gripped her entire body, and she felt she was way in over her head. She'd been fighting and brawling for several years but never someone like this. Never someone who managed to frighten her to her core. Gasping for breath, still reeling from the pain and spitting out about a mouthful of blood, she tried to crawl to the door. If she could open it and shout for help, Lucas and Billy could hear her and help her. She just had to get to the door.
She reached out, straining with her right hand to pull it open.
Almost there…
She saw the glint of the blade first before she even heard Jedediah move and suddenly, the only thing she could see was a knife stabbed through her hand and part of the wooden floor, pinning it down.
She stared at it in shock and silence for a moment. Her heart was beating in her ears, and she watched as blood seeped and squirted out of the wound, painting the floor red. A dull throb. A twitch.
And then Maya released a bloodcurdling scream of sheer agony as crippling pain shot up her arm. Pain. All she could feel was dizzying pain. All she could register was the pain in her nose, the pain in her hand, the pain in her neck. Tears cascaded down her face and her breathing grew heavy and jilted, and she croaked in disbelief, mouth gasping for breath and body shaking. She couldn't take her eyes off of her hand. He had stabbed her. Stabbed her right through her hand. She had to take it out. Left hand shaking uncontrollably, Maya tried to see past the blurriness of the tears in her eyes and reached out to pull it out.
Somewhere behind her, Jedediah laughed psychotically, letting out manic peels and shrieks of laughter. He straddled Maya's outstretched legs and grabbed her left arm, yanking it painfully behind her back. Maya whimpered in anguish, trying to find the strength to stop him when he pulled her dress up. She was trapped.
"Don't worry." He cackled ominously while unbuckling his belt, "I'll make this nice and easy for you."