Jane looked closely at her friend. "Something's bothering you, Daria. What is it?"

"When was the last time you saw Susu, Jane?"

"Over a month ago now. She was telling me about a story idea she had. I asked her about posting some of my art on her site, and she said she'd check into it."

"I've sent her three stories since last time she updated. I'm worried."

"You wanna go check on her?" asked Jane.

"Yeah, but she lives way across town. Think you can borrow Trent's car?"

"He crashed."

"WHAT?" Daria yelped.

Jane smirked. "On his bed, Daria. He's asleep, so yeah, I can get it."

Daria shot Jane a dirty look, but held back the accompanying remark. "Good, let's go." she said.

~*~ ~*~ ~*~ ~*~ ~*~

"Well, that's five rings and quite a few knocks. I don't think anyone's going to answer the door."

Daria nodded. "Her bedroom is on the back side of the house. Let's see if we can peek in."

A minute and a lawnchair drag later, Jane was peering in a window while Daria waited. "I see her. She's sitting at her computer." Jane rapped on the windowpane. "Hey, Susu!" After a minute, Jane said worriedly, "She's not moving. And there's something in her hair..."

"Is the window latched?" Daria asked from the ground, where she was steadying the lawnchair.

Jane looked, then pushed up on the window. It slid open. "No, it's... oh, jeez! Something die... oh,no." Without another word, Jane slithered through the window.

"What? What did you say? Jane, what's going on?" Daria climbed up on the lawn chair. When she was able to look in, a grim sight met her eyes. Jane stood next to Susu, hand over her mouth and nose, and horror in her eyes.

"Daria! Don't come in, she's dead!" But Daria, uncharacterestically vigorous, had already climbed through the window. The smell was indescribable. Susu sat in her computer chair, facing the dark screen. Dark dried blood matted her golden hair. On the floor beside her was a large rock, with some blood on it.

"Daria, we shouldn't be in here! This is a murder scene! Someone must have sneaked up on her and bashed her with this big rock! Don't touch anything!"

But Daria had been scanning the scene, and her keen mind was at work. "I don't think so. Susu kept that rock on the top shelf, right over her computer. She told me it was a memento of her fatherland. See how that shelf bracket is bent and twisted? I think it just gave way."

Jane turned to look again at the positions of the young woman and the rock that had done her in. As she did so, she bumped the computer desk slightly, and the computer came to life. With a startled cry, the highly agitated Jane jumped back.

"Relax, kid." Daria said. "The computer was on, you just made the mouse move a little, and it came out of sleep mode." She peered at the screen. "Look at that! She was updating her website when she..." Daria put a hand to her mouth and a tear wandered down her cheek. "Oh, poor Susu..."

"What's that smell?" Jane asked. At Daria's look, she said, "No, that other smell. Like cat poop. A LOT of cat poop."

"Susu had a cat named Foofoo. If it was in the house when... Oh, the poor thing! It must have starved to death when it ran out of cat food! Or maybe not... Jane, look at her legs!" Most of the flesh was gone from Susu's lower legs.

But Jane was looking elsewhere. "Daria! Her liver's gone!"

Daria gazed in horror at the gruesome sight. "Jane, you don't think..." Her query was cut short by a bloodcurdling yowl from the hallway. Foofoo was alive and awake... and hungry.

A single glance at the apparition in the doorway, its long white persian fur matted with blood and...other substances, its blue eyes agleam with feral lust, was enough to impel Jane out the window in an athletic dive. Daria devoted a split second to a jab at the enter key, and followed her friend's example.

~*~ ~*~ ~*~ ~*~ ~*~

Arms about each other's shoulders for comfort, Daria and Jane watched as the animal control team carried a caged, enraged Foofoo out the door. The coroner and the police crime scene investigators began filing in. "What do you suppose they'll do with Foofoo?" Daria wondered aloud.

"She'll probably have to be destroyed. She's a maneater now. Once they acquire a taste for human flesh..."

"Yeah, I suppose. I'm gonna miss Susu." Daria said sadly.

"Yeah, me too. At least it was quick, I guess. There's a real good chance I'll envy her when my time comes." Jane mused. Glancing at her friend's face, she thought she saw something like amusement there. "What?"

"Oh, I was just thinking. Tonight at dinner Mom's going to ask me what I did today, like she always does. If I tell her, there'll be a lot of leftovers."


La la LA la la.


Footnote: Yeah, I know Susu is a guy, and he lives in Germany. He probably won't want to spend the time and money required to fly over here just to kick my a$$.

Lawndale Stalker