"I'll say," said the older woman with a skeptical look on her face. "You kids need to stay out of the basement, it's dangerous in there."
"It's okay, I'm a trained professional," I offered as I moved quickly to the elevator.
"Sure, right," said the other one, raising an eyebrow as she continued transferring her laundry from one machine to the other. I nodded and tipped my invisible hat as the elevator doors slid shut.
"Three A, she said," I muttered as I hit the button and waited for the elevator to slowly grind its way up to the third floor. My phone rang as the elevator passed the third floor and when I looked down, I saw it was Alex.
"Alex! I'm on my way!" I shouted into the phone.
"Don't bother, Connor," a familiar voice replied. "If you come anywhere near this apartment, I'm going to burn it down."
"Victor? What the hell?" I said. "What are you doing?"
"I'm getting what I want," he replied in a cool voice. "This is all your fault, you know."
"My fault that you're a fucking psycho?" I shouted. "How is that my fault?"
"Oh, Connor." He sighed. "You are so common. Such an idiot. This is your entire fault because if you had given me what I wanted to begin with, none of this would be happening now. Your little girlfriend wouldn't be crying in the corner and her friend definitely wouldn't be hooked on heroin."
"And this is all my fault, is it?" I replied, realizing that he didn't know I was on my way up. "So, if I stay away, you'll let the girls go?"
"No, I didn't say that," he replied in a bored voice. "I just said that if you came anywhere near, I'd burn the place down with them in it. So, I would suggest that as soon as that elevator opens up on the third floor, you hit the first floor button and get the hell out."
"What are you talking about?" I said, feigning ignorance.
"I'm talking about the fact that I can see you riding the elevator and talking to me on the phone right at this moment," he said. "Your phone is in your right hand and you're leaning against the wall closest to the buttons. Good enough for you?"
My heart dropped as I realized that he could actually see me, but I forced myself to stay in the same position so as not to give him the upper hand. Meanwhile, I began plotting out my next steps.
"And if you're wondering, I've got the staircase wired as well," he said as if he knew what I was thinking. "Like I said, you're an idiot, Connor."
"What do you want, Victor?" I asked, wondering what game he was playing.
"Nothing," he said. "I want absolutely nothing from you. No, strike that. What I want from you is to get the hell out of my building."
"Or else what?" I asked, wondering what he was planning to do.
"Or else I burn it down," he said, talking slowly as if speaking to a child. "What part of that didn't you understand?"
"I'm just trying to understand what it is you'll gain from doing that," I said as the elevator opened on the third floor and I looked down the hallway.
"Uh, uh, uh," he scolded. "Press the down button and go away."
"What kind of sick game are you playing, Vangel?" I demanded as I stepped back and let the doors slide shut. I pressed the first floor button and felt the elevator grind as it slowly moved down to the ground floor.
"I'm not playing any game, Connor," he said. As he continued, his voice rose to a crescendo. "I simply want to cause you as much pain as you have caused me. I want you to feel the loss of things you care about. The humiliation of NOT GETTING WHAT YOU DESERVE!"
"You are so far beyond fucked up, Vangel," I muttered as I quickly tried to figure out how I could stop him before he did anything irrevocable.
"I'm not fucked up, Connor," he said calmly. "You've been an asshole to me since the day I started, and now I'm going to make you pay for the fact that I did not get the Lieutenant position. That's on your shoulders. It's your fault that I didn't get what I deserve."
"How in the hell is that my fault?" I yelled. I was running out of patience with his delusional ranting, and I was afraid that he was actually going to harm Liz and Alex.
"You turned Chief against me and he refused to recommend me for Lieutenant," Victor said. "You told him I didn't deserve the position. You poisoned everything!"
"I didn't do shit, Vangel!" I shouted. "I had nothing to do with you getting or not getting the promotion. Jesus H. Christ, you are fucking delusional! The promotions all go through HQ and you have to pass the Lieutenant exam then wait for a station to open up. No one has that kind of power, you fucking idiot!"
"You do," he said coldly. "I know you do. You're the fire department poster boy after your horrible tragedy. People listen to you. They take your advice, and you hate me. You've always hated me."