Every day was the same every nightmare, every dream

So I killed the noise, I killed the noise surrounding me

Chapter Fifty

||MASKY||

†

Shadows danced in my peripheral as I stared extensively at the wall across from me.

Whispers filled my mind but it was all just background noise, distorted like I was underwater.

The cracks along the wall were yawning open to reveal its rugged insides and I tilted my head to the side, unblinking.

Shallow whispers urged me to make a move and I was glad for the distraction Slenderman provided with his sudden need for us to reap more souls.

For days now Toby and I had been on missions while Hoodie was assisting Slender in the lab.

Toby was dispatched about three hours ago and now I was waiting for word from the man himself.

If not I would have probably gone back.

Back to her.

The voices seemed to grow louder.

'-warm inside."

'the ultimate rush.'

'should have killed her.'

The thought of bringing her to ruin was what kept me from going back in the first place. She was so fun to toy with but I was getting dangerously close to my breaking point.

Amusing that she had really convinced herself she was being made to kill when it was all of her own volition.

She had once accused me of being jealous but her own jealousy had surfaced in the end and I wondered how she felt now that she'd been exposed for what she really was.

A puppet whose strings I was tugging on.

Had the voices not interrupted us that night, chanting nonstop, demanding I give them more blood, then the night would have ended very differently.

'Do it."

"Kill her.'

'It'll be so easy-'

There was no denying I'd considered the possibility that the whisperers were right but the reality was my fun had barely begun. If I went so far as to kill her, who else would I entertain myself with?

No one made me feel the way she did.

No one even came close.

She was just the right amount of naive and yet still perverse enough to take my hand and allow me to lead her into darkness.

I'd already hit jackpot with her. It's hard to imagine that anyone else would confess their love to someone like me.

With how I left her the last time I wouldn't be surprised if she'd changed her mind on that though.

It wouldn't be all bad if she did stop loving me. I would just have to remind her who she was dealing with.

The fact that she actually expected me to play house and pretend my nature wasn't to bring death amused me. Even made it all the more satisfying each time I showed her the complete opposite of what she kept insisting she wanted.

We both knew what she really needed.

I was knocked out of my trance by someone tossing a paper bag at me.

It landed on my lap and I immediately tore into it, not missing the smirk from Jeff when I took a large bite of the greasy burger.

"Do me a favor won't ya?"

As I chewed, I looked up at him. Jeff never did anything remotely nice without an ulterior motive so naturally I had expected him to ask for something in return.

"There's this bitch I met a few nights ago. Real long legs, nice tits too-" his large smile only grew as he spoke, "I wasn't able to finish the job."

"What's that gotta do with me?" I took another larger bite.

"Well now she's got all kinds of detail with her y'know? Stupid fuckin' pigs won't let me get to her. Help a guy out."

"Don't you think that's too much work for one miss?"

His brows raised, "that's rich coming from you."

Oh, right.

I rose from the couch, "when Slenderman comes back with the-"

"I already talked to him," he cut me off, "come on, I'm driving."

Since when did he get a car?

I followed him outside and a ten minute walk led us past the boundary that separated Slenderman's domain from the rest of the woods.

I had lit up a cigarette as we walked, my mind elsewhere.

"What's up with you and that chick?"

Tilting my head I looked at Jeff walking next to me, wondering why he suddenly decided to bring her up.

A puff of smoke left my lips when I spoke, "why do you care?"

"Don't. Just noticed you ain't killed her yet."

I only made a "hm," behind my mask, looking away from him as I took a final pull from the cigarette between my lips before flicking it behind me and shoving both hands into my pockets.

"Even got Zalgo to mark her," he seemed to be trying to get a rise out of me, "that's a first."

When I didn't respond he looked back at me with a grin, "Must be some good puss-"

Jeff instinctively dodged the crowbar I swung at him, laughing hysterically as he turned and jogged backwards ahead of me, his smile so large I could see all thirty two of his teeth.

"You in love Timmy?" He drawled, tauntingly.

I'm not but coming from the guy who knocked up Camilla's sister I couldn't help but laugh, "yeah? What if I am?"

"So you're finally over Camilla, huh?"

"I never cared about that bitch."

Jeff laughed hysterically, "you cared enough to take her hunting."

I shook my head, annoyed, "whatever man."

"All I'm saying is you shoulda fucked her before that thing did."

"Glad I didn't," I said truthfully. I'd have definitely regretted it if I had.

"Yeah? Happy with the hole you got now, huh?" He cracked himself up again, laughing obnoxiously loud.

"Where's your kid at?" I asked, cutting his laughter short.

His face fell immediately and he shook his head, "don't bring that bastard up when I'm in a good fuckin' mood, Tim."

I chuckled, "that's your flesh and blood, Jeffery."

"Flesh and blood my ass! Kid's always fuckin' cryin' and that bitch Tamara keeps getting on my fuckin' nerves about spending time with them," he swiped his knife at the leaves blocking his way, "bitch is worse than Nina was for fuck's sakes."

I laughed at his complaints and as he cleared the path before us I spotted a red object in the distance.

Once we were close enough I eyed the rusted chevy pickup with scorn. The entire front-end was splattered with blood and entrails and I gave Jeff a questioning look.

"Don't worry it weren't a deer," he spoke, pulling the driver door open as I cocked a brow.

"Will this thing even start?"

"Hey don't judge a book," he patted the top of the truck, "she's sturdy and got plenty of fuel."

Once he climbed in and turned the key in the ignition the engine roared to life.

"She practically runs on misery," he grinned.

"The best ones always do," I smirked.

His laughter filled the truck and once I was in he immediately accelerated causing me to be flung back into my seat.

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The building across from the hospital seemed to have once been a gym that had been abandoned for quite some time based on the overgrowth of weeds and vines that crept up the windows and over the walls with their stripping lilac paint.

I put the binoculars up to my eyes again to look into the open hospital room window.

We had been keeping watch on the room that held the unfortunate girl Jeff had set his sights on, for close to two hours now.

The papers that circulated the day she sealed her fate with Jeff had read, "Local celebrity journalist left battling for life after vicious attack".

That was a few days ago.

Now, however, she seemed to be doing much better as she was sitting upright in bed. The lower half of her face was still bandaged and she had a paperback between her fingers that she'd been reading for as long as we'd been watching her.

I saw one of the guards securing the private room leave and he was replaced with another burly guard wearing an identical black and white suit.

"Seems to be only two of them," I announced, pulling the binoculars away to look over at Jeff who was sprawled out on one of the dusty utility benches.

"Oh. There were more last time I came."

"Sure."

"Bitch probably thinks she got lucky," he laughed to himself, toying with his kitchen knife that was heavily crusted over with dried blood, "Can't wait to see the look in her fuckin' eyes when I show up."

He hopped off the bench and jabbed his knife into an ancient punching bag that hung loosely from the ceiling.

Sand spilled out from the bag, not unlike guts tumbling out of a cadaver.

"She a screamer?" I asked, genuinely intrigued.

"Eh, she's more of a crier. Kept begging 'please don't do this!' Fuckin' hilarious!" He doubled over, holding his stomach as his shoulders shook from laughter.

My eyes trailed back to her as I held up the binoculars again, "hope she screams this time."

"Hope she rips them stitches open while doin' it."

After watching for a few more minutes I handed the binoculars to Jeff and started digging around in my bag.

I pulled out a .22 pistol and checked that the safety was on before stashing it in the waistband of my jeans. My crowbar would just have to sit this one out.

Jeff was watching for a while before I noticed he was getting fidgety.

"What's up?" I questioned.

"Looks like she's getting discharged, fuck."

I took the binoculars back from him to look for myself and sure enough I could see that she was being transfered to a wheelchair by two nurses.

"Guess we'll just have to change our plans then," I put the binoculars away and picked up my crowbar, smirking at the familiar feel of the tool in my hand.

Jeff lashed out at the punching bag, ripping it to shreds in a violent fit.

I get it.

I was aching for the familiar feel of warm blood on my hands too and with that thought came a million images of Kit.

Her voice.

Her maroon eyes.

Her pouty lips.

Did she know how crazy she made me?

It had been too long since I was buried inside her and I was getting irritated the more I thought about it.

The sooner I was done helping Jeff, the sooner I could leave.

The sooner I could see her.

It probably wasn't good for her that I was at the heights of aggression right now but I couldn't stay away for much longer.

As Jeff and I exited the room, heading down three flights of stairs, I was plagued with an emotion that had been festering inside me the last few days.

I wasn't able to check on her at all and in my hurry to leave I'd forgotten my camera so I wasn't even able to look at my special collection.

Knowing her, she was probably going out to parties with her friend and-

I clenched my jaw.

She wouldn't be dumb enough to do the unthinkable, would she? Because every time I leave her alone she goes out of her way to rile me up.

First it was that piece of human garbage I had to take care of, donut boy.

Then that "friend" of hers Toby had gotten rid of.

Now I'm hearing word that she had a run-in with LJ too. What was she even doing out there?

If Jack had ever hurt her...

My grip on the crowbar tightened significantly. I didn't want her around anyone but me, even if they were acquaintances. Jack knew she was mine and still messed with her.

It made me all the more upset.

Maybe I needed to teach her a lesson she wouldn't forget anytime soon and then maybe I could do something nice for her after I was done putting her through hell.

I smiled to myself.

She'd like that, wouldn't she?

Jeff and I waited until the target had been loaded into the car that would transport her home and once they were on their way we followed close behind.

Twenty minutes later we parked a few houses down and watched as she was helped up the driveway, crutches under her armpits.

Street lights flickered on along the stretch of sidewalk as dusk settled over the quiet suburban town and Jeff, who'd been playing the knife game for a few minutes, his fingers splayed over the dashboard as he stabbed the blade between them, stopped to look over at me.

"You ready?" He asked, now fidgeting with his weapon, flipping the blade between his fingers with only one hand.

"Yeah, let's go," I pulled my mask down over my face from where it had been resting on the top of my head and pushed the door open, hopping out onto the pavement.

"Showtime!" Jeff announced, laughing as he hopped out after me.

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