He’d have Dani then. No. He’d have Danielle Stevens. What would he do with her? Would he rape her? No doubt. Would he keep her for a few days? Or would he fear getting caught? Would he take what he wanted from her—whatever it was—then kill her? Would he do it quickly? Or would it be slow…torture?

Like Jan had endured. A quick image flashed through her mind…the mass of bloody, sticky hair, the broken fingers, the knife wounds on her arms, her legs, the slash across her cheek…the dull, cold eyes. Only it wasn’t Jan. The hair was blond. The eyes, blue.

She clenched her fists into tight balls. No. Not again. It would not happen again. She turned slowly, seeing Dani watching her. She relaxed her hands, then took a deep breath, letting it out slowly before going to her. She stood behind the chair, resting her hands on Dani’s shoulders.

“It’s going to be okay,” she whispered.

* * *

She heard the quietest sound…almost no sound at all…yet it was. She glanced over at Harper, who held a finger to her lips. Harper’s head was tilted, her gaze fixed on the adjoining doors. The door on their side was opened, leaving only the small, thin door from the other room between them…and their stalker.

There…she heard it again. Her heart was pounding, the loud beats deafening. She gripped the gun tighter, but her palms were damp with nervousness. Harper took a step toward the door, which she’d left slightly ajar once she’d killed the bathroom light. Harper held her weapon at her side as she stood there quietly, listening. She slowly turned her head toward Dani, motioning for her to stay back. Dani nodded, acknowledging her request. She was nearly paralyzed with fear as it was…she had no intention of moving.

She literally jumped in her tracks, however, seconds later when Harper slammed open the door, banging it against the wall as she burst into the other room. Dani stood on the threshold of the two rooms, her eyes wide as Harper struggled with a man…his white clown face glowing eerily in the dark room. He threw Harper against the wall, then tackled her to the ground. Dani held her gun up, but her hands were shaking so badly, she couldn’t even attempt to fire it. Harper rolled them over, only to have him kick her off again. It was then that Dani saw the knife he held. Without thinking, she ran forward, ripping the old lamp off the table and hitting him with it.