Mandalay Art Academy

  Castleton

  Thursday

  6:26 p.m.

  "I'll see you in two weeks, Katie!" security officer Nancy Randall teases, climbing into her beat-up Honda Accord.

  "Lucky!" fellow security guard Kate Bergen says with an exaggerated pout.

  Katie leans into the passenger window as Nancy presses the door control to lower the glass. The woman stares at Nancy with the true burnings of envy. However, she is careful to keep her tone friendly.

  "I wish I was going on vacation," Katie whines.

  "You just came back from vacation three weeks ago," Nancy chides her best friend. "Besides, it's not really a vacation. Bruce is coming home in a week. I want the house to be immaculate when he gets back. He's been gone for so long, I almost feel like I won't recognize him. I know that sounds silly though."

  "Two years is gonna be a long time apart," Katie sympathizes. "Why don't you go with Bruce to his duty station?"

  "Because I like having my own job and my own money. I like having my independence," Nancy retorts. "Besides, I've done that already. For six years. It was hell on my mental health. No thanks."

  Katie nods her head in agreement, her mouth twisted into an unattractive grimace. She is unable to stem the envy still galloping in her heart. Bruce is a good man, making good money. The least Nancy can do is support her chosen man in his endeavors.

  "Yeah, I see your point," Katie lies. "So...You haven't told Bruce about the baby yet?"

  "No," Nancy nearly screams. "And you'd better not tell him either. The time hasn't been right yet. He'll know when he sees me. Can't exactly hide a belly this big anymore."

  Katie pulls her head out of the car window and places both hands in the air. She rolls her eyes in mock playfulness. In truth, Katie believes Nancy to be a selfish little drama queen. Everything she does is so predictably self-serving. Keeping Bruce on a tight leash like a neighborhood mutt. Using her pregnancy to keep the man, while also treating him like crap.

  "Okay. Okay. Sheesh. Touchy."

  "Well, I've got to go," Nancy says, blowing Katie a kiss. "See you in two weeks."

  Katie waves energetically as Nancy speeds off in her Accord. She shakes her head and strolls toward the entrance of the museum.

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  "Honey, I'm hooooome!" Nancy playfully sings.

  She knows noone will answer. Swishing into the house, Nancy tosses her car keys on the dining room table. She closes the front door and releases a deep sigh of relief.

  "Ahh. Freedom. Hahaha," Nancy exclaims. "No narcissistic artists, no overzealous students and tourists, no screaming kids, no belligerent parents, and no vandalism. Just me...And you, my teeny baby."

  As Nancy enters the kitchen, she opens the bottom few buttons on her security uniform. Walking gingerly, Nancy heads toward the sink. She presses a hand to her distended stomach and grabs a clean glass from the dish strainer. Nancy thoroughly washes her hands before filling her glass with water. She downs the cool liquid in ten long gulps.

  Thirst quenched, Nancy crosses the kitchen and opens the refrigerator. She retrieves the ingredients she will need for that evening's meal. Any leftovers will go straight into the freezer. With a chuckle, the mother-to-be glances at the expensive bottle of wine tucked into the back of the fridge. Bruce's favorite.

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  Two hours later

  Nancy turns in the warm shower spray. She lathers 3-in-1 shampoo into her scalp until her flowing black hair looks almost white. Chuckling softly, Nancy squeezes her eyes shut and breathes in deeply. A pleased smile plays across her lips as she contemplates what it will be like having Bruce home again. And the baby. What will Bruce think about the possibility of being a father? Will he be happy? Nancy certainly hopes so.

  The glass shower door becomes completely fogged over with condensation. On the other side of the cloudy glass, a tall figure watches Nancy bathe with deep stirrings of lust. Water pours over the pregnant security guard's body in a steady torrent. Some of the water flows over her breasts and distended belly, causing them to glisten enticingly. Aquarius uses a finger to follow a thin trail of tiny bubbles, as they stream down Nancy's torso. He presses the same hand lightly against the glass, feigning touching her breasts. His eyes slip to her abdomen and he heaves a silent sigh.

  A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

  Nancy finishes washing her hair, making one final turn, rinsing off any remaining soap from her body. With a soft chuckle, she blindly reaches to turn off the water. Aquarius swiftly turns to leave. A small scrap reaches his ears and the large killer cringes. He glances down at his feet. In his haste, Jeremiah carelessly brushed the digital scale beside the tub with his foot. One corner of the plastic scale managed to scrape the porcelain tub bottom.

  Nancy's eyes remain shut as she pulls her hair up to the top of her head, a tiny smile on her plump lips. Either the glowing mother-to-be did not hear the sound, or she has mistaken it for something innocuous. Perhaps, she believes she made the noise herself. The house is indeed very old.

  After a tense moment, Aquarius finally settles down, his chest no longer rising erratically. The killer slips out of the bathroom, as Nancy calmly fashions her hair into a braid at the back of her head.

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  Nancy climbs out of the shower and puts on her bathrobe. Before she can take more than two steps, the lights in the bathroom go out. Even the ceiling fan in the hallway goes silent; signaling power in the home is completely out. Issuing a surprised grunt, Nancy grabs her handgun and holster from a peg beside the shower. She places the weapon into one pocket of her robe.

  "Damn! What the hell is going on? Why won't they fix that damn power line? Ergh."

  Stepping out of the bathroom, Nancy takes cautious strides down the darkened hallway, surveying what little she can see of her surroundings with a hawkish gaze. Nothing seems out of place, and there are no signs of a break-in. Definitely that damn power line again. Nancy exhales with relief and shakes her head.

  "Careful, Nance," she says to herself. "You're a big girl. Living alone is no big deal."

  Just as Nancy manages to convince herself all is well, the hairs on the back of her neck stand on end. Turning in the direction from which she came, Nancy has the strangest feeling she is not alone. Pulling the handgun from her robe pocket, Nancy points the weapon at the open bathroom doorway. A loud chime from the antique grandfather clock draws her attention. Nancy peers over her left shoulder in the clock's general direction. Only the clock. Duh. All of these pregnancy hormones must be causing her to get jumpy.

  Nancy prepares to head down the hall, away from the bathroom. A warm bed, and the glass of white wine on her nightstand, calls to her. Out of the inky darkness, Aquarius launches himself from a nearby coat closet.

  Seeing Nancy brandish her weapon, the man in dark clothes realizes she may be aware of his presence. Nancy gasps loudly, as the hulking figure tackles her to the ground. She struggles underneath the weight of her assailant, whose muscular bicep is now pressed tightly against her throat. Aquarius wrestles the gun from Nancy's hand and uses his free hand to punch the security guard in the center of her face. Nancy's head bounces against the floor and her vision swims.

  The suffocating woman is barely conscious as the killer reaches into the pocket of his hooded jacket and removes a syringe. He leans close, staring down at Nancy's terrified face. Nancy raises both hands and grips his forearm, attempting to relieve the pressure on her neck. Aquarius simply grins.

  "Now it is your turn, Nancy! You have been chosen. You will join the other beauties in my collection. So that we may all be joined together."

  Sinking the syringe into Nancy's right shoulder, the killer injects her with the fluid contained within. After several long moments, Nancy's eyes flutter shut. Aquarius wastes no time hefting her up and onto his shoulder.

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  Nancy's eyes flutter open and she peers around her. The power is back on and she is in the bathtub again. Her robe is no longer tied, both folds open and her body completely exposed. Cold water pours into the tub, chilling her to the bone. And sitting on the toilet seat is a large unfamiliar man. Try as she might, Nancy is unable to move anything below her neck. The rest of her body refuses to cooperate. Is she paralyzed? Did the crazy prick inject her with some sort of paralytic?

  "What the hell do you think you're doing?" Nancy yells, an irrational anger taking hold.

  With surprising calm, the large figure climbs heavily to his feet, using the toilet seat for temporary support. Aquarius strides toward the tub and kneels beside the edge, placing a hand on Nancy's belly. He looks into her eyes with what can only be described as remorse. But only a little.

  "Do you hurt?" the figure says, a portion of his disfigured face coming into view from underneath his dark hood.

  Nancy is speechless, the anger welling up inside melts away, as she observes the sorrow etched into the man's tragic face. She struggles to tear her eyes away from the scarring on his flesh, but fears looking away from him.

  "I want to know what the hell you are doing in my house?" Nancy manages to say. "And what exactly..."

  Before Nancy can finish her question, the unfortunate man reaches up and grips her chin. Tilting Nancy's head, he kisses her tenderly. Nancy is taken aback. It is only when his tongue enters her open mouth that Nancy angles her head away and hollers out.

  "What? What are you--" Nancy tries again.

  And as with the first time, the large man silences Nancy with a firm kiss. Shifting his position, Aquarius enfolds Nancy in his powerful arms. Nancy considers trying to push him away, but thinks better of it. How can she? She can't even move her damn arms. She will have to wait for him to finish his exploration. Rising up slowly, the large figure uses his upper body to press Nancy against the cold porcelain of the tub. Nancy's eyes widen as he reaches beneath the surface of the water and grips her left wrist.

  "Get--off--Of--me! Now!" Nancy futilely yells.

  The man raises Nancy's arm out of the water. He reaches into his jacket pocket and retrieves a thin knife. Nancy releases a low gasp, staring at the knife in the big man's hand. Where the hell did he get that? Or the damn syringe? And how did he not shank himself when he tackled her to the ground. She can say one thing for the lumbering oaf: he came prepared.

  "No. No. Please. What are you doing? Please, don't. My baby. Think of the baby. He hasn't done anything to you. Please. Whatever you're thinking...Don't do it. Please."

  Aquarius kisses the soft, damp flesh of Nancy's wrist before positioning his knife vertically against the area just above her left palm. He gazes at her with low eyelids, mouth upturned in a crafty grin.

  "The time has come, Nancy. Your time. And the baby's. All will be made right in the end. We will all see each other again."

  Aquarius kisses Nancy's wrist a second time, his mouth and her flesh separated by only the metal of his thin blade. The large man turns his head slightly and rests his cheek against Nancy's palm. The steady beat of her pulse plays beneath his ruined lips. Yes, it is time.

  "You will join my mother and grandmother...And my other beautiful ones. We will all be joined as one. It is all in the cards. Do not worry. You and the baby are going to a better place. Have no fear. It will only hurt for a short time. I cannot join you until my work is done."

  "Noooo!" is the last word Nancy screams.