by Kim Faulks
Would she have done this before? Play human like she was now? The line of existence seemed to be blurring between her and them, to the point where she wondered if indeed she was still a demon at all. Was this the punishment her Father had intended? No, it couldn't be. He would never be so cruel.
She had changed, that was for sure. She was no longer the feral animal that was birthed into this world by the slash of her Father's knife on that fateful night, the night that she and the rest of her kind would remember forever.
Her phone vibrated and she looked at the screen, touching the button she heard Gerry's panting voice.
"X's coming after you, girly."
The rush of the night-time crowd moved against her in a sea of sparkles and sequins, the colors too bright for her world. Gerry's words were slurred, catching mid-word as he groaned and breathed around the pain. She could tell he was hurt - badly.
"Has he left already?"
"'Bout twenty minutes ago."
Her stomach tightened as the rush of anger filled her. "Are you okay?"
He laughed, even though it was mixed with the pain from the effort. "You gettin’ soft on me all of a sudden?"
"No! I mean. Just ... no." Her words sounded hollow and forced. Why did she sound like this? Why did she care?
"It's alright," he said, and she could still hear the smile in his voice. "I've already called them and they’re on their way. He said he had a tracker put on you ages ago, hon, and said he knew just where you were, something about some damn animal shelter? I dunno if this means anything at all to you..."
She never answered, just pressed that tiny red button and ran.
Her heart beat like a monster inside her chest, ferocious and savage. She wanted blood as Gerry's words hit home … some damn animal shelter.
Her jacket must have been bugged with not one, but two devices, the same jacket that she left at the shelter today. Two fucking bugs? She should feel damn proud for all the attention, but all she felt was blind rage. Not only for the animals that she was sure he and his men would maim, or worse, kill, but for the note ... the note she had left for Lucy, the note led her straight to where X and his men waited.
Colors blurred as she ran, her feet barely touching the ground as she weaved in and out of the crowd. Humans gasped and cried out as the wind from her body buffeted against them. She would only be seen as a blur, moving too fast for them to understand what they were actually seeing.
She pushed herself to move faster as she neared the park, until she reached the broken gates. It was hard to hear anything over the barking and howling of the animals. Their anger and protectiveness of someone weaker, someone hurt, were almost deafening, and she knew with a sinking in her stomach that she was too late. She concentrated, filtering through the snarls and growls until she found the whimpers that were so soft she almost missed them.
"Now, if you don't want that to happen again, I suggest you tell us where the bitch is, or next time we're gonna cut up your pretty little face."
Xeno's voice sounded soft and caring, a facade carefully held to mask his cruel and calculating truth. She knew that he would use anyone and anything to get what he wanted, he would hurt, manipulate, and even kill - and right now he wanted Kellah.
"Please, I don't know who you're talking about. There was a note..."
"Shush now. Shhh."
The shrill scream cut through the air, and even the animals in the shelter quieted in fear. Kellah should have felt at home with the chilling sound, she should have felt a connection to that which once was her world. But all she could think of was that this human suffered because of her. This human, who was good and kind, and was only in this pain because of her selfish reasons.
"I ... don't know. Please ... oh God, please don't."
"Then why are you here? Do you think I'm stupid, playing me for a fool? No one plays Xeno for a fool. You protecting Kellah will only get you hurt, but then bitches like you are good for nothing else. Do her, Mountain."
The sound of the zipper snagged each of these thoughts inside her, ensnaring them into a tumbled mess of emotions until she could no longer find the thread of her true self, her demon self. Kellah moved quietly, not understanding what she was meant to do. All she knew was that she was drawn to the yellow lights of the office shining through the glass windows and doors, illuminating the horror within.
Lucy lay on the battered table, The Mountain hovering over her with one hand around her throat while he fumbled with his zipper with the other. The tiny woman batted at him, her feeble attempts further exciting him and the others, and he clenched tighter around her throat, watching with amusement as she choked and spluttered.
Kellah could see the entertainment was only getting started as The Mountain reached up, wrapping his hand around her tiny breast and squeezing. Lucy whimpered like a beaten animal, the pitiful sound growing in crescendo as he gripped her body harder. Xeno laughed, the bellow urging on the assault and making something inside of Kellah burst into flames.
The Mountain leaned over the whimpering mess, pushing against her harder, and at first Kellah thought this was it. This was the moment that would kill this human woman. Even if she survived, a part of her would die here and now, in the filthy office of an animal shelter. This is where her innocence would always remain.
The Mountain licked her cheek, sliding that tongue like a fat leech along her face and over her eyes until he moved backward and Kellah saw that he hadn't yet managed to discard his pants. He pulled his hand back across his body and it flew towards the human woman, smashing across her face. There was no reaction, too much had gone on for her to fight any longer. Her spirit was all but crushed.
She knew what was about to happen, she had been in this world long enough to know that any woman would rather die than to experience what Lucy was about to. Even though a part of her justified turning away and leaving by saying, it's not your problem … this is what humans do to each other, another part of her felt something entirely different. It was this part of her that made her step quietly into the office, watching the human as she made some kind of attempt to fight The Mountain off while the others stood around watching the display.
It hit her at that moment, as she stood there with demon fury flowing through her veins. She had caused this by her own selfish actions alone. This was a culmination of her own needs and desires overriding anything, and anyone, else. At that moment she realized she was no better than these humans she despised.
"Get off her," she said her voice low and controlled.
It took a moment before anyone acknowledged her presence, so engrossed were they with the tearing of Lucy's clothes as The Mountain maneuvered his body, spreading her legs wide around his massive bulk.
"I said, get off her."
Xeno turned to her, his eyes sparkling with excitement as he laughed. "Well, well, well. Here she is. See boys, I told you she would come."
Everyone but The Mountain turned towards her. He didn't even know that she was in the room. She needed to fix that.
Xeno stood up as she walked forward and for the first time since that darkened alleyway in Summerland Crossing, she allowed the real her to fully emerge. The gasp from Xeno sounded harsh as she felt her features change, the demon that she was becoming fully visible. She raised her hand, slapping Xeno across the face and watched with amusement as his body careened into the wall and fell to a heap at her feet.
The others stood, their mouths agape at what had just happened. But she wasn't interested in them. Her focus was on the massive man in front of her. She reached around, grabbing hold of his most tender parts and ... Squeezed.
The popping sound that came from her hand was quickly drowned out by his screams. She let go and watched as The Mountain crumbled, falling to his knees in whimpers and convulsions as his body let go.
A fetid stench filled the room as she had expected, and for such a big man, The Mountain seemed so vulnerable, relying on the size of his presence and not the strength of
his will. She could have stopped there and she would have, except for the whisper of a tiny voice saying, "Kill them all."
Lucy could barely whisper, her face swollen to the point of her being unrecognizable made forming the words almost impossible. But she did, forcing out each syllable so that she would not be misunderstood. Fingers grabbed at Kellah, reaching to her, even though she looked like an abomination. Those fingers gripped at her rotting flesh, digging in even though she watched Lucy pale with disgust.
Kellah looked down at her hand, wrapped around the never-ending peeling flesh of her rotting corpse, and looked up, catching her reflection in the dirty windows. Her shadowed image stared back at her and for a second she was mesmerized.
Black rotting flesh hung off her obsidian corpse, the horned reflection glistening, catching the light even in the dimmed room. As she turned, she watched hues of dark maroon bounce off her, leaving her to look like a bloody oil slick. Her barbed tail flicked out behind her, and like her own hand, it drew back poised. A weapon strong enough to pierce the heart and body of any living animal and she would use it this night.
Her demon self was like no horror movie could ever portray, she had never known anyone to withstand the sight of her, let alone reach out and touch her. Two of Lucy's perfectly manicured fingernails were broken, the bright pink nail beds torn and bleeding. This pathetically small woman had shown more spirit than she had ever seen.
"Kill them, for me," Lucy whispered, imploring her with the eye that wasn't swollen shut. Kellah nodded, pulling down Lucy's dress, and turned to the first one. Who was she to deny a friends request?
Reno stood shuddering at the sight of her. Unable to comprehend what she was, he pointed and screamed, although no words came. He tried to move, to run away, but his brain betrayed him in his last moments. Kellah watched him run up and down on the spot, his momentum only taking him straight to Hell. He wouldn't be alone for long. His bony frame shattered under her hands as she ripped his body apart. She vaguely heard screams as she grabbed Reno's neck, tearing it from the rest of his body, holding his head, neck and spinal column in front of her. She marveled at how she hadn't lost her touch as she turned to where Xeno cowered, and she dropped what was left of Reno's nervous system to the ground.
The macabre scene of torn bodies and blood lay decoratively around her. It was the most exhilarating feeling she had since leaving her home and the sweet trauma of torture that constantly filled the air.
"What ...what are you?" Xeno asked, as he looked up at her.
"I am a demon." The answer seemed so simple and serene as it left her rotting lips.
She became aware that Lucy had pulled herself up from the desk and stumbled to where he trembled, an old phone clasped in her hand. Lucy looked over to her, seeking comfort or a confirmation of what had transpired, as though the sight of Kellah alone would cement her coming actions. The frightened animal eyes she had a moment ago were gone. In place was the cold detached gaze of a killer.
Kellah knew what was coming, but she would not rob her of her path, no matter how hard it would be. She had learned this lesson the hard way, and watched as Lucy bought the phone above her head, smashing it down on Xeno's. His flesh split, running in a line from one side to the other as he slumped to the floor. She hadn't killed him, merely knocked him out, but it was enough for her to build the strength that she would need to get through this. Kellah would finish it for her.
The taste of human flesh flooded her, drowning her in a metallic crimson ocean of littered pieces until there was only her and Lucy left. Blood drunk, she turned toward the only living thing left as the need to tear and consume still raged like a hungry, tortured animal inside of her.
In her demon eyes, she saw only flesh, flesh that seemed already damaged and torn. Flesh that seemed to look at her with fear now as it grabbed hold of its cloths trying its best to cover up.
"Thank you," it said. Its voice soft, it didn't want to frighten her. "You saved me."
Saved me ... saved me ... saved me? Is that what she was doing? Saving this ... human? She was doing this, herself, a demon that had been pathetic, a demon that had been cast out?
Kellah looked around herself; death and destruction coated the walls, floors and her senses. She had to remember why she was here, what she was doing.
"It's ... okay, Kellah. I'm ... not going to hurt ... you."
The human collapsed in front of her, and she snapped out her hand, catching her fall at the last moment. How can this human care about her after what had just happened? How can this human, Lucy, care about her after she saw what Kellah truly was? Her demonic side was calming, and her thoughts and feelings returned from that primal state in a rush. She carried Lucy outside and lay her on the ground while she tended to the animals, reassuring them with the only kind words she could manage at the moment - it's okay.
She moved the animals quickly, knowing they would be safe away from the tiny office, and walked back in. There wasn't much in the room that wasn't painted blood red and splattered with hunks of flesh. Her stomach and she covered her mouth as she belched loudly. Xeno aggravated her even when he was dead, she had fucking heartburn.
Xeno's clothes lay shredded all over the place, but he at least had the good sense to remove his jacket before the shit went down, and she rifled through his pockets until she found his silver lighter.
It wouldn't take long to burn the tiny office, taking what was left of the bodies along with it. There would be no dental matching. Kellah had taken care of that. The fine enamel dust still clung to her skin as the last of her demon features changed and she turned back into her human form, carrying Lucy back home.
The human Lucy gripped her fiercely as she lay in Kellah arms, staring up at her with her one good eye. She didn't look down. She didn't want to look at the human woman. She had done more than enough.
Now there was one person other than Gerry who knew what she was, and that was dangerous. Gerry was only one breath short of a grave, and his intention was to ensure the next life would be more comfortable than this one. Now she had Lucy to think about, and for one split-second she thought of simplifying her life. She wanted to be selfish, she wanted to be free, but the thought of ending this human was something she just couldn't do. So she carried her to her apartment, holding her close as she mounted the stairs and pushed open the door, making sure she hurt her no more. She pulled down the covers and placed her on her bed, feeling awkward and unsure, human emotions, for her, were not something she had ever learned to deal with.
There was nothing keeping her in Red Valley anymore. Xeno was dead. Lucy was still alive, just. And Hunter was out of her hair, so she was free at last to run. Tomorrow she thought. Tonight she was beat.
Chapter 22
Liam Russell sat across from Hunter at the mornings debriefing. He normally missed these meetings, and after ten minutes of listening to the Sergeant drone on and on, he remembered why.
He came here with one purpose in mind, to find Liam Russell and put a face to the name. As he half listened, half studied the officer across from him, he found out something equally as important. There had been another murder.
It seemed his presence - or lack thereof - had been taken for granted in these get togethers, and for the first time since seeing Stephanie's dead eyes stare back at him, the other officers spoke freely. Another woman found dead in a park, her face slashed by a razor into a macabre grin. He even heard his name mentioned once or twice. When would they realize they were wasting their efforts looking at him for these murders?
"... will be a full investigation into the Detective."
What? What did he just miss?
"What's going on?" he asked, although no one bothered to answer. What, was he fucking invisible? He stood up, immediately attracting the icy stare of the Sergeant, and then slowly the whole entire fucking floor.
"What are you doing here, Hunter? I thought you were suspended." The Sergeant said, asking the question that it seemed everyone else w
as thinking.
Hunter shrugged and checked his belt. "Got my badge, got my gun. I guess I didn't get the memo, Sarge. Now can you repeat what you just said ... please?"
The Sergeant scowled and shifted where he stood. No one wanted him here. That was plain to see. But, he didn't care what they wanted or what they thought of him. He just wanted to find the truth. The Sergeant looked around the room, witnessing the filthy looks from the other officers. A movement from behind a group of Detectives drew his, and Darrion's, attention as Riccardi puffed out his chest and pushed his way forward.
"There will be no more fighting amongst my officer's," the Sergeant growled.
He didn't know who it was, but the reply cemented what he already knew. "Hunter's not one of us. He's a murderer!"
There was no staying here any longer. He got what he had come for, to put a face to Liam Russell's name, and now that it was done there was no reason to stick around. He left, pushing past those that stepped in front of him as he tried to fight his way out, and made for the door.
Fischer would know what was going on, but he didn't like the thought of drawing him deeper into the world of misery he was creating, and he figured if they wanted him bad enough for these murders, then he would find out soon enough.
There was one place in the building the others wouldn't find him. The evidence room was not somewhere that an officer would take the time to visit. Hunter unlocked the door and slipped inside, taking a lungful of fresh air before the dust hit his lungs. Rows and rows of logged items sat piled high on evidence shelves. It was a petty thief's wet dream. He pulled out the busted vinyl chair and flicked the screen to life, logging in to the WebCOPS program with his police credentials, and pulled up the most recent investigations.