C10: You Should Leave
Jacob slowly put down the knife and threw a wry smile in her direction then said, "You can come in now."
From the large opening that just managed to separate the living room from the dining, an average height, masked man came in with his hands in the air as one would when ordered by a threatening police officer. "Jesus man, stop being so fucking dramatic. It's not like I'm killing you or anything. At least not yet. Just tell her M."
"M?" Shelby asked in absolute confusion. The masked man slowly removed his mask that first revealed his spunky but uneven beards, followed by a set of soft, pink lips, and even more intriguingly, his god-like set of…
"Hazel colored eyes", Shelby whispered in utter disbelief, "What the hell are you doing here Malcolm?" Shelby asked, angrier and more confused than ever before.
"Calm down Mrs. Feisty pants, he works with me" replied Jacob in an unnaturally calm tone. "How do you think I found you in the first place Michelle", he continued in a calm, slow demeanor.
"You…you didn't find me", she said, trying desperately to find any string of statements that would convince her she was still sane. "I…I found you" she added.
"Yeah sure sweetheart."
"Don't…don't call me sweetheart."
"You know…", he said while signaling Malcolm to take a seat at the dining, "…not everyone connected to me ends up stabbing me in the back, or neck", he added, pointing to sharp mark at the side of his neck.
"I did what I had-"
"No Michelle, you did what you wanted to", interrupted Jacob slightly less calm. "You're so full of shit you know. You didn't have to come to this picture-perfect town", he said in a voice portraying outright sarcasm. "You didn't have to leave me, and you sure as hell didn't have to leave our daughter behind."
"Daughter?" Malcolm said in disbelief.
"Oh, she didn't tell you M", Jacob said slowly bending towards the table while Shelby was completely flushed off all describable emotions. Picking the apple not too far away from him, He continued, "All she blabbed on about was how she wanted you to be the godfather and not my…" He stopped halfway, taking a bite of the apple in his hands. "Now look at her", he said, pointing to the trembling, and surprisingly perspiring female at his left, while gobbling down the apple in this mouth. "Looking for a God-father when you couldn't even be good moth…" before Jacob could finish his sentence, Shelby threw a remarkably powerful left-handed slap in his direction, making him spit out the small apple pieces still in his mouth.
"I did what I had to do", Shelby said with a sudden switch in emotions, from looking helpless to becoming a female Deontay Wilder in less than two minutes. Jacob slowly tilted his head to the right, and gradually, sent a devilish gaze in Shelby's direction.
As if on cue, the veins on his hands popped out and he said, "You know what surprised me the most? You picked you 'best friend'", he mimicked, pointing in Malcolm's direction, "over your husband and daughter, and you still aren't the slightest bit remorseful about it. And you Malcolm…", he switched posture and looked at Malcolm who had an emotional demeanor to the entire situation. "Let me make one thing very clear to you. Regardless of how many times you come here, and you rub shoulders with me, and you cry about how remorseful you are about what you and that witch you call a best friend did to me and my daughter", he continued with a distinct aura of anger in his voice, "I will never, not even for a millisecond forgive either one of you". He looked back at Shelby, "Remember that", he furiously added.
Shelby angrily stood up from her blue, luxurious looking chair and barked at Jacob, "You think I wanted to come here you dumb idiot?" I came here to save your dumb ass. I came here because—"
"Hold it right there Michelle. Even if my dumb ass was in trouble, I would never need your help. And FYI, I'm not dumb. I know why you came here", interrupted Jacob in a tone much calmer than before. "Your picture-perfect town is gradually falling apart after some poor soul—"
"The Mayor" interjected Malcolm. Jacob gazed at him with a countenance of that of a lion ready to pounce on his prey, but held himself back, looked back at Shelby and continued, "—after some poor soul was brutally murdered. And now that your precious new home is crumbling before you very eyes, you're looking for the best cause to pin it on".
Shelby and Malcolm stood there, completely taken aback, while Jacob, still sitting, gradually stood up from his chair, looking ferociously at both of them. Then in a resilient, spine chilling voice, Jacob said, "Why would I come here, all the way from my hometown, leave my one true love, my daughter behind, buy a house in this hell-hole that you both call haven, to kill a Mayor, and not the two people who I would love to see in front of a barrel of lead-spitting venom?" He slanted a little closer towards them and continued, "Why would I go through all that trouble when the two spanners in my wheel of progress are standing right here", he said in killer-like fashion.
He shifted his hands a little further on the table, grabbing the jackknife while trying to hide his anger though his popping veins blew his cover, "You two have overstayed your welcome. I think it's time for you to leave", he said, trying his best to sound calm
"Was the little stunt with his wife necessary? You just had to add more coals to the fire that's about to devour me huh?"
"I don't know what you're talking about-"
"Don't give me that crap you kn—"
"What the fuck are you even going on about?"
"That's bullshit"
"I don't give a damn whether or not you believe me. It's time for you to leave."
"Jacob I just honestly... from the bottom of my heart wanted to let you know that…"
"Malcolm, let's go", butted in Shelby. "Seems like no amount of money or luxury…", she said, gesticulating to the grand house, "…can hide the true loneliness that lurks deep down inside", she walked towards the door in the living room, a couple steps from the dining and slowly opened the murky door that did no small favors to completely conceal the contents of the house and looked back at Malcolm. "You coming or not?"
Malcolm, with his head down in obvious discomfort being stuck in such an ominous situation followed suit and walked out of the dining and the eventually, the house. After stealing a defying glance at Jacob, she swiftly made her way out of the house, banging the door behind her.