What Is Love?

Chapter Twenty-Seven

Danny Dare

I had to keep him talking - it was my only chance. I knew that as soon as our conversation was over, I was done for.

"Why are you killing me now, of all times?" I choked out, and Habit raised an amused brow. "The Slender man hasn't been stalking me that long. I've had paranoia and such, yes, but I haven't lost anything or broken yet... Why now?"

Habit shook his head at me, an cruel smile on his face. "You really haven't figured it out yet, have you?"

"Figured what out?" I grasped at the decoy desperately.

The dark entity mused for a moment, and then asked his own question instead of answering mine. "You're a smart cookie, and I know you did your homework, cause you knew who I was once you heard my name... But because of those other pricks who insist on filming everything, I'm all over YouTube. How did you not recognize me when you saw me with four eyes?"

Even with everything that was going on, I still somehow managed to be embarrassed when I answered, "I don't have Adobe Flash Player... YouTube doesn't work for me..."

Habit just stared at me for a moment, his jaw hanging open. "Are you fucking kidding me? You know that shit's free right?"

"I'm not very tech savvy."

"You don't have to be!" he exclaimed, "Goddamn! I take back calling you smart a moment ago, because that there is about the stupidest thing I've heard this century!"

I grimaced, but continued to urge the conversation on. I had to keep him talking... "What am I supposed to have figured out?"

"Beside basic computer skills?" he sneered.

"Obviously," I spat.

Habit laughed, "Man, you are a peppery little spit-fuck for someone with a hole in their foot." He suddenly grabbed me and hauled me up to my feet. I screamed and tried to collapse as weight fell on the wounded foot, but the evil SOB held me up. He dragged me over to the painted target and held me against the wall while he cut the ropes around my hands. Once my wrist were free he re-tied me spread eagle to the center of the target, each hand tied to a nail at the circle's edge. With that completed, he went on to tie my feet up to the bottom edges. The whole time I continued blabbering, trying to get him to talk.

"Would you stop your badgering woman? Annoying the hell out of me isn't going to magically set you free," he growled at me. "Only thing it'll do is cause me to draw your death out even more... Make you suffer longer... Bleed you slower..." he winked at me then and stepped back, admiring his handy work. After a moment he pulled something small out of his pocket and held it up for me to see. It was a ten sided dice, with a body etched into each side, and a star drawn over a different spot on the body on every side. "So let me explain the game to you," he started, grinning from ear to ear. "This dice here shows a different part of your body - head, shoulders, knees, and toes," he giggled, "And whatever it lands on, is where I aim for!" He bent down and picked up a clutch of over sized darts that had been laying on the ground, and poked the needle-like tips with his finger experimentally. "Oh, nice and sharp!" he said gleefully.

"So, I roll..." He tossed the die and peered at where it landed on the floor. "Left elbow!" he exclaimed excitedly, "And then I throw!" The dart pierced the soft skin straight in the center on the inside of my elbow, and again I screamed. The cold metal stuck through my flesh and pinned my arm to the wall. "Just like that!" he smiled proudly. "Any questions?"

"I have a few," a dark voice growled murderously from the corner and Habit whipped around.

"Slen..." I croaked. I didn't know how the hell he found me, but at this moment all I could do was let tears of joy mingle with the ones of fear and pain.