THE REVENGE OF MIGUEL BAIN

by Deena

"God, I hate shopping!" CC eyed the can of cat food in her hand and wondered for the millionth time why she had insisted that she come into town for supplies. Then she remembered the real reason. She needed time away from Miguel to take a look at what she had gotten herself into. She needed a breather from the intensity of Miguel's presence. Never would she have thought that she could have become so tied up with someone so….cold blooded. Now, here she was shopping for groceries for their little cabin in the woods!! Sheesh!

"I think you will really like the Sheba brand much better, bitch! It's Pearl's favorite!" The knife -like voice of Bobby Rath cut her ear like the sharpest blade.

"I don't know what you're talking about, buddy." She tried to brazen him out. "If you don't mind…." She made as if to get away from the voice hissing behind her, when she felt a gun poking her in the side. Looking down she could see that it was concealed by a rolled up magazine….the latest issue of "Latina," she thought.

"You won't hurt me, Rath. It would draw too much attention to yourself." CC hoped he was still rational enough to realize this. His next words sent a chill through her.

"You think I care now, after what you bastards did to Electra? Sons of bitches, the only good thing that has ever happened in my life!"

"Hey, Rath, we didn't kill her. She did that herself! We weren't driving the car."

"But your boyfriend was driving the car that was chasing her. Well, I really don't care if I kill you here or somewhere else. I think you want to live, though. At least long enough to try to warn your lover that I'm on his trail, right, bitch?" The gun prodded her side again. CC knew he was right.. The longer she stayed alive the more chance she'd have to warn Miguel.

"What do you want from me, Bobbieee?" She couldn't resist. He may have been holding the gun, but she could still draw blood with Miguel's teasing way of calling him.

"We're going to go to my car and you're going to make a call. I'll think of some other things later." His mouth was so close to her neck she could feel his lips move as he spoke. She shuddered at the thought that he might want to use her to drive Miguel crazy with jealousy. Would he even feel jealous? At least he would feel possessive – no one played with his toys.

She let him lead her to the back of the store and the spot where his car was parked.

"How did you recognize me?" CC asked, stalling for more time.

"You're somewhat unforgettable – especially when you go clambering down mountainsides. And Bain, well, I needed only to ask the one female CalTrans worker if there was a man with the crazy woman who went skittering down the cliff. She remembered you were both together, to her regret. So, now, no more questions. Get in!"

She obeyed him swiftly now. The sooner she did what he wanted, the sooner she could figure out a way to get away from him.

"Call. Dial his number. Now!"

"Where the hell is she, Cyber? She is way overdue! Damn! I knew I should not have let her go by herself. Mierde! She will drive me to an early grave!" Miguel paced the small cabin as he had for the last half hour. He had sensed that CC really didn't want him to go with her. In another life he would have thought that the reason was that she was going to betray him.. Now, he knew that she needed to be alone for a while. He trusted her enough to give her that space. And look what had happened.

Again he stared at the phone on the wall of the cabin, willing it to ring. It did. He grabbed for it.

"CC! Where the hell are you? What the hell is going on?"

There was a moment of silence. Then a voice that he knew so well spoke.

"Tell him, bitch."

"M….Miguel? It's Rath. He … I was stupid! I'm so sorry.. I.." There was a sound of pain, quickly muffled. His hand gripped the phone so hard, he thought it would shatter in his fist.

"The bitch can't even follow a simple direction. Hell, let me tell you simply: I've captured your queen. The next move is yours."

A click followed. The dial tone that emitted from the black plastic in his hand broke the spell Rath had created. Miguel stared at the curved piece in his hand and with a burst of rage, yanked the instrument out of the wall, flinging it across the cabin and straight out of the window. Papi shrieked as it flew past his perch. "Watch out, asshole!" he screeched, opening up his wings, and dancing on his swing.

"Damn you, Rath! And damn you, CC for making me care what happens to you!" He turned to look at the big dog snarling at unseen villains, Miguel's tone of voice alerting him to invisible enemies surrounding them.

"He must be heading our way, Cyber. Somehow he's going to try to make CC bring him here. It only makes sense. Well, Anticuado will see that he cannot just come waltzing to me and expect me to dance with him to his tune! We will make ready for him, si?" He patted the faithful hound's head. He had a lot of work ahead of him. He had to be prepared…….

"I see why you retired, Anticuado. You really are stupid." CC's voice from the back seat was quickly driving Rath insane. She wouldn't shut up. And he needed her to guide him to Miguel. He longed to kill her. If only to keep her quiet! He thought once his confrontation with Miguel was finished, he would perhaps cut her throat – a fitting end for the talkative bitch. He turned to the backseat.

"Cut the chitchat!" Where had he heard that phrase before? No matter. The bitch piped down..if only for a moment.

"You've given Miguel plenty of time to prepare some surprises for you, Rath. Did you think he was going to sit on his ass wringing his hands worrying about me? You're a fool if you think he really cares that much about me. Hell, he may even have left the cabin before we get there!" CC prayed that she was right. That he didn't care enough to stay and try to save her. The thought of him getting hurt or dying for her savaged her soul. Please, Miguel, she thought, let all the things you said to me be a lie. Don't be there when Rath and I arrive.

"I think we're taking the long way around to get to this shack of yours. Are we? If I find out we are.." he snarled.

"What are you going to do? Kill me?" she mocked. "Go ahead…. And you'll never find Miguel." Her taunting voice drove him perilously close to the edge. He swung around and back slashed her face. She could feel the blood trickling down from her lip where his ring cut it. "Every mark you put on me, Rath. Every mark, he's gonna make you pay." She pricked him again.

"Just shut up, damn you! Where's the next turn?"

"That cut off ahead. Turn right really sharp." She tried pointing with her bound hands, but found it awkward. He had used a leather thong from the shirt he wore to tie her up. Even if her hands were free, her little .22 caliber pistol that Miguel had given her was in her purse sitting in the grocery cart back in town. But she wasn't totally defenseless. Rath was slipping – he hadn't even thought to search her. If only she could get to the knife hidden in her ankle high leather boot. She had to get away from him.

"Perdicion!" Miguel swore again as the claws darted through the grill work on the cat carrier. "Almost got me, you she devil!" Pearl's snarls sounded like the revving up of his motorcycle. He had to feed her something to keep her quiet. A bowlful of milk laced with the Valium he had found in the medicine cabinet should do it. The problem was to get the bowl in close enough proximity so the willful creature would drink it. He bent down and placed the bowl on the floor with the carrier nearby. This would require some fancy maneuvering. Open the carrier door and quick, get the bowl inside. Slowly he put his hand on the latch and raised it up. Before he could slide the bowl inside the carrier, she was off! The fluffy feline darted across the cabin floor, jumping on top of Cyber's back and driving her claws into his tender hide. With a lurch of surprise, the canine heaved himself up from his favorite doggie bed and shook his body bewilderedly. Like a flash, the cat was leaping for the broken window of the cabin. Moving with a speed Miguel had thought was reserved for cougars, Pearl went flying into the forest. Papi squawked a stream of curses as his afternoon rest was disturbed.

"Mierde! CC will kill me!" Suddenly , he stopped. If CC had been there she would have felt her heart melt as Miguel let loose a laugh that seemed to come from the depths of his belly and filled the cabin with unbridled merriment. Miguel saw again the cat leaping on top of the dog's back and the great parrot screeching its head off. Ah well, one less distraction to worry about. He turned back to making a welcome for his former colleague.

"Shit!" Rath banged his hands against the wheel of the now useless car. The last turn CC had him make turned him directly in the path of a downed tree. The speed at which he was driving served to ram the hood of the car into a myriad of thick branches. They'd have to go on foot. Insane with rage, he got out of the car and wrenched CC's door open. "Get out! Get out! Get out! Get out!" His voice was shrill, the hold on his temper slipping further, making him more and more careless. When they got closer to the cabin, she'd make her move.

The shades of twilight began to settle over the woods. A purple sky jeweled the air. Rath held the gun pointing to her back as he pushed her along the path she'd indicated that they had to follow. The branches smacked his face as they moved further into the woods. CC's eyes darted left and right as she noted landmarks in the gathering darkness. There, the clump of fur rubbed off from one of the coyotes that hunted just out of range of the cabin. They were getting close to home now. She hoped to hell she had given Miguel enough time to either leave her or put out the welcoming mat for Rath.

"We'll have to camp here for the night. I'm not going to go stumbling around in the dark making enough noise to alert Miguel. The moon is bright, but not bright enough for me to try to follow this so-called path you have us on. Sit, bitch…and shut up." Rath threw her down with a shove hard enough to cause CC to fall to the forest floor. Her blouse was in tatters and the smooth skin of her shoulders and face were marred by numerous tiny scratches. Somewhere along the way, she had lost the top button to her shirt and it hung partially open, revealing the tops of her breasts encased in a plain white sports bra. Wearily, she rubbed her face with her bound hands. They were starting to tingle.

"I have to go to the bathroom, Rath." CC whined. "Untie my hands."

"I don't think so, bitch," Rath snarled. "You can move ten feet away from me behind that bush. I want to see the white of your blouse. You move out of my sight, I'll come after you and kill you."

Sighing, CC tripped over to the sparse ground cover. She turned her back to Rath and silently slipped the knife from her boot. Now, she had to wait for an opportunity for him to get near enough for her to cut him.

"You done yet?" He called. "You better get your ass over here now or I'm coming over there myself."

Quickly, CC pulled up her pants, thanking the powers that be that she had stuffed a tissue in her pocket. She came over to where Rath was sitting on the trunk of a fallen tree. He motioned to her to sit down against the still upright dead oak a few feet away from him.

The moonlight poured down on the silent duo limning their forms eerily. He sat mutely, staring at her, taking in the torn blouse, the smooth skin marred only slightly by dirt and fresh scratches. She couldn't help it. His silence began to unnerve her. Her breathing became erratic and her pulse started to accelerate.

Rath looked at CC's straight black hair. It looked almost blue in the glow of the moon. She stared back at him. He could see the cut on her lush lips. The blood had dried on her mouth. He got out his handkerchief and spat on it. Pushing himself off the rough wooden seat, he walked over to her.

"I'm going to wipe off the blood from your face," he said softly.

CC looked up at him. From where she was sitting, his crotch was directly in view. He was aroused. She could see the bulge in his pants. She knew if she let him get close to her he would try to rape her. But she had to let him. She had to let him get close enough for her to cut him. She tensed. She couldn't let him think she was just going to allow him to waltz over to her without any complaints.

"Don't do me any favors, Rath. Just keep to your side of the clearing and leave me alone." She let her voice tremble just a bit as if she might be afraid of him. Hell, she was. He was that close to the edge. He might just rape her and kill her and try to find the cabin on his own.

"I can't figure. Why did you save the cat?" He stood there for a moment, still looking down at her. The moonlight came from over her shoulder and showed a face hollow eyed and wild. The hanky shone white in his hand.

"I'm an animal lover, okay? Besides, we knew you'd want something of that bitch to remember her by." She grinned up at him, dangerously taunting him. She had to get him close to her and off-guard. Get him angry, CC, she told herself. It worked.

He strode over to her quickly. Grabbed her by the torn front of her blouse and drew her up to his face. She could see the rage in his eyes flaring wildly like the flames of a volcano. She could feel his hot breath on her face. He took the hanky and roughly wiped off the dried blood, so roughly that he started a fresh stream trickling down her chin. He smiled showing his teeth and slowly bent his head towards her, his tongue snaking out from between the pearled visage as he licked his lips.

"Let me just get that for you," he purred.

Everything seemed to happen at once.

A mewling cry filed the air as a small bundle of fur launched itself at Rath's back. CC slashed upwards with her knife, cutting him across the neck and face. He screamed, jerking back away from her. The cat, as if glued to him, clung to his shoulders as he danced away from CC, clutching at his face. The blood streamed from between his fingers as he tried unsuccessfully to do three things at once: draw his gun, get the cat off his back and staunch the blood. CC wasted no time but took immediate advantage of his predicament. She ran.

The dawn was just beginning to blush the sky when Miguel was finally satisfied that he had done everything he could to strengthen the cabin's fortifications. He had covered the broken window with some stray pieces of wood he'd found in the storage shed, probably shelves for some future project of CC's. The brush around the cabin had been cleared away. Anyone coming up to it would have to cross an open area. In the back, he had placed some trip strings strategically between trees. He'd hear if anyone tried to sneak from behind. Now all he had to do was wait.

Had Rath killed her, he wondered. The thought cut him. He had let her come too close. Now she was a part of him. Now she was his weakness just as Electra had been Rath's. Would he act as crazed if he found out that Rath had killed CC? Unawares, a snarl crossed his face. He would. He'd kill him. He'd put that gun to his head, but first he would make him suffer. He would make him scream for that final bullet. If he had touched her…raped her..The snarl turned into a smile of evil pleasure. He'd stuff his balls in his throat. He sat in the chair that he had pulled near the door thinking about how much he had changed since meeting the ebony – haired beauty. She was as tough as he was, but when they made love, Dios! She was like a tiger – and he had the scars to show for it. He sobered as he thought that he might never feel her claws on his back again. A noise! Instantly, he was alert, his gun at the ready. He peered out the window at the cleared area. A slim form came bursting into his range:

CC. She was back.