Cold Case Files: "I SURVIVED: If I Don't Pretend To Be Dead They're Really Going To Kill Me"

A&E / PodcastOne | Narrated by Marisa Pinson | February 7, 2026

Episode Overview

This emotionally intensive episode of Cold Case Files explores the theme of survival against overwhelming odds. Three harrowing true stories are recounted by survivors who escaped seemingly certain death: a devastating chemical disaster, a brutal random abduction, and an attack by a notorious serial killer. Through their voices and the details of investigation and rescue, the episode investigates not only the mechanics of surviving but the psychological resilience of those who, when confronted with death, found a way to endure.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The San Antonio Chlorine Gas Disaster (00:52 – 17:59)

Summary

• In June 2004, Wayne and Mary’s peaceful life is shattered when a train derailment near their home releases a massive cloud of lethal chlorine gas.
• With escape by road blocked and rescue complicated by the hazardous conditions, the family’s attempts to survive become a tense ordeal filled with failed rescue efforts, desperate improvisation, and tragic outcomes.

Critical Events & Insights

• Chlorine gas exposure: The family describes the immediate, burning effects of chlorine gas as it seeps into their home. Wayne recognizes the smell instantly; Mary describes the sensation as "burning, stinging," unable to find air ([01:42]).
• Failed escape attempts: Multiple escape routes are considered — through muddy fields, a sealed office, and direct road — each thwarted by the aftermath of the disaster ([03:04–05:07]).
• Emergency response breakdowns: 911 operators struggle to offer effective instructions, complicated by shifting advice ("Stay in the house" → "Get away from the train" → "Go back to your home") and jurisdictional confusion hampering volunteer rescuers ([04:01], [07:24], [11:12]).
• Physical toll: As time drags on, Mary and Robbie grow weaker; Mary’s beloved dogs become gravely ill, underlining the environmental devastation ([09:55]).
• Desperation and makeshift choices: Instructed to shower for decontamination, Wayne realizes too late that this creates hydrochloric acid, worsening their injuries:

  "In sheer desperation, I knew better...I did it anyway. Big mistake...all the pale areas of my skin were all burned." – Wayne ([14:44])

• Tragic outcome: Rescue arrives nearly seven hours after the initial derailment. Wayne’s stepmother and stepsister are found dead; his brother-in-law dies months later.

  "My wife and myself and that one dog are the only living things that survived in that area." – Wayne ([17:13])

Notable Quotes

• "I survived because I was too angry to die. Here I'm watching my loved ones die off and there's nothing I can do." – Wayne ([17:37])
• "Thanks to God that I had my husband with me and if it wasn't for him, I don't think any of us would be here." – Mary ([17:21])

2. The Survival of Linda: Random Abduction and Assault (20:10 – 33:07)

Summary

• In June 2000, Linda’s solo drive across rural Idaho becomes a nightmare when she’s targeted, abducted, and brutally assaulted by four meth-fueled attackers.
• The account illustrates the unpredictability and savagery of the assault, Linda’s almost preternatural composure and resourcefulness throughout, and the miraculous circumstances of her rescue.

Critical Events & Insights

• Initial Assault: Stalked on a deserted highway, Linda is forced off the road, attacked, stabbed, and driven to a remote beet field ([20:27–23:00]).
• The violence escalates: After being stabbed, beaten with a baseball bat, and her throat cut, Linda realizes her only hope is to feign death:

  "That was the first moment where I really thought, if I don't pretend to be dead, they're going to really kill me." – Linda ([23:36])

• Resilience under trauma: Despite catastrophic injuries (22 stab wounds, fractured skull, severed throat, punctured lungs), Linda maintains focus and rationality, describing a near-death "white light" experience and feeling at peace ([30:39]).
• Unexpected rescue: Two teenage boys spot the car fire, leading to Linda’s rescue just in time, although her shoulders are dislocated in their desperate efforts ([31:11]).
• Justice: It takes two years, but all four of Linda’s attackers are eventually caught and sentenced — three to life, one to 10 years ([32:31]).

Notable Quotes

• "They were just like wild animals...their anger and their wildness was something I had never, ever encountered before. It was like having a pack of wolves attacking me." – Linda ([22:33])
• "The attackers setting the car on fire was what saved my life because if I'd just been out in the beet field, I would have just bled to death and died and nobody would have ever known what happened and those people would have never been found." – Linda ([32:46])

3. Holly’s Encounter with the Railroad Serial Killer (35:32 – 44:16)

Summary

• In August 1997, Holly and her boyfriend Chris are ambushed while walking along railroad tracks in Lexington, Kentucky, by Angel Maturino Resendez, a serial killer later convicted of multiple murders.
• Holly recounts the calculated brutality of the attack, her attempts to reason with the attacker, coping mechanisms in the face of sexual assault and violence, the murder of her boyfriend, and her own remarkable survival.

Critical Events & Insights

• Ambush and control:

  "He knew how to control us. He knew he needed to tie us up. He knew that he needed to disable Chris. You could tell he had done it before." – Holly ([38:23])

• Murder of Chris: The attacker smashes Chris's head with a 52-pound rock. Holly, thinking quickly, asks him to turn Chris's head to prevent choking ([37:35]).
• Sexual assault and resistance: Holly is raped, stabbed in the neck, and threatened with death. She tries to humanize herself to the attacker, hoping for mercy:

  "I was just trying to make him know that I was a person. I was, you know, trying to get to it. If he had an emotional side, I was trying to get to it." – Holly ([40:55])

• Survival mindset:

  "I survived because I was supposed to. I think that, you know, I. I just wasn't finished." – Holly ([43:22])

• Aftermath: Holly is the only known survivor of Resendez, who was executed in 2006. She channels her experience into advocacy for victims of sexual assault.

Notable Quotes

• "If I don't pretend to be dead, they're going to really kill me." – Holly, echoing Linda’s survival mechanism ([36:36])
• "I survived to dedicate my life to assisting victims of rape and sexual assault and tragedy." – Holly ([44:15])

Timestamps for Key Segments

| Timestamp | Segment | Content | |-----------|---------------------------------------------|------------------------------------------| | 00:52–17:59 | San Antonio Chlorine Gas Disaster | Wayne & Mary's struggle for survival | | 20:10–33:07 | Linda’s Abduction & Assault | Survival, rescue, aftermath | | 35:32–44:16 | Holly & the Railroad Serial Killer | Assault, survival, impact |

Memorable Moments & Quotes

• Wayne’s Resilience:
  "I survived because I was too angry to die." ([17:37])
• Linda’s Resourcefulness:
  "That was the first moment where I really thought, if I don't pretend to be dead, they're going to really kill me." ([23:36])
• Holly’s Calm Amid Chaos:
  "I was just trying to make him know that I was a person." ([40:55])
• Linda on Fate:
  "The attackers setting the car on fire was what saved my life because if I'd just been out in the beet field, I would have just bled to death and died and nobody would have ever known what happened and those people would have never been found." ([32:46])
• Holly’s New Purpose:
  "I survived to dedicate my life to assisting victims of rape and sexual assault and tragedy." ([44:15])

Reflections & Tone

The narration is steady, methodical, and compassionate, frequently giving the survivors time to expand on their memories in their own words. The survivors' testimonies are raw and descriptive; there is no shying away from the physical horror, but neither is there any loss of dignity or strength.

The episode stands as a testament to endurance, the failure (and eventual success) of human systems, and the ways trauma can be reshaped into purpose. Each survivor finds agency in their own way: Wayne in stubbornness, Linda in calculated rationality, and Holly in the transformative drive to help others.

This episode is both harrowing and deeply inspiring—an indelible reminder that survival is not just a matter of luck or timing, but of spirit, ingenuity, and the will to live.