Attack #2
Featuring: Conor Atwood, Leah Beck
Location: Leah Beck’s residence
Date: 10-25-15
The Hacker: "Hello, Conor. What a lovely evening, isn't it? Perfect time to snuggle up and grab a pizza. Am I right?" Conor: Conor furrowed his eyebrows, confused by the distorted voice on the other line. "Uh, yeah actually. I'm sorry, who is this again? I don't think you have the right number." Leah: Leah took a bite of her piece of pizza, chewing slowly as she waited for him to be done on the phone. The Hacker: "Tell me, Conor. Do you miss your sister?" they chuckled before continuing. "Poor girl never stood a chance. If only she had someone there to protect her. Something along the lines of, yes, an older brother." Conor: The boy swallowed hard and attempted to ignore, what he assumed was a cruel prank. He placed the phone against his chest and looked at Leah, "Did you tell anyone we were getting pizza together tonight?" Leah: For a wrong number there seemed to be a lot of listening but she didn't pay that any mind until he spoke. His question threw her a little, feeling confused as she answered. "No.." Conor: He nodded at the girl, before returning his attention back to the phone. "Listen, dude, I'm a grown man and I really don't have time for whatever this is. So you go ahead have a good night, buddy." The Hacker: "Don't you dare hang up on me you little punk!" their tone assertive, threatening. They cleared their throat before speaking normally again. "You like games, don't you? How about you and I play one?" Conor: He froze. Even if it was just a silly phone call, it was enough to cause the hair on the back on his neck stand on end. "What kind of game?" He quietly grabbed a piece of paper from Leah's table and wrote 'lock your doors' on it, showing it to her. Leah: She was having difficulty following what was going on as she heard only one side of the conversation, but when she looked down at what he'd written her stomach flipped uncomfortably. Leah had goosebumps as she moved across the room to make sure the doors were locked. The Hacker: He chuckled, then chuckling turned into manic laughter. "Do you really think locking the doors is going to be of any help?" He paused for a moment, waiting for a reaction. When he heard none, he continued. "Know what game I've always liked? Hot and cold. You know how to play, don't you? I'm sure you played it with your sister all the time." Conor: Whoever it was could see them. He could see them and Conor wasn't sure what to do. Glancing at Leah, he tried to appear calm, but it was no use. "Stop fu-- Stop mentioning her." He grabbed the pen and quickly scribbled 'he can see us'. "Hot and cold, I don't think I'm familiar with the game." The boy began to pace around the kitchen. Leah: She felt a little better after making sure everything was secure.. until she saw what he wrote down next. She felt nauseous as she looked around, unable to help it as she got the urge to go shut all the curtains. The Hacker: "Don't play dumb with me, Atwood. That may work on your so called 'friends,' but not on me." His tone was serious again, more impatient. "Hot and cold, where the closer you get to the object you're suppose to find the warmer you get. The further you get, the colder you get. Got it? Good. Lets begin then." Conor: He quietly sifted through one of her drawers, grabbing the biggest knife he could find and holding it out for Leah to grab. "And what if we-- I don't want to play your game. What happens, then?" Reaching back into the drawer he grabs a knife for himself as well. Leah: Leah wasnt the hysterical type, she didn't do dramatic but she felt completely on edge. Even more so when he handed her a knife, it felt odd in her hand as she wonder what had been said but also felt kind of thankful she didn't know. The Hacker: "You wanna end up like your sister? You play the damn game, got it?!" With another chuckle, he begun. "You're cold." Conor: "I told you to stop mentioning her." He said, in tone completely unlike his usual one. Once more he scribbled a message on the paper, only three words, but enough to send cause panic in the toughest of people, 'He's in the house'. He carefully grabbed her free hand with the hand he had the knife in and cautiously began to walk around her living room, eyeing the door as their only escape. "Am I getting warmer?" Leah: She really felt like throwing up as she looked at the paper, swallowing hard. Leah clung to his hand, hating how scared she was as she gripped the knife handle tighter. The Hacker: "Warmer," he stated keeping his eyes locked on them. "But you've got a ways to go. Don't fuck it up, you wouldn't want to lose now would you?" Conor: He swallowed the lump in his throat. He knew he had to make a decision and fast or they'd end up like Casey Peterson. Motioning toward the front door, he quietly led her to it. "And now?" He asked, placing the phone back against his chest and leaning close to Leah to whisper in her ear, "When I tell you to run, run. Don't worry about me, just get as far away from here as possible and call the police." He returned the phone to his ear and started walking again, leaving Leah by the door. "You're not giving me any hints here, man. Some help would be nice." Leah: She didn't know what to do.. run when he said? The thought of leaving him behind when there was some psycho in the house.. it didn't seem right. What if something happened to him? But what if by not getting help it happened anyway. The Hacker: Another chuckle, a darker one this time around. "You're burning," he said. Silence fell upon the room. Their faces were priceless. Fear, panic, it was what he lived for. It didn't take long for him to grow bored of the quiet. He busted out from beyond the coat closet and snatched Leah away from the boy. He placed the ice cold knife against her throat, waiting to see what the boy's next move was. It was a game after all, and he intended to win. Conor: Everything happened so fast, one minute he was on the phone Hacker, planning their escape and the next minute the freak had Leah. It was exactly what he wanted to prevent. Dropping the phone, he moved toward them with the knife still in his hand. "Let her go." He shouted, he could feel his heart beating wildly against his chest. Leah: Her head had been full of thoughts of what to do.. whether to listen so when he grabbed her it took her by complete surprise. She was pretty sure she shrieked as she stood there frozen, it felt like her heart would beat out of her chest, but she couldn't seem to move, or speak.. or even breath properly. The Hacker: Amused by how this was all playing out, he taunted Conor, motioning him to come forward. He wasn't going to let go of her that easily, and if that's what the kid thought, well, he had another thing coming. Conor: He slowly moved forward, trying to keep the knife steady in his hand, but by how terrified he was it seemed impossible. "Please, just let her go.." Going against his better judgment he sat the knife down on the table, figuring he'd have a better chance at getting the hacker to let Leah go if he wasnt armed. Leah: The last thing she wanted was for him to come closer to the guy wielding the knife. Leah felt a bit like crying as she watched him put down his own knife, fear making her feel cold all over, but it helped her to find her voice again. "Don't.. you should get out.." Run like he'd wanted her to. The Hacker: He didn't like what the girl was saying. No, not one bit. Growing bored of the whimpering and begging, he threw her down to the ground before lunging forward to attack Conor. He put up a good fight at the start, but not good enough. With a quick swing of his knife to the throat, it was game over. Conor: Conor was relieved when the hacker let go of Leah, but before he knew it the masked figure was running his way. He tried to fight him off and grab the knife but he was too quick. The boy let out a cry of pain as he felt the sharp knife go into his throat. Blood began to pour out of down his chest at a rapid speed and he started to feel lightheaded. He glanced once more at the frightened girl before everything went black. Leah: It was like it all happened so fast and she hadn't been able to do anything. There was just.. so much blood. It was a blur as she made it to her feet, feeling wobbly. She wanted to get to him, stop the bleeding. The Hacker: The game was over, he had one. He took one last look at the girl. Tears streaming down, devastation written all over her face. His job was done. And with that, he left, vanished into the nightfall.