“I-I’m victim number six’s father. I say kill the fucker as well. He clearly has no remorse, and why should we allow him to live his life in comfort behind bars when he robbed our children of theirs? Kill the fucker and let us watch!”
Two more parents shared similar sentiments, and itbecame clear they needed this moment—a chance to finally voice their anger and seek the closure they had been denied for so long.
“But if we kill him, won’t the authorities come after us?” one of the parents finally asked.
Gavin shook his head.
“No. We’ll make it look like an accident—a freak death, something natural. Nothing that’ll give the authorities a reason to start asking questions. And honestly? I doubt any officer is going to waste time or resources digging into the death of a notorious serial killer. Most of them will just be relieved he’s been found and that he’s not a threat anymore.”
Marcus gave Gavin the signal that they were ready to cast the votes.
“In a moment, you’ll be prompted to cast your vote,” Gavin said. “You can choose to turn the Valentine Killer over to the police, to be prosecuted under the laws of the United States… or you can choose to let us—the victims—pass judgment ourselves.” His jaw tightened, and his voice hardened. “And decide whether this monster lives or dies.”
This was it—the moment that would decide everything. The choice that would define what they became after tonight. Would they carry the weight of murder for the rest of their lives, or hand the burden over to the authorities and trust that justice, somehow, would be enough?
Gavin kept his expression neutral, but deep down, healready knew what he wanted. He hoped that the group would vote to end the monster’s life.
Lifting his phone, Gavin cast his vote as well.
They all watched on the live feed as the votes for “Kill Him” continued to rise. Once the final vote was cast, it was unanimous. Every person on the call had voted to end the Valentine Killer’s life.
“The votes are in. Now, for those of you who do not wish to witness this execution, feel free to log off this video feed. For those who choose to stay, please note that the death you are about to witness will be violent and brutal.”
Gavin nodded at Marcus and his crew, who all began placing wool masks over their faces. Since the feed was live, they didn’t want any of the people watching to be able to identify them. They even wore long-sleeved shirts to hide any identifiable tattoos or body piercings.
The only one who was not wearing a mask was Gavin. He thought it was important not to hide his identity. He wanted to connect with the families of the victims so they could see him as he was. A victim. A person. A son.
Once everyone was covered, they all walked over to where the Valentine Killer was tied, seething and cursing, letting his final words fly free.
“This won’t change anything! I took them all from you!” he shouted, spit flying from his mouth as he cursed them all.
Gavin looked down into the pit and smiled. Four hungry mountain lions stalked around in circles, agitated,calling to one another as if sensing that dinner was about to be served.
It had taken Marcus and the guys about three hours to lure all four cougars into the deep pit. There had been a few close calls, but Nikolai was surprisingly good at handling wild animals.
Considering the animals’ incredible jumping abilities, they had to find a pit that was deep enough to prevent the cougars from escaping before they were ready. Thankfully, Ace was great with computers.
Ace panned his tablet over the pit, showing their viewers exactly what was about to befall the monster before them.
“As I said earlier, when the police find what’s left of the body, they will just assume that he had been chased by a pack of hungry cougars and fell into the pit below before being eaten alive.” Gavin turned to face the man who had tried to murder him—twice. “I know it’s usually you who leaves valentines in your victims’ pockets,” he continued, his voice steady despite the storm brewing inside him. “But since I’m the one ending this… I thought it was only fitting that I give you one of my own.”
Gavin hadn’t told Marcus what he planned to do if the vote went their way. He glanced over at Marcus, who stood close to Clive—his face hidden by a thick layer of fabric, but his eyes were visible. And there it was. Love. Concern. Fear. Fear for what this act might cost Gavin.
But this had to be done. This was what he needed to get closure. This was what they all needed.
Pulling the crumpled-up valentine from his back pocket, Gavin unfolded it and glared down at the words that had taken him hours to write.
With the sound of hungry cougars echoing behind him, Gavin began to read his final words to the man who had brought him so much fear.
“To the monster of my nightmares,
You’ve plagued my thoughts and dreams for the very last time. I used to lie awake at night, too afraid to close my eyes, for fear of seeing your murderous face glaring down at me, as you tried to choke the life out of my body.
But not anymore. Now, I’ll be able to close my eyes at night and sleep soundly next to the man I love, knowing that you can no longer harm me. You can no longer hunt or rape or murder anyone else, ever again.
Tonight, I stand for myself and for all those you destroyed—and I’ll watch without mercy as the beasts below tear you apart. Just as you have torn apart so many lives.
It will give me great pleasure to listen to you scream in pain and beg for mercy, right up until that very last breath.
