What a dangerous game

Jeez, didn't you look in the mirror?"

".."

Elsie picked up her phone and opened the camera. Sure enough, her face was swollen. She looked more like a panda than a zombie. She went to her room and changed out of her dress into a more comfortable one.

She layed on her bed and was about to log into her F******k account when a call came in. Her phone's screen flashed as "Dearest" was boldly written on it. She abruptly stood up and pulled her blanket off her body

Elsie had completely forgotten she had a boyfriend, they were almost engaged in fact. How did she forget about such a thing? There she was, thinking about another man when she had a boyfriend. What a dangerous game

She connected the call " Hello" She replied in her groggy voice

"Hey love, did I wake you up?" Mason's voice sounded over the phone. His voice was not too deep, it rather had a calm and soothing tone

"No, I woke up a while ago" She replied, feeling guilty. Mason was a nice guy. She couldn't be more grateful to God for bringing him her way. He wasn't exceptionally wealthy, but he always tried to fulfil his part

Mason and Elsie started dating a year and a half back. He's so understanding, so understanding that she felt she did a good deed in her past life to have met such a man. He would never force her into doing things she didn't wish to do.

"I just called to check up on you. I'll drop by your house later. I love you"

"I love you too" She disconnected the call

Elsie grabbed her tote bag and set to go to a store to get the foodstuffs needed in the kitchen. The store was just down the street. The thoughts of where her father could be surfaced in her mind. Harry and Elsie grew up with only their mother present. She would usually tell them how pathetic her life has been ever since she met their father

She was an alcoholic and usually result to violence whenever things didn't go her way.

Elsie recollected the scene that forced her to run away from her mother, with her little brother.

They were in the living room. Harry curled this thin little body on the wooden couch out of cold and hunger, while she searched the house for whatever food there was, even if it was a loaf of bread.

She heard the old rusty door squeak open. Elsie left the kitchen to the living room. She saw her mother drag her body into the house. She reeked of alcohol. Dried leaves and dust were all over her dishevelled hair, her supposedly white dress was brown and she had no footwear on her feet

Her face was droopy and her mouth hung open. She looked like she was struggling to keep her eyes open. Elsie ran to Harry and told him to go behind the couch so he won't fall victim to her mum's violence

"Elsie, give me all the money you have. I need to get a drink or two" She moved closer to me

She stepped back out of fear and replied "M.. Mum, I don't have any money" her hands and feet trembled. She could hear the sniffs and sobs of her little brother

Her mum abruptly grabbed her by the hair "I regret ever meeting your father. I regret ever giving birth to you. Give me the damn money! " Not caring that she was just a little over eight years, she threw her across the living room in a fit of rage

Elsie cried her little eyes out. It hurt so bad. The wounds she previously inflicted on her body hadn't healed and yet, new ones were toppling. Her mum sighted her little brother at the back of the couch

"Hey you. Where does your sister keep her money?" My mother grabbed his hands tightly and held him up. He cried loudly. Elsie ran to them and snatched her brother away from her

She held him by the hand and ran out of the house. Little Elsie could hear her mother screaming and chasing after them in her drunken state. She couldn't run as fast because of the effect of the alcohol on her. And that was how Elsie and her little brother left their mother's house

Tears were threatening to fall out of her eyes as she recollected that scene. She sniffed and stuffed the tears back in. That was a long time ago, she swore never to let it get to her

The atmosphere was a little windy. The sky became tar-black and the clouds scuddled like huge cotton candies. Thunder soon began to roar like lions. It didn't take her much to realize that it was about to pour. The periodic lightning expressed the cloud's thoughts. She ran under a shade and used her hands to shield herself a little, the chilly air gave her goosebumps

After she got under the shade, it began to pour. A steady drizzle of raindrops fell from the sky.

"Maybe I need this to cool off," Elsie said to herself as she listened to the pitter-patter of the rain. Something about rain has her more relaxed and secure. She enjoyed every bit of it, the cool air and the smell of wet soil. She was in no hurry for the cloud to vanish.

Elsie looked afar and sighted a familiar face. The man from the previous night! He was tall, very tall. He was dressed in a long black coat and black shoes. His hair was tied up into a bun. He was heading towards a car with an umbrella over his head. His gait alone was enough to sweep her off her feet

His expression was stern. His left hand was in his pocket while his right hand held the umbrella. She forgot how to breathe for a moment there. He soon reached his car and drove off. Her eyes trailed his car until it got out of sight

Soon, the rain stopped its outpour and she went to the store.

Damien had gone to visit a friend of his when the rain began to pour. He waited for a while for the rain to cease, but it didn't. He borrowed an umbrella from his friend and entered the rain. He took only two steps into the rain and felt a pull to something or someone

Damien ignored the force, but as he advanced to his car, the force only hit stronger. It felt like something was pulling him closer. He hasn't felt that way before. He brushed it off, entered his car and drove off. As he went away from that place, the force diminished to nothing

Elsie got home and unloaded the foodstuffs into the kitchen. Saturdays were usually her rest days. She do nothing other than laze around and sleep her way through the day. Harry wasn't home, he probably went to his friend, Jake.

Elsie changed into her flip-flops and turned the TV on. The news channel popped up first

"Thirty-five deaths were reported yesterday in Tcun's city. The mortality rate seems to be increasing daily. What is happening to this city? What or who could be the cause of these dreadful murders? What could be more strange than discovering that more than half of these deaths were suicides? Investigation has been going on, but all traces had been leading to nothing"

The image of some of the corpses displayed on the screen. She immediately switched the TV when she saw the horrendous sight. The first picture that popped up was that of a young man, the bones on his arms protruded out of his flesh and his legs were broken backwards. His lifeless hands held the knife that sunk into his belly

She frowned at the news on the TV. For more than two years, reports of death have been increasing rapidly. Elsie looked around the house and noticed that Harry wasn't around. She just hoped he was safe

She jolted on the couch when she heard a loud knock on the door. C.... Could that be one of the murderers?