My heart began to pound again. I was scared.
“Hello, copper,” she said. “I’ve been waiting for you.” She closed one eyelid in a gruesome wink. “I’m going to kill you,” she went on, in a stage whisper.
“No, you’re not,” I said, bracing my feet against the bars. “I’m going to get you out of here.”
She sounded off with her crazy, high-pitched laugh. It sent spiders’ legs up and down my back.
“They won’t let me out,” she said. Her smile was sad and cunning. “They know what I’ll do to them. I’m going to do it to you.” Her face tightened, her eyes narrowed. “I’m going to tear your throat out.”
I got my feet against the bars, and suddenly heaved back-backwards. I broke her hold and I fell against the wire screen, slid to the floor.
She glared at me, beating her hands against the bars. As I struggled to sit up, she flopped down on her knees, grabbed my ankle. I kicked at her with my free foot, but I couldn’t reach her because of the bars. She held my ankle between her two hands and hauled. I choked back a yell of fright as I felt myself sliding across the rubber floor. I grabbed at the wire screen, but she jerked, breaking my hold. She hauled me towards her like a landed fish.
I kicked and twisted, but I couldn’t get my leg free. The raddled old woman was watching, giggling with excitement.
“She’ll cut your heart out,” she whispered to me.
Sweat ran down my face, and I struggled and writhed in blind panic. There was something about the mad woman’s face and the way she laughed and muttered to herself that scared me silly.