This is a short story based on the Sadian Chronicles, between books three and four (not published yet). Fanta meets a mysterious stranger at a bar. Is he up to no good or is she?

Written in first person to a killer’s point of view.

Looking back I still wonder how it happened. How did I get to this point? I had been so careful up until now. Then it happened, something I never expected. Something I never anticipated. I remember it well, because it is the only memory that is truly clear to me.

It started out just like any other night. I took a walk down main street and turned the corner to my favorite watering hole. Benny’s wasn’t the classiest place in town, but it was easy to get a date there. The women who hung out there were so desperate they would swoon over any compliment. They made them easy prey.

That night shouldn’t have been any different. I walked into Benny’s and sat down at the bar. “Hey, Earl,” I said to the bartender.

“Hey, Jack,” he said to me, while wiping off the counter. He swiped his sweaty black hair out of his face. “What’s your pleasure?”

I looked around the bar, from and plain wooden tables to the two pool tables in the back corner. That’s when I saw her, the woman in black. She wore a tight mini skirt, black tights and a form fitting black top that showed off her cleavage nicely. Her dark hair was free flowing and hung down passed her shoulders and down her back. As she leaned over to take a shot I could see a sparkle in her brown eyes. That’s when I knew she was the one, and I had to have her.

I was so mesmerized by her I didn’t hear Earl at first, that is until he shouted. “Jack!”

“What!” I shouted back.

“Want a beer, man?” he asked.

“Yeah, sure,” I said, still admiring the dark beauty playing pool.

I saw her take some money from one of the other guys and whisper something in his ear. Damn, I thought. Why’d she have to be one of those. It didn’t matter. I was going to have her either way.

I saw her walking my way, and I turned away from her. I couldn’t let her know that I was staring at her. I sat in my seat on the bar stool with my head down while waiting for my beer. I felt a shadow from behind me and knew she had sat down next to me.

“Hey, M.J,” Earl said. It sounded to me like he knew her. Funny that I didn’t. I come in here every night, and I never seen her before. Then maybe Earl knew her from somewhere else. All the same she was mine. “Can I get you a beer?”

“Hell, no, Earl,” she said in a small voice. “You know I don’t drink. Just give me a club soda.”

“You got it,” Earl said and picked up a glass and filled it with ice. He poured the soda into the glass and placed it in front of her with a straw.

“Thanks, Earl,” she said and took a sip.

I turned slightly to see her looking at me. “Hi,” was all I could say.

“Hi, yourself,” she said. Her voice was mesmerizing me. I tried to imagine her screaming in ecstasy. I was getting a hard on just thinking about it. Damn, I had to stop thinking about that. A woman like her has probably been around, too much was my guess.

“I haven’t seen you here before,” I said in a quiet voice.

“That’s because I just moved here not too long ago.”

“So, you’re not from New York?” I asked.

“No,” she said and took a sip. “But I could use a guide, someone to show me around.” She moved closer to me, putting her hand on my crotch. Damn, she was getting me excited. “So, what do you say?”

“Sure, why not,” I said. She smiled and slipped off of her bar stool. She eyed me while taking a few steps back. “Right now.”

“Yeah, right now,” she said and walked towards the entrance.

Like an obedient dog I followed her. I trailed behind her down a dark street. There wasn’t anyone around, so I took a chance to get the upper hand. A sneaked up behind her and grabbed her from behind. I heard her starting to let out a scream, but it turned out to be a yelp. I had her. She was mine, and to this point my favorite. I was going to savor this as long as possible. I picked her up off the ground and dragged her in an alley. She was fighting and kicking all the way. I loved it when they did that.

“Go ahead,” I whispered in her ear. “Fight all you want. You’ll give it to me soon enough.”

She grunted and bit my hand. Damn, she was a fighter. I retaliated by throwing her to the ground. I came towards her and held her to the ground before she had a chance to react. I thought to myself that this was going to be the best one yet. I leaned down on the ground, holding her hands to the pavement.

“Let go of me,” she said in a normal tone of voice. “I’m warning you.”

I just laughed in her face. What was this week little trollop going to do to me? I just slapped her in the face without a word. I was determined to get what I wanted out of her, but suddenly without warning something happened. She grabbed hold of my neck, and I felt a burning sensation. I was so pissed I started to choke the bitch, but I felt her getting the upper hand on me. How could that be? This weak little tart couldn’t be that strong.

Before I knew it she flipped me over onto my back. I had lost my grip on her, but I could see into her intense eyes. They slowly started to change.

“Time for me to teach you some manners,” she said in a quiet voice.

How could she be so calm? I was about to learn why. Not only did her eyes start to change, becoming a glowing red, but her skin was too. It became darker and darker until it became a blue hue, and to my astonishment her strength grew. I was in deep shit now. This little slut was going to kill me. A struggled, trying to fight her off, but she was too strong.

Then I heard a voice from the shadows. “Let him go, Fanta,” I heard a man’s voice. “We want him taken alive.”

“This dirty bastard deserves to die!” she shouted. I felt myself being pulled up and slammed against a brick wall. For some reason I couldn’t move. There was fear in my eyes, and it looked like she was savoring it.

“Fanta, I said let him go,” the man’s voice came again. I looked over and saw it was a cop. Now, I wish she would just kill me. I’d rather me dead then be caught. Suddenly she did let me go, and I fell to the ground.

“Very well,” she said. “You got your killer.”

“I didn’t kill anyone,” I managed to choke out.

I felt a sharp pain to my side and realized she must have kicked me. She squatted down and faced me eye to eye. “You’re lying, you son of a bitch.”

I finally had a good look at her. She was a demon. I cried out while trying to move away from her. “No, stay away, you demon!”

“When you tell the truth,” she said and grabbed me by the collar.

“Okay,” I said in a frightened voice. “I did it. I killed those women.”

“Why?” she asked, still keeping her grip on me.

“I-I had too,” I said stuttering. “Those dirty bitches deserved it.”

I saw anger in her eyes as she pick me up and threw me towards the officer. He was quickly joined by two other officers who quickly grabbed him. I felt cold steal on my wrists knowing they most have been handcuffs. I looked over at the woman, my would-be victim. She slowly reverted back into a human form. I hated her, but part of me still wanted her.

“I’ll get you for this, you bitch!” I shouted at her as the officers dragged me away.

Now here I am, sitting in a prison cell all because of her. Why did I have to be a sucker for a pretty face?

Also on Triond.

When The Hunter Becomes The Hunted