As much pleasure as it would have been to come out of the shadows and get it over with, the killer restrained from doing so. It had nothing to do with the other people in the room. They could do nothing to prevent the events of the day, and it would cost nothing to add them to the list of casualties tonight. However, the apex of pleasure would come from watching the fear in the lady's eyes as she lived through the seconds, knowing fully well they would be her last. There was a connection the killer found in the final moments of a victim's life that couldn't be gotten elsewhere. The way their eyes widened made it clear that realization had set in. In that moment, they were all the same. Scared, regretful and pathetic.

That was the moment the killer looked forward to today. No one knew if this lady would be too conceited to plead for her life like a few of the others. Pleading only made it more exciting. One would think it was common sense for the victims to know better, but time and time again, they spilled out plea after plea that made them sound even more pathetic than they already were. Did they really think that anyone would go through the trouble of getting them to the face of death and stop simply because they said please?

"Thank you, Mr. Vaughn. Properties like this go off the market fast. You should put in an offer quickly if you want to keep the place." The lady's voice brought the killer back to the present events.

She had been speaking to a middle aged man of average height, whose eyes never travelled above her chest throughout the duration of their short conversation. It wasn't clear what he was more interested in. The property or the lady? It didn't really matter anymore. This conversation was going to be the last one they would ever have.

The man nodded and walked off. From the smile on his face, one would not be out of line to think he was being offered the property for free. He was clearly an interesting figure but at the moment, he was inconsequential. A few minutes later, similar conversations like the one with Mr. Vaughn took place between the lady and the other people in the room and as the last person walked out, an effortless smirk appeared on the killer's face.

This was not the first time the killer had watched the lady anchor a property inspection visit. The goal of all the previous ones had been to gain an understanding of her schedule, something the killer knew would serve the mission well. As was the standard practice of the firm, the lady walked into each room to make sure everything was left in the state they were before the inspection. Lights were turned off and taps were checked to make sure they weren't left open.

The killer followed silently until the lady was in the room prepped for the mission. She dropped right behind the door and locked it with one turn of the key. That action made the lady turn around and the look on her face was one of surprise and confusion. The key was deliberately tossed past her because the killer wanted to know if she would try to catch it. Instead, she stood there like the dumb Barbie that she was, and watched the key fall right out the window of the third floor bedroom they were standing.

"What is this? How did you get in here?" The lady asked, with a disdainful look plastered on her almost flawless features.

The response was a single shot to her shoulder, fired from the gun in the killer's hand. The lady fell to the ground, clutching the wound and screaming in pain. It took only a few milliseconds for fear to become visible in the lady's eyes. The final moment of her life was here and all she could do was bleed.

"Shouldn't you call an ambulance? Last time I checked, you still had your phone on you." The killer taunted.

The lady appeared weak from the loss of blood. She crawled to her purse which was just a few paces away from her. When she pulled her phone out of it, the killer grabbed it and smashed it against the wall.

"Oh look. It broke." The killer feigned concern.

"Why are you doing this?" The lady screamed.

"You really don't know?" The killer asked.

There was silence.

"I think you should call the cops now." The killer offered.

There was no response from the lady, resulting in another shot to her leg. Sharp, painful screams escaped her mouth, causing the killer to smile.

"Oh, you don't have a phone. Why don't I call them for you?"

The killer picked up a phone and dialed 9-1-1.

"Help is on its way, but guess what? They're not going to get here fast enough."

"Why did you call them, you sick bastard?" The lady yelled.

"To give you hope and take it away." The killer's response was as cold as ice.

"Please..."

It was barely a whisper but it brought immeasurable satisfaction to the killer. "I knew behind the false perfection, you were just as pathetic as the rest of them."

The lady didn't have the time to respond. She felt the sharp edge of the knife as it sliced through the skin of her neck. It was only to produce the splashes of blood on the walls that the killer was so thrilled to see. The final blow had to go through the heart. It was a quick stab that stopped the muscles of the beating organ from further movement – and it was relished.

The killer glanced at the lifeless body on the polished wooden floor. It laid in a pool of bright red blood which made the killer's eyes glisten. There was a piece of plastic lying not far away from the body. The killer picked it up and dipped it in the bright red pool. The inscription on the wall was made quickly, and by the time the sirens arrived at the door, the killer was gone without a trace. 

*** This concludes the first chapter. Let me know what you think in the comments section. Next update is Thursday, hope to see you then. Cheerio. ***