This is not edited. Sorry. I've been super busy and was able to squeeze this out as it's been sitting there collecting dust. I'll try to get back into this story, but my main focus right now is my novel Awoken.

Serial Lover

Chapter 9

Friendless

Aubren had grown tired of walking around aimlessly in parking lots at night. He even tried to pretend he was sick with the flu but of course, Frederick O'Riley had to show up at his door with a bottle of flu medicine and a bowl of chicken soup. Frederick had given him two choices. One was to take the flu medicine and eat the chicken soup then go outside in the parking lot, and the other was to not take the flu medicine and not eat the chicken soup, then go outside in the parking lot. Aubren had taken the second choice. It was around thirty degrees that night and Aubren was shaking from the cold. 'If I really do get the flu, I swear O'Riley, I'm going to sneeze on you!' Aubren tried to repress a violent shiver but it didn't succeed. His muscles burned with pain from shaking so hard. "It's freezing Mr. O'Riley! I'm going to die out here!"

"Shut up kid!" Max said from the comfort of the warm van just about fifteen feet away.

"You know, when the serial killer gets over here, I'm going to politely introduce myself and tell him that there are two detectives hiding in that van and then tell him to kill you slowly!"

"Kid! Shut up! Someone's coming!" Aubren froze, but it wasn't because of the cold, it was because of fear. He pictured a large man with scars and a wild face that would just walk up to him and slice his head off. When he turned he saw someone small, but still masculine. He tried to focus better but it was too dark out. The person moved quickly in a different direction, avoiding the parking lot.

"Is that him?" Aubren asked. Frederick O'Riley didn't respond. He took out binoculars and switched them to night vision. The person was wearing a ski mask. From what he could tell, the subject was male, small, and young. "What should we do?"

"Stop talking Aubren! He obviously heard you because he's going in a different direction!" Max said in a sharp whisper.

"I'll follow him." Frederick quietly got out of the car and quickly but quietly ran behind the suspicious person. He stayed low to the ground trying to blend in with his surroundings. Quietly he said to himself, "How could someone so small take down six feet tall, muscular boys?" The person stayed in the darkness and stopped behind a car at the far end of a different parking lot. "You're hunting, aren't you?" Frederick stopped and crouched down onto his belly. He took out his night vision binoculars and continued watching the person. Frederick heard people laughing and quickly searched for the commotion. There were three people, one boy and two girls. The boy was tall and looked to be stronger than the man hiding under the ski mask. They all walked out to the parking lot where the suspicious man was hiding. Suddenly, the man with the ski mask started running toward the group. The girls shrieked and the boy turned and ran the other way. Frederick O'Riley became extremely confused. Someone with as much intelligence as he regarded with the serial killer wouldn't just simply run up to a group. He'd already know that they'd disperse and run, making it easier for him to be seen. The man with the ski mask on started laughing and fell onto his butt. He took of the mask and the girls started to laugh too.

"They know each other. It was a joke," Frederick said to himself.

"Hey Ash! Did you wet yourself?" the boy who was wearing the ski mask called through a fit of laughter. Ash, the boy who took off running for his life looked extremely embarrassed and a little aggravated.

"Mike! Don't do that shit! I thought you were that serial killer guy!" The girls walked toward the one named Mike with smiles on their faces.

"Relax dude! He hasn't killed anyone in over like…two weeks!" Mike said as he finally calmed down from laughing.

"Yeah, but what if he's just planning something else now. Like…something bigger," Ash said nervously.

"Dude, you're a pussy." The four of them walked in the directions they had originally intended on going, except for Mike, he started to make his way towards the dorms. "Later!"

Frederick stood from his spot and made his way back to the van. When he returned he saw Aubren inside the van with the heater on full blast and Max in the passenger seat trying to complete a crossword puzzle. "It was a prank. The man with the ski mask goes to this school. He was playing a joke on his friends."

"Lovely, now that I'm frozen to the bone can we go now?" Aubren pleaded. He wanted to take a warm bath. Frederick sighed in defeat and nodded.

"Tomorrow night then."

"Seriously? Why can't we wait for a week or something? Or wait until he kills someone again?" Aubren protested.

"Do you want to be responsible for someone's death?" Frederick asked sternly. Aubren shook his head no. "Tomorrow night then." Aubren sighed and got out of the van. He walked to his car, started the ignition and left the parking lot. "Damn."

"Relax Freddy! We'll find him eventually," Max said as he placed a reassuring hand on Frederick's shoulder.

"I just wish we had something on him! But we don't. We're chasing a ghost."

"What about the tire tracks?"

"No use until we find out some clue to his or her physical form."

"I thought you said he was a man?" Max asked.

"I did, but now, I just don't know. Let's just go back to the office. Maybe Allan has dug something up."

Conner looked at the knife in his hand. It was sharp and would most likely cut through his skin without effort. He peaked his head up the stairs that led to the tower. "Ok, I can do this. I can do this." He shut his eyes tightly and sliced his arm a bit, just enough to get blood to drip quickly. He walked up the steps and entered the tower. There was no insulation or even a heater up there. Conner shivered. "Mikami?" The other man lay on the bed, staring up at the peak to the tower. "Mikami? Look." Mikami turned his head and stared in shock. Blood was flowing freely from Conner's arm and dripping from his elbow. Excitement stirred inside the man. He wanted it.

"Conner please don't!" Mikami tried to look away but the blood was mesmerizing.

"Don't what? This?" Conner carved another long slice into his arm, wincing as the pain seared. Mikami couldn't control it anymore. He stood from the bed and quickly grabbed Conner and the knife. His eyes were intense and terrifying, but Conner didn't mind. He wanted Mikami to be happy, even if he had to subject himself to pain. "Hurt me. I dare you." Conner's tone was firm and mocking. It angered Mikami. He pushed the boy against the wall and hungrily kissed his lips, biting hard enough to draw blood. The taste stirred Mikami's senses. He wanted more. He took the knife and lightly drew a thin line of blood from the boy's neck. Conner didn't protest. He allowed the man to do whatever he pleased.

"I could kill you, you know?" Mikami said his voice was tauntingly sweet despite the fierce look in his eyes..

"I know you won't." Mikami's eyes relaxed as he kissed Conner softly this time, lovingly. Butterflies stirred inside the smaller boy as he fought to keep his legs from bucking under him. Mikami pulled away from the boy and smiled.

"Come on. Let's go clean you up." The pair walked down the two flights of stairs and into the kitchen. Oscar and Vinnie were lying on the floor sleeping lightly. They both woke up but didn't move. They simply rolled over and fell right back to sleep. "I told you they would get over it."

"Why did you stop?" Mikami turned to look at the boy with confusion in his bi-colored eyes. "I mean, why'd you stop kissing me?" Mikami allowed a small smile so play at his lips. He moved closer to the smaller boy. Their foreheads touched lightly for a few moments as they stared into each other's eyes. Conner stood on the tips of his toes to reach Mikami's face. He lightly brushed his lips against the other man's. Mikami wrapped his arms around Conner's small waist and kissed the boy softly. Conner's mind blurred, here he was making out with a serial killer and the only thing he could think about was how much he had fallen for him. 'If Mikami dies, I die too.'

"Where's Frederick?" Alan asked as he came into the office with a box of doughnuts. Max sighed as he kept spinning around in his chair, much to Alexandra's dismay.

"Last night we came back from NKU and he just walked into his office and he hasn't come out since," Max said as he ran his fingers through his disheveled hair.

"What happened last night to put him in such a mood?" Alan asked.

"We saw a guy with a ski mask on, Freddie followed but found out the person was just actually a kid trying to scare his friends. Freddie was so pissed."

"I wonder if this will cheer him up then," Alan said as he held up a newspaper. Alan knocked on the door to the detective's office but didn't wait for an answer. He walked into the room to find the detective lying on his desk staring up at the ceiling. Alan chuckled.

"You know, you've sulked like that since you were a child."

"I know Alan, and right now I think I deserve to be sulking."

"Oh pish-posh! Take a look at today's paper." The old man held out his hand and the detective took the paper reading the headlines. Even though he was wearing sunglasses Alan could tell that the detective's eyes were glinting with happiness.

"They found the truck; with Conner's finger prints on it."

"Yes they did, but there are a few problems. I know you hate reading so I'll summarize for you. The truck was found in a ditch near Alexandria. It looks like the driver hit a deer because deer's blood is dried onto the front of it and there is a large dent. There are also footprints that sank into the wet ground there. They measured them and found that the person wears a size twelve. They think that he's reasonably tall, around six foot two or three. They are also one-hundred percent sure that this car belongs to the serial killer. However no plates were found on the truck, so they can't track down anyone that way."

"Well, I'd have liked the headings to say that he was back but this is good enough for now. Arrange an appointment for me to look at the truck. I want to examine every piece of it." Alan smiled and nodded. He walked back out into the office and picked up the phone. Max, Gabriel and Alexandra all looked at him expecting to hear some kind of news about Frederick but Alan said nothing. He simply started talking to someone on the phone as if nothing was going on in the other room. Max looked to Gabriel who in turn shrugged and looked at Alexandra. She rolled her eyes and stood up. She began walking towards the detective's door when it suddenly opened and Frederick O'Riley stood there before her raising one eyebrow.

"We were wondering how you are feeling today?"

"Fine, just fine. I'm going out for a bit though. Alan, call my cell phone when you get everything settled."

Frederick O'Riley walked down the street with no where in mind to go. He sat down on a bench and watched as a group of school children walked by. They all gave him uneasy looks because he was wearing sunglasses while it was cloudy and cold outside. If anyone were to ask him why he wore the sunglasses he really wouldn't have a true answer. Sure, he had responded to Aubren saying that they help him think but that wasn't necessarily true. When Frederick said goodbye to his little brother as he moved away from the country, he bought a pair of sunglasses in the airport. The very pair he still wears today. He never took them off unless he was only with Alan, bathing or sleeping. O'Riley yawned and looked up at the cloudy sky. 'It looks like it might snow.' The man stood from the bench and walked further down the street. Despite his long trench coat and heavy boots, he was freezing but the feeling wasn't uncomfortable to him, he enjoyed being cold. The best memories with his brother Thomas were made when the weather was cold.

"Freddy! Freddy! Watch! Look! Look! Look at me!" Thomas called as he maneuvered across the monkey bars on top of them. Frederick sucked in his breath as he watched his little brother try to balance himself on top of the bars. Frederick noticed him falter and immediately rushed over and steadied his balance. The small boy smiled brightly. His pale cheeks were flushed red from being outside in the cold. He looked like a porcelain doll. "Freddy, do you want to try?" the boy asked. Frederick shook his head no.

"I'd rather just stay on the ground and catch you when you fall." Thomas giggled and starting going across the monkey bars once again. Frederick sighed slowly as he watched his breath as it danced lightly in the sky and disappeared. For a moment and only a moment he turned his back on his little brother and then he heard a thud. With his eyes wide from terror Frederick turned quickly and fell to his knees next to his little brother. The boy was rubbing his elbow. "Thomas! You scratched your elbow! I'm sorry! I just turned away for-"

"It only stings. It's not broken Freddy! But, I do want to go home now. It's cold outside." The pair walked down the street towards their city home for the last time together. Thomas was moving to another country and Frederick couldn't leave America. There was just too much crime and Frederick had vowed that he'd do something about it, like become a policeman, or even a detective! He had vowed that no other family would ever have to go through what his family had to.

Alan hung up the phone and smiled in content. Frederick would be pleased that he could see the car the following day, usually it would take weeks to be able to get an appointment but Alan knew how to persuade. He picked up the phone and began dialing Frederick O'Riley's phone number. Ring! Ring!

"Alan?" O'Riley's voice said softly.

"You have an appointment at noon tomorrow. Is that alright?"

"Yes, Alan?"

"Yes?"

"Do you think Thomas would ever come home if I could find him?"

"I don't know. You two for the most part were very distant."

"Except when we were at the playground," O'Riley said as he walked back to the office.

"The playground, ah yes I remember the playground. He loved the monkey bars."

"Yes. I've been thinking about him recently. I saw a few school children on their way to the park and with it being so cold; the memories just came flooding in."

"Frederick, come back to the office before you freeze to death and I understand how you feel. I've been thinking of my family ever since the weather turned cold. It's amazing how weather can change the way you think."

"I'm sorry about your family Alan, I really am."

"It's all in the past now Frederick. I'll see you soon."

"Yeah, see you soon." Frederick hung up the phone and proceeded to walk back to the office.

Aubren read the newspaper with eyes as wide as pool balls. "Conner's…fingerprints," he said softly to himself. The college student's hands shook from terror as he pictured his friend dead and bloodied. "No, think positively, he's alive, he's alive, he has to be!" Someone knocked on the door making Aubren jump right out of his seat. He looked through the peak-hole and saw Stepha standing there awkwardly. The boy opened the door and looked quizzically at the blonde girl.

"Did you see the paper?" she asked. Aubren nodded. He wasn't trying to be a prick; he just couldn't formulate words, or even find any strength in which to speak. "Well, I guess that's all I wanted to say, or well, do you think that mean's that Conner's alive? I think that maybe he tried to escape using that truck but crashed and he's now out there somewhere and-"

"Stepha, that's unlikely. Now please go away, I don't feel like talking to anyone right now." Aubren started to close the door but Stepha put her arm out to stop the door from closing.

"No Aubren! You listen to me! I think he's alive and I'm going to find him, with or without you! I'm going to find him!" She stormed away knowing exactly where she was going. Sure she had class in an hour but she figured that missing one day of school wouldn't matter. She stormed off into her car, slamming the door and turning on the ignition a little too fast. She drove out of the apartment complex and started for Cincinnati. She was going to see Frederick O'Riley.

Conner smiled to himself as he successfully taught Vinnie how to play dead, a trick that Mikami burst out laughing at because of the severe irony behind it. "Play dead!" Vinnie whimpered like he wasn't feeling well and fell over onto his side. Mikami started laughing again.

"Ok, we're entering Vinnie in some kind of trick show," Mikami said as he pet the dog on the head.

"I was wondering, since you know, well, since you killed…well," Conner stumbled over his wording trying to say the right thing.

"Since I killed Charlie?" Mikami said; his voice hollow.

"Could we get another dog?" Mikami blinked in astonishment.

"Like, what kind?"

"I was thinking an Afghan Hound. I've always loved them and I really would like to have one. They're so pretty…"

Mikami sighed. "You want me to buy you a two thousand dollar dog…"

"Yes?" Conner squeaked.

"I'll look into it…" With that Mikami stood up and walked out of the room.

Conner smiled with a triumphant smile. He was enjoying this side of Mikami, but wondered how long it would last…

It feels weird not reading over and editing, but I'm so tired! I'll fix it tomorrow. Review? Unless it was garbage, then don't worry about it. haha