Black Crimson: A Little Red Riding Hood Story

A sudden gust of wind forced violent raindrops to bombard my living room window, making the glass rattle ominously.Nestled snugly on the couch, I jerked my knees tighter against my chest, and my toes curled protectively inside my thick, cozy socks before I glanced at my muted television across the room to see if any severe weather warnings had popped up yet.When I found no dooming forecast scrolling across the bottom of the screen, I went back to reading my Kindle, where my paranormal story had reached a particularly gruesome pinnacle.Blood and body parts were flying liberally. So many bones had been broken in the span of the last five minutes that my own were beginning to ache in sympathy. I winced and nearly ducked for the heroine when a severed arm sailed past her head.Though, really. I couldn’t fathom why she’d followed the hero out there in the middle of the night, to begin with, when she knew exactly what he turned into during the full moon. Just because he’d told her he

The first thing I need to say before anything else is this:I was Black Crimson’s biggest fan. Full stop. Period. End of statement.Like, no one loved him more than I did. I was sure of it.The city’s best-known graffiti artist had been gifting our streets with masterpieces of epic proportions for about two years now.I’d first become aware of him after his third mural had hit the side of an old movie theater building, and it made the headlines of the paper where I worked.The Evening Vigil was the biggest newspaper in town, which should sound pretty awesome and glamorous, I know, but alas, my job wasn’t quite the editor-in-chief position I’d always dreamed of getting. Heck, I hadn’t even made it into the writer-of-a-small-uncredited-article-on-the-second-to-last-page position yet.And honestly, I would’ve been pleased with a fact-checking spot, which was the lowest-ranking place in the editing department.Except no, I hadn’t even managed that accolade. And so I worked in sales

“And then she said to me, ‘that was my parking spot.’”I forced a vague smile, hoping it would pass as a laugh while the man talking to me chortled uproariously over his own story.“That’s…” Oh my God, someone please kill me now. This Dan guy was the most cluelessly arrogant scumbag I’d ever met. He was so busy being entertained by his own laugh that he didn’t even notice when my smile dropped prematurely and I mumbled, “That’s actually what I would’ve said to you too.”But gah, what a jerk.I mean, who bragged about stealing parking spots from eighty-year-old women just because you’d gotten a new car and wanted to show it off to your date?Dude, who even talked about taking out one woman when you were trying to pick up another? Wow.Besides, his story could’ve been about Gran for all I knew. And her hip wasn’t in the best condition these days. So thinking about her having to walk even farther because this prick wanted to impress a woman he was no longer even with…It was enough

Well, fuck.My stomach churned as the Uber I rode in swayed gently and rounded a corner.It smelled like a vanilla air freshener had exploded all over the interior, and the alcohol in my stomach didn’t mix any better with the pungent aroma than it did the constant backseat rocking. Or the memory of her words that jostled their way unpleasantly through my head.I’m going to find the evidence I need to prove without a doubt that you’re him.“Dammit.” With a groan, I flopped my head back on the headrest and closed my eyes, holding my belly and hoping nothing I’d drunk tonight came back up. “Dammit, dammit, dammit.”“Hey, you okay back there, buddy?” I was asked.I lifted my head woozily and opened my lashes, trying to focus on the back of my driver’s head.“Just great,” I slurred. “But hey. Do you happen to have a basement?”“A bathroom?”“A basement,” I tried to clarify, but even I could hear the slur in my speech.“A basement? What?” The bald-headed man whose neck was about as

Ezra sent me a funny look, which told me I was laying my gratitude on a little bit too thick. So I laughed at myself and nudged his arm. “I felt like an idiot when I tried to stop by and say hi to her, only to realize the doors would be locked. I really hate feeling so foolish.”Features relaxing as if my behavior was more explainable now, he nodded and unlocked the front door before gallantly holding it open for me to pass through. “Yeah, they can be a bit restrictive,” he allowed, trying to make me feel better. “Sorry about that.”“But it’s completely necessary, I’m sure,” I told him with a grin as I paused after entering the shiny foyer so I could wait for him to lead the way.“Unfortunately, yes,” he answered with a sigh and a roll of his eyes. “After all the media coverage we’ve had lately, all kinds of different people have tried to get in and disrupt the workflow.”“Oh, I bet.” Keeping my tone commiserating, I winced at his back as he started forward, leading the way. “You a