Rot & Romance (Rewriting)

Chapter 13

Lainey jumped up and quickly climbed out the opposite side of her bed.

"Who are you?" she demanded. She caught her balance against her bedroom wall as she was still half asleep.

The man went over to Lainey's vanity dresser and picked up the photo of her and Eric.

"I believe you've heard about me," the man said, intently studying the photo. "Now this is nice. Young love is sweet, isn't it?" He turned to face Lainey. "Benji's trying to take this away from you. What a selfish ass!"

Lainey's eyes widened.

"Y-You know Benjamin," she gasp. ". . . Joseph!"

The man grinned.

"Nice to finally meet you, Lainey," he said, placing the photo back down on the vanity dresser.

Lainey, still pressed against her bedroom wall, attempted to make it toward her door.

Joseph laughed.

"You're scared. You should be. Smart girl."

"Rita told me everything. She told me your plan."

"And she's currently paying for her betrayal in the utmost disturbing way," Joseph casually said.

"Please, leave Rita out of this," Lainey said. She was talking quietly as to not wake her mother, fearing what Joseph may do if she entered her bedroom. "She's gone through more than enough pain already."

"You mistake me for someone with clemency," Joseph said, now studying Lainey intently. "Do you know what we are? Benjamin and myself?"

Lainey recalled everything Rita had told her in Sancova Park.

"Rita called you dead walkers. . . . She called you monsters."

"We're monsters!" Joseph repeated enthusiastically, smiling menacingly as he stepped toward Lainey. "Sympathy, empathy, fear, guilt . . . love. All those weak emotions humans are cursed with are contradictions to our nature. You should be afraid of us! You should be afraid of me and even Benjamin Crawford." Joseph placed both hands against the wall on either side of Lainey and leaned close to her. In a taunting voice he said "Did Benji say you can trust him? Did he say he'd never hurt you? Ha! Hang around him long enough and it's only a matter of time before he kills you, too! Benjamin is the deadliest monster I've ever known."

"Wh-Why are you telling me this?"

Joseph wrapped a finger in Lainey's hair and twirled it until he had a tight grip on it.

"I want you to be afraid of him. I want you to stay away from him," he said, yanking Lainey's hair so hard, it caused her eyes to water.

At that moment Lainey realized she was shivering. The monster that Rita had warned her about . . . the monster that had killed Nicki and all those people . . . the monster that wanted her dead was now standing right before her. But what was he up to? Why was he telling her all of this? Was he not going to kill her?

"Rita said you . . . changed her. To kill me. Why?" Lainey asked through gritted teeth, trying her best to mask her fear and pain.

Joseph seemed amuse by Lainey's question. Or maybe it was Lainey's demeanor in such a dire situation that amused him.

"I changed Rita to kill you simply because I can't," Joseph replied.

"What do you mean?" Lainey asked.

Joseph released his grip on Lainey's hair.

"If you are who Benjamin believes you are, then I can't risk it. For if I kill you, I'll die."