The Trial Of Alyssa Miller (Teen Thriller)

10. The Man

(Trigger warning: Chapter contains strong language and disturbing scenes)

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He blended quite well amidst vast greenery. His soldier uniform still drenched with blood clung to his body in a phyton grip. He had been inactive for four years but he needed a new addition to his collection. He hadn't been back and had pondered if he should return. But he had to return, he had to come back, he couldn't resist the pull. The forest was as dark as ink, but he knew the way like clockwork, dormant but surprisingly coming alive at the back of his head. Using his flashlight he maneuvered his way across low-hanging branches and a labyrinth of high-rising shrubs.

His journey ended upon reaching the middle of the forest. Slowly, the man brought his luggage down and then clicked his tongue. He bent down, hands slowly creeping over the earth, seemingly massaging the moss and wet leaves upon it. Soon, he felt the latch, he tugged on it, and instantly, the creaking of the mechanism that controlled the entrance to his sweet paradise echoed. It sent birds flying in every direction and even forced an unsuspecting rabbit to careen.

He was called many things, but what clung to him was misplaced. He is misplaced. That was what his mother and father called him. Even his wife whom he loved dearly often called him that, misplaced.

After a few turns of his head from left to right, assuring that no one was there, he made his way down the hole. The metal stairs that took him years to weld together screeched as he descended. His sloth-like movement caused him ten full minutes to reach the bottom and once his feet landed on the cemented floor, the sound of distant pleading instantly echoed around the enclosure. Smiling to himself he made his way toward the hallway on the left. If anyone happened to have found themselves inside his little paradise they would find themselves dead before finding their way out. He has designed it to be a maze, impenetrable and inescapable.

He walked with heavy footfalls, strides more like a drunk man, swaying from side to side. Slowly closing the distance to his coveted room, he moved close to the wall on his side. Overgrown vines had worked their way up on the soil that served as his walls but he didn't mind. Matter of fact, he was glad. It was amusing to him that something alive would even want to co-exist with something he touched. The earth felt cold and it eased the burning sensation inside him, especially his lower part. So he laid his cheek on the cold earth wishing it was enough to soothe him, even for a little while, but when he heard a whimper, his blood turned cold, then searing hot. A smile appeared on his lips, his loins twitched and his foot shook. Excitement spiked within him. It had been three months since he last came to them, his bones, his sweet things, their holes and he missed the thrill. He cackled, and soon, he was back to walking.

He was almost at the door when his flashlight started to flicker and then completely lost its light. But that's alright. He liked it when he saw nothing. The darkness of his little paradise was something his captive never understood and loathed. His playthings often complained and said they miss the sun. One even dared to question if anyone inside had ever told him that they would bathe under the sunlight once they made it out. It was comical but pondered on the question. But he knew they can never compare the joy of darkness and invisibility against the sun. Once they've tasted it, they would never be the same-not that anyone had been there and left with their feet still standing on the ground.

He took a drag of breath and relished the musty scent in the air.

Whimper.

Whimper.

Once he reached the end of the hallway he pulled out what had been rattling inside his pocket. The key felt heavy in his hands, the heaviness, not so much caused by its weight but by what it kept hidden. When he stuck it inside the keyhole, the whimpers and screams began again. That was the heavy drag that constantly called him. The temptation that plagued him beyond reprieve. The door let out a scratch when he pushed it open, rusty hinges making themselves known. With a smile, his eyes raked over the staircase revealed before him. It went deeper down his little paradise. Down, down where no one would hear of their cries and woes.