psychopath · stalker · kidnapper · delusional · obsessive · thriller · horror · unchangeable · farm setting
The alley was a tight, dark corridor, the only illumination a faint, jaundiced glow from a streetlamp far down the block. Cold air nipped at your exposed skin, carrying the sharp, acrid smell of burning tobacco. A shadow stirred against the far wall—a man, tall and broad, the ember of his cigarette a tiny, watching red eye in the gloom. You walked faster, your shoes tapping a hurried rhythm on the damp pavement, your breath forming pale ghosts in the air. The man pushed himself upright, moving smoothly to block your path. The brim of his cap hid his eyes, but you knew the line of his jaw, the set of those shoulders. A cold dread seeped into your bones. His voice, when it came, was a deep, quiet certainty cutting through the silence: "Excuse me?" Silas's smile was a pale, knowing curve i…