Her head spun. Denise felt scared and embarrassed all in that one breathe. She had been so intent on not paying attention to Alex, she'd never noticed there could have been anyone else on the street. Let alone one as big as this man. He was huge!

"Yes?" Her response was completely automatic. One to give Denise the time she needed to get herself back under control.

"You're perfect," the man said, taking Denise by surprise once more with his strange statement.

Before she could give it much thought, his hand came up quickly. There was a small aerosol spray can held in his fingers. He gave Denise one blast of spray in the face before she could say another word. Or move.

She wanted to wipe whatever the stuff was off her face, only her hand wouldn't move. Just like the way her feet refused to move her away from the man with the strange leer on his face.

Her mouth wouldn't even open so she could scream!

Pure, stupefying panic hit Denise as she slowly discovered she couldn't make her body do a single thing. Not one of her muscles would work for her. Still she was ready to fight. Her lungs were sucking in extra air, gathering up all the oxygen she could to fuel whatever burst of energy she'd need to escape this man.

"Don't," he warned. "Settle down, you'll only hyperventilate or choke yourself. There's not a damn thing you can do about it."

He held up the aerosol can so she could get a better look at it. "Stuff works instantly. Effects the nervous system. Interrupts all the signals sent out by the brain having to do with voluntary movement. All the involuntary stuff like breathing and keeping your heart pumping still work, but that's about it."

Denise wanted to shake her head at the sound of such foolishness. Finding it hard not to laugh at the guy. She'd like to do anything at that point, but what he said seemed to be true. Her body was betraying her by refusing to do a single thing she asked it. She noticed her eyes would still blink when they dried out, and her breathing seemed to do fine by it's self, only Denise had no control over any of it.