Chapter 1: An act of kindness

Time slips away from the best of us. How long ago it was, I'll never know but my memory holds strong, replaying it like it was yesterday. That park will never look the same, no matter what memories  might try to replace it. That day will always brand me, although there really was no other possible outcome from the situation. We all made choices that day, we can't do anything but live with them.

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Like the marvelous and terrifying Phoenix, the world burned down before starting anew again, retaining the memories of its' previous lives to assist it in its' future ones. The secrets of the universe will forever be sealed within it, and we can only live in the present, handling things as they come along. I'm a firm believer that everything happens for a reason, or at least that's what I tell myself to help get through the rough times. As the world began to breathe its first signs of life for the first time in over a year, most began to venture out and begin reentering society once again.

His figure practically melted into that worn and beaten bench, a half smoked cigarette dangling between his lips while one of his legs bounced in what seemed to be boredom and a  somewhat hidden note of anxiety. One hand fiddled with the slats in the bench, eyes wandering throughout the park while the other gripped at the bench arm rest, where he thought it was out of sight. Although he didn't seem to be doing much, one thing was for sure: his eyes kept a constant gaze over a beautiful woman making a random but focused path throughout the park, her hands lazily scrolling through the phone in her hands, earphones  plugged in as her head bobbed to the music that was playing as her eyes flitted over whatever was on that phone of hers.

Despite the fact that this earth had recently started to turn again,  the park was scarcely populated. It could possibly be that the sun was starting to dip over the distant horizon or even that it was just a tad chilly, still. Or perhaps I'm just cold blooded, everything seems cold to me. I shivered through my jacket and turned away, heading back to my truck. With a simple flick of my wrist, it roared to life, a blast of warm air greeting me happily. The trees outside might be beginning to green, but my fingers were still frozen. Gosh, my tolerance for being cold is slim to none. As my hands reached out and gripped the steering wheel, embracing the warm air that gently blew across my knuckles, I shivered with pleasure. My whole body relaxed as I embraced the warmth. After a few moments, I shook off the glorious feeling and headed out of the park, only a few other vehicles remaining.

Buildings whizzed by me in a blur as I completely zoned out, running a few errands before I decided I needed to go home. Home will never be dreaded, I've never been the life of the party although I understand getting out and socializing is a necessary evil. My eyes bounced across the view before me, keeping an eye out for anyone that might want to dart out in front of me as I passed through intersections, the alleys of this town acting as gloomy shadows in the corner of my vision. One hand on the wheel, the other resting on the door beside me, my eyes narrowed in on a car parked near a dumpster, a block in front of my turn to head home.

Out of all the things you should know about me, one thing you should definitely know: I cannot know why I do some of the things I do sometimes. Call it fate, a sixth sense, a tic, or perhaps just me being random, but there are just some things I cannot explain as to why I do. Whatever you want to call it, I skipped straight past my exit and headed towards that car, parked crookedly next to that dumpster and stuck my nose straight into some trouble.

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Although it was dimly lit, a tussled movement of a figure caught my eye. Tucked away in the alley, my eyes struggled to process the sight before me but my instincts kicked in and, before I knew it, I was out of my truck, engine still growling quietly although I couldn't process it. My focus was on the figure. Whatever it was, I didn't know. All I knew was that I needed to get there. My body torrented towards them, fueled on instinct and adrenaline at this point. I heard the tangled voices of a man and a woman, hers strained with panic and pain as his was hushed with urgency and aggression. Once I barreled into him, my large frame easily out muscling his, he released her in an instant. Anger quickly turned to fear as he tucked himself against the alleyway corner, fully cloaked in darkness but there being no escape back there for him to slither away into.

The woman gasped, trembling as a cut on her thigh dribbled blood, her skirt disheveled and her eyes swollen from tears and trauma, one already beginning to darken. Situations like this can startle us all, all three of us seemed to be processing at different rates. "Are you okay?" I asked, keeping a reasonable distance from her and making sure to block the alleyway with my broad frame so the scum in the corner couldn't escape without going through me first. Doe eyes looked back at me, belly protruding in an obvious bump, her split lip trembling as she struggled to comprehend the turn of events that she wasn't prepared for. So accepting to her fate, she'd thought there was no other option but to accept what was inevitable and try to take care of it herself. A small, strained nod from her was all she could get out, struggling to keep it together. I dared not touch her, she'd already been through enough, though I desperately wanted to comfort the poor girl.

Slowly, she scuttled away, picking up the phone that was on the ground, getting there during their scuffle. She left as quickly as I'd found her and, before I knew it, I was alone with him. The only sounds between us were his ragged breathing as he struggled not to panic, seeing me turn tensely towards him. Eyes finally adjusting to the darkness, I drank in what I could of him and realized I knew him.

This man, this abomination, was a man who'd fallen through the cracks of society. Society had failed him, and ruined him before he had a chance to really give back to it. He'd seen the worst of things, he didn't have to tell me in order for me to know that. His torment isn't something I can take lightly nor can I even imagine and I can't fault him for it, he had to live through it and it wasn't his fault. However, the thing I fault him for is losing his fight and deciding that he couldn't win. So he joined their hellish crusade, causing destruction and despair where he went. The world already has plenty of that. And maybe I judge too harshly, my competitiveness and thirst for justice has always been a side of me that I cannot fight.

He stuttered, " J-J-Jack!" Through the fear, he attempted to choke out a friendly tone. I eyed him for a second before I shook my head, knowing what had to be done. The man let out a yelp as I grabbed him around the throat, putting my weight into him and knocking him into the wall with a controlled amount of force. To my surprise, he went unconscious on the first go. Thank goodness too, I wanted it to be over quick. He was a little heavy to carry back to the truck, but it wasn't anything I couldn't manage.

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Rope swayed from the ceiling, trembling with his movements but holding him up confidently as he drifted in and out of consciousness, the rafters in my basement creaking under him as his legs flailed every now and again underneath him. When properly positioned, he can stand on the tips of his toes comfortably. It was just about the only comfort I would allow him; he hung stark naked before me, completely calm and relaxed besides the occasional twitch from him as his body attempted to wake him. The basement was much colder than my liking, but still a temperature that would sustain him as he dangled helplessly. A rope tied around his wrists kept him bound to the ceiling, another tied around his neck while a third bound his ankles together, keeping him perfectly restrained minus the helpless wiggles he might get away with.

Slowly, he awoke. After a few minutes, the reality of the situation hit him as his eyes adjusted through what I was sure was his intense migraine from being knocked unconscious, and the dimly lit basement surely didn't help his comprehension skills at the moment. Waking up in a completely different place than where you last remember can be really discombobulating. Eventually, as reality and his memories came to him, along with the sight of me sitting on a small stool in front of him, patiently awaiting his awakening.

"J-Jack...?" His voice was unsure, as if his eyes were betraying him. I could understand his confusion, all things considered. There had always been good terms between the two of us, only the occasional scuffle every now and again but certainly nothing to warrant this by any means. That is, until his recent behavior. My eyes stared coldly at him, knowing I wasn't about to turn back from what had to be done. With a small nod, I greeted him, "Frank." My tone was clipped, but it's all I could manage given the situation. I stood, walking around him until I was directly behind him, before, grabbing the back of his neck and squeezing very harshly, holding the pressure as I growled into his ear, "Don't try anything funny or this will be a lot worse for you." And, with that, I untied the rope from the rafters and untied his ankles, allowing him to walk on his own.

As soon as his feet hit the ground completely, I knocked him down to his knees, still standing behind him and using my hand that was still on the back of his neck to help guide him until he was under me before he knew it, his back under my boot and his neck strung up by the rope, leaving him helpless. He grunted upon impact and flailed helplessly, hands still bound behind him. "Fuck, man. Why?" He yelped out, his voice restrained by the rope held tightly. Before he could fight much more, I pulled out my gun and shot him, knowing it was no use to fight with him. I wasn't a man of many words, mostly keeping to myself. He wouldn't see things the same way as I did.

This was a man that was allowed to slip through the cracks of society, not a finger laid on him yet. Nobody had made him face the consequences of his own actions until now and, as someone who has seen firsthand the level of damage this man, nay, this monster, can cause... There isn't an argument in the world that could have changed my mind. There was no use talking it out, listening to his pleas, trusting him when he would inevitably say that he would change. But someone who has yet to see the error of his ways and is only evolving to get worse and prey on more vulnerable people, they can't change. They're too far gone and things are too easy for them on this path that they lead. Perhaps my actions are flawed, but I had the best of intentions in the long run. The world doesn't need more danger and he couldn't be allowed to roam the streets without any sort of repercussions for the pain he's caused. 

It's a torrent of feelings, what I did. I wish there would have been another way. I wish I could have helped him; I wish he would have had a different life. In the long run, he didn't deserve what happened to him. But I also didn't see another choice. I know he wouldn't have stopped. He faced me when he hurt someone I knew, a family member, and yet he wasn't warded to a better path. This was really the only way I could see he wouldn't ever hurt anyone ever again. As much as I might try to argue my point, there's no use. He is where he is and I am where I am. 

With my head hanging low, I focused on moving forward with my life, knowing there was always something else to come.