Unholy Obsession

Chapter 30: Antidote

Vincent's POV

My oxfords slapped the concrete floor of the pavement, the occasional splashes wetting my black trousers. I lowered my baseball cap, eager to avoid suspicious eyes. It was midnight in downtown New Fort and the road of Market street was narrow as an ostrich's thinking path, neon lights from the face-to-face establishments spilling onto the streets. 

Tucking my hand inside the pocket of my black overcoat, I hastened, eager to arrive at the spot before her. If she got there first, she would easily see me come in and I wouldn't be able to hide my face. 

A few feet away was a noodle-soup diner. An awning shot out of the building, pouring a shadow over the already dimly lit street. I entered the place, the strong scent of pepper, onions and curry lingering in the air. I could tell because I had been learning to cook ever since I prepared toast and tea for Hannah. She had pretended it was good, but I knew it was bollocks. I had tasted it later when she left and was drowned in an ocean of embarrassment. 

Red cushion booths with rectangular tables lined up the place and I took a seat. A long counter banded the other side of the diner, waitresses in short skirts hurrying about with orders. I would never understand America and their obsession with short skirts in a workplace. 

Taking out my phone, I dialled her. My ear-pods were connected so I wouldn't need to place my phone on my ear. If I did so, it would flag me as the man calling her. 

She picked up on the first ring.

"Hello, Doctor," I said.

"I'm here."

"It seems tardiness is your strong suit."

"Where the fuck are you?"

I glanced out the windows. Dr Ava was in a pink shirt and blue jeans. She didn't seem to be dressed for the occasion. Perhaps loud colours helped her feel confident.

"Enter the diner."

She exhaled and did as I asked. 

"Take your right."

"Stop looking around."

She hissed. "I'm not."

"Try to look normal."

"I can't exactly look normal when giving you client info. It's literally sacrilege in my line of work."

"I truly wished I cared."

Poor woman. 

"Keep walking."

She passed me, my heart ramming in my chest. She didn't notice me. Great. 

"Sit down."

The cushion behind me made a soft squeak. 

"Hand over the files."

She wasn't doing it. Did she have a death wish?

"Hand over the files, Dr Ava."

Her shaking breath was so loud it could cause an earthquake. "Why are you doing this? Hannah is a good girl? You're only going to ruin her if you keep spending more time with her."

My temple pulsed. No one deserved to tell me if I deserved Hannah or not. That beautiful Ethiopian was mine and anyone who thought otherwise was an enemy. I opened my mouth to speak but two waitresses came to our tables respectively. I ordered two bowls of noodle-soup for the both of us. 

"I didn't ask for food."

"And I didn't ask for your opinion on Hannah."

"You're destroying the poor girl. This thing between you two isn't normal. Fucking over a grave?" Dr Ava chuckled sarcastically. "What sort of brain dead shit is that?"

We were interrupted once more by the waitresses. Collecting my noodles-soup, I slurped without looking up, ensuring to avoid eye contact with the servers. 

I raised my hand. "The file."

"She doesn't deserve this. She deserves someone normal. Hannah deserves normal." The doctor sighed, handing over the file.

"She had normal doctor." I collected it, flipping the brown exterior. My eyes skimmed over the words, three key things occurring over and over in each page. Deranged, Traumatized, insecure. "She accepted me because she doesn't want that anymore. She craves excitement, something new."

"I'm sure you have gone through the file. What do you see?"

I closed the file. "None of this is true."

"If you weren't hanging a knife over my child's head, I would have stopped you."

Smirking, I leaned back. "Really?"

"Yes. I know people like you. You're afraid of love and you go ahead ruining people's lives to make up for your sadistic one."

"Quite the diagnosis doctor."

"You're just a scared kid living in the body of a grown man."

I clenched my jaw. "You sound like you cheated in your exams. What sort of bollocks are you saying?"

"You don't deserve an angel like Hannah. You're a monster."

I stopped mid-slurp, my noodles getting soggy by the second. Resting my chopsticks, I steepled my hands. I was a monster. But the way this woman said it made my heart drop. Was it because she said I didn't deserve Hannah?

"Doctor." I twirled my chopsticks, rolling noodles around them. "Are you perchance feeling dizzy?"

"What do you mean dizzy? I'm —I'm f-fine."

"Hm?"

"W-what d-did you do?'

"Oh, that." I drank some sake. "It's just a high-dose beta blocker. Tossed a pill into your soup while the waitress passed. It was quite easy considering the place is dimly lit and the ladies are too tired from all the day's work to notice anything."

"Jesus," she said, breathless. 

"Now," I dropped the antidote, a small vial containing glucagon, "I'm going to leave here and you'll grab the antidote on my table. Your life is in your hands now Doctor. Maybe you'll think twice before speaking like you hold all the cards."

I left the booth. Muffled grunts sounded and a crash echoed in the place. Everyone looked over to the booth and I joined, watching Dr Ava crawl to my booth, sweat dripping down her face. She picked up the vial and with shaking hands, opened it, gulping down everything.

Foolish woman. Imagine that was a second poison, she would've died instantly. For someone who claimed to know a lot about people, she was definitely too trusting. 

I left the place, the ruckus shooting through the roof. Taking out my phone, I texted Hannah.

My place, tomorrow. We have to do the final preparations for the convention.