Note: This story was dynamically reformatted for online reading convenience. He stands silent in the doorway, watching the woman. She sleeps, but not peacefully. Her form writhes upon the bed, tossing and turning violently amidst the sweat slickened sheets. He is given brief flashes of her flesh as she moves, a soft light entering the room's sole window, spotlighting the woman and her bed. He waits patiently, knowing her dream will awaken her soon, this situation all too familiar with him. The newspaper has begun to call him the 'Sandman', as his last three victims were all sleeping. He smiles to himself, the title a source of great amusement to him, before he turns his attention back to the woman. She has awakened now, laying there quietly, sensing that something is wrong, but unable to know exactly what it is. Where he stands the room is dark, the shadows too thick for her to spy him. She shivers imperceptibly, as a cool breeze wafts in through the open window, dancing over her naked, damp flesh. Her gaze flicks back and forth, every shadow in her room now adding to her fear. He moves forward then, stepping from the shadows, allowing her to see him, and the gleaming blade of the knife in his hand. Her eyes grow wide and her mouth gapes as she prepares to scream. He does not allow this, though, moving quickly to her, dropping his weight atop her and crushing her to the bed, one hand over her mouth, the other holding the point of the knife against the hollow of her throat. Her eyes widen further now, her body quivering from her terror. She draws in shallow breaths of air, struggling just to breathe now with his heaviness atop her. He moves his mouth to her ear, whispering harshly, his breath hot as his lips brush her skin. "If you make one sound, one solitary attempt to cry for help, you will regret it. Do you understand?" He pulls back a bit then, watching as she nods. He removes his hand from her mouth then, but keeps the blade tightly against her throat. He smiles now, knowing she will cooperate, as all the others did before. He moves back a bit, straddling her abdomen, his knees pressing painfully against her sides. Her small breasts tremble as she shivers again, watching him, silent tears trickling from her eyes. He removes a pair of stainless steel handcuffs from his pocket, and then holds them up for her to see. He smiles at her involuntary gasp of fright. He then roughly drags her arms above her head, locking her hands together with the cuffs. That accomplished, he slides off of her, using the knife to quickly rip a few lengths of fabric from her sheets. The first make-shift rope he uses to tie her handcuffed hands to the headboard. The second he wraps tightly around her throat, attaching that as well to the headboard. This allows her only minimal leeway of movement, before beginning to choke her. Her tears increase now, quietly sobbing, but no longer actively trying to escape his grasp. He moves off the bed now, standing beside it, his eyes roaming her naked body. He leans forward slightly to remove the sheets, preventing any part of her body from being hidden from his view. He stands there, unmoving, for a couple minutes, merely memorizing this body, knowing his choice of victims was perfect, as always. He then licks his lips crudely, as his hands begin to explore her body. He begins at her feet, tormentingly teasing her with gently brushes of his fingertips, stroking the arch of her foot. She jerks away from his touch, and tries to kick him. He chuckles coldly, before smacking her solidly across the face with a backhand. Her breath draws inward quickly, preparing once again to scream. He does nothing but raise the knife threatingly..it is enough, and her mouth closes again. Her body seems to slump in defeat and her eyes close, as her tears flow more freely now. He nods, as everything goes according to his expectations. His hand returns to her leg, fingers stroking upward now along her calf and then pausing atop her thigh. She freezes then, eyes open wide and staring at him, anger, fear and shame fight for dominion within her gaze, the dark orbs sparkle with unshed tears. He holds her gaze, as his fingernails sink into her soft skin, bringing a pain-filled gasp from her. He smiles again, as he harshly pinches that tender skin. She bites her lip then, determined to not let him hear her scream. His smile widens at this, silently accepting her non-existent challenge. His hand moves upward then, passing above her sex, his fingers lightly touching the taut skin of her stomach, stroking in slow circles around her navel, his eyes never leaving her own. He raises his hand again after a few moments, fingertips brushing the underside of her left breast. He eyes her almost clinically, studying her small, but firm breasts. He toys briefly with her nipple, before giving it a rough pinch, eliciting another gasp from her, but nothing more. He holds the nipple steady between his fingers, and then scrapes it slowly, hard, with his index fingernail, drawing blood and a quiet moan from the girl. His brow arches slightly, thinking she is beginning to enjoy his ministrations. He vows to end that, and viciously twists her nipple, causing her to arch off her back quickly, a loud gasp escaping her lips. He smiles and does the same to the other nipple, gaining a groan for his efforts. He leans down now, changing tactics, and flicks his tongue at her nipple, flicking the pained tip. She moans then, and he smiles, knowing now that she is enjoying this. His tongue traces a moist circle upon her breast, the nipple at the center. He targets it with a series of quick flicks of his tongue, teasingly soft, then begins to stroke it with firm pressure using the tip of his tongue. He watches the reaction upon her face change as his teeth capture the tender flesh of her nipple, nipping lightly, then again, sharply. Her cry of pain and surprise delights and arouses him. His teeth continue to alternately tease and torture the sensitive skin of her breast. His hand returns now to her thigh, once more his fingertips brush slowly along the inner flesh, feeling it heat more and more at his caresses. As his fingers find that moist flesh between her thighs and begin to tenderly stroke and massage, his teeth bite painfully into her breasts, once and then several times more, leaving a series of marks in the skin. As he watches, a few drops of blood seep from one of the wounds. He smiles again at her pained sobbing, yet knowing that still she enjoys, this proven by the continuing supply of moisture upon his fingers. As his fingers continue to manipulate her, he raises his other hand, the knife still gripped tightly. He slides the blade against her skin, letting her feel the cool steel. He then moves the blade again, to her breast now. He pauses then, the sharp edge against her skin, letting the girl's anxiety build, and then slashes, once on both sides of her nipple. He sets the blade aside and watches the blood slowly well up from the shallow wounds. His fingers dance slowly over that moist, tender flesh between her thighs, each caress an electric spark pulsing through her. The tip of his tongue drawing vague patterns in the blood on her breasts, as he slowly laps at that most intimate of fluids. He pauses to bring his fingers to his lips, mixing the blood with her taste, wetting his lips with both. Through all this she watches him, her body frozen between pleasure and pain, excitement and fear. It is this moment he has been waiting for, that moment of total trust, of foolish anticipation for the perceived promise of pleasure. It is at this moment where he plunges the blade of his knife deep into her chest, the hilt cracking many of her ribs as he does so. He holds his face inches from hers, an emotionless visage as blood pumps thickly from the wound. He watches as the light fades from her eyes, her face forever imprinted with an expression of shock and pain-filled disappointment. Her last breath rattles in her throat as he slides off the bed. He stands in the doorway once again, his gaze upon his latest piece of art. He removes his gaze from her to study the spreading pool of blood surrounding the body, the liquid forming a mosaic of sorts upon the sheets. He smiles again, genuine joy lighting his face now. He turns and quickly exits the room, leaving the woman sleeping, eternally.