[ WP ] Killing another human now allows you to exchange your remaining lifespan the victim 's . Young people live in fear while the elderly plan their attacks .

Well, I'm really fucked this time. Where to begin... Well first you need to understand that Marcy and Ernest Robson moved into town around five years ago. They are the most enviable young couple in Evergreen. Both in their mid-thirties and exceedingly handsome, the pair is adored in our small, rural community. Ernest is the sole doctor in town who does everything from stitching up gashes to delivering babies. Marcy, during her tenure as mayor, has made Evergreen feel safe again for the first time in fifteen years ( ever since the phenomenon that we call *the exchange* began ). She, a deeply religious woman, preaches the importance of faith to our community in her strong, yet charming way. 
 *'' This life is temporary. The exchange is God's way of testing us. He is watching. He sees those who murder for Earthly gain. He also sees those with faith who have followed his commandments and trust in Him. Have faith, friends, and we will be rewarded eternally. `` * 
 Her'sermons', as the community calls them, seem to work too. No children or teens have gone missing or been killed since she was elected two and a half years ago. Despite the nationwide violence and chaos, Evergreen carries on above the fray. Everything seemed too good to be true, and it was. 
 
 A little about myself. I have always been an introvert in a way, which is often misinterpreted as coldness. Understandably so. I keep to a small group of close friends. Never married. I live alone, with my german shepherd Rocky, in a cabin in the woods off of highway 40. And I'm the sheriff. It'd be fair to say that I'm not the most popular individual in Evergreen. But I mean well. 
 
 So last week ( at least I think it's been around a week ) was July 4th and the Robsons threw their annual Independence Day party at their home. I usually avoid parties like the plague but it was strongly suggested by the mayor that I attend, all the while showing her perfectly straight and bleached white teeth in a big smile. & The party was up to the Robson standard. Big white tents in their perfectly manicured backyard that easily accommodated the couple hundred guests. Food catered from Joshua's, a local organic restaurant that was the finest dining in Evergreen. White lights hanging in the oak trees like Spanish moss. The weather was mild and there was n't a cloud in the night sky. Even I, generally miserable at these type of events, was finding the evening tolerable. 
 
 As the night progressed I stepped away from the party into their lovely two-story victorian home in search of the restroom. I took a left into a narrow corridor off of the foyer and opened a promising looking door at the end of the hallway. However, it was not the restroom, but was Ernest's study. I took a few steps into the room admiring the mahogany desk and the portrait of him, in his doctor's lab coat, that hung over the fireplace. I was turning around to continue my search for the restroom when I heard a faint noise from somewhere in the room. I stopped, thinking I must've been mistaken when I heard the noise again, faint but real. I turned and took a few cautious steps forward into the room, listening. As I stepped onto the Persian rug that lay in the center of the room the wood below gave way slightly and let forth a deep moan. I knelt and lifted an edge of the rug out of curiosity and underneath was a trap door. I heard the noise again. Below me. My heart began to race. I quickly turned around and peered behind me into the hallway. No one was around so I quietly shut the study door and slid the Persian rug away. I took a deep breath to calm my nerves and then opened the door trap door. Stairs led down into pitch black below. I pull out my phone, turned on the flashlight, and descended into darkness. 
 
 The first thing that I noticed as I descended was the stench. With every step downward the smell of human waste became more distinct. My eyes were slowly adjusting and the flashlight on my phone is weak. I reached the bottom of the stairs and began to sweep my light across the cellar. I nearly choked on my heart when I picked up the silhouette of a human being against the far wall. and then another. Both children. Both naked with duct tape wrapped over their mouths and buckets on the floor between their legs. The larger of the two, a boy of about 14, emaciated from starvation, looked at me with wild eyes. He was frantically trying to make noise as he moved his eyes from me to the top of the stairs. I spun around to Marcy looking down at me. In her hand was a handgun with a silencer. She smiled at me and put a single finger over her mouth as she began to descend towards me, flipping a light switch that I had missed on my way down the stairs. Ernest peered down from the study, darkness and hate devouring his normally handsome face, before he silently closed the trap door. I faintly heard him slide the rug back into place above, leaving Marcy, the two children, and myself in the dungeon. 
 
 For the first time since we had met I saw the smile slide from Marcy's face, her beauty was nowhere to be found now as she began to talk. 
 *'' You know how the Bible says that God created man in his image? I think that man created the devil in our own image. `` * 
 I stood at gunpoint, stunned, as she continued 
 *'' People put their faith in God out of necessity when they do n't understand how the world works. They're grasping for something more, Mark. There is nothing more. There is only survival... Today is my 92nd birthday. What a lovely independence day in Evergreen. `` * 
... 
 
 So now, a week or so later and here I am. Naked, chained to the wall, and in constant agony from where that bitch blew my knee caps to hell. But you know whats even more fucked up? I am now comforted by the words from her sermons. 
 *'' This life is temporary. The exchange is God's way of testing us. He is watching. He sees those who murder for Earthly gain. He also sees those with faith who have followed his commandments and trust in Him. Have faith, friends, and we will be rewarded eternally. `` * 
 Whether or not God is real, it does n't matter. Our time here on Earth is n't measured in years but is measured in the way we conduct ourselves along the way. 
 

