The Revenge of the

by Chris Stowe

As I walked down the dark wet city streets, I remembered the plan that I had so carefully thought out for so long. I also reminded myself that if all went well, I would be living free from guilt because what would be done tonight had to be accomplished according to fate. The streetlights were tall and very bright tonight, the night of Halloween, October 31^st. There was an eerie pale yellow light beaming down on me from the streetlights, as I casually strolled down the street.

When I reached my final destination, a large mansion on the east side of town, I approached the door to be greeted by the Thornington family butler. He acknowledged me and sent me to the party that was occurring in the dining room of the home. Still my mind raced, and I kept thinking how this would all work out and how sinister it really was. This would be my revenge for the death of my lovely Christina, who’s life was so carelessly taken.

"Hello Antonio. How nice to see you," proclaimed Daniel. "I’m so glad you could make it tonight. I’m really sorry to hear about the loss of your father."

I knew he was toying with me deep inside, and that all he wanted to do was anger me. I knew that he was as sore about the death of Christina as I was, but he was to take no action against me, for I had nothing to do with her death. That drunken fool had obviously had too much to drink that night, a simple human mistake, but there was a big price to pay.

"Yes. I’m thankful that you invited me to this wonderful party. I feared I might have had to spend the night alone. That would have been quite a disappointment," I indicated." Oh I’m sorry for keeping you from your conversation with these delightful people."

"Oh it’s no problem. I’m glad you could come," he answered.

As I walked away from our little confrontation he added, "Oh Antonio, if you’d like to talk about the accident with me, I will be in my private study in fifteen minutes. I’d appreciate it if you were there."

Bingo! There was my opportunity to gain my revenge, and it would happen at exactly 10:37 P.M. on the night of Halloween. So for those fifteen minutes, I began to prepare myself for the big moment approaching. As I dressed, I thought how hideously appropriate my grim reaper costume was on this eerie Halloween night. I covered my blade with a black thin nylon material that I’d fitted special for the blade to look like a toy, not a blade. I covered my face with a black hood that drooped down over my face hiding all appearances that resembled myself. The black roquelaure I had made personally creatively displayed my melancholy mood. Before I left to meet Daniel, I peered into a mirror that reflected my appearance. I was the Soul Keeper, the bringer of death, and my appearance was no joke. The vision of myself in the mirror sent chills shivering up even my spine. I couldn’t wait to see the look on that fool’s face when I would face him. My senses were flying off the chart. I was ready; I was going to accomplish the task.

I entered the fool’s study room and hid myself so that when he entered he would not even notice I was there. After I waited about three minutes, he strolled into the room. He was three minutes late. That was unlike him, he must be a bit intoxicated. That suited me though. I would not be killing him at 10:37, I’d be killing him at 10:40 on the dot.

As he entered, he had a queer look on his face that looked as though he was a bit troubled, and that was the best part about this whole thing. He wandered around the room in search of me and to his surprise, he could not find me. However, while this idiot wandered about, I busied myself by sneaking behind him to lock his door and ensure his doom. He and I, Antonio the Soul Keeper, were going to have a heart to heart. When he completed his search, he approached the door. In the meantime, I quickly hid and observed him. I was getting ready to strike him down. Just as he grabbed the door handle, I clubbed him with the butt of my hoe. His knees buckled under him, and he fell lifelessly to the floor, knocking his face on the doorknob. Now, while he lay unconscious on the floor like a rag doll, I picked him up and carried him to his recliner where I fettered him to it. Soon he would learn his fate.

Daniel awoke to the Soul Keeper staring directly into his face, and the look I received was nothing short of sheer terror. His eyes started to water and he gave me the most repulsive expression on his face. I absolutely loved it.

"Antonio, why are you doing this to me?" he shrieked. "Christina’s death was not my fault. The accident was nothing short of a human error."

"Oh you act like nothing ever happened, like her death meant nothing to you," I screamed. "And even if that is true, I want you to know that you killed her in a state of drunkenness and you are to blame. I loved her so much and I was to marry her, but you ruined it for us and now you will pay with your life."

"No! Antonio I am not responsible for her death. It wasn’t my fault," he pleaded. "It is as much my fault as it is yo…."

I stuffed a rag in his mouth and made sure he would speak no more.

"Silence. You are responsible for her death, and you ruined my life. Now I am preparing to ruin your life to pay the price of both Christina’s and mine," I insisted. "What you did, you will pay for."

With this final word to him, he began struggling to get free of the shackles I used to bind him. So I beat him with my fists, letting all my rage out on him. After inflicting much pain, he lay motionless, so I decided that now was as good a time as ever to take his life, slowly and agonizingly. I unsheathed the blade on my hoe and began my horrifying work.

The next day I was free of guilt and satisfied at what I had done. It was so perfect, completely untraceable.

I approached my office, and upon arrival, I was notified to report to the scene of a major crime. It was completely gruesome and completely untraceable. It was the perfect crime catlike. It was the work of Antonio the Soul Keeper.