Eyeless Jack X Intelligent Reader - Chapter 5

-- EJ --

       Damn this girl!
       I knew she was planning something, I knew it! The little devil got others to protect her. I should’ve seen it coming! I should’ve sliced her face open the moment I cornered her…
       But then… this game would be over…
       Hmm. That is something to consider.
       I haven’t felt this alive, this excited in a long time-
       Wait, what? What am I ever saying? I’m a hunter! I’m the top of the food chain; she’s just a piece of meat. There’s nothing important about her, I don’t need to save her or draw this game out any longer.
       But geez, she knows how to escape me. She’s outplayed me twice now… twice! No one has escaped me… ever. I never made an error, I never made a mistake, and I have never let a target remain breathing…
       I know where she works now. I know her route home. I know I can get her next time... I still cannot find her specific place of residence. I followed her bittersweet scent until it tangled onto the busy city streets. Here her scent was masked and dispersed by the high traffic of other cattle. I’d have to follow her home while her scent was fresh… that’d be the only way to find her place of residence. But if she lives with others or her room is close to another’s, it’d be exceptionally hard to kill and cut her apart without someone hearing and calling the cops. I didn’t like when my kills were cut short.
       I guess I’ll have to get her in between her occupation and her residence.
       Shouldn’t be too hard.
       It’s a wide dead zone.

-- Reader --

       I had worked at the bar for a few days now without incident. No creepy figures, no sharp objects at my throat, no thrill…
       This was so boring… waiting for something to happen was so boring. On one hand I was glad the terror was gone and my life was secure, but on the other hand I was scared the challenge was gone. I was actually feeling depressed, believe it or not, that there was nothing left to test me… no game.
       I had watched my every step, completely prepared to defend myself if need be. The shivers ran up and down my body, preparing for a sprint, a fight, anything! But no such…. luck? I should be happy…
       Why do I feel this way? What’s wrong with me? I should be thrilled to not be in a position of possible death. I should be content with security and safety, not throwing it to the wind! Stop these feelings right now! Get a ride home! Don’t go into the darkness….
       A sigh escaped my lips and Abbey looked up from the counter where she was counting tips. The doors to the bar had already shut after the last customer and the ‘open’ sign had flickered off. Abbey chuckled a little and leaned on her elbow over the counter. Her voice took on a deeper tone, jokingly.
       “So babe, what’s got you in the dumps?” She asked like many of the customers had today. I guess I’m not the best at covering my emotions. I gave her a smile and dampened a rag to scrub the counter.
       “Nothing, Abbey, I’m fine.” I told her, grinning at her behavior. She didn’t buy my words.
       “Was it…” she leaned closer and acted like she had a big secret, “some guy?” She asked, moving her eyebrows up and down suggestively.
       “What? No! Nothing like that…” I quickly responded, realizing I probably denied her accusation too quickly.
       “I knew it!” She laughed and leaned back, voice rising to its normal pitch. “You’ve been so moody lately.” She accused with a giggle, quieting down. “So… details?”
       “He tried to kill me.” I mumbled, scrubbing the counter a little more than necessary, adding in my mind ‘and then he quit…’
       “That bad, huh?” She sympathized. I didn’t understand Abbey’s way of coping. She obviously thought I wasn’t talking about actual death. “Well, there are plenty of other sharks in the sea. Don’t fret, my friend, you’ll be hunted soon enough.” She told me, voice light but emitting a harsh edge.
       I resisted the urge to laugh at her comment. If she knew the truth…
Should I ask for help? Should I pull in a co-worker, a friend, into this mess? She could help me… like a lookout? I could show her the picture I took, inform her of the danger… she could probably drive me home…
       But then again, I wouldn’t be able to live with myself if the mysterious murderer got to her before me… or after me... Whoa, dark thoughts go away. I couldn’t pull her into the game I had created, it wasn’t right. Plus, this was a challenge that I alone wanted to take on. I couldn’t get out of it now. Not unless the man gave up… or succeeded… or I called the cops and moved far, far away.
       I smiled. Yes, I had other options. If anything got really bad, I could dial 911 and move a really good distance from here. That would work, yeah? I didn’t have many ties here, just a small apartment and mediocre job. I could easily pick up my stuff and change location. I could get another bar job and make a new life.
       There are always more than one option, one variable, one ending.
       That fact reassured me.