Karen Lindly sighed as she leaned back in her chair. She crossed her leg to rest her right ankle on her left knee, slipped the heeled shoe from her foot and began to rub it as she closed her eyes. She'd been working inhuman hours doing legal research for an upcoming case, and at 28 years old, was unable to pull the long hours with little or no sleep like she used to.
Karen exhaled deeply, lowering her foot back to the floor and smoothing her skirt out over her thighs. She looked around the brightly-lit floor. The law offices and cubicles of Ridley, Scott, and Brewster empty save for her. She began to gather her things, packing her expandable briefcase with papers, briefs and court documents. She glanced at her gold wristwatch and frowned when she noticed that time had once again slipped away from her. There was no way that she was going to the gym this late at night. Eleven thirty was too late to be running and doing even light sets of weights.
Karen shook her head as she hoisted the long briefcase strap over her shoulder. She had only started helping with the research in order to impress the junior and senior partners, show them what a valuable team player she could be. Somehow she had gotten stuck with doing the majority of the grunt work.
Karen stretched her back as she double-checked her desk and made sure she was not forgetting anything. Karen ran her hands down over her jacket, smiling as the fabric was pressed smooth against her body. At least missing her workouts hadn't begun to effect her yet. Her stomach was still flat, contrasting deliciously with the swelling of her breasts and the curves of her hips. Walking and running thirty minutes a day saw to it that her legs were still well toned as well.
All in all, she thought as she strode towards the door, she was pleased with her body still. She reached up with her left hand, flicking the light switch down to kill the lights. She smiled as her wedding band and diamond glinted in the light and then disappeared along with her reflection in the window. For a second she didn't recognize herself. She found herself admiring the image of the woman in the window. Light brown curly hair that seemed to flow down to her shoulder blades. Her suit jacket accentuating her natural curves, showing the generous swelling of her breasts underneath as it flared down to her hips. Her skirt hugging her hips tightly, showing the outline of her ass, the curve of her thighs as it extending down to just above her knees. The beige pantyhose underneath doing their best to massage her legs with energy, she was able to feel her thighs as the muscles tensed underneath the thin fabric, her calves as she moved her feet.
She knew her husband was still pleased with her body. He proved it every chance he could get, and he had lately been dropping hints about having a child. Karen really wanted to make junior partner first, before the added responsibility of children was added to her load. Hopefully after this case, about six more months.
Karen shifted her feet as she waited for the elevator. She got on and pressed the button to take her to the top level of the parking garage. Since I'm not working out today, she thought, at least I can walk down the two flights of stairs to my level. Her hand unconsciously went to the top of her briefcase, to the zipper pocket that contained her cell phone and the can of mace. Her fingers rested lightly on the can of mace as the elevator doors opened. Karen glanced out, then walking to the enclosed staircase. Though she wasn't really worried, she had heard enough stories that she preferred to be cautious.
She approached the staircase door, the small wire mesh window in the center of the door was dark, but Karen didn't notice that as she glanced at a nearby shadowed alcove. Walking quickly, she opened the door and stepped through, her right heel clicking on the concrete.
Karen gasped lightly as she felt a hand close tightly over her right wrist, pulling it away from her briefcase and her further through the door and onto the landing at the top of the stairwell. The hand kept a grip of her wrist, turning her around, twisting her right arm behind her back. She opened her mouth to yell, to shout for help, when she felt a rough hand clamp over her mouth. She was pulled back against an obviously male body, her arm across his stomach and her back against his chest, as it registered to her that this level of the stairwell was pitch black.
The man behind her shifted his weight, his foot moving to push the stairwell door closed, extinguishing the last beam of light into the stairwell.
Karen felt the man behind her, pushing her forward, walking her forward with his body against hers, until she felt the iron bars of the protective railing pressing against her, the uppermost one against her stomach.
Karen's mind was in a haze of urgency and panic. Who was this! Omigod, what were they doing!
As she felt the cool bars of the railing pressed against her stomach, waist and thighs, her instincts began to respond. She wanted to rake his shin with her foot, spear the top of his foot with her heel…but her ankle was pinned by his foot and one of the vertical bars of the railing. Bite! she thought.
Karen opened her mouth, prepared to feel his fingers – and hopefully blood - between her teeth, when she suddenly felt his breath in her ear, and heard him whispering softly to her.
"Stop struggling, we can't afford to make any noise. We're not alone here….listen." The man's voice in her ear then fell silent.
His quiet words stopped her for several seconds. Enough time for Karen to realize that something was very wrong this evening.
The stairwell extended below her into the lowest level of the parking garage, eight flights down. Karen was slow to realize through her initial panic that most of the lights in the stairwell were out, except for the lights on what looked to be about the fourth floor. The light was bleeding up from that level as Karen's eyes slowly began to adjust. She was blinded, though, to the levels below the fourth floor, as anyone below the fourth floor would be blinded to the levels above the fourth floor.
And there was someone down there.
Karen could hear it now, sounds that she couldn't make out before due to the pounding of her heart in her ears. But the sounds….what?
The man kept her pressed against the railing for what seemed like an eternity, but was in reality less than a minute, as Karen slowly began to recognize the sounds. As she did, she thought of her cell phone and mace in her purse which was not trapped by her right arm.
The sounds that drifted up from below, from what seemed like the lower-most level, were haunting. She could hear the heavy breathing of exertion mixed with the deep voiced orders being given by different male voices. But the most haunting sounds were female.