Chapter Five: Gershwin: Rhapsody In Blue

Preparations

Two weeks later:

 

She had researched this in detail over a period of three weeks, almost two full years ago. Careful not to leave a trail lest she be discovered too early, she never allowed anything to connect her to the tools of her trade. She amassed information quietly and let it sit while she faded away from memory. If nobody remembered anyone asking awkward questions, if enough time had gone past, the police were far less likely to be able to trace anything back to her.

 

Doing it that way also meant that she had far more time to gather the things she needed. This one had been difficult. She had given it a lot of thought, had needed to do a lot of research on a subject that was truly not her forte, but she had come, eventually to a conclusion that seemed to work.

 

Bleach and ammonia. Two household, but nasty chemicals that reacted very badly together, creating a toxic gas that was perfect for her purposes. Both, of course, were easy enough for the layperson to access " a necessity, if she didn’t want to stand out. Just in case, she had bought each of them from a different store, in a different suburb, on a different day, and she had held onto them, too.

 

But now, tonight, she was ready to put them to use. Carefully, she poured the bleach in first, then added the ammonia. It had taken several attempts, and several containers, to get the mixture just right, but she thought she had it now. Just enough in the bottom to fill the container with the toxic fumes she needed, not enough to make the liquid in the centre obvious, and she was done.

 

Determined, she placed the container carefully on the bench and slid off the coat she was wearing before slipping on a black cotton blouse. She always wore dark colours on the nights she rode the buses.

Author's Note

Please bear in mind this is a very rough first draft as I'm throwing together 50,000 words in a month. Feel free to add reviews and comments/fix grammar and spelling/find plot holes and problems (these things are heavily encouraged!), but please do be gentle on this, as well as bearing in mind that part of the NaNo experience means unnecessary padding and/or weird moments/dares.