Chapter 44 Bonnie
Bonnie
“You’re going the wrong way!”
Kendall whirls on me, his hair dripping wet from the river, and his eyes are wild.
“I am NOT going the wrong way!” he shouts into my face.
“Okay, then. You’re not.” I wait for him to turn away from me. “Where are we going, then?”
He lets out a shrill scream and swipes at his face, swatting a mosquito that was sucking his monster blood.
So far, I’m not impressed. Serial killer Marrow is…
lacking. I’m not sure how he became such a superstar in the city, but out here, he’s making every mistake under the sun.
He’s gotten into the river and now is wet and cold.
Dark isn’t far off, and he hasn’t checked the weather.
He lost my path and veered off onto an animal track early on, so now we are meandering along.
But his worst mistake was not checking the direction.
We’re heading into a part of the park that is notoriously dangerous. A part few people go and explore.
I whistle as I walk. My hands are bound with zip ties in front of me, and Kendall has a big knife with a serrated blade that he held so awkwardly that I felt like asking if he knew how to use it.
When I saw him almost drop it, I decided to wait and see if he will just kill himself and save me the trouble.
If it weren’t for the stab wound in Desi’s gut, I would’ve just fucked this prick up then and there in the carpark.
But I want to handle this my way. So, I let him take me.
My bonds throb, and I mercilessly ignore them. Sometimes, an omega’s got to do what an omega’s got to do.
“Fuck!” he shouts and goes spinning past me, scratching at his face.
I snort in disgust.
“Why are there so many freaking spiders?” he screams.
I shake my head at the complete waste of energy.
“I wouldn’t be shouting like that; you’ll attract wild animals. You sound like prey.”
He stops and glares at me, his face red from where he attacked it.
“Shut. Up.”
I shrug and stand there, staring off into the forest, pretending complete nonchalance.
“I knew it was you. You were so skilled at deflecting those mishaps. As soon as I saw you save Kevin, Nathan, and Rojer over and over, I knew that you were who I was looking for.”
I blink and focus on him.
“You think I am a serial killer? I’m really offended, Kendall.”
He shrugs. “I don’t care how offended you are. I know it’s you.”
I blink at him, trying to look innocent. “You think I could kill a full-grown alpha?”
He just puts his chin down and stares at me in absolute rage.
“I’ve been hunting you for ten years.”
“Just to say you are right, do you really think I’ve been murdering people since I was eighteen years old?”
He stomps up to me, grabs my upper arm, and shoves me back on the animal path.
“Walk!” he hisses.
I roll my eyes but keep walking. “Who am I to argue with your glorious plan.”
Hours later, I’m seriously wondering if Kendall is even going to make it to somewhere where I can take care of him.
He sees the river and growls. “Why are we back here again?” he shouts.
I look at the river. “Well, you wanted to stay on the animal track. I told you it was a bad idea.”
He growls at me.
It’s a very pitiful growl, and I have to fight back a sharp laugh.
“Get in.”
I blink at him. “Pardon?”
“Get in the river. We’re swimming.”
“Are you going to undo my hands?” I lift them to him.
“No. If you survive the swim, you can call it divine intervention.”
I shrug. It’s not like I haven’t played this game with Dad. I wade into the river and then kick off, but if I thought I would lose Kendall, I’m sadly mistaken.
The beta, who is thin and tall and barely looks like he could handle a kick from someone half my size, seizes my shirt and uses me as a buoy to keep him up out of the water.
I snarl as my head goes under and kick harder, working doubly hard to support both our weights. The icy water stabs into my limbs, and it’s hard to breathe at first, but I get used to it and just keep moving.
The current seizes us. I keep swimming, rapidly losing strength and getting colder and colder, until he yanks my head and aims me at the shore.
“Out,” he shouts.
I crawl up onto the bank and flop onto the ground, breathing hard. My limbs ache, and I promise myself if I get a chance, I’m going to absolutely make his last moments the most painful that I possibly can.
He sits down and glares at me.
“Are you trying to kill me?” I burst into tears and start to sob. Seriously, I should get a medal for my acting. It is top-notch.
He doesn’t even care.
He really thinks I’m the killer he’s been after all this time.
“Why are you after this killer? What is it about them that drives you nuts?”
He stands up, comes over to me, and yanks. I just sit there. Oh, fine. When he pulls again, I jump up, pretending he’s strong enough to pull me up.
“Your very existence offends me!” he snarls.
“How? I haven’t done anything.” I let a whine into my voice, trying to sound as pathetic as possible.
“You came into my turf, got my notoriety, brought in Detective Roseland, who is getting so close to figuring out who I am.”
“Detective Roseland?” I say, startled.
“Yes!” he hisses.
“He thinks I’m the killer, too.”
“Exactly, if Roseland thinks it’s you, it must be.”
I stare at him. “I don’t have any words to say. I am aghast that you all think I’m capable of such evil.”
God, this is entertaining.
My eyes flick to the side, and he turns, spotting the snake.
He screams and shoves me towards the boulders.
I go willingly, but then he shoves me into the forest, and I know exactly where I am.
This is one of my deep hunting areas. Where I come out when I need to be alone with just me and the world.
This part of the forest is thicker; the canopy is dense, and very little light filters through.
It’s cold in the shade, and the pine needles are soft underfoot.
It’s eerie. The trees seem like they are a hundred foot high or taller, and you can’t put your arms around the trunks.
It’s an old place. An eldritch environment.
The kind of ground that requires a bloodletting to let you pass unscathed.
People always ask me how I conquer this world, but the truth is I don’t conquer anything.
I come out here, and I face this world respectfully, playing by its rules, but I’m just a visitor, and this place is older than humanity.
It has seen all the world has to offer, and it demands a piece of your soul if you want to play here.
Over the next hour, Kendall gets more and more uneasy, and I just keep leading him deeper and deeper into this world.
He shoves me out of nowhere, and I slam into a tree, cutting the bridge of my nose. I touch my fingers to the blood and press it to the tree.
“It’s time to die, bitch.”
I snort and try to muffle my laughter, turning it into a sob.
“Don’t hurt me,” I cry out.
He glowers at me and reaches for his knife.
Sadly, while we were swimming, I decided to separate him from his weapon. He pats his pants and chest, spitting and hissing in frustration.
“Why is nothing going as planned?” he howls.
“Why are you killing me out here?” I ask because I honestly don’t understand.
“No one will look for you if you are out here dead. By the time they find you, you will be gone. I checked. You only have your family and that idiot I stabbed. You have no community.”
I cock my head to the side. “I do, though.”
He laughs and pulls out a scalpel.
“You don’t. You are alone. No pack. No friends. No acquaintance, even. The detective thinks that you are the killer. I know you are. All you do is live out here and kill people.”
I stare at him and let the mask I’m wearing disappear. “And you thought it was a good idea to bring the serial killer you are hunting to her home territory?” I chuckle deeply. “Aren’t you arrogant?”
“You are the killer!” he shouts in triumph.
“No, I’m not Vengeance.” I laugh softly.
He pauses, staring at me with a frown. “What do you mean?”
“I’m not the serial killer who is named Vengeance. I don’t have a name. No one has ever looked at me. No one knows when the bodies go missing.” I bark a harsh laugh. “No one knows where I hide them.” I break free of the zip ties and move towards him.
“But…what?” His eyes are wild, the whites showing.
“You have been a very, very bad beta,” I murmur as I get close. He doesn’t see me reach into my pocket.
“No, it was you, it had to be, who else could it have been?”
I watch from less than a foot away as he makes the connection and realises that the killers he was looking for was right there in front of him.
He tries to move his arm, but he can’t lift them. He looks down and sees the syringe I’ve emptied into his leg.
“I’m really sorry, Kendall, but I just can’t let you live.”
He swallows hard, convulsively.
I turn with him as he tries to move, but he can’t, and he falls sideways. I pick up the scalpel and move it several feet away from him.
“You are in for an absolute treat, Marrow. I’ve got an emergency pack hidden here, and you and I are going to spend some real quality time together.”
“No,” he slurs.
“Oh, yes.”
He tries to crawl away. I just crouch there and watch his pitiful attempts. When he collapses and starts crying, I laugh.
“Damn, it’s a good day to be alive. Enjoy the beautiful day, my strange friend. I promise, it’s going to be your last.”
Kendall passes out, and I walk off to find my pack so I can really get things started.