Kill Your Darlings

Chapter 5 - I move with equal speed.

There isn’t any news about the deaths on the television screen. You flip through every news station you can think of, but there isn’t any light on the gruesome murder. After a period of aimless searching, you switch it off.

You turn to the phone. The chances of nobody finding the old couple is weighing on your conscience; so much that you reach for the cord of the phone, intent on fixing it.

But the wire is cut clean. Since there aren’t many people in that town, how long will the couple stay at that house? Will their bodies rot and decompose like most living things? Will they become skeletal figures with the same fishing hooks holding their crude smiles?

How bad will the smell be?

Your stomach churns at the thought. Your feet speed to the bathroom, bending as you vomit into the toilet. Attempts to shut your eyes are futile since images of the corpses are engraved in your head.

When your stomach has nothing left to spew, you flush the toilet and take a moment to yourself before rising to your feet. You wipe your lips before turning on the tap, spitting acidic excess into the semi-clean bowl. You debate with yourself on whether a shower might calm your nerves, but would anything help erase what you’ve seen?

Shutting off the taps, you raise your head to look in the mirror. But all you can see is another note, this time written in purple.

I move with equal speed.

Frightened, you back away from the mirror and trip over the bathtub, pulling the shower curtains down with you. Spencer’s first note has already been erased as if it had never existed; not a chip of paint can be found on the tiled wall. The thought of him having easy access to the room sends your blood running cold. How long would it be until he got bored and shot you?

From the front door, you hear a lock click. He’s here again. You scramble to your feet and run to open the door, looking all over the motel strip in search for Spencer’s silhouette. But as always, he’s already gone.

You pull the car key from your pocket and slip your shaky body in the driver’s seat. You haven’t thought of the riddle much, but that doesn’t stop you from pulling out of the driveway and bolting down the small strip of road.

“Funny; I swear this is the road back to your apartment, isn’t it?”

The sudden sound of Spencer’s voice terrifies you to the point where you swerve the car, nearly hitting a tree. You can see Spencer from the rear view mirror, smiling as if nothing is wrong. He pulls something from his pocket and holds it against your temple.

A gun.

“Why don’t you pull over, doc? I don’t know about you, but I’m not ready to die so early.”

You do as you’re told. As soon as the car comes to a full stop, Spencer’s arm snakes behind the seat and wraps around your throat, pulling you against your seat.

“I thought we talked about this, doc. I thought you finally made sense of what’s smart and what isn’t.” As you keep your silence, Spencer sighs. “Look, I understand that you’re a little scared, though I’m not sure why. I mean, I would be pretty happy if I were in your position. Not everyone gets someone to do these things for him or her, you know. I mean, shouldn’t you feel lucky? You’re the first player in history and you’re treating this like a bad horror movie. It’s a little insulting.”

When you open your mouth to speak, Spencer presses the gun deeper against your temple.

“You really don’t want to see me unhappy, doc. I’m doing in this all in your favour. Now tell me the answer to this: I move with equal speed.”