Without thinking, I grab the old woman’s arm, pull her close, and shut the bathroom door. My eyes zip around as I say breathlessly, “He found me; Hunter. We have to hide or he’ll kill you too!”“Calm down, dearest. Nothing will harm you here.”“No!” My scream bounces off the bathroom walls; my distress has reached me in the bowels. “You’re not listening to me!”The old woman tries to pry her fragile arm from my panicked grip, but I’m stronger and unwilling to let go.“He’s the heart reaper,” I persist, “...and he doesn’t show mercy!”“Stay put, child. It’s just the cats fighting, I assure you.” The old woman looks flustered even though her words are the opposite. I don’t think she’s bothered by what I’m saying; think it’s more about my attitude and the situation she’s found herself in with me.Maybe leaving would be the best. But where would I go, who do I know?I let the woman go, holding my trembling hand with the other while watching her leave before pacing the space.My fear comes
/ X /Here’s where the fun is; leaning against a damp tree in the woods, twirling a strand of hair with one hand—while the other’s sweating in my jacket pocket—and watching an overly frightened girl whose chaotic emotions are serving as my best meal.I’m not the one she’s seeing, I swear. And I don’t know if she really sees Hunter either; the man can hide.I know because he was gone by the time I returned to the road after watching Zavere. And I can’t track him, not until he has a surge of emotions; like the anger he felt when he killed his guard or the bloodlust that swirled about him when he massacred the people at the mansion.Enough rambling for now.“Heidi, dear. Are you quite alright?” Magen’s voice is soft and laced with concern as she approaches Heidi, following the girl’s gaze to the forest.All she sees are the starved trees with their stretched branches shaped as skeletons of emptiness and woe. However, Heidi remains unmoving, still staring, her eyes filled with a dread that
Zavere turns away from Heidi. “You should wash up,” he mutters as he heads toward me. My bad, the elevator. “I’ll go get you food. You had nothing to eat last night.”I move out of the way as he reaches to press his thumb on the fingerprint device. Then he waits for it to open. When it does and he’s about to step in, Heidi’s voice brings him to a halt.“Wait!” She quickly wipes her tears and clears her throat. “Can I have whatever I want?”Zavere nods.“Then I’d like spaghetti with sesame oil, and I love to take alcohol after every meal.”The Luciferic Lad doesn’t look like he intends to answer. He’s just staring at Heidi, and I’m standing near him, taking in what Heidi had seen from close range earlier.She’s right, the man is good-looking—also scarily handsome I must admit. And his resting face looks more terrifying than Satan’s fuming expression. The girl doesn’t even seem afraid of it. Or is she used to him now?It makes me wonder why they keep staring at times when they should be
/ HUNTER /The explosion reduced our once deluxe mansion to a dwelling of ashes and crumbling debris, remnants crunching beneath my boots as I step into the wreckage.I pause in the center of the blackened hall and look around, noting how much the fire ravaged the building to the point it nearly brought it to the ground. Chalk outlines on the floor mark spots where the bodies—now removed—once lay. And everything that once furnished the hall—chairs, tables, and many others—is gone, likely burnt beyond recognition and taken away for speculation. The same fate probably befell every other property in the mansion. I look around for Zavere. He is nowhere. Maybe I have not been searching the right places for a good leash to hold the man down. He’s always onto something silly whenever his alter ego surfaces.Crouching down, I use my index to wipe a spot on the soot-covered floor, that is when Zavere, ever so casual, crosses the hall threshold, his face twisting in mock annoyance.“I kept rin
/ X /I got it; the signal. It smelt good too. Excitement. Blood rage—though not so strong—like that of a Preyer longing to be fed.He’s pouncing on them right now. God, I hope there are many; like back at the mansion. It’s tastier when he’s going from person to person, hurling them to walls and stuff. And their collective screams of horror tingling in the ears in a pleasurable way.I’m rather met with disappointment, however. It’s just dear old Magen looking at the Madman like she’s never seen a ghost in all her seventy-something years of life.She’s slowly backing away from him, her wrinkled and frail hands clutching the edges of her apron. Hunter cracks his neck before his eye begins to gleam with the predatory instinct of a being who has toyed with death way too much. Actually, death isn’t the only thing he’s toyed with. He’s done the same for people’s lives. Hell too, twirling its fires around his fingers like they were his hair strands. And at moments like this, he always had
/ HEIDI /It seems to take an eternity for Luivanne’s bike to pull up at the police station. The area is a chaotic swarm of camera flashes, police cars, vans, and people shouting over one another, trying to make their way past the first few steps into the station building. But the cops lining the front do their best to hold them back. The scene reminds me of the day I was removed from my position as CEO, how Dad Griffin made me stand before a hall full of people to deliver the humiliating announcement myself. I had to apologize for failing the public, though I still can’t figure out how not passing a family test had let every other person down. Luivanne, despite the chaos, drapes his jacket over my shoulders. That’s the first kindness a man has shown me in a long time. He must have sensed how frozen I’ve become. And though I didn’t try to show it, I believe my distress got to him.Determined, he pushes through the cluster while guiding me to the front steps where a stern-faced off
Who would believe me if I told them what I saw? That a man single-handedly slaughtered so many at a time; including trained bodyguards, that he dug out their hearts, then incinerated the mansion to hide the evidence. It makes no sense, just as it makes no sense to report a thing that’ll only complicate me.I shouldn’t have come here. If I’d thought to run instead, I would have made it far from Hunter’s reach. The man in question remains in my line of sight, only now he flexes a triumphant smirk at me. What in God’s name is he? The devil? A grim reaper?I suddenly push up from the chair and make for the door.“Miss Heidi, we’re not done,” the officer calls after me. But I simply throw a dismissive wave and disappear into the corridor.As my hurried paces bounce off the walls, I glance over my shoulder to wash off the lingering feeling of being followed.The pressure overwhelms me sooner and unease seizes my chest. I break into a run.I don’t look back. And I don’t stop until I reach
/ X /I do not think I’m missed much these days. Never was anyway. Last night, I returned home after a few more hours of uninteresting events. As it happened, dear ole Papa wanted me out immediately. The old guy didn’t even let me breathe for a second. Jeez!I’m glad he chased me though—if not, I would have missed this LOVELY situation. Ya know what I mean? Like, there’s Heidi. I’m watching her sleeping. But there’s also fear. And there’s suspense.I want to know what she’s seeing; experience the hellhole Hunter tossed her in for myself. But, for stupid unknown reasons, I procrastinate till the girl wakes up.She winces, her face twisting in agony as she sits up on the bed; screaming, her legs bent and arms stretched in front of her.The painful sensation pulsing beneath her skin is unbearable, her palms and knees burning as if greeted by fire. And the more she screams, the more each pulse sends sharp stings through her bones with an intensity that threatens to tear her limbs inside a
Tumbre Estate is the biggest in the country. Belongs to the Whites but isn’t as sullied as the family is. It’s like a quiet little town even though it’s not far from the city.Has been about two years since I last came here, and nothing seems to have changed. No, nothing. It’s the same old Tumbre with curvy roads flanked by Villas and trimmed little bushes.That Villa there, at our right, is inhabited by the family of a close friend I had. But after I was kicked out of my Villa, I lost contact with her. Didn’t even get the chance to say a fucking goodbye.“Do you want me to come with you?” Zavere asks as I get down from the Uber. I had requested to stop at the side of the road instead of the garage, as I didn’t bring the key to my Villa, and haven’t a clue how the Housekeeper and the Butler would react to seeing me. And no, I don’t want Zavere’s company. If I did, I would have stayed in the Company building where my room now smells like him.“No. Go find your brother,” I reply. My n
“He lives, I feel it,” Zavere says after taking his time. “He’s alive, but there is silence. He doesn’t feel anything… massive.”I don’t get what he’s trying to say, but I guess he does have some connection with his twin? “You feel something when he does?”“Not just something. It has to be big. Like an intense pain or pleasure.” More like the intense pain of his victims, and the intense pleasure of the motherfucker.“Maybe you should have felt his ‘intense hatred’ when he committed that murder?” I ask calmly, looking down at my soup while stirring it with a spoon. However, when I look up, I feel like my food could hang in my throat as I find Zavere staring at me with a blank face, again. That rouses my rage. “Oh, you did, and you said, ‘Oh hey! He’s my brother! He’s having a little fun with some dummy humans, so why not?’” I realize I’ve just caused a commotion. All eyes are now on us. Jeez! What is wrong with me? Why do I keep blaming Zavere? Why do I blame every fucking thing in t
We’ll end up having a late lunch. But the time spent in the overpass is worth it.Honestly, I didn’t want to leave. Maybe we should have stayed longer. Or…“Having a home in a place like Luli Overbridge would be exotic. Become a pet to the doves,” Zavere utters out of nowhere, and I would’ve burst out laughing if I weren’t cautious that we are in one of the most classic restaurants in the world.“Is that what it’s called? Luli Overbridge,” I say instead. That gets me a side-eye from the man.“You have been in Alloy all your life, Heidi.”“And? I’ve not had the opportunity to flex a free one like you’ve done with… your brother. So far, I’m only familiar with Alloy's main city and Braevalle.” I glance around the restaurant, then I stare at my fingers. Then… I look at the hectic city beyond the glass barriers of the building for a while. All to avoid meeting with Zavere’s devouring eyes. And yet he keeps staring, sitting opposite me, relaxed in his chair with his right hand on the table
Each person holds out something in our direction: some an image of their deceased, others a banner with the words ‘Justice for (...)’ written on it. Different names, different faces, different pain. My vision gets blurry. Voices whisper inaudibly in my head as it aches. A thousand needles prick my skin, hellbent on deactivating autonomic nerves while triggering another—emotions, flocking in like a swarm of disturbed fish. And if Zavere hadn’t interfered, I would have been lost in the maze that’s my own mind.“Hey, come on. Look at me,” he whispers, the hand on my thigh caressing. But then he makes a bigger gesture; facing me, leaning in and grabbing my chin to turn my face toward his. “Trust me, Heidi, you’ll be fine.”I shake my head continuously. “I… I don’t think so…” What Zavere said is an underrated lie. This anxiety’s always going to be there, haunting me, reducing the woman I thought I was with every attack. So, no, Zavere. I will not be fine.“Shh. You’ve just got to breathe
Holy shit! I’ve just now discovered that my cellphone is in the envelope too. How did it get here?“I thought Saturn destroyed this,” I say, checking the device for damage. Thankfully, it looks as good as I last saw it.“Hunter had it taken back,” Zavere responds before the elevator ushers in a middle-aged woman who I suppose is the cleaner.She takes the glass pieces from him, puts them in the bin then goes ahead to clean up the mess the motherfucker made on the floor.Keeping the phone and putting away the rest into the envelope, I clutch my duvet tighter. I want to lie back but then I don’t want to. I also feel like I need to be alone for a long time. BUT… Zavere’s presence manages to tone that one down a bit.I guess him standing there while looking at me gives me peace. And that is something I’ve not had in a very… long time.“I don’t know what to do with…” I pause and sigh as I look at the envelope, wishing I could get far from it. “What am I supposed to do with this?”Zavere shr
~ HEIDI ~This headache will mince my brain to nice little cubes sooner than I’m able to find a painkiller in one of these fucking drawers.There used to be many of them—the painkillers, I mean—usually on the table, under the pillows, in the wardrobe, in the drawers, even on the damn floor. How I cannot find one when everything else in the room remains the same is not a mystery, but unsettling.“Fuck. I can’t be arsed,” I mutter just as my phone dings on the bed.Sitting on the floor and resting my back against the bed, I go through the meager, little thing that won’t stop buzzing―happens Reverse Hunter sent a message; ‘Might not be back for a while. Do not dare miss your meals.’Oh, Zavere…The guy’s so fucking nice that he cannot stop caring about me. Meanwhile, the bastard on whom I’ve wasted so much time, tears, and feelings haven’t once asked how I felt since we met. Instead, he dropped a boulder into a stream of lava. Fucking joker.The phone doesn't render comfort, yet I find it
‘Frosty the Snowman… was a jolly happy soul… with a corncob pipe and a button nose… and two eyes made out of coal…’Clock Chimes.Singing Birds.Loud Giggles.Running Footfalls.And my perfectly clear vision of a busy morning full of snow and Christmas rubbish.How I reached about two hundred kilometers from the company building on foot might be a mystery to living folks, but the dead cannot deny how short a journey can become.It is never a wonder why this part of the country has not awoken to the dawn of complete modernity, forever reserved for all things retro—could be attributed to the fact that Christmas smells and looks better on these streets that have basic terracotta buildings lining each side of the brick road.Parked cars along the right side of the road are my support as I trudge through the snow, stumbling at intervals but halting when tiny quintuplets run into my way. Can’t differentiate the looks of these humans sometimes, especially the little ones, their eyes wide as
The elevator would have been better closed than not.Maybe the system has malfunctioned, or I’m the problem. After all, I will not deny that my head is scrambled, torn between two choices; to go up or... Fuck it!Going up is the best option to end this restlessness once and for all. But so many things would go wrong, especially as my girl is there and this rage in me wants to stab thorns in her flesh.I should not let that happen, should I? I have to protect her, even if it takes me killing myself, which I bloody can’t!Her face, artless and mild with sparkly eyes, flashes before me. She is standing beside the panel, signaling for me to get up. And I do. She then motions me to approach. I still do, but miss the part where she frowns, blood streaming down her eyes as anger swirls in them alongside hate—massive disgust.The scissors in her hand are not far from my neck. They make contact, yet the pain is not even near as intense as what I am feeling from the sight itself. And I’m taken
“He lives, I feel it,” Zavere says after taking his time. “He’s alive, but there is silence. He doesn’t feel anything… massive.”I don’t get what he’s trying to say, but I guess he does have some connection with his twin? “You feel something when he does?”“Not just something. It has to be big. Like an intense pain or pleasure.” More like the intense pain of his victims, and the intense pleasure of the motherfucker.“Maybe you should have felt his ‘intense hatred’ when he committed that murder?” I ask calmly, looking down at my soup while stirring it with a spoon. However, when I look up, I feel like my food could hang in my throat as I find Zavere staring at me with a blank face, again. That rouses my rage. “Oh, you did, and you said, ‘Oh hey! He’s my brother. He’s having a little fun with some dummy humans, so why not?’” I realize I’ve just caused a commotion. All eyes are now on us. Jeez! What is wrong with me? Why do I keep blaming Zavere? Why do I blame every fucking thing in th