Chapter 6: I've Just Never Been Tested

As plans went, mine sucked the big one! Lying in the back seat of a 1970's Monte Carlo, the prize possession of Morgan's uncle, I chose to blame it on Candice. Keeping my secrets was of the utmost importance; Candice rode lead on that since I showed her what couldn't be done to me. I had very little experience coming up with shit on my own.

"We're almost there," Morgan said.

"Try to time the light." I had sent her out of the room while I pulled up the maps to my destination. She did not question the address I handed her or when I told her the time I wanted to be dropped off. She nodded and got back on the bed for more sex to help us relax.

Wishing Candice helped in the planning was my last thought before pushing the passenger seat forward and opening the door enough to slip out. Morgan got it perfect! The light turned green as I closed the car door. No one was in the street, and unless they had a good angle, to anyone watching I appeared out of nowhere.

I didn't know where Morgan was going in Metro City at one am. She assured me plenty of people would see her. I made it a long walk to my target to provide Morgan an unassailable alibi as anything more than my ride and to make sure she did not follow me. At that time of the night, I expected few people would be able to pick me out of a lineup as long as I kept my face deep in the hood.

A steady pace got me to the building in twenty minutes. The perspective I had from the visions was in a moving vehicle so I recognized the parking area. Nobody on the street! I broke into a run. I could have jumped from a standing position, but I had better control in motion. I hit the third step of the building next to the one I wanted to get into, bounced off the top of the rail, and jumped three stories up.

I had plenty of practice rolling out of a jump like that, never with that small a landing area though. I landed on the roof, rolled, and kept rolling.

"Shit!"

Crashing into the pigeon coop as my braking system was not a part of the plan. My body mass landing on the roof gave me very little chance of surprise but destroying the coop and scaring the crap (literally) out of the pigeons did me no favors in that department either. At least, I didn't have to worry about him running from me; having heard me, he would think he had the upper hand.

The destroyed coop also meant I could forgo being gentle with the door to the stairs. The cops were going to be a bit hard up explaining some details of the crime. I punched the lock in and pried the door open. The pieces of lock were making their way noisily down the steps. Maybe the fucker would think I was the cops and be lying on his stomach in front of the TV.

I moved quickly to the front door. It was closed. I doubted, if he had made a run for it, he would have taken the time to lock the door behind him. I pushed the foyer table in front of the door.

Turning around, I took considered the next move. It was possible he might not be in the house. Morgan would drive by the corner two hours after dropping me off. She had strict instructions to keep going if I wasn't there, which meant she would head straight to my father. They would not be able to find me but explaining things was going to be bitch! The motherfucker was the type to inconvenience me by not being home when I came crashing in.

My visions from Lars and Stephen did not tell me how the fourth rapist came to occupy the building. Three stories. The building was arranged for a single family. It made no difference where I started my search so I stepped into the room to the left of foyer.

The only light in the living room came from the TV. ESPN! He must be in the house. I stepped towards the door on the left side of the room.

Something hit me from behind, throwing me into the room. Another hit drove me towards the back wall. I managed to turn around. The rapist swung the baseball bat again, catching me on the right side of the face. I fell back against the wall.

"So are you the daddy or big brother of one my little whores?" he asked with a laugh. He threw the baseball bat aside and pulled a large hunting knife from a sheath at his lower back. A detail I saw in the boys' visions. "I would give you an opportunity to answer, but to be honest, I don't give a fuck!"

I stood up and gave him an opening at my torso. He took it! Stepping forward, he stabbed the knife into me ... and screamed as the knife hit a concrete wall. Full thrust to stop! He dropped the knife and stared at his hand. The wrist looked broken; he must have come in at a bad angle.

"Boyfriend, Robert," I said and threw a right hook into his side. The scream made me smile. The punch must have been good for two or three broken ribs. I kneed him the face. A broken nose if not the jaw too! Grabbing the back of his pants and shirt, I threw him into the TV with enough force that he made a dent on the wall behind it.

The TV's electric cord was still plugged into the wall. I stepped on the TV, pulled the cord out of the wall, and ripped it off the TV. After tying his wrists together at his back, I stared at him. His survival instinct might kick in enough to get him screaming and fuck what anyone who came investigating would find in the house. I ripped a sofa cushion apart and gagged him.

I sat on the sofa and wished the TV had not been destroyed. I could have done with a few minutes of distraction. Finishing it would assuage the need, which had come over me since touching Celia's body. I didn't even have to touch him with my bare hands to do it. Not touching was the seed of my temptation to end it quickly. There had to be more than what I saw from Lars and Stephen. I had to look, but I fucking sure as hell did not want to!

I walked down to the basement. Glimpses of it had come from touching Celia. The visions from the guys showed me the room in sick detail. It was nothing like standing over the mattresses the girls were raped on. I sat down and stared at the floor, the walls, and finally at the rape altar.

There were more than the six girls I had seen with Lars and Stephen. I knew it and walking away without pulling everything the monster had done was not a choice I could make. His trophies wouldn't answer every question. I doubted even with my power I could, but I had to try.

I thought about waking his ass up. Standing on the roof, I could turn him upside down and let him look at the ground three floors down. As he fell, he would feel some of the terror his victims did. I flipped him around, only so that he landed on his head when I dropped him. He hit the middle of the steps and bounced to the sidewalk.

Robert Chain's body would be hard to miss in the morning.

"You were supposed to leave." I sat in the passenger's seat and slammed the Monte Carlo's door shut.

"You were supposed to be here twenty minutes ago." Morgan pulled the car out of the parking spot. She checked the streets nervously for anyone who might have seen us. "How did it go?"

I could not answer the question. Morgan might have walked in the shade, but my definition of evil had been moved significantly deeper into the darkness.

"Drive me by Stephen Grand's house," I told her.

Ignoring the way Morgan's head snapped around to stare at me, I put the passenger seat as far down as it would go. I closed my eyes and tried to ignore the horror documentaries playing on the back of my eyelids.

I slapped Stephen conscious. He swung wildly! I'd tied him upside down to a tree branch. I slapped him to watch him swing for a few more seconds. I slapped him some more for the pleasure of hearing my open hand on his face.

After pulling everything I can from touching someone, I don't get visions from them unless they have some significant new experiences or I forget what I had seen. The latter was never going to happen with Celia's rapists.

I knelt down so I was head level to Stephen. "Let me guess what you're thinking right now. 'Whose brother or daddy found out what I did to her?' Or at least that's what you should be thinking."

We were in the woods about ten miles from Honus City. Morgan had been shocked when I threw Stephen into the backseat. Her teeth clicked when I told where to go. A small part of me was surprised she kept her mouth shut when I pulled Stephen out of the car, told her to stay, and walked into the trees.

I planned to wait a day or two before I took on Stephen, Lars, and Billy Thorne. After pulling everything out of their friend, I didn't care anymore. If the cops found out and got in my way, too fucking bad for them. I did not give a shit anymore!

I slapped Stephen as hard as I dared. He squealed through the gag as the blow propelled him to the left. The branch creaked, reminding me that I did not want to kill him ... unless I had to.

"It's going to be light out soon, son. I don't have time to be gentle and convince you to do the right thing." I stopped Stephen's swing and ripped the blindfold off his eyes. He looked around, focusing on me when he adjusted to the light offered by the moon. My facemask only let him see my eyes.

"I know what you and your buddies did to those girls." I slapped him when he shook his head. "I really do not have time for your shit, kid."

I tied his hair in a ponytail and set it on fire. Even in my state of mind, the vision of a lit human match flopping around upside down at the end of the rope was comical.

"Seriously, I thought that was going to kill you," I told him when the fire petered out. I pulled out a flashlight and examined his scalp. Ouch! The fire scared Stephen shitless. Pissless too.