In His Sights
My Entry for TIF Team's Eye See You contest
“We interrupt this program to bring you breaking news, the Googly Eye Killer has struck again. We now go to Harper Smith, who is live on the scene. Harper?”
“Thank you Tom, I am here at the corner of 6th and Platte where a body has just been discovered. Police are on the scene now, and from what they can tell, the Googly Eye Killer has claimed another victim. I have Detective Preston Scott with me to explain more. “
“At zero three hundred hours we received an anonymous tip that there was a body in Memorial Park. When we arrived at the scene, we immediately knew that it was the Googly Eye Killer. Like the other victims, the eyes were removed and replaced with googly eyes. That’s all I can say for now, but we are urging everyone to stay in their homes and avoid going out alone at night”
“Thank you for your time, Detective Scott. Well folks, there you have it, the Googly Eye Killer has claimed another victim. Police are working around the clock to catch him, but for now, be safe out there. I’m Harper Smith, signing off.”
Katya Shukiev watched the news report with bated breath, constantly rewinding, trying to get a glimpse of the latest victim. Her sister, Ana, had not come home last night; though that was not anything new. Ana spent most nights at The Raven, her favorite bar, and would often stay with whatever man she met that night. Last night seemed to be no different.
A heavy knock at the door broke Katya from her trance.
Katya slowly approached the door as the knocking grew louder.
“Who is it?” Katya asked sheepishly.
“Detective Preston Scott, CPD. Please open up ma’am, it is important.
Katya’s eyes widened when she heard the name, and the news broadcast replayed in her mind. Claimed another victim. Detective Preston Scott. Her hand shook as she opened the door, and the defeated look on his face told him everything she needed to know.
“Ma’am do you know a Ms. Ana Shukiev?”
Her heart sank as Ana’s name passed through the Detective’s lips.
“Ye-yes, that is my sister.”
“Perhaps we should sit down.” Detective Scott’s voice was low and soothing.
“No! I am fine, tell me what is going on.” Katya insisted, though she already knew what he was going to say.
“Ma’am, we believe that Ana has been the latest victim of the Googly Eye Killer. Our preliminary investigation has identified her with her fingerprints, but we need you to come down to the station to identify her properly.”
Katya wanted to scream at him, to tell him they made a mistake, but deep in her heart she knew it was true. All she could muster in response was a whisper. “Okay.”
Detective Scott was silent as they traversed the long, cold hallway on the way to the morgue. The fluorescent lighting buzzed and flickered, but Katya barely noticed. All she could think about was her sister.
They had always been close, but since their mom died, Ana had changed. She started going to seedy bars, doing drugs, drinking, and going home with random men every night. It was hardly a low-risk lifestyle.
“We’re here.” The detective’s voice brought Katya back to reality.
Detective Scott wasted no time opening the cold lockers and pulling out the drawers. As Katya saw the gray feet of the corpse and the butterfly tattoo on the ankle, everything suddenly seemed so far away. It was as if Katya was no longer in her body, she couldn’t even scream.
Katya’s empty eyes stared straight ahead as the detective unzipped the body bag. As she forced herself to examine the body, she began to understand the carnage that her sister endured.
Between each rib, Ana had been stabbed with a large blade that had then been pulled through her flesh to her spine. Ligature marks indicated she had been tied up from the ceiling, so gravity would help her bleed out. Her jaw was obliterated and barely clung to her face. It was her eyes though, that finally brought Katya to tears.
Ana’s eyes had been slowly pulled out of the sockets and the optic nerves had been sliced with expert precision. The nerves dangled down her face like tears and giant googly eyes had been glued into the sockets. The ultimate mutilation.
Katya let out a scream and turned away, gagging at the sight of what had become of her beautiful sister. She fell to the floor and her tears pooled beneath her, pushing the detective away when he tried to comfort her.
After a while, Katya regained her composure, but only enough to utter a few words to the detective. “That’s Ana - I have to go now”
When Katya arrived back home, she could not muster the strength to walk back into the home she shared with her sister. It was too hard. Too hard to look at the place where they had made so many happy memories, and too hard to admit that they would never make another.
Eventually though, she worked up the resolve to get out of the car. With heavy feet, she walked up to the front door and, with a shaking hand, reached toward the handle. She gripped the handle, but felt something stuck to the back of it. It seemed to be a piece of paper, rolled up and fastened to the back with fugitive glue. Hesitantly, she unrolled it, and her blood immediately ran cold.
Katya looked around furiously, searching for whomever had left this note, but there was no one around. She knew who had left it, but what did he want with her now? He had already killed her sister.
Katya wasn’t convinced that he wasn’t there, wasn’t watching her, and she ran into her home and started packing a bag.
“I can’t stay here, I can’t let him find me too.” Katya said to herself, over and over again, like a mantra.
Katya finished packing and started back towards the door. When she reached out for the handle, she was horrified to see that it was broken off. She tried the windows, but they were all glued shut. Overtaken with terror, she fell to the ground.
From Ana’s bedroom, she could hear a voice softly calling to her.
“Katya, my dear Katya. Why would you try to run from me?”
“Leave me alone!” She screamed in response.
“Don’t you want to join your dear sister?” The voice was getting closer.
“No! Please don’t hurt me!” Her voice trembled.
“She was such a great girl, Katya, are you two alike?” The voice was just around the corner now.
“Leave me alone!” Her words were lost behind her cries.
“I bet you are, I bet you’ll give me the same rush she did…”
From around the corner, the man pounced onto Katya. He taped her mouth and hit her in the head, knocking her out cold.
The next day, Detective Scott responded to an anonymous call about a body at 746 Sycamore street. The address sounded familiar to him, but he could not remember where he knew it from. That is, until he went inside and saw what remained of Katya Shukiev. Now more than ever, he was determined to catch the Googly Eye Killer.
Image: Unsplash - Abdelrahman A. Elyamany
Soundbites: Pixabay
Mysterious message made by me via canva
Hell yeah, I love how you took something like Googly Eyes and twisted them into something horrific. I'm such a fan of horror that subverts expectations like that. And of course, your style works perfectly in this serial killer genre!
The mysterious message with "eye see you" hidden in it was also super clever. I loved this, and would absolutely read more! 👀
Great story! Googly eyes are creepy anyway, and I love the way you went with this. I actually thought for a moment that Katya was going to be the killer (but that's just my warped mind. Lol) So, will we see more about the Googly eye killer? 🤔