Page 37 of Girl, Undone
Ella accepted the drink, which seemed to have been brewed to her specifications.‘I heard about the phobia classes and thought I'd give it a try.How about you?’
‘Just trying to better myself,’ he said.‘Used to be on the wrong side of the law, but then I found the big man upstairs.’
She noticed his candor and tried to detect if any of it was lies or role-playing.This place was the hunting grounds for a serial killer, she reminded herself, and such a person wouldn’t give away their real life stories so willingly.
‘Sounds like quite a turnaround.I’m Ella, by the way.’
‘Ella,’ he repeated.‘My name’s Mason Arthur.’
‘Good to meet you, Mason.’Ella tried not to chuckle to herself.The name felt a tad too on-the-nose for someone in the man’s age group.It had to be an alias.
‘You too.You’re a local?’
‘Unfortunately so.How about you?Have you been coming here long?’asked Ella.
‘Only a few weeks.I just set up an office in Apollo Court, if you know it.Trying out a new business venture.’
‘Apollo Court?’She’d seen that building on her slow journey from the airport to the first crime scene.‘I think I’ve seen it.I passed it on my way to… work.What’s your business?’
'Life coaching.'Mason suddenly raised his palms in defense.'I know, I know.What's an ex-con like me doing giving people advice, right?'
Ella listened.Ex-con.He'd volunteered that information without being asked.That could mean honesty, or it could mean he was establishing a character.'Everyone deserves a second chance.'
‘That's the whole philosophy.You fall down, you get back up.Writing new chapters.’
More people filtered into the room.An older woman with a cane.A younger guy in a hoodie who was clearly acting too cool to be here.A couple in matching fleece jackets who sat close together, holding hands.Ella counted them: eight people now, including herself and Mason.Each person entering the room could be holding secrets akin to a ticking time bomb.She needed to stay focused, to observe the subtlest of cues that give away a homicidal psychopath.
‘Speaking of new chapters,’ Mason continued, leaning in a little, ‘if you ever want a real coffee, not this machine stuff, pay a visit to my office sometime.Floor thirteen.’
Ella caught the slight change in his tone, a hint of genuine interest, maybe even a subtle flirtation.‘I might just take you up on that, Mason.A good coffee is hard to refuse,’ she said.
‘I hope you do.’
Derek Graham came into the room, and Ella suspected the proceedings were about to begin.Time to get into character, she told herself, but before she did, she had one last question for her new friend.
‘So, if I went to floor thirteen in Apollo Court, I’d find a Mason Arthur, would I?’
Mason shrugged, winked, and said, 'A rose by any other name.'
Derek's voice cut through, 'Alright, everyone, let's settle down.'
Ella left her new friend and found herself a seat in the semi-circle.
Time to put her own acting skills to the test.
CHAPTER TWENTY
Derek Graham stood up at the front of the room and held onto the edges of his jacket as he addressed his audience.Ella saw a little Italian mobster in him, but one blended with the aesthetics of a failed cult leader.
‘Welcome, everyone, to our psychoeducational phobia class.’He had a bass to his tone that could have summoned snakes.‘Today, we delve into the complex world of our fears.The irrational, the unexplainable, and the profound impact they have on our lives.’
He paused.His eyes moved across the faces in the circle.Ella counted eleven people total: seven women, four men.Probability told her that her unsub was male, so she took special note of them.Each one of them could be the key she was looking for, yet each face was a mask of its own, hiding whatever truths lay beneath.The four men were much younger than she expected, save for her new friend Mason, or whatever his real name was.
‘Fear,’ Derek continued, ‘is not just an emotion, but a journey into the deepest recesses of our minds.It's a primal response, yet so often, it detaches from reality, becoming a ghost that haunts our every step.’
He walked slowly between the chairs, moving his hands as he spoke.'We fear what we can't control, what we don't understand.And that fear traps us.Keeps us from living.'
Ella watched the faces around her.Some people nodded.Others stared at the floor.
