Eye of the Camera I

She sat mostly concealed in the corner.

An excellent spot for hiding, it was everything she could ask for; dark, but not blindingly so, cozy, and perfectly hidden. Nobody ever noticed the tiny creature sitting partially covered by the pillar, and supported by the wall behind. It was shadowy, with a slight dampness, but that only added to the ambience and thrill of what she was doing.

When it all began, she never really meant for it to escalate to this level, but now it was as much of a necessity to her as a heroin addict looking for a fix. The adrenaline rushes were her source of incomparable joy with the addition of the income she generated by this particular activity. What was a one-time revenge thing had turned into a full blown operation. Not only did she become a vigilante, she also capitalized on one person’s discomfort, and another’s fear. Some would call it extortion or blackmail; she preferred to think of it as financially reinforcing her point.

No one really bothered to pay attention, but there were hundreds of similar spots all around the place. That’s the thing with people these days. They’re so focused on doing, rushing, reaching, meeting, speaking or something else that they never quite take in their surroundings. In her rather humble opinion, one should always take extra care of where they’re at. No harm was ever done by remaining vigilant of all those, and that which surrounds you.

So, here she was. Another day, another shindig, and another potential case she could build upon, given how things would go. She readied both her cameras, one an excellent Nikon, solely meant for brilliant photography, and another a camcorder that was ancient and hard to trace. She never allowed herself to take out the camcorder, but openly carried around the Nikon. Everyone had one, and it wouldn’t be out of the ordinary to have it hanging around their neck, so she wasn’t out of place. The camcorder, though, she took extra care to ensure was never discovered by anyone. She didn’t want herself to be ousted. Not now, not ever.

This time was a little different than the others. The same principle, a larger extortion, but a bigger plan that she had stumbled upon; see, there’d been a rumor floating around. She always kept her ear to the ground for any rumors that may concern her or her work. It died around without creating much of an impact on anyone, but kept entering her thoughts whenever she tried to focus on her work. She’d discover the truth for herself, and boy did she not like what she found.

For now, she’d take a photograph of these two idiots snorting cocaine on campus, and get done with the heavier work later.

Right on schedule, she thought, as they appeared, and exchanged handshakes, and coke. It seemed all too easy now.

An hour later she found herself high up in a tree, struggling to keep still and not fall off. Life was a struggle when your hero complex threatened to overtake all other personality traits.


So she’d been right all along hadn’t she? Admittedly smug in her findings, she lifted the camera.

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