Page 7 of Widow

Chapter 2

It occurred to me on several occasions that I should probably say something about what was inside of me. Maybe they could be removed. Or perhaps they would stick me in a mental institution.

The thing was, I had done an ultrasound and bloodwork on myself, and they revealed nothing. If I walked into an ER, hell, even my own ER, and claimed spiders were living inside of me, everyone would think I was experiencing psychosis.

The last thing I needed was to be locked away with crazed spiders living inside of me. I didn’t even want to know what they would do when a lot of people were around, and they were hungry.

When we got to the parking lot, the man opened the door to his white Tesla Model X for me. I waited until he slid in next to me before asking him any questions.

“Are you married?” I looked at his hand on the steering wheel.

“It’s complicated.” He turned on his car and backed out of the parking spot. What kind of answer was that? You either are, or you aren't.

The spiders felt like they were doing somersaults inside of me. They did not think he was telling the truth. Neither did I. I had been married once, and I'm sure my ex delivered the same line to whoever he fucked behind my back.

It doesn’t matter how complicated things get at home; you don’t cheat on your wife. Now, that wife would become a widow.

“I can do complicated. Are you up for an adventure tonight?” I kept my hands folded in my lap so he wouldn't get any ideas about grabbing it and putting it on his crotch. I had only made that mistake once.

He stopped at the exit of the parking lot. “I’m down for anything. I need some adventure in my life. Where are we headed?”

“Make a left here and go straight.”

We drove for about twenty minutes to the Hawthorne Mall. He didn’t seem at all concerned that we parked behind the abandoned building. It had been deserted for decades. A chain-link fence surrounded it, but that didn’t really do much to keep people out.

I wasn't sure what drew me to this place time and time again. It just felt right, like I was home.

We got out of the car and headed for the fence surrounding the mall.

“I can put your keys inside my purse for you if you want.” He handed his keys over to me without question.

“Are you one of those women that like to be frightened during sex? Isn’t this place haunted?”

We climbed through a hole in the fence and made our way towards a loading dock with a door off to the side. It was pretty dark outside, but I could see it clearly.

When I first realized that my sight had improved during the night time, I had freaked out a bit. Now, I just thought it was a perk. I had to find something good about the whole situation to keep myself going.

The man pulled out his cell phone and turned on the flashlight. I pushed open the side door, which opened easily. Someone had already done all the work of breaking in.

We walked forward into the mall. “Be careful in here. There are lots of holes in the floor leading to the lower level. It’s really dark down there.”

“Is that where we’re headed?” He sounded excited about the idea of fucking me in the pitch black. “I’m so turned on by this. I didn’t think I would be, but you’re so fucking sexy and irresistible.”

We'd see how irresistible I was when spiders poured out of me. I felt like I was choking, and they hadn't even risen yet.

We made our way down to the bottom floor, our feet on the bare concrete the only sounds. I put my fist against my mouth and breathed out, my cheeks puffing. I should run and let this man live.

So what, he was planning to cheat on his wife? He didn't deserve to die. What I needed to do was find other killers Dexter Morgan style and become a serial killer of other murderers.

“Turn off the light.” My voice was shaky. He chuckled at what he must have thought was foreplay.

He switched off his cell phone. One of his arms wrapped around my waist, pulling me closer. I swallowed down the scream that had formed in my throat. I didn't want to kill this man.

“This isn’t the part where I find out you have a dick, is it?” He laughed uncomfortably at my sudden silence and stillness. It was a little too late for him to second-guess himself.

That was the thing about cheaters. They always acted so impulsively, and then when the inklings of doubt popped into their head, it was too late. They already had their pants to their knees, and their dick was in charge.

His cell phone light turned back on when I didn't respond. I grabbed it from him and stepped back. I fumbled for the button to turn it off. My eyes were watering as the spiders made their way to the surface.

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