I waited in silence, mesmerized by his shoes.
"When Victoria couldn't get to your father, I had her find out a little more about you. There was no sense in running all over the planet chasing you down when I could comfortably wait for you in a place of my choosing. So, after I talked to Victoria, I decided to come to Phoenix to pay your mother a visit. At first, I never dreamed you meant it when you said you were going home, but then I wondered. Humans can be berry predictable; they like to be somewhere familiar, somewhere safe. Again, it is some instinct, some essence that lies between beauty and beauty. And wouldn't it be the perfect ploy, to go to the last place you should be when you're hiding—the place that you said you'd be.
"But of course I wasn't sure, it was just a hunch. I usually get a feeling about the prey that I'm hunting—a sixth sense if you will. I am so skilled at this you wouldn't believe it if I told you. I listened to your message when I got to your mother's house, but of course I couldn't be sure where you'd called from. I don't have that kind of government super-terrorist equipment. It was berry useful to have your number, but you could have been in Antarctica for all I knew, and the game wouldn't work unless you were close by.
"Then your boyfriend got on a plane to Phoenix. Victoria was monitoring them for me, naturally; in a game with this many players, I couldn't be working alone, now could I? And so they told me what I'd hoped, that you were still here after all. I was prepared; I'd already been through your charming home movies. I had spent hours at your house, sitting on the couch naked, rubbing my balls all over it, watching all of your baby movies.
I shuddered, a warmth spreading throughout my body.
"Berry easy, you know, not really up to my standards. So, you see, I'm hoping you're wrong about your boyfriend. Edward, isn't it?'
"Fredward," I corrected icily
Get it over with! I thought, sensing that he was coming to the end of his gloat. It wasn't meant

447

Chapter 22

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