Pseudosapien

Prowl

Sex was not something Annie needed to lure in all her male targets. Out of all of the male serial killers she's taken out, she had only slept with three (and believe me, there are more out there than you'd think). Those few were what she called Feelers because they still had their emotions fully intact compared to the more obvious ones...the Dead. Most of the Dead were fine without sex, though even some of them went for a need for more...fetish based ways to get one off. Take Chip for example, he only had sexual interest in women that were cold and quiet; dead in a more literal term.

Anemone Young was one of the Dead. Logic was how she worked; research. She learned and accepted that if she wasn't careful she could get out of control. Annie couldn't let her urge to take out others like her control her actions. It would give her away and make her more likely to screw up. She acted like a Feeler at the Poker Club and in public.

Garth, however, seemed like a Dead Feeler. His occupation made him jump on and off her radar. Even though he was a coroner, it could be a cover up. If it was, then it was a good one...one of the best ones actually. Although she couldn't love...she could feel a sort of tenderness. There were a few people in her life that she favored. His sense of humor was easy to follow and she could laugh and mean it.

As for Haggard, he was a Feeler, which meant sex was probably going to be what drew him in. Feelers needed more effort while the Dead needed to seem like they were in control. Most already felt like they were Gods or invincible and believed their lack of emotion made them something more than civilians. Those types were the easiest to pick off as they usually let their intelligence go to their head causing them to underestimate their...prey. Not all Dead were like that, but those were the types that she took out first as practice when she was just getting started.

Annie had invited Haggard to go on a date and he had suggested they go bowling and drinking. It was a good start for gaining his trust and finding out his weaknesses. She already knew he was a pyro and who he went for, but killing within the group was what they all called taboo so she wasn't at risk. Chip had told the group what he was and had been warned about things in the beginning, but he had fallen to his urges and the club didn't even think she was involved. The group was, however, much more wary now that there was a Reaper type around.

Reapers were what they called her kind.

She had to constantly remind herself of was she shouldn't just focus on members of the Poker Club because then they would be suspicious of one another. That was why she also took to killing ones that showed up in her office every once in a blue moon. Those were ones she didn't kill immediately after seeing them the first time, but instead she drug out their demise; hunted them.

She knew her own strengths and weaknesses. Anemone lacked physical strength but she had one of the best jobs for what she did. It wasn't like a coroner, where you can just write off certain things that could give you away if the cops had yet to take care of any and all evidence that could give them away. What she did allowed her to study the Dead and the Feelers. Those were the two base groups for her that fell into sub categories of varying types. Feelers were more likely to fall out of hand by letting their emotions get the better of them. Female Feelers were more prone to this and there were very few female serial killers compared to the mass of male ones she had come in contact with.

As far as statistics went, at least.

Now for Haggard, who was now seated next to her, smiling and laughing like nothing was amiss. Annie had to admit that he was quite good at acting as if he hadn't killed a young woman not much older than her three days before. This told her that he was experienced in his work and had been at it for a bit longer than a good deal of the others she had taken out. Her focus was on him as she observed his habits with a smile. Listened and retained any information that he mentioned to her about his work schedule, hobbies, etc. It helped her to come up with a sturdy plan for when to take him out. Anemone had a particular advantage in all this. The Poker Club was all about swapping tales of their murders rather than their love/sex lives, meaning her relationship with Chip and any other now deceased club members was unknown to them. She would've probably been caught by now otherwise.

Haggard noticed her break of silence and asked what was on her mind.

"I'm sorry. I was just thinking of my next target. It's always so exciting, isn't it?" Annie shivered and wasn't faking it because it was true.

"Find another suspicious young widower?" He gleamed and she nodded.

"Oh yes, they are so easy to point out." Her voice trailed as she seemed to get lost in the thrill of simply thinking about her next hunt.

"How can you tell? What gives them away?" He questioned with honest interest. Anemone smiled. Haggard loved the stories that went around the table during nights at the Poker Club. He may have been at his game for longer than most, but it was hard to remember when he was like a kid when it came to stories of the murderous type.

"It all depends. Some get caught after their first kill while on the prowl for their second wife. They give it away by being too excited and too happy so soon after the tragic death of their beloved young wife. The other extreme is when it seems they have a huge run of...being unlucky with marriage."

"Makes a lot of sense." He nodded.

"It's a lot easier than it sounds. Spotting it, that is. Gaining their trust and setting up the atmosphere for a kill...then the quick clean up? That isn't quite as easy. Not to mention finding alibis. I mean, unless they had more than one that they were dating. I honestly don't know how I haven't gotten caught yet. I almost got caught after my first kill, if you remember."

"Yeah, I do. I was amazed when you told us the story of how you'd weaseled your way out of it." He grinned before we stopped at my house.

"So, do I get a second date? I think I was being good tonight." He inquired slowly, eyes expectantly.

"I agree. You do deserve a second date? How's coffee sound for a second date?"

"Good. Next Wednesday at say...noon?"

"Sounds splendid. I only work an hour that day."

The date had ended faster than she had expected and noticed that they might be dating for quite some time if his sexual interest level stayed where it was. For a Feeler so flirty, he had been surprisingly well behaved tonight. Anemone figured that things could go either way but stuck to her habit of killing after the first or second sexual encounter unless she was able to gain his trust before sex got into the mix.

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