Page 54 of Heart of a Killer

“What are those?” I ask Alex, the one closest to it.

“Rats.”

The pounding in my ears begins to fade, and the squeaks from the pile become more recognizable. The commotion grows louder as we draw closer. The waves in the water alert the vermin to our approach, and they scatter, running between our legs. Once I see where the horde of rats was, I inhale a sharp breath and cover my mouth.

The faint yellow from the emergency lights above illuminates a decaying body in tan patient scrubs lying supine. The face has been eaten away. Mats of brown, curly hair surround the hollowed-out space. The edges of the clothes are covered in black mildew, and sprinkles of rat feces cover the chest and legs. Parts of her arms visible above the water have chunks taken out, down to the bone in some places. My stomach churns, curdling the acid within and making me gag.

“Don’t hurl on us, Sky,” Brie teases as she places a hand on my back.

After a few moments of dry-heaving, I scream, “I knew it! I knew something had happened to Clarissa.”

“Yeah, you were right, but how did she get down here?” Brie asks.

Alex’s face is stone, and no lines of expression surround his eyes or lips. He is unfazed by the sight before us—much like how he acted when Brie basically degloved a man’s penis. “The doctor—or his helpers, probably—dumped the body down here, thinking it would be safe from discovery.”

“Then why is it so far away from where we came in?”

“On one of the days the rain was at its heaviest, it probably flushed the pipes, essentially moving her down the tunnel. I know one thing—they are lucky she didn’t make it to the end, because there would be serious questions as to where she came from. But maybe they had a plan in place for that too. Who knows?”

“You just have the answers to everything, don’t you?” Brie chides.

“I have some insights.”

“Yeah, you have some explaining to do once we get out of here. You both do.” Brie’s eyes narrow, looking back and forth between Alex and me.

“Yeah, we all need to sit and talk,” I agree.

Alex remains stoic, but he doesn’t disagree.

I hope he knows we’ve all been through a lot together and doesn’t think I plan on leaving him ever again. One good thing about this experience is that we found each other. We bonded together in the darkest parts of our souls.

We continue to trudge on in silence.

It’s another long time before we start to see the light at the end of the tunnel. The bubble of stress that lingered in my chest bursts. I let out an exhale I didn’t realize I was holding. Part of me was scared we would get stuck down here, and the other part was worried we would all end up like Clarissa and be eaten alive by rats. My limbs tremble as a shiver runs through my body, imagining their little teeth biting into my skin and pulling out chunks of bloody flesh. That is a fate worse than the one Brie bestowed on the doctor.

“Are you okay?” Brie asks, brows furrowed in concern.

“Yeah. Just relieved that we won’t be stuck down here in this watery tomb.”

“Yeah, me too!”

A gust of cold wind whips through our hair when we step out of the tunnel. Our feet make a lightcrunchon the frost-covered grass the farther away from the opening we get. It rarely snows in the south; it only freezes. If there is snow, it’s usually only for one day, but it’s iced the rest of the time. The skeletal trees surrounding us let me know we aren’t in the city anymore but in one of the surrounding rural areas.

“So, what do we do now?” I ask, glancing over at Alex.

He stares off into the distance for a moment before looking back at us. “I’ll go back into the city and hot-wire a car for us while the both of you wait here. Then we will go to my house in Texas, where I can dump the car in the woods. And from there, you two can ask all the questions you want.”

The low cadence in his words sounds defeated, but his face remains a mask free of emotions. I look over to Brie, who has her hip cocked to the side and a brow arched.

“You expect us to sit out here?” She waves her arm around as if showcasing our surroundings. “Like we are just a couple helpless girls? I’m not some damsel in distress,fuck boi.”

“I agree,” I say. “We can come up with a better plan than that. Maybe something much simpler and even quicker.” I’m worried that he might cut his losses with us and make a run for it. I’ve already caused him more trouble than I’m worth.

His shoulders sag, and he lets out a huff of air that comes out as a cloud, showing the first sign of emotions I’ve seen from him since leaving the hospital. “Fine. What do you have in mind?”

A wicked smile stretches Brie’s cheeks before she says, “You know, Akon said he used to hijack cars because it was quicker than hot-wiring them.”

21

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