Chapter 10

Ten

Izzy

"Oh my god," Brianna said, and I looked over my shoulder from where I was on my hands and knees. I was finally making headway with the pictures stuck to the floor, but it was taking paint thinner to do it, and I had on goggles, gloves, and a gas mask. I could only imagine what I looked like. Brianna had her arm over her nose as she looked around the room. Luckily, most of the pictures were cleaned up. "What happened in here?"

Standing, I walked out of the office and closed the door. "Might as well let the air exchange do some work," I said, removing the mask and taking a deep breath as I pulled off the rubber gloves with a snap.

"I don't know if it was the Horseman, but someone either really loves me or hates me. When I got here this morning, there was a cat locked in here, and I found my office wallpapered from floor to ceiling with images of me. It was lovely."

"Jesus…I didn't take him as the stalk you and leave images type, but maybe he's evolving," Brianna said as I walked over to the fridge and pulled out a bottle of water.

"I thought that at first, but it could be that he does this with all his victims. We just never found anything. Maybe he sends one or two messages that people are not picking up on, and then he kills them." I shrugged.

"I love my work, but this is getting freaky. I found myself looking at job postings last night. Leaving here was something I never thought I'd do. I love it here." As much as I wanted to tell Brianna about my plan, it was too risky, and better if she didn't know, just in case. The less she knew, the better. Although, having a contingency plan might not be a bad idea. A folder that showed up at the FBI office if something happened to me and Branson might be for the best. No matter what my gut said, my brain was far more practical and screamed that anything could happen.

"Don't leave, at least not yet. Give it a couple more weeks and if you still feel that strongly about leaving, I will write you a glowing recommendation."

Brianna nodded. "I wouldn't leave that fast, but thank you. So…what did you do with the cat you mentioned?"

"Branson caught him once he was calmed down. With some food and water, he was purring and seemed to fall in love with Branson, so he decided to keep him. Of course, I had to sterilize the entire room while he played with the kitty," I said, and then bit my lip to keep from bursting out laughing as a whole other image popped into my head. My hysterical laughter would be awkward to explain.

"You're kidding?"

"Nope. Even named him Gunpowder because he's this dark, smokey color," I said and took another sip of water to hide my uncontrollable smile.

"Wait…what was Branson doing here with you?"

"He was dropping me off," I said, leaving out all the rest from the lights not working to what we did in my office. Branson was right. I was never going to look at my office the same way again. He'd gone from crush to obsession to…well, there was no denying it. Even if I hadn't said the words, I was hopelessly in love with him.

Putting my water away, I grabbed a fresh pair of gloves, but my phone vibrated in my pocket, and I pulled it out to see a text from Branson.

B: The Horseman struck again.

My heart sank as I stared at the words. Not only was he escalating at a breakneck pace, but I wasn't sure I could handle it if it was someone else I knew.

I: Do I want to know who?

B: No. Apparently, my theory was wrong. I just got the call and am heading to Eli's house. I'm so sorry Izzy.

My brow furrowed, and then I sucked in a sharp breath and covered my mouth.

"What's wrong," Brianna asked, rushing over.

Guilt over treating Eli like he couldn't be trusted filled me as I looked up into her worried face. "The Horseman got Eli."

Brianna covered her mouth, tears filling her eyes. "No, not Eli," she said, and I pulled her into a hug. "He's coming for all of us."

I wasn't so sure about that but kept the thought to myself. If the Horseman had been following me around and watching everything and everyone, then he'd know that Eli had asked me out. Fear shot down my spine. Branson…he was going to go after Branson. No. I couldn't let that happen.

My phone buzzed again, and I looked down at the address that Branson sent through. "No matter what I have to head to the scene. Do you want to go home? I know this is a huge shock that hits very close," I said, looking at Brianna's striken face.

Brianna stepped back and wiped away the tears. "No, Eli deserves all of us working to catch this guy. He was my friend. I'm not running away from that."

"Okay, but we'll travel together. It's safer that way," I said, hoping I was right and not just saying that to make myself feel better.

I: I'm on my way, and Brianna is coming with me.

B: Good, I don't want you traveling anywhere alone. Hell, you're not going anywhere or doing anything alone anymore.

I: We'll talk once I get there. Does the mayor know yet?

B: No, and I'm not going to tell him. You're right. We need to do something. This is getting out of control, and I'll be damned if the Feds are coming in and taking this case from me.

I: See you soon.

"Okay, Branson knows we are coming, so we better get going," I said, heading to the office to grab my jacket and kit as Brianna finished packing hers. She didn't make a sound, but I caught her wiping away tears and knew this was going to be a huge loss all around. We were a tiny town, and not many people chose to move here unless they were looking to retire. It made our hiring pool very small and our friendships tighter. Everyone here was like family. "It's going to be okay," I said, just as the fans stopped.

I looked up at the ceiling and the loud ventilation unit that we always had running to keep the air quality at its best. With a hiss, the containers that held the bodies shut down.

"No, this can't be happening. I haven't processed the bodies yet," I said and ran to the wall with the control panel for the backup generator. It should've turned on by itself. I flicked the switch and nothing. Spinning around, I looked at Brianna, my heart in my throat. "Grab a weapon," I ordered, heading for the tray that had unpackaged scalpels when we were plunged into darkness. It wasn't the type of darkness where you could still see your hand in front of your face. No, this was the kind of darkness that only terrorized you in your nightmares.

"Izzy, I'm scared. Where are you?"

"I'm over here," I answered. "Follow the sound of my voice. I'm heading for the wall with the microscopes." I'd gotten down on the floor and was feeling my way across the room when I heard the sound of the only exit out of here opening. I held my breath, freezing in place as it clicked closed.

Thud, thud, thud.

I didn't know what was louder, the sound of the boots slowly walking across the room and getting closer or the pounding of my heart in my chest.

"Stay away from me." Brianna's normally calm voice became shrill as she screamed, and terror raced down my spine. There was a loud hissing and the sound of struggling. I could hear Brianna's shoes hitting the floor and squeaking as she fought.

"Leave her alone," I screamed. "You want me? Fine, I'm right here. Come and get me, but don't you dare hurt her."

There was a distinctive thud like a body being dropped, and my lower lip trembled. "You asshole, if you hurt her," I growled and then crawled as fast as I could until my hand landed on something that wasn't the floor.

It took a second to register that it was a boot, and I slowly looked up. I'd been scared many times in my life, close calls in bad weather driving, a distraught ex wielding a gun at a scene. I'd faced down killers, stared into the eyes of the dead, and seen the worst that humanity could do to one another, but nothing could prepare me for the terror that gripped me as surely as a hand around my throat.

Suddenly, the mask I'd seen in the video at Branson's lit up. But he wasn't standing over me. He was right in front of my face, and I screamed at the evil Jack-o-lantern mask. Bright orange lines made the shape of the sadistic face, the eyes glowing red.

"Hello, Pumpkin," a metallic voice said as I leaped back, landing on my ass. It didn't matter how fast I pushed myself along the floor. The mask came for me like it was floating off the ground in the inky darkness. He twisted his head from side to side, and an irrational blood-curdling scream ripped from my throat. My back slammed into the wall, and yet I still tried to push myself through the concrete.

I was gulping air, and my brain was screaming to run, but he held up a silver container with a small plastic mask on the end. I'd seen these before. They usually held oxygen, but I doubted that was what was inside this one.

"Put it on and breathe it all in, or I kill your friend. Then I kill that man you're fucking. I will have a lot of fun with him."

"What is it?"

"Take it. Breathe it. You don't get to ask questions." Hands shaking out of control, I took the container and put the mask over my face and the elastic behind my head. "Good, now tighten it so there is no leakage. We wouldn't want you to get the wrong dose, would we?" There was no way to know if he was seriously asking me the question, so I said nothing and pulled on the elastic buckle until the mask was tight. "Now turn it on."

I licked my lips, not wanting to do this, but what choice did I have? Closing my eyes so I didn't have to stare at the eerie floating mask, I turned the valve. With one sniff, I knew this was Isoflurane. The clinical scent, like I'd just walked into a dentist's office, gave it away, and I knew what he was planning. This was how he got everyone. How they all died, not showing any signs of struggle. Tears trickled down my cheeks as my eyes got heavy from the sedative.

"Good, Pumpkin. Now go to sleep, and everything will be alright."

I didn't think everything was going to be alright. I didn't think I would live to see tomorrow, and all I wanted was to kiss Branson's lips one more time and to tell him that I loved him, and I always had.