CHAPTER FIVE
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgejSXoPBGm
Viggo helps Kirby up on both feet but Kirby tears away from him like he’s the devil. The rosewood study echoes with their scuffle. He can’t stay here. He staggers towards the exit, attacked with a headache, as the room tilts. Viggo cuts him off, standing between him and the door. Whoa, what were you doing on the floor?584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYtQyYpx4re
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdEHuHelOqJ
Kirby shoves him out of the way, harder than necessary.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpRDqfs1g8Z
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFFjQWlisea
You left me in there too long! Kirby seethes, baring teeth. This surprises Viggo. And the longer I’m around you, I got a neon target on my back.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEvNQ70HqPU
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ20qEojTIyF
His brother stands still, a deer in headlights. The flashbacks to MyHAVEN with his strung up or mangled corpse hurtling in the air didn’t help.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNamhzpVloC
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9g7DGNdt4q
Kirby stammers, realizing how that sounded horrible. He darkens anyway. Who cares about Viggo Hayes’s feelings? The guy’s never cared for anyone. The car wreck. I know someone tried to kill us because of you. I know about the fight with Taylor. I KNOW that Taylor is alive.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5zi7dlw2sa
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUHRnElqmmf
His brother laughs. What are you even talking about? Wow, I really did leave you in that pod too long. Just got back from the moon, huh? Viggo spins a globe like it’s only a toy. He isn’t as panicked like he was when he kicked a hole in the wall. Cool as a cucumber. Taylor’s dead. End of your story.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXLLGplIVQv
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3iN3bG7ChW
Kirby nods, seeing how it is. Mind games, as always, with Viggo Hayes. This time, it’s different. He’s not a kid; he’s old enough to stand up for himself.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZAke5SWDjC
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡY0wNvm6aa1
He skulked out of his office and walked out of this building. Kirby insists it. I saw the man with my own two eyes.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4byS3TiF3x
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡN8Wg0dpXuX
People have been known to hallucinate after a VR session.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8c3DvxQsI9
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡk5z0DJ7lcs
Kirby scoffs incredulously. I don’t believe ...584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1KqRJxBakU
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡep1Z0aSstX
Me? Viggo raises an eyebrow. He starts signing rougher, as if punching the air. What will they say once they find out you’ve been saying, no how about raving, that you’ve been visited by the ghost of Dom Taylor? A suicide bomber? Kirby wonders about the bombed plane. That they believe you, honey it’s okay? Hell no. They’ll deport you down with a fucking smile.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ47YO4ERkj9
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9OPQnXHKx8
What if I tell everyone that Taylor never made it on the plane? That the last time someone saw him was right here with you? Kirby points to his brother.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlB3pmAfZWu
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvOeGvPfXiP
Viggo’s psycho orange eyes widen and bristle like a tiger’s. You’re the least of my worries. The eyes dart, looking out the windows. And shut up, because he’s blown to bits and you’re crazy. Confused! Go back to your dorm, and … you’ll see.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbVL9Hi8pRb
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡl0bkUgkLVJ
Suddenly, Ishmael makes it out of the office and runs barking its head off at the windows. Kirby gives Viggo a glare before leaving. Yeah, we’ll see.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqmMMP32SXM
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhekI7le2wi
He peers over his shoulder and sees a dimly lit campus where the winged horses glow. It looks like he is alone. Kirby hates that. He tries to push out the creeping doubts. What if Taylor is dead and you saw someone else? What if you’re dead wrong?584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLsJSU3c6cS
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXtU4HyX30h
He pulls out his phone. 13 worried texts from the anonymous. Kirby blinks. That means Chance really was there in his waking nightmare.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUhNSpEC4TT
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9oDh6eaLbF
Inside the dorm while walking down the empty hall, Kirby texts back that he’s really fine, he guesstimates, and looks up to his room. A hot guy in a grey jumpsuit stands at his doorway, brightening and looking relieved. Kirby rubs his eyes. It is Chance. Kirby’s knees could buckle but he locks them in place.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLiSq1Al54l
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlIb0jnGI4B
Standing next to him, Kirby realizes that Chance is taller.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ281fWc3zQN
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9Fyjgq465F
Bzzt. Hi. We obviously need to talk. But first, can I take you out for a date?584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1xA1AD2lB8
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHV5SO1ANaY
Kirby nods. Not eagerly as he thought he’d be, but it was a nod. His hand and Chance’s hand explore each other, knotting their fingers. Their unsure eyes meet and linger with excitement. Okay, Mr. One-In-A-Trillion.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5oABgddeR6
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡi4lltszAli
Their first date isn’t very far to walk to, seeing how it’s still on campus. They sneak into an occupied studio through the back. Scouting until it’s clear, they climb to the balcony that overlooks the set, a sci-fi film in production. Kirby feels his headache again from trying too hard to not make a sound. Chance leads their way to a corner with enough space where they can crouch and hide.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsTsQwrrB24
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8RbMrUVfKc
Bzzt. This is where I work. Quentin Tarantino was supposed to be here. But since the bombing, he respectfully declined.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmRZoUjRkSm
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbpKtzJFeGO
Kirby tries to hush a titter with his fist. Chance points to the nearest celebrity, which happens to be Simone Chaput. She grips her script like a dominatrix, her lips slacking as she recites her lines in attempt to seduce and terrify the camera. “My beautiful creation.”584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1NgJA7h0ek
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEqZSF763bl
There is a futuristic kind of chainsaw she dances around in a spaceship, querying people off set if this thing is on. Simone could claw her own neck apart with her skull studded nails if she so chooses, yet holds back out of deep sadness. She deplores yet she rages. She says her lines, about to fall onto the chainsaw. “My gorgeous solution, and I’m going to kill myself with it.”584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2ns5Trbtor
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0CUiiknBWq
Her arms crawl with gooseflesh. She hesitates to check it but like, whatever. It’s just pretend. It’s acting. It’s a job.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡK5uzIJMyaQ
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJ80SMKxdIA
The blade’s edge is sharply barbed, but locked in place. Motionless.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYh2uIjtOfP
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFgpRL9OBrv
The director says cut! They go through it again. Simone looks away, frustrated but mostly at herself. She does some image training. Get in that zone. Get your face in there, the chainsaw zone.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡutpu2325bZ
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaWFXlihUBB
Her phone is on. Skyden security’s not supposed to look at celebrities’ personal effects but hey if you don’t get caught… 584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡo69ZxyVPlL
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkNsZmsAfXe
Kirby nods with fascination. Despite film production, he’s about to watch a hacker at work. Chance opens a bulky black laptop, police grade. Looks like it costs quite a dime. It reveals the phones including Kirby’s, tablets, and computers in the building as red hot spots all at once before locking onto Simone’s phone.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZL4buBTfZk
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ59YKnu0kJ0
Kirby and Chance could see everything.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJRUCdnakfO
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqSRX5xfkcL
They see unanswered Facebook messages from old friends since high school. They see her sad nude selfies, pouting at a mirror in a spotlight in a dark room. They see all her hot and heavy sexts about cunnilingus to another voluptuous actress on set, a Rachel Craven. Lots of pumpkin pie jokes. Kirby cringes just thinking about it. Simone and Rachel occasionally eye-fuck each other from across the room. They must be thinking of whipped cream. And here Kirby has to swallow all his bubbling laughter.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdVc2HQnew4
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfeRffIQmnK
Simone’s fingers pluck at the saw. It whirs and stops. She frowns, unsure if that just happened. Never mind. She doesn’t bother to ask anyone if they saw that.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZhurqvhHKp
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtKFZaddIqw
Then Chance starts going through Simone Chaput’s search history which is mostly scented candles, necrophilia, and snakes. Kirby quiets down, greatly ashamed for knowing too much, thinking how it’s no longer funny. It chills him actually to be sitting here, watching how invasively Chance digs and combs deep through someone else’s phone. This isn’t how he’d thought the date would go.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIbKsR2a48N
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡULsYcqGgwe
Kirby decides to send a text: Did you ever go through my phone?584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡA7H0PeNgVd
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKiiR8wwUtY
Chance pauses at this, just briefly. Yes. 584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqwMaIdCZEI
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡv1UZB5cHL8
Stalker alert! Kirby exhales, knocked impressed with his honesty but still can’t bring himself to meet those cold green eyes. Chance nudges into him gently. He looks into them and they are warmer and darker than he expects.
I don’t judge but if I were to compare you to the world, you’re way vanilla. Plus, I’m into the bondage kink too. 584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNMqZiTyhxJ
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJ9eu8mZ3Oe
Kirby blushes. You are shameless! 584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCuNjeFQv4D
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJbiLgDTzOU
I don’t think truth should be taboo. Chance glances at Kirby’s lips.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrfpUBNa1dX
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡg7lW5ABuqd
He looks at Chance’s lips too. They lean in.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZgnaKyqmaf
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPQkOAmr8Bn
“HEYY!!” Simone screams with her perfect pearly white teeth as her hair gets snagged in the revving chainsaw. People scream with her. She’s being eaten. The director shouts for someone to turn off the wailing blade.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0K6n0xIHcJ
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkI2rljrRB2
Chance swings his eyes to the crisis, keying in his laptop. Kirby grips his mouth. What the hell? Several of the crew runs up to the machine, arguing about what to do.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡku4ohyZ4CT
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡj7JxPwcSry
The chainsaw buzzes angrily and yanks her down to one knee. She screams, knowing her neck’s about to be snapped, her head about to be scalped. Her eyes bulge and water. “Nonono someone help me, god help me!!”584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡabQBWdwCs8
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡATpyQhf4o6
Dr. Fanfare and Rachel Craven run onto set to her side. They quickly settle on a decision and grind Simone’s hair across the blades while the actress begs her hair be cut free.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGYMIg1z53M
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡD8XFwEjDKE
July shouts at her, “Left! Right, harder!”584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaepd2XH7ff
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2AHiiqwu3T
Kirby shadows as Chance locks onto the chainsaw and profiles it. While Kirby has no idea what the coding meant, it is clear from the warped pinging someone’s remotely controlling it inside this room. Instead of decrypting their identity, Chance looks to commandeer the savage machine back.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFnDv8KCAcP
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwSYvB8wF4c
He keys in a long string of code that abruptly kills the chainsaw dead.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAbJcqHGl0P
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJVUu6WqzZp
“Okay, okay, hurry,” Simone feels a lot better as they zigzag.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ12PRcYiwUy
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡb7iztt11Hs
Her hair starts to detach and fray with fringe. It starts coming apart.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ54Lb7uvlDm
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡy97HueedeH
But the chainsaw begins chugging up again, yanking her arching too far back for July’s and Rachel’s hands. They clutch Simone’s dangling fingers. Their eyes dart among each other with absolute horror. Is this it?584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBvTbTsbAo1
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmNy6NYhPc9
Chance commandeers the chainsaw again with swift keystrokes. It wails one last time and shuts down with a guttural whine. Simone shrieks with fury again, prying her hair with all she’s got but to no avail. It’s still in there, clamped jaws as fused as a closed zipper. Chance quickly keys in the next code.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡn6UcrdRMnY
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4N2r6eH0LG
Come on! Kirby thinks, wondering how fast the other hacker is.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLdOAegcpYH
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡg0E3kybjbt
Chance accesses the hardware, changes the password, and adjusts the firewall to triple in encryption. This takes less than ten seconds. Now no one but him can do something with it. Next, he scans the room for the other hacker. He and Kirby hunch in to split up the work of searching. They scroll up, and they scroll left. Come on! There. A ripple in that corner indicates a white dot.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDNcm2mVYjX
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKukpIveZqM
It emerges, traveling up behind a red dot labeled Kirby Hayes.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3bU80ktq2C
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZ8PJVmsNlW
They glance at each other for a minute before Chance’s face is stomped in by a dirty black boot. Kirby hyperventilates, staring at the ghost of Dom Taylor.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgLtWCM2Uho
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJCqniKSH96
He catches the next stomp with his two hands. Kirby hooks his shoe behind Taylor’s standing boot, at the ankle, and trips him.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLWCeQLdshD
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡusdfsntovX
Taylor falls hard onto his back and cries out with pain.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmYsx4zawQD
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmxTFbl8HPD
Well, you look very alive! Kirby thinks, clambering on top. He strikes the man hard across the bearded face. That’s for my brother. His hand throbs. Wow, that hurts but feels so good.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡG4NTBBumaZ
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUkZoUytenU
He clocks a hard one in the neck, making the old man choke and wheeze for air. That one’s for me! Finally Kirby stands up and stomps him in the face. That’s for Chance! He stomps again and again, and he could hear how much louder each one gets.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmAee7Q1uMi
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNdwBo83Owh
Chance pulls him back until he finally gives up. “Stop! Stop!” Kirby pants, realizing how badly he’s destroyed Taylor’s face. It’s swollen black, ashen grey, and blue indigo.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoNigpo6JCv
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhoqPBbwvTS
Simone finally frees herself, hugging July and then Rachel in broken sobs. Together, they flock far away from the chainsaw and the gnarled hair that glint in the spotlights.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ35b4Ij0fnE
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdHebNGJMfk
That’s the Spook. The one who caused that car wreck, tortured me, and nearly sawed Simone’s head all in one day. He’s on a warpath. Kirby texts for Chance to read as he tends to Chance’s bleeding cheek.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzfE5M1K18y
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡb2efdR4TAw
We don’t know that. Help me tie him up.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡy1hrgBG8kj
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡo3QbYwHXrG
Chance points at a heavy scratchy rope for Kirby to retrieve. They bind the man’s ankles, knees, and wrists together in knots. They drag Taylor downstairs for the entire cast and crew to see his face.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKcrAxmSUqw
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9kXGwMFTWa
Dr. Fanfare clutches her mouth mumbling a prayer, her face going white like she’s seen a ghost. It slowly registers that Taylor’s death was faked.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgpuxrSzc6G
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOcKxRxnpMj
Onlookers spread the word through their phones.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhIzYikz0em
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡT9eZLoFShQ
Just wait until Viggo hears about this.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpqkzAi1N7y
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhaAASJ6kmD
Kirby tries not to watch but it’s just like a train wreck as Simone limps away with Rachel, heading back to her room to recover. Even Dr. Fanfare’s overcome with grief and shock that she leaves as well. Through the heart-pounding scatter, Kirby meets Chance’s feral stare, sighs, and tries not to smile with relief.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4syj2rCF0j
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡr7WKMeTXOo
You saved her life. :) Kirby tells him.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYd0Mf544mN
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPQNAuvyuAn
Chance stammers and laughs awkwardly. It’s my job. Oh and listen, don’t tell anyone about the Spook thing. Makes you sound batshit cray cray.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5jv3cXfbJe
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3GB53YiCRg
Doesn’t it? Kirby could scratch his head.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBIga5TH5wQ
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVslzjp2hMr
Iris Frisk with her glowing auburn hair rushes in her white dress, holding her video camera and reporting rapidly as she goes, “Oh.. my.. god!! Professor Dominic Taylor, presumed to be dead, strikes again! Hey man wake up!”584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡN9ApBJR0g9
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxI2s8zbP9Q
This irks Chance greatly into swearing under bated breath. He gets in her way, jostles her back, and forces her to retreat a few steps.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡa8dxHcHB54
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOSkG5PjJvp
Iris sneers and says, “Whoever you are, now’s not the time!”584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡe7NQe71017
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4BRSSduyRP
“Took the words right out of my mouth,” Chance retorts. “Back down.”584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLMhf7ennhG
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8t5AsloQTl
“Look black-eyed dude,” Iris turns off the camera and giggles. Her doe eyes bat. “Can you just be cool for a second? Let me get what I came for? Before the police gets here?”584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡycLLQ5VqrE
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRrWEyUsASp
Chance laughs sardonically in her face and says, “I am the police.”584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡE0RWGBDMTy
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSSq6ouBrLU
Kirby’s eyes widen when Chance unbuttons his jumpsuit, reveals a black tanktop, a massive pectoral muscle, and brings out a chained necklace to a cold steel badge.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBigIy53hfQ
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlsgAo9znbW
Iris grits her teeth, “Oh jesus.”584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpAKXFpnIxB
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKiA0Y8Txq9
Kirby’s stunned, left with a million questions. The police?584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzdO7rJQoJo
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRCgOqReC2D
After all this time, Chance didn’t even mention that part. Kirby assumes it must be for good reason, like for protection. Especially for a corrupt cop, breaking laws he’s supposed to uphold. Of course no one knows that but Kirby. It dawns on him. Ohhh.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡapnkZnj2zF
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgfOBroZ5cZ
His eyes gaze upon the gleaming name Skyden Police Officer Chance Gott.
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaEkIFnxDg9
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡodImeRHkjS
Meanwhile, back in MyHAVEN, the Spook dangles 65 feet off the floor on a scaffold that’s held into place by brackets connected to a wall. Humming a sad tune, the wooden two-faced mask with stained tears scrutinizes every detail of the frescoed ceiling of the Sistine Chapel. The nine scenes of Genesis. The beginning of mankind. The many depictions of naked men and shadows of their internal organs. The second coming of Christ, who judges mankind.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPYZWB5p0Sm
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡENA1DXelKR
The Spook takes everything in and faces to the right towards the blessed, those anointed for a glorious Heaven. Facing left, the Spook sniffles and sees the damned, those exiled to a heartless Hell. Being in the middle down to the line, the Spook lies out flat, humming and dangling, unjudged. “This is my life.”584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWK8YKb1xFW
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡr5LTF7Bl9b
“Nose pressed to the ceiling for four years …” comes the mutter. “Mold. Poverty. Deteriorated vision. Weight of the world and the pope. All these can birth a masterpiece. But ooh, at such a high cost.”584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡz1Zl9R6RkG
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfbBHEfZ2ew
“Only after the climb to Heaven have I found rest.” The Spook sighs heavily.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡt9DN9s0PHm
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡW7GTGoeGDJ
“Words, words, words! I should kill myself.” The Spook groans. “I should, shouldn’t I?” The Spook grabs the mask and spins it around and around. Smile, frown, upside down. “How much longer do I have to suck at serial killing before I throw in the towel?”584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ12tKYdONCN
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡF3zSD1t6Xr
The Spook hyperventilates until the breathing finally calms down. “There’s no Haven for me. I am no one. I’ve failed to killed the Hayes brothers. Damn them.”584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡL5lsKMyMKT
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlnMXYkpc28
The mask shakes hysterically. “I’ve failed to killed Chaput. How mortifying is that. And now it turns out I’ve failed to kill Taylor too? F! M! L! I can’t go on.”584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsqgjmSSjEH
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9LnKyU8asQ
“Now, now, I surely must have rushed.” The Spook rambles on with gloved hands soothingly. “I’ve been too eager, too greedy, I know that. No need to freak out. Every forty seconds, someone dies from suicide, you know, and I’m certainly not that person.”584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfwUQCg4yc9
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYt6lVhXUAE
Aha, the Spook looks back to the left where the demons live and raises a finger. “But they can be! Suicide. How simplistic, how classic. Should’ve thought of this before.” The Spook wonders now. “But who’s the first to choke?”584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7FOc65cUkU
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLfaceMoUvc
The frescoed ceiling glows bright neon with a map of Skyden. The Spook scries it. Millions of red hot spots burn and float, labeled with well-known names of celebrities, directors, and everybody mobile or at home. Simone Chaput and Rachel Craven are in a dorm room at Pegasus Studios. Lucky trollop.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhGZKK7FOxf
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQ5yIwcbLMN
The Spook searches for Taylor, but the name is gone. Off-grid, but guaranteed to be arrested and taken down to the police station.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjzHbUMdKsL
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡF99zLEHrCb
Next, the Spook locates Kirby Hayes traveling through the heart of the city. It seems he is alone, but the Spook is sure that’s not always true. The Spook remembers Anonymous, who ruined the whole fun thing twice already.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5ve9VxFABj
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPs2BbvDCyd
But Kirby Hayes saw me.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoWxDufjnVW
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqXlSj7YWK5
That is a loose end, the Spook decides. That is rather vexing.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtVPVOPs2ki
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5gTEUKCF9S
Another groan echoes throughout the Sistine Chapel. “This is going to be so depressing. I hope I do it right … no bawling this time. Steel up, you hear me? This has to be done. The plan has to be carried out, there’s no other way. It’s going to be so sad … once you’ve finished.”584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUg9fklgg5o
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsbZsSpb5CQ
“Yes, you.” A gloved finger presses upon Kirby’s pinging red dot.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiux5811vnH
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡz6qivLze0e
“You will unknowingly kill yourself. I’ll help ...”584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡk5b4S4PV8M
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPyAY4UsCqk
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡu3pWyhiHjV
THE SPOOK IS SAD584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxk8tHIhNse
Jack Steele Adams584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvkc6GLChEL
ns216.73.216.88da2
