The End of Something - Horror
A shrill scream cascaded down the dingy corridor, a manic laugh echoing after it.
Another, and another.
Silence.
Double doors stained with dried blood in the shape of hand prints swung open, slamming against the walls outside. Heavy boots thudded against the floorboards, the sound of something being dragged following after.
Looking behind him, Jasper sighed loudly.
"Look what you've gotten yourself into, Maria," he spoke softly as he gazed down at the half dead woman on the ground, "this could have been avoided if you'd just done what i'd asked."
Maria's body had been beaten. Beaten to the point where she had become unrecognisable. Her clothes had been torn furiously, her exposed skin littered with burns and bruises. A deep wound, possibly from the mercy of a knife, had been etched into her stomach and a mix of dirt and her own blood had been smeared carelessly across it.
Her face was caked in mud, her hair tangled into knots. A few cuts and bruises were scattered across her cheeks and forehead, her bottom lip busted open. Dull eyes flickered up to Jasper's face, and a whimper escaped her parted lips as she struggled to keep her breathing steady.
"Oh, you poor thing, you must be dying for some fresh air." He cooed at her, flashing her a sadistic grin.
His fingers grasped her ankles, and her body was hurled forward. Jasper's cackle rang in the musty air as Maria's head was thrown into the wall of the corridor. His large hands gripped her shoulders as he forced her to stand, throwing her limp body over his shoulder shortly after.
Dumping her on the ground outside, Jasper turned back to the building they had emerged from and smiled to himself.
"Ah, Hortons Bay," he paused as he exhaled loudly and let the breeze wash over him, "what a wonderful place to be."
Jasper had sat watching the clouds pass above him, staring mindlessly at the sky as he waited for his friend. He sat up suddenly, searching down the hill until his eyes landed on Maria.
He'd left her body lying on the grass down by the river, and could faintly see a circle of flies picking at her carnage. He smiled faintly, the events of the day replaying in his mind.
"She had it coming," he reminded himself, a sense of doubt washing over him momentarily, "she should have listened."
"Jasper!" A voice called.
He turned to catch sight of his friend appearing amongst the canopy of trees behind him. A smile spread across his lips as he stood to greet him.
"Alex, how are you?" Jasper asked.
"Good, good. And you? How did it go?" Alex asked in return.
"She's dead."
Alex smiled at the news, nodding appreciatively at him.
"And how do you feel?" He questioned.
Jasper hesitated for a moment, furrowing his brow as he searched for an answer.
"Better, I guess." He answered finally.
He jerked his head in the direction of the river behind him, and Alex smiled once more.
"Fishing?"
Jasper nodded in response, and they made their way down to the boat he'd brought with him earlier that day.
"She wouldn't listen," Jasper broke the silence that had surrounded them, "kept telling me that I was talking silly."
Alex's body turned to face him and he watched him intently.
"Told her that I was breaking up with her," he smiled to himself as he recalled the event, "she slapped me."
"You lost your temper, again." Alex mused, chuckling at his friend.
"She had it coming, though." He said once again.
