Chapter 8

Parker knocked on the door, he was beginning to get impatient. Cherry Rivera, the victim had called a Trent Harper, and following protocol they traced him here. He could smell the 'dead-end', but he knew he had to go trough the system. He could hear music coming out from inside the house and it increased his anger. He pried open the door, he walked in slowly his gun in his hand, ready to pull the trigger. He searched the place and found where the music was coming from, switching it off he noticed the window. A footprint was left on the windowpane and a bag was left just outside the window. They had a runner. He went back to his car and called Nora

"we might have underestimated our boy Trent"

"what do you mean?"

"he ran away. I thought he didn't open up because he couldn't hear me, but the music was just a distraction"

"so, you think he knows something?"

"that's the only logical explanation"

"or you might just be hanging on to the little thread of home that sparked up"

"just trust me, with Sterling gone, we only have each other to trust"

"then let's pursue your spark"

He stared at the unconscious Trent, he smiled as he watched him, he leaned forward and placed his head on his hands, his eyes drawing a map on the face of the man in front of him. His smile faded as he continued staring, he leaned back, tiling his head back as his smile reappeared slowly turning into laughter. His laughter echoed through the empty space waking Trent. He raised his head up, when he heard Trent's muffled cough. Trent looked at him, eyes filled with horror, he could see that his fear amused him, his eyes began to water, and he felt hot liquid escape his trousers

"so, you saw all that? Must have been traumatizing, right?"

Trent shook his head, tears already trailing down his cheeks. His lips quivered through his gagged mouth; his captor seemed to be amused. He took off the gag.

"I-I-I I promise I wouldn't say anything"

"that's the thing, I don't like loose ends"

He moved towards Trent, his gloved hands cupping his neck, he rose Trent's head making his eye meet his. He took out a knife and slit Trent's throat. He held unto his neck, feeling the warm liquid trail down his fingers, Trent coughed, blood splashing on his face, his eyes filled with something dark, he took a finger and scooped the blood on his face, a smile on his lips. He let go of Trent's neck and went towards his chair. He picked up a bag beside it and took out two golf balls from it, turning to look at Trent, he smiled

"I've got a gift for you, well, more like a gift for me"

He stared at him, fear filled, his blood trickling down his neck to the floor, too weak to cry, the tears hung onto his eye lids.

"let's play a game, I'd untie you...well, that's it"

He moved toward Trent and untied him, Trent's hands flew to his neck trying to reduce the flow of blood, he smiled at his stupidity as he played with the balls, he went towards him and held unto his neck, Trent, too weak looked at him, his eyes bleeding, he gave him an innocent smile before putting his hands through his slit throat, Trent's eyes widened, half dead. He took out his hands from his neck and put in one of the golf balls into his throat. He opened his mouth and put in the second ball, taking out the knife and cutting up a pathway under his chin, he put his hand through the new opening, enough for his hand to go in through his mouth, he took out his hand and reached into the first cut trying to make the two balls touch, when he couldn't reach the second ball he gave up. He looked at the now dead Trent and laughed. He poured gasoline on his body and set him on fire. He watched as the body was consumed by the flames, his eyes sparkling, closing his eyes he took in the scent of his burning skin, satisfied, he poured water on the body, killing the flames. He looked at the half-burnt body, his smile growing bigger.

 Farleigh stared in horror, his smile sending chills down her spine. He leaned on the door frame, blood still on him and the smell of fire lingering on his skin. He walked up to her and sat, his eyes dancing as he saw her scared look. Her whole body trembled, and she crossed her legs to ease them. He moved closer to her and leaned on her desk, making her gulp and push her chair back, laughing he leaned back on the chair and eased into it.

"relax doctor, I'm not here to hurt you, I just want to talk"

She steadied herself and took in a deep breath "w-what are you here for then?" she coughed trying to hide her already visible fear

"I mean, you are my therapist"

"we don't have an appointment right now"

"true, true, but I had to meet you. Why? Is it a bad time?"

"no, not at all. I guess I can do this for you"

"good. I see you finally met Sterling"

"what do you mean, finally?"

He stood up and went towards her awards, stroking them. She could feel her legs go numb as the rubbed together in the sweat lines that had formed between her legs.

"please don't tell me you didn't notice the difference…. he smiled, seeming amused…. that was the first time you spoke to the actual Sterling"

"I still do not follow"

"for a therapist, you're quite slow. You see, you've been talking to me, I didn't want you to meet Sterling, but I guess the idiot is smarter than I thought"

"so, you're saying you've been fixing appointments with me in his name?"

"bingo"

"why would you do that? Who are you anyway?"

"well I'm still Sterling but I prefer to be called Q"

"you're one of his personalities"

"one of? I am his personality"

"so why have you been meeting me?"

"because Sterling is too stupid. He keeps investigating these stupid murders, even when I tell him not to, he thinks I'm nothing but his imagination. The audacity of that man"

"and why would his investigation be of any concerns to you?"

He moved closer to her "take a guess doctor. A man walks into your office, covered in blood and admits being your patient's alter ego who takes over him at will. Why don't you take a wild guess"?

"you're the one his investigating?"

"ding ding ding"

"but why?"

"I don't know doctor, maybe because Sterling is an ungrateful piece of shit. He isn't even that good a detective, he's the weakest link if you ask me. I've been doing all the work, not him, and what? I should be reduced to nothing, but a trauma born?"

"so, you kill them to act out?"

"oh no, that's just plain fun. Sterling can let it go and I can keep doing my thing"

"so why are you telling me all this?"

"because Sterling met you, it's always been easy to take over, but that day, I couldn't. and he did exactly as you said, now he knows the truth, so I had to meet you again. Don't try to treat Sterling"

"and how are you sure I wouldn't just run off and tell the police?"

"for one, no evidence and you'd be imprisoning Sterling which I doubt you'd care and your career. I'm a patient confiding in you, confidentiality, right? You could lose your license"

She sat back, her defenseless as he moved towards the door

"and doctor, I could kill you if I want. But I have something else in mind. I'd keep in touch"

Sterling held his breath as he looked in the mirror, he didn't expect him to go this far. He had known about Q since he was a boy running around in the morgue as he waited for is parents. At first, he didnt care that Q was always taking over because he had made his life easier, until he started having flash backs. He thought that if he kept ignoring him, he would go away, but he didn't. he always hid behind Q's ignorance pretending not to know anything and not trying to find out anything about his black outs. 'Q deserved his own life', he always told himself, but things seemed to go south. he remembered the first time he met Q; he always hid in one of the refrigerators with one of the cadavers whenever his parents fought over him. His father never seemed to like him in their workplace because it distracted him, and his mother never trusted nannies because they 'distracted' his father. He was a loner and so had no friends to go to, he hated being alone when his parents fought. One day he hid with one of the bodies, his hands over his ears trying to filter his parent's voices when he felt a hand cover his, he looked up and there he was smiling at him as he protected him. They became best friends and Sterling always saw him as human and nothing less, his parents thought he was crazy and kept sending him to different doctors, it caused a strain in their already broken marriage and that is when Sterling decided to forget about Q, then one day, Q disappeared. He was back when Sterling joined the force and had helped him throughout, trying to win back Sterling, but when he was continuously ignored, he became feral. He began to take over, he became Sterling.