Prologue - 19th Thursday..
A Cold Thursday Night
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The door bell echoed in the house but that didn’t get Barclay to stand up from the couch. His eyes trailed to the door then back to the T.V.
It rang again making him give a annoyed grunt. The noise was disturbing his nine pm news. It was moments like this that he wished he was staying alone in the two bedroom house given to him by the university. But then, if he had someone staying with him, he wouldn’t be able to bring his special visitors home.
He called them that because they made him feel good. He deserved to feel good after a long day in the campus teaching students that were half listening.
Now the person has started to knock the door. He kissed his teeth and dragged his middle aged body up.
All his special visitors always knew he kept his extra key just inside the flower pot in his pouch. And he’d always made sure to say if he was having new special visitors.
However the visitor he had today was proven to be different in many ways. In many occasions he’d catch her phone trying to record their conversations in his office. But finally this one agreed that there was no other way. she either play or fail.
He reached the door and slowly pulled it open, his mouth about to tell her that he told her about the extra key for a reason.
He didn’t want to be caught opening the door of his house to a female student at night.
The instructions he gave them was always simple.
Wear a hoodie or something to cover your face
Use the key in the flower pot.
The door was half open when Barclay saw that the person he was expecting wasn’t who was at the door.
His eyes squinted at the unfamiliar yet familiar face. He concluded that the stranger must be a student at the university.
“Can I help you?” Barclay said feeling the breeze blow cold air on his hairy legs.
He was only wearing shorts. It was easier to pull off than trousers. But now he felt stupid standing before someone else with his short barely passing his thigh.
The stranger was wearing a hoodie but he could see from the dim light coming from his sitting room that this wasn’t the person he had been expecting.
His teeth gritted at the thought that she had possibly told someone else about the visit. He tried to look beyond the hoodie if the person was a cop.
The stranger took a step closer.
Barclay quickly used his body to block the entrance.
“Who are you?” He raised his voice and looked over the stranger’s shoulder.
Barclay cleared his throat “You should leave whoever you are or I call the cops on y-“
Umph
His body almost met the floor but he used the coat hanger to steady himself. Before he could take any action. The stranger was inside his house and the door was closed.
His heart started pounding as he took two setups away from the person.
“Who the hell are you?” His voice was a octave higher.
His leg already hit the couch and if he could just bend down a little bit. He’d take the phone on the couch. He was about bending down when his eyes caught something.
A knife.
His eyes widened and his heart started racing more than he’d ever expected.
He stammered “p-please do you you n-need money? I h-have some cash in my room”
Still the stranger kept walking close while clutching the knife. The knife was now in full view.
It was a Swiss knife.
I’m going to die. I’m going to die.
Barclay couldn’t stop the sentence in his head.
His bladder was getting full. His legs squeezed together trying to hold the urine. Too late.
Hot liquid was already trailing down his pale legs.
He looked at the urine on the floor to the stranger. He opened his mouth I scream but what came out was a gurgle noise and blood.
Barclay’s wrinkled hand shakily went to his slit throat. Holding it like he could stop the blood poring from his opened neck.
His mouth was gapped as blood flowed from his nose and mouth and tears from his widened eyes.
He was in pain. His heart beat that was once running was now skipping beats. His nerves were passing data to his brain.
The stranger slowly lifted up the hoodie.
Barclay’s lips vibrated.
I know you
That was the last thing his brain registered before his heart finally gave up fighting.
