I Kill in Peace by Hunter Shea Read Free Book Online Page B

hurricane of images shot through me like a ballistic missile. I saw a school, a blur of kids streaming past me. I couldn’t tell their ages. Something exploded behind me. The hallway turned red as hundreds of voices screamed.
    I felt something tear through my stomach and I jolted from the vision with a burst of pent-up air.
    On the verge of hyperventilating, I stared at the phone still clutched in my hand.
    â€œI am not going to a school to murder children. You can kill me with that pain you put in my head, damn you! I won’t do it.”
    I realized that if Candy was home, she could hear me. Maybe it was for the best if she did and called psychiatric services to fetch me.
    AO: Trust in me.
    â€œTrust in you? Because of you and what you’ve made me do, people are dead. Lives are ruined.”
    AO: Or saved. It depends on your perspective.
    I thought of the nurse who’d accidentally been shot at the hospital. How did she fit in to all of this? Did she deserve to die? Had anyone who had lost their lives over the past few days? Marcellus was an asshole, but the last time I checked, being an asshole wasn’t a capital offense. The man who raped his son was a monster, but like Frankenstein’s monster, was he to blame for being what nature had made him to be? Sure, he should have been in prison, maybe even for life, but dead?
    â€œWhere are you?” I looked at the closed closet doors opposite the bed, picturing some golem-like creature, AO made physical, leering at me through the slats, plotting the next move to keep me under its control.
    AO: Sleep now. Tomorrow, you’ll see.
    Before I could protest, everything went black.

Deeper

Chapter Eleven
    To my surprise, I woke up the next morning feeling refreshed and full of energy. Candy was already downstairs with Katie. I heard the microwave pinging, alerting Katie that breakfast was served.
    I looked at my phone. There were no messages from AO. In fact, there was no record of AO’s texts to me the previous day—or any day for that matter. The sweet smell of cinnamon oatmeal wafted up the stairs.
    I’m supposed to go to Saco , I thought while I peed. AO’s urging to trust him seemed just as ludicrous after a good night’s sleep.
    So why wasn’t I contemplating how to get out of my next mission? Would my cell phone self-destruct in ten seconds? No, AO needed it to reach me. Yeah, sure, it was the phone that made me do it!
    â€œI hope you don’t mind that I kept Katie home,” Candy said, holding a mug of steaming coffee between both hands. “With everything that’s happened, I think it’s best she stays home for a while. I’ll feel better.”
    I kissed the top of her head. “I totally agree. It’s not like she’s missing anything crucial in preschool anyway. If we keep her home for the week, she may fall behind in her finger painting skills, but I can live with that.”
    Candy exhaled with a bright smile. “I don’t know why I was so worried you’d be upset. How do you feel?” She felt my forehead with the back of her hand.
    â€œFine. I’m just happy to be out of the hospital”
    â€œThey said on the news today that there were four separate assaults in town last night. It’s like the whole place has gone crazy.”
    â€œAll the more reason to stay inside with Katie today. I’m going to take a ride to Portland, see if I can catch up with Jimmy V. Maybe he has an opening, or knows someone who does.”
    I knew Jimmy Valentine from when we worked at a credit and collections company, my first job out of college. Jimmy had moved to Maine several years ago and opened up his own consulting business.
    Not that I had any intention of seeing him. The trip to Portland and back was roughly the same as Saco, about two hours. I needed a good excuse to be out of the house for a while.
    â€œThat’s a great idea! It’s always who you know,” Candy