Page 52 of Pretty Thing

I stare at the closed door, my heart in my throat and my brain buzzing. The house feels colder without him in it. That realization scares me more than being alone.

I glance around at the cups and plates left behind. Shit. I lock the door and head upstairs, feeling more dejected than ever.

fourteen

​. . .​

Felix

My body is still and calm despite the anger burning through my veins. Standing in the shadows of the buildings across the road, the snow falls all around me, my breath rising into the cold night as I stare at Kris and Kyle’s apartment.

I know Kris said something to make Pretty Thing kick me out. I saw her whispering to Eden and glancing at me while Kyle glared. These two are gunning for me, and they don’t have Eden’s best interest at heart.

They don’t understand that I protect her. We are meant to be.

I wait an hour after all the lights have gone off before I step out of my hiding place like a statue come to life. Hood up, black material bag in hand, I march across the street. The key is to look like you belong. You can get anywhere with a little confidence.

Pulling the door open, I keep my head down and walk to the stairwell dusting the snow off my shoulders. This isn’t a fancy place. It’s close to the school they attend, but there is no security guard or door buzzer. The only camera I’ve seen so far is at the front entrance. Basic. Minimal. Easy to break in if you time it right.

I peek through the glass before exiting. As I suspected, there are no cameras in the hallway. A resident may have put one on their peephole, so I keep my hood in place to conceal my face.

It takes me all of two minutes to find their apartment and pick the lock. Once inside, I poke my head down the hall, confirming it’s a typical two-bedroom, one bath, with an open-concept living room-kitchen.

The bathroom door stands open, while one bedroom is closed up tight and the other is ajar. It’s like Goldilocks and the Three Bears, but doors. I take the path of least resistance, keeping my movements subtle, and slip into the open bedroom. The only light comes from a tiny nightlight in the corner. Dark hair is splayed across the pillow, and the bare arm on top of the blankets tells me all I need to know…I’ve found Kris.

Her back is to me as she lies on her side, and my hand clenches into a tight fist. The urge to kill her, and the threat she poses, is so strong that my body trembles. I make my way to her desk, carefully open the black shopping bag, and take out one of the dead rats. I lay it on her laptop, knowing that by morning it will be thawed, bleeding, and starting to rot.

Walking out, I leave the door exactly how I found it and move on to Kyle’s room. I press my ear against the wood, and a soft snoring greets me. The handle turns easily…no lock to stop me.

Kyle’s arm is draped over his face, while his mouth hangs open, and the blankets only cover the lower half of his body. I stare down at the piece of shit who has already occupied too much of Eden’s time.

You think you can take my Pretty Thing from me?

My jaw flexes, teeth grinding together. No one takes what is mine.

Reaching into the bag again, I pull out the second rat. I lift the blanket one tiny inch at a time. Of course, the fucker sleeps naked. I smirk, really wanting to cut his dick off. Fighting the desire, I remain in control of my wild rage. I gently place the rat on the bed between his spread legs and cover him back up.

I move like a ghost as I back out of the room and close the door. In the living room, I give myself three minutes to learn all that I can about the twins.

I flip through a pile of mail, conveniently open and in a tray labeled Mail. All in one place, I come across bank account numbers, phone numbers, appointments, and the twins’ class schedules.

These two have clearly never had their identity stolen.

Reading over everything once, I commit the information to memory. I was born with hyperthymia, an extremely rare ability to recall vivid details like a mental recording of my life. The doctors called it a blessing. My father called me a freak and refused any further testing.

He punished me for my intelligence. So, I pretended to do poorly in classes, failing the odd one on purpose just so that I blended in with everyone else. Standing out in my home was never a good thing.

No matter what I do…I’ll never forget. Every punch, scream, and cruel word remains as sharp and emotional as the day they happened.

But for a moment like this, it’s extremely helpful.

After learning all I can in my time limit, I slip out of the apartment and walk to the stairwell. Taking the stairs two at a time, I jog down and out the emergency exit door. No alarm sounds as I skirt around the building, heading for my car, parked behind a convenience store three roads over. Tonight is a warning, but if they continue to interfere with me and what is mine…then I’ll need to take more drastic actions.

Twenty minutes later, I let myself into Eden’s house. I take my jacket off and then quietly knock the snow out of the treads before pulling out my blue booties. I never leave home without them. Tracking snow and dirt through Eden’s house when I’m here to clean is counterproductive. My goal is to make her life easier, not messier.

Plates, cups, and napkins still litter the living room. Eden was probably too tired to do anything after I left. If Kris hadn’t put bad thoughts in her head about me, then I would’ve been able to do this for her earlier.

Grumbling, I sort through the food. Anything salvageable after being left out goes in the fridge. The rest goes in the garbage. I collect all the paper plates and plastic cups and throw them out.