Payday

Oh no, oh no, oh no! A pile of blood was leaking under the dog Olof as Christopher stood mortified over the crime scene with his hands behind his back head. Shit, shit, shit! A slight gurgling sound could be heard from the dog as the front paw twitched a little bit.

"I'm a fucking moron! I didn't mean to kill you, I swear! Fucking hell this is a disaster!"

He began sweating, his head felt light, and stress was an understatement for how Christopher felt, with the feeling reminding him of a child accidentally kicking a football at a window; guilt and fear rained over him. What the fuck will Ella… no Elise… no fucking Emelie think?! I just made a dönner kebab out of their bloody dog! He began walking away from it, back and forth in panic across the barn floor.

"Ahhh, think Anders, fucking think your knob head."

He suddenly stopped and turned towards the big hole in the floor where the smoke was descending. He couldn't help but smile as an idea cracked like an egg in his head.

I will just blame it on the fucking demon, haha; thank god for Mol… no Molerock… no Moldova- something. It doesn't matter; I'm free of blame! He turned his head again towards Olaf, who was now quiet but still gave off a last twitch in the hind leg.

"I'm sorry Olaf, you didn't deserve this."

I should probably pull out the sword though; hide the evidence, and cover my tracks. Should also skip the 'haggling on the reward' bit for this bloody mess. He made his way to Olaf. He gave it a stare, feeling shameful about ending a pet's life in such a gruesome way, before kneeling and giving it one last belly rub.

"Right then, let's get going!"

He took a firm grasp on the handle with both his hands and started pulling the sword out of the dog's neck slowly with force. Fucking hell, I got him good, though. No wonder that demon fell so easily.

"Christopher! What the actual fuck!?!?" With those words uttered, he froze in fear, with the sword almost through the dog yet still in. He slowly turned his head towards the very open entrance of the barn. And there, Emelie, with her mother, stood in disbelief at what they saw.

"Hiii!!! Elsa! … I mean Emelie!!!"

Emelie gave him a dead stare as if something had died inside her with a half-open mouth. Her mother gasped and put her left hand towards her mouth in pure shock.

"Uhhh, this is not what it looks like, you see… there was a demon-"

"What have you done to poor Olaf?!" The mother said as she ran over to the dog with tears in her voice. Christopher immediately dropped the sword again, still inside the dog's neck in a reflex and put his right hand behind his neck and the other concernedly on his hip. He took a few steppes back to give room to the mother, that got on her knees in front of the dead dog, whose blood puddle increasingly expanded as she began sobbing. He turned on a concerned face, knowing he looked like a complete idiot. He was a bit afraid to look up from the floor and meet Emelie's death glare. He still gave it a try and saw two blue and heartbroken eyes laid upon him.

"You see, there was a demon, and mid-fight he-"

"Your body language is giving it all away Christopher." Well, shit, the cover is blown.

"…Yeah… It w-was an accident, I didn't mean t-"

"You killed our fucking dog."

"I did, I won't deny that… B-but I did exorcise this very strong demon from your barn which most bounty hunters would have struggled with, and your estate is still in good shape! So that's something eh?"

Emelie slowly shook her head, and tears began forming in those wide-open eyes that panned towards the smoking hole in the breached cellar. Oh, please don't cry.

He saw in the periphery of his eye how the mother placed her hand on the mouth and began crying audibly while still trying to muffle it out.

"poor, poor Olaf." The mother whispered in a weak voice.

How do I get out of this situation?

Christopher cleared his throat in the most subtle way he could.

"Maybe-"

"Maybe you should just get going, like right now!" Emelie finished.

"Yeah, Yeah I agree, my bad. I'm really sorry about this situation. I truly am."

He looked around and took a few steppes towards the entrance where Emelie stood, with her glaring eyes at the dog. Shit, I still need to get the fucking sword. He turned his back again and sneaked towards the dog, where the mother was in tears petting Olaf.

"I'm just gonna grab this really quick, I'm so sorry." He took a high-speed grip on the sword with his shaky hands, which were all nervous about the dagger eyes Emelie threw at him. He pulled out the sword that made a squishy sound as it left the neck, accompanied by a gasp from the mother, who closed her eyes in horror as a few more tears dropped from her face. He quickly stepped his way towards the entrance before stopping next to Emelie, who had her eyes locked on the dog.

"I suppose, I won't get paid then hehe!" Emelie turned her head towards him, and tears could be seen sliding down her chin, leaving a red slide mark. If looks could kill, he would have been more dead than an Egyptian pharaoh.

"No. Get the fuck out of here! You killed our dog." she hissed.

"Okay, okay, I will be on my way then, have a good one!" And with those last words, he gave a light tap on her back before making his way out of the barn, trying to navigate his way back to whence he came. As he walked down the hill, he felt relieved by the cold weather, which chilled his body that was sweating from embarrassment. He squinted his eyes as he tried to look for the path to the minor forest from which he and Emelie had arrived earlier.

Well, that went, fan-fucking-tastic, you moron. Fucking hell, and you said her fucking name wrong!!! AAAAHHHH, why did I mention the money!? The fucking money!? I'm actually autistic. This truly is the worst job I have taken on, my god.

He reached the forest, leaving the estate behind him. As the forest enveloped him, he let out a heavy sigh. The exhaustion swept him; he had not had a good night's sleep in forever it felt like, with the recent break being the hangover at the pub earlier that evening. Can't fucking wait though. To lay on that soft, warm bed and sink in; Jesus, what a day, can't get a break. My back is also hurting. He tilted his head back towards the sky that was still visible in the tree tops. The silence from the woods and the beautiful moonlight that laid its hands on Christopher calmed him from the anxiety and guilt he felt from this job. That demon though. Never encountered one that could hold a conversation. He had probably possessed that poor innocent man. Using him like a puppet on life support. Whatever that metaphor is supposed to mean…

He looked downwards again, towards the road that was beginning to reveal the open landscape of the west coast. Suddenly the memories started flowing towards him again, and he remembered his left leg. He immediately sat down and pointed his foot to the sky and saw the burn marks resembling a circle with a wavy line crossing through it on his ankle.

"Aw, ballsack. I forgot about that part."

He poked the scar with his left hand and felt a stingy pain, but nothing too serious.

I should probably go and get that checked. However, it mentioned me being cursed. I hope it's not some shitty curse like the awkward misfortune I just had…But it also said something right before burning away… Remember the demon Mo… Moloch! It was fucking Moloch! Ew, I hope it didn't name itself that; that name fucking sucks. But it said something else… as if it was not talking to me anymore… something about a girl. Did it mean Emelie? What could it have wanted from her? Why hide in the barn if she was a stone toss away?

He reached the high road again and could now see Varberg's glistening lights. And far away, he also got a night's view of the city's fortress as it was the furthest away connected to the sea.

I don't get why the demon would attack Emelie, but then again, no one understands the conclusions a fiend makes besides causing misfortune for humanity. Perhaps it was not the girl the devil was referring to.

"I'm gonna heavily drink tomorrow."