Who killed Wanda Day? (DAY! Series Book 1)

Chapter Eighteen - A scot, a shovel, and a cry for help

Steven York made his grand entrance into the world in 1983, in the quaint and rainy village of Kyle of Lochalsh, nestled in the north of Scotland. The heavens opened up on the day of his birth and decided to stick around for the next two years, much to the chagrin of the locals. His mother, bless her heart, used to tease him that he was the cause of the never-ending downpour.

He grew up like any other normal kid, and if you asked any psychologist, they'd tell you there was no way this rosy-cheeked little boy would ever turn into a serial killer. Heck, even Steven himself had no clue. He was a lover, not a fighter, and wouldn't hurt a fly - literally. He had a soft spot for all living creatures, whether they had two legs, four, six, or eight.

When Steven was 15, he took a trip to the United States as an exchange student and fell in love with the place so much that he decided to stay. Unfortunately, his visa wasn't renewed, and he found himself in a bit of a pickle. To make ends meet, he took on a part-time job, but that didn't quite pay the bills. Washing the dishes in the only small Chinese restaurant that would hire him and pay cash, was just enough to pay for his little Honda Accord, where he slept in. So, he turned to the world's oldest profession - prostitution. He was an innocent boy, the men loved him, and he quickly became known as the 'sweet little Scot' who could make all their dreams come true. It wasn't exactly the life he had planned, but if that was what he had to do to stay in the States, he was willing to offer himself to whoever waved with a bundle of cash.

On his 18th birthday, he married Julianna, a lovely lady of the night. But let's be clear, it wasn't a love match - Steven just needed a green card. He finished high school and finally had a new perspective in life: He wanted to be a police officer.

He was a top-notch graduate of the academy, with honors to boot. But as fate would have it, his life took a dramatic turn on March 17, 2005. While on duty with his partner Bob, they were ambushed by a street gang for no apparent reason. It was a scene straight out of an action movie, with bullets flying left and right. Steven, who had never fired his gun at a human before, found himself in a sticky situation. But he didn't let that stop him. With nerves of steel, he aimed his weapon and pulled the trigger. What happened next is a bit of a blur, it involved a lot of chaos and confusion.

That night, Steven lay awake, his mind racing with thoughts of what he had done. And he felt pretty darn good about it. It was a strange feeling, one he couldn't quite put his finger on. So, like any curious guy, he turned to the internet for answers. He scoured the web for pictures of corpses and felt a strange, inexplicable thrill. It was like nothing he had ever experienced before. And before he knew it, he was hooked. Night after night, he delved deeper into the world of serial killers, reading every article he could find and developing an obsession with murder and death.

He was a man on a mission, and he always tried to snag the night shifts, because that's when all the bad guys come out to play. Over the next three years, he drew his gun a whopping 189 times, fired off 253 shots, and took down 37 people. Steven called it 'legal killing.' But if he ever went too long without firing a shot, he'd get antsy. So, he'd go 'on patrol' at night, taking out any innocent bystanders who happened to cross his path. It was all in a night's work for Steven, the self-proclaimed king of the night shift.

In 2008, he unexpectedly became a father to a little girl named Stephanie, thanks to a one-night stand with Fiona. But Steven wasn't exactly father-of-the-year material. He was too busy discovering the joys of daytime TV to bother with the little tyke. Two years later, after becoming a member of DAY!, he packed up his bags and moved to Youngsville, hoping to find work as a police officer there. But alas, it wasn't meant to be. So, he did what any enterprising guy would do - he became a taxi driver. It wasn't exactly his dream job, but it paid the bills and allowed him to live a quiet life in the small town. And with a little help from his late grandmother, Lady Elizabeth Mary Paddington, he was able to buy a house from Colin in 2015.