Page 19 of Bleed for You
Jinx sauntered behind him, never closing the gap but making sure he never truly lost sight of his prey. Rafe appeared oblivious to his shadow, but this man had escaped justice and knew the police would think twice before going after him again. Not Jinx, though. He’d go after Rafe and catch him. Hmm, the metal table in his cabin was going to get a workout with Rafe. The dentist chair had featured in a couple of ideas, but Jinx changed his mind. The table that he’d customized would be perfect instead. All naked and spread out. Completely helpless and at Jinx’s mercy.
Rafe headed toward a play area and sat on a bench, legs spread, eyes on the children. Jinx continued walking by, eyes on Rafe, the kids, and passersby. He didn’t want to raise suspicions, but if people could ignore a man who sat watching their children, then they would ignore Jinx. But he wouldn’t risk it.
Jinx found a spot where he could watch Rafe unobserved, and had to grit his teeth at the way Rafe touched himself as hewatched them play. The parents didn’t seem to notice, or they did and didn’t want to risk a confrontation. It was mainly women at the play area, and Rafe was a man who could easily overpower a woman. Rafe wasn’t built small. The T-shirt he wore was tight across his broad shoulders. He had to work out, and as such Jinx formulated his plans on how to take him that lowered the risk of him having to fight Rafe.
After another forty minutes Rafe was up and leaving the area, but not at the slow pace he’d used previously. This time he moved at a faster pace, but like he was desperate to get out of there. Jinx had a feeling he knew why. Too much excitement for Rafe to handle, and he needed to find an isolated place for some relief. Again. “Sick bastard.” Jinx got in his van and waited. Rafe had parked in an isolated section of the parking lot, and this was the reason why. Jinx watched him get in. Then there was very little movement for a minute or so before Rafe sagged forward. “Dirty mother fucker.”
When Rafe drove off, Jinx again followed him all the way to Rafe’s home. He parked farther down the street and watched Rafe dash inside. A minute later, the lights came on and the curtains were pulled shut. Jinx sighed and relaxed in his van, rubbing the stubble on his jaw as he stared at Rafe’s house. Did he wait or did he go home? Rafe made the decision for him.
More schools, more play areas, and Jinx knew he had a very sick man on his hands. One he would enjoy taking to pieces. Eventually Rafe went home and stayed inside, and by eleven at night, Jinx drove home as well. He’d taken some photos of his own, all of Rafe, and printed them off, then pinned them to a board. A board Craig didn’t know existed and would never know existed. He could never know about this part of Jinx’s life.
Grabbing a beer from the fridge, Jinx stared at the photos he’d printed out, then picked up the darts and threw them. They all hit their mark, which was Rafe, and Jinx chuckled. Tearing thelabel off the bottle of beer in his hand, Jinx contemplated where he would take Rafe. What the best location would be, the best time. The house was out. It was on a residential street which Jinx had discovered was far too busy. That meant somewhere else. A few more days—when he could—of following Rafe and he would have a time and a place pinned down, then Rafe was his. His toy to play with, his toy to make scream, to bleed. His toy to break.
Chapter Twelve
Craig dropped his phone on his desk. No answer from Jinx again. He knew he had a funeral today, but he usually returned Craig’s calls when he could, and so far, there had been nothing. Craig sat back in his chair, staring at the designs in front of him, and tried to ignore Flint as he glared at him when he walked past Craig’s office. The guy needed to get laid, and he was married. Maybe his wife had realized what a horrible person he was. He was a noxious little man who hated the fact that everyone beneath him was far better than he was at the job he did, or tried to do.
After spending a minute contemplating what Simpson wanted, Craig exhaled softly, then glanced at his computer when he noticed the cursor move on the monitor. Furrowing his brow, he clicked a few buttons and kicked whoever it was out, then waited. If it was who he suspected, then Flint would be in his office, and here he was.
The door shot open, and Flint walked inside without knocking and stormed over to his desk. Slamming his hands on it, he leaned over the desk and got into Craig’s face. “What the hell do you think you’re playing at?”
“What do you mean?” Craig remained calm. Why Flint was accessing the plan, Craig didn’t know, but it did concern him.
“You know full well what I mean.”
“No, I don’t. Please tell me what it is that I did?” Craig gave Flint a small smile and waited. He wasn’t going to say another word. Flint would have to tell him what Craig already knew and confirm he’d been snooping into Craig’s work.
“I can access your work anytime I want, and you can’t stop me.”
“All you have to do is ask, and I can provide an update.”
“I don’t need your permission. I can go in and alter mistakes when I see them and this plan is shoddy at best. It will need multiple revisions before it’s ready. I have no idea how you were given this when your work is mediocre at best.”
“I was asked by the people employing us. You know that.”
“Fools,” Flint spat out.
Craig kept the blank look firmly on his face. What he really wanted to do was give Flint a piece of his mind. “Is there anything else I can help you with?”
Flint spun around and stormed out of Craig’s room, slamming the door shut behind him. Craig exhaled heavily, then picked up the phone and called Lacey. When she answered, Craig sighed. “How much information do you need?”
“What’s he done now?”
“Remotely accessing my work and when I kicked him out, he stormed in here and told me he could make any alterations he decided were needed.”
“Really? Let me speak to IT and see if we have any information about that. They may come to your office later to access your computer. Are you still keeping a diary?”
“I am.” Craig had balked at the idea, but once he’d began, he was surprised at how much he’d been tolerating from Flint. “What will be the end result be?”
“You’re not the only one he’s doing this to, so you’re not alone. Once I have sufficient evidence, I’ll take it to upper management.”
“And? I don’t want to do this then have nothing happen to Flint. The situation will only become worse, and he’ll see himself as the victim in all of this. That we’re all jealous because he was promoted and not one of us.” Craig rubbed his forehead. “I can’t have him accessing my work and making any alterations he sees fit. He must know I check my work so I would pick up on any changes he made and correct them.”
“I don’t know, Craig, but we’ll get to the bottom of it. Let me call IT. I’ll ask them to go when Flint is on lunch, so he won’t know they’ve been to speaking to you or accessing your computer.”
“Thanks Lacey.” Craig exhaled and rubbed his forehead. “I don’t know how long I can keep doing this for. He is relentless and now remote accessing my work? Is he trying to get me fired?”
“Craig.” Lacey said his name in a firm voice. “Let me worry about this.”
