The night of festivities started with that simple look the eight ball girl gave him. It was an open invitation to whatever his psychotic mind had in store for that evening. As he towered over this helpless, bleeding soul, he did in fact smile that evil smile, yet again. The moonlight on the sharp blade had made it glow like an everlecsent bulb on a Christmas tree. Once again he glanced up to the blade for one final look before plunging it into the eight ball girl. His technique had been spot on. In his busy mind, he wondered if he would have been a world reknown surgeon in a former life. That thought had to wait for another time, he had business to take care of.
As the knife wielded into her torso, she screamed, this time not so loud. Her panicked eyes met his and he devoured yet another strike with the weapon, this time into her right shoulder. Lisa’s thoughts kept her awake for most of the reality she was now facing. Her mind kept retracing her childhood and the innocent times she shared with her friends. Now, more than ever, she tried to dream about a place other than living the nightmare she was now in.
He hovered over her and without an instant, another blow to her left shoulder. Once he stabbed her in the shoulder, he left the knife there, just for a moment. He certainly enjoyed this part of this diabolical plan. He was careful not to cut any arteries or other significant vessels in the body; it would only shorten his playful activity. He always loved keeping them alive right until the end. As the eight ball girl lye on the cold, damp ground, he walked back to his truck and gathered his bag of evil, as he so eloquently referred to. The magician with his evil bag of tricks, he thought with a smile. On his way back to the grave, he stopped and marveled at the job he had almost accomplished. It was just a matter of time before he would put Lisa in a permanent resting place.
Chapter Nine
“Where is she? This is not like her. She’s not answering her phone or nothing”, Julie asked Dawn, steadily becoming aware of dire circumstances.
“I don’t know, babe. Let’s just think. When was the last time you talked to her?”
“She sent me a text earlier this afternoon saying she was going to run some errands with her aunt and she would see me later this evening.”
“What time was that?” Dawn asked nervously.
“Let’s see. It was 12:17PM. I am telling you D, something is wrong!”
“Alright. Let’s go back to Griff’s and see if she has shown up there and we’ll take it from there. Does that sound like a plan?
“Yeah. Let’s do that. Maybe and hopefully maybe she is there wondering where we are”.
Dawn made sure not to wake her stupid husband up and they quietly walked to the front door. She did have this recurring feeling of uneasiness. This was certainly out of the ordinary. But, they had more important matters at hand. They had to find Lisa and find her fast. They exited the front door and got into the Tahoe and started driving back towards Griff’s. Dawn knew she had to calm Julie down. So, on their way back to the bar, she asked Julie about her new love interest.
“I met him a few weeks ago. He’s tall, dark and handsome. He came to one of my showings I had in Miami. He fell in love with a piece I designed a couple of months ago. You know the piece. It’s the silver and black theme I stumbled onto when I was shopping for some supplies at the craft store”.
“Oh, yeah. I remember that one. It was beautiful. So, did he end up buying it? Dawn asked.
“You could say he did. Paid cash for it. All in one hundred dollar bills”, Julie responded.
“That’s awesome. Where is your next showing?”
“It’s coming up in about two weeks. Another one in downtown Miami and the other one in Pittsburg,”
Dawn was listening to her and nodding, trying to keep Julie’s mind off of their current situation. As they approached Griff’s, the place was packed. Dawn found a spot to park behind the bar. They got out and Julie walked fast to the front, while Dawn closely followed. She noticed a very worried look on Julie’s face and felt that much more concerned. Deep down, Dawn just knew something was wrong. This just doesn’t fit. It can’t be explained.
“Hey, Julie. I’m going to hang out here for a little bit and try to call Lisa again and maybe her parents”.
“Alright. I’ll go in and take a look and ask anyone if they’ve seen her.”
Dawn walked back to the Tahoe, got in and started thinking. Would it be better if her and Julie broke up and looked in several different places? That was the only way they could cover more ground. So, she decided to follow Julie into the bar and tell her about the new plan.
“Listen, I’m going to drive around and check a few more places and I’ll call you in about half an hour”, Dawn abruptly said to Julie.
“Alright. That sounds like a plan. I’ll wait here and keep asking around. Talk to ya soon D”.
“Just hang in there. I’m sure everything is going to be ok”.
Dawn knew it wasn’t just going to be ok. She had this sneaking suspicion about this night. Something kept telling her this night was going to be significantly worse than what her dear friend is going to witness.