Perception (ONC 2021)

Chapter 1: Statue

Lauris sighed as she sifted through the paperwork. She rubbed her temples, attempting to relieve the tension after a long day. The whole town was on edge. People stared at each other with suspicion in their eyes, wondering if their old neighbour was the killer and she couldn't blame them.

Frankly, it even got to her, that suspicion. The pervading fear in the air chased the liveliness from the day. To think it was such a lively town not that long ago.

Lauris padded to the kitchen, reaching out to the bag of snacks. Then, walking back, she plopped on the old sofa and turned on the news.

"Another victim of the Face Carver has been found. This time, a body of a man in his forties going by the name of Derrick, considered missing twenty-one days ago, has now been found in the old ruins on the outskirts of the Marington township. Anyone with more information is encouraged to step forward and-"

She turned the television off.

Lauris sighed. Another one. Someone needs to catch that lunatic soon. Damn, even she was considering moving out. She closed her eyes and threw a chip in her mouth.

How the hell did this chaos start? All she knew was that the first murder happened three weeks ago. Someone found the body floating in the river; the face carved up. The victims were also random, with rumours saying that it was a crazed lunatic that escaped from some mental hospital.

She jumped as she heard someone knocking on the door.

"Coming!"

Standing up, she set down the bag of chips and looked through the peephole.

No one.

There was only the patter of rain and an empty driveway. Scrunching her brow, the woman walked away.

Better safe than sorry.

Lauris shook her head. It was best not to jump to conclusions; however, she could not shake the feeling of uneasiness. With an unknown urgency, the woman brushed her teeth and hurried to bed.

...

Lauris woke up to the sound of repeated knocking. Groaning, she slid off her bed and stumbled towards the door. Reaching out to turn the knob, the woman stopped herself.

Right, a crazy lunatic murderer was running around.

She looked through the peephole, sighing in relief as she saw the face of her friend. The woman opened the door. "Marie, you scared me!"

Marie raised her brow, showing off her bright, copper hair. "Really? I thought I told you that I was going to crash at your place."

Lauris frowned. "More troubles?"

Marie rolled her eyes. "You bet. You think a person would apologise after confronted about their affair but no, it seems that he doesn't care."

Lauris shook her head as she let her friend in. "You really should divorce him."

Marie sighed. "I know, I know. It's just that the paperwork and everything is such a pain. By the way, I love your new statue. Did you just buy it yesterday? Here I thought you had no appreciation of art."

Lauris tilted her head. "Statue?"

Marie shot her a strange look. "You know, the one just outside your driveway?"

Lauris frowned. She slipped on her sandals and walked outside. There it was, hidden within the long grass was a statue of an eyeball. She shivered as it seemed to stare straight at her. "That wasn't there yesterday..."

Marie snorted. "Maybe the deliveryman got the wrong address."

Lauris looked back as she walked towards her house. "Maybe."