Glory and Gore | Edward Nashton (The Riddler)

08

Chapter eight
Blossoming Feelings and The Riddler's Second Victim
Edward's POV:
Harry Bingham. I'd been watching him very closely since his parents had bailed him out of jail. All that fucking money they had. It was sickening. It's been a week since he's been out of jail. Harry committed a crime and gets to get bailed out super easily and doesn't do any time. That's ok. He'll be dead soon. I had built a trap that would decapitate him. Of course my followers helped me out with where to get the supplies. The trap was definitely like the one in saw except it wasn't a reverse bear trap. Should've built that one. I thought. I watched as he bought more drops. The tall buildings and shadows practically hid him as he stood on the corner. He went to go back to his upscale apartment. I scoffed under my breath. I used the stairs and climbed up to the roof. He lived in the penthouse. All I had to do was get inside. The idiot was so stoned he didn't even lock his front door. But, I chose not to go through the front door. I didn't want the police to think that the murderer was someone he knew and Juno become a suspect. I also made sure she'd have a solid alibi. She was out with her parents tonight. I snuck in through a window that was barely accessible. Harry stumbled around his apartment, bottles of drops littering the floor. I couldn't even look around the apartment. It made me sick. Juno had probably been here and enjoyed it at some point. His phone began to ring. Harry put his phone to his ear and said "yeah. I got it. No, I was in fucking jail, man! Jail! My ex girlfriend's dad was the one who got me!" He was silent for a few seconds and then said "if I get caught doing drops, I'll just get out. My parents aren't going to let me rot in jail on a drug charge." He hung up the phone and stared at the bottle of drugs. I hadn't really planned his murder. I grabbed a decoration he had on a table and rushed him, tackling him to the ground. Harry fought back and I inhaled deeply as I hit him over the head. I panted as I straddled him. I pulled the duct tape out of my pocket and started tying him up. I picked him up and put him in a chair. I grabbed the device I made and put it on his head. It clicked as it came to life and the clock appeared. I set up a camera I had brought with me and started to wake Harry up. His eyes slowly opened and he freaked when he saw me. He was tied to the chair so he wasn't going anywhere. His mouth was covered with tape as he screamed. I put a gloved finger to my lips as I chuckled. Harry shook his head frantically and I pointed to the camera. "We're live. All my followers can see this. You're a special one. Your death deserves to be seen by everyone." I said. Harry furrowed his eyebrows as he looked at the camera. I opened his laptop and checked the stream to make sure everything was working properly. "Now, would you like to know why I'm here? Or should I just kill you and not tell you?" I ripped the tape off Harry's mouth and he yelped in pain. "I didn't do anything! Please don't kill me!" "YOU DESERVE TO ROT IN THIS PENTHOUSE AND HAVE NOBODY FIND YOU AFTER WHAT YOU DID!! YOU'RE LUCKY I DON'T BASH YOUR HEAD IN RIGHT NOW!" Harry's eyes were wide at my loud voice. I turned to the camera and said "here we have Harry Bingham, a Gotham socialite. His father is a well respected politician. He's one of the few politicians I've come by that aren't corrupt. But his son is a different story! His son is a drug addict. He's addicted to drops like the majority of the city is. A fucking drophead. He also beats women. In fact, he was just in jail for doing so." Harry's eyes were wide as he looked up at me. "The device around your neck is set to a timer. When I push the button, in three minutes, you'll be decapitated. Those blades resting on your throat and neck will push into your skin like a guillotine. And you're head will go rolling across the floor." Harry gulped and said "listen, I know I did some bad stuff. I won't do it anymore." "That's what you told your girlfriend, isn't it? You told her you'd stop, you told her you'd never hit her. And then you did. You slapped her right in the face and proceeded to try and hit her. But you were stopped. By the police." "No, that son of a bitch-" I covered his mouth and shushed him. "I have a proposition for you, Harry. If you can solve the riddles I give you, then I'll let you live. If not, well." I mimicked a slicing sound as I pretended to slit my throat. Harry nodded and I uncovered his mouth. I started the timer and a buzzing sound entered the air. "Poor people have it, rich people need it, if you eat it you die. What is it?" Harry made a face as if he was thinking. "Nothing!" He said. "Ding ding ding! That's one!" I patted his head and started on the next one. "It brings back the lost as though never gone, shines laughter and tears with light long shone; a moment to make, a lifetime to shed; valued then but lost when you're dead." Harry shook his head and said "you're a freak!" "Answer the riddle!" I screamed in his face. "I don't know!" "You're time is running out." "Fuck, I don't know!" "Think! You can do it!" Harry made a face as if he got it and then I smirked, knowing he only had a minute left. "Remembering! A memory!" I giggled and said "yes! You're smarter than I thought. I was sure that'd be the one to kill you. Here's your last one. If I drink, I die. If I eat, I am fine. What am I?" Harry furrowed his eyebrows and I watched the timer continue to tick. "Twenty seconds." Harry yelped in fear and said "I don't know!" He started to get frantic, shouting random answers at me, all of them being wrong. I loudly counted down, amazed that I was going to actually see this grotesque act in front of me. "GOOOOODBYEE!" I yelled. Harry screamed and the blades connected with his neck and throat, blood spraying out. It landed on my coat and boots. I closed my eyes as I heard the thump of his head hitting the floor. I inhaled and exhaled deeply. The adrenaline running through my body made my hands twitch at my sides. I could barely breathe. The feeling was exhilarating. I sweated heavily under my coat and pants. I could feel my hair sticking to my head under the cling wrap. I opened my eyes, looking towards the camera. "Now, do you see? Corruption will be stopped. Cruelty must die. Until next time, goodbye." I waved to the camera as it shut off. I picked up Harry's head, placing it in his lap. I hummed approvingly and left the apartment. I snuck into the shadows, taking off my Riddler outfit. I walked down the rainy streets of Gotham, not caring to rush back to my apartment. I blinked as the rain fell onto my face, staring up at the large buildings. Juno was safe. She was finally safe.