after dark

I wish I was better at telling lies.

I could tell my wife I love the haircut, tell the server the food was great or tell my boss the work will be done by Friday. The reason I wish I could lie better is because it would soon be time to use the skill I hadn't got. It was going to be a beating, maybe a murder, of someone who deserved it. Unfortunately saying that in a police interview probably wouldn't work.

The thing is, he really does deserve it. My wife had told me about her previous relationship only fleetingly. Before we became a couple she would arrive at work with bruises, she would mention this person hurting her as he ripped her clothes. We all told her to end it but she couldn't resist. As we became closer I could show her that the bruises and clothing bill wasnt normal in any way. Even many years into marriage she needs reminding what a proper relationship should be.

She has nicknamed him "Chef" and saaid he lived somewhere near her. He was married and would summon her when his wife was out or asleep. I did ask more about him , in case we should bump into him. I would like to know how to react. She probably thought i might react with a left hook, to be fair she was probably right.

Many years later, during a heart to heart she accidently gave me more information. In fact a name and a road, I took the information in and tried not to look excited or angry. As soon as the exact location became clear I decided the dog would have a new route for her next walk. We had been together 9 years so chef could be anywhere, even not a chef. The other slight problem was, I didn't know what he looked like. He was tall, his sister worked in a local shop and that was about it.

So I decided to watch the sister first, if she went home to the right road it proved almost that it was the right house. The cul-de-sac only had 11 houses, hopefully making it all a bit safer. Luckily the sister appeared a few days into the detective work. She went to the third house in and that was half the story done. Obviously now I needed a tall man in a chefs hat to appear next.

With this information I started asking Mr google any questions I thought relevant, including what the last census had said. I then searched for his name, social media is a great place to research. Especially people who like to share too much information. He had 100,s of pictures and videos open for perusal. One group of pictures looked recent, and taken of a new car outside the door his sister went in.

So I knew his location, what he looked like and how many people in the house. I just needed to get him alone and preferably out of sight. Also what was I going to do with him. I could beat him or kill him and he wouldnt know why? If I told him anything about who it was connected to then he would have to die.

I decided to see how things progressed, just the alibi to go. I worked out most of the excuses, they were all based on me not knowing who he was. Also why would I wait so long for the revenge for what he had done. I then had my light bulb moment and knew what to do.

Next week, I went to work and signed in as usual. I was shown on cctv and the booking on system as being there. I went to my work station, signed on and left my change of clothes under the desk. I went up to the second floor, out the fire door not covered by cctv and over the wall. Being winter the streets were quiet, the council being tight most street lights were off.

As my target had helpfully posted his work hours and how he was travelling the next part was fairly straight forward. I knew where he lived and which bus stop he would get off from, so I positioned myself in a dimly lit alley in the middle. In one pocket was an adjustable spanner, the other a short but sharp kitchen knife. My fists and size 15 feet would also be involved at some stage.

My work thought I was an hour into my shift, hopefully I would be finished in the alley and would go and do some actual work. I had no idea how the attack would go, would he run, would he fight back. I decided to start with the literal knock out blow and do a few quick cuts to immobilise him. I walked to the end of the alley and he was already walking towards me, i kept going and let him enter the path. I followed him, hit him over the head with the spanner and then slashed at the achilies on each foot so he couldn't run.

He let out a low moan after a short while and he started to come round. He managed to turn his head so he could see me. He had an expression of fear and questioning. I decided early on i wouldnt speak or say who I was, but would let him know the reason. So i showed him the oldest picture I had of my wife. Underneath I had printed "do you remember this woman and what you did to her?"

A period of thought changed the expression to fear and trying to mouth" I'm sorry" I cupped a hand to my ear to indicate he should speak up. He apologised but even in the mess he was I wasn't sure what he actually though or how much he meant the apology. I wrote some more information on the back, indicating who I was and why this was happening. He quickly realised I was going to kill him, he know knew to much to be allowed to live.

I have to admit at this stage that the next part was a blur. He started to be more vocal and as there were houses close by I had to shut him up. So a few more blows with the spanner dealt with that. Then the blur set in and next time I saw things clearly he was very dead. A few more dents in his head, a few more pools of blood and above all no movements.

I backtracked to work, re-entered the building and started to cover my tracks. I went to the bathroom, showered while dressed and showered naked. I scrubbed for 20 minutes till my skin was raw. I wrung my clothes out and distributed them in various paper recycling bins. The paper contained secure information so were shredded as soon as they entered the lorry that collected them. Hopefully the blades would shred the clothing and mix it up with other collections.

Know to get back to work, listening for sirens. The family might be worried he didnt return home, a dog walker or late worker could find him. I was as confident as I could be that I was ok. No link to the body, shown at work and hopefully free of any retrievable evidence.

After about 3 hours the sirens rung out. It sounded like a good four or five different vehicles had arrived in a hurry. I just got back to trying to catch up on my work. i spent my meal break scrubbing the bathroom and checking every inch that I had walked. Luckily hardwood floors showed the random blood splashes and muddy footprints.

I booked off at the normal time and started the walk home. One route would be past where I left chef and one bypassed the scene but took me close. I decided the avoiding route the best, as I neared the scene there were police officers at front doors and talking to anyone that walked past.

As I took the scene in one of the officers appeared next to me. He checked who I was, where I lived and where I had been . I managed to look shocked, a little surprised and a little shaken. I managed to explain I had been in work all night and this was my route to and from home. Satisfied I was allowed to go on my way.

As I arrived home my wife was waiting, mobile phone in hand. Rumours were rife and the sight of so many police meant something serious had happened. I told her what I had seen and the sirens that had sounded in the night. I knew it wouldn't be long until she found out who I had killed. She may even ask if I knew anything.

I decided to practise what was going to be my police statement if one was required. "Never met him, don't know his name and don't know where he lived" If my wife reminded me about there long gone relationship I might feign forgetfulness and say something around no great loss.

It was time for a very long sleep, hopefully with no knocks on the door and a request to help with enquires.