The Madd Hopper

"ANOTHER VICTIM SUCCUMBS TO THE MADD HOPPER OF RYE!" read the title of a recently published article. Rye, England as a bit of a serial killer problem. This crazed lunatic known as "The Madd Hopper" is hopping from roof-to-roof and murdering people at night like it's nothing. At first the deaths started out slow, but now dead bodies are showing up every week. It's because these darn kids keep going to the alleyways of Rye in the dead of night in hope they can snatch a photo of him for social media clout. Nine times out of ten, no one lives to take a photo. The few photos we have of this bloke depict some smiling naff in a magician's get-up. But these photos are so blurry they would make the North American Sasquatch blush.
So what do I have to do with this? I'm a freelancer detective trying to make sense of these murders and figure out who this loony is and lock him behind bars for good. If Hannibal Lecter was real, I'd have them throw the Madd Hopper in the same cell with him and give Hannibal permission to "dig in". But I digress. There was a knock at the door at my office trailer. At the door I was greeted by a short 4'10" bloke with red hair and round glasses. "Ahoy." he said as he stepped in my trailer. "Nice and warm in here!" "This must be the bloke I spoke with over the telly earlier. He took a seat in front of my desk and we began discussions. 
The short man, named Oliver Brown, showed me high-quality photos and videos he took of the infamous hopper, sneaking around alleys and hopping from roof to roof. "Bloody impressive... How did you manage to survive and get these in the first place?" "I figured out his nightly patterns by camping out there all night and having cameras set up on the roofs and tucked away behind dumpsters. He comes out at 11:59 PM and from there he springs across the roofs and hops down on his victims with a scalpel." "Scalpel? That's his weapon?" "Oh, yes, I saw him attack someone. I made a police report, but you probably already know considering your cluttered bulletin board." After our talk we agreed to head to the back alleys of Rye that night in hopes of catching this motherhopper.
"It's a shame there's a serious lack of bloody officers out here." Oliver said. "Yeah. They don't have the manpower to have them set up all around the town all night. Good thing for vigilantism!" I said. We parked by a dumpster in a tight alleyway and got out with flashlights. "11:55 PM. He'll come out to play soon." Oliver said while looking up to the night sky. I adjusted my jacket sleeve and began stepping down the dark alleyway only illuminated by the full moonlight. "I may be a dark knight, but murder is not off limits. The punishment is due." I said aiming my flashlight's light toward the rooftops. A young woman walked by the alleyway entrance. I told her to get home immediately or else she might succumb to the Madd Hopper. "Spring-heeled Jack the Ripper. Poetic." Oliver said. I stepped out of the alley and peered out to the empty Rye streets. The moonlight glistened in the calm waters. In the distance I imagined a bloke blowing the bagpipes in front of a crumbled Scottish castle. I'll go there on vacation once I collect the check for catching this fiend of the night. 
After getting lost in my thoughts for a moment, I started back to the alleyway. I shined my flashlight down it but didn't see Oliver. I jogged down the alleyway and peaked around the corners. "Oliver?" I called out. Still no sign of him. Suddenly, I heard a blood curdling that made the hairs on the back of my neck stand up. I pulled my gun out and gripped it tightly next to my flashlight. I ran down another alley trying to find the source of the sound. A dead end with nothing there. I ran back and turned to another alleyway. I felt like a rat in a maze scurrying down these horrifying corridors. The dead of night and the only thing I can hear are air vents and the sound of my heart pumping blood through my purple veins. My head began spinning. Oliver is missing, someone screamed bloody murder, and I don't know where I'm at. For a brief moment I thought about what it would be like to die and go to Hell. It would probably be like this repeat infinity. This thought gave me the adrenaline boost I needed to find that poor soul. 
I turned down another alleyway, and there was in the sight of my flashlight, a strangulated woman with a cord tied around her bruised neck. I immediately rushed over and felt for her pulse. Cold. Another innocent life taken by the Madd Hopper. I take out my celly and begin dialing for the police. "Bloody hell." I muttered under my panting breathe. That's when I heard an evil, manically laughter so vile it caused bile to travel up my food pipe and nearly excrete it all over the concrete. "DEAD VICTIM! ALLEYWAY! SEND HELP!" I shouted before hanging up. I aimed my flashlight up and got a glimpse of the crazed hopper jumping from overhead. I'm such a fool thinking I could take on this mad bloke by myself with some young chap. Now a woman and potentially Oliver himself are dead. 
My animal instincts are kicking in. The predator is lurking and I'm the prey. I need to get out of the lion's den before I'm cut up and my bones rested in the ground next to the victims of the Jacks and now the Hooper! I fled to the alleyway where my car was parked. As I sprinted toward it, the Madd Hopper hopped down and landed on the hood gripping a scalpel. An evil grin wiped across his face that revealed abnormally sharp teeth that would make a shark blush. Without hesitation, I did the thing I've been waiting to do all night. I pulled out my revolver and shot the hopper dead in the chest. Madd fell over and slipped off the hood, landing on the ground. I rushed over to the bloke and pulled off his hat. 
Red hair. 
"O-Oliver...?" I questioned. "You fell for my trap, s-sucker..." he choked out before croaking away. Just then, a police unit with flashing lights pulled up outside the alleyway. I rushed toward the officer's vehicle waving my arms around. Until I felt a sharp pain in chest. I slumped over and collapsed to the ground. I touched the area where I felt pain. Blood. Lots of it. I turned my head back and saw Oliver, the Madd Hopper, holding a revolver and flashing a bullet proof vest. He laughed manically before running off into the dark of the night. The dizziness of the night finally got to me... and I passed out. I guess I'll find out if Hell is really what I think it will be like. 
To the town of Rye, I'm sorry I couldn't tell you who the Madd Hopper was before I passed on. And to myself, Batman shouldn't kill. 
Category:Killers/Murderers
Category:Europe
Category:Twist Ending