***
There was a big hand clamped over her mouth and a heavy weight on top of her, pinning her down. Lisa went from sound asleep to wide-awake in one terrifying instant. It was dark in her room, too dark to see anything more than vague shapes.
“Don’t scream,” a deep male voice ordered in a growling whisper. The hand came away from her mouth. Before Lisa could do anything more than inhale, her attacker stuffed a wad of cloth into her mouth. She struggled, pulling one arm free, and tried to rake his face with her nails. He moved more quickly than she did, grabbing her wrist and pinning her arm down. He slapped her with his free hand, nowhere near as hard as she guessed he could. It was a warning. She lay still, even though her heart was trying to hammer its way out of her chest.
“None of t
