#ft arthur

Lena was only too aware she couldn’t sustain her rather sinister hobby, as it stood she had three ex husbands each either missing or meeting a sudden end. Any more and the finger of blame would be cast upon her and even as confident as she was that they’d never prove anything past suspicion, she wouldn’t risk it. Why would she? everyone viewed her as that sweet, endearing woman who unfortunately had a string of disastrous relationships. She was beginning to feel backed into a corner when Arthur miraculously strided back into her life, offering her the opportunity to refrain from adjusting to a painfully mundane existence. So she worked with him, there wasn’t a doubt in her mind that they were an extraordinary team but she kept him at an arms length, always keeping her guard up unwilling to allow him to hurt her again. 

Weeks into plotting their next victim, Lena had manipulated her way into his affections making it that much easier for them to get the job done. She almost felt sorry for him, he was so oblivious. All it took was a tremulous smile to convince him not to share their exchanges with anyone, she begged him using her catastrophic history as an excuse. She promised him she didn’t want to jinx it. Just like that he was enamored with her and boy did she use it. On that faithful day she had prevailed him to lie to his work that he was merely taking a trip before following a ludicrous trail of activities, swearing she’d be the treat at the end of the bizarre treasure hunt. She almost laughed when he agreed, of course Lena was an enigma but he was almost making it too easy for them. In reality she was staging it to seem a man of his wealth was being blackmailed so when he disappeared, the police would follow a fathom lead. Choosing a cabin far from anywhere as their final destination, Lena continued the ruse. It was calculated and passionless but she’d poison him and Arthur would step in to help her mask any evidence. What she hadn’t anticipated was him catching onto her plot. He got a good swipe in but Lena was agile and unlike him she didn’t flinch at inflicting pain, he hadn’t a hope when Arthur promptly stepped in to assist her in a considerably more grizzly murder than they’d planned. 

Body at her feet, blood pooling in her hands and splattered up her neck and yet the true telling of how unstable she was was in the fact that it hadn’t phased her, she wasn’t a shaking sobbing mess. Adrenaline pulsing through her veins, as she met the eyes of her former lover and it hit her all at once. He was her soulmate undoubtedly, he always had been. She’d simply never allowed herself to believe in it, she always presumed the definition of a soulmate was that sickly, emphatic romance. The stereotypical holding hands in the park and sweet goodnight texts. She was wrong, they were soulmates because they accepted the deepest, darkest parts of each other. 

Lena was a woman with a plan; a strict, wickedly fun but never deviated from, plan. You don’t escape justice over as many crimes as she’d committed unless you’re tactical and organised. Arthur’s reappearance threw a level of chaos into her life and she was yet to be convinced it wasn’t an utter nightmare but then again she wasn’t swayed from accepting it as a blissful euphoric surprise. If he hadn’t drifted back into her life, Lena would’ve picked another gullible victim and relished the thrill of the hunt all over again but now she wasn’t so sure of her next move. Had Arthur been any other ex who’d wronged her if he were lucky she’d have allowed him the pleasure of becoming husband no. four before his untimely demise and if not, he’d join the other countless victims whose names escaped her. That was the problem, Arthur wasn’t just anyone. They were two halves of the same coin, equally devious, cunning, merciless yet intelligent enough to cast suspicion aside. In some twisted way, they were meant to be. 

Against her conflicting doubts, Lena couldn’t bring herself to send him crawling back under whatever rock he disappeared to when he vanished all those years ago. In fact she brought him home with her, under the almost arrogant assumption she could out manipulate him if he were to turn on her. It wasn’t until she found herself lingering in the living room doorway, her eyes relentlessly following the only man she’d ever truly loved, did it dawn on her how easily he could still affect her. “Drink?” she finally found her voice long enough to inquisitively offer, propping two glasses on the cabinet before her fingers delicately flickered through her extensive collection and plucked out the bottle that took her fancy. She briefly wondered what he thought of the place, it was quite the upgrade from the apartment they once shared but three wealthy men leaving you their fortune does give you options like that. She had a routine by now, keep it like a mausoleum until some time had passed and it was appropriate for her to dump their belongings to rid herself of the ‘painful memories’, keeping whatever appealed to her lavish taste as trophies. The entire place was expensive, beautifully decorated and dripping of class; very Lena. 

“What’s next?, If you’re the type of man you claim to be, you don’t just drift into town without an agenda so c’mon enlighten me.”