HUNTED

Millicent was moving through the supermarket, her eyes looking down to her list. She normally enjoyed shopping, but today she was on edge. Her lips were in a tight line as she stared at the list, getting lost between the items. She was on Aisle 4; she'd forgotten something from Aisle 1. She didn't even curse under her breath like she normally would. She simply stood there in front of the cereal, her eyes glued to the scrap of stationery with her list written on it.

Millicent was on edge for a reason. A few weeks before, she'd encountered a strange woman in the store. It started out as an innocent encounter in the aisles, a cart tapping that seemed to catch them both off guard.

The woman laughed as she eyed the point of contact, "Oh, silly me! My head must be up in the clouds or something," she giggled, shrugging off the incident and moving away before Millicent could respond, but she was laughing too.

That moment felt so far away now. Just the following week, she'd encountered the woman in the parking lot. Millicent was putting her items into her backseat, her focus on getting everything in the right spot. When she moved to return her cart, the woman was across the lane of traffic, her arms crossed as she stared. She was standing just two spaces away from the cart return. Millicent was tempted to just leave her cart, but she didn't feel right about it, so she approached.

"I realize that I know you now," the woman said coldly. Millicent pushed her cart into the return space. It clanged against the sides as it rolled deeper into the area. "You probably don't know me, but boy, I know you very well, and you're going to be sorry we ever crossed paths, very sorry."

"I beg your pardon?" Millicent asked. She'd never seen this woman, and judging by her young age, they probably hadn't crossed paths aside from that one incident in the store. Millicent eyed her carefully, taken aback by the rage boiling behind her alert eyes.

"You heard me," the woman growled. "I know you, and I know exactly who you are. If you know what's good for you, you'll stay away from me or we'll both be sorry."

The woman rushed into her car before Millicent could respond. A cold mist started to fall, so Millicent rushed to her car. As she prepared to pull away, the woman ripped out of her parking lot, nearly hitting an employee and a few pedestrians as she fled the scene. Millicent was concerned, but she hoped it was nothing.

As she moved back to the first aisle, she hoped her change in her schedule would be enough to avoid her. Normally she went to her beauty appointment first, but today she scheduled that later so she could do her shopping first. It was around ten in the morning, and there were very few other shoppers wandering the aisles. Everyone else was either at the pharmacy, the bakery, or back home where it was safe.

That's where Millicent wanted to be: Home. Since her encounter, she hadn't left the house for much. She'd gone to an event at Elwood City High to support Muffy and her friends, but otherwise, she hadn't left her home office. As she rounded the corner and noticed someone who resembled the mysterious angry woman, she gasped, her heart pounding. She wondered if she could even do this as the woman shifted, revealing she was just an ordinary stranger minding her ordinary business.

'Get it together, Mil,' Millicent thought, moving into Aisle 1. The soups and other canned goods were on this aisle, as well as the gourmet spaghetti sauce Bailey needed for the night's dinner. As Millicent browsed the selection, she felt eyes on her. She thought she was being paranoid again, but as she looked around, she saw her approaching, a strut in her step as she moved down the aisle with a wicked smile. 'She's a bombshell,' Millicent thought, 'So what does she want with me?'

The point of contact this time was an explosion, not just a tap. Items flew out of both carts and hit the floor, a glass jar shattering on the floor next to the angry woman. She never blinked as the store went silent aside from running footsteps. Three employees converged at the ends of the aisle. They looked on with confusion at the impact scene: Millicent and the strange woman merely stood there staring at each other, Millicent's face contorted with confusion as the other woman stood there with a glare in her eyes. She was furious. Millicent was nearly upset. The employees had no idea what to think—normally patrons were apologizing and trying to find something to clean up the mess with. These women merely stood there as if they were frozen in time.

"You're going to regret ever coming here," the woman whispered with a demonic tone. "You're going to regret the day you were born, the days you lived, and everything between your birth and your demise," she said coldly, turning on a heel and rushing away. The two employees at the end of the aisle cleared out of her way, quickly noticing the giant dent in her cart. Millicent's was slightly mangled as well, they noticed, as they finally converged on the scene.

"What happened?" a kind older man asked, a light grin on his lips. Millicent's expression never changed—she was still stunned, "I have no idea, but I'd like for someone to walk me to my car," she whispered.

The man nodded, and within moments, a manager was leading her to her car empty-handed. Millicent turned to him as she got inside, "Do you deliver to local residents?" she questioned. He shook his head. Millicent immediately plastered a fake smile on her lips, "That's fine. Thank you," she said. The manager nodded and moved back inside, trying to return to his normal day. He was unaware that Millicent's was far from normal.

As she pulled into the Crosswire's cavernous garage, Millicent noticed something fluttering around her trunk. She got out and discovered a yellow envelope. Millicent's pulse immediately rose as she slid it out of its slot. A woman's handwriting had scrawled her name on the front in wide, looping letters. Millicent carefully opened the letter, hoping it was something innocent. What she found was something sinister with an accompanying photograph: Of the woman with a grimace of passion on top of her husband...who had the same expression and wore just as few of clothes.

Millicent immediately threw up, clutching the car as her stomach disbursed everything she'd ever eaten, it felt like. She stood there staring at the floor as it spun in brilliant circles, faster and faster. If her hand wasn't clutching the car, she would've fallen in her own mess. Instead she stood there feeling as if an impending disaster had finally found her and caused the first wave of destruction. She wondered if and when the next wave would hit, but she had one vow in mind: She would not be leaving home.

"Miss?" Bailey called, rushing into the garage. He stopped as he saw the scene. Without a word, he grabbed her elbow, "I'll escort you to your master suite, Madam," he said. Millicent didn't respond, wondering if her body could even do such a thing. Surprisingly to her, her frozen feet came to life and helped her move into the house.

After cleaning up the mess in the garage, Bailey returned to help Millicent in any way he could. She had already changed into her robe, but she still had other matters to take care of. Bailey didn't mind doing the shopping, but she had to write out the instructions of who to call in order to cancel her beauty appointment. He didn't mind doing these things, this loyal butler. He had a look of concern as he left her room, but he refused to ask questions. In his eyes, Millicent was merely having a rough morning, probably a stomach bug hitting her all of the sudden. He remained silent until he decided to leave for the store. He informed her that he was leaving and flashed his cell phone. Millicent nodded, and within moments of his departure, she'd poured herself a large glass of wine and settled into an arm chair next to her window.

Three days had passed since the incident. Millicent hadn't changed out of her robe for more than five seconds, and that was just to change into a thicker pair of socks, ruining the robe's knot. She sat in her arm chair, at her desk, or in the bed in silence during this time, and the rest of the household was starting to notice her melancholy disposition.

Muffy guessed that she was lonely, as her father had spent considerable days in Metropolis building up his new dealership. Ed thought it was because the busy teenaged Muffy hadn't spent enough time with her either—"She'd always understood my business trips before, but a daughter who ignores her? That's certainly new." Bailey heard their theories, but he had one of his own. He wondered if her illness was more of a long-term thing, a secret that was tearing her apart.

After Ed and Muffy had left to pursue their day's events, Bailey brought a breakfast tray into the master suite. Millicent was sitting at her vanity, staring at her own reflection in the mirror. She didn't turn away as Bailey set the tray behind her.

"I have breakfast for you, Madam. I'll also add that Ed and Miss Muffy have requested dinner with you tonight in Metropolis. I'm driving them in the limo, and-"

"I'm not going," Millicent interrupted, her eyes still locked on her own reflection. "Send them my regards though. I'd love to go, I really would, but...I can't bear to leave, not yet."

"Forgive me for prying, Madam, but...are you gravely ill?" Bailey questioned. This broke Millicent's concentration. She turned around to him with a strange look. That was not the answer to her situation, but she was concerned, "Do I look that awful, Bailey? Do they think I have cancer or something?"

Bailey shook his head, "No, Madam, this was my own concern. I haven't shared with them what happened in the garage, and the letter you left there...well, I destroyed it," he said, clearing his throat.

Millicent gave him a stern look, "You saw it? The photograph and the letter?"

"Unfortunately, Madam, but I believed it was the work of a con artist. As often as I drive Mr. Crosswire to and from events, when would he have the time for such acts? I suspected it was a sham. Besides, I've never seen that woman before, not here or at his office. I help him for meetings, remember."

Millicent sighed, "I often forget how loyal you are to all of us, not just one individual. I think it's a sham too, but I've seen that woman. She's been stalking me at the grocery store, and...I'm afraid, Bailey. I'm very much afraid of what she's capable of. I don't want you all to leave me alone here tonight. Please, see if they'll take a home-cooked meal. Go to the organic market instead of the regular one, anything to avoid confrontation."

"I can do that, Madam, but I feel you should share your concerns with your husband. You are both very high-ranking people in this community. A lot of people might be jealous of your position and try inappropriate things to make you all weaker. I know the truth, and honestly, your husband and daughter would appreciate the truth as well," Bailey smiled.

Millicent was happy to have such a butler. When he left the room, she actually ate part of her breakfast, something she'd only half done since locking herself away. Then, she ran herself a hot bath and changed into some loose-fitting house clothes, leaving the robe neatly folded in the laundry hamper. She then tried to work in her office, but she was still jumpy, and every little noise made her gasp or cry out from fear.

Ed slammed his fork down onto the table, making the family jump. Millicent had just expressed her concerns about this strange woman, hoping for the sympathy Bailey mentioned. Instead, Ed's eyes filled with fury. Millicent sank into her seat, trying not to look her husband in the eye as he stammered.

"Well...that's...that's just ridiculous!" Ed hissed. "Why would some woman try to do this to you? You've done nothing to anyone! And an affair? Please, when would I have time? She's just trying to get to you, and I can't believe this is what's been keeping you in your room. Grow up, Millicent!"

"Daddy, she is grown up. We women are much more emotional creatures-"

"Well stop if, for all of our sakes," Ed said sternly, turning to his daughter apologetically, "Sorry to interrupt, Muffin, but it's a valid point I'm making here. Your mother shouldn't let such stupid things bother her. If you have a problem, tell me sooner, Millicent. Are you okay? Come on, look at me!" Ed called.

Millicent tried, but tears immediately poured from her eyes. She felt so alone. Why is it a man in their service, a butler, had more tender feelings for her than her own husband? She felt betrayed—how could he think her feelings were stupid?

"Oh, what's that about? Stop, Mil. You're ruining a perfectly good family evening!" Ed called, trying to take his wife's hand. She snatched her hand away and fled the room, rushing into one of her favorite guest bedrooms. She was sobbing as she lay on the bed, but she knew no one but Bailey would come for her. That only made her cry harder. How did her life come to this?

Millicent remained in the guest room for the next several nights, and she refused to have anything to do with Ed. She and Muffy chatted briefly, but the teenaged girl was focused on her own problems, namely an away trip three hours away for a cheerleading competition. Millicent had agreed to take her a few months before, but now Millicent doubted she could make it. Muffy acted, and now she'd be spending the weekend alone as Ed and Muffy went to the event.

As the day grew nearer, Millicent grew more paranoid. There was a new problem, hang up phone calls that came at all hours of the day. Bailey knew, but he promised to keep her problems quiet. He was apologetic at his suggestion now that the outcome was unpleasant, but Millicent quickly forgave him. He really did seem to care for her. He was nothing like Ed, who'd spent the last two nights yelling through the door for her to 'Come to her senses' and to 'Quit moping around like an invalid.' Millicent wasn't an invalid; she was scared. And now that her husband wasn't supportive of her feelings, she was growing more and more insecure about life.

She was afraid the woman would find her, but she was more afraid that Ed really did know the woman. He hadn't reacted in such a lively fashion since Muffy questioned them about getting a nose ring when she was thirteen. He was furious at the idea, making the young teen cry as he threw a tantrum throughout the house. By the time it was over, Muffy was certain that she'd never get anything pierced, even another hole in her ears, making the parents proud that his antics had worked.

But he'd never reacted that way to her. Millicent was his wife. They'd been married nearly thirty years. How dare he act like her fears were something wrong with her. There was more to this story, but he didn't seem to care. To him, this woman was a figment of her overactive imagination.

As the calls became more frequent, Millicent knew this woman wasn't just some imaginary character. She existed, and she had their phone number. As if on cue, these phone calls reached a new level of fear when a woman could be heard breathing in the background. She didn't have to say a word to get a rise out of Millicent: She immediately hunted down Bailey to ask him if he could keep Muffy and Ed home over the weekend.

"Did they not tell you?" he questioned, eying Millicent carefully. He could immediately tell that they'd told her nothing, that whatever he was about to say could hurt her deeply. "Madam, they left without you this morning. The trip starts tomorrow, but Ed wanted a head start on the driving. They've visiting a tourist attraction along the way and wanted plenty of time."

Millicent sank into a nearby arm chair. She looked up to Bailey with child-like eyes, "Please tell me you're not going anywhere this weekend," she pleaded. Bailey nodded: He'd be staying on the estate grounds. Millicent was so relieved that she cracked a smile, "I'm going to move into the guest room nearest to your cottage. It means so much to me that you'll be here, so, so much," she cried, leaving the room.

As the day turned to night, the two ate dinner together in the living room. Millicent almost felt better about life...until the phone rang. Bailey sighed, and they both entered a nonverbal agreement to ignore the phone.

But as one call ended, another began. For relief, they had to answer. When they did, or rather, when Bailey answered, he discovered a frantic friend on the other side of the line. He was desperately needed elsewhere as his friend had been in a severe accident. He needed care, care that only Bailey could provide. He had no choice: He had to leave Millicent.

"Bailey, can't I go with you? Please? I can help-" Millicent pleaded, but Bailey held up his hand. Millicent shook her head, "No, please-"

"You can't. I've called another friend and asked him to come over. He'll be here in the morning, and I'm sure you'll be fine for tonight. I know a police officer who might be willing to up patrols in the area if you truly feel that unsafe, but I have no doubt that you'll be fine. All of this will pass in due time, and you'll be fine in the end," Bailey smiled.

His words were reassuring, but as his taillights faded into the distance, Millicent wondered how she could possibly be safe with that madwoman roaming the streets. She turned on many lights and curled up in one of the guest rooms that was furthest from any outside exits. She lay awake, her eyes playing tricks on her as she stared at the walls. She thought she saw flashes of light, but her mind told her this was just a sign of tiredness, a sign that she needed to get some sleep.

With her eyes closed, she could hear things. Everything sounded much louder than before. The water feature dozens of square feet away sounded like a raging river in the same room. She could hear whirring in the distance that reminded her of several saws shredding wood at once—in reality it was a very quiet freezer fan across the house.

Her mind was playing constant tricks on her, but Millicent wondered if there was meaning behind them. She'd stay awake to find out. She had no choice.

Millicent's eyes shot open. It was an hour later than when she last looked at the clock. Despite very careful body control, she'd somehow fallen asleep. And since then and now, a strange new noise was added to the mix. The sound had a pattern: [sound]...pause...[sound]. Millicent had no idea how to describe the sound, but she didn't recognize it. Her rational mind went through a lifetime of sound memories. Nothing sounded similar to her...

...except very soft, slow footsteps.

Millicent's heart was in her throat. Someone or something must be in the house, slowly and methodically moving throughout the lavish estate. Any normal burglar wouldn't be moving so slowly, she thought, only making her paranoia worse. All she knew was one specific fact: She needed to find a weapon as fast as she possibly could.

The room was bare. It was a guest room, one of dozens, and due to its proximity—it was the furthest from everything—the family only used the room in dire situations. In fact, the last person to use the room was probably a previous owner. Even Millicent's and Ed's most hated house guests weren't put this far away, mothers-in-law included. The only thing the room really had was a bed and an empty wardrobe.

Millicent decided she needed to at least check the wardrobe to make sure it didn't house a stray fire poker or a gun or something worthy. All she found was dust, and unless her attacker was asthmatic, this would have little to no effect.

Outside, the steps were getting louder. Millicent was deeply concerned. She turned and looked to the closet door. Like the wardrobe, it should be empty, but most important, it should be one of the rooms that had access to the attic through a hidden door.

But when Millicent looked inside, she found the closet empty, as she expected, but the walls were smooth as well, as was the ceiling. This room was merely a room, a small one at that. She nearly broke into tears as she closed the door behind her and sat at the back of the small room.

In the hallway, the slow footsteps were getting closer. After what felt like an eternity, the door to the guest room slowly opened, the only noise being a tiny squeak. Millicent tense as she heard it, wondering who could possibly be in the room. She knew but she hoped it was someone else, possibly a renewed Ed who'd come to his senses.

But it wasn't Ed. Within moments, the closet door was open. The figure was short and masked with black pantyhose, but Millicent could still see the cruel, evil eyes through the fabric. She knew it was the woman from the store, the woman from the letter, and the woman from the photograph. And as the gun rose to her eye level, she knew this was the woman who would take her life and feel no remorse.

Bang!

And it all went black.

The woman being led into the courthouse looked innocent enough. Her auburn hair was a little past her shoulders. It blew back behind her in a plume of red haze, making her almost look angelic against the spring backdrop of Elwood City. She was alone right now aside from four guards, two in front of her and two behind her. They had stern looks on their faces, but her face? A soft smile graced her lips. Her eyes were bright and shining. If it weren't for the shackles and orange jumpsuit, the cops on either side, one could accurately compare her to a virginal maiden from numerous fine pieces of art.

But this was no such woman. In an instant, the quiet spring morning was ripped apart by shouting and bright flashes of light. She'd reached the mob of reporters swarming the courthouse doors, the lot of them covering the first cold-blooded murder the town had ever heard of. They wanted anything they could dig up on this horrific killer and the details to the crime they never expected to happen.

Most of the details were revealed by now. Millicent Crosswire was found dead inside their lavish home. Ed Crosswire found her, and he quickly forced their daughter from the home. Then the police came, and it didn't take long for a suspect to pop up: The butler knew of a woman who'd been harassing her. Ed made no mention of her. He'd since been arrested for making false statements to the police, aiding and abetting, and in the eyes of the shocked community, adultery.

The photograph that Bailey dutifully destroyed was very much real, taken almost two years before. Nine months after that night, their son was born. He was now in the care of the woman's sister, an older woman who attended the trial daily waiting her turn to testify against her sister.

The only one no one knew much about now was Muffy. She'd disappeared once Ed was arrested. The truth was that she'd been sent to boarding school by her father just before his accounts were frozen, but Elwood City was a landing ground for wild stories. Everyone had one about the Crosswire family and its dark secret, but they were all really waiting for the truth. They knew it would live up to their wild stories, and once they found out from Bailey that Millicent had concerns about the woman that Ed ignored, they knew the tragic stories they'd created—that Millicent was once a recluse living in fear of her husband's crazed mistress—were unfortunately true.

The events didn't exactly change the community. Another similar family quickly moved into the estate. They had that part of the house completely remodeled to make it better for entertaining. Their children, like Muffy once did, hosted birthday parties, sleepover parties, general 'please just hang out with me' parties. The Crosswire's were allbut erased, and if it weren't for the paranoid sensation the new mistress of the home received when she walked through that renovated wing, their story would be silenced for all of time. That feeling helped them to never forget, if they allowed themselves to feel it at all.

~End

A/N: As you can tell by the breaklines, this was initially a chaptered piece. 1) It's kind of short, but 2) My wifi has been awful, so I've decided to post this as a one-shot instead. I know it's dark, but see my A/N for "The Stalker", Chapter 4 for my reasoning. DASL is a frustrated writer with limited internet access, so yeah, expect more of this if my problem continues.