Hull, Texas -25^th October 2015 22:30

 

Detectives Harrison and Matthews were driving through Hull, Texas towards the house of Alexandra Panacea she was the mother of Andrew Panacea the medical student who had been murdered on Addison road. The detectives were dog tired as they’d already seen three Panacea family members an uncle of Andrew called Johnathan and the ex-wife of Alistair.

 

They hadn’t told either of them that the men were dead but they were going to tell Alexandra that her son was dead she had a right to know, then they would have to track down her other son Alex Panacea. According to Johnathan, Alexandrea had an estranged husband Anthony lived somewhere in Houston it seemed the Panacea family weren’t close which explained why no one had noticed two of their number were missing.

 

Detective Harrison was uneasy about keeping the information about Panacea family members being a potential target to themselves. They were playing a risky game as they hadn’t located all of the family members yet. Some of them could be dead already and he would never forgive himself if that happened.

 

It was a big gamble but the risk of blowing this opportunity was even greater as they might jeopardise more lives, if they screwed up the investigation by leaking all the identities of the victims as even a layman would point out the potential link between Alistair and Andrew. .

 

‘I hate delivering death-o-grams.’ stated Detective Matthews. ‘She better not be a crier.

 

‘I know right.’ Scoffed Detective Harrison, sarcastically. ‘God forbid that she might actually feel grief over the loss of two family members, one of whom is her son.’

 

‘Yeah I know, being upset and all that but if she gets upset it will take much more time and we got the rest of the family to go through.’

 

Detective Harrison rolled his eyes. ‘Remember this isn’t your run of the mill inform the family member, it’s a welfare check she may be a potential target. The FBI are involved we have to be on top of our game.’

 

‘We don’t need them.’ Huffed Detective Matthews. ‘We would find the killer eventually.’

 

‘That may be so.’ Replied Detective Harrison. ‘But how many more might die before that happens.’

 

Detective Matthews merely shrugged, a few years ago such a flippant gesture would have sent Detective Harrison into a rage but he knew it was the only way Sheldon could cope to distance himself from the reality of the world.

 

The detectives continued in complete silence for the next five minutes until they pulled up outside of a dilapidated house in the middle of nowhere, it looked to be in severe disrepair.

 

‘What. A. Shithole.’ Said Detective Matthews.

 

‘Let’s just take a look.’ Stated Detective Harrison.

 

The pair left the cruiser and approached the front of the property, it looked to be locked up for the night, except for a window upstairs which was open.

 

‘What’s with the window?’ asked Detective Harrison, picking up on this.

 

‘It’s a hot evening.’ Shrugged Detective Matthews. ‘I leave mine open at home.’

 

Detective Harrison nodded conceding the point, they reached the front door. Detective Harrison knocked loudly, in the dead of night it sounded as if it was being hit with a sledge hammer.

 

There was no answer at the door and the detective knocked three more times, with no answer the open window now didn’t seem right, their police instincts kicked in. Detective Matthews began looking through the windows to see inside and Detective Harrison kept knocking.

 

‘She’s dead on the sofa!’ shouted Detective Matthews, there was a woman lying on the sofa face down unmoving despite the knocking. ‘Get that door open.’

 

‘No time!’ replied Detective Harrison, he was already in motion. He took out his pistol, ran at the window, jumped and commando rolled through it shattering the glass.

 

Before the detective could even complete his roll, the woman sprang to her feet with a scream. ‘What’s going on!’

 

Detective Harrison took a moment to compose himself after his parkour manoeuvre, he had superficial cuts, Detective Matthews covered the room from the outside with his drawn pistol.

 

‘Ma’am I’m sorry about the window.’ Stated Detective Harrison, while holstering his pistol. ‘We had concerns about your safety, we’ve been knocking on your door. You didn’t answer, we saw you face down on your sofa and you have a window open upstairs, we had to think the worst.’

 

‘I am a deep sleeper.’ Countered the woman, sitting back down on the sofa. ‘That doesn’t mean that you can jump through my god damned window, the door is open, who is going to pay for the dama-’ she paused mid tirade. ‘wait, what window upstairs?’

 

‘The window-’ Detective Harrison's pupils dilated as he realised the window shouldn’t be open. The detective drew his pistol, he scanned the room then made to exit into the corridor. ‘The killers upstairs!’

 

In the next four seconds three things happened at the same time, there was a loud thump followed by the sickening crack of bones breaking, there was a brief but tortured cry of pain from his partner outside and a terrified scream emanate from the woman.

 

Detective Harrison turned on his heels looking to the shattered window, his partner was nowhere to be seen, aside from the women’s constant nigh on ultrasonic shriek all that could be heard were sounds akin to a butcher chopping at meat.

 

The detective rushed to the source of the sound with pistol outstretched in front of him, as he reached the window a flash of silver was followed by a spike of intense pain in the detectives wrists. What the detective saw next was the most surreal sight he had ever seen in his entire life. In slow motion blood erupted from the ends of his arms which were now merely bloodied stumps. Detective Harrisons hands tumbled away from his wrists, his firearm fell from now lifeless fingers.

 

As he watched his hands and pistol fall to the ground he caught sight of what had become of his partner. Detective Matthews was bent double completely the wrong way, his spine had snapped, his upper body was folded backwards over his legs. Whoever murdered his partner had landed on him from the upstairs window then proceeded to lay into his face like he was no more than a flank of beef. Detective Matthews’ face was a pulped mass of tissue, muscle and bone –one eye looked from where his mouth should be, the other was a ruptured mess.

 

A shadow detached itself from the ground, it surged up to meet Detective Harrison, with his hands cut off there was little he could do. The shadow lunged over the shattered window, grabbed the detective by the shoulders and hauled him through to the outside. Detective Harrison didn’t go easily he went kicking and screaming –the scuffle was abruptly ended when the detective gave a blood curdling cry of anguish.

 

Alexandra was now shaking uncontrollably, she had witnessed two police officers being brutally murdered and now she was aware that she was alone with no protection.

 

There was the sound of movement, the shadow appeared again, the woman shrunk into the sofa as the killer was visible for the first time, it cocked its head to one side and growled. ‘Alexandra Panacea?’

 

The killer was holding a blood soaked machete in one hand, with his free hand he put his weight on the windowsill. In the process his hand was badly cut by broken glass still stuck in the sill but he didn’t even make a sound as blood poured from his hand, he vaulted himself through the window.

 

To her credit Alexandra reacted swifter than her murdered relatives, she quickly got up off the sofa to make good her escape but the killer was far swifter he hurled the machete at her like a spear. It stuck in Alexandra’s stomach with such force it forced her back onto the sofa, she screamed in pain. Alexandra tried to stand which was a fruitless endeavour as the machete shattered her spine and cut her spinal cord.

 

The killer let out a fiendish and blood curdling chuckle, he licked at the blood pouring from his hand, then he turned and took a large piece of shattered glass from the windowsill with his bloodied hand. The killer closed the distance from the window to the sofa with painful slowness, Alexandra was sobbing uncontrollably and incoherently.

 

Reaching the sofa the killer took a device from his apron and stabbed Alexandra with it, it came up red, he set down device. ‘Wrong, Panacea.’

 

The killer had an evil light in his eyes, he lunged forwards seizing her by the throat pinning her upper body, then with the shard of glass still in hand he ever so methodically began carving Alexandra’s face from her skull.

 

Alexandra’s screams only added to the killers delight.