“You are disgusting. You have only been with me for two hours. You are still sobbing. Snot is running down your nose. You already peed yourself. Others have lasted longer than you. What really gets to me though is that you didn’t regret raping those girls until you were with me and about to die because of it. Disgusting, no, not disgusting, repulsive.” I said. He was a disgrace to the human race. Crying and pleading trying to crawl away. At the very least try to keep your dignity intact. I stood over him and plunged my dagger in between his L-one and T-twelve, severing his spinal cord making it impossible for him to use the lower half of his body. I kneeled next to this sorry excuse of a human and rolled him over so he was facing up on the cold, concrete floor. I began my ritual. First, castration. Next hands and feet. Then inject him with drain fluid to kill him. Step four cut his face so he will forever be smiling. Finish by cutting out the heart, placing it in a jar and putting it in his hands over his torso, and cutting tallies into his forehead for the number of victims which in his case was three. People say that the dead look like they are sleeping but it isn’t like that at all, with blank eyes they stare out into nothing.
This man was Xavier Hernandez, age 31, broad build, mechanic, convicted of three rapes. He served his time in jail but what he did cannot be undone so he must be punished permanently. All I needed to know was that he was a bad man and the crime he committed sealed his own death. I was now known as The Heartless Killer for cutting out their hearts but they were never truly there, to begin with. I just made it more obvious. I hated the name “The Heartless Killer” if I ever were to be caught, I would tell them that I hated it. That I would prefer it to be ‘Justice’. It had a much better ring to it and didn’t make me seem like such a bad person. I was riding the streets of bad people like this man. In the past, dominance was sometimes shown through the lives that one had taken. They were considered noble people. Now we are considered monsters. Is it so wrong to follow our instinct? Our nature? No, it isn’t.
I felt the buzzing of my phone as I finished up by burning the man’s clothes. As I answered the phone I finished the job, it was work calling me in for a case about fifteen minutes away from me about a human trafficking case. “Evelyn, we have a teen we need you to speak with. He seems to be a bit off. He keeps catcalling and harassing everyone who goes past his door.” I heard a voice in the background that yelled something along the lines of ‘Hey sweetie!’ “You are a natural with people, especially the younger folks. Please come quickly. It is urgent. We found him in terrible condition. He looks starved.” They continued.
“Okay, I will be there in about fifteen minutes. I am warning you not to make any contact with him even if it is just eye contact. I will be there soon.” I replied. This boy, shouldn’t be messed with, such stress could cause him to lash out if anyone goes near him, and he could hurt himself and others. He probably is highly unstable. In somewhat like the condition I was in when I had finally left home. I wonder who he will become? Maybe he is like me.

As I sit in a small, cramped room with concrete walls handcuffed to the bed, many cops stand guard at the door with the orders not to make any kind of contact with me. I overheard that order from a conversation outside my door. All I could think about was why wouldn’t they unlock me? They are probably getting child services to come to get me because they consider me broken but I am anything but broken. I am strong to have survived this long. They should stay away because of my strength because I am a bit different, I am what people call a sociopath. I learned that when I was eight years old. The best thing to do is to act like any normal person in this situation which I have seen plenty of. Though I don’t really want to. So I will keep harassing them, I mean it probably isn’t helping my case but… it is very amusing to see the looks on their faces. Absolutely priceless.

I see this woman at the entrance. She has this dark, olive green hair that is in a pixie cut. She stands at about five foot seven inches. She wears a skin-tight black turtleneck, black ripped jeans, black fingerless gloves, and black, leather combat boots. I thought all government agents wore suits and were all done up but I feel that something is off about her, that something is different about her. She talks to the guards and they leave and everything is silent even the people outside stop going past. She has a lot of respect from these people. She approaches me without the slightest hesitation or concern as if she is invincible. She sits only inches away from me on the bed. I flinch without making eye contact as she plops down on the mattress. Time to put on a show, time to flip the switch…

“My name is Evelyn but you can call me Eve. We are the same, you and I. I know an act when I see one. I have been using one most of my life so drop it. It doesn’t work for you.” She started with a flat tone and a slow, evenly paced rhythm, she stared at me with dark grey hollow eyes that seemed to shine silver and pierce through my soul like knives. I sat gazing at back her trying to see if she was lying but she wasn’t bluffing, not one bit, not one word.

  I told her a few skeptical words as I dropped the act, “Then Eve unlock me. For you and I are the same, right?” She took a look at the handcuffs, then looked back at me with a blank expression. I laid their defenseless and naked with one sheet to cover me. She turned around and broke the chains that bound my ankles to the bed with her bare hands and I had tried that so many times, to break them, before but nothing worked. She glanced back at me as she leaned over me and all I could think was about how powerless I was and that it felt like she was going to abuse me as the others had done. I caught sight of a knife’s handle sticking out of her pants. I held a straight face though. She came close so we were face to face with two to three inches between us. I could feel rage and fear starting to roar inside of me. She stared directly into my eyes and her expression lightened only a little bit and even a faint laugh came from her, it caught me completely off guard. Maybe she saw through my fake neutral expression just like my act...

“Don’t even think about trying to hurt me and definitely don’t go for the knife.” She deadpanned. I felt like prey and she was the predator then she smirked, got up, and walked to the handcuffs that held my hands restrained to the bedposts and inspected them then ripped them as if they were paper. I had to escape, I feared for my life, no not fear, I don’t know what it was but it made me feel uneasy. I sprung from the mattress and began to attack with a blow to her trachea but as fast as I attacked she blocked it. She grabbed me by the wrist and twisted my arm behind my back, swept my legs from under me, then kneeled over me as she pinned me to the ground. I struggled against her grasp but couldn’t escape. Her knee dug into my back making a sharp pain shock through my body.

“How old are you, kid?” she asked as if nothing had happened, her grip on my arm never weakened as she pulled me to my feet, grabbed the sheet, and wrapped it around me. For someone so small her strength surprised me.

“I am fifteen years old and have been here for one thousand six hundred and two days.” I told her.

“Counting the days, wow? Even I would have lost track. Let’s take care of those bastards. I am sorry to tell you this but only one person was arrested because he was the only one we could find. We can take care of the rest though.  Now, what is your name?” She questioned but what did she mean by taking care of them? Did she mean to kill? 'Cause then I like this woman.

“My name is Damion and I am not telling you anything else until I am out of here.” I told her but after the sentence, she forced me to sit on the bed and released me. This time I knew better than to try and fight against her. She held my gaze for a long time, no emotion crossed her face for even a second.

She paced over to the doorway, stuck her head out, and yelled, “Could I get some clothes down here? How long does it take to find some underwear, a shirt, and some pants, huh? Also, I would like a medical blanket!” I hadn’t even noticed that I was shivering from the cold air until she mentioned the blanket. She came back inside the room and leaned against the wall next to the door. She closed her eyes and lay her head back on the wall as she sighed from what I assume is an annoyance.

Not much later, a man knocked on the doorframe. He was holding clothes in one hand and a blanket under his arm. He couldn’t seem to take his eyes off me, I wasn’t looking directly at him but I could see it all out of the corner of my eye. I closed my eyes for a couple of seconds feeling only mildly at ease. When I opened them, Evelyn was kneeling down in front of me looking up at me, the clothes in her hand. She slowly placed the clothes beside me, I saw something I hadn’t seen before in her eyes. It wasn’t sympathy, it was empathy, something I hadn’t seen in years and somehow it made me feel a little less alone. 

I unwrapped myself even as she still was kneeling in front of me. I could see her eyeing the scars wrapping around my body. Now I knew she wasn’t going to do anything that didn’t need to be done. I felt safer. She held her arm out and I wondered what she was doing. She moved the sleeve up to reveal several scars on her skin. How did she get those? She smiled a real smile while her finger traced the scars on the inside of her wrist as if mesmerized by it and she soon snapped out of it and yanked her sleeve back down to cover them. She got up and walked to the doorway. She turned in my direction and in a gentle voice said, “I’ll be waiting just outside, call if you need anything, okay?” I nodded and she left my field of vision. I could hear her uneven breaths as she softly cried outside of the room. Maybe this gives her PTSD but then why do this job?

I grabbed the black long-sleeved shirt and pulled it over me. It was a bit baggy but that was better than too small I guess. The underwear fit fine which I could not say about the pants. So I called Evelyn, “Eve. The pants are a bit too small.” She replied, “Okay, here.” She entered and handed me a new bigger pair of pants. I nodded in response and she left once again. I sat and pulled the pants over my bare legs. Shoes? I walked barefooted to the doorway and hesitated to step out. Eve was staring at me, “Take as much time as you need. It took me about a full minute to leave the only place I knew. I went from a four-foot-wide by four-foot-long by six feet tall cold, metal cage to roaming the streets. So trust me I know the feeling of being helpless.” She has been in a place like this since she was born. That explains a lot. 

*Time Skip*

Evelyn strode to the precinct doors, opening them and letting them drift closed. Keeping up her pace, her black overcoat flew around, unbuttoned. She looked around and paced over to the little service desk. She leaned forward her hands on the rim of the marble desktop and said, “I would like to speak to Special Agent Adam Mitchell on personal matters.” The person managing the desk’s eyes widened, no follow-up questions which Evelyn thought was strange. He reached over to a small, little phone and plucked it from its spot. He dialed for the Special Agent. When Adam finally picked up the receptionist told him someone was here to see him. The guy at the desk waved Evelyn in and told her the directions to his office while giving her a visitors pass. Evelyn passed through the maze of desks to a single office that was cut off and in a corner. It had no windows looking into the precinct and a wooden door with white glass. She only knew it was Adam’s office because ‘Special Agent Mitchell’ was printed in bold black letters on the white glass. She knocked three times on the door, the same way her father knocked on the metal cage bars, knock knock-knock. The door swung open and there stood a man, in a suit and tie. It was standard black and white with a plain silver buckle. He had dark golden hair and vivid ice blue eyes with facial features almost identical to that of their father. Evelyn couldn’t resist herself when she saw him and she hugged him tightly and whispered under her breath, “I finally found you, Johnny.” He stood there startled with a surprised expression on his face and pushed her away. “Who are you?” He asked politely and you could see the pain on her face and the tears running down her face. “Who am I? Don’t you remember me? You were about six years old when we first met. You and Papa were playing hide and seek. I heard him tell you that you could hide anywhere you wanted in the house as long as it wasn’t in the basement.” She sniffled and let out a soft little laugh then continued. “For some reason, you decided it was a good decision to come down into the basement. That was when we first met. I remember the first words I said to you were ‘Run! You cannot be here!’ It was too late though and Papa was making his way down the stairs and directly at you. You were so small and scared. He beat you until you passed out. I sat there locked in the cage crying and trying to reach you. He lifted you off the ground and carried you upstairs. I never saw you again until now. I heard you upstairs every so often and knew you were okay. That was the only thing that kept me going…” He grabbed Evelyn tightly by the arm and yelled for some officers for them to get the chief and meet him in interrogation room one. He dragged her into the interrogation room and handcuffed her to the table.

“She spent years with Phineas!” Adam pleaded. “She has to be the same as him or at least has some mental problems. She was in a cage. Also, what is the coincidence of her being here as well as The Heartless Killer? You need to let me keep her here for the seventy-two hours!” 

“Adam, I can see your concern so I will let you keep her here but not for the full seventy-two hours. You have half an hour to find something valid and presentable, not just a “he said”. Otherwise, she gets to leave freely.” The Police Chief ordered Adam. They both stood facing the one-way mirror that separated them from Evelyn. She was sitting with one knee to her chest and the other resting on the floor her arm outstretched onto the table they were cuffed to.

“Again, who are you? What do you know about Phineas Flint?” Adam asked.

As they sat at the steel table that stood bolted to the floor, she was handcuffed to the small aluminum ring in the center. Evelyn didn’t feel as willing to talk to her brother now or answer the questions. Then the perfect thought entered her mind, still unsure she dragged the conversation on until time to act.

“Johnny? Sorry, Adam, please calm down. I am your older sister. Don’t you remember? Do you want to know about my past? Why am I coming to get you? Want to know if I am a killer just because I am the daughter of Phineas? In your eyes, you see me as a possible monster, right? Well, stop. Now think of how you have been thought about in the same way. It isn’t true. I am the only person to survive an attack from The Reaper and I do my job trying to help those like me, victims, get the justice they deserve but in my case, it was very different from most. You think that you saw the worst of Papa… you didn’t even see a fraction of it. I saw it all. I saw every murder victim played with and then killed. I saw everything.”

Adam unlocked the cuffs as if saying I trust you but Evelyn saw him setting up a trap. Luring her into a confession. Time to act. She removed the thick, black turtleneck knowing that it would throw them off guard. They knew she had had contact with Phineas but hadn’t known she had experienced his wrath of him.  ‘Any amount of time is worth it even if only a few seconds, remember to always be one step ahead.’  Phineas' voice rang true in Evelyn’s mind. Revealing the scars all over her upper body and a white baggy tank-top. Adam only could see numerous scars wrapping around her arms, one jagged scar on her right shoulder and two going straight across her right wrist. Two invisible on her abdomen due to the shirt and numerous running down her legs but covered by her black jeans, one long going diagonal across her back. The final one visible was across her throat. “Mother gave birth to me but Phineas told her that I was stillborn. Phineas hid me away only to come out when I was at the age of… I think he said eighteen. He was always busy and he had locked me away in the basement in a four-foot-wide by four-foot-long by a seven-foot-tall metal cage.  As the years went by he became smart but he became arrogant and that is the only reason he was caught. He beat me as well as cut me as you can see.” Eve ran her hand across her neck. “You don’t really think someone so traumatized like I could do something like that.” Her face showed disgust but her eyes showed fascination and satisfaction as flashbacks of the killing went through her mind.

She stood and walked to Adam, leaned over him from behind resting her hand on the table as he still sat facing where she had been sitting as for her she stared into the lens of the camera. In a flat, emotionless voice she whispered in his ear something he knew would change the meaning of murder forever. Criminals are bad but this proved otherwise that they have good in them but it was still killing people. Which to choose…  “I kill animals, they all deserved it. When I left I was surrounded by people who told me murder is wrong. I simply told myself ‘It is not murdering if they deserve it.’ It is somewhat poetic. Karma and Justice together as one.” The word justice hissed with emphasis. She told him her story including her own killings. “I remember seeing Papa on the television on my eighteenth birthday. It was his hearing and he was sentenced to death. They let him say a few last words and I remember them so vividly as he was speaking about me. He spoke, ‘Demons roam the earth and I am just a pawn, my dear Сатана will raise all of Hell. The beauty of the scars on her skin will tell her story. For my Сатана is invincible and will always refuse death. Сатана will rise from the grave once more, with a heart the deepest shades of black, and the Heavens will shatter and come to an end. No hope will be left when my Сатана is done’ My real name is Сатана, and if you don’t know what it means, it is Russian look it up. I don’t exist in any database. I am nobody or at least Сатана is nobody and doesn’t exist. Phineas cut off my fingerprints which is quite helpful. In total, I have died five times, and yet here I stand just like Papa had said. I go by the name Evelyn Price. I am twenty-six years old. You may have stopped Papa but you will never even be able to trap me. You know you look just like him, almost identical.” Her voice rose and she looked directly into the camera, fake tears running down her face, smearing her mascara. Adam flinched at the thought of being like his father. “As soon as I was able to talk my Papa taught me what pain truly is and that tears get you nowhere. He raped, beat, and cut me until I was immune, sometimes he even drowned me. He always stitched me back up though saying that all wounds are there forever but they will heal, invisible or not, it will make me stronger. Then he tested me mentally breaking the stable ground below me to an unstable place. Like pulling a carpet from underneath someone’s feet. Johnny, you are lucky he tested you slowly and started with the mental. He showed me how to survive when nothing was left. He taught me that real love is pain, and society taught me love is kind and beautiful. I always side with society’s love… Would you like me to repeat the story of how we first met or do you want to tell them… but I want to know how it was on your side and how you remember it.”

 As she removed herself from the personal space of her interest known as Detective Adam Mitchell, she put on a show letting a few more tears roll down her face. She slowly retreated to her seat intrigued but not showing it one little bit, just simply staring at him, a melancholy expression on her face. His eyes cast down at the table, not even his face showed true emotion for even a millisecond. He just sat as if he knew he was defeated but she knew such a brilliant creation of man will still never admit defeat or at least the one she was told about. Someone she knew next to nothing about him, no matter how long she observed him, no matter what she presented to him, no matter what she asked. She knew almost nothing about him and it intrigued her with every inch of her being. She had spent seconds with all of the others she interacted with and knew most about them. He was sitting there knowing exactly what the mental torture had been like but not even beginning to imagine the physical. Their father Phineas Flint was the former most notorious serial killer. Papa Phineas never willingly laid a finger on Adam, he thought maybe he was still a bit too fragile. Adam felt as if his father was sitting across the table instead of Evelyn.

He reveled in his thoughts searching for an answer then he remembered something. There was no report to look at. She doesn’t even exist in the world’s databases combined. There isn’t anything right about this. “These things you claim are non-existent in your file. I have to know something though. Who are you?” 

“What file? I don’t exist. What do you mean ‘Who are you?’” Satisfaction showed across her face even though a shadow was cast across it making it almost impossible to see. “I already told you. I am your older sister. You sure seemed tense when I brought up Papa. Also, I will not give you the answer to the unspoken question that seems to be at the tip of your tongue but unable to be said until you tell me what you remember of how we first met, Adam.” She spat the name Adam out like poison, she felt disgusted when she said the name Adam because it wasn’t the name he was given at birth and to betray that gift for no good reason at all made her feel angry. All though she felt a tinge of betrayal and a lot of pity for the boy she still continued on. “You have only one more minute with me unless you would like to make an arrest or share, next time please come to my house. I am sure Damion would just love to meet you... Does four-thirty in the afternoon this weekend on Saturday work for you? Just a nice little gathering because I think we have more in common than you would like to think little John. Goodbye, I will see you later.” She began to stand.

“I will see you then but first a little story.” He replied empty and monotone staring up at her then watching her cautiously as she sat back down. “I remember Papa's deep, gravelly voice warning me to not go into the basement. I remember the unfinished creaking steps as I walked down them. I remember turning to look for a spot to hide but instead finding you. You started yelling at me to run and get out. There was so much... blood on the floor surrounding you. I saw the cuts on your arms and could smell the stench of death that reaped throughout the basement. I made my way toward you. Then I heard the creaking of the steps behind me and I knew it was Papa. I froze and I heard you shriek ‘No’ as he grabbed me, tears streaming down your face, your arms reaching for me through the bars. The next it was all a blur. So much pain and darkness. Then everything went black and I woke up in my room covered in bruises and found Mama was gone.” He sat his knees pulled up into his chest, his face still held no emotion but a few tears streamed down from his eyes. Evelyn saw the little broken boy she had seen that same day they had met. She ran to his side crotching to his side pulling him close to her. She rocked him back and forth until the tears stopped coming and the boy was masked by the man once again. 

“Goodbye, little John. See you later.” She got up, kissed the top of his head, waved a little wave, and left as their time together was coming to an end for now. His face couldn't completely hide the terror but his voice could, steady, cold and distant. “Goodbye for now. Forever, no matter what,” he muttered. She thought I guess he learned that from Papa, ‘Forever, no matter what. It meant I love you in our family. “Forever, no matter what.” Eve smiled and continued to think, I am Papa’s more advanced student. Adam or John, whoever he may be cannot break down my barrier even if he put in all of the efforts he had in him until I let him in. Maybe I finally tore down his barriers though. His tears seemed to tell. She grinned with pleasure as she trotted to the main entrance of the building and left.

Adam made his way to the front door a bit skeptical of the house; it looked oddly normal like a house out of the movies. Gray paneling with white trim, a black rooftop, and a few windows facing the front. He stepped up to the porch and just as he reached for the doorbell the door swung open and in front of him stood Eve.

Eve wore a black half shirt and short black ripped-up booty-shorts as she stood tall looking at Adam who wore a black T-Shirt and loose blue jeans. From inside there was movement and a boy came into focus.

“Hey, Evelyn, which shirt should I wear?” The boy's blank expression and flat tone turned into a smirk when he saw Adam in the doorway and his voice became softer. “What’s your name?” He strode until he was in Adam’s personal space until he was inches away from him then stood over him intimidating because of his height of six foot one inch and his evil looks. Black shaggy hair that hung slightly over hazy green eyes and pale skin that amplified his sharp features accompanied by a six-pack of abs and very big biceps. He looked very vampire-like. He wore the slightest bit of black eyeshadow underneath his eyes. Adam felt something off about this like he was missing something. The tension in the air was so thick you could cut it with a knife. It felt cold and dangerous but the boy was smiling a wide grin that almost stretched across his whole face.

“Damion, this is the man I was telling you about, this is Agent Micheal. You already have a boyfriend to get to so stop asserting your dominance over him and go pick Noah up and bring him back here. I expect you to be back here in thirty-two minutes, fifteen minutes to get there, two minutes to grab the rest of his things, and the last fifteen minutes to get back here. Understand?” Evelyn said in a demanding tone but Damion stood there as if nothing had happened. He wore no shirt so he lifted the two shirts waiting for the answer he had asked for. Damion pointed lazily in Adam's direction while looking back at Evelyn. Then turned to Adam and looked him up and down.

“Him. Seriously. I didn’t imagine him looking this good. I will be back in forty minutes. You know I am good at keeping time, Mom. Right or Left Uncle Adam?” Damion asked Adam when Evelyn didn’t respond with a little laughter in his voice. Wait! What? Uncle? Is he serious? Adam thought but went straight past it to answer the question he was asked. In his left hand, Damion held a black mesh t-shirt and in his right hand he held up a very tight-looking black sweatshirt. Adam looked between the two and pointed to the left hand because he was a bit worried about the one on the right because it was ninety-eight degrees Fahrenheit. Damion smirked an evil-like smirk as he lifted the shirt over his head and onto his body.

“Bye sweeties, don’t have too much fun without me.” Damion teased as he sped towards the car. Now, have a good second to think about everything. Evelyn wasn’t old enough to have a kid around his age, she is only twenty-eight, but he called her mom, maybe he was a foster or adopted. Adam knew it wasn’t a joke by the way he said it, plain, simple, smooth, and natural. Then he got a bit confused. Boyfriend? Gay?  He thought. Like romantically? Wait, what did he mean when he said fun. Who am I dealing with?  His mind raced at a hundred miles per hour.

The confusion ran through his veins as the clear water became murky but all he managed to say was, “What the hell does he mean when he says ‘fun’?” Evelyn stood in front of him with a quick smile that danced across her face as she waved him in and said, “I’ll explain it when you are ready.” A vivid memory raced through his mind of Phineas, his father, saying those exact words to him when he was small. His heart skipped a beat and he felt a rush of fear the same kind that rushed through him when his father was near. 

Even with the fear charging through him like electricity he never showed anything but a polite smile. He nodded and sauntered through the door past Eve. He turned to the mat and untied his shoes and placed them gently in front of him. She could see the fear in his eyes even though he wore a smile. She knew she hit a nerve and wanted to keep pushing him but resisted the urge as she asked, “Do you want a tour of the house? You can even go through the stuff if it makes you more comfortable..” She had what she called a butcher room hidden behind a bookcase door that was well disguised and even had a lock. 

“Sure.” He replied, a feeling of uneasiness fell upon him because he knew it was her, The Heartless Killer. He knew she was hiding something but her offer was sincere. This confused him. If she was hiding something, she wouldn’t let me search everything. They roamed throughout the house. First to the kitchen and he inspected the knives and cabinets, even the fridge. Next, they went through the living room, he looked under the couch and at the books on the secret bookshelf disguised door. 

The bedrooms were the last rooms that were checked, then the doorbell rang as they were standing in Damions room, Adam was saved by the bell and they met Damion and who Adam assumed was Noah at the front door. Noah’s arms were wrapped around Damion hanging loosely around his torso. Noah stood behind Damion while they stared at each other, laughed, and smiled. Noah was only a couple of inches taller than Damion.  They then came through the door holding hands joyously while prancing to the living room to their final destination on the couch and Damion straddled facing Noah on the couch. Damion’s hands rested on the back of Noah’s neck as they kissed releasing each other, an intense passionate gaze flew between them. They looked to Evelyn as if asking for approval to continue both of their faces flushed with color. Adam stared at the two thinking that if that was his kid he would be telling them to get off each other but instead of doing that Evelyn just laughed, nodded, and roamed into the kitchen dragging along Adam. She called back to the boys, “If you are going to be doing it, go to your room and be careful!” Her voice was bubbly and playful. The boys came bounding past the open kitchen frame in the direction of Damion’s room. “Hey!” Evelyn yelled. As they continued their footsteps hit the wooden floors making a sound that resembled thunder and finally came the loud sound of a door getting slammed shut.

Eve studied the worry on Adam’s face and assured him, “Both of the boys are eighteen and if you are worried about the sound, all of the rooms are soundproofed.” A smirk crossed her face accompanied by an evil-like expression, she lied about Damion's age… Damion was sixteen and Noah was eighteen. She leaned against the black and white marble counter facing him. He nodded still a bit lost in thought. Evelyn turned and pulled a knife for the knife block and started walking toward Adam who was across from her leaning against the kitchen island. He felt panic and quickly moved aside. She laughed and started chopping up the tomatoes that were behind him sitting on a cutting board. Something he hadn’t noticed before. She pivoted her head just enough to see him and gestured the knife at him and said, “You know if I wanted you dead, you already would be dead. Not that I would kill you. Also, stop with the looks of panic and fear you are here for dinner, nothing else. So sit at the kitchen table and relax until dinner is ready. Feel free to turn on some music too.” She pointed with her free hand toward a little radio on the counter. He turned and pushed the ON button and lowered the volume so that they could listen but still be able to talk and hear each other. He felt surprisingly calm even knowing about her being a killer. Damion has to know something about Evelyn because they live under the same roof. How could he not? Adam wondered.

“Damion and Noah are good kids,” Evelyn said, her smile dropped from her face all while interrupting Adams' thoughts. “Both have a bad past though. Just so you know they don’t really trust law enforcement. Continuing on, I am glad Damion found another person he can trust that isn’t me. I took him in about a year ago when they called me in about a boy handcuffed to a bed that seemed to be different from the rest. Also, it felt weird to me that he wanted those handcuffs in the first place because of this. He was laying there with only a sheet to cover him, catcalling the officers. He was in a sex trafficking ring. When I sat next to him it seemed like a switch flipped he cowered and flinched with my every movement. I am surprised he even warmed up to Noah. Noah is one special kid if Damion loves him. Damion liking people at all is rare enough but to love is even more scarce. Even Noah has his own story so be a bit careful with him. With Noah, it is a whole different story. He was living on the streets. His father was an abusive drunk so he ran away and became homeless. He was just a kid so I took him under my wing from the streets until he then ran away from me too. He was a free spirit and that could never be taken away from him. He was just a kid who was scared of being loved. One day, Damion told me about a boy he met. They soon became boyfriends. Damion wanted us to meet so he brought Noah to the house. When I opened the door to him, my eyes filled with tears and I held them tight in my arms. He was finally back home. All Noah was able to say was my name in an unstable tone. I explained it all to Damion and we all became closer. All of us similar in age became a family. Me being the mother and Damion being my son but more like a brother and Noah being the boyfriend. We created our own family. ” She looked at Adam, tears filled her eyes though they still seemed to pierce through his soul. Her voice shook as she whispered, “Don’t ever take them away from me. They are the only things I have left. Please…”

Before they knew it food was done. The sound of Damions door opening made Evelyn wipe her eyes with the palms of her hands and smile. Her tears and sadness disappeared within milliseconds but the knife was red and her hand was dripping blood. She had cut herself.

“You boys have such good timing, dinner is done. Please sit. Damion come help me serve the Panzanella.” Evelyn said in her voice light. Damion wandered over to the cabinet with a satisfied smile on his face. He reached up and opened the cabinet and pulled out four bowls and grabbed four forks to go with it and shut the cabinet door. Then he saw the cut across Evelyn’s skin.

He grabbed her and started yelling. “Evie! Not again! You can’t keep doing this!” he grabbed the towels and dabbed at the open flesh. She looked as if she was embarrassed. “Don’t even try and explain! I already know! You started crying again! Crying doesn’t mean you have to get cut! He is gone! The only one you can blame now is yourself! Please… you need to stop.” His voice went soft as he reopened the cabinet and pulled out a needle and thread. She cradled her arm to her chest. He held out his hand and she shook her head but gave her arm to him anyway. He pulled her to the chair and laid her arm on the table. He started sewing and he seemed to be a professional at it. She winced. Then they didn’t make a sound, the silence was nerve-wracking. “I’m… sorry for yelling but you know how I feel when you get like this.” Damion apologized, his eyes tearing up. Eve didn’t respond. He finished stitching up the wound and pulled her close in a hug, let go, and continued serving dinner.

“Hey. My name is Noah. Sorry I didn’t say ‘Hi’ earlier. I was a bit… preoccupied. What is your name, mister?” Noah said as he sat down and took a quick glance at Evelyn then Damion was concerned. Noah seemed to glow, his skin was tan but iridescent. Black faded to pastel pink, orange, yellow, green, blue, and purple making a gradient throughout Noah’s hair. He wore an oversized pastel pink sweatshirt and light blue, ripped jeans. Noah was tall, which seemed to be an understatement, he looked to be about six foot five inches whereas Damion was about six foot one inch. He was like the opposite of Damion. Noah was pastel and light while Damion wore all black and seemed to have a threatening aura. “I am Special Agent Adam Mitchell. I am here to talk to Ms. Price about the recent Heartless Killer murders. Does that sort of thing happen often? Evelyn is a suspect. Do you notice anything else suspicious about Ms. Price’s actions?” Adam said.

Noah’s kindness dropped within a second of the Agents’ words. “No. Eve is the best person I know and for you to even think about her being a suspect is revolting. That cutting thing she has only done to herself three times now. She took Damion in and cares for him as if her own. We take care of each other. You should actually use that brain of yours once in a while. She would never take such a risk that could mean losing us.” He hissed defensively, his voice low enough so that Damion and Evelyn couldn’t hear. Noah whispered under his breath, “*sshole.” He took a sip of water then set the glass back in its place on the table and smiled at Damion when he came to the table with two plates of food setting them down in front of them.

Wow. That was intense. Adam thought, Who knew such a soft-looking person could be so… angry? He got so defensive when I started talking about Eve being a suspect.  He looked as if I had just killed the only thing he cares about.

Noah knew very much about what Evelyn and Damion did. The killings included but to hear that someone caught onto it made him want to kill the Agent himself. When Noah reached for Damion's hand a red ring peeked out from underneath his sleeve and Adam started to choke a little bit when he saw it. Noah looked over at him as if happy that he was choking and he was hoping that maybe just maybe the Special Agent would choke to death but it passed and everything was fine. Noah looked a bit disappointed but it soon turned back to happy when Damion started nibbling on his ear and whispering sweet nothings. They all sat at the table joking, laughing, and eating. Adam spent most of his time just observing them every so often he joined in. He wondered so many things like why did Noah get so defensive? Maybe it was family. Family was a word Adam knew by definition meant a group of one or more parents and their children living together as a unit happily but experiencing it as a torturous hell. 

“Is Fight Night still on today? Can you even fight with that injury?” Damion asked. Evelyn smirked, her head held high.

“Today’s Fight Night is still on tonight boys. No doubt about it. You should be more worried about yourself than me.” Evelyn challenged.

“Oh! That sounds like a challenge. You are so on!” Damion replied eagerly.

“I am also in. I think I have gotten quite a bit better.” Noah said, tossing his napkin onto the table.

“What is ‘Fight Night’?” Adam asked. They all laughed.

All at once, they said, “Come and find out.” They all got up, challenging each other as they walked to the mirror in the hallway. Evelyn pulled at the one side and it swung open like a door. Then walked in, the rest following in her footsteps.

“Gentleman. Tonight we bring you a time you will never forget!” Evelyn said. The room was pitch black with no windows. Then suddenly bright fluorescent light filled the big room. It had one fighting ring in the center. It was completely black except for the pair of blood-red wings in the center. The floor was padded and black. Punching bags hung on one side of the room, targets on the opposite side. One wall was a full mirror. The fourth wall was decorated in weapons and at the center of it was fighters' clothing. Ropes hung from the ceiling hanging at different lengths. Adam stood at the entrance as the others started for the gear. Eve beckoned him toward the wall as well. She handed him a pair of boxing shorts and off-white bandages. The boys had already started to change and were in their underwear. Damion smacked Noah’s butt when he wasn’t paying attention. Noah stopped mid-motion then finished putting on his shorts. Damion was in his shorts already when trouble arose. 

“I will give you three seconds to run,” Noah said as he turned to Damion. Both wore wicked smiles. “One.” Damion took off heading toward the ring. “Two. Three.” Noah chased after Damion, both were in the ring.

“Noah doesn’t stand a chance. He may have the speed to his advantage but Damion has the strength, skill, and strategy to defeat him. He said he learned some more so who knows just maybe he could win!” Evelyn yelled. Noah heard and continued in the ring, throwing punches and blocking.

“Evelyn, if I have no chance of winning then how have I stayed this long? After I am done with this, do you want to show me how things are do-” Noah got cut off as he was pinned to the ground. Damion straddled him and held him by the throat.

“Damion, choose your weapon!” Evelyn yelled pointing to the wall.

“I would love that Provoke. I just love it! The curve of the blade gets me every time.” Damion called. Evelyn reached for a knife that had a black curved blade, a rubber handle, and a finger hole at the end. She sped to Damion and handed him the knife as she climbed into the ring.

“Where do you cut to kill?” Eve quizzed.

“Any available major artery or into the eye, right?” Damion and Noah said in unison then laughed.

“That is correct, it all depends on how fast you want them to die. Damion, you fight me next.” Evelyn ordered. Adam reached for where his gun would have been but remembered it was in his jacket. Adam froze scared that Noah’s life would end in front of him. Still straddled on top of Noah, Damion put the flat of the cold blade against Noah’s cheek then threw the knife to the side. He leaned down and kissed Noah. Damion stood back up and yanked Noah to his feet. 

Adam just noticed Eve was amused by the fight. She was wearing a white strapless binder and black shorts. All of her scars showed. The ones that didn’t show before, too. The one that stretched from her left shoulder to her right hip, about fifty across her legs including many bruises, the numerous around her arms, and the worst one across the front of her neck. The new wound was covered with bandages. Her hands and feet were bare but bandages wrapped around the joints. It made her hands look gloved. Damion and Noah both had shoes plus padded gloves to cushion the blow to their hands.

The fight was about to begin. Noah exited the ring and joined Adam right outside the ring. “You are in for a tough ride. I am pretty sure after this fight, she will want to go up against you. So watch carefully. She is fast and a hundred times stronger than she looks.” Noah teased Adam. Evelyn heard Noah and said with a smug grin to shut up, watch and learn. Evelyn turned her attention to Damion who was already in a defensive position. “Come and get me, Damion. I know you want to.” Evelyn hit her chest with one fist and baited Damion to attack and he did. He sprinted until a few feet away then dropped to the floor swinging a leg around and knocking Evelyn to the floor. He went and straddled her the same as he did with Noah but once he started for her throat she got an arm out from under him and grabbed him by the arm then twisted. He yelped and came in for a punch with the other hand, which was caught blocked by Eve’s elbow. She sat up pushing Damion to the ground. She put him into a chokehold then let go and let him breathe until he was ready again. “Again!” Evelyn yelled furiously. “I didn’t teach you to fight like a b*tch! Come on, show me what you got! You are weak!” He stood and anger flared in his eyes. They ran at each other from diagonal corners of the ring. As soon as Damion was in range Eve spun and kicked him square in the jaw and he crumpled to the ground only to grab for him again. She grabbed his arm again and twisted his arm behind his back, he kneeled on the floor with his knees to his chest, unable to move. Her knees were digging into his back. A dark satisfaction glowed in her eyes. “This reminds me of the day we met. You running at me and us ending up in this same position only you were a bit exposed.” Evelyn taunted. “Done?” She leaned down to whisper “Maybe next time you will get me. You have improved quite a bit though.” into his ear. “I am done,” Damion huffed panting. She released him and he limped out of the ring. She walked to the edge as if weightless and ordered Adam, “You are next to come on. Did Papa tell you how to fight? Did you even get to finish the training?” 

“Yeah, we did some training but never finished, though I wasn’t that good at it.” He said. He climbed up into the ring just in time to see Eve do a flip without using her hands then continued walking to her corner. He stood open to an attack as Evelyn stood defensive waiting for the perfect chance. “You want to go first or shall I?” Evelyn said snarling with her hair falling into her face.
“Oh, crap.” Damion said. He had only ever seen that look on her face a couple of times.

“What?” Noah asked sheepishly. Afraid of the predatorial look on Evelyn’s face. Noah was practically shaking.

“I have only seen that look on her when she is going in for the kill. We have to get him out of there before we need a body bag.” Damion stated calmly.

Noah and Damion sped into the ring and stepped in front of Adam on defense knowing that alone they couldn’t take her on but maybe as a group. “What are you doing?” Adam asked Noah and Damion.

“We are trying to save you from coming out of here in a body bag. Do you see that look on her face? That is the face she gets when she is about to go in for the kill.” Noah sneered. They all turned to face Eve but she was gone. “Oh, crap.” Damion said. Evelyn was holding on to two ropes right next to Adam, Damion, and Noah. She swung the ropes and jumped off to the center of the ring, a throwing knife carefully held between her teeth. She grabbed the knife and toyed with them, “Hey boys, wanna play a little game?” She threw the knife and grazed past Adam’s ear then the knife hit the lights and it was pitch black. Evelyn had made her way to the pairs of night vision goggles, used the one and hid the others away. Her laughs echoed through the room and the boys made their way to the place where the night vision goggles were and found that they were gone. “F*ck. We are pigs going in for the slaughter.” Noah said. Then Eve seperated Damion from the group and restrained him, he yelled for help. Evelyn put him into a choke hold long enough to make him pass out then let him go. Noah was screaming for Damion while Adam pulled him into the corner. A knife at his side. She whistled and laughed. She called Noah’s name in a whisper repeatedly. Soon, Noah broke free of Adam’s grasp and ran into the darkness in an attempt to find Damion. Evelyn dropped from a rope directly behind Noah and she cuffed him and choked him out like Damion. “Two gone, one more to go!” Evelyn shrieked and ran at him knocking the blade out of his hand. He struggled to escape but so he was in a chokehold and passed out.

Damion, Noah, and Adam woke up in the fighting ring tied to metal chairs. Evelyn sat across from them as they trembled in fear. She laughed again as she sat leaning against the ropes. She got up and yelled “Boo!” and the only one to scream was Noah, Damion was having a panic attack and Adam seemed to not be in his body at all. “I got you didn’t I? The looks on your faces were priceless though.” Evelyn laughed with joy. “Get us out of these ropes!” Damion ordered. “Fine Mr.I-can’t-take-a-little-joke,” Evelyn mumbled annoyed as she untied them all. Damion ran to Noah who was trembling with fear and hyperventilating and pulled him in close to his chest telling him everything was alright. Evelyn kneeled in front of Adam who hadn’t moved a muscle. She placed her hand on his leg and something inside of him snapped. His arm shot out and he had her by the neck and was strangling her. “Hey! Let go of her!” Damion ordered. Adam didn’t let go. Damion grabbed the Provoke that was laying on the ground and ran at Adam. He held the blade against Adam’s throat and he let go of Eve who collapsed on the floor gasping for air. Damion removed the knife and Adam looked at his hand in fear of what he had just done. “The saying is right. The apple doesn’t fall far from the tree. Like father, like so.” Evelyn said her voice was weak and raspy. He dropped next to Evelyn still in fear and pulled her close. “I am sorry,” Adam said tears rolling down his face. “I wasn’t in control.” He scooped her up in his arms and picked her up. She whispered, “I know the feeling.” Evelyn had lost control when she was in the dark only to regain it and see what she had done to them as they sat there in the chairs. All four of them left the arena, Damion helping Noah along to his room. Adam placed Evelyn on her bed. They kept apologizing to each other. When Adam said his goodbyes. Evelyn patted the spot next to her and said, “Please stay. Right now I need someone here.” He nodded in agreement and lay in the spot next to each other. “You can drop into our family at any time. You are always welcome.” Evelyn’s voice shook and her eyes filled once again with tears but this time they came streaming down her face. She leaned into him and hugged him tightly like if she didn’t he would fly away. “I am glad I finally found you…” she mumbled, still hugging him tightly, then released him and rolled over. They fell asleep side by side with the lights on.