Twelve of Roses

“You’ll find your own Rose someday,” she’d whisper, licking my neck, and then she’d tell me how I would know which Rose was the perfect one.

Number twelve was always the end goal. I never asked why, but my dad agreed, so I just went with it.

I carried Rose-Mary with me in my heart while gathering up my Roses as fast as I could to obtain the one that completed the dozen.

All until the day I saw her. That was when I saw the light. The second she smiled at me, the fixation began. None of the Roses had lasted exceedingly long, but I knew this one would be different. This one was special.

The second time I saw her, she had tears rolling down her cheeks. I was standing in the courtroom, waiting to hear my father’s bail for running her mom off the road. His defense was being drunk. That was all bullshit, though. He knew what he was doing.

The pretty redhead had been too hysterical to notice me right then. It wasn’t until some woman beside her leaned down to comfort her that I heard her full name for the first time.

Roselynn.

I knew it was fate. This beautiful girl were meant to be.

I wasn’t losing her again. I had to finish what I started so she could come home. I stared down at my next victim, a woman sleeping soundly in her bed. She was none the wiser that I’d been in her house since she came stumbling in drunk. She forgot to double check her back door before going through her nightly routine.

I watched her eat supper, take a shower, and climb under her sheets to fall asleep. The whole time she thought she was safe, just like Rose used to. It was so easy to creep inside their homes and watch them for hours upon hours. I used to sleep in Rose’s closet.

She had a blue sweater covered in my semen. I hid it in the very back every time I left, making sure she wouldn’t find it.

Creeping forward and pulling my balaclava down over my face, I moved fast.

I smothered the woman’s body with my own and pressed a hand over her mouth. Her eyes flew open, darting around, wild and frenzied. She tried to scream, but I’d already expected that. I grabbed her by the throat and began applying pressure.

“Either you stop struggling, or I cut you open right here,” I whispered in her ear.

She immediately stilled, looking up at me with confusion and tears in her eyes. To make my threat clear, I pressed the blade of my hunting knife against her neck.

“We’re going to get up nice and slow now,” I explained, backing away from her but leaving the knife where it was. She swallowed audibly, pushing her comforter down to follow.

“Please,” she barely whispered through trembling lips. Her brown hair was in complete disarray and she was damn near naked.

I loved it when they were like this—so afraid that they would piss themselves if you told them to.

“Come on, sweetheart. We have somewhere to be.” I grabbed her elbow and kept her beside me, leading her down the stairs and towards the back door. She cried the whole way, of course, but it didn’t faze me. After checking to make sure it was all clear, I led her outside, locking the door behind us.

“Get in,” I instructed her, pulling open the back door of the truck.

She sniffled, shaking her head back and forth. I didn’t have the patience to deal with her panicky bullshit. Grabbing hold of her hair, I practically lifted her into the backseat, slamming my elbow into the side of her face when she tried to scream.

“Let’s go.” I tapped the driver’s seat, giving Justin the okay.

I pinned the woman down by the back of her neck, ignoring her full-blown sobs.

“She’ll come home,” he assured me, referring to Rose, not taking his eyes off the road.

“I know,” I replied after a minute. But she didn’t know where our new home was.

Running a construction company came in handy in more ways than one. I’d built our entire house thinking of her. I was trying to be a decent guy and give her the farm she always talked about. Being a good guy was tiring, so I figured decent could suffice.

It didn’t take Justin very long to get to the salon. He pulled right up to the side door that had been left unlocked for this very reason. I got out, taking my entertainment for the night with me.

“I handled the cameras,” he stated.

“Okay. Be back in forty,” I instructed him before going inside.

He gave me a captain’s salute and pulled off, getting the truck out of view.

“What are you going to do to me?” she choked out, wobbling on her feet as I directed her to a specific black leather chair.