I AM HERE TO KILL YOU
Page 26
I know she took Rob's life. My wife is a murderer. I am not quite sure how she did it, but it's linked to the missing chainsaw from the garage. My wife is shrewder than people realise.
I stretched out my arms, ready to take Apinya's slender throat in my hands. I knew I could squeeze the life from her body within a few seconds.
And then, my dad's shaking, disapproving face appeared before me. Dad was a strict disciplinarian, but he was old-fashioned. He never hurt a woman. And neither have I.
"Go home. Pack your bags. Catch a flight..."
Apinya didn't ask any questions. She turned around, and disappeared into the dark night, without a backwards glance...
Daniel
With my hands nestled behind my head on the hard bed, my eyes focus on the ceiling. Apart from the toilet and the sink, there is very little else to focus on in this six feet by eight feet concrete atrocity.
I resist looking at my watch. After all, as William Langland said, patience is a virtue.
I sit up. My arms wrap around my knees. I peer through the steel bars. Soundless shoes patrol the corridors.
"Excuse me, Warden," I say. "I just wondered whether you had the opportunity to check the news, like we discussed?"
His kindly face smiles. He looks at me in awe. Some of these wardens aren't sure if I'm a magician, or the Devil. "Something crazy did happen tonight, just as you said it would. That's quite a skill you've got there. A woman has been found dead in a small, sleepy town in mid Wales. Stabbed to death. Another woman has been arrested."
I smile. It fascinates me that I still have the power to inflict death and misery whilst confined in my prison cell. "How tragic," I say. "One last thing, if you don't mind? Do you happen to know the name of the unfortunate victim?"
His eyes narrow. Why on earth would I want to know the name? He dismisses this thought. The question may sound insane, but then I am supposed to be insane. He glances at his phone. I am sure this goes against protocol, but I don't complain.
"Katherine Roberts."
Kat.
A tear trickles down my cheek. Kat was the only one I ever loved.
"Thank you, Warden," I say.
I lie back on the bed. Close my eyes. Hope that time passes quickly.
"No problem," the man says from the other side of the bars. "You have yourself a pleasant night, Spartacus."
*********
If you enjoyed I AM HERE TO KILL YOU, then please read the prequel, 30 Days in June.
The residents of south Wales were thrown into a state of panic on the 1st day of June 1988, when a married couple were brutally murdered in their own home. The killer, nicknamed Spartacus by the press, did not flee the scene immediately; instead, he used a cut-throat razor to carve Roman Numerals into his victims' chests.
This was the beginning of a month-long killing spree.
Seventeen-year-old Jeffrey Allen was to be the final victim, on the final day of the month. He became the only survivor, and the only real witness.
The killings end as suddenly as they began.
Jeffrey relocates to London, changing his name, and his identity, to Marcus Clancy. His past life is merely a dark secret.
On 1st June 2018, 30 years to the day since the first killing, a mysterious figure refers to Marcus by his old name.
Is Spartacus back? If so, does he have unfinished business?
And so begins 30 days of terror for Marcus Clancy, culminating in dramatic fashion on the final day of June.
About the Author
Chris Westlake was born in Cardiff and brought up in Wick, a coastal village seven miles from Bridgend. He now resides in Birmingham with his wife, Elizabeth, and two young children, AJ and Chloe.
After completing a Creative Writing course in 2010, Chris' short story, Welsh Lessons, was awarded 1st place in the Global Short Story Award. He followed this up with 1st place in the Stringybark Erotic Fiction Award and 2nd place in the HASSRA Literary Award.
He has written three previous novels, Just a Bit of Banter, Like, At Least the Pink Elephants are Laughing at Us, and 30 Days in June.
You can find out more about Chris at his website, chriswestlakeauthor.co.uk