<div style="text-align: justify;">The pain on Melinda's ankle was excruciating, to match the mind-numbing pain on her ribs. The pain on her ribs had nearly caused Melinda to faint, but the acute pain caused by Thomas' kicks on her ankle made her wake up a little more. She would have preferred to stay unconscious for what was to come, but apparently not even this little bit of mercy was granted.<br/><br/>The kick she gave Thomas was a movement prompted by pure instinct. There was no way she would have done it - and probably infuriated him further - if her mind was working properly. But at this point, instinct had kicked in and her only thought was to survive. <br/><br/>When Thomas pushed back, leaving those marks on her skin, Melinda took a moment to at least breathe. Maybe those could be her last breaths, so she might as well enjoy them and make them good ones.<br/><br/>The sight of the knife made Melinda cringe. That was it. He was going to kill her. His threat was pretty clear. She could either spread her legs - which was out of the question - or die. Death it was, then. "Never", Melinda repeated faintly. After these words, she closed her eyes. It would be for the best that she didn't see what was about to happen.</div>