He
crouched in the cemetery that embraced three sides of the hillside parking lot
across from
The
watcher straightened and edged from behind the granite marker. White puffs of
vapor from the shallow, rapid breaths he took coalesced around his face. He
held his body as rigid as a tombstone. As he waited for the evening nurses to
end their tour of duty and hurry across the street to their cars, his narrowed
eyes focused on the brightly-lit hospital entrance. Every night for a week, he
had watched while excitement and anticipation had circled like a swarm of
hornets. Would she come tonight?
"I'll
never leave you." When he was eight, Mommy had said the words that had
become his litany. That broken promise had brought him here.
He
stared at the steps. When would Susan come?
When
Mommy was a patient, Susan had been her favorite nurse. He had liked Susan,
too, but she hadn't stopped those other people from hurting Mommy. His
shoulders tensed.
"I'll
never leave you. They'll have to kill me first."
The
night Mommy died was etched into his memories. On that dreadful night, he had
begun his plan to make them pay.
Mommy
would be unhappy about what he meant to do. To her, nurses were special and
Susan more wonderful than the rest.
He
rocked from his heels to his toes. The last time he had disobeyed, Mommy had
threatened to tell everyone how bad he was. He had promised her he would be
good. His hands curled into fists. Sometimes he wanted to feel the heat of
accomplishment so much he felt sick.
He
gulped a breath. Tonight the heat would blossom and he would feel powerful
again.
Susan
was like Mommy. She would tell. He chewed on his lower lip. Her death would
free him to still the people who had hurt Mommy on that dreadful night.
His
smile became a grimace.
He
had trusted Susan but she had failed to keep Mommy safe. Though he wished to
see the others dead, Susan had to be first. He had laid his plans carefully,
and while he had considered all the things that could go wrong, days had become
weeks and then months.
The
bright lights across the street caught his attention and stirred his hopes. She
had to come tonight. He wanted to be free.
His
hand brushed Mommy's tombstone. He pressed his fingers against the engraved
letters of her name. He cocked his head and listened to the whisper of the
wind.
"Nurses
give so much to others. Someone should take care of them."
Mommy's
husky voice thrummed in a corner of his mind. Her face appeared. Tears spilled
from her eyes. He shook his head. Why should he listen to her when she had left
him?
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