Chapter 261: Symbiote Data
Compared to Eddie's agitation, Venom looked completely indifferent.
"Symbiote..." Eddie began reading the Life Foundation's files on the creatures.
Beside him, Dora Skirth watched Venom with intense curiosity. She finally realized that the monster Carlton Drake had bonded with was one of these beings—a Symbiote.
"What are you looking at? Keep it up, and I'll turn you into a snack!" Venom growled, annoyed by the woman's persistent staring.
"Whoa!" Dora jumped, clutching her chest. She had almost forgotten that these creatures were man-eaters.
"Symbiotes are vulnerable to high-frequency sound and fire," Eddie noted, reading a section that explained how to kill them.
"Yes, that's why that neighbor was so loud—so I ate him," Venom admitted candidly. Unlike with Peter, who had a mysterious and dangerous brother like Silas, Venom felt no need to hide his weaknesses from a regular guy like Eddie.
"Please, Venom. He was a bad guitar player, but that doesn't mean you should eat him!" Eddie snapped.
Because of Venom's "meal," the neighbors had called the police, and now Eddie was a wanted man with a $10,000 bounty on his head. If he weren't afraid of being shot on sight, Eddie might have turned himself in just for the money.
"I was hungry, and that man filled the hole," Venom said. His eyes suddenly began to glow as he looked at Dora again.
Dora quickly stood up. "Look, you two can stay here for the night. I'm going to the bedroom to rest. The files are all in that folder. I won't disturb you."
She hurried into her room and slammed the door. Once inside, she reached into her drawer and placed her handgun under her pillow. She knew bullets wouldn't stop Venom, but it gave her a shred of comfort.
"You scared her off," Eddie grumbled. He had wanted to pick her brain about the biology of the Symbiote. After all, she was the expert.
"No, I'm just hungry again," Venom complained. He felt like he was making up for lost time after being suppressed inside Peter.
"Hungry? You just ate a whole person!"
"Just one? That was basically a pre-dinner appetizer," Venom replied petulantly.
"Great. I'm definitely going to be remembered as 'The Cannibal,'" Eddie groaned. He didn't know how he could ever face his ex-fiancée, Anne, looking like this.
"Don't worry, Eddie. I'll clear your name after you're dead. Besides, don't you think 'The Cannibal' sounds cool?" Venom actually liked the title.
Eddie tossed the files onto the table and collapsed onto the sofa, staring blankly at the ceiling. "My future is pitch black."
"Don't say that. Back on my planet, I was a loser. On this planet, you're a loser. Don't you humans say that two negatives make a positive? Maybe we'll turn out okay," Venom said, repeating a phrase he had overheard while bonded to Peter.
Eddie sighed and closed his eyes. He would just have to make do with the sofa tonight.
"Don't sleep, Eddie. Someone's coming." Venom smelled the scent of people approaching—and they were close.
"Someone?!" Eddie bolted upright. Not the police again? He had just sat down. How did they track him here?
"I'll bond with you, and we'll burst through the door and eat them all," Venom suggested.
One Minute Later
Eddie scrambled out of a side window and crept away from Dr. Skirth's house.
"Coward," Venom hissed in his head.
Eddie ignored him. Regardless of what Venom said, staying alive was his top priority.
Just then, a squad of black-clad tactical units arrived at the front door, equipped with high-powered flashlights and heavy weaponry.
"Oh no!" Eddie flattened himself against the ground in the tall grass, praying they wouldn't see him.
"I'm here, Eddie! Don't be afraid! Let's charge!" Venom tried to force Eddie to stand up.
Eddie resisted with everything he had. He wasn't about to stand up just to be turned into a firing range target.
The Next Morning
The sun began to rise over the San Francisco skyline.
"Ah! Eddie! What are you doing here?!" Dora Skirth was holding a garden hose, preparing to water her plants, when she saw a body lying in the bushes.
Terrified, she almost called the police until she remembered Eddie had disappeared the night before. She walked over and confirmed it was him.
"Mmm..." Eddie woke up, groggy and sore. He had spent the entire night in a state of high alert before finally drifting off in the grass. He rubbed his eyes and realized he was still in Dora's backyard. The thick foliage had provided a natural camouflage.
"Sorry. Things got complicated last night, so I ended up out here," Eddie said, standing up.
Dora nodded. She didn't want to know the details; she just wanted to get on with her life.
"I'm lucky I stayed in the garden. Though I'd be even luckier if I'd never met you, Venom," Eddie muttered.
"Without me, you're just a total loser," Venom snapped.
"I'd happily be a loser for the rest of my life! I don't want a man-eating monster in my gut!" Eddie finally exploded. Because of Venom, he was a fugitive.
"Are you yelling at me?" Venom's head emerged, staring Eddie down with a predatory glare.
"Uh oh... you've made him angry," Dora whispered, backing away. She was terrified he might eat her just to prove a point.
"I... no... I mean... I just..." Eddie stammered, losing his nerve. If Venom left him now, he'd be dead.
"Hmph!" Venom let out a huff and retreated back into Eddie's body, going completely silent.
"Venom? Venom, you okay?" Eddie called out, but there was no answer.
"Looks like you two are having a lovers' quarrel," Dora said, eager to get back inside. This ticking time bomb was too much for her. More importantly, she had seen the morning news: "Cannibal Eddie" was trending.
Eddie rubbed his temples. He reached into his pocket and found his last hundred dollars. "I hope things work out for you, Dora. And watch out for the cops."
Five Minutes Later: Heaston's Restaurant
Eddie finally reached the restaurant where he was supposed to meet Anne. He pulled his hood low and walked inside.
"Where is he?" Dan checked his watch. "He's late."
"I don't know. He used to be very punctual," Anne said. Eddie's background as a journalist had always made him respect deadlines.
"Hi..."
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