Edge of Escape - more extras

Sarah slept with a night light. A pink flower glowed bright enough to give a clear outline of the objects on the floor. Sarah was messy. Eddie felt his stomach tense and the anger he felt toward this particular girl surged. She deserves this, he thought. He was going to be rough.

He stepped over a school bag and a pair of shoes and held the soaked rag near her nose. He counted to twenty and then pressed the cloth directly onto her face. She didn’t move. Another count of twenty and he put the cloth back into his pocket and pulled back the bed covers.

Sarah was light. He cradled her in his arms and tried to imagine that she was his Becky. How joyous he would feel when he got to this part of his plan with the perfect girl. But this wasn’t the perfect girl. This was Sarah, the intruder.

He heaved her over his shoulder and let her head fall against his back. He used his left arm to hold her bare legs and felt for the doorway with his right hand.

Four steps down the hall . . . cross the kitchen . . . out the door . . . careful not to make a noise.

What was he thinking? He had parked too far away. Well, he could just leave her here on the back porch. Experiment done. Practice finished. Rehearsal over. But . . . no, he couldn’t leave her outside.

“Do not panic,” he nearly said aloud. He hadn’t realized how fast his heart was racing or how much his hands were shaking. He stroked Sarah’s legs, as if she were a kitten. “Calm down,” he spoke the words beneath his breath.

Her legs were smooth. He wondered . . . certainly Becky’s legs were softer. Everything about Becky was far superior to this Sarah.

He turned around and re-entered the kitchen, made his way through the small house and left Sarah exactly how he had found her. He pulled the covers up to her neck and bent down to listen to her breathing.

She would never know how lucky she was.
(Excerpt from Extra Scenes for EDGE OF ESCAPE )