'They aren't cured, Joseph. Once they cross that line and become cannibals, they remain monsters forever.'
'But that can't be! There has to be a cure!'
'Settle down. It's only mythology. No need to get yourself al worked up.' Prudence was not one of Joe's strong points and he had once again drawn the snickers and stares of his peers. He lowered his head and crossed his arms over his chest as he settled back into his chair.
The professor continued. 'Wel, then. Normal y in Native American folklore, the ability to take on the shape of animals was used for purposes of spiritual enlightenment, healing, and personal growth. Even evil shape-shifters didn't general y attack and eat humans. This horrific trait was solely that of the
Wendigo, and the legend of this creature appears to have been used to warn against the practice of cannibalism.'
'Was there any truth to the legends? I mean, did anyone claim to have actual y seen one?'
The professor closed his eyes and cupped his forehead in his hands, trying to maintain his composure.
'It's an old legend. And though I'm sure there were a great many who believed in it a century or two ago, 'Wel, maybe they should,' Joe replied.
He fel silent, his eyes daring the professor to inquire further. The professor stared back with the unasked question lying flat on his tongue.
Did you kil that woman?
Suddenly Joe felt claustrophobic in the little classroom. He stood quickly, nearly flipping his chair over as he snatched up his backpack and made for the door.
The professor flinched when the huge sophomore stormed past.
'That's a very disturbed kid,' he whispered as Joe left the room and the door shut slowly behind him.
I'd be surprised if anyone gives it much credibility nowadays.'
Chapter Twenty
Alicia trembled as she lay on Joe's filthy sheets, which stil smel ed of blood, sweat, cum, and urine. Her legs were spread wide and bound along with her wrists. She had never been more terrified. The room stil stank of death even beneath the overpowering chemical smel of Pine-Sol and bleach.
In her mind she could stil see the body of the heavyset woman her captor had devoured where it had lain on the floor. The wood where her blood had pooled and coagulated was now bleached lighter than the rest of the floor. Alicia's ears stil rang with the woman's screams, sending shivers up and down her spine. That woman had died in unimaginable pain.
Alicia knew she was going to die next.
No matter how kind the big col ege kid had been to her before he'd left this morning. No matter how he'd tried to reassure her that he would never hurt her that way. The Band-Aids on her nipples said otherwise. She was dead.
Even if he was right about the serial kil er virus, that it was something like the vampire or werewolf curse, Alicia was stil not convinced they could reverse its effects. Especial y not after last night. Joe had consumed both blood and human flesh. If he had not been damned before he was certainly damned now and that meant Alicia was fucked right along with him. Stil, as long as he believed he could cure himself there was hope for her to escape.
Her wrists were getting infected where her skin had abraded from her daily attempts to wrestle free of the restraints. They would have time to heal now, though. Alicia had given up on trying to break free. She laid her head down on the pil ow and dreamt about her father. In her dreams he came to her, wiped the blood from her stomach, undid her restraints and told her he loved her and forgave her. He looked younger now, though, stronger, as if death had restored his youth. He wiped the tears from her face and kissed her forehead.
Then he began to comb her hair. She couldn't remember her father ever being this gentle and nurturing in life. He looked so different now. He looked…
Just like Superman.
Chapter Twenty-one
After leasing the Ford cargo van for their trip, Joe had gone back to the apartment to get Alicia ready to travel. He'd found her in a deep sleep, mumbling to herself. She'd woken up just as he'd started to dress her.
'Joe! I thought… I had a dream that my dad was here.'
'You looked so happy.'
'I was.'
Joe knew what she meant. She had been happy until she'd woken up to find herself stil locked in an apartment with a murderer.
'We're going on a trip.'
'We're going after that child kil er, aren't we?'
'Yes. We're going to Washington.'
Chapter Twenty-two
The big muscular col ege kid hadn't been to an SAA meeting in almost a week. And Frank hadn't seen
SuperPredator online lately either. His ass stil hadn't healed from his last encounter with the gorgeous cannibal.
Stil, al he could think about was another private moment with the clean-cut muscle-bound man with the hard blue eyes that scurried over every inch of you as he spoke as if sizing you for the kil, eyes that seemed to rip their way inside and invade every inch of you. He wanted him again, but he feared what another session with the SuperPredator might do to him.
He'd had a hard time explaining his wounds at the emergency ward. Luckily he was such a regular that they had barely listened to a word he said. They just cal ed for a psychiatrist to visit with him while they bandaged up his mutilated ass. Once he'd managed to convince the bored psychiatrist that he wasn't suicidal or delusional, he'd been released with a prescription for painkil ers and a recommendation to seek professional help. Frank had smiled warmly and left. He'd masturbated to the memory of the pain as he drove himself home, nearly crossing the yel ow line into oncoming traffic when he recal ed Joe's reaction as he slurped down the sliver of flesh sawed from Frank's buttocks.
It had shocked him to see the man ejaculate by merely tasting a smal morsel of his flesh. He'd never felt so loved as he had seeing the pleasure his meat had brought to the big carnivore.
The hunger that sprang into the man's eyes after the orgasm subsided had been terrifying but extremely erotic. He wanted to give more of himself to Joe, to see the predator's eyes rol up in his head and his body shudder as the ecstasy of blood and meat erupted from him. It had been obvious that the man had wanted more of Frank… much more, perhaps more than Frank could survive. Stil, Frank was wil ing to risk it. He hadn't been able to think of anything else since he'd run in terror from Joe's rundown apartment building.
Reading the cannibal fantasies on the
Long Pig site had almost convinced him it was worth losing his life for the experience of being consumed by such a powerful predator, to bind his flesh forever with that beautiful man. Final y, Frank couldn't resist any longer and decided to go visit his SuperPredator again.
He'd had more than a few whiskey sours when he walked brazenly up to the front door of the rundown building and rang the bel to the apartment where Joe was supposed to live. He couldn't imagine that anyone real y
