THREE
I TWISTED IN THE MAN’S grip, attempting to knee him in the groin, but he anticipated my move, releasing my neck and jerking me around suddenly. I had time to suck in one large lungful of air before he grabbed my throat again, his other hand immobilizing my arm nearest him. “Where is she?” he demanded.
“She left,” I managed to squeak despite the spots that were once again dancing before my eyes. I tried to get some air into my lungs, but his grip was on this side of fatal, leaving me just barely alive. Desperately, I tried to remember everything I knew about self-defense, but my brain seemed sluggish and slow to cooperate.
“Left for where?”
“I...” I threw myself backward, hoping to knock him off balance, but it was no use. “Don’t know.”
The world swam around me in a nauseating wa
