World Apart

Lies provide an upper hand,

Conspiring under untrue name,

But tables turn, a change in plan,

If victim plays a similar game.

Lexus squirmed beneath Keith’s weight. His nose pressed firmly against hers, his hot breath sending fumes of alcohol and tobacco about her face. She held her breath as he hissed at her.

“We’re gonna have some fun, sweetheart. This night ain’t over by no stretch.”

His fingers began at her knee and crept upward along her inner thigh, passing up across her stomach and to her breasts. She clenched her eyes and released a quivering breath beneath his cold touch, her nervous vocal cords shuddering in a feeble whimper. The pistol stayed firm against her skull, its sinful past almost palpable, leaking from the barrel and suffocating her in fear. So many victims. She could feel their blood on his hands.

She opened her eyes and stared into his. They were wide with excitement, almost pure black as his pupils strained to suck in every ounce of her. Her terror, she could tell, was what now fueled him. His neck was straining, almost like he was in agony, but in reality, it was exactly the contrary. He was one sick bastard.

“Just go with it, baby,” he slurred, fumbling with his free hand to loosen his belt. “It’ll make it so much easier for both of us, and I really don’t want to hurt you.”

Not likely. He’d kill her as soon as he finished—just like all the others. He would let her live for now, feeding off her screams and squirms. That’s what gave him true pleasure. Then, it’d be one shot and on to the next girl. Well, Lexus had other plans in mind.

“Oh Keith, you’re so sexy. I love it when a man takes charge. I’ve wanted this all night but I was too shy to speak up.”

Her words hit him like a splash of ice water, extinguishing the flame of excitement that had previously burned behind his eyes. “Shut up, bitch,” he snapped, bringing the back of his hand swiftly across her face. “You don’t want this. I’m taking it.”

She screamed with the blow and then turned back to stare at him again. “Mmmm, you savage. Manhandle me. Make me yours.” She could feel his confusion mounting. His lust for fear remained unquenched, and he had no clue how to change it. The sweat began to form beads on his forehead. “Let me take these panties off for you,” she said as her hand drifted slowly below.

“I said shut the fuck up!” he bellowed, now tightening the grip on his gun and digging it further into the side of her head. Lexus shrieked as a shot exploded into the floor by her ear.

The initial bang was quickly overtaken by a steady ring that pierced deep into her brain, muffling her captor’s livid ranting. His mouth began to drip and his eyes bulged as he delivered threats that only his ears could hear. Amongst the chaos, Lexus could see within his eyes that he was unconcerned about the sex. It was the murder that he now anticipated.

His index finger toyed with the trigger, testing how far back he could pull it before it blew a hole in her pretty face. If he couldn’t have her fear, then her life would do just fine. He leaned forward and smelled her hair, his lips kissing her forehead tenderly. His tongue slithered from behind his pursed lips like a worm emerging from the rain-soaked earth. It slid down her face and throat, leaving behind a trail of saliva that made her quiver in disgust. She decided she could take no more.

Moving her palms to grip the floor, she bucked beneath him but his weight was too much to move. “Get off of me you psycho!” she shrieked, continuing to thrash from under his heavy torso.

“Mmmm, now that’s what I like to hear.” Opening his mouth in a crooked grin, he postured up, pointing the gun between her eyes. “I grow tired of you, though. Your skin is too dry. Let’s paint it red. Mmmm, red is nice.” Lexus cried, her chest heaving as she gasped between sobs. “It’s time to feel the warmth of your blood as it flows over me. It’s time to steal your beauty and youth from the weakened grasp of your dying soul.”

He paused to gaze into her eyes and then brought his free hand forward to wipe away her tears. “Must you be so weak? Look at me. I’m fearless.” He grabbed her face in one hand, squeezing her cheeks inward and pulling her viciously to meet his gaze. Their noses touched and the warmth of his breath swelled across her cheeks. “I’m pure evil, Lexus. Can you see it?” Her hand fiddled down around her crotch, and he noticed and cackled. “Does this really make you that hot? You’re a little slut.” He cocked his gun back and prepared to shoot. “Do you have anything to say before I end you? Somebody you want me to pass a message on to?”

She brought her hand slowly from between her legs and rested it at her side. “Yes. Yes I do,” she whimpered. “Tell Satan I said to ride you hard. This is for Leila, you son of a bitch!”

As she yelled, her arm sprang up, wielding the knife she had hidden on her inner thigh. Simultaneously, she bucked him once again, only this time with her true strength, knocking him off balance and sending another wild gunshot into the floorboards by her head. In an instant, his blood was pouring down her arm from the gash in his neck where her blade now resided. He had dropped his weapon in the scuffle and now reached frantically toward his gushing throat. The knife was lodged in deeply, so it took a hard yank for her to free it. The bastard panicked as he struggled to clog the wound but failed. The red he so adored forced its way between his frenetic fingers, escaping from the depths of his throat with a sickening groan that brought chills through Lexus’ body.

She pushed him off onto the floor and stood up to watch as his life drained away. Even in the darkness, she could see his face growing whiter and whiter. When the flailing began, she couldn’t tolerate it any longer. It reminded her of the fish she and Leila used to catch as children. They would pull one in and set it on the ground to watch it jump around. Quickly, though, they would return it to its home in the water. As Lexus stared down at the man that had killed her sister, a deep satisfaction rose up like a warm breeze. But, as always, it was time to return him to his home. She bent down and picked up the pistol, aiming its barrel at the center of his face.

“Go to Hell,” she said with a quick pull.

As if a whirlpool had sprung from within his nose, his face sunk in on itself beneath the ruthless force of the metal slug. Two more shots for good measure, and she tossed the gun to the floor and moved to the couch to await the police. They’d be there soon, for surely the neighbors had heard the screams and the gunshots.

The guys at the station would be glad to see she was all right. She had killed, but they would all recognize the justice that had been served. They knew how hard she had been working on that case. Of course, her success in discovering the killer had been a little secret she had thought to keep to herself. Her job on the force could be taken in light of her reckless behavior, but she didn’t care. She had gotten what she wanted. Not a great date, but a great ending.

The leather couch was cool against her wet skin. She grabbed the remote and flipped on the television, its glow casting dim light upon the growing pool of blood beneath the corpse behind her. Of course, the news was on. It was the only thing she ever watched. Everything else was sick, violent, mindless shit: the kind of stuff that turned normal people into the monsters that she hunted. She leaned back and took a deep breath as she turned the volume up.

“Whatever it is, astronomers say it should be here within the week. They’re unsure why the mass was not detected sooner, but those in power are working diligently to determine a possible course of action . . . .”