Dark Screams, Volume 1 by Brian James Freeman Page B

Grimacing, he shook his head, while pressing the palm of one hand to an ear.
    Katy started yelling for help, hoping someone would come from outside the vault. The sound hurt the guy. He shook his head in the same way a dog does when it hears a whistle that’s so piercing that it causes the animal pain. All of a sudden, he stopped chasing me. He wanted rid of that awful sound. Once again, I found myself dragged behind loco-man as he lurched in the direction of Katy. He’d deal with her first. I knew that as sure as the sun will rise tomorrow.
    Katy knew that she was his next target, too.
    “Oh, God. No…no, please, no.”
    Just thirty feet or so separated the woman from her executioner. Katy tried to break the chain that secured her to the metal housing of some machine or other; however, the links were far too strong to be broken by human hands. She couldn’t run away, she couldn’t fight him. But she knew she must do something other than wait for the metal bracket to smash her skull. Quickly, she scrambled up onto the metal casing, which was around five feet in height. What she hoped to gain from doing that I just didn’t know. The chain that shackled her to the box wasn’t a long one. Perhaps she hoped she could keep squirming around on top of that casing, and avoid him until help arrived from outside.
    Some hope. When Goliath approached, she lay down on the flat top of the box and kicked out at him. He tried grabbing her ankles. She kicked again. This time he caught hold, but she managed to wriggle free, leaving him with one of her shoes in his hand. He tossed the shoe into the river.
    Of course, I was dragged along by the man. I couldn’t avoid witnessing what he would do to this squirming, shouting victim. And he hated Katy’s screams. From the way he kept shaking his head and scowling, that piercing shriek tortured his eardrums.
    “John…John! Stop him. Don’t let him hurt me.”
    “How?”
    “Find a way!”
    “I’m so sorry, Katy. I’ve tried. The man’s unstoppable.”
    Goliath made another grab. She slipped free…just. But she was stuck up there on the metal box. Within seconds, he’d get hold of that creature that inflicted pain on him with its screams. Once he’d got a firm grip on her body, then…well…he could do whatever the hell he wanted to.
    Katy worked her way across the top of that block of metal. Meanwhile, the man circled around to the other side, where he could catch her.
    Katy shouted, “John! Now’s your chance!”
    “I’m sorry. There’s nothing I can do.”
    “Yes, there is. Push him into the river!”
    “I’ll drown, too.”
    “You won’t, John. Believe in yourself. You can do this. You can save us.”
    Goliath snatched the hem of her dress. He dragged her toward him, grunting with lusty excitement. His eyes blazed with anticipation.
    “John…please!”
    “Katy, listen. I’m John York. Remember my name!”
    Goliath had a firm grip on her dress now. He hauled Katy toward him. That’s when I finally understood that she’d deliberately maneuvered the big guy into this position. Right now, he was just a step away from the channel where the black liquid roared. I eased myself closer to Goliath. Katy chose that moment to kick out at the psycho’s face. I thought:
Okay, it’s now or never.
I threw myself out into the river, clutching the chain in both hands, and hoping that my weight would topple him off balance.
    I hit the piercingly cold water. The chain snapped tight, almost breaking my wrists. I opened my mouth to yell in pain, and the river slammed through my lips. That water felt as hard as a fist. I came to the surface as Goliath toppled in after me. His huge body made a tremendous splash. I tried to stand, but my feet didn’t hit bottom. By this time, both of us were trying to swim. He was also doing his best to punch my face to a bloody ruin. The force of the current, however, thankfully prevented him from landing blows with his usual bone-cracking