Blood Thrill

by David Swinden

  I had my backpack with knives, gun, torch and steel picks. Taking out the torch I began to look at the papers randomly strewn around. I had wearing my black water resistant, and cut resistant black gloves, they fit well and served the ‘Breaking-in and entering purposes,’ very well. Opening my bag, I placed my very hardy and trusted hunting knife next to the computer on the table. Most of these sheets of paper were invoices and such, just a lot of routine paperwork that someone must have been entering into a computer. Turning on the desktop, it opened with the screen was now demanding a password. It was a Windows desktop and easy to enter. I restarted the computer and while it was booting up, I used the F8 option to open it in safe mode. In the advanced boot options, using command prompt, found the login ID associated with this computer and changed the password. It was that simple to get into a Windows 7 machine. Next it was time to check all the files and the browsing history. It took awhile to get through everything, but the computer was clean. This was not a machine that was being used for anything illegal; whoever was operating this system had not even been browsing porn in their spare time. It was completely clean; only balance sheets with purchase and sale history. The computer however was connected to the CCTV cameras of the store. I wiped the days’ recordings clean from the machine.

  It must have been just after midnight when I heard the backdoor open. Someone was coming and I needed to move fast. Reaching the door of the room I was in, opened it slightly to get a better look at what was going on down below. The backdoor had been pushed open, and in walked a man with an evil looking face, followed by another, who seemed to be carrying filming equipment in a large bag. They closed the window blinds and switched on a light located on the ceiling right in the center of the room. As the light illuminated the center of the cold room, the Evil One began to take out his camera, an expensive piece of equipment, all the while giving his partner instructions; he began to film the carcasses hanging on hooks. The person doing all of this looked like the epitome of evil, I had found him successfully. I decided not to make a move until it was clear to me as to what was going on. He was putting a great deal into what was being filmed. ‘Get the bitch, we’re ready,’ he growled. The other, much younger looking individual went out and returned pushing in a half-drugged woman, who really did not seem to know what the fuck was going on. He went to the bag, out of which he retrieved a mask and put it on. This was a Guy Fawkes mask, kind of the one worn by Anon. He then walked up to the woman and punched her square in the face. She screamed with pain and fell to the floor, this did not stop him. Reaching her side in a single stride, he began to kick her in the side, while stomping on her face. She was bleeding from the mouth and screaming, ‘No, no, no… please stop. ‘Keep fucking her up,’ the evil one ordered. He once again started to mercilessly pound on her. A few more minutes of this shit and they were going to turn her into nothing but a pile of flesh-and-bones. The agony seen on her innocent face, made me clench the knife harder. ‘Stand her up,’ he ordered. With that his partner picked her up, ‘Here use this,’ he said while throwing him a knife. These evil people were going to make a Snuff Film. They were going to murder this poor girl on camera and sell the recording to someone.

  They must have been paid a lot for all of this, I thought that this was just an urban legend, but this is precisely what I was witnessing right now. Whoever was running this entire show, was now even selling pornographic snuff films. Some sick twisted bastard out there had paid for this, to satisfy his primal sexual urges. Must be someone with a very soft dick, and a lot of hard cash, why else would they want something like this? But hey, murder was on sale and any kind of murder comes with a price. The partner was now holding the girl up with one hand and the other had a knife across her throat.

  I retrieved my gun from the bag and came back out and stood at the head of the stairs. ‘COPS FREEZE, I yelled, pointing my gun at them. Two quick shots would have easily dispatched the both of them. ‘Drop the girl,’ he let go and she fell to the floor. ‘Move motherfucker and I'll shoot you slowly. First, I’ll take out your hips and as you crawl like a miserable maggot, I’ll shoot out your palms. I’ll take the both of you out real slow and painful, you miserable worms. Stealthily climbing down the stairs and walking up behind the partner, took a knife from out my left back pocket, stabbing him straight in the backbone. This was the end of him, he was going to struggle on the floor not being able to move, and would now slowly die.

  ‘Did you see that, do you like it; want to film it? How much were you paid for this movie, ha, how much…?’ ‘Look man, if you want money, I’ve got a lot, take it; take it all.’ ‘Oh, you want to continue to live, but what about her?’ ‘She’s just white trash man,’ looking at the girl I noticed that she was not white, but was probably Mexican or from some other Latin American country. ‘She’s not white silly, but you are - Cheap… White…Trash…’

  ‘Come now; don’t be scared this won’t hurt a bit. Kneel down with your hands behind your back. In my right-hand back pocket was the fifth knife, this knife was the complexifier that would put Brian and team back in the game. ‘Who do you work for?’ ‘Fuck you,’ he replied in disgust. ‘Get the fuck away from me.’

  ‘Hey BirthandDeath666… why, are you so scared? I told you I had a knife to bring to your throat.’ His partner was still struggling to live and trying to pull the knife out of his spinal column. But with it embedded deep, much of the movement being ordered by his brain, was not reaching his muscles. The spinal code was a highway to the brain; I had damaged and broken the road that the brain needed to function properly. The girl was just lying there limp as though dead, she must have passed out from the numerous drugs in her system, and the thrashing she had received.

  ‘Just let me go man… come on… you’re no cop, so what’s your proposition.’ ‘I’m not a cop, I’m a killer just like you, but I don’t like other killers, especially people who kill innocent humans.’

  ‘We know who you are you know…’

  ‘Then why did you not come and get me? Fuck you… you don’t not know shit.’ He was being evasive and needed to be taught a lesson. I pulled the knife out of his partners’ back and walked back to him. ‘Guess, whose back is going to get fucked up next?’

  ‘I don’t know man, I swear. We call him Snake, no one knows him, and no one has seen him. He’s not human man, he’s like God, he’s many, not one. Good luck with that, now just let me go. Take all the money man…take it and leave.’ ‘How does he give you orders?’ ‘The beach man, search for a cross with flowers. If you find it, just dig around the cross and everything will be there, messages and cash, and every damn thing.’ ‘Lie on your back,’ I commanded. He turned on his back and as he lay on the ground, arms to his side, he began to cry. Tears were streaming down his face. He must have been having flashbacks of all the bad decisions he’d made throughout his life. ‘No regrets man, nothing… it’s all good. Just like you, I had this urge… like a vampire I needed blood. Sometimes I drink it you know. It gives me life, I like the night, hate the day… let me go fast and easy okay, do that for me.’ ‘This won’t take time, don’t worry… unfortunately it will be fast and painless,’ I said, all the while sinking the fifth knife into his throat. He tried to struggle, bringing his hands to my knife hand. ‘Be a man,’ I hissed, he then let go and welcomed his fate in silence. His partner had passed away silently into the night. Checking the camera, noticed that the recording had been paused when I had shouted ‘Cops.’ When Brian finds this tomorrow, the story would be clear for all to see. Most importantly, everything had been recorded. I took their phones and picked up the girl and rushed her to a hospital, as she still remained passed out. On reaching the hospital found a stretcher stationed outside, placing her on top of that, pushed the stretcher straight into the main door and split from there. Will come back in a day or two to see how she was doing, pretty sure that I had saved her from certain death. She might have a few broken ribs perhaps, which she would recover from. I’m in the habit
of giving gifts, and there was something special reserved for her.

  12. Let’s Play

  The next day Brian was back at the crime scene, as this was still a part of his jurisdiction. The M.O. was clear for him to see, knife through the throat which was now linking all the recent murders. He did not have to guess that this was the fifth knife, from The Butcher’s kills. Somehow all these crimes were interlinked and not making much sense to the PD. He had to follow this lead on his own, without the interference of the Chief or Lieutenant. Since the Chief and Lieutenant Ellen had asked the team to close the case involving The Butcher. Something strange was going on and the entire police department was looking like headless chickens, running around aimlessly. He was determined now to get a handle on the situation. He had in his possession now the video camera and the knife; he also had a secret message from the killer. Six working girls were killed, five knives had been returned to the PD in the most hideous fashion, which showed him that all the people who’d been butchered were connected in one way or the other.

  With the lab results available to him and having seen the footage. He was aware that the two who had been killed had been shooting a snuff film. He would find the girl, his people were already checking in all the hospitals. It did not take much to realize that this was much larger than he, or anyone else could have ever imagined. This was an organized Factory of Murder. There was someone running an industry of murder. Somehow this had become a very well oiled machine, and running as smoothly as possible to protect its kingpin. A mastermind was sitting somewhere and organizing murders. The motive had to be money - it was simple and clear to him now. He was not actually after the person who did the recent killings but someone totally different. He and the Phantom were after the same individual. But why was the Ghost interested in solving crimes? Could he not have given all this information to the team, who in turn could have used it to apprehend all of these evil villains? Was the Phantom actually Batman? Maybe the city tag of Serial killer City needed to be changed to Gotham City.

  He was meeting with Jackie, Matt, Jane, Susan, and Greg at a coffee shop to discuss these latest developments. The PD had become much too dangerous, with all the leaks and whatnot. Also, no one knew what direction the chief wanted to take in regards to these latest developments. He had always been a bit salty when it came to this investigation. The city had already been through enough and these latest killings were going to stir up a hornet's nest. The presses were going to be all over the cops seeking answers. Private investigators had also made an appearance, not to mention the bounty hunters who were gearing-up to cash in on the situation; it had truly turned into a downright spectacle. A disgrace to everyone involved.

  ‘We are going to keep this investigation going… the chief might invite the FBI to assist, as he thinks this might have some national or even international implications. It will also make the Feds look good you know… and the citizens will now feel safer with the Feds involved… we will help them, but please let’s not let this slip from our hands once again,’ Brian was heard saying. The team had become secretly obsessed with the Butcher Case and really wanted to get to the bottom of it all. The Chief had however asked them to wind it down and move on. The Fifth knife nevertheless had thrown the case wide open again.

  ‘Murder on this scale is unheard of, the significance and impact is now a matter of national security. If this whole thing gets organized to scale, it might move to other states. The Feds would need to now check murders in other states and search for the same or similar M.Os’ Matt was saying.

  Jackie however had taken a totally different approach to this whole predicament - ‘Be careful Brian, I think you are being setup for a big fall. Whoever this phantom or batman or ghost is, I don’t care. These crimes have been easy for him, I'm sure he’s after something bigger. He’s leading Brian by the ears. He’s just a serial killer and that’s it, nothing good ever comes of it. No, he’s toying with us and he’s actually up to something much larger. I personally feel that this needs to be handed over to the Feds and we need to get the fuck out, while we still can.’

  Greg from Tactical had a much brighter prospect. ‘Maybe not… he just wants us to watch and appreciate his work. Who’s going to write his story if he gets killed… come on… there are many aspects to all of it. Look at it… here we have a serial killer who is adept at solving crimes and also bringing about justice. He’s the cops and judiciary, all rolled into one.’ He now had a big smile on his face.

  ‘Hey before we go, BBQ at my place tonight,’ Jackie said ‘And bring your own booze.’

  ***

  The evil one had told me to look on the beach. Should have asked him which beach specifically - rookie mistake. The closest beach was called ‘Bar Beach.’ This was the place that had nice restaurants and bars for people to party at, or to just chill-out. It was very pretty with golden sands and beautiful sunsets. I could sit at any one of these places on the beach and keep a watch. My particular favorite was the Joy and Pence Steakhouse. They had a big space with an open view of the beachfront. There was roofing to protect from the sun and rain while everything else remained open to the elements. The kitchen was partially covered but the bar was open to nature. People thronged this place and they were open for breakfast, lunch and dinner. This was the place I decided to use, as walking along the beach might give my presence away. They opened at 9 am - I was at the beach by 6, sitting on one of the empty chairs, scoping the place using my binoculars. I wasn't the only one at the beach this early in the morning. There were people out surfing, as the big waves were in today. This gave me the perfect opportunity to walk up and down the beach, watching all these people catching and riding the waves.

  Strolling up and down the beach revealed no cross and no fucking flowers. Maybe that bastard lied to me - how can someone lie when they knew they were going to die? Wasn’t it time to tell the truth - apparently not! How many days would I need to come and walk around like this, maybe I could take to surfing for a couple of days.

  I did this for three days. Coming early in the morning, walking around, watching the waves and those bikini clad women, who seemed to make life that much more interesting. The less they wore the better; as yet I did not have the time to pursue these beautiful asses’ walking around, maybe at a later date; although many of them kept glancing my way. I knew full well that they were also interested, but I already had a fucktoy - Sharon was always available to take care of my erections, although it had been a while now. Fuck, with all of this going on I forgot to even get a hard-on. I had become used to taking care of my morning wood by myself. ‘Sex is like poker, if you didn’t have a good partner, you had better have a good hand,’ May West said that.

  While walking towards the other end of the beach, there was something shining in the sun out in the distance. My heart began to race; maybe he was not a liar after all, I was in no hurry but kept approaching at a leisurely pace. Whoever had placed it there, must also have been watching me from somewhere. I walked past the cross with pretty pink flowers but pretended not to notice, carrying-on by, sat down on the beach, watching the sun make its way across the horizon. Sitting like this for more than hour before deciding that is was time now to make my way back to the restaurant, while crossing the small wooden cross buried in the sand, stole a quick glance from out the corner of my eye and noted that scribbled on the cross were the words ‘Fuck You.’

  ‘Why was this snake proving to be so difficult?’ So whoever this individual was had figured out that I knew about the cross. This criminal was going to be pretty slithery I could tell. Also, I had successfully climbed the hierarchy of this treacherous organization, and now they must also be actively looking for me - the one that has caused them so much trouble. I had on shorts, shades and baseball cap.

  With a high powered camera they could still get a decent picture of me. How clear it would be though, I could not tell. But if there was indeed someone watching, they had now seen me. This was something to look into late
r, for now if I could just spot that fucking camera man. I scanned the horizon and hoped to catch the reflection of light, coming off the camera lens. Sure enough, there it was, the cameraman was so stupid. He had forgotten to switch off the flash. I never use the flash on my camera unless absolutely necessary. Even the shutter noise that cameras make is turned off on all my cameras, and that would also include my phone camera. Criminals can be so dumb at times. I quickened the pace of my walk, in a way that was not really noticeable, taking much larger quicker steps, started walking back toward the restaurants. I was sure that the cameraman was waiting to get a better shot of me to show his boss. People with cameras always act like that. Each one thinking that they were somehow going to become the next big photographer.