Jack In The Box novel Chapter 17

“Do you know how to use a gun?” Jackson asked me as he pushed the curtains away to look outside the window.

“No.”

“Obviously you can use a knife to save your life, right?”

What the hell was with his rhymes?

“Yeah. I guess.”

He opened the kitchen cabinets, the ones that were stocked with too many jars. He reached out for one and pulled out a gun from it. A gun out of a large empty cookie jar.

I stared at him appalled.

“What? I keep my guns where no one can find them.”

He handed me a butcher knife. “Take this, and go to my room. Stay hidden until I tell you otherwise.”

“But...”

“If I don’t come for you within ten minutes, stay hidden.” He instructed. His expressions told me this was a serious matter.

Whoever was outside the door could be dangerous.

On second thought, Jackson had always been the king of threatening, killing and harassing people. How bad could be the person standing outside compared to Jack?

I quickly scrambled into the bedroom, shut the door behind me and crawled beneath the bed, clenching knife in my fist in a death grip. My hands were literally shaking.

There was no sound coming from outside and that stressed me to no end. Why wasn’t Jack speaking to someone? Did that intruder silently bludgeon Jack in the head and dragged him out of the cabin?

What if Jackson’s lying there out cold and the intruder’s coming for me next? What do I do then? Use the butcher knife on a person? In my career as a Nurse, I’d helped doctors during surgeries and it had never bothered me to see blood as much as it would any normal person. But to literally go for the kill?

I shuddered at the thought and hoped Jackson hadn’t gotten into trouble.

The bedroom door opened a while later. I held my breath for a few minutes and suddenly a hand wrapped around my ankle.

I screamed so loud, the birds abandoned their nest.

“Relax, Riley. It’s just me.” Jack said as he peeked at me from behind me.

“Are you trying to give me a heart attack?!” I asked as I crawled out form under the bed.

His face was unreadable, it was like he had mastered the art of pulling an impassive face. “You won’t like it. I’d suggest you should steer clear from seeing this.”

“I have to see it.”

“You won’t be able to handle it.” He warned.

“Who was it at the door?”

“No one. The person left a package.” He informed.

Why wasn’t Jack explaining everything in detail instead of me asking him all these questions?

“What’s in the package?” I was dreading the answer I’d hear from him.

“For Fucks sake, Riley! Will you just let it go?”

“No, I won’t!” I said storming out of the room.

“Riley!” He kept calling out to me but it was too late.

On the table sat a box that had been unwrapped and was open. The glitter gift wrapper lay in tatters along with a pink ribbon. The box was red, not because that was the original color but because it was matted with blood. The putrid stench of the liquid was unbearable.

The sight before me was going to give me nightmares. Inside lay a heart.

A human heart.

I closed the box and stared at the gruesome gift.

Whose heart was it?

I had scary thoughts plague my mind. What if the heart belonged to...

My brother? Maddy? Or Aaron?

I banished those thoughts quickly.

“Incase you’re wondering who it belongs to. I’m guessing it’s the previous kill. Nurse Roxane.”

“How are you so sure?” I asked.

“I checked the news. There’s no sign of any more bodies getting discovered so it has to be her.”

“Why do you think they sent us this package? What do they want to prove?”

“I don’t think they want to prove anything. This is just a memo to let me know they have found my location. Whoever it is that is playing this sick game is keeping an eye on us.” He said, placing a parchment on the table.

It had spots of blood on it. I picked it up and read it.

Once upon a time there lived a handsome prince

He grew up and started living in an asylum since

The heir to the Million Dollar dynasty. A lone Wolfe.