Over and Out...

With a smothered, half-whimpering groan of raw relief, TK squirmed and kicked her way out from under the unconscious kidnapper, scuffling her way backward across the floor until her back rested against the wall alongside the stairway-bottom. Whereupon she let herself slump back against the dirty cement surface, chin falling to her chest with a huffing growl, and eyes closing in weary, hard-earned rest. Only for a moment, she promised herself...knowing that even after that this guy wouldn't be out forever. But if he sprang back up that very instant, like the villain in some bad horror movie, TK knew she wouldn't be able to do much more than just look up at him at that moment. She needed a few moments to get herself back together again. And the consequences be damned.

But finally, after a few moments that seemed to her like an intolerable, unforgivable eternity, TK began to painstakingly force herself back to her feet, sliding upward against the wall at her back, face twisted into a grimace of strain - and pain - as she did so. Once she was upright, she looked down at her downed tormentor with utter loathing burning in her emerald eyes, and had to fight the urge to march over and give him a good, hard kick while he was down. But that just wasn't possible, even had she been intent on actually doing it...her legs feeling like rubber and jello...seeming to require all her attention and energy just to keep themselves holding her upright.

And so, TK stood there for another precious few moments, before finally wobbling fully to her own support, and favoring the stairway with a long, hard look. She gave a tired huff and shook her head, shoulders sagging for a moment in mock despair - before she smirked a bit behind that leather strapping. No way, after all of that, that she was going to let a little flight of stairs stymie her escape from this loony bin. TK steeled her nerve once more - feeling a weary sense of deja vu - and took her first, wobble-legged step toward the wooden stairs.

As she set her foot on the first of the creaking old platforms, the tiger-girl turned back a bit to look down at her defeated enemy. To get one last look at the lunatic who had had the audacity to try to capture and "own" her...and who had come too close for her comfort to doing just that. She shuddered as she stared at him...and then her face creased down in a glare of anger and righteous triumph. If she'd have been able, she'd have favored even the unconscious man with some choice words...but that wasn't possible at the moment. So, the valiant tigress comforted herself with the knowledge that she'd prevailed once again and pressed onward, one shaking step at a time...onward and upward toward freedom. A freedom that she vowed - once she got out of this house of horrors and to one of his neighbor's homes where she could contact the authorities - her villainous tormentor would no longer enjoy...

=== THE END ===


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Well, folks...there you have the end of another one. Really hope you enjoyed it. Was aiming for something a little "different" for TK...thought that the classic "pshycho-kidnapper" might make for a fun and atmospheric villain for our spunky heroine to test her mettle against... And judging by the number of "he's creepy" comments regarding said villain...think the mark was hit, on that front, at least.

And, there have been a few Note-requests for this not to be the end of this particular scenario...that folks would like to see TK's adventure in the clutches of this baddie continue beyond the apparent end that was coming as of "day two". Not sure about that myself - this was intended to be a relatively simple and straightforward story, a single-arc affair rather than one of the "epics" - but if folks would like to see this one lead onward into something more, let me know. Have some ideas of how that could happen...some of which might make for amusing surprise twists... Of course, I think poor TK is definitely entitled to some rest, at least for now...

Any which way, though, thanks for taking the time to look and read along. Really hope it was worth your while and that you had fun with the story. ^^ Next week's project is Shea's first tale...which I'm very much looking forward to. Hope that you'll take a look and make her feel welcome. For now, thanks once again, folks - take care and be well.