Elimination Teaser: Stock Traitor

It's October 29, 1929, the infamous day marking the Stock Market Crash. Things are looking grim for Jeffrey Tammel, who stands on a ledge. Here is a snippet from a scene shortly after 11:34.

*****

He tried to peer over the edge. If he wanted to see anything, Jeffrey would have to lean further out, something he dare not risk. It was then he realized he was enshrouded in pitch darkness.

“Oh hell,” he said.

On the downside, his eyes had not adjusted to the darkness. On the plus side, the building’s design foiled the wind from swirling here, though it did nothing to hamper the chill. Jeffrey disregarded everything but his need to end it all. His chin quivered, and the prospect of bawling caused his nose to run over his numb lips. Rather than using his arm to wipe his nose, he sniffled harshly.

“Who is there?” came a proper yet gravelly voice.

The unexpected visitor nearly made Jeffrey topple over. Jeffrey dug his manicured nails into the side of the building. He could hear the echo of his heartbeat thumping in his ears.

“I say, who’s there?” the voice repeated.

“I thought I was alone,” Jeffrey answered with notable displeasure.

Percolated by the raspy voice was an unsettling sense of calm. “And here I thought I was alone. Imagine that.”

*****

Author's Notes

I love this scene. It's delightfully creepy. An unseen chaos demon appears on a ledge adjacent to Jeffrey Tammel, a man who is working hard to convince himself to commit suicide. While one would assume a demon would see such a tragedy through, the demon, ironically, talks Jeffrey from taking the jump. Might the demon have designs on another nefarious ploy?

Chaos demons are the least powerful of demons but tend to cause the most trouble during their short stay.