Building 11 “A Heart for My Valentine”

I received a letter from Margaret. There were strange brown stains on the paper, but I haven't been willing to get it tested.

I have been told that I need to be on the lookout for any strange behavior on Valentines day. Suspicious behavior includes people walking on their own, but seeming to be happy for it. Couples who seem to be distant from one another are also to be observed and reported to local police.

It seems that there has been a large influx of admissions to the hospital, at least six cases of people who were mutilated by their partners, their bodies in various states of disrepair and in excruciating pain. It is suspected that this trend may reach its peak on Valentine's day, and thus a public notice was sent to every home on the street.

One of the victims stood out, as there didn't seem to be a romantic connection between the two. Investigations are still ongoing, but so far motive has been unable to be placed and the perpetrator has yet to caught, and the victim is currently under heavy sedation and is not expected to make a recovery.

So far, no formal charges have been filled against those who did the butchering, mostly owing to a lack of evidence and a general inability of the victims to communicate what had happened to them.

I have received several calls from police from concerned citizens, though eventually the calls stopped after I made it clear that I was doing okay and had no significant other whom I had reason to bring harm.

Two days ago I found out Eric was one of the victims.

I didn't even know he was seeing anyone.

A cat showed up to my house last night. I didn't see a collar on it, and so I decided to bring it inside while I figured out what to do. I opened the door, gesturing for it to come inside, but it simply stared at me blankly.

Resigning myself, I leaned over and picked it up.

The back half separated from its front, spilling what was inside onto the porch. I dropped it on reflex, retching over the edge of the porch.

When I turned back, the cat had dragged itself over to the mass that had spilled out.

It was eating it, like a dog does with a pile of vomit.

I called animal control, and they took it away, seeing as maybe it was diseased or something like that. But the first thing that came to mind was the dead deer my uncle had told me about all those months ago, the one that had been dead before he had shot it.

I grabbed the heart that had fallen out of its chest.

It didn't seem to mind though.

It was purring as they carried it away.

I am going to get the heart tested, just to confirm what I already suspect. For almost a year now I have been sitting in worry about the strange occurrences that have been going on. Sickness halted my progress, but I think I am just well enough to try and figure it out.

There is something happening that seems to be causing the necrosis of tissues in living things, manifesting in ways that should kill those afflicted. And yet time after time I have gotten reports of things that are not just living, but sentient and aware of what is happening to them.

I recall having set up a meeting with one of these persons months ago, but my failing health kept it from getting it together.

The echoes of the events three years ago frightens me, though this feels very different. It is less like an infection or a free agent, and more like a change in the order of things. Like the rules are being adjusted without anyone knowing.

How many other people have these pieces of dead tissue residing within them? As far as I have been able to tell, those who are experiencing it show no outward signs of discomfort, save if the system in question is hard to ignore, like the heart or the lungs.

I washed my hands raw just in case it is an infection, but I doubt it.

Most infections result in dead tissues eventually, but most pathogens I am aware of require a living host.

I hope you have a very nice Valentine's Day, and I hope all this nastiness doesn't affect it negatively. Please be safe.

I love you.