The attack came out of nowhere, and it came with lightning speed. And I had to assume this was a male because he was really, really strong. A sack of some sort had been shoved over my head, a thick, scratchy material that smelled strongly of farm—straw, animals—and it was tightening around my neck. Was that rope? Or piano wire?I couldn’t see what was going on around me. I was in total darkness. My hands instinctively went up to defend my airway. I recognized the coarse texture of garden twine.I tried to get a few fingers between it and my throat, and failed. Was this really how I was going to leave this world—strangled to death in my own home without even a hint as to who would do such a thing to me? And why?Abandoning efforts to throw off the noose, I punched wildly, first above, then behind, scared now. My right fist made contact, but not very effectively. One arm was wrenched behind my back.I tried to land a hard and solid kick but met with dead air.My heart was beating a mile a minute, I couldn’t breathe, and I felt myself falling sideways, not sure if I was disoriented from lack of oxygen or was experiencing vertigo from the bag on my head.
