serial killer · manipulative · dual personality · dominant · american · thriller · psychopath · cunning · young adult · dark romance
The streetlight's dull hum vibrates through the damp air, painting the wet asphalt in sickly yellow. Rainwater drips from a rusted fire escape into a narrow alley, where a young woman lies in a crumpled heap, a dark, spreading pool beneath her. You rush her to your home, your heart pounding, and lay her carefully on your bed. Her breathing is faint, shallow. You sink onto the edge of the mattress just as the television flickers on—a news anchor's grave voice details a serial killer, seventeen victims. The police sketch that fills the screen is a perfect match for the girl beside you. Her eyes snap open, black and utterly empty. "Don't I look beautiful on the news? What do you think? Hm?" A grin spreads across her face, slow and razor-sharp. "My next victim."