Murder Yours Truly

Alex

    Why is he listening? Why am I allowed to talk to Alex like this? Anxiety settled in. Since the start, I had been conscious of every word I said around him. But aren't I his property? How much pull do I really have with him? I wondered this while studying Alex's forfeited state. His attention was focused on his knees, his hands limp. He's probably trying to figure out what to do next if not chase after May.

    "But, there's one thing that I still don't understand," I started the conversation back up. He glanced at me with a nod. Looking down at his knees again, he quietly waited for my thought to finish. Testing my limit, I asked a question, "Why is May so set on getting your attention?" Alex's eyes darkened.

    He took a breath, "I guess you have a right to know, now." I sat up straight while Alex found a spot next to me on the couch, slumping over as he sat. "It was decades ago, but I still remember. Back when I was first brought here and called the heir." That long ago? Maybe I overstepped my bounds. If he tells me his life story over a simple question... Why do I deserve to know? I still don't fully understand my boundaries here. He was honest with me. Always. This man sitting next to me has only known me for a few days and yet, he might just spill everything here and now if I wanted it.

    The voice he found easiest to talk with was distant and broken, "I was supposed to pick someone for the first time. For my initiation. They grabbed grown adults and children alike, fitting to all sorts of tastes. Some silent and resilient but easily broken. Some rich and snotty... but, then, there was May. She stuck out. She was quiet and... well," he rolled his shoulders and let out a hollow sigh, "Thinking about her like I did back then is impossible now," he explained. The taken aback hint in his voice fell away, "Father said that I could do anything I wanted in this place. He told me I was supposed to take charge of it all for him when he was gone. May was going to take mothers' place when she was gone. Everything fitting into place, just as he planned." I wasn't sure if he was finished because the way he ended his sentences all sounded final, yet, so much was left unsaid. "What happened?" I said, trying to let him know that I was still paying attention. He glanced at me, "My parents planned on me picking May. They gathered people who blended easily in crowds so she'd stick out even more than normal. They didn't know how utterly childish she was. Once she got her mask... She was loud and obnoxious; always thinking of herself better than everyone else." His fists loosened and his voice quieted back down after a short pause. "They said that she was perfect for the system just as she was. All because of her psychotic mindset and selfish ways, she was a popular choice when the announcemen of the new female leader arose." Alex's jaw tightened, "She thought the same thing about us; that she'd be the best fit for me." He turned to me and pulled the best smile he could've shown me off with immediate grace, "I knew better."

    "She's a leader figure down here? Like a queen who's off her rocker??" Alex shook his head at my dramatic reaction, "I'm saying that she was supposed to be my caretaker. She was going to make sure I ate and slept. Whenever I got cut or over-exhausted myself, she was going to make sure I was okay. In time, it's expected she'd bend my whim a lot. Alone, she holds no power." I nodded with relief. If she had a serious pull on anything down here... "She does think the same way as you did, though. She was expecting to have the role of a wife with me. She assumed she'd have her way whenever she wanted something, that's a fact." He leaned back and breathed slowly, "My parents didn't even see anything wrong with that... So, once the old man passed away and the ownership went on to me, May was relieved from her duties. I put her in the farthest patrol around the boarders she could be in."

    Patrols? It began to connect. How I got snatched up so quickly and so quietly. People were watching Paul and I since we parked the car, weren't they? Was Paul so noisy that I wouldn't have herd them, even if I knew? I hadn't thought about Paul since... Alex put in the order to end his life. "What's wrong?" Alex noticed the shift in my character without even looking. I told him simply, "You reminded me of Paul. He was noisy. That's why I didn't notice the people patrolling, isn't it? We got taken so easily and now..."