Disclaimer: I only own Emily
Warning: Rated M, for abuse and adult content.
Feedback: A little constructive feedback would be nice. For my new readers, I hope you enjoy and for those of you who read the old version, I do hope you like this one better. Please let me know.

**WARNING: MAC GETS HURT. YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED.**

The absolute worst pain in the world is the feeling of hopeless resignation. That moment when you know that you have no choice in the matter and that your only exit is death. When death is a better lover than the one who violates your very senses. Death's skeletal fingers pleasure every inch of your anatomy and his chilling kiss gives you silent sanctuary. Although you are afraid to call him and beg him to whisk you away on his pale horse, you know that your destination will be peaceful. But just how do you call death? Where do you send his invitation? Can death even pull you out of hell when the devil already laid claim to you? Is he more powerful than this demon? Would they fight over you? As she lay in the dimly lit cavern, Emily began to see death as a prince in shadowy, flowing robes. His arrival meant her freedom. Although Mac had decided that she belonged to him, she very much doubted he would contend with death.

As she lay there crying in the silence of the dimly lit cave, she listened for the sound of death approaching. But there was nothing, Mac had been right "no one knew where she was." When he said that, perhaps her knew that even death would not dare venture this far into hell. They named the town Caineville but by this point, Emily knew better. She also knew that the violence she had already experienced, was only a fraction of the pain Mac would introduce her to. She just wanted to go home. To sit in her New York apartment and watch the glowing headlights pass beneath her window. The smell of the city now paled in comparison to the chemical air she continued to inhale.

Emily caught herself fantasizing about home and about smashing in her publisher's skull. A twinkle of hope began to grow in her belly, the damn speck refused to completely die. 'God damn it Emily quit!' She not tried to crush her own hope because she knew it would only get her into more trouble. 'You need to accept your fate.' The voice in her head sounded like Mac suddenly. No matter what, she would not give him what he wanted. So she sighed and slowly closed her eyes. To this day, she still could not understand her next move.

In her mind, Emily began to picture death on his white horse, sitting at the caves' entrance. Two red equestrian eyes glared at her from the darkness and the white beast snorted in disgust. Even death's horse disliked this place. The rider sat atop the creature, skeletal hands gripping invisible reigns and his robes seemed to flow against a non-existent wind. He was the first to speak, his voice was gravel on metal and it boomed all around the valley. When he spoke, the whole canyon erupted with the howl of coyotes.

"Why have you called me to this place?"

Emily swallowed as his cold chill swept over her. But she did answer him.

"I am ready to leave. Take me please."

For a few minutes he said nothing. The sound of his horses hooves slamming against the ground, echoed just as loud as his godly voice.

"No. It is not your time."

"Please...I don't want to die at his hands."

The horse snorted, jerking against it's reigns but Death kept him steady.

"Then you have two choices, lay there until he returns. Or escape and fight for your life. I am gravely insulted that you would call me here for this. Death is not a taxi service to escape from your problems. If you attempt suicide, I will leave your soul here. So, make your choice Emily."

Before she could respond, the stallion reared up and the neigh that left his mouth sounded like a thousand agonized screams. Then she heard Death depart back into the other world of shadows. Emily slowly opened her eyes and looked around. She was still alone. There was a new feeling that filled her body. It numbed her pain, fear and was stronger than hope. Mac would tire of her, she knew this. The question was, when? Would she really allow him the satisfaction of dumping her lifeless body in the desert? Death's voice ran in her head '...fight for your life...'

Even Death (or her figment of Death) told her to fight for her life. So again she thought about him dumping her mangled body in the desert. The careless way he tossed her aside, like an old broken toy. It played in one endless loop. This image played over and over, until her mind could no longer stand it and she screamed in her head. 'HELL NO!' Emily pulled at the nail that held her wrists to the floor. The darn thing wouldn't budge. She knew that she needed a better angle. With a sigh, she gathered all her strength before kicking her feet above her head and propelling herself into a backwards somersault. Emily slammed shoulder first against the wall, but she was far too focused to notice, pain had become an after thought. Now she crouched over the nail and gripped it with both hands. She grit her teeth and with an almost scream, pulled hard. The chain on her wrists cut lines of red into her flesh and blood began to trickle down her palms. But she pressed on, using her leg muscles to push herself up as she slowly pulled the nail out of the ground.

A Valkyrie cry escaped her lips when she finally freed herself. She threw the nail across the room in defiance of the restraints that once held her. Emily let out a grunt of disgust before she began gathering up the chain. If she had her way, she would beat that abusive bastard within an inch of his life.

"Come get some Mac."

She wanted him to show up now so she could whoop him the way his mother should have. Her mind filled with thoughts of what he had done to her, what they all had done to her. The heartless way they turned her over to him, knowing what he would do. And then the way he treated her like an object. She belonged to no one! She especially did not belong to him! Emily wrapped part of the chain around her hand, leaving just enough hanging so she could beat him senseless.

"I'm not scared of you anymore."

The truck roared to a stop in front of the cave, perfect timing. She felt her nerves light on fire but not in fear, instead they were a rush with anticipation. At least the dark rider had taken one thing from her. The door on the truck slammed so hard that she could hear the entire cab rattle. Emily stood beside the mattress, ready to attack. Screw defense, if he was going to hurt her anyhow, then she wanted to make her suffering worth it. Besides, Mac would expect her to act defiant for a few moments and then cower beneath him after he had beat some more sense into her. Then she would beg for her life and the cycle would repeat. Not this time. If this did not bring him down and he got his hands on her again, the bastard would surly have to kill her because she would not beg. She would not shiver or shake for him either. The nerves of her nose twitched in angry disgust as she grit her teeth together, trying to stifle the scream resting in her throat. Mac's voice pierced the air before his figure ever came into view.

"You dumb bitch. Ch'a gonna fight me?"

"Fuck you limp dick! You ain't gonna have me, not this time."

"S'at so?" He sounded amused.

Mac slowly swaggered into the light and she loosened the chain so she had more length. When he stepped toward her, she swung the weapon and managed to catch him just below his right eye. He stumbled backward and before he could gain his footing, she swung again. Emily didn't stop hitting him. The chain cut bloody gashes across his exposed flesh and welted everywhere else.

"You wanna hit me! Huh?!" She screamed furiously.

Without warning, a hunched over Mac caught the chain, pulling her quickly toward him. But she was ready for him. When she was close enough, she slammed her knee into his nose, shattering it with a satisfying. After she broke his nose, he let go of the chain. Emily balled the rest of it around her fist before punching him in the back of the head. Mac collapsed to the ground in pain. She used the opportunity to kick him in the ribs and stomach, until he was spitting blood.

"How do you like it asshole? I got boots," She landed one last hard kick to his ribs. "TOO!"

There was something sadistically satisfying about seeing him cough blood and writhe in pain. As she stood over him, watching him twitch, she began to pace back and forth. She never once took her eyes off of him.

"Did you think I would just give in? Or give up?"

Mac coughed more blood before pulling teeth from his gums and throwing the black dots into the dirt.

"You're...gonna...beg-"

"Save it! I'm done with your shit Mac. You, Walter and that bastard Harley can all go to hell."

Emily crouched down to look at him.

"I'm going to get the old man first, then officer pretend. But don't worry Mac. I'll come back for your ass...I got something real special planned for you."

Emily turned from him and headed for the cave entrance. The first thing on her list was to find new clothes. Then she would need a vehicle if she was ever going to get out of this place. 'Now, where would they have taken my bag?' She knew she would have to search Walter's, Mac's and the police station. That last one would be a bitch. She had no idea where it was and then there was Harley. Or 'Deputy Morgan' as he like to be called. Oh, he would pay just as bad as the rest of them. Who was this girl? She definitely was not the same woman who had driven into Caineville. This chick could stomp Anthony under one heavy boot. In fact, she now enjoyed the sight of other people's blood. The coward was dead, her inner coward. Even if he did catch her again and beat her beyond recognition, she would still tell him to 'go to hell.'

She wanted to fight someone, anyone. So, she headed toward the Luna Mesa. What had better get his shotgun ready because she had plans for his old ass. There was no urge to hide from them, they would expect her to do that. She was going public with this and she was bringing the fight to their doorsteps. Emily paused in her trek and back tracked to Mac's truck. The passenger door was still unlocked, so she stole the bottle of Jack Daniel's, one of his dirty rags and his zippo lighter. There was one way to draw the rat from his hole and get a vehicle. First, she would search the bar and then...the real fun would begin.

The desert was endless night and without her flashlight she was at risk of walking off an unknown cliff. Or worse an encounter with the coyotes that so frequently roamed this wasteland. These things used to make her paranoid and would have made her want to just give up. But that person had died somewhere back in that cave. Maybe death had taken her after all, the part of her that really needed to succumb to death's enticing kiss. Somehow she felt stronger, more defiant. If she did happen to meet one of them along her journey, she would be more than happy to show them the error of their ways. In fact she wanted them to confront her because she would be on them before they could even move to grab her. 'Please, oh please be that stupid. Come on, I wanna do this.' Emily cracked her neck subconsciously and tightened her grip on the chain. There was something highly satisfying about whipping someone with a string of metal links and hearing it connect with their flesh. The thought made her grin a wickedly and march more defiantly toward the bar. She could just picture Walter trying to confront her and her not giving him any time to try anything. That bastard would be bloody and beaten before he could open his mouth to speak.

As the violent, vengeful thoughts circled around her mind, the bar came into view just above the next large cliff. She smiled as she made her way down it and walked across the road, daring anyone to come out and get her. Hell, at this point, Harley could pull up and point his gun at her, she would not give a damn. That was what it was, she no longer gave a damn. 'Go ahead and shoot me asshole. Beat me bloody. I don't care. You're all shit under my feet.' Emily grabbed the door handle on the storm door and yanked it open. There was nothing keeping her from getting into the building and as far as she could tell, it was vacant. So she headed into the back of the bar where she had seen Walter come from the night she showed up begging him for help like a fool. In the very back of the bar she found a bedroom with one queen sized bed in the corner, a dresser and a lamp still on. 'He must have left in a hurry.' She set the Jack and chain on the floor before she quickly searched the room, throwing random objects all over the place. So what if he knew that she had ransacked his place, come get her if you have a problem with it.

After a few moments of searching, she found what she was looking for. In the very corner of his closet, under a pile of clothes, she located her book bag. Emily was quick to unzip it, toss on a new pair of panties, black jeans and a black tank top. In the very bottom of her bag, she had stuffed her black jacket she had purchased a few years ago. It would have to do for now, so she slipped that on and grabbed her other items before heading back out into the main room. Another wicked smile spread across her face as she set the chain down and then set the Jack on the table. Then she unscrewed the cap on the bottle, pulled the rag from her pocket and tore a thin strip of fabric. She lay the chain over her shoulder so she could pull the zippo from her pocket. As she drew her finger across the wheel, activating the flint and bringing the flame to life, she said something. It was to no one in particular but it seemed befitting for this moment.

"You wanna fuck up my life? Let's see how you like it asshole?"

She brought the flame to the fabric and let it burn for a moment. When the flame was nice and high, she threw it just behind the bar where she knew the rest of the alcohol was kept. Then she grabbed her chain from her shoulders and ran like hell. The flames quickly spread through the wooden building as several bottles of liquor could be heard exploding behind her. Emily tore ass across the road and jumped behind a large boulder that was no where near the main road. It was the perfect place for her to watch the destruction spread through the building and to see the look on their faces when they discover their favorite bar is now a ball of fire. She giggled a maniacal little giggle to herself before turning to watch the entertainment. Emily wanted to encounter them and to end each one of them but not just yet. Like a good movie, timing was everything.

The sound of sirens echoed through the canyon as a single police car with lights blazing came tearing down the road, followed by a dirty blue truck. The cop car fishtailed to a stop in front of the bar, nearly causing the truck to nearly ram into the side of him when he hit his breaks. Walter and Harley poured from their vehicles and then the air erupted with profanities at the sight of the building almost fully engulfed. And Emily, oh she grinned a grin of satisfaction. Score one for her. It didn't matter if they killed her after this or Mac beat her within an inch of her life, she would always have this. It would be enough of a victory that she could tell them to 'kiss her ass', even as she choked on her own blood. When Mac finally slid out of the truck on the passenger side, Emily slapped a hand over her mouth because she began to giggle hysterically. There he was, the man who used to terrify her, and now he was holding his ribs. The white gauze bandages were highlighted by the flicker of the orange and red flames that were now consuming the roof of the Luna Mesa.

They looked around as if they thought that she was dumb enough to be standing anywhere within their line of sight. Every man reacted a little differently to the situation. Officer Morgan slammed his fists on the hood of his cop car before throwing his cowboy hat to the ground and kicking his own tire. While Walter just held his hair in fistfuls and watched his lively hood go up in flames (literally). Mac on the other hand just stood there, staring at the bar with disinterest. Either he really didn't care about what happened to that place or he was too doped up on pain killers to comprehend anything. The idea that he had to take pain medicine to cope with what she had done to him-was satisfying. Of course, he could be planning what he would do to her if he got his hands on her again. That was alright with her, she wanted to have this out. Some part of her now begged him to come after her so she could reteach him the lesson she had already given him. But next time, it would be so much worse than before. As he was plotting (if he was) she herself was also thinking of what she might do to him next time. Still, she knew it would have to wait. If she could get out of here without having to kill someone, that would be alright as well.

When she decided they were distracted enough for her to sneak to Mac's house and see if she could find an extra set of keys. She would have liked to get her hands on a cop car because it would make things a little easier. For one, she would have a shotgun and access to a police radio. The radio would mean Harley could not sneak up on her without her knowing it and no one in their right mind is going to pull over a cop. It would be smooth sailing all the way out of Caineville. Once she drove far enough, she could ditch the cop car and find a phone to call someone to come get her. Before she pulled herself away from her hiding spot, Emily whispered something.

"Fuck you and your piece of shit bar."

This wasn't the type of thing they were meant to hear but it made her feel good to say it. With the first part of her plan executed, she melted back into the shadows of the desert. It would be nearly impossible to spot her in this darkness, especially if she stayed away from the road. Time for part two of her plan...