I’ll buy her an ice-cream cone, he thought, and grinned.
He unlocked his car, took the flashlight out from under the driver’s seat, then ambled back toward Joan. “Let’s take it slow and easy,” he said. “God forbid one of us should turn an ankle.”
Forty
“How’s it going back there?” Tanya asked, glancing over her shoulder.
“Fine,” Jeremy said. His own voice sounded strange to him—a little whiny, but mean. “Just fine.”
The girl was stretched across the backseat, pinned down by his weight on her belly. He bounced on her, and heard a gush of breath that pleased him.
They passed a streetlamp. Its light swept briefly across the girl’s bare chest. He took off his gloves. He pinched her again, and felt her flinch.
It made him feel good to hurt her, but it didn’t turn him on.
He felt cheated.
Could’ve been great, back here sitting on the bitch. Her hands were cuffed behind her back. Her shirt was open. She was at his fucking mercy.
She might as well have been a guy, for all the lust he felt.
He slapped her. She winced. He slapped her again. “You ruined me, you cunt!”
“Hope so,” she muttered.
He made her cry out.
“Take it easy,” Tanya said.
“What’m I gonna do?” he asked. “You see what she did to me? How’m I gonna go home with my face like this? What’m I gonna tell my mom?”
“Don’t worry about it.”
“God, I can’t go home.” Gingerly he fingered the torn flesh of his chin. Touching the wound brought fresh tears to his eyes.
“We’ll think of something,” Tanya told him.
“Everybody’s gonna know I was in on this. All they gotta do is look at me.”
“I’ll take care of you,” Tanya said. “There’s nothing to worry about.”
“Easy for you to say. It’s not your face.”
“It’s my ass. We’re in this together, Duke. It’s all right. I’ll take you home in the morning and tell your mother that a dog attacked you on the beach. I’m a lifeguard. She’ll believe me.”
Yeah! That might work. He felt a little better. He’d have to come up with a story to explain why he’d left the house without telling her, but that shouldn’t be too hard.
“What about Nate?” he asked.
“He’s deader than shit.”
A horrible keening noise burst from the girl. She began to writhe and buck under Jeremy. He rammed his fist down, smashing her just below the rib cage. The blow made her sit halfway up as her breath exploded out. Then she slumped down again, wheezing loudly.
“She won’t be in any shape to talk either,” Tanya said. “We’ll make sure of that.”
“I’ll make sure of that.” Jeremy twisted sideways and worked on her. She flopped and jerked, shuddering with pain, and he knew she’d be screaming if she had any air.
“Not yet, for Godsake. Everybody gets a crack at her. We don’t want to cheat the others out of their fun.”
“I’m not killing her.” He glared down at the girl. Her head was flying from side to side, lips peeled back as if stretched by fingers trying to rip her mouth wider. “Am I killing you?” he asked her. “Huh? Naw. Maybe just hurting you a little bit. Maybe just a little bit. How’s this feel, huh? And this?”
He felt the car stop.
“Okay,” Tanya said. “We’re here.”
She climbed out and opened the passenger door beyond the girl’s head. Reaching in, she grabbed her under the armpits. Jeremy lifted himself up, and watched Tanya drag her from the car. He crawled out after her.
He shut the door quietly. The girl was on her back, Tanya straddling her and fastening the buttons of her shirt. “Get her legs,” Tanya said.
The girl thrashed, trying to kick him, but he got her legs apart and hugged them tightly against his sides. Tanya raised her shoulders. Together they lifted her and carried her up the stairs. They passed beneath the grinning moonlit face of the clown. In the entryway, shadows closed over them.
Something pale stepped out from behind the ticket booth.
Jeremy sucked a quick breath and froze. He felt the girl’s legs pull in his grip as Tanya took one more step. Then Tanya halted too.
“It’s just me.”
No!
Guilt rushed through him, hot and sickening.
Shiner, standing in the darkness, wore white clothes that almost seemed to glow. Her arms were folded across her chest. The ocean breeze stirred her hair.
She doesn’t know what I’ve done, Jeremy told himself. But her presence was like a brilliant light, and he saw his deeds in that light as sordid and horrible.