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As luck would have it, I spot Jen a few paces away near a growing crowd in front of a stage. I go toward her, waving a hand in greeting. “Hello, Jen. Fancy seeing you here.”
She whirls around in surprise. “Oh, hi! I didn’t know you were coming to this event.”
“Ah, yes. The costume contest.” I smile pleasantly, hoping to lower her guard. “It won’t start for a bit, right? Want to hang out until then? I’m on break and could use some recreational relaxation.”
She considers my proposition a moment before nodding. “Sure. Let’s grab a drink while we’re at it. Any idea what you wanna do?”
I shrug and gesture to a nearby food truck. “We could grab something there, then walk around?”
She brightens and leads the way through the human traffic to the truck. I follow, ecstatic that she took the bait. We snag a couple of cups of punch, and despite Jen’s protests, I pay the vendor. She shuffles her feet, her gaze downcast. Inside, I can’t help but laugh; this girl is far too easy to wrap around my finger.
“So, where do you want to go?” I ask, sipping my punch.
Her eyes light up and she points toward the craft stalls. “There! That looks like a lot of fun. Maybe we can find something interesting.”
Once again, I allow her to take the lead as we head over. We weave in and out of the stalls, admiring trinkets and other miscellaneous goodies. Every so often, Jen grabs something to examine more closely, asks the seller questions about the materials they used, and other banal things that I tune out.
As we explore, we continue chatting, and I’m careful to steer the conversation away from anything that may make her suspicious. Gradually, I sense a change in her demeanor as she relaxes in my presence. After some time passes, she finishes her punch with a big gulp before the topic shifts into something more serious.
“I’ve been thinking about a lot lately,” she says softly as we make our way out of the market area. “About life and how complicated it can be. I just feel so … lost sometimes. Like I’m not sure what direction to take or where to go from here.”
I raise an eyebrow, wondering if the punch was spiked. But I choose to say nothing and let her continue rambling.
“I don’t know what to do,” she continues. “I’m not sure if I should drop out of college. My grandma is sick, my mom has no time to take care of her … or my brother. No one else wants to deal with it. I feel like it’s my responsibility to step up.”
I pause, trying to think of how best to respond without overwhelming her. “It’s a tough decision,” I finally say, offering her a feigned sympathetic smile. “I’m here for you, Jen. All of us. We’ll support you to the end, no matter which decision you make.”
She sniffles a bit before looking at me with a faint smile. “Thank you,” she murmurs, her voice barely audible against the noise of the crowd surrounding us. “You have no idea how much that means to me right now.”
Too fucking easy. I wrap my arm around her shoulder and give it a gentle squeeze, feeling her body relax beneath my touch. “No problem,” I say.
We walk in relative silence for a minute. I can tell that she’s still mulling over her thoughts. Then, after what feels like an eternity, she speaks up. “Why don’t we check out the corn maze?”
I stop at a trash bin, turning away to stifle my glee as I discard my cup.My luck has been excellent tonight, I think.Which deity do I have to thank for this?“Sounds like a great idea,” I reply with a smile. “Let’s go.”
We make our way towards the entrance of the corn maze. My pulse thrums in anticipation; everything is going according to plan. As we step through the archway into the maze, I can already feel the adrenaline coursing through my veins. The strain of keeping track of every twist and turn should be overwhelming—but I already have it all committed to memory.
We wander deeper through the winding paths, purposefully letting us get lost. I steal a glance at her now and then; she’s looking around, her face scrunched in bewilderment. I give her an encouraging smile and tug her along. Eventually, we stand at the heart of the maze, surrounded by towering stalks of corn.
There are a few beats of silence as she takes in the clearing’s beauty. And how it feels like it’s isolated from the rest of the festival. A structure looms nearby, its wooden body adorned with symbols and writings left from days long gone.
“Thank you for listening to me,” she says, her hand still resting comfortably in mine.
“No need to thank me,” I reply, smiling. “So, what do you—what was that?” I stop short, my gaze whipping around the area. “Did you hear that?” It’s bullshit, of course.
But Jen doesn’t know that.
Her eyes widen, scanning the space for any sign of danger. “What’s going on?” she whispers, her voice quaking.
I take her other hand and squeeze it gently. “It’s alright. I’ll check it out,” I say. “Stay here.”
She grips my hand harder. “Be careful.”
I flash her a reassuring grin. “I’ll be fine,” I say, extricating myself from her. “Sit tight, and I’ll be right back.”
She swallows visibly as I vanish into the stalks, feeling her eyes on me. Once I am at a safe distance from her, I quietly proceed towards the specific location where I had left my duffle bag. After quickly changing and stuffing my costume inside, I put on the mask and voice changer, unsheathe my knife, and make my way back to where Jen is waiting.
It’s time to silence my prey.
