Beth still parked her car blocks away from the Hendrix's house even though she'd been invited over for a fourth time in almost two weeks. She didn't know who might see her or be watching and she had to look believable. She locked her car twice, making sure she really did it and looked back at it once more before starting down the sidewalk.
How long can you keep up this charade? a voice in her mind asked.
What charade? her mind asked it.
Either one, came its reply.
Beth's steps slowed down, unsure of what 'Either one' meant. Maybe this whole thing was one huge mistake. She could always just not show up—ever. Beth stopped quick and turned around, starting for her car.
You need to get to know your subject, a voice insisted. Beth stopped walking for a second time within a few seconds. She contemplated ignoring the voice as she knew it was manipulating her into going to see Alison Hendrix up close again. A fourth visit won't hurt...
There's charade number one, another voice commented softly. Beth looked around, wondering how strange she looked, but no one was around to witness her indecisiveness.
"Fuck it," Beth muttered, turning around to go to the Hendrix house. She figured she ought to see her—it was too late to back out. It'd be rude to stand her up. Beth's footsteps quickened as she continued on her way, never noticing the blonde head poking up out of a seemingly empty car.
. . .
"Elizabeth Childs, where are you going?" Rachel murmured to herself as she watched the brunette walk by. She shook her head as she watched the highly dangerous assassin walk along the side of the road like a regular person without a care in the world. Rachel waited for the woman to turn down another street before starting up her car and creeping down to the end of the road to just before where Beth had turned. The woman then turned up a driveway. The mailbox at the end read HENDRIX. "To Hendrix's again? Childs, Childs, Childs..."
. . .
Beth stood at the door and stared at the welcome mat before working up the courage to knock. She knocked three times and waited. She knew that she had about thirty seconds before she'd hear Alison's footsteps. The suburban woman would race down the stairs, stop and check herself out in a mirror in the hall, adjust her ponytail, and straighten her shirt out before she would answer the door. Right on '30', the door swung open to reveal a smiling Alison.
"Hi," Alison greeted her shyly, offering a hand to the assassin. Beth looked at it then quickly smiled at her and took the hand with her own. Alison's hand felt soft and warm, to which Beth had grown accustomed.
"Hi," Beth replied evenly. Alison stepped aside, beckoning for Beth to come in. Beth took a step in and allowed Alison to close the door behind her.
"So what do you do, Beth?" Alison asked, leading her into the kitchen where she'd set out a bottle of wine and two glasses. Beth tried not to gawk at the set-up or think too much of it as she took the time to admire Alison's knife rack. "I figured I might as well ask by now."
"Isn't it a bit early for alcohol?" Beth asked, refocusing herself on Alison. She couldn't help it. Her curiosity had gotten the better of her. Alison gestured to a stool and Beth pulled it out and sat on it.
"It's never too early for alcohol," Alison responded with a lighthearted smile and a joking tone as she poured Beth half a glass. The assassin tried not to be too bothered by the fact that she hadn't asked how much she wanted. She'd just assumed. Correctly. Beth stared at the stream of purple and listened to the noise it made as it accumulated in the glass.
"I'm um, I'm a detective," Beth told her, answering her question from earlier. She slid a glass over to herself and looked at her own reflection in it.
"A detective!" Alison exclaimed, taking a sip. "That's interesting!"
"Yeah, it's... Difficult, but never a dull day," Beth nodded, deciding to drink some in order to fill the space.
"How much college do you need for that?" Alison inquired. "My son wants to be a cop. But last week it was a fireman. You know how boys are. But I'm sure he'll love you when he meets you! But be warned. You will be pelted with questions."
"Oh, uh, not too much college," Beth told her, hoping that wasn't a lie. "The main part is getting promoted from officer to detective."
"I went to college... I liked kinesiology... College was a crazy time," Alison smiled faintly at the memories pouring into her mind.
"Was it? For you?" Beth asked, trying not to gawk at how quickly Alison was drinking her wine. "I'm sorry, you just don't strike me as the wild type."
"Yes, well, it was a time of self-discovery... Self-denial... But even... Self-acceptance in some ways, I suppose..." Alison trailed off before taking her last sip.
"Care to expand on that?" Beth asked, raising her glass to her lips as she looked at Alison intently. The suburban woman poured herself another glass as the assassin spoke to her.
"My partner at the time... She kind of did her own thing. She didn't go to college with a set career choice. I almost think she went just so she could say she'd gone," Alison explained, watching Beth's face for a reaction to her story.
"So you had a girlfriend," Beth commented, nodding. Up went the glass to Alison's lips yet again. She felt a twinge of jealousy and tried to wash it away with a sip of wine. it didn't work.
Charade number two, a voice cackled triumphantly.
"Yes and no. I was, let's say, experimenting."
"And what was your conclusion to your little experiment?" Beth asked nonchalantly. "If I may ask."
"I've found happiness in my husband, Donnie," Alison replied with a single, sharp nod. She took a long, awkward sip of her wine. Beth stared at her questioningly.
"You... never answered my question?" Beth remarked, still staring.
"You're very inquisitive," Alison commented with an unreadable tone as she seemed to drink the majority of her second glass. Beth panicked for a second until she saw Alison smile. "I like that. It means you like knowledge."
"Yeah, gathering knowledge... Kinda my thing," Beth shrugged. She stared at Alison, unaware of the irony of the statement, but whose eyes also seemed glossed over. Probably from the wine.
"Of course it is," Alison agreed as she poured herself another glass of wine before hers was even finished. "More?"
Alison gestured to Beth's nearly empty glass and the assassin waved her hand and shook her head. Alison being drunk was one thing—and man could that woman drink—but Beth couldn't let herself go like that. Not yet, at least.
"No, thank you."
"Hm. Suit yourself," Alison replied, setting the bottle down. "My conclusion to my little experiment is that I like women. And men. But um, mostly men. I don't... I mean, perhaps it was just a phase."
"Just a phase, huh?"
"Maybe."
"Maybe?"
"Maybe."
"Would you ever go for a girl now?" Beth asked, leaning in and looking at Alison's glossy pink lips. Alison stared at Beth long and hard as if she'd just asked her the meaning of life.
"I- I've found happiness in my husband. Donnie," the woman repeated herself from earlier in a voice that said otherwise. She reached for her wineglass for comfort. Beth could tell she'd be taking another reassuring swig from it soon. The assassin watched Alison's eyes fall onto her own lips and she smiled knowingly.
"Yes, that may be so. But say you weren't married yet. Would you ever go for a girl now?" Beth asked again, watching Alison's face. Alison blinked a few times rapidly and Beth hoped she hadn't gone too far with asking.
"You know, you're very easy to talk to," Alison sighed, blinking slowly as she gazed into Beth's eyes. She took a large gulp of wine before she smiled lazily an pointed a finger at her. "That's dangerous—you're dangerous."
"Am I?" Beth asked with an amused smirk.
You have no idea...
"Yes. Yes because you could really unravel a person—"
"A person like you?" Beth asked, testing Alison.
"—and do some damage... That's dangerous," Alison continued. She paused, absorbing Beth's statement. She whispered still keeping her smile, "Yes. Yes, a person like me."
"And what is there for me to unravel?" Beth inquired in a strange tone, completely focused on Alison. "Are you not an open book?"
"I'm gonna tell you this because I... trust. You," Alison remarked absentmindedly. "I trust you."
"Okay... Lay it on me."
"Donnie..." Alison paused again. "He left me alone the other day. He stood me up for football. What is he gonna do with that anyway? Can he bounce a football like a ball?"
Beth's eyes squinted out of confusion and her brows furrowed as she asked, "What?"
"Well I suppose he could... It is a ball after all—silly me!" Alison exclaimed, putting a hand against her own face as she looked back up at Beth. "I'll bet it bounces higher too... No wonder... It's such steep competition..."
"You're not making any sense—"
"That's okay. You understand..."
"No. See, I don't," Beth told her.
"You're a cop... You figure it out," Alison paused in anticipation. Beth only blinked in response. This wasn't supposed to happen. None of it. Not her visit with her own damn target. Not the drunkenness between them. And certainly not the unloading of nonsensical emotional baggage. If anything, it made Alison more human and less... target-y. Alison pointed to Beth's chest. "Is that your uniform?"
Beth peered down at her white shirt and dark pants.
"No, it's not—"
"You know, you're very pretty. Very."
"Am I?"
Alison nodded as she slipped off her stool and approached Beth.
"Have you ever considered wearing your hair up?" she asked, raising an arm up as if she were about to stroke Beth's hair. Beth slipped off her stool backwards and dodged the contact by ducking away from the woman's approaching hand. She gently grabbed Alison's arm by the wrist and set it by her side.
"Okay, I didn't know you were like this..." Beth murmured as Alison stared helplessly at her. Beth looked around for a distraction and her eyes settled once again on the knife rack. Alison was vulnerable. And intoxicated. Perfect chance to kill her right then and there. No one was home. No one would see her. Sure she would've preferred a gun, but she didn't have one at that moment. A kill was a kill, she decided.
Alison Hendrix. Aged 28. A husband and two kids. Adopted kids. A witness and accidental murderer. And an alcoholic? Possibly deeply unhappy... Beth's mind raced with tidbits of information on the woman. She cleared her head and grabbed Alison gently by the arm.
"Okay... We just met... I can't have you collapsing on me," she muttered, leading the off-balanced woman upstairs. After a few minutes of struggling, Beth had managed to get Alison to the top of the stairs.
"You're too kind," Alison murmured, looking at Beth. The assassin rolled her eyes as she sat the woman down on the bed.
"Lie down," Beth instructed firmly and coolly, trying to distance herself from Alison. "Just... Stay. Right there. Don't move."
Alison remained still, staring up at the ceiling and unaware of Beth's intentions to kill her. The assassin took one last glance at her before turning to walk out the door. Just as her body passed through the doorway, she heard a weak voice call out for her.
"Beth?" Alison called feebly from the bed. Beth froze in place and cringed, not knowing what to expect. She turned around slowly and kept a patient countenance.
"Yes?"
"Please don't leave me..." Alison begged softly. Beth felt her heart crumble at the doleful desperateness in her tone of voice. Beth rolled her eyes, more at herself than Alison, and trudged back over to her. The soccer mom smiled up at her thankfully before lightly closing her eyes. Beth took this time to give Alison's face a hard stare as she tried to will herself into not feeling anything toward this woman. Alison scooted clumsily over and patted the bed. "Come lie down with me."
Beth stood still, all her muscles rigid and her feet nailed to the floor. She swallowed hard and pressed her lips together and continued staring at Alison, who hadn't even opened her eyes to speak. The assassin's eyes swept over Alison's closed, seemingly peaceful eyes to her cute nose and then to her relaxed pink lips. To her chin and her neck that moved whenever she swallowed. To her petite shoulders to which her skinny arms were connected and to her chest and her stomach that rose and fell with each tranquil breath. Down to her hips and her legs and all the way to her feet. Beth crept closer like a curious creature and her sight moved back up to the suburban woman's face.
"You still there?" Alison asked, opening one eye to peek at Beth. The assassin nodded silently before deciding to at least sit on the end of the bed.
"Yeah, I'm still here," she sighed heavily. She'd never seen this side of Alison. Perhaps killing her would be doing her a favour. Put her out of her miserable loneliness of which she never spoke.
"Promise you won't leave, okay?" Alison asked, keeping her eyes closed. Beth stared at her for a long time, watching her breathe and rest.
"I promise," she whispered. She witnessed a small smile spread on Alison's face in response to her statement and she found herself smiling too. She quickly wiped the smile off and grew serious as she turned her attention from Alison to the wall. She had to remain on schedule. She had about a week and a half left to kill her otherwise she herself was all over. After a while of sitting and doing absolutely nothing—not even really thinking about anything either—Beth got up in slow motion so as not to disturb the bed and cause Alison to wake up. She peeked over her shoulder at the woman who seemed to be asleep.
Just as her right foot crossed the line between the room and the hallway, she heard a meek, "Beth..."
She locked her jaw shut and pressed her lips together as she rolled her eyes. She straightened her posture and recomposed herself as she turned around for a second time.
"Yes?" she asked through clenched teeth.
"Don't leave me," Alison reminded her again, although a pleading tone still clung to her voice. Despite Beth's efforts, her heart melted yet a second time. She sighed and returned to the bed, sitting down on the edge. After a few seconds of sitting, without another word, she turned herself horizontal so that she lay down as Alison had asked of her earlier.
"I'm not leaving..." she murmured, staring at the white ceiling. She lifted her arm and rested the back of her wrist against her own forehead and exhaled deeply.
"Good. I like it when you're here," Alison mumbled, scorching closer to Beth. Every fibre of the woman's being wanted to move away from the suburban woman to make up for the space lost, but nevertheless, she stayed where she was.
Before she could help herself, Beth heard her mouth utter the words, "Good because I like it when I'm here too."
