Chapter 1
“I’ll kill you.” The words were barely a whisper before I spoke them and there was nothing soft about the rage in my voice. No softness at all. No pity. No empathy. Not even concern or curiosity for how he would react. There was no compassion. No care. Just a cold, dark rage that I couldn’t seem to shake.
“You will die.” I said it again, but more forcefully as if to prove it. I could feel myself shaking with the rage. I felt my lips curl up into a snarl and my teeth ached from clenching so tightly together. It didn’t help though. My anger continued to rise within me like a volcano ready to erupt and I wasn’t sure whether I wanted to laugh out loud at his stupidity or cry because of the pain and humiliation that would come after his death.
He deserved everything I had in me to give him but the mere thought made me want to vomit. “You will die.” I repeated, almost pleading. I wasn’t begging for anything in particular, I just wanted to make sure he understood what I meant. “It’s over. You won’t be going anywhere. Your body is mine and mine alone and I am going to enjoy every moment of watching you suffer until you finally give up and accept your fate.”
His face turned red with fury as he tried to respond but I cut him off with words once more, “Or maybe I’m going to let you die with dignity. Maybe then I’ll show some mercy. Then we can see who’s laughing at the other when their life ends.” I stepped forward and grabbed his collar roughly, lifting him up onto his toes and threatening to choke him, although it wouldn’t have been nearly enough to stop me if he hadn’t stopped struggling right then.
My eyes narrowed and my lip curled back from my teeth in anticipation of the first taste of blood. But instead of letting me kill him, he pulled away, still trembling violently, and spat on my shoes. As he did, I heard something break inside his mouth and his jaw snapped loudly, making me flinch back in surprise. I watched him with disgust as he stumbled backwards towards the edge of the roof and slipped down the wall and landed on the ground. The wind rushed past us as he scrambled to stand but the fall must have hurt because he fell back against the concrete with a groan and stayed down.
He lay there motionless and I wondered what kind of torture I could put him through before giving up and letting him die. ‘Maybe I’ll let you die with dignity’ my ass. I wasn’t going to let him live another minute. If he wasn’t dead by the time I came down, I was going to kill him. And then I was going to enjoy every single second of it. Until then, I stood there for several minutes contemplating what I should do next before deciding I’d better get going and let death deal with him.
I’d promised him some time in hell and I intended to keep that promise. Even without looking over my shoulder, I knew I could hear his ragged breathing behind me as I made my way down the stairs to the front door. When I reached the ground floor, I walked outside, not bothering to close the door behind me. I walked along the sidewalk and kept walking as fast as my legs would carry me until I came across an alleyway between two buildings. Once inside, I ducked beneath a low hanging tree branch and hurried towards the alleyway leading to the street where I’d parked my car.
I took the alley shortcut, cutting through a small park with a few playgrounds scattered around it. It was empty and I was grateful for that. I really didn’t need any witnesses to what I was about to do. When I reached the park I stopped under a large oak tree with branches reaching down towards the pavement, searching for anyone who might notice me. I saw nothing but empty space and the sound of traffic coming from the streets nearby. I could only assume that most people either had jobs or were too busy doing whatever they were doing to pay attention to me. Satisfied that everyone was distracted, I quickly picked up the speed once more and ran into the alleyway, moving at full speed towards the parking lot where my Audi waited.
I needed to drive far away from here before I decided how to take revenge on the man I truly wanted to kill. And hopefully, before my anger consumed me again. I don’t know why I bothered with this little game, it never worked anyway. I knew that deep down inside I had good intentions. I just didn’t know if I was capable of achieving those good intentions without losing control. That’s why I enjoyed my power. Because once I got started, it was hard to stop. But then that was always the case when I went on an adrenaline high, especially when I was working or when I was fighting. And that was when I liked being powerful the most.
I was strong and smart and quick and deadly. I used my strength and my intelligence to achieve whatever goal I set my mind to accomplish and the result was always satisfying. It wasn’t just a game anymore. It had become something I lived for. Something worth protecting. And now that man had taken that away from me. It’s strange how a simple conversation and simple actions can destroy lives.
I unlocked the Audi, opened the door and slid inside. Once I was seated in the driver’s seat I checked my watch, wondering if I should wait another five minutes. I considered pulling out and speeding away while I had the chance but it was probably better to go soon, rather than later. Besides, I knew that if I sped away too fast, I would end up crashing and killing myself with my luck. So, I had to stay calm and collected. I forced my hands to relax, forcing my breathing to return to normal, reminding myself that I’d left enough time to drive safely. There wouldn’t be another opportunity like this one.
And so, I slowly put the Audi into gear and drove off. As I approached downtown and exited the city limits, I began to feel relieved. Finally, I’d managed to escape. I was safe. I was free. But I still didn’t feel safe. I was still angry. My eyes narrowed into slits and the grip on the steering wheel tightened until my knuckles grew white.
Anger is a powerful thing. It makes the world spin and change directions at a moment’s notice. And I was furious. I was angry with everyone, not just the people that had caused my pain. But especially him. I was mad at him because he’d taken everything from me. He had stolen my happiness. He’d ruined our relationship. He’d broken my heart. And he deserved everything I was going to inflict upon him. Killing his best friend was only the start of it.
-
The sun began to sink below the horizon as I reached the outskirts of town and the last light disappeared, plunging the world into darkness. Only the occasional beam of moonlight penetrated the blackness of night and shone its weak light down on the road ahead. It seemed to slow everything as I drove, allowing the sound of the tires against asphalt to echo off the walls of the tunnel.
In that moment I could hear the rushing of my own blood in my ears. I felt the blood pounding through my veins as I gripped the steering wheel tighter and tighter.
Soon, I would arrive. Soon. I would reach him. I would find him... someday. And then I would kill him. And then I would enjoy every single moment of watching his life ebb away from his body until he was nothing but dust. I smiled as I imagined it. His screams echoed through my head and my smile grew wider as I imagined watching his body burn as I watched in amusement. The image was so vivid in my imagination that it almost brought tears to my eyes. Almost. But they never came.
Instead, the anger grew stronger and I became more and more convinced that I could bring him down if I killed him now. But I was tired. Tired and drained and filled with hatred. And that hate was clouding my judgment.
What was I doing? Why did I want to hurt him even more than I already had? I wasn’t sure anymore. Maybe I was confused. Maybe I was just sad. Maybe I was scared. Maybe I was angry. Maybe I didn’t care anymore, but all of these things were true in the end, whether or not I liked it. And all of this was making me lose control again.
I couldn’t risk it. No matter how much I hated him, no matter how many times I wished I had never seen him again, I couldn’t kill him now. Not yet anyway without a plan. And I wasn’t sure how long I could keep myself from hurting him. If he didn’t stop me, I would eventually snap. And he’d make me suffer. He’d ruin everything I cared about because I loved him.
So, I slowed the car and turned onto a smaller road. The road was barely a dirt lane and I followed it until it ended at a chain link fence blocking my view of the rest of the park. I parked my car near the fence and got out. I leaned against the fence and looked out at the darkened area around me. The trees casted long shadows across the road and gave the area a sinister look, making me shiver.
Then, as quietly as possible, I slipped back underneath the tree and moved silently toward the road to walk off the anger. At first, I thought I was alone and was able to walk freely in the dark. But when I finally arrived at the edge of the road, I could see a figure standing in the middle of the roadway staring directly at me. It was too dark to make out any details of the figure but its presence was unmistakable. It was the same silhouette that I had seen during the accident. It was the same silhouette that had followed me earlier, lurking in the shadows of the trees. Now, though, instead of hiding in the shadows, it was waiting patiently, watching me come towards it.
