Now there were only two things that would release him from the prison that betrayal had locked him in, and he was determined that one way or another he would make one of those two things happen.
As far as he was concerned, it wasn’t an if; it was simply a when.
He was already making progress. He’d hung around for a while after he’d dumped the last body, camouflaging himself and blending into the trees. No one had even realized he was there.
Except that cop.
Even though he’d known that no one could see him, that cop had looked straight at him. Their eyes had met, and he had known that the other man didn’t just see him, but saw inside him too.
He didn’t like that.
He didn’t want some random stranger being able to figure out what he was and what was going on inside his head.
And not just a random stranger but the very man who was hunting him. He wasn’t used to being the prey. He was a beast, a hunter, top of the food chain, but when the cop was around, his position in the food chain changed. No longer was he the strongest, the fastest, the best. He had to defer that position to another.
That was unacceptable.
He might have to do something about the cop.
But not tonight.
Tonight was just about enjoying the outdoors. As spring slowly washed away winter, new leaves uncurled themselves, blossoms spoke of the coming fruits, flowers bloomed, and the whole world was colorful, fresh, and new.
Spring was a time of rebirth, and that was exactly how he saw this time in his life. It was a time for unleashing the real him, of embracing the beast within, of taking the betrayal he had suffered and getting his revenge. It was also a time of healing, of moving forward, of starting a new life. As soon as he’d left behind the infidelity that had destroyed him, then he could finally start that new life.
He thought of himself as a caterpillar, of sorts. Instead of spinning a cocoon of silk, he was using his revenge to change himself into a butterfly. And once he’d gotten his wings, he would be free to fly away to live the life he truly loved.
For now, though, his cocoon wasn’t full formed. There was more work to do. Starting with his next kill.
He had waited two weeks between his first and his second. Not because he wanted to but because he thought it was the smart thing to do.
But it was getting harder to wait.
He’d lasted only a week and a half between his second and third kills, and even though it had only been a day, the need for blood was already consuming him.
Was it too soon to take another?
If he was going to do the smart thing, then he should wait, let the dust settle a little, before he found another librarian to kill. But there was a sense of urgency inside him that he couldn’t explain. Perhaps it was seeing that cop today, knowing that the man would be relentless in his quest to stop him.
However persistent the cop was, he wasn’t really afraid of being caught. He was close to getting what he wanted, and once he had it, he would simply disappear. He knew how to live off the grid. He could build a fire … he knew how to hunt … he could build himself a shelter … he didn’t need electricity or running water, and he certainly didn’t need human companionship.
All he needed was this.
The great outdoors.
A cold wind began to whistle through the air, and reluctantly, he stood and gathered his clothes. He liked to sit out here naked, the wind in his hair, the warm sunshine on his bare skin, or the caress of the night air against his flesh. It made him feel like he really was part of this world.
Throwing on his shirt and jeans, he shoved his feet into a pair of boots and headed for his car. The van was where he kept most of his stuff. Since he spent most of his time out here in the woods, it was just convenient to have the majority of his belongings close at hand.
Since he was the only one out here, he never bothered locking the van, and when he reached it and swung the door open, the warmer air hit him. While it was pleasant, he kind of missed the cold air, but for now, it was time to grab something to eat, get some sleep, and be ready for the next day.
Opening a packet of corn chips, his gaze fell on the set of fake teeth that he’d made for his transformation. They worked well, fit him perfectly, and had come out so much better than he had envisioned. He was very proud of them, if he did say so himself.
The claws as well had come out better than he’d thought they would. He’d modeled them off the ones in Nightmare on Elm Street, but he had worried they would be too flimsy when it came time to use them.
But they hadn’t been.
Both had worked perfectly, like they actually became a part of him. When he wore them, he truly felt like a beast.
He couldn’t wait to put them to use once again.
3
April 17th
* * *
8:22 A.M.
* * *
“Let’s go,” Dante said as he swooped over to his desk and grabbed his jacket.
“Go where?” Milla asked, looking too peppy and full of energy for eight in the morning. The downside of having a brain that never switched off was that he didn’t usually get a lot of sleep. Most days that didn’t bother him, but it did make for a few grumpy mornings, and eventually the lack of sleep caught up with him and he would crash and get a full night’s sleep.
“Interview a suspect,” he said. Keys and jacket in hand, he was already heading for the stairs.
“Are you going to tell me who?” Milla asked, having to jog to keep up with him. The lack of sleep was quickly being erased by enthusiasm over a possible break in the case.
“It’s a man who’s big in comic cons.”
“Comic cons?”
“You know, where people who love comics and anime and all that stuff have big conventions where they all get together and dress up and stuff.”
“What do you know about comics and anime?” Milla asked with a giggle.
Ignoring her, he continued. “I was thinking last night about what you said about him being a beast. We know that he uses fake teeth and some sort of claws. If he really does love beasts, then I thought maybe he likes to hang out at those places. My brother-in-law is into that stuff and I called him as soon as the sun came up and asked if there was anyone in particular he could think of who dressed up like a beast and he gave me a name.”
“That’s great,” Milla enthused.
“I ran the name, got an address. I want to go straight there, catch him off guard.”
“Does he have an arrest history?” Milla asked as they walked out into the cool morning.
“No,” he answered. He’d been shocked to find that and not a lot shocked him. With the violent nature of the crimes, he’d been surprised that there wasn’t a single other crime in the man’s past. It wasn’t usual for someone to jump straight to abduction and murder, usually there were a litany of other charges along the way.
“That’s odd.”
“It is, but it doesn’t necessarily mean anything.”
“Agreed,” Milla nodded as they got into the car. “So give me a rundown of the man we’re going to interview.”
“Name is Trake Powell, he’s thirty-two, lives in his parents’ basement, he works as a manager at a fast food restaurant, and from what I can gather, he spends most of his time on his computer playing RPGs—that’s role—”