Gas Mask ※ A Peterick AU

02| Darkness

Pete

I stood in the bathroom, adjusting my mask, even though I could barely see myself in the dark room. I never minded the darkness, I actually preferred it. Something about it was so calming and nice, but you also never knew what, or who was lurking in the shadows. That's something else I liked, being hidden from others.

Growing up my parents neglected me; my dad was an alcoholic that beat me, and my mom was a scared, frail woman that put herself before me, her child. One day I woke up and she was gone, nothing but a few pictures, a single sock, and her comb were left. My dad got angry that day, and almost beat me to death. He said it was my fault that she left, but we both knew it wasn't.

That night as he slept, I crept into the kitchen and got the biggest knife I could find. I then quietly made my way into his bedroom, and slit his throat, watching as the red blood ooze out and covered him and the sheets. He started choking and grabbing at his neck, his eyes were wide and teary as he stared at me, but I just smiled.

That was the first time I killed someone, and it definitely wasn't the last. After I killed my father I fled from my house, but not before grabbing things like food, money, and clothing. We lived in a trailer park near the woods, so I ran there. And eventually, after a few days of walking, I found a small cabin.

There was a man living there, probably in his late 80's, obviously a hermit. So in the middle of the night I broke in and killed him, with my bare hands. Which is actually harder to do than it looks in all those movies, especially when you're only eight. But then man was thin and frail, I could've snapped his bones in half if I tried.

And I've been there ever since, living in that secluded cabin. I'd only ever go into town if I needed something like toilet paper, or toothpaste, or just food. But I wouldn't buy that stuff, since I had no income, other than stealing. So I'd just go to the grocery store parking lot at night with my gun, and threaten the unlucky people that happened to be there.

I actually found this town that I was in right now, Scottsburrow, by accident. I didn't know there was anything beyond the woods, but it turns out the cabin was only an hour walk from the town, and a few days walk from where I grew up. One day when I was almost dead from starvation I accidentally went the wrong way, and was surprised when I found a town.

Over the few years that I've lived there I've gotten bored, a lot. So the way to solve this problem is took to the city at night, and abduct that one loner that made the fatal mistake of going out at night. I would drug them and bring them back to my cabin, where I set up a torture room in my basement.

I'd keep them there for a month at most, the torture getting progressively worse as time went on. The first week I'd just cut them, or break their fingers. By the second week I'd break more bones. By the fourth week I'd mutilate them. And by the fourth week, I'd disembowel them and watch as they slowly died, the last thing they ever see being their insides spilled on the floor.

Rarely, and I mean once a year, or maybe even less, I'd keep them longer. I'd try and befriend them, it gets tiring killing everyone and not having anyone to talk to. But that's my life, and I brought this upon myself. There's been a few cases where the people have escaped, but I don't mind that. I love the hunt.

The doorknob rattling brought me out of my thoughts. I looked down and saw it moving, then there was a slight pause before someone banged in the door. Looks like I found my next victim. "Hello?" A male voice called. I turned to face the door as another bang was heard. "Is anyone in there? I really have to piss." He called again.