Grace struggled against her father while he dragged her across the lawn. She could feel his tight grip on her ankle and tried to kick his hand. Then, screaming in horror, Grace felt her body sliding on the backyard grass. Looking up, she only saw the night stars. “Please! Daddy! Stop!”
With the horrifying screams from his daughter, Jacob continued onwards and opened the two large front barn doors. “In we go,” he said, dragging his daughter through the opening and then shutting the door behind, “I’ve been waiting a long time for today. I got you something special, and tonight we are going to play with them for the first time.”
“Please, Daddy, I want to go home!” Grace felt her foot release. Standing, she looked around for a way out of the barn. Her eyes darted around while Jacob stepped forward.
“There is no other way out, and I’ve locked the doors. You can scream all you like – only your brothers are inside, and I’ve given them sleeping pills. They will be out cold, all night.”
“What do you want?” Grace cried. Her shoulder-length brown hair was caked in mud like her torn nightgown. Sobbing, Grace looked around at all the animals just barely within reach of her father’s lamp. She felt a rush of adrenaline, waiting for her father’s reply.
“Well, that’s up to you, sweetheart,” Jacob firmly said. “What is your favorite animal?”
Grace tried to respond through heaving bouts of tears, “I – I love monkeys…”