All The Dead Girls

by Tim Kizer

  Richard put his feet in the tub, which was quickly filling with water. The water was comfortably hot.

  Without taking off his underpants, he lowered himself into the tub and relaxed his body. Gradually, he recalled the entire story. The character played by Sharon Stone was the guy’s mistress. She told the guy’s wife that she hated him. She tricked that woman, who was her friend, by the way.

  ‘Diabolique’—that was the name of the movie. What a fitting title.

  As he reflected on his dream, an incredible thought occurred to him, which gave him goosebumps. He cracked the riddle. He found the answers to all the questions that had been tormenting him since he had buried Mary. It was as if a light were shined on the events of the past few weeks. He knew who that woman in blue jeans was, who had written that ridiculous bloody inscription in the master bedroom, and who had sent the anonymous letter to the police. He figured it all out.

  Mary was alive. Yes, his wife was alive!

  But whom had he buried three weeks ago?

  Mary.

  Then why did he think she was alive?

  Because she hadn't died after falling from that bridge. She had only lost consciousness.

  Did this mean that Mary had gotten out of the grave?

  Yes, that was exactly what it meant: she had dug herself out of the grave. She had probably had help. From whom? Don? No, it couldn’t have been him. If Don had been with Mary that night, if he had been in on the plan, he would have known not to look for her at her husband’s place a few days later.

  Then who was it?

  After racking his brain for fifteen minutes, Richard figured out who Mary’s accomplice was. It had to be Bob Logan. You see, Bob and Mary were siblings, they could trust each other totally. Chances were Don was in cahoots with them, but he apparently had not been kept up to date.

  Why had Mary called her mother? Why had they written in blood on the wall? They wanted him to believe that his dead wife had come back to life. What was the point of this charade?

  Perhaps their objective was to drive him insane or simply demoralize him.

  They must have set up the whole thing, including John’s call. John, assuming it was his real name, was probably a friend of Bob’s. They must have known that he had installed a spy application on Mary’s cellphone. That phone call during which Don had mentioned their plan to kill him was meant to give him a jolt, to scare him. These bastards played him like a violin.

  They managed to make him take action. That Saturday Mary expected him to shadow her. When he was burying Mary, Bob was somewhere nearby, watching and waiting. Bob must have followed them after Mary left his place. And then he dug his sister out. The second part of the plan was completed.

  What was going to happen in the third part?

  2.

  So what was going to happen in the third act?

  He was sitting in a pool chair, dressed in swimming shorts, the sun's rays caressing his body. It was the third day of his stay in Las Vegas.

  In the third act they kill him. Their motive? His money. He must be worth at least a million dollars right now. Plus his life insurance money. He was insured for five hundred grand, you know. The policy had a double indemnity clause, which meant that the beneficiary would receive double the face value if he died in an accident. Mary was the beneficiary of his policy.

  This morning, during breakfast, Richard had thought about what he was going to do when he returned home from Vegas. It was clear that the current situation was unacceptable. When a man is afraid to live in his own house, he starts going insane. A radical solution was needed. He must cut the knot, just like Alexander the Great had cut the Gordian knot.

  Should he tell the police about the avengers? No, it was better not to involve the cops. They were not going to give him 24/7 protection just because he suspected that someone was after him. Besides, the police would want to know why the avengers were after him. He would have to tell them about all the people he had killed, and he couldn’t do that. The cops would not help him.

  Should he leave Washington? That would be a cowardly move, wouldn’t it? Why should he leave? He had done nothing wrong.

  Well, as they say, life’s not fair.

  In order to receive double the face value of the policy, Mary would have to make his death look like an accident. This meant that he was not going to be shot, or strangled, or stabbed to death. If he were Mary, he would stage a car crash.

  As Richard sat in the pool chair, a significant detail emerged in his memory. It was Mary who had persuaded him to take out a life insurance policy. Had she thought of killing him at the time? He reckoned that she had.

  3.

  He called Kathy after lunch. He did it so she wouldn't worry about him: he hadn’t talked to her since leaving for Las Vegas.

  “What are you doing?” he asked.

  "Watching TV,” Kathy replied. "By the way, I talked to Steve. He said he has a new theory."

  "Let's hope he’s right this time. I’m glad I’m not a suspect anymore."

  "Are you mad at Steve?"

  "No. Why would I be mad at him? He's just doing his job."

  Then Richard told Kathy that he was calling from Las Vegas.

  "I envy you," Kathy said. "I love Las Vegas. When are you coming back?"

  "At the end of the month.”

  “Did you go to any shows?”

  “I didn’t come here to have fun. I thought Mary could be here. I figured I can’t sit on my ass and do nothing.”

  "Did you decide to look for her yourself?"

  "Yes. I'm going to check all major hotels. I might get lucky, who knows."

  "If you have time, call me, okay?"

  "Sure."

  4.

  Last night Richard had had a dream about Martin. Martin was standing in a park, his right hand outstretched toward Richard. It was twilight.

  "They’re going to rip you to pieces,” he whispered with his blue lips. "You shouldn’t have killed me, Richard. That was a big mistake."

  "Keep dreaming," Richard replied coldly.

  Martin was the first person he had killed. Martin’s death was the cause of his nightmare.

  “You’re not going to get away with it, you piece of shit.” Martin clenched his hand and a moment later opened it.

  "They forgot about you. Ever heard the saying, ‘Time heals all wounds?’”

  “They did not forget me. They’ll never forget me.”

  “There’s no one left to avenge you, pal. I took care of all of them.” Richard laughed.

  “You know it’s bullshit. They’ve already found you, Richard. You’ll be dead in a week.”

  "You’re wrong.” Richard smiled. “You lost, Martin. You lost. Now please go fuck yourself."

  "You’re sick, Richard. You’re insane," Laura's voice said.

  Richard found himself in a forest. His sister was standing in front of him with a knife in her hand.

  "You’re insane, Richard,” she said. "Why did you kill those people? Why did you kill me?”

  “It wasn’t my fault, Laura. You attacked me. You should have stayed away from this.”

  “You’re going to pay for your crimes. I’m ashamed you’re my brother.”

  Richard burst out laughing.

  "Why are you laughing?" Laura asked. "You’re out of your mind."

  "You don’t know what you’re talking about. Those people deserved to die. But you are too stupid to understand that."

  Then he woke up.

  5.

  After dinner, as he lay in bed, Richard had a stunning realization. It became clear to him why Doris had paid him a visit.

  You see, Mary’s mother was involved in this conspiracy. It was even possible that she was its mastermind. The purpose of her visit was to give him more evidence that Mary had risen from the dead. Perhaps she had also wanted to check whether he had become a nervous wreck and the time was ripe for the final blow.

  They were trying to cripple him mentally because the wea
ker he was, the easier it was to kill him. They must be hoping he would lose the will to live.

  Richard heaved a sigh. He was sad he had been wrong about Doris. He had thought she was a decent person. He had respected her.

  Yes, he had really respected her.

  6.

  He didn't know how long he had been asleep when the ringing cellphone woke him. He pressed the Answer button and said without opening his eyes, “Hello.”

  "Richard Brower?" a man's voice responded, which sounded familiar to Richard.

  "Yes, it's me."

  "It's Steve Norris. Do you have ten minutes?"

  Richard rubbed the back of his head, sat up, and swung his feet to the floor. "Yes, sure. Something happened?"

  He grabbed the half-full glass of water from the nightstand and took a sip from it.

  "We found your wife."

  Richard drew a deep breath, and replied, “Is she okay? Where did you find her?”

  "I’m sorry, Richard, your wife’s dead. We found her body."

  "Dead?” Richard almost shouted. “Mary’s dead? Oh my God! What happened to her?”

  “She died in an accident." After a pause, Norris added, “I’m very sorry, Richard.”

  “What am I going to do now? Mary’s gone.” Richard groaned. “My Mary’s gone.”

  How the hell had they managed to find Mary’s grave? He had been unable to do it, even though he was the one who had buried her.

  "I'm sorry about your wife.”

  “How did she die? Where did it happen?”

  “She was killed in a car accident eight miles south of Olympia.”

  Richard took another sip from the glass.

  It must be some sort of trick. What game was Norris playing?

  He wants to confuse me, to trip me up.

  “Whose fault was it?” Richard asked.

  “No one was at fault.”

  “Where is she now?"

  Suppose it wasn’t a trick. Could someone have moved Mary’s body?

  "She’s in the Thurston County morgue."

  "Are you sure it’s Mary?"

  "We called her brother, Bob Logan, and he identified the body. Besides, there was Mary’s driver’s license in the victim’s wallet.”

  "When can I see her?"

  "Are you still in Las Vegas?”

  “Yes.”

  “You can see the body as soon as you come back."

  "Okay.”

  Richard looked at his watch. It was 8:06 pm.

  "When are you going to come back?"

  "Tonight."

  7.

  She had lost control of her car and run into a tree. The accident had taken place on Route 9 fifteen miles north of Everett. The car had burned down, her body had been incinerated. That was what had happened to Mary Brower.

  "It's impossible," Tina said. She had almost fainted when he told her about Mary's death. "Mary’s dead! My God, Richard, it’s horrible. I'm very sorry." Tina wrapped her arms around Richard. "It's horrible!"

  "Yes it is," he said quietly with a gloomy face.

  "Oh, God, I can't believe it." Tina's face was as red as a lobster.

  "They found her three days ago. I learned about the accident yesterday."

  "When is the funeral?"

  "Tomorrow. I just want to put it all behind me as soon as possible."

  "I'm so sorry. You're all alone now. Maybe I can help you somehow? I could cook you a dinner. Did you eat yet?"

  Richard shook his head.

  "Wait a minute." Tina stood up and left for the kitchen.

  She came back with a bowl of potato salad and a plate of meatballs. When they sat down at the dining table, Tina asked, "Has anything gone missing from your house lately?"

  "Missing?"

  "Anything valuable. Jewelry, a TV, cash."

  “You mean if anything was stolen? No, nothing went missing. Why?”

  "It's very important, because—" Tina drew a deep breath. "I have a feeling that Jim’s death was not an accident."

  "What do you mean?"

  Tina creased her forehead. "I found him on the stairs. He lay on his stomach, his head was twisted in a weird way. They wanted it to look like he lost his balance, fell down the stairs, and broke his neck."

  "They?"

  "It wasn't an accident, Richard."

  "Then what was it?"

  "Jim didn't fall and break his neck. Someone broke his neck and then made it look like he fell. Or maybe they pushed him down the stairs."

  "Someone pushed him?" Richard said in a surprised voice. "Are you saying James was murdered?"

  Tina shut her eyes and nodded. "I think they knocked him out first, and then brought him into the house. One button was missing from his shirt. It must have popped off when they carried him. There was also a small tear at the shoulder seam. Then they took him to the head of the stairs and pushed him down.”

  Richard buried his chin in his hand. "Are you sure it was murder? Why would anyone—"

  Tina interrupted him in the middle of the sentence. "Besides, I saw them."

  "You saw the killers?"

  “Yes.” Tina nodded. "I saw them come out of our house. Their car was parked a few houses down the street. They got in the car and left."

  "Did you try to stop them?"

  "You think it would have worked? They would have killed me, too, if I had." Tina sighed heavily. "They killed Jim, and they would have had no trouble killing me." She licked her lips. “You’d understand me if you’d been with me when it happened."

  "Did you write down the license plate number of their car?"

  "I didn't make it out. When I realized that they walked out of our house, I was literally paralyzed. I was too scared to follow them.”

  "Did you stay in your car until they left?"

  "Yes. I thought that if they saw me go into the house, they would come back and kill me.”

  “Why would they do that?”

  “Because I’m a witness."

  "Oh, I see. And you didn’t call 911, either?"

  "No. I couldn’t move until they were gone."

  "How many of them were there?"

  "Two. Two men."

  "Did you contact the police?"

  "I’m afraid to tell the police about it. What if those people find out that I saw them? I don’t want to take chances.”

  “Maybe you’re right.”

  “They could be gangsters.”

  “Yeah.” Richard nodded.

  “Besides, I don’t think the police will be able to find them. I didn't see their faces or the license plate of their car.”

  “I agree with you.”

  “Do you think I should tell the police about those men?”

  Richard shrugged. “I don’t know. If I were you, I would report this to the police. But you do whatever you think is best for you.”

  "Let me tell you where they brought Jim’s body from." Tina paused. “They brought it from your house, Richard. I saw tracks in the grass that led from your house to ours. And I also found a button from Jim’s shirt by your porch."

  There was a long silence before Richard said, “What do you think happened?"

  "I can only speculate, but I believe that Jim saw these people enter your house, followed them inside, and confronted them. Then they killed him.”

  “Are you saying Jim was murdered in my house?” Richard frowned. He had a sinking sensation in the pit of his stomach.

  Two men. Bob Logan and Don? Or the avengers?

  Maybe Bob and Don are avengers?

  Bullshit. That was paranoia talking.

  Interestingly, he wasn’t shocked by Tina’s hypothesis. All that weird shit he had seen in the last few weeks must have desensitized him.

  “Either in your house or in your front yard.”

  In the front yard?

  Jim may have confronted those guys when they were trying to pick the locks. It was a very plausible scenario.

  “Can you check if anything’s missing f
rom your house?” Tina said.

  “Sure.”

  “And check if your front door locks were tampered with.”

  “Okay.”

  Tina sighed. "I’m sorry I'm bothering you with my problems."

  "It’s okay. You did the right thing by telling me about this."

  Tina refilled Richard’s glass with wine, and asked, "Who’s that guy in a gray suit who visited you a week ago?"

  Richard thought for a few seconds and figured that she was talking about Norris.

  “He’s the detective in charge of Mary’s case.”

  Tina bobbed her head and then took a sip of wine from her glass. “I saw you with a woman at Alexander's about two weeks ago. Who is she?"

  She must be talking about Kathy. Richard felt a little uncomfortable about the fact that he had not seen Tina observing him at Alexander’s.

  "She’s a friend of mine."

  "Her name is Kathy, right?"

  Richard nodded.

  "Did you know that she works for the sheriff’s department?"

  Richard froze. Kathy was a cop? To say that this piece of information surprised him would have been an understatement. It profoundly shocked him.

  He managed to keep his emotions hidden.

  Had Kathy reported to Norris everything he’d told her?

  "How do you know that?" he cautiously asked.

  "She’s a friend of my cousin’s."

  "What does she do? Is she a cop?"

  "No. I believe she’s in human resources."

  Richard felt relieved. Human resources was okay.

  He wondered why Kathy had never mentioned where she worked.

  "I didn't know that," he said. “We’re not very close, to be honest with you.”

  “She’s never been married. I feel a little sorry for her.”

  "She’s a nice person.”

  "Yes, she is. I hope she finds someone eventually."

  He should tell Kathy about Mary's body. It would please her.

  "I asked you about that guy in a gray suit because I thought he was your relative or friend.”