"Any last words?" She queried softly, almost sadly, and as she sat down with almost reverent gentleness next to him. After a moment’s hesitation, she took off the cuff nearest to her and she took Joe’s hand, clasping it in her lap, her doe eyes large and brown. The cold metal of the blade pressed against his skin and he shuddered.

"Have you never felt anything, anything at all…in your heart for me?" Joe’s voice was a mere whisper now, his vision blurring for a second with pain and terror. All those times they’d spent together were still fresh in his mind; he simply couldn’t believe that the girl sitting before him was once a gentle and kind. He was never one to fish for people’s sympathy but he simply had to ask. "Was it all…just a front?"

Ignoring the question, she lifted Joe’s hand and studied his fingers. "You know, I’ve always had this thing for nails…"

"Tell me!!!!" Joe’s voice suddenly rose and she calmly looked at him. He wanted to snatch his hand away from her but he was hurting too much. His chest heaved with every ragged breath. Liquid fire raced through his veins. "I trusted you!!!"

She frowned slightly. Then she sighed deeply. "Joe, Joe…" She was about to say something when Joe gasped suddenly, arcing his back in pain. Obviously the outburst had been too much for him. With one hand still bound, he pulled his other hand away from her clasp and clutched his abdomen, curling into a fetal position.

Her eyes gloated as Joe kept on moaning and groaning, his face scrunched up as if in intense pain as he writhed in agony. Then slowly her face broke into a wide smile.

"No…" In the other room, Vanessa did not even have the luxury of moving her arms; if she had at least she could do something, anything; to keep him from climbing up the bed-Clawing his face would be one thing, she thought frantically, but the truth hit her harder than she would have expected. Her arms must really be broken because she couldn’t move them without sending a rush of fiery pain through the muscles. "No, please-"

"You’re begging now, Vanessa?" Craig had one knee on the bed and swung his other leg up. "My little spitfire?"

Vanessa recoiled in disgust when he reached out a finger and touched her cheek. "Get your hands off me!!" she hissed angrily. The thought of him touching her was too revolting. "Murderer!"

"Now, that’s more like it," Craig said in satisfaction. Then his face turned dark and before Vanessa knew it, he was on top of her, pinning her arms to the bed. She bit back a scream of pain as liquid fire rushed up her arms. Somebody help me! Her mind screamed as she bucked and writhed under him, struggling to break free, turning her face to one side when Craig leaned down to kiss her. Faces flashed through her mind in rapid motions; too fast for her to grasp but in the end, one remained. Joe’s. Joe, where are you? I need you..

"Don’t fight me, Vanessa," he whispered harshly in her ear as he snuggled against her neck, his hot breath burning the skin of her throat. "I know you like it…I know you like what I’m doing to you…"

Her eyes flew open. How dare he! Her muscles protesting, she gritted her teeth and turned her face towards his and for one second, it was so close to hers if only her arms weren’t pinned beside her, she would have gouged his gloating eyes out. Instead, she heaved a breath and spat into his face.

Craig cried out in surprise and raised a hand to his face, and the hold he had on Vanessa went slack; and with a mighty burst of strength, she tucked herself into a roll. Her ribs screaming, she managed to scramble down the bed but weakness and pain conspired together to bring her down on all fours. With ragged breaths, Vanessa tried to crawl blindly toward the door but her arms wouldn’t support her weight and she fell heavily to the floor, grunting in pain when her cheek slammed against the hard, carpeted floor.

At that instant, she heard someone scream from the room next door. And to her terror, it sounded so much like Joe.

"Joe!!!" She screamed hoarsely, her voice scratching painfully against her dry throat. "Joe!!!"

She gasped when an arm suddenly grabbed her around the waist and hauled her to her feet. Her knees buckled under her but Craig was fast to grab hold of her and throw her back onto the bed, his face red with anger.

"Just where do you think you’re going?" he asked icily.

"Where’s Joe? What have you done to him? Take me to him now!!!"

Vanessa’s blood ran cold when another long, loud scream pierced the air, followed by moans of pain. Joe! Someone’s hurting him!

Vanessa tried to raise herself on her elbows but she fell back heavily against the pillows, feeling tears of frustration, terror and anger threaten to spill. "I want to see him-Now!!!"

Another loud groan from the room next door prompted a smile to break on his face. "You wanna see him? Fine. I’ll take you to him." He reached down, grabbed her arm and before Vanessa could open her mouth to scream, he jerked it heartlessly, pulling her up to her feet. Tears rolled down her face in rivulets and she bit her tongue to keep from crying out in pain. But she couldn’t help but yelp as he began to drag her across the room toward the door at the other wall, which connected to the room next door.

What she saw next made her heart stop.

Joe was sprawled half-naked on the blood-drenched bed, with numerous cuts and wounds and bruises adorning his bare torso and one hand cuffed to the bedpost. Blood covered one side of his bruised and swollen face, but it couldn’t hide the excruciating pain he was in as he twisted and writhed in absolute agony.

Tessa was sitting on the bed with a large knife in her hand. Vanessa felt her knees go weak again when she realized what the knife was for. Nails. Oh my God. Joe’s nails.

"Just-kill…me…" Joe whispered as pain roared through him in wracking bolts. Tears dripped down his wan face, his eyes glassy as swells of agony ruptured his insides along with the fire that was licking up his fingers.

"I can’t do that, darling. Because you’re not the one I want," Tessa said softly, calmly as she skilfully worked the blade in.

"Wh-" Joe’s voice died and his body jerked in spasms as his eyes glazed and fluttered shut.

Fresh blood dripped to the floor. A low moan escaped Vanessa’s lips and Tessa looked up sharply. Her surprise quickly turned into delight and a smile instantly lit up her face. Throwing the bloodied knife onto the floor, she dropped Joe’s hand. It fell limply down the side of the bed, and blood continued to flow in a steady drip from Joe’s ravaged hand.

"Ah, you’re here. I’ve been waiting for you. Please, do come in and make yourself at home," she said sweetly, but there was nothing friendly in the tone of her voice. Joe was already half-conscious and he could barely open his eyes, much less notice Vanessa. Angered, Vanessa tried to lunge for Tessa but Craig was quick to grab her again and for the second time that night, threw her down onto the bed next to Joe, her breath knocked out of her.

"Joe…" Joe’s face was very pale and slick with sweat, his lips tinged with blue. Oh Joe, what have they done to you? Vanessa could feel her heart break as she drew herself closer to him, ignoring the protests of her muscles as she placed her hand gently on his forehead, painfully aware of the heat radiating through his skin. Joe’s injuries were mostly superficial, probably caused by the crash but she feared that he might be injured internally as well because his chest and abdomen were badly discoloured, as if he had taken a heavy blow to his torso. She laid a tentative hand on his stomach; and her suspicions were confirmed when Joe groaned suddenly. She drew her hand away quickly and Joe groaned again, obviously in pain. Oh no, she thought in horror. Joe needs urgent medical attention.

Tessa and Craig were watching with amused smiles on their faces. Vanessa froze when Craig suddenly spoke.

"How touching. So." He turned to look at Tessa. "What do we do with them now, sister?"

"You’ll do nothing." Abruptly, their smiles dropped and they whirled around slowly. Vanessa’s heart leaped crazily to her throat.