Caged In

Few minutes later, Jack has finally arrived at the building of his company.

As he entered the office, staffs greeted him, "Good Morning Sir Jorge."

He kept a straight face to anyone of them and just kept on walking. He didn't even greet back. It's normal though because every day it goes like that. He goes straight to the log book of their company and logged in. Then after he signed the paper, he secretly looked for Alice's name.

He smiled as if he saw good news upon looking. Yes, Alice is present.

He continued walking on the way to his office. His assistant gets near him while he's walking and said "Sir, there are files sent from the creative committee's office. They said these were supposed to be sent to you."

Jack said "Put it on my table."

"Alright sir." The assistant hurriedly walked in front of Jack in order to put the files in his table even before he sits on his chair and looks at them.

Jack has no reactions. He's just as serious as what bosses act in their company. He looks so professional and corporate.

Few seconds later, he reached his office. The assistant went out to leave him alone.

He sits at his chair and looks at the trophy just beside his table. In the trophy, his name was carved in.

Jorge Kione

Chief Executive Officer

He smiles and says, "Today, you're Jorge Kione, Jack."

He has been trying to hide his true identity to other people through that name since Jack Kinley's face is still unknown to everyone but his name is very popular as a serial killer years ago. Jack Kinley's identity is still a mystery until now.

Some are already wondering whether Jack is the real name of the killer or just his screen name to put their minds into his game. Even researchers couldn't find his profile, investigators couldn't track his fingerprints. He's just gone like that, no signs… He just left the corpses found and rot without any evidences.

He is indeed the smartest killer because until now... it's still an unclosed case.

Jorge adjusted the gooseneck lamp over the pages of the files he had spread out on his desk. Those are the database information on projects that are needed to be presented next week which are offered by another company. He said while checking them all out, "If these projects mean larger offers and more investors, I could easily pull this off in a split second. But if these won't lead my company nowhere…." He scoffs and said "Kiss my ass."

He puts them back to the table. As he dug for paper clip in a drawer to compile all the papers, he heard a key in the front door of his office. He grabbed up the grim photographs on the desk and stuffed them into an envelope.

The front door swung open. "Hi-de-ho? You here, Jorge?"

"In my office." He rolled his chair to the doorway and leaned back to catch sight of Morrie coming through the door, her arms loaded with packed up dinner.

Morrie was a sexy assistant secretary with milky skin, short black hair, dark brown eyes and known as their designer too. She's good in fashion, always wearing expensive and branded clothes. Her inner spirit was just the same as Jack's dark side. She has this flirt relationship going on with her boss.

Jack closed the office door behind her and went to the kitchen area of his office to help her put down the bags.

"How was your day?" Morrie asked. She was way too happy for the mood Jack was in tonight.

"Shitty, yours?"

"Delivered healthy foods to the other staffs and then went back to the office and did about, oh, I don't know, half of the job here to impress you." She leaned across the kitchen counter to kiss Jack but Jack held up her hand, switching gears, thinking of Morrie and her dirty plans. He declines her.

"Spare me the design details.", he muttered.

Morrie laughed, pulling away. "Sounds like you did have a shitty day."

Jack reached into one of the bags and pulled out a tissue paper and two boxes of the packed dinners for him. He folded the paper bag carefully after pulling out all that's inside. He then brought it into his desk and sat on his chair again.

Morrie followed him.

"Hey, what's wrong?" Morrie left the package of chicken on the counter and came around to Jack's main desk. She opened her arms and drew Jack into them. Jack rested his cheek on Morrie's breast for a moment and let his eyes drift shut. "I'm tired. There are too many things to do."

Morrie ran her hand over Jack's short-cropped hair, smoothing it soothingly. "You want to talk about it? Sometimes talking it through—"

"No. It's OK."

Morrie stroked Jack's cheek. "I understand that it's a problem, confidentially and all, but—"

Jack shook his head. "No, this isn't about you comforting me, alright? I don't need your comfort right now. I'm afraid this isn't your office, so…. stay where you should be and let me eat here alone. Please."

Morrie looked offended and said "I probably shouldn't have interrupted you… Mr. Jorge with a bad day. And oh…"

She started leaving the room. "Smile sometimes… Anti-wrinkles… just a tip."

Jack just nodded to her last words and he's looking at her as if he's waiting for her to shut the door already so he could eat properly.

Morrie left his office.

He sighed in relief then he gets the phone on his table and dialed the number of his assistant from the other office. His assistant answered right away.

"Yes sir, any orders?"

"Kindly call out for my secretary, tell her I need her to come to my office immediately. Thanks." Then he hung up.

Jack waited in his table, staring at the two boxes of dinners he got from Morrie. He thought "Glad I took two."

And within just a few minutes…

Someone knocked from his door and he said "Just come in."

Alice comes in with her long curly hazel brown hair and with looks as innocent as an angel. She said "They said you asked me to come over sir."

Jack said "Yes I did."

"What do you need, sir?"

"Please get these papers and distribute the project to the members for them to work on their assigned duty. We need to present next week so it's urgent, tell them."

"Alright, sir." She comes closer and gets the files from his table. Jack was able to see her closer again. He was staring at her face. He smelled her perfume. He gently closes his eyes and sniffs. He opens his eyes again and looks at her. He said "Was that the secret?"

"What secret sir?"

"Of why girls look good… it's all about the hygiene huh?"

Alice smiles a bit and says "I have no idea... Maybe?"

"By the way, I like the smell of your perfume... reminds me of someone…"

"Ahhhh." She forced to smile though inside her, she finds it really awkward that her boss talks to her. Jack rarely talks like that to anyone inside the company. He's always the serious type of guy.

Alice finally got the files in her hands. She said "I'll tell it to them right away sir."

She turned around and she was about to go out until Jack said "Ah, Alice?"

"Yes sir?" She quickly looks back.

"Did you already eat your dinner?"

"Ah…. Does it matter? Hehe."

"What?"

"I mean… I haven't eaten my dinner yet but my dinner is already in my table. It was already distributed lately. Have you got yours too, sir?"

"Yes, here's mine." He touched the boxes in his table and then he continued, "Since I gave you a heavier job for tonight, I think you deserve this other box." He is handing her the other box from his table.

Alice said "Isn't that for you, sir?"

"I don't eat a lot, come on. Just get this."

"But I already got mine. Hehe."

"You'll get hungry again later at midnight for sure. You'll need this."

"I can order foods outside, don't worry. But thanks for the offer, sir."

"That's it? You'll regret my offer?" He looks disappointed.

Alice looks at his face and it made her nervous that maybe once he gets bad mood, he'll fire her so she said "Oh… I mean, yes, thank you."

She gets the box from his hand and said "Thank you so much." Then she turns around again then goes out of his office.

She goes back to her work station and puts the box Jack just gave her on her table. She said "That's weird…"

Then she walks away, carrying the papers from Jack's office and following Jack's orders. She instantaneously does the job she was supposed to do.

Morrie follows her while she's walking to the destined places. She said "Alice… what are you doing?"

"Oh… I'm distributing these to the committees so that they could work on the project earlier."

"May I help you?"

"Sure." She gives her some of the papers that she's holding. She said "Those are supposed to be at the cooperative committees. Thank you."

"Oh by the way Alice, the dinner that I bought for Mr. Jorge, I think I found it on your table just lately. Why is it there?"

She rolled her eyes and said "Ugh. You wouldn't believe it. He gave it to me."

"He gave it to you?! Oh shut up bitch, he did?!"

"You saw it on my table, right? So… Duhh… Yes?"

"Why is he so kind to you?! I thought he had a bad day?!"

"Well he sure looks like he was in a bad mood when I came in."

"Ohhh… so it's just maybe he doesn't have too much stomach for two boxes so he gave one to you."

"Maybe… So, I'll leave you here, alright? I'm headed somewhere to explain these to them."

"Alright."

They part ways.

Alice is always the busy type of person. Secretaries' duties aren't a joke so having a free time in a day happens only once in a blue moon for Alice.

Meanwhile, Jack is talking to someone over the phone in his office.

"Yes, please, locate me there. I'll be checking in to that place for 3 months. Can you empty that room for me?"

"Okay, okay, thanks."

Then he hung up the phone. He leans his back to the chair, puts his elbows on the armrests on each side and he rotates his seat. He looks so relaxed.

He looks at the ceiling and smiles. He said "Alice....." He smells the air inside his office. Her scent was left there.

He thinks of more works to assign to Alice so she could visit his office often. He turns on his laptop and writes several invitations to other companies, asking if they need collaboration and leaving their current situation as willing to receive more projects for the development of their own company and the collaborated ones. He keeps himself occupied until 1 in the morning.

As his nape aches, he stretches his arms and sits straight. He has become so tired. He turns off the laptop then fixes his table. When everything's set, he went home alone.

But exactly around 1:20 AM, the policemen are on patrol. They are all over the streets.

Alice passed by them at the street that she's walking to and it caught her attention. They look like they have another serious case to solve. They were all frowning, talking to their handheld radios, sending out an urgent call to the others. So she walks faster to get to her house, thinking that it was dangerous being outside at this time guessing that the criminal is still being chased. She doesn't want to be a victim so she walks like she's almost running.

(Talking policemen through their handheld radios)

"Officer, We are notifying you that Mr. Jack Kinley was released lately at exactly 6:47 PM. We have received a note from the hospital citing that he was in good behavior before the incident happens."

"Good behavior? Good frigging behavior? He killed 10 people, for God's sake!"

"It says right here that notification of all hearings are to be sent to Mr. Joe Gregor. I think we should wait for the decision from the higher positions."

"I know. But he's out!"

(Disconnection in line, crisps and crackling sound)

"Hello? Did you hear me? He's out! The son of a bitch is out and that is not a good behavior! Can you fucking believe it?! This is not funny. Everybody, keep your eye on that case."

(Line gets clear)

"Yes, sir!"

"Make sure that the same crime from years ago will not happen again this year! Jesus! He's back on track…. This is no joke…. No joke."

On the other side, Alice got home safely. He sighed in relief.

All the lights are off in her apartment. She turned one light on and that was in her kitchen. She wasn't able to eat what Jack gave her so she turns on the microwave oven to heat it up again. She is extremely hungry.

As she hit the buttons on the microwave, she heard a floorboard creak in the living room behind her.

Alice frowned. "Morrie? Paul?" She called out the names of her officemates. She thought it was them trying to pull a prank against her. She stood for a moment and heard nothing but silence and the whir of the fan inside the microwave. The interior of the house was casted in shadows, lit only by the small bulb over the kitchen and by the nightlight in the hallway near the bedroom. She walked into the dark living room that opened directly into the kitchen where she halted and listened.

Alice glanced around the room. Something didn't feel right. She thought she's just being paranoid due to what she saw outside from the streets.

She stood quietly and listened again. She tried not to think about the killer that the policemen are finding and stared up the dark staircase that led to two bedrooms and a full bath.

She thought "Could someone be upstairs?"

Her head filled with images from horror movies. The images were superimposed with the famous killer(Jack)'s silhouette from the news years ago.

"Could he be here?"

Cold fear seeped down her spine. She rested her hand on the rail. She goes upstairs but she's also thinking of running to the front door and down the drive.

Just then Alice caught a movement out of the corner of her eye, and she screamed….

"Ahhhhh!!!!!"

"Hey, it's me… again."

She raises her voice. "What are you doing here?! This late?!"

He waved his hands to her and closed the door behind him. He's inside her house now.

He said "What's the shock all about?" He looks so unmindful.

"Sir, why are you inside my apartment?" She seems breathless. She's still in state of shock. She can't go near him.

He smiled and said "The door was open so I get in. I didn't know you live here. I thought this was also an empty space so I go in to explore."

"Explore?! Jesus Christ!! You gave me a scare!"

He laughed. "Did I?"

"Why are you here?"

"Actually I also got scared to you… I've been walking so silently in case somebody's home here, afraid that I might get caught… I didn't know you were doing the same to me."

"Will you tell me why you're doing this?!" She's giving him a suspecting look.

"What?"

She could tell that she had caught him off guard. "Will you tell me why you're helping me?!"

He didn't respond right away, he was just staring at her eyes. She waited, fearing his suspicious actions.

"The truth?" Jack said.

Her tone took on an edge. "Of course, the truth."

"Well… I thought to myself that on the outside chance there might be some truth to your suspicions—"

Alice's heart beats faster after he said those. She was truly scared this time because her suspicions were actually bad. She was thinking that her boss has bad plans for her that's why he's there inside her house.

He continued, "I'm just kidding! How's that as a line in one of our presentations? Hahaha."

She sighed and said "Ugh!! Don't do that again... Sir Jorge...… Ahhhh! My heart is pounding so fast right now." She began being comfortable….. maybe just a little bit.

"I'm sorry. I didn't expect you to be so shocked too at this time." He walked to the window to gaze down on the street. "See? It's better being inside, right? I realized I couldn't just let this go and depend on the police to let me know if I needed to be concerned."

She gave a humorless laugh and said "I think I'd like to talk to one of the FBI agents myself….. you know, just to check in with them and be sure they've looked in on Jack, the killer, and ruled him out."

He said "Hahaha. You and I have both come face to face with Jack. I've met other men like him."

He said quietly, truly feeling her desperation. "We know a side of humankind that most don't."

She didn't reply. She thought "Why is he talking in riddles with me?"

So Jack talked again, "That was just the reason why I initially spoke with you. I'm ordinarily kind of a loner. I don't reach out much."

She listened to him, not wanting to. She's feeling her own loneliness in his.

"It's more than that now," he said. "It's, it's... ah, hell," he breathed. "I don't know what it is. It's you."

A charged silence hung between them.

"Wha—What do you mean it's me?"

"I came to protect others knowing the fact that that bastard was killing girls again."

"And?" She thought "What is he saying? God, he could use a friend right now, maybe even a lover, but why is he talking about these stuff to me?"

"You have to believe me, Alice, when I say I don't want to see anything happen to you.", he said quietly.

"I…. I'm sorry but we barely know each other sir, why are you talking to me like this?"

"But I feel like I know you. Like I know you better every time we talk. And I sure as hell know Jack and know what he's capable of doing."

"OK." Alice heard herself say, nodding. "I'll believe you. So you're here to protect me huh?"

She stares at his eyes and said "But if you, for one moment, put me in any danger, any threat of danger, I swear to God, Sir Jorge Kione, I'll come to you and rip your balls off and shove them down your throat. You understand me?"

She heard him chuckle, and she smiled.

He was smiling as he said "Though I never expect my secretary to talk like that in front of me, still… I'd put you up against an army of killers any day, Alice."

"I'll let you know if I get anything out of FBI, for an easier search, my so-called protector!" She was still smiling so she was actually just joking around with him.

He smiled so widely. He said "By the way, my room is next to this room. So it seems like we're neighbors now huh?"

"Oh no…."

"What do you mean, 'oh no'? You don't like it?"

"It's just that… isn't it awkward? You're my boss and you're just living next to my block?"

"If that's so....." He offered his hand to her and asking her to shake hands with him. "Let's meet again as another person, I'm Jorge by the way, your new neighbor."

Alice smiled and took his hand. "Nice to meet you, I'm Alice."

"Now we're different people and….. a completely recharged retards as of now."

"Yeah." Then she laughed so hard. "Oh… ah, why did you transfer here by the way? This building is not so big for a millionaire man like you to live around."

"I still got my home back there. I just want a peaceful place to live in temporarily, a small place but a place that I could surely find my inner peace and work better."

"Can't you work at your mansion?"

"Would I transfer here if I could?"

"Oh yes, that's a good point."

He walked around her house and said "You got nice space around here… I like it here, it's cozy. But mine's cozier… Ah!" He stopped walking and looked at her. He said "Have you eaten the dinner I gave you lately?"

"Ah! Shit! Dinner!" She ran to the kitchen and turned off the microwave. Jack goes to the kitchen too, his hands inside his pockets, walking arrogantly around her house like that.

"What happened?"

"I think I just burned it. Great! Now I have nothing to eat."

"Hm?" He was leaning his back on the wall in her kitchen. "That's not a problem. Go to my apartment next to yours, I got foods there. Would you mind?"

"Ah no, no thanks sir."

He smiled and said "Why do you always neglect me?"

"Too much offers…"

"I got more offers waiting for you in the office… expect them to come soon, and this? These are just nothing." He laughs.

"You're gonna load me more work, you mean? Oh Lord."

"So, come… go to my place now." He walks to the living room. Alice follows her. He was standing right there and waiting for her decision.

"Does that offer count as nothing?"

"No… This was actually—" He clears his throat with his closed fist resting in front of his mouth. "—a personal offer. This is not nothing so don't you dare neglect this one."

"Why are you being like this to me, seriously? Do I have a debt? What? I'm starting to feel creepy."

"Oh, I am creepy, Alice." He smiles to her and stares differently into her eyes. Alice started to feel weird again because of the kind of smile that he shows.

"I....I want to rest right now. You should go home instead."

"I thought you're hungry?"

"I changed my mind. You know what, I feel awkward right now having you inside my house when we don't even talk in person like this before. Isn't it too overboard? You go here at the first place, I'm sorry but that is kind of trespassing."

"Ohhh… Sounds like someone who want to lose her job."

"I didn't mean that. What I mean is.... I just don't want to go. Let's keep that private space, I hope."

"What's so wrong about you visiting my house? I'm just going to show you what it looks like. You're gonna have fun there. I'm sure." He shows her his disturbing smile again. He holds her wrist. "Come on."

"But I don't—" She pulled back.

"Come with me, please." His grip became tighter and he suddenly turned serious.

"Well…" She feels like her muscles loosen up that she gives herself to him that easy. She lets herself be pulled by him.

"Good. Let's go." They walked out of her house and they were now in front of his room. He opens his door through his keys and lets her enter first. She was feeling so nervous that she was already shaking inside. She feels like something different is going to happen after seeing her boss' changes in actions. She thinks that he's losing himself this night. It's not the usual him she used to see in the office so she feels so weird and terrified.

The lights were all off inside his house except a lamp beside the sofa in his living room. She gulped hard.

She heard the door closed behind her.

Jack locked it.

Alice's eyes widened after hearing that he locked the door. She can't breathe properly now.

Jack talked, "We're here now Alice."

It was very silent inside his house.

Then she felt his existence coming towards her direction.

He's coming closer and closer to her.