It was always raining in October. Andrew needed to go to the shops. He did not smoke or drink and was not intending to start. There was no way he would find an escape from his conscience in a beer bottle or a packet of cigarettes. He stepped into the supermarket. The halogen lights burned down on him. The over-sized convenience store was a a mixture of noise: babies crying, toddlers screaming and his own private demons taunting him.
"What are you going to buy here? Your next murder weapon, perhaps?" Andrew's second target mocked.
"Oh shut up. I just need some food."
"Andrew look at all of these people, there are so many targets. Which ones are you going to kill," Jessica pointed at a slim brunette, thumbing through a fashion magazine, "are you going to kill her?
"Shut up. I'm just buying some food." Andrew picked up a basket to carry his shopping in.
"Look at that kitchen knife you could make sure somebody suffers with that or you could end it all quickly can make them feel pain and fear like you did with me or you could rip life away like you did with him. Which one is it going to be?"
"It will be neither Jessica, I'm not like that anymore."
"Of course you're not." Andrew's second target said, rather unconvinced.
Andrew moved into the meat isle. His second target pointed at humongous leg of lamb. "You can kill someone quickly with that: one blow to the head and it will all be over. Or you could bludgeon them to dead. That would be truly painful and truly malicious." The second target explained, malevolently.
"You will always be a murderer. Murderer! Murderer!" Jessica and his second target started circling Andrew, shouting out "killer" and "murderer." Andrew tightly closed his eyes and ignored the taunting. When he opened them, he saw a plain faced security guard in a knitted jumper, advancing towards him. "Ok mate, let's take this outside."
"Why? What did I do?"
"You're disturbing our other customers. I'm just going to take you outside." The guard took Andrew by the arm and led him to the exit. As a last insult his shopping was confiscated.
"That was your fault again."
"No it wasn't Andrew; we're just in your mind. We don't exist."
Andrew cursed and stood up. He disdainfully flicked dust and dirt off his overcoat. He walked away from the supermarket and further into the high street. There would be other places where he could do his shopping.
<em>All of them are so normal. All of them are so different to me. I've changed. Why can't I can be like them?</em> Andrew thought.
Jessica pulled a face. "Did killing me make you stupid? You can't be like these people, because you're a murderer. You killed me and your second target and now we're a part of you and you can't change that."
"I will be able to change that. Just watch me." Andrew replied.
A passerby stopped and frowned. "Are you talking to me?" The man asked.
Andrew shook his head and smiled. "No sorry. I was just thinking aloud." The man shrugged, accepting this and walked off.
Andrew's second target smiled in disbelief. "That's completely ridiculous. When I asked about your health you act rudely and kill me. But when that man challenged you, you reacted politely and let him go. What makes me so different?"
"I was just in a bad mood at the time. Jessica was really annoying me. You know how it is."
"Actually I don't know and I'm not going to know, because I'm dead."
"You should really stop talking to yourself in public, Andrew. People might think you're crazy." Jessica suggested. Andrew shook his head and ignored her.
"I've got an idea. Why don't you just go home? Why don't you go back to where it's safe? Why don't you go back to the padded walls and the straight jacket?"
Andrew agreed to this and walked up to the zebra crossing and without looking at the road, he stepped straight off the curb.
"Andrew there's a car, you idiot!" Jessica screamed. The killer looked to the right and stepped back, just in the nick of time. He received an angry honk from the car. After a few minutes it was safe to walk. Andrew hurried across and into a quiet alleyway, where he turned to Jessica.
"Why did you do that? You could've just let that car hit me."
"No I couldn't've. I'm not having you die, until I've finished tormentin' you." Jessica replied.
"Isn't there someone in hell you could torment, instead of me?" Andrew asked.
"Of course there is, but you killed me, so obviously I want to mock you rather than anybody else."
"You really are a spiteful, horrible person." Andrew commented. By now he had reached his tower block of flats. He quickly entered the access code and the door buzzed open. The killer's second target suddenly burst out laughing. Andrew stared at him quizzically.
"I couldn't hold it in any longer. I can't believe you're calling Jessica horrible and spiteful, when you're the one who killed me, even though I was concerned about your health."
Andrew shrugged. "It's not my fault if you're dead. You should've run."
"I did run."
"Why are you blaming me? If you ran a little faster, then we wouldn't be standing here having this conversation." Andrew shook his head and started climbing the stairs.
"It wouldn't have mattered if I had run faster. You still would've caught me." Andrew's second target muttered, before following his murderer up the stairs.
****
Andrew was in his new flat, trying to engulf himself into his new leather sofa. He was sinking deeply trying to hide from the fates that had befallen him. He turned on the TV and switched to the news channel. "Our main story tonight, today at one forty-five p.m. in an auto junkyard in North London a middle-aged man called Steven Wheeler was found dead with a piece of glass in his back. The police don't have suspects. He doesn't have any known family..."
Andrew smiled. "No family? There will be nobody to miss you. You were the perfect target."
****
Andrew was sleeping or at least trying to. He could not get the faces of Jessica and Steven out of his mind. He kept thinking of Jessica's face before she died. He kept seeing the panicked run of Steven and how he crumpled, when the shard of glass hit him. He turned on his side and looked at the time. Three a.m. He rubbed his eyes. At least he did not have any work to wake up to. He had a feeling he would not be able to get back to sleep. He got out of bed and walked to kitchen. Waiting for him was Jessica.
"Couldn't get to sleep, could ya? You can't stop thinkin' about us, could ya?"
****
Andrew finally awakened out of a troubled slumber that he had never intended to take. He kept dreaming of his victims. He realised he had fallen asleep on the kitchen counter. He stood up and went to the bathroom. He did not even recognise his reflection. The man staring back at him had disheveled hair and about a day's stubble. There were dark shadows lingering under the his eyes. Today was a new day. A new day to do something good.
"You want to do something good, Andrew? Try not to kill anyone." Steven advised.
Andrew shook his head. He had given up trying to cast the voices from his mind. They would remain with him for the rest of his life, however long that would be.
"You're right Andrew; you will never be able to get rid of us." Steven said.
"I might not be able to get rid of you, but I can try and block you from my mind." Andrew replied.
Jessica smiled. "Good luck with that. We're going to remain with you, until the day you descend into hell."
No comments:
Post a Comment