[029] always watching

                                               Courtney Morrison lied and fucked her way to the top.

                                                She didn't have any big talents or useful skills that'd ensure her a successful career. And the one thing she was good at wouldn't make her a lot of money, unless she decided to become an assassin for hire. And after coming back home from the wilderness, Courtney knew that she'd probably have a normal life again. Beforehand, Courtney had been the center of attention and she thrived in it. But now, Courtney wanted nothing more than to escape it all. 

                                                With her family not knowing what to do with Courtney post rescue and with the only girl she ever loved suddenly decided to shut her out of her life for good, Courtney decided to run away.

                                                 That was when her killing spree would begin. Courtney did her best to disguise her, seeing as she and her team were now infamous for surviving the un-survivable. She'd charm anyone who came across her with a decent amount of cash before killing them. As much as Courtney wanted to say she did it to survive, a part of her couldn't deny that she enjoyed the thrill just a little too much. She was living a pretty decent life throughout the years until she came across Andrew Fitzgerald.

                                                Courtney had managed to make it to the big city, reinventing herself in search of her next big prey. And Andrew was the biggest of them all. He was a millionaire, desperate for someone to love him beyond his riches. Courtney entered his life by coincidence (of course, she had planned out the entire thing - following him around long enough to figure out his habits) and charmed him on first sight, playing dumb when he said who he was and all the money he had. Courtney seemed like the real thing, and he married her within a couple of months of knowing her.

                                                  Courtney Morrison became Courtney Fitzgerald, set to own everything of his after he died. It hadn't taken much to convince Andrew to sign off on it, just some of the most boring sex Courtney ever had in her life. With everything now belonging to her, Courtney knew that it was only a matter of time before she got rid of him and spent her life carefree in the lap of luxury. Courtney would end up getting pregnant by Andrew twice, making sure to get rid of them before he'd even find out.

                                                  Courtney was cruel and sadistic, conniving and absolutely psychotic. But she wouldn't be like her mother and bring children into the world when she clearly didn't want them. Courtney had accepted that she wouldn't make a good mother a long time ago.

                                                  After nearly a year of marriage, Courtney finally decided to get rid of Andrew. She had cooked him his favorite meal, lacing that and his wine of choice with poison. He never stood a chance. Courtney watched him as he fell to the ground and choked on his own vomit, his eyes wide with panic and fear. Courtney's face was the last one he'd ever see before he died. 

                                                Courtney would cut up his body and scatter it around, making sure to burn his head and his hands. After all, they wouldn't be able to identify the body parts without his teeth or fingers. That is, if they'd even find it. Courtney had made good work to make sure that she dug deep enough for no one to ever find them.

                                                When people obviously noticed that Andrew was missing, Courtney painted a sob story of him running off with another woman and completely leaving her. Although it was a little hard to believe, they saw how upset Courtney was and took her side. He had seemingly disappeared, starting his new life with his young girlfriend in the islands somewhere. There was suspicion of foul play and Courtney was at the center of it all. But with no evidence, there was really nothing that they could do. And so, Courtney successfully got away with killing her husband and she spent years living her life happily and very, very rich.

                                              But then she'd get a call from none other than Misty Quigley and Courtney's perfect life was close to shattering. 

                                              The two kept in contact quite often, mostly so Misty could report back to Courtney about how Suki was doing. But this call was obviously different. Apparently, someone was trying to dig back up the past. And that wouldn't have bothered Courtney. Reporters came and went. That was... until Misty mentioned getting a post card with the all too familiar symbol on it. Someone knew about what had happened in the wilderness and if they didn't find out who it was and get rid of them, Courtney's perfect life would come crashing down.

                                               So Courtney packed up her bags and headed straight for Wiskayok, getting herself a hotel to hide in while she thought of her next move. Courtney couldn't resist the temptation to follow Suki around. Not because she thought that she could be the one sending post cards. But because she missed her. Suki seemed to have move on just fine, even going home with different women. That didn't please Courtney whatsoever. She had hoped that Suki would be alone, only focusing on her. But obviously, Suki wanted to try and forget about them.

                                               And Courtney wasn't going to allow that. Suki had haunted her even after she moved away. She had the scars to prove it. Suki would always be a part of her, a part of her cold little heart would always beat for her. And now that she was back, she was determined to remind her of what she had missed out on.

                                               Even if it meant breaking into her house and waiting for her to come back.

                                               "What the fuck are you doing here?" Suki questioned, taking a step back.

                                               "I'm back in town and well, I thought I'd surprise you. Aren't you happy to see me?" Courtney stands up. "This place is cozy. Small but... cozy."

                                               "This is crazy," Suki shakes her head, still in disbelief that Courtney was actually here and talking to her right now.

                                               "Isn't that the foundation of our relationship?" Courtney teased.

                                               "There is no relationship between us. That ended a long time ago," Suki swiftly corrects her as she began to walk away from her.

                                               "With words, sure. But I never stopped loving you, Suki," Courtney says, quickly following after her.

                                               "You don't know what love is," Suki scoffed.

                                               "I know it a hell of a lot better than you do. I mean, is sleeping with different women every other week something you see yourself doing for the rest of your life?" Courtney retorted.

                                                Suki turned around, glaring at Courtney. "Have you been watching me?"

                                               "Well, it hasn't been me. But I have Misty check up on you from time to time just so I can see how you're doing. I wouldn't have to if you just let me back in," Courtney shrugged.

                                               "Oh my God, you're insane," Suki laughs. 

                                               "Pot calling the kettle black, don't you think? I mean... did you really forget all the shit you did back then? How do you think you ended up without your eye?" Courtney shot back, knowing she struck a chord the moment Suki frowned.

                                               "Shut up," Suki warned.

                                               "Believe it or not, I didn't come here to fight with you. I wanted us to talk... over dinner," Courtney offered.

                                               "What dinner are you talking about?" Suki asks, confused.

                                               The doorbell rings and Courtney smiles. "I figured you'd be hungry. There's hardly any food in here. Just a lot of alcohol. I knew you were shitty in taking care of yourself, but this is a new low. This is why you need me around."

                                               "Right, because you did such a good job at taking care of me before," Suki rolled her eye.

                                               "I kept you alive, didn't I? If it wasn't for me, you would've died in that wilderness," Courtney reminded her.

                                               Suki grows silent as the doorbell rings again and Courtney finally leaves to go and answer it, even giving a tip to the delivery person before she emerged back with the takeout.

                                                "Now I remembered how much you loved veggie lo mein so... I figured I'd get you some. Of course, mine has meat so I hope you don't mind. Just pretend it's something else," Courtney says as she begins to pull everything out of the bag.

                                                "Are you real?" Suki questioned, wondering if she was beginning to lose it all over again.

                                                Courtney looked over at Suki, nodding. "Of course I'm real. This is real. Now sit down. You must be tired and hungry."

                                                 Suki only nods, sitting down at the table as Courtney prepared the food for them both. And then they sat down, beginning to eat like an average couple on a date. But they were far from an average couple.

                                                 "What happened to you after you left? You just... disappeared without telling anyone where you were going," Suki wondered before she took another bite from her food.

                                                 "It's not like I could've told you. You basically shut me out of your life," Courtney says, not even hiding her bitterness.

                                                Suki shakes her head. "I had shut everyone out after we came back. You weren't special."

                                                "I was your girlfriend. I'd think that made me more special than the rest," Courtney argued, her voice raising slightly before she forced herself to calm down.

                                                "We weren't good for each other, Courtney. We only brought out the worst in each other and you know it. We had to break up," Suki shakes her head.

                                                Courtney looks down at her food, stabbing the meat a little too harshly with her fork. "We saw each other's true side. And it terrified you. I was willing to accept you as you were, flaws and all. But you couldn't handle it. I was ready to start a life with you. That was supposed to be the plan. For us to be together forever. Instead, this happened."

                                                 "You don't look too bad. You look like you did really well for yourself. So it couldn't have been that awful," Suki nods towards her.

                                                 "Yes, I did do well for myself. Thank you for noticing," Courtney responded. "After I left home, I met some interesting people before I made it to the big city. It'd be there that I'd meet my husband at a bar of all places. Cliche, am I right?"

                                                 "You're married?" Suki asks, not bothering to hide her shock.

                                                 "Oh, God, no. Not anymore. Andrew was a millionaire, born from old money and such. Truth be told, I loved his money more than I ever loved him. But we got married only a couple months later after we met. I owned everything he did. I got everything; it was wonderful. I never had that much money before," Courtney answered.

                                                "What happened to him? You keep speaking in the past tense," Suki replies, despite already having a feeling as to what happened to him.

                                               Courtney shrugs. "I had to get rid of him. I couldn't share that money with him forever. And plus, he was getting too clingy. He kept asking too many questions about me. I guess he actually loved me or something. I poisoned him, then I cut up his body and made sure to discard of him properly. As far as his friends and family know, he's in the islands with his young mistress."

                                                "Didn't you love him a little?" Suki inquired.

                                                "No. Just you. You're the only one I've ever loved," Courtney answered.

                                                 "How many people have you killed?" Suki questioned, forcing herself to not let Courtney's words get to her. She couldn't let Courtney back in again.

                                                 "That's funny. I kind of lost track after ten. It wasn't just men, you know. Women too. Whoever I could get. It was like an addiction, Suki. I know something's really fucked up with me but I just couldn't stop myself," Courtney admitted.

                                                 Suki releases a shaky breath. "Have you killed anyone recently?"

                                                 "No. But once I figure out who's trying to blackmail us, I'll kill them myself," Courtney shrugged, making it sound so simple. "You did get a postcard too, right?"

                                                 "Yeah, what about you?" Suki responded.

                                                "Nope. I almost feel a little left out. But then again, I did a good job to make sure no one could really find me," Courtney replied. "No one except for Misty."

                                                  "I should've known that you and Misty would still be close. Was her little trip to my store all those years ago a coincidence?" Suki questioned next.

                                                   "Not really. By the way, you should be thanking me."

                                                   "For what?"

                                                   Courtney chuckles. "I don't know, for making sure you even have a store. I was the one who bought it for you."

                                                   "Y - You did? But I thought -?"

                                                  Courtney scoffs. "What? You thought it had been Taissa? You think she cares about you enough? All she cares about is winning her stupid election."

                                                   "Where are you even staying right now?"

                                                    "Well, I was staying at a hotel. But tonight's my last night so I was hoping to stay here."

                                                    "Why? You have more than enough money to buy yourself a couple more nights. You could buy the hotel if you wanted."

                                                    "True. But I'd rather be with you. You're the only one I really want to be with. And besides, we have to work together to catch this bastard."

                                                    "We?"

                                                   "Yes, we. Whoever this guy is, he plans on taking us all down unless we find him out first. We have to do this, Suki."

                                                   Suki sighed, knowing that Courtney was right. They'd need to figure it out, even if it meant working together. "Fine. Fine, we'll work together. But you are sleeping on the couch."

                                                   Courtney's smile grows.

( 🌲🔪🦌 )

word count: 2368
notes: the toxic couple is officially back together! but now we're going to be switching back to the wilderness all over again so see you guys again very soon!