Noah
“I thought you might want to see this.”
I crouch down next to Ryan. He looks grim, more different from his normal jovial self. He hands me a piece of paper, which I hesitantly accept.
It’s the day after the full moon. My conversation with Amelia keeps playing in my head over and over, and I have no clue what I’m supposed to do about it. On the one hand, I can see where she’s coming from. She feels trapped and bored and frustrated. I opened her up to this whole new world within her, and now I’m keeping it away from her.
But on the other, she clearly has no clue how serious this is. The police are looking for someone that matches her description. More than that, her father went missing not too long ago, and she’s likely on a list somewhere, too. I don’t know if they’ll make the connection between some poor Southside girl and this murder, but it’s possible that they will. The stakes are high, incredibly high, and we’re playing a serious balancing game.
If I let her join me, and someone happens to spot her, we’re finished. She can’t come back to the area around the warehouse because she could easily be identified by the person that originally saw her. It’s just too much of a risk.
I glance down at the paper and frown. It’s a police sketch with some reward information beneath it. Apparently, there’s a five thousand dollar reward out for Amelia’s whereabouts, though they don’t know her name and the sketch doesn’t look that much like her.
I look back at Ryan, frowning. “What’s this supposed to mean?”
“That girl is wanted in connection with the murder of Sheer.” He lets that sink in.
I stare at him for another second longer. “Are you blackmailing me?”
He shakes his head. “Not at all. I’m asking for another bribe.”
I stand up and take a step back, completely blown away.
Ryan has never pushed his position before. He has been loyal, helpful, and kind. I’ve grown to really enjoy talking with him and even somewhat think of him as a friend.
Although it shouldn’t, this feels like a betrayal.
“What do you want?” I ask him.
“That’s offering five grand. I want you to match it.”
I laugh. “You just want money?”
“That’s right.”
“How about I give you ten?”
He pauses and then frowns, looking at the ground, “I’d take ten.”
“If this is just money for you, I’ll give you some fucking money,” I say. “But disappear. Leave this city.”
He looks at me, and for a second I see fear in his eyes. But that’s gone, replaced by a guilty conscience. “I’m so close,” he says. “I just need a little more, and then I can get my own place. Plus a little saved up, you know, until I can get a job.”
“Jesus, Ryan,” I say, crouching back down, the anger deflating a bit. “This is about getting back on your feet?”
He nods. “I got robbed a few months back, or else I’d be all set now.”
“Why didn’t you say so?”
“I don’t want pity.” He shakes his head and I sigh.
“Listen, I’ll give you ten grand. But you just threatened me, you know that?”
“I know.” He looks back at the ground.
“I never want to see you again. Don’t show up anywhere near my places. Leave the city if you can, but if you can’t, I better not hear about you.” I pause and stare at him, letting him understand that I’m serious. “Or I’ll hunt you down and disappear you like I’ve made so many other men disappear.”
He recoils from me. “Yeah, okay.”
“Good. I’ll drop cash in that trash can tomorrow at two.” I point at a nearby trashcan. “You better grab it before someone else does.”
“I will.”
I stand up. “Good luck. And remember.”
He nods as I turn and walk away, the police sketch clutched in my hand.
I don’t know how this week can get any fucking worse. Things with Amelia are falling apart, the hunt is much more dangerous than I could have guessed, and now Ryan is trying to fucking blackmail me. I just lost my best informant and all over some fucking money.
I wish he had just asked for the cash. I could have gladly given it to him. But now he’s one more thing that I have to worry about. I don’t want to kill him, but if he makes one wrong move, I’ll stab him through the heart and watch him bleed.
I can’t risk it. He knows way too much about me and can pin me to way too many murders. I never imagined he would be a liability, but now he is.
This city is getting dangerous for me. It’s all happening fast. Barely a few weeks ago I was the top predator in this damn city and nobody would ever think to cross me.
Now I feel like I’m bleeding from every hole in my body.
* * *
I’m in an awful mood when I get home. During the drive out of the city, my thoughts lingered on every negative aspect of my life at this moment, and I couldn’t see any positive light. The only nice thing was Amelia, but even she was turning against me.
I walk inside and go into the kitchen. It’s around five in the evening and I am supposed to watch the warehouse again, but I pour myself a drink anyway. Amelia is sitting outside near the fire again reading a Harry Potter book.
I can’t help myself. I walk toward her, looking at her through the glass.
She’s beautiful. It strikes me all over again how gorgeous she is. She’s reading the sixth Harry Potter, which is surprising. She tore through that series so quickly.
She’s wearing one of my crewneck sweatshirts and a pair of jeans with a blanket tossed over her feet. She doesn’t notice me standing there, and so I take the opportunity to watch her.
I can’t help but smile. Ever small motion she makes brings a feeling in my chest that I can’t deny. It’s the strongest attraction I’ve ever felt before. I love the way she screws her face up as she reads, turning the pages slowly then quickly so that she doesn’t have to pause between them. The memory of that night when she killed Sheer, and then the feeling of her tight cunt against my hard cock, makes my stomach do flips.
But I can’t get sucked into her. I have to remind myself what the stakes are and what could happen if I let her get her way.
I do want to make her happy. I truly, truly do. I want to give her everything imaginable. My smile fades as I look down at the piece of paper in my hand, the police sketch of her. The likeness isn’t perfect, but it’s pretty damn close. If the witness that made this sketch found her again, I am positive that he could ID her easily. I can’t risk that. I won’t risk losing her.
That’s what this is all about. I want to protect her. I want to keep her with me for a long, long time. I want her to learn my skills and to hunt with me. I want to feel the thrill of a kill and then the intense, unbridled passion as I fuck her over my victim’s dead body. I crave her so fucking badly that it’s almost impossible to ignore.
But I have to ignore it anyway. I can’t just give her what she wants. That’s not how this works. She must do as I say. Until then, I can’t fully trust her.
“What’s that?”
I look up, surprised from my thoughts. I pull the door all the way open. Amelia smiles at me, looking at the paper in my hand.
“Ryan gave this to me.” I carry it over and hand it to her.
She takes it and reads it, the smile disappearing slowly from her face.
“Is this me?” she asks.
“Supposed to be.”
She shakes her head. “This could be anyone.”
“Not anyone.”
“Do you think this looks like me?” She waves the paper at me, annoyed.
“Yes,” I admit. “I do. Not exactly, but enough to be worrying.”
She sighs and looks back at it. “I can’t believe it.”
“Believe what?”
She grins at me. “Only five grand? I’m worth more.”
I can’t help but laugh a little. She hands the paper back to me and stretches.
“Ryan threatened me,” I blurt out, not sure why.”
“He what?” she asks, pausing, a surprised look on her face.
“Threatened me. Said he’d turn me in for this prize money unless I matched it.”
“That bastard,” she said softly.
“I’m going to give him ten. He’s just desperate.”
“You’re paying him?”
“I am,” I say. “It’s easier than killing him.”
“Dead men don’t talk.”
“I worked with him for a long time, Amelia. I’m not an animal.”
She leans forward, elbows on her knees, and puts her head in her hands. “God, this is a mess.”
“You’re right.” I sit down next to her and put my arm over her shoulders. “It’ll be okay. He won’t talk.”
“It’s just one thing after another.”
“We’ll get through it.”
She looks up at me. “Will we? You’ll keep going out there, doing your thing, and I’ll do, what? Nothing. I’ll sit here and rot.”
I sigh but she pulls away from me, standing.
“Amelia,” I say.
“No, it’s fine. I know this isn’t all about me, Noah.” She walks back into the house and shuts the sliding door behind her.
I lean back and groan. I’m not sure what I did wrong, but I don’t have the energy to try and fix it. I just need her to hold on for a little bit longer.
Because I have a plan. Something that I think will fix everything for us. I can do it soon, but I just need a little bit more time. I just need her to hold on for a little bit longer, and then I think I know how to fix things.