The Price of Fame - KJ1 Read Online Free PDF Page B

roll away, but he managed to slice her right shoulder. Blood immediately poured from the wound but, furious, she ignored it. Pushing to her feet she smashed him in the stomach with one of her long legs, following that with a knee to his groin. He howled in agony, and she used that opportunity to kick the knife from his hand. As he recovered and reached for it on the ground, she stomped on his wrist so hard that she could hear the bones snap. Just as she was about to take a shot at his head with her foot, a local policeman came running up, his gun drawn, warning the man to move 28

    The Price of Fame

    away from the weapon and lie face down on the dirt. He cuffed him and looked up into cerulean blue eyes.
    “Are you all right?”
    “Yeah,” Kate sighed. “But there’s a woman over that way a little,”
    she pointed over her shoulder, “who may not be.”
    “I’ll radio for an ambulance right away, backup should be here shortly.”
    “You worry about him, I’ll see what I can do for her.” And with that, Kate already was streaking back toward the path.
    She looked around for a moment, trying to locate the woman, before spying the reflective tape on the back of a pair of running sneakers. And then she realized why she had had such trouble spotting her: the victim was curled into a tiny ball, lying huddled near where Kate first had encountered her and her assailant. She was in the fetal position, with her arms wrapped tightly around her knees, which were pulled up to her chest. The sight broke the senior’s heart.
    She moved quickly, but carefully, trying not to traumatize the woman any further. Bending down, she began speaking softly to her.
    “It’s okay. You’re safe now.” When she got no response, she tried again. “Can I just get a look at you, see where you’re hurt?” Again, nothing. Kate didn’t want to add to the woman’s misery, but she knew she had to get a better handle on exactly how far the scumbag had gotten and whether or not he had cut her with the knife. In the position the victim was in currently, she couldn’t even see her face.
    “Hey, I only want to help you. He can’t hurt you anymore, I promise.
    Please.” It was a plea. The woman began to rock back and forth as if in mute comfort. Kate decided she had to make a move; she simply couldn’t chance waiting any longer. Reaching out tentatively, she touched the woman on the back. The traumatized victim lifted her chin inches from its position tight against her knees as if noting someone else’s presence for the first time. Kate gasped.
    “Jay,” she cried. “Jay, is that you?” All the while her mind was praying that it wasn’t the young woman whose face had been visiting her in her dreams for months. Oh, God, not her. Tears sprang to Kate’s eyes.
    She gently wrapped an arm around Jay, who flinched involuntarily at the contact.
    Although she was stung by the reaction, Kate refused to pull back.
    “Jay, honey, are you hurt? I need to see. Can you straighten out your arms and legs so that I can see where you’re hurt?”
    Seeing a flicker of a response, Kate continued her coaxing. “I just need a peek, Jay, then I won’t bother you anymore, okay?”
    With tremendous effort, but without looking up, Jay loosened her death grip and dropped her arms to her sides. Kate moved forward 29

    Lynn Ames

    instantly and, as gently as she could, examined Jay to determine her condition. Bile rose to her throat as she noted the ripped blouse, the cut bra, the half-opened jeans and the scrapes and bruises that liberally covered her chest and abdomen. She could see the swelling on the young woman’s jaw and the beginnings of a bruise there, as well as her split lip. She noted the bruising around Jay’s nipple, too. God, she wanted to kill him.
    Kate didn’t want to ask the next question, but she knew she had to.
    Softly, circling Jay with her good arm and stroking her blonde hair, she asked, “He didn’t penetrate you, did he, honey?”