Page 22 of Unhinged Cain

The two talked as if I wasn’t in the room. They didn’t even look at me. Worse, they spoke to each other as if they’d already planned the wedding and the rest of my life without consulting me. I was pretty fucking positive I’d never marry this ass. Livid, I spun around and marched down its now empty hall toward the exit of the school.

“Where are you going,” Peter called out.

“Work, it’s my first shift, and I can’t be late,” I yelled, not bothering to look over my shoulder.

Peter, thankfully didn’t chase me down and try to walk with me. I might’ve been a little too tempted to push him out in front of a moving bus. It was only a ten-minute walk, so there was no point in taking the car, and it was hard to find a parking space around the café.

Finally reaching the entrance to Mode, I quickly snuck inside and waved to Jorge, who was making drinks today. Another girl was working the cash register, and another seemed to be assisting him with getting the long line moving. The line was so long it had spilled out of the door.

“Hello, Kirby. I’ll show you around. Brandy, can you handle this on your own for a little while,” Jorge asked the petite girl with cute glasses and spiky hair in a wide range of colors.

She nodded and took over. Her hands were moving fast as she dumped out one metal thing of coffee grounds and added what looked like a flavor shot into another.

“Come on, girl, we don’t have all night,” Jorge said and held open a portion of the counter for me to walk through.

Once he was on the move, I had to jog to keep up with him as he gave me the rundown of the inner workings of the café. Stepping into the kitchen, I saw three more people at work. Some were mixing batter. They had to be making delicious-looking treats in the front cases. They smelled divine. The third person was making sandwiches and filling soup bowls.

The three people never even glanced our way as we walked through. I had to admit I was astonished to see the synchronized dance they did to maneuver around each other and remain totally focused on their task.

“Don’t worry, dear. I’m not going to have you working in the kitchen other than to do some cleanup.” Jorge stopped and pushed open another door. “This is my office. It’s off limits unless we have a meeting, or you need to leave money and receipts inside.”

Jorge stepped into the moderate-sized space that was colorful as Jorge was and grabbed the simple black blouse and golf shirt off the desk. He looked me up and down before nodding.

“Yup, these should fit you.” He handed them over, and I took the offering as he quickly moved on.

“This is the changing room area for the women. Men’s is across the way. I suggest you don’t get them mixed up. That always ends up in a few screams.” He winked and gave me a warm smile as he joked. “They are not big, but you’ll find an empty locker you can use. The employee washroom is inside the changerooms. Hurry up and get changed, and I’ll begin showing you the basics of your job.”

Jorge marched away before I could thank him. I peered into the dark changeroom and flicked on the light. He hadn’t been lying about the size. The first opening was a changing stall, the next was a shower, and the last was a closed-door toilet. There was a pair of sinks, one long bench, and a half dozen lockers, all with the Mode logo on the front.

I took a deep breath and smiled as I tried to shake off the nervousness. This was the first real independence I’d ever had in my life. I’d decided that as soon as I could, I was going to move to London and do whatever I needed to stay with my dad and get away from my controlling mother, jerk of a boyfriend who I planned on making ex very soon, and a job I didn’t want. Nothing was going to stop me from getting out of here once and for all.

CAIN

I enjoyed this part of the stalking process. I could even argue that I enjoyed it as much as licking the tears from their cheeks. It took a great deal of patience to sit and watch someone for hours and learn all their nuances. I jotted down everything, including the things that no one else would think were worth remembering. It wasn’t good enough to memorize their schedule and habits. I liked knowing exactly what they were thinking and feeling at any given moment. How would they react when I wrapped a hand around their throat, would their pulse race? Would they get turned on? Would they try to cry out in fear?

To know one’s prey the way I did took more effort than the average person was willing to put into a relationship. It was also why other relationships failed, whereas mine always ended the way I wanted. My brother had no appreciation for the hunt. I, on the other hand, was the breeze against your skin before my blade found your throat.

“I don’t just want to pluck the wings from your back, Sunshine. I want to pull the little legs from your body until you can no longer run.”

The blue pick-up truck I was using fit in with the other vehicles in the area and didn’t look out of place. I tossed a few more of the peanuts I was snacking on into my mouth as I waited for my Sunshine to emerge from the beige building.

There were too many exits in this place, but I’d followed the silver Mercedes here, and it was still parked in the visitor area. It was a pretty good bet that they would come out this door. I grabbed the binoculars as more people filed out the double doors, but none of the people were her or the dink she was dating.

Someone else rushed out the door, and I pulled up the binoculars to inspect the tiny speck from a distance. My adrenaline spiked as I glimpsed her delicate features before she jogged down the stairs. I expected her to get in the silver vehicle. But instead, she marched toward the exit and turned to head along the street with the shops. I waited until I could no longer see her and pulled out of the parking spot. Not too far down the road, I spotted the guy Sunshine had come with, but he emerged with another woman.

They stood closely at his vehicle, and I watched earnestly as the man placed a hand on the woman’s shoulder. She smiled at him and then walked away.

Interesting. The action wasn’t inappropriate, yet I got a distinct impression that it was. I filed the information away in my brain to use later.

Pulling away from the stop sign, I continued until I spotted Sunshine as she walked into the front door of a café. Like the rest of the stores and shops in this part of the city, it still had this old worldly feel with wide cream trim surrounding the black front door. The sign above announced the place was called Mode.

Parking the truck, I hopped out and casually walked down the street, finding a spot to sit at a bus stop that allowed me to stare through the windows of the café. Multiple people came and went, but Sunshine didn’t re-emerge. After an hour, I stood and jogged across the street. Taking advantage of the darkening sky, I pulled my hood up on the black sweater and tugged the hat down lower on my face as I slowly walked past the windows and stared inside. I paused at the menu that hung for those interested to read and pretended I was reading as I watched the people move around the space.

It was very busy in the café, and I was growing impatient with those continuously blocking my view. I was on the verge of walking inside when she stepped into my line of sight. A weird unease settled in my gut as I observed her through the window. A man that was either the owner or manager pointed at things as he spoke.

She was here for a job. Very interesting indeed. Why would a Quantico girl want to work with sludge-slinging, raging customers at a shitty-paying job?

I walked on down the street and then circled back to collect the truck. The feeling of little pins and needles started tingling in my hands. The sensation grew and physically itched at the thought of touching her skin.