Chapter One:
Lover’s Lane
The full moon illuminated Lover’s Lane a pale blue glow. What was once a hot spot for young teenagers to kiss, have sex and God knows what else, has since then become a barren wasteland. This site is lucky to see at least one visitor a month now.
Twenty some odd years ago, kids would park here and watch the sunrise, overlooking the town of Huntsville, population just over 600. Kids these days are more concerned with their Snapchats and Instagram likes than anything else. Clichéd places like Lover’s Lane become a relic of the past. Something parents talk about and kids roll their eyes at before making a fake gag reflex at the thought of their parents doing the nasty.
It had been exactly 37 days, 16 hours and 45 minutes since Lover’s Lane had last seen a car pull into the lot. The man in the car did not wish to canoodle with any woman; rather he had to take a piss and came to the conclusion that this would be the best spot. He was in the area for less than six minutes. The same can’t be said for the next visitor.
@
Sedai and @
LTIZZY, husband and wife, had a rough patch in their relationship. Things got a little stale, a little less exciting and a little too routine. Sedai knew he needed to spice things up a bit and thought it would be a good idea to bring LTIzzy to the place they first made love. Their yellow Ford Pinto pulled into Lover’s Lane and Sedai parked the car three spots down from the entrance.
They had a perfect view of the town.
You could see every building Huntsville had to offer, which wasn’t many. A typical small all-American town, which had one hospital, one police station, one school, pretty much one of everything. For some, that was perfect, for others it wasn’t enough. Both Sedai and LTIzzy had grown up in Huntsville, they never cared to leave it. Not even for vacation. This lifestyle could have had a hand in their current marital predicament.
Sedai turned off the engine, killed the headlights. “You remember this spot right?” he asked.
LTIzzy let out a small smile and nodded her head. She took off her seatbelt. Sedai did the same.
“The view hasn’t changed much since then.” LTIzzy whispered. “No.” Sedai replied. “It’s still as beautiful as ever”. His eyes never left hers to look out the window. He still had that charm.
He leaned in and gave her a passionate kiss, probably the most passionate kiss he’d given in a long time.
Both Sedai and LTIzzy made out passionately in the car. Whatever dullness was in the relationship was gone now. Sedai had his teenage libido back and put it to good use. LTIzzy accidentally kicked the horn with her foot. They both laughed at the awkwardness of being in such a small vehicle.
“Maybe we should try the backseat?” LTIzzy asked.
Sedai simply nodded and they made their way into the back.
Headlights filled the once dark area known as Lover’s Lane. Another vehicle pulled into the lot. It parked two spots over from them. This was the most action Lover’s Lane had seen in years.
Of all the places and of all the times this guy had to be right here right now, ruining my night, Sedai thought to himself. He looked out the window to see who was there. It was too dark, he can’t make anything out and decided to ignore it.
The other vehicle turned off their engine. The creak of the car door opening made LTIzzy pause. The door slammed shut.
“Maybe we should stop.”
Sedai rolled his eyes, “Are you kidding me?”
LTIzzy moved up from Sedai and buttoned her shirt. “What if it’s a cop?”
“Then he’d had his lights on.” Sedai replied.
TAP TAP. Sedai looked to the window. A man stood there, he peered inside. LTIzzy quickly finished her buttons and fixed her hair.
“Who the hell does this guy think he is?” Sedai asked. He moved over and rolled the front window down.
“Can I help you?” he asked.
“Get out.” The man said. The voice was deep, strong and terrifying. Two words said with such force and confidence to make a strong man weak.
Not tonight though, not for Sedai. This was his night and he wasn’t going to let some pervert ruin it for him.
“Look buddy, I don’t know what your deal is, but I’m trying to have a romantic evening with my wife.”
“Get out of the vehicle. Now.” The man’s face was covered by shadows. He looked big, but Sedai measured him up and figured he could take him if need be. So he moved to open the door.
“Look, I don’t want to have to tell you again to bugger off, but you’re startin’ to really piss me off.” Sedai spoke as he exited the vehicle.
The man drew a gun. A Rock Island Armory M206 .38 Spl. Small, girlish and kind of lame, but when shoved in your face, the scariest thing you’ll ever see. LTIzzy didn’t see any of the commotion outside; Sedai’s body blocked her line of sight. The man had the gun pointed directly at his head. Sedai trembled with fear. He had never been in such a situation before. The most terrifying thing that ever happened to him was in eighth grade when the school bully challenged him to a fight. Sedai wanted to look tough and impress the girls, so he said yes. The rest of the day, the only thing that went through his head was how badly was the bully going to hurt him. Girls dig scars right? He kept telling himself that until the bell rang and he had to meet his maker.
That day the bully never showed up. A default victory for Sedai, one that he wasn’t proud of, but played up the persona for the rest of the school year. Sedai didn’t think about that day in elementary school, he didn’t think about the gun pointed to his head either. He thought about his wife, LTIzzy. Hoping to God that she wouldn’t be hurt tonight.
The man moved his thumb to the hammer spur and pulled it back. Sedai let out a whimper as a single tear dropped down his cheek.
“Please don’t. Please, I don’t know what you want, but if it’s money, just take it. Take it all, but please don’t hurt us.”
“Get on your knees.”
Sedai knew that he had to follow the man’s orders, or he’d be a dead body with a hole for a face.
He got on his knees. When he dropped to his knees, LTIzzy got a full view of the man with the gun. She screamed.
He pulled the trigger.
Blood, skull and brain matter slammed against the car door and splattered the window. What was left of Sedai’s head flew backwards and hit the car door, denting it. The lifeless body slid to the ground, leaving a blood streak along the yellow panel.
Sedai was dead.
LTIzzy feared for her life and tried to climb into the front seat of the vehicle. The man with the gun opened the front door and slid inside. Fear froze LTIzzy, she had no keys to the car, no way of getting out and a killer that sat directly in front of her. She was out of options.
The man turned to her, gun lazily pointed towards her chest.
“Scream for me.”
Just as the shriek left her lips, a shot rang out. A bright flash illuminated the interior of the car before the wet redness hit the back window. Another flash went off, timed with the bang. LTIzzy’s lifeless body slumped down the backseat of the car. Eyes open, starring frozenly up towards the sky. Blood splatter on her face.
The man exited the vehicle and placed the gun on the hood of the car. No prints were going to be found, he wore gloves. No eyewitness around, the place was deserted. Two victims, a husband and a wife looking to rekindle their dying relationship, never got the chance.
The man walked over to his vehicle, calmly. He entered the driver’s side door and the engine roared to life. Headlights turned on, overlooked the town of Huntsville, population just over 600, minus two.