Ghost In The Dark

Judge And Jury

GHOST'S P.O.V.
It took about an hour to get everything ready as the time now was 2am, meaning I only had a few hours left before the general public wakes up and I'd have to go back into hiding. I turned around to see Mr Peterson as he slowly woke up and began his battle with the ropes that bounded his hands and feet.

"I am rather grateful that you had your own rope in your basement because I didn't come with mine" I said to him

"Who are you and what do you want?" He asked as he pulled on the rope tied to the bed frame

"I get asked that question a lot these days. Well allow me to introduce myself. You can call me Ghost" I said as I took a bow

"And as for what I want" I paused as I stroked my chin "I want your life" I said with a smile on my face even though he couldn't see me smile because of my mask

"My l-l-l-life?" He stuttered as he asked "Why would you want to kill me?" He added

"Let me ask you this though. Do you value your life?" I asked

"Of course I do" He replied without bating an eye

"Do you value the lives of other's?" I asked

"It depends on the individual" He replied as he looked at me

"Hmmm okay" I said as I walked towards him "Who is Anna to you?" I asked as I squatted down to his eye level

"Anna? Anna is my daughter. What does that have to do with anything?" He responded

"Well Mr Peterson I have reasons to believe that you have been treating Anna poorly" I said staring at him dead in the eye

"I have never laid a finger on-

Before he could finish his sentence I swung my hand and slapped him hard across the face

"That was a wrong answer" I said as I turned his head to face me. It seems I slapped him too hard because I could see blood gathering in his mouth. I wonder how many times Anna had blood in her mouth as he beat her up

"Please I'll give you anything. Don't kill me" He begged as our eyes met

"I'm sorry but you are going to die tonight" I said to him as I got up and walked to the table behind me "And you are going to die slowly and painfully" I added picking up the small pocket knife I stabbed him with earlier

As I turned around to face him with the knife in my hand I saw nothing but a man who had let money and power corrupt him. The only thing he could bargain his life for was money. That is what this world had turned into but I'm not here to fix the world.

"Why did you do it Mr Peterson?" I asked him setting the knife down and picking up a clipper

"What are you talking about?" He asked, his voice breaking

"Don't play dumb with me sir. You're too smart to play dumb" I said walking towards him "Let me be straight forward then, did you maltreat, beat up and rape Anna?" I said as I squatted to face him again

"I never did that" He said with tears in his eyes.

"Wrong answer" I said as I grabbed his hands and pulled out one of his fingernails. He screamed and shouted as the nail came off. His thumb now red and bloody with the skin underneath visible
"I'm going to ask you again. Did you physically, mentally and sexually abuse Anna?" I asked with a more serious tone

"I-I-I-I-I didn't" He responded

"Wrong answer again" I said as I grabbed his hands again and pulled off two more fingernails. This time his screams grew as he cried out in pain. Thankfully he lived in a quiet environment where the closest house was miles away so no one would hear his screams

"I'm going to ask you for the last time. Did you abuse Anna physically, mentally and sexually?" I asked

"Yes I did" He said as he cried

"Why?" I asked

He said nothing for a minute "Because it was her fault my wife died. If she wasn't here my wife would have still being alive" He said

"So you feel it was right to treat her poorly because your wife died after Anna was adopted?" I asked him as I wiped away the tear gathering in my eye

"Because it was her fucking fault" He yelled

I let go of his hands tossing the clipper to the side and got up walking back to the table to pick up a knife.

"Do you regret doing what you did?" I asked walking back to him

"Of course I don't" He said "She's my daughter and I can do anything I want to her. Who are you to say otherwise?" He screamed at me

I squatted and took off my mask and looked at him in the eyes "Justice"

"You" He said

I slashed his throat and watched him struggle to hold his throat to stop the bleeding. He tried to speak but the words wouldn't come out as he choked on his blood. I plunged the knife into his chest before he died. I stood up and watched the colour fade from his eyes, and as his body turned white. I wore my mask and walked to the table grabbing the paper and pen I left there earlier as I wrote a letter to Detective Blake and set it down on the bed.

I walked out of the house and headed to the park where I first met Anna and sat down there as I looked up to see the moon still shining ever so brightly. It made me think about seeing Anna here

The time was now 3am and it was about time to get back home and wait for the news to tell tall tales about me. I got up from the bench and walked back home entering through the back door

I got out of my clothes, stuffed them inside a bag and hid the bag where I usually hid it [In the ceiling board in my bathroom]. After taking a hot bath, washing away any traces of Mr Petersons blood on my body, I slipped back into bed and I let the darkness take over me.