Master Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Egon stopped to catch his breath in the sparse light of a street lamp.
What the fuck happened back there? 
He replayed it back in his mind. For no apparent reason Ava, a sweet young woman, had wanted to kill him. He felt his throat. On contact it burned.
What did she want me to say? "Please don't my servant anymore" And she did everything I ordered her to do when I said "Please". She is convinced that I'm something like her master.
She must be a psycho that somehow can't distinguish between fantasy and reality. I think that's some form of schizophrenia.
A highly trained schizophrenic with access to a gun. I have to get out of here.
He started walking in a hastened pace, taking weary looks on his surroundings.
I need to tell the police. For my safety and for the safety of others. Who knows what this woman is still up to?
He took out his smartphone.
The time was 7:09 pm.
It hadn't even been ten minutes since he still thought everything was fine.
He typed in the three digits to call the helpline. Before he started the call, Ava's last words came into his mind.
"Don't tell the police. If you do, they will find you. And they won't give you a chance to escape like I did."
Who are "they"? 
It doesn't matter. I shouldn't believe anything she said. She clearly is dangerous and not right in the head.
Still, his thumb was just hovering over the green icon. Something was bothering him.
What if she isn't crazy? What if her warning not to contact the police actually has something behind it? I don't want to die.
What do I do? Let's try to be as objective as possible. This problem reminds me of Pascal's Wager.
Translating this to my problem, I should not go to the police, because I could lose everything if I do. Not a good fit, but still.
But I don't think I can use some theoretical thinking on real life.
It's impossible that she actually has to do what I tell her to do. Such things don't happen in real life.
He looked back down on the phone in his hands. The green icon was still there.
How did she even come to have a gun? They are heavily regulated in this country. As far as I know everybody has to take a psychological test to be allowed to carry a gun. And a silencer? Isn't a silencer only allowed for police? How did she get her hand on that? Is she in part with them?
His finger had become cold. He locked the phone again.
I have to get to safety. Maybe she still lurks around somewhere. I did told her not to follow me, but who knows how the fantasy in her head works?
Where should I go? I actually planned on going to the Ranka tonight, but that's out of the question. While I would be safe, someone is bound to find out something happened. I'm also definitely not in the mood to go there now. I just want to go home.
He crossed the street and made his way to the sparsely lit bus stop. It wasn't the bus stop of the university, but the next one. An old lady was already waiting there. That did not make Egon feel especially safe.
He fished out his phone again to check the time. The emergency number was still locked in. He ignored it and swiped down the upper part of the screen.
7:17 pm
Egon was lucky. The bus line 4 was scheduled to come in the next three minutes. He went to the ticket machine and bought himself a ticket for one ride.
He took the rest of the time to look down the street. He couldn't make out anything suspicious.
There weren't many people in the bus. Egon sat down close to the doors in the back, so he could jump out if Ava was still following him and tried to jump him in the bus.
After the bus pulled over to the bus stop closest to his apartment, Egon jumped out and ran back up the street. He stopped to catch his breath at the bottom of the stairs. Taking two steps at a time, he quickly reached the third floor. He searched his pocket for his key. The metal slipped through his fingers. The band connecting his key with his trousers stopped its fall to the ground. On second try he managed to get it in the key hole. He quickly tried to turn it completely, but the key just stopped after turning a few degrees.
Right. I forgot to lock it.
He shuffled through the door and quickly locked it from the inside. In exhaustion he leaned against his door and slipped to the floor.
Finally safe. Unless she beat myself here and is waiting to catch me unaware.
The paranoid thought make him jerk up. He pushed on the light switch and the cheap energy saving lamps sprung to life, illuminating the anteroom in a dim light. Egon couldn't see or hear anything out of the ordinary. He inched along the left wall and reached the door leading to the kitchen. The old light bulb immediately made the room brighter than the anteroom. Nobody was in this room. He fumbled for his biggest knife in the drawer. Holding it in a defensive manner, he made his way further to the living room that was connected to the kitchen.
The light flashed on and revealed another empty room. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary.
He went back into the anteroom and opened the door to the bathroom. It was just as he had left it.
That leaves the bedroom.
Egon pushed down the door handle and slowly opened the door. If anyone were to get at him, they would impale themselves on the extended knife.
Nobody did jump at him. He turned on the light. The room was still in the same disarray as he left it. Neither Ava nor anybody else had broken in to his apartment.
He sat down on his bed and stared at his hands. He tried to conjure a thought, but he couldn't. He was too exhausted.
His vibrating phone brought him out of the stupor. He put the knife that was still in his hand on the desk and checked the device.
It was a message from Dave.
"Hey dude, where are you?"
The time stamp said 20:13.
Egon pushed the message away.
Dealing with Dave isn't important right now. I need to think about what to do. Should I call the police now? I don't even think they would believe me when I said someone attacked me and instead of calling them right after, I waited more than an hour and went home. Although the mark on my neck may convince them. I'm stumped now exactly as I was a few minutes ago. My uncle always told me never to call the police under any circumstances.
Egon looked up the laws for silencers. He was wrong, the regulation of them only for police has been lifted a few years ago. Now also hunters can have it.
But she didn't look like a hunter to me. And a pistol is definitely not a gun to hunt with. Does that mean she has some connections to the police? Or did she get that from a black market? 
Egon replied to Dave, so he wouldn't worry.
"I won't make it today"
The reply came, just as Egon has pushed in the emergency number again
"Really? Come on, the night is still young. Ava is also here and she looks like she's up for drinking. You might get a second chance on her tonight."
Egon stared at sentences.
Why would she go drinking after she almost killed me? If she's still carrying her gun the people in the ranka are in danger!
He asked Dave.
"Does she seem different somehow? Is she hiding anything?"
Egon stared at the "is writing" notice. The wait was unbearable.
She could run amok! So many people could die. I have to call the police. I should have done so the moment I escaped.
Dave's reply came.
"What's up with all the questions? "
Followed up by another message.
"I generally never took her for someone who would drink. She's already at her fourth shot, she didn't even bother to greet us. I don't know if she's hiding something. She's still wearing her jacket"
Egon wanted to call the helpline, when another message came.
"Update: she just received a message from someone and ran out of the bar."
"Where did she ran off to?"
"I'm sitting here. I'm not gonna follow her"
"It's important"
No reply came. Egon suddenly realized that he put Dave in danger.
I hope nothing happens to him.
He stared at his phone for any indication that he's well.
Then he was online again. Egon sighed of relief.
"You owe me a beer for this one, dude. I followed her with only my T-shirt on. It's titty cold out. She just got on the passenger seat of a black sedan. I think someone just picked her up to drive her home. Why was it important?"
"I can't tell"
"Uuuuh, mysterious "
Egon thought about what he just heard.
It sounded like she was drinking by herself out of sadness. But why should she be sad? Because she didn't manage to kill me? And she got into a black sedan? I can't think of any car that would be more suspicious.
He looked at the time.
8:30 pm
He went into the bathroom and looked at his reflection in the mirror. There was a prominent red streak around his throat.
People are going to notice that.
His eyes looked back at him.
She could have killed all those people. And I could have stopped it if I had just told someone.
He walked back to his bedroom and fell in his bed.
I don't think I will find any sleep tonight.

"Do you want anything else, Master?"
Ava was dressed in a french maid outfit that made the best of her petite breasts. She even helped further by leaning forward and holding her arms that they press on the sides of her bosom. She smiled at Egon, eager to serve.
"I want you to to ditch these clothes of yours and serve me in a more intime way"
Ava playfully leaned back.
"Oh no, master. You have to be polite when you ask something of me"
"PLEASE do what I just said"
"Of course, Master"
Egon turned to go to the bed standing in the spacious room. He turned back to his servant. He wouldn't miss the sight of her tender body slowly slipping out of her clothes for the world.
Instead he looked down the barrel of a silencer. He was on the floor again in the cold, dark park. Ava stared down at him with pure hatred.
"You should have ordered me to be released"
A shot rang out. No, not a shot. A knock.
Egon opened his eyes.
Guess I did fall asleep yesterday.
The knocking repeated. Egon pushed himself in a sitting position and realized that he was still wearing the clothes from the day before. He checked his phone for the time
7:13 am
Who would knock on my door this early in the morning?
He was already in the anteroom to find out when he realized that the mark on his neck is a dead giveaway that something had happened yesterday. He searched through his clothes and slipped a high collared sweater over his head.
The knocking became more urgent.
"Who is this?"
"Police, please open the door."
Why are they here? I didn't call them. But it has do something with yesterday why they are here. It cannot be a coincidence.
Egon unlocked the door at opened it a little. An athletic man in his forties or fifties stood there. He had black hair that showed small signs of graying. Thick stumps of beard hair dotted his face. He was wearing Blue Jeans and a Leather jacket. He looked very strict and aggressive.
No uniform. And only one. Policemen always come in two.
"Yes?"
"May I come in?"
"Can I see your identification first?"
Reluctantly, the man reached into the inside of his leather jacket. Egon looked down and realized a pistol fixed to his belt.
Pictures of Ava pointing a gun at him flashed through Egon's mind.
He got back to the present and looked at the identification.
It looked legit, as far as Egon could tell. He read the name.
Robert Montanes.
I know this family name.
"You're Ava's father"
"Yes, that's why I'm here today"
Does he know what happened yesterday? Did her warning actually come true? That "they" have found me?
Egon swallowed hard.
Robert looked at him.
"May I please come in?"
"Okay"
I have to play it normally. It's unlikely he's here to kill me.
Slowly, he opened the door and let Robert enter. He led the way to the kitchen.
"Can I offer you some tea? I'm afraid I don't have coffee"
"No need"
With no humour in his expression, he stared at Egon, which was getting uncomfortable.
He checked his collar, afraid that the wound showed.
"What do you want to talk to me about?"
Robert took a step closer. Egon tried to back up, but the wall didn't let him.
"Stay away from my daughter! She can't afford any distraction."
If I don't comply, he will kill me.
Egon nicked.
Robert took a step back.
"I'm glad we got to an agreement."
The older man left the apartment. The sound of the door falling into the lock made Egon jerk up. He was shook up from the encounter, but also a little relieved.
It seems like he doesn't know what happened yesterday. I have the feeling that if he did, he would've come to finish the job.
I was right in not calling the cops.