Page 15 of Praying Mantis

“No? Okay, your daughter paid me to torture you and then kill you.” She whimpers. “You killed her son and have no remorse at all. How can you live with yourself?” Robyn actually rolls her eyes at me.

I grab my compact from the box and wrap the wire around her throat. I’m done with this bitch.

I yank with all of my strength as I’m leaning over her; this feeling always excites me.

Once I get through all of her bones, muscles, and arteries her head just lays there. Blood rushes out of the neck. I grab her head and place it in the box for delivery. I grab the envelope with my money and check around then dump all the alcohol all over the trailer. I scrunch up all the paper I could find lying around the house and hoping all the paper will help to ignite. I turn on the burner of the gas stove as I look around the room making sure I have everything that could incriminate me.

I step onto the front porch to strip out of my bloody clothes and toss them into the house. I grab the change of clothes in my purse and I quickly dress. Robyn’s trailer sits on an acre of land and has no neighbors. My sneakers are on since I knew I had to walk a couple of miles into town to grab an Uber. Lighting the matchbook from a local restaurant, I toss it into the house. The papers light up fast and I jog away with the box with Robyn’s head in it.

A half hour later, I find a post office drop box to deposit the head. Once I’m down a few blocks from the post office and in front of a closed business, I call the Uber to go back to the hotel. Back at the hotel and freshly cleaned from the shower, I need to email my handler to give my report. I quickly type it out giving great detail so the daughter knows her mother suffered. I smirk thinking back to seeing my mother’s body at one time when I was whipping Robyn. Closing the lid of the laptop has me sighing and I stand to move over to my suitcase to place it in there because I won’t need it again this trip, so I grab my phone from the nightstand.

Me: Are you still out?

Matthew: Yeah Dancing my ass off

Me: Want some female company or did you find some male company for the evening?

Matthew: Both! Get your sexy ass here

Me: On my way babe

I grab my ID, key, and cell phone. Walking out of the hotel, the heat smacks me but I don’t care. I find the waiting taxi. I can’t help but smile; this week is going to be great. Work is done and now I can play.

Sean

Walking into the diner my mom picked for lunch, I search for her since I’m twenty minutes late. After the third scan of the room, I spot her sitting in the back of the diner. I smile as I head over to her.

“I’m sorry I’m late. There was a meeting. It ran late.” I kiss her cheek before sitting down across from her. I make a mental note to do this for Louisa when she gets back from her signing in Texas. I need to see her. If I can make time for my mom, I can make time for her. I smile as I pick up the menu to see what I’m hungry for today.

“What’s the smile for?” My mom raises her eyebrow.

“Thinking about something I need to do next week. It’s something—no, it’s someone important to me.”

“Someone?” She leans forward. “Is my eternal bachelor son dating?”

“Sort of. It’s new. We’ve been talking but my work schedule has put a damper on it.” I frown because I think about all the times I had to cancel on her. “We’re talking a lot and she makes me smile. She’s beautiful too.”

“I can’t wait to meet her. Bring her to dinner on Sunday.” She stares at the menu.

“No.” I laugh. “I haven’t even been on a proper date with her and I’m not subjecting her to the family. Let me see her for a while before you pounce on her.” I shake my head because now my mom knows, she won’t let up on this for anything. I couldn’t hide the smile thinking about Louisa and I don’t enjoy lying to my mom. Mom brings up the latest gossip of family members I haven’t seen in a while when I drop the subject of Louisa. We avoid my dad, which I’m thankful for, especially today. The meeting which made me late for this was because of the focus being solely on the Praying Mantis, but there are other cases piling up we need to focus on too. Until there are more bodies, we need to put it on the back burner. I hate feeling like a failure with a case.

Mom left me standing on the sidewalk after our lunch together so I pull out my phone and call Louisa.

“Hello?” Her voice sounds like she was still sleeping.

“Did I wake you?”

“Yeah. Matthew and I got back from the club late, or rather early this morning.” She laughs. “But I like wake-up calls from the sexy Boston man.”

“Sexy, huh?” I tease her. “I’m calling for a specific reason.”

“Oh, and now I’m intrigued. So tell me this reason.”

I smile at the sound of her voice.

“I know you get back early Monday morning. I’m claiming your lunchtime. I’m taking you out on a date.”

“A lunch date? I like it. Sounds like a date then.”

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