The Killer Among Us

Chapter 45

Two days left

Jacob

Although incredibly hard, saying goodbye to my mother wasn't the step I was most afraid of. Nothing could have compared to the magnitude of grief I endured when I stepped foot in Eddie's apartment again, days after his death.

I tried to mentally prepare myself for what was behind all the yellow crime scene tape and warning signs and yet no time in the world would have been enough. So, sucking in a sharp breath, I pushed open the door for the second time in the last couple of days, my shoulder throbbing in the process.

A thin layer of dust had settled over his space, one the naked eye could not see. It felt eerily like walking into a museum, so quiet, so untouchable and yet every single thing held so much meaning. This space was Eddie's life preserved in time.

Of all the crime scenes I had witnessed, this one was somehow different. The severity that lingered in the air made my entire body tremble, my rapid breathing barely containable.

From the corner of my eye, I saw the room to my left intensely staring me down, the room that Eddie was stabbed to death in. It felt like it had a hold on me, choking my throat and squeezing the life out of me and there was no way to free myself from it.

My hand was shaking as I moved it towards the doorknob of the room. I held it there for a moment, thinking back to all the times I had opened it before. I could almost hear Eddie's laughter, the sound of his fingers hitting the keyboard, a beer can opening or his jazzy music vibrating through the floorboards, all sounds that were ingrained in my mind for the short rest of my life.

Like ripping off a Band-Aid or jumping into the ice-cold sea, I opened the door rapidly.

What stared back at me was exactly what I was hoping to avoid, badly cleaned up stains of blood clung to the wooden floor, the wall was still covered in angry writing and the drawers of his desk had been opened. There were yellow markers with numbers everywhere and white tape outlined where his lifeless body had once lain.

A wave of familiar emotions washed over me, drowning me in sorrow.

The words "I warned you" stood triumphant in front of me, mocking me, taunting my pain and reminding me who had unleashed the chaos that stormed into this room.

My own desperate screaming and weeping from that day still bounced off the walls. "Please no -," I cried that day, "Eddie, no."

Out of reflex I reached for my pocket to drown out the unbearable guilt, when I remembered that I threw out the pills the night before. It was better that way, I thought. A poisoned mind led me to even more soul crushing pain.

Instead, I put both my hands in the crook of my neck, desperately wishing I could have prevented the tragedy that occurred in this room, a room meant as a refuge and not a graveyard.

"I'm sorry," I whispered softly, and the words held more meaning than they were worth.

Suddenly I heard a floorboard creak behind me in the living room. Like a trained soldier, I retrieved my gun and turned towards where the sound had come from. Slowly, I stalked forward, analysing every meticulous detail of my surroundings.

Again, my dad's words rang through my mind, "Always be alert, always be ready."

I listened intently to any clue of where my assailant might have been. Slowly, I stepped into the living room, finger carefully placed on the trigger of my gun, eyes scanning the area for immediate danger. The time had come, I thought. He was here to claim me. Sooner than agreed on. But of course you cannot trust the Serpent.