Stalked By The Game

Chapter 3 - Surprise

::ARI::

I led him halfway across town, knowing exactly where I was going. This part of town was filled with old abandoned houses. The suburb was cheap and everyone here minded their own business. It was the perfect place for me. It was the perfect place for what I was going to do. We rounded the corner of the street and Guy turned towards me in surprise.

'I thought you'd live in a better part of town. Do you know the reputation of this place?' he asked.

What a snobby bastard. Shouldn't have surprised me considering what his lifestyle was like. I'd seen his place. It was the sort of house that I had dreamed about living in as a child. Somewhere I could cuddle up at night, feeling warm and secure instead of cold, wondering when I'd be fed next. Wondering if my father would be walking through the front door. I laughed deeply, pretending I was touched that he cared for my safety. No one was safe here, especially not him.

'It's all my mum and I could afford. You see, dad split and left us with nothing. She did the best she could.'

Sob stories always worked. Parental issues of abandonment and love always were the best. I had plenty of them myself, just not the ones I was claiming. He looked horrified, as if afraid to offend me. Stopping on the footpath, he glanced up at the house.

'I guess it just needs a little work,' he muttered.

Striding confidently up the front walk, I dug the key out of my pocket. It wasn't the real front door key of course. I had actually jimmied the lock when I picked the place for this very reason two days earlier. With the front door wide open, I motioned to Guy.

'Why don't you stay awhile?' I asked him, throwing out my biggest smile.

------------------------

::GUY::

I thought the place was a dump.

Of course, that wasn't what I told Ivy though. All I said was that it had character. You don't bash the home of a girl you were hoping to sleep with. Patience, compliments. That was how it worked. Anything else, sure didn't win you any points. All the furniture was dusty and torn, as if it hadn't been touched in the past fifty years. I raised my eyes and glanced at her.

'The house came furnished,' she explained.

I pretended to be fascinated in the mantle clock. Man, was it ugly! It was two bullfrogs sitting on a lilypad. The actual clock part was in one of the frogs stomachs. It reminded me of this butt ugly dog coat rack that sat in the hallway at Penelope's place. There was that pang of guilt again but I pushed it aside. You're not doing anything wrong, dude I kept telling myself. You don't want to marry her, you don't want to have her children. A quick bang and then it's all over. You go home and lie your ass off to Penelope.

'Ugly, isn't it?' she said, her face appearing over my shoulder, pointing at the clock.

I laughed in relief. She flung her backpack into a corner and dropped into one of the chairs. As she did so, a pile of dust flew into the air. She looked straight at me and suddenly, I felt very uncomfortable. Her pose was simple, one leg draped over the chair, her arm lying across the back. There was something sexy and dangerous to it. The look in her eyes didn't quite match the relaxed pose and something was telling me to get the hell out of there as fast as I could.

'Well, I guess I'll be on my way,' I told her, trying to sound reluctant.

Was easier if I pretended I still wanted to be here. I wanted out of there more than I wanted anything else. There had already been a rumour floating around that she was a whore so I could just lie anyway. Who were the guys going to believe? Me or some chick that had apparently done half the football team.

She nodded and look a bit surprised, a bit sad but walked towards the hall. As I passed her, I felt a shove in the small of my back. Pushing me against the wall, she pulled my arm back. Fuck, she was strong for a girl. Her face was beside mine, her eyes flashing in sudden anger.

'That's what you think,' she hissed.

----------------------------------

::ARI::

I was delighted. As usual, he hadn't expected me to be so physically strong. I had actually surprised the bastard! A lot of them underestimated me because of my small size but when you've been trained for years, size didn't really matter in the end. It was what you did with it that mattered. I had the power and that was just the way I liked it. I liked to be the one making all the rules. I liked them to be playing my game.

'I know all about you,' I told him. 'I've been tracking you for months McConnell and guess what? Now that I've found you, you're history,' I whispered fiercly in his ear.

I could feel the boy trying to fight my hold but I didn't give him an inch. His body was filled with tension and he was sweating like a pig. The idiot was scared. Something didn't quite feel right but I went with the flow. I'd waited for too long to second guess myself now.

'I don't know what you're talking about!' he shouted.

I could practically hear the tears in his voice and I rolled my eyes, tightning my grip. He was either really innocent like he claimed, or very good at what he was doing. I opted for the second option. How pathetic! I was doing him a favour. Here he was in front of me, begging for mercy - just as all his past victims had from him. With lightning reflexes, I pulled something out of my coat, feeling the smooth wood against my fingers. It felt natural, it felt like home.

'Cut the bullshit. I've traced you here after months of following the trail. Ever since that blonde in Paris actually. I recognised your handy work the instant the body turned up. Made to look like an animal attack of all things. That is so obvious if you know what you're looking for and I do. But that's not even how I found you. Guess what? Your cheapskate mate Benny ratted you out. All you were to him was another hundred bucks in his pocket.' I leaned closer into him, my body tight with tension, each muscle ready to leap forward. 'Anyway, that doesn't matter. You've lost and I've won. I've finally got you where I want you and now, you're going to die. I sure hope you know a prayer because you're gonna need it.'

My voice dripped out like acid as I raised my hand, prepared to strike.