A Dangerous Game

Chapter One

She knew now that what she thought was the end was really just the beginning. She had no idea what happened, but she knew it wasn't good. There was blood everywhere, and she couldn't find the rest of the group. Panic overwhelmed her, but when she tried to stand up, pain sent her falling back to the ground. Her left leg felt like it was being run through a meat grinder.

"Hello....anyone?" She tried to keep her voice even, so as to not show the panic that was rising through her entire body. She looked around for something to help her stand, and found a walking stick lying on the ground a few feet away. She crawled to the stick and tried to stand again. This time she was able to stand, but she couldn't put any weight on her leg. She hobbled around for a minute, gaining her bearings, then started towards an opening that looked promising.

As she hobbled closer, though, she saw to her horror that this path was blocked off by several downed trees. Her panic level rose, and she fell to her knees, beginning to sob frantically. She had to come up with a plan, and fast. Memories began to flood in to her mind, making her fear rear up like a cobra. She had to find her friends, and get out of the woods.

To her left, something rustled the leaves, and she spun around frantically. Nothing was there, but that didn't quell her fear. All she saw was darkness, the only light being that of the moon shining. She thought she heard footsteps coming from behind her, and as she turned around to see who was there, strong hands grabbed her around the neck, cutting off her air supply and making her fall to her knees. The last thing she remembered was seeing the eyes of a demon--lifeless and black.

-----

Detective Julio Stark sat at his desk, a ruthless headache forming on each side of his head, throbbing to the beat of his heart. A cup of coffee sat next to him, growing colder by the minute. He had been up for over 40 hours, working on a case that was liable to take him to his grave. He couldn't explain it, but there was something about this particular case that touched his nerves more than any other case he had ever worked.

The body of a young girl had been found three days ago, with numerous injuries, most of which were inflicted before death. These injuries would have proved torturous, ranging from partial strangulation to several deep cuts to the upper abdomen. So far they had no suspects, and no leads--the didn't even know who the girl was. The perpetrator did leave behind a clue, but they had to decipher the meaning of it before they could link it to anyone. The victim had been found with an S carved into her chest, only it was in quotation marks. Julio had never seen anything like this before, and he would be reaching his twenty year on the job anniversary soon. The town was small; not much crime was committed, and certainly not murder. This was the first in town history. He hoped it would be the last. Something in his gut, though, told him that it wouldn't be. He had no idea how bad it was going to get.

Chapter 2

Leaves crunched under his feet as he walked through the trees, going further and further into the woods. He had gotten safely out of the area, and wasn't worried about being caught. He never worried, though. He was a fast runner, and he had a game plan. Everything was going perfectly. They would never find him.

As he walked on, he began to replay the murder in his mind. The rush still hadn't worn off, and his blood pumped rapidly through his veins. The look on the girls face--now that was priceless. He loved the feeling he got from it.

He came to an opening that led to a highway, but this didn't phase him. He couldn't remember the last time he had truly been afraid of anything. He started east down the highway, not knowing or caring where he was going. He knew he looked like a criminal--his clothes were muddy, his hands were covered in blood and he was sweating profusely. He didn't care, though. All he cared about was his next kill. He would find her, soon enough. All he had to do was look. He had been trained as a marine; trained to kill.

As he came to a crossway, he spotted his next victim. Short and thin, she would be easy to overpower quickly. The woman was just his type; mid-twenties, brown hair, white skin. He couldn't see the color of her eyes, but he could put money on them being blue, just like he liked. This would be fun, he thought as he came up behind her.

"Excuse me, miss, could you help me? I'm looking for my daughter. She didn't come home this afternoon, and I'm getting worried about her."

"Umm, yeah, sure, I guess. But why are your clothes bloody?" She backed away instinctively.

He made his move, wrapping his arm around her neck, putting a gun to her back.

"Don't move, and you won't have to find out. Come with me." He led her back into the woods, half dragging her as she struggled to get away.

"Don't hurt me, please. I'll do whatever you want, just please, don't hurt me."

Chapter 3

The man smelled of dirt, and he was bloody; she doubted he had been looking for anyone, let alone a kid. She struggled to get away from him, but he only tightened his grip on her. To struggle more would prove fruitless, so she saved her energy on figuring out a way to get away from him. She had to, in order to survive.

They stopped at a cave like dwelling, and he shoved her roughly inside, sending her sprawling into the wall. It was about eight feet wide by ten feet deep, and it became apparent to her that this might be the place where her life would end. She pushed that thought out of her head, refusing to give in so easily.

"What's your name?" His voice was gruff, and his tone scared her.

"A...Alaina. What do you want with me? I don't know you, so why don't you just let me go?" She stammered, finally getting the words out, tears starting to fall.

"Oh, but the fun is just getting started." He had an evil grin on his face, and the look in his eyes terrified Alaina. She tried not to let it show, though. She studied serial killers in college, and she figured that this psycho probably was one. She knew what to look for, and she didn't want to provoke him. She was a sophomore, in the middle of her studies in abnormal psychology.

"Please...I'm begging you." She began to babble, which only frustrated the man standing above her.

"Shut up", he growled, kicking her hard in the ribs. She fell to one side, clutching herself, desperately gasping for air. He had heard the crack when his foot connected with bone, so he knew he had done enough to make his point. Broken ribs were the worst pain. That would be the least of her worries soon, though.

Chapter 4

Every cop in town was busy working the case of what was now dubbed "the S murders". That included officers out interviewing people, detectives at the local police department doing profiling, and even the FBI. They knew they had a serial killer, and they knew that he was most likely a sociopath. The detective had begun by going through all the notes from the latest crime scene, painstakingly looking for anything that would lead them closer to the killer.

"We got another murder". Detective Stark didn't even hear his partner, Johnson, come up behind him.

"Man, this guy just aint lettin' up, huh?"

"Yeah I know". Johnson sighed heavily, rolling his neck back and forth to ease the tension.

They spent the next three hours going over the latest crime scene. It was a cave like dwelling, and there was blood everywhere. The body was still there, with multiple stab wounds and signs of strangulation.

"This guy did a number on her, huh?" Jones sighed heavily, willing away the images that were now etched into his brain.

"Yeah, tell me about it". Stark turned to one of the officers on duty, asking him multiple questions. When he was done with that, he looked more carefully at the body, to record the injuries. With his tape recording on, he began.

"Multiple stab wounds, mostly to the torso, strangulation with that looks like a rope with fine fibers. This was probably the COD, but we'll double check that with the ME. Bruises on the face, probably defense wounds. Hands cut up, also possible defense wounds. An S carved into her chest, possibly after death, with what looks to be some sort of serrated blade. All consistent with the previous victim."

He stopped the tape recorder, almost unable to go on. The ruthlessness of the crime saddened him. No one with a conscious could do this, so they must be dealing with a sociopath. That would make the job of catching him harder, because there were likely to be more victims. He hoped not, though. He had seen a lot of bad things in his time as a detective--horrible things--but nothing quite like this.

Reaching down into the victims' purse, which was splayed out next to her with its contents partially showing, detective Stark found what he was looking for.

"Adrianna Miller--twenty years old. What kind of monster brutally murders a twenty year old girl?" He thought about his own children, ages 16 and 18, and was nearly brought to tears. His youngest child was murdered just a year before, in a home invasion gone horribly wrong. He pushed the memories aside, refusing to go back to that dark place he had vowed never to revisit.

"I don't know, but I intend to find out". Detective Johnson sensed where his partners head was going, and he didn't like it. He let his anger propel him into action.

They spent the next few hours canvassing the area, asking anyone who would listen for any information they could. They found little out, other than the fact that Adrianna was well liked and very smart. To know that she could be out witted by such a monster saddened and shocked them. Most of all, though, it scared them.

Chapter 5