Late again, Jessica signed the last of her agency’s paperwork, trapped in yet another night of desk duty. Jessica dreaded the work. She glanced at her clock, 1:27 AM, and realized it was too late to go outside and do her real job. The famous hero Lady Darkness was reduced to an office job. She set the pen down, rolling her cramped wrist. She wasn't born for this type of job; she could feel the shadows itching at her fingers. She was made for the nighttime hero duty; crime was at its worst during the night.
Her eyes went back to the clock, it said that it was Wednesday. Her husband wouldn't be home until Friday. Next to the clock was her sister’s unread letter. She hadn’t had time to read it, but with her work done, nothing stopped her now. She knew the scissors were in the kitchen. Before she could get out of her seat, a soft creak shattered the silence. "Babe? Is that you?" Her voice trembled as she slowly got out of her chair and stepped foot into the living room.
As she stepped into the living room, the darkness swirled around her hand, slightly brightening the room. There was nothing, all the paper work must be tiring down her brain. She stepped over to the kitchen and opened the fridge to grab a bottle of water. She opened the bottle and took a sip. As the water rushed down her throat, she looked over to the scissors jar that was on the counter, she noticed that there were only two pairs sitting there; she normally kept three.
Then her pulse kicked in as she heard soft footsteps rushing up behind her. The shadows quickly formed a dark knife in her hand as she spun around and slashed at the intruder. The figure took a step back as the knife hissed through the air. Their movement was clean and practiced, like they've done this before. The moonlight highlighted the gas mask the figure was wearing. The moonlight also reflected off the scissors that were in the intruder’s gloved hands; the same pair that was missing. Jessica growled and lunged forward to counterattack the figure's dodge. They sidestepped, allowing her to run into the corner of the island.
Support the author by searching for the original publication of this novel.
Pain flared in her stomach; she dropped her knife as her arms wrapped around her stomach. She was reminded what was at stake when the intruder grabbed her shoulder and forced her to look at them. Her fist flew towards the figure's chest and made an impact, pain shot up her knuckles like she just punched a brick wall. The intruder took advantage by grabbing Jessica and shoving her into the counter, the moonlight made the figure's red eyes shine as they plunged the scissors into Jessica's neck. She could hear the intruder's breath hitch with a slow exhale after as her throat filled with blood. She tried to gasp for air but all that did was make her cough up blood.
Her legs buckled under her weight as the figure let go of her. She landed onto her knees then onto her side. She could see the door to her room, she hadn't gotten to read her sister's letter. The intruder noticed her gaze and strolled over to her room. Their boots thumping onto the wooden floor and a soft clinking following the figure. They came back holding the envelope and opened it with the bloodied scissors. Jessica tried her best to get up and attack the intruder but it felt like there was a boulder holding her down. She could feel her consciousness fade away. The blood drooling from her throat; pooling onto the floor. The figure let out a muffled chuckle as they read the note.
"Only if she knew," the intruder muttered, folding up the letter and putting it in the inner pocket of their trench coat. They crouched down to the now lifeless body of Lady Darkness, gliding their hand over her. From her ankles to her chest. From her chest to her mouth. The figure ran their finger over her teeth, stopping when they got to her top first molar. Soon, the collection will grow. For now, the intruder needed to prepare for the vigilantes. They grabbed Jessica's ankles and stood up to drag her out of her apartment, leaving behind a smeared blood trail.
