Death & Stilettos

by Jason Krumbine

  “I know,” Brooke replies. “That’s why I’m saying it.”

  “Aren’t you afraid that you’re leading him on?”

  “Leading him on?” Brooke echoes.

  “I’m sorry, did you forget your little meltdown earlier where you revealed your secret power to make men fall in love with you?” Avery asks her.

  “I don’t make men fall in love with me,” Brooke says. “They just do. I don’t have any control over the process.”

  “Either way, you’re leading Steven the bartender on.”

  “Maybe so, but if I don’t, someone else will,” Brooke says. “So it might as well be me.”

  Avery waits a second before speaking again. “And what about Stanley?”

  “What about him?”

  “Are you going to play dumb?”

  “Usually I’m not playing,” Brooke replies.

  “I know you were with him last night,” Avery finally says.

  Brooke doesn’t say anything.

  “Well?” Avery pushes.

  “Well what?”

  “Are you going to deny it?”

  Brooke frowns. “Look, you’re off in crazy sister land. I’m going to let you hang out there for a while and when you come back, we’ll talk.”

  “That’s not a denial.”

  “I don’t need to deny something that didn’t happen.”

  “Actually, yes you do,” Avery says. “That’s what a denial is.”

  “Fine.” Brooke looks her sister in the eye. “I did not see Stanley last night.”

  Avery narrows her gaze. “You’re lying.”

  Brooke throws up her hands. “See! Why should I bother denying it if you’re just going to call me a liar?”

  “You were with that sleazebag,” Avery says. “I know it. You know it. So let’s just stop beating around the bush.”

  “Do you have proof?” Brooke asks her. “Do you have pictures? Is someone telling you that me and Stanley were together last night? Where is this coming from?”

  “My sister sense,” Avery says simply.

  “I’m sorry, what?”

  “You heard me.”

  “I heard you, but I sure as hell don’t understand you,” Brooke says. “Your sister sense?”

  “Am I wrong?” Avery asks her.

  “Of course you’re wrong!” Brooke snaps. “I haven’t seen Stanley in weeks.”

  “Okay, well, that’s another lie,” Avery replies.

  “Fine. I saw Stanley last night. I helped him out with a thing he had and then I had sex with him in a back alley,” Brooke snaps. “Is that what you want to hear?”

  Avery’s silent for a moment. “You did what?”

  “I didn’t do anything,” Brooke says, grinding her teeth. “I have not seen Stanley is weeks. Get that through your head.”

  Avery settles back in her chair. “You’re lying. You don’t want to tell me what happened, fine. That’s okay. You want to tell me about Steven the bartender instead? Go ahead. I’m all ears. Tell me all about how you make men fall in love with you. Don’t tell me what’s really important in your life. No, hey, that’s fine. I’m just your sister.”

  “Good. I’m glad we got that all straightened out,” Brooke agrees, turning back to her phone.

  Avery sighs. “It’s with a ‘G’.”

  “What?”

  “Magic,” Avery says. “It’s spelled m-a-g-i-c.”

  “Aw, crap,” Brooke mutters.

  “What?”

  “I spelled it with a ‘K’, not a ‘C.’”

  Avery shakes her head. “Unbelievable.”

  The Red Door clicks and that’s their cue.

  Brooke and Avery get to their feet, each grabbing one of Daniel’s arms, and drag him over to the Red Door.

  It’s Avery’s turn to open it. She takes a deep breath, steeling herself. Quickly, she grabs the handle and yanks the door open.

  Both sisters look away. It’s not healthy to look through the Red Door if you’re not a dead soul. There’s an absence of nothingness that pours out and envelopes the Waiting Room. Avery’s the closest to the door and she feels disconnected, as though her limbs are floating in the air beside her.

  They toss Daniel through the open door and Brooke kicks it closed.

  The Waiting Room returns to normal.

  Avery takes a deep breath. Her mouth’s dry now.

  “I hate that,” she says.

  “Totally the worse part of the job,” Brooke agrees.

  The receptionist’s window opens and it’s time to collect their money.

  Outside, they’re at the pink sedan. Ten minutes passed in the Waiting Room. Out in the real world it was an hour and a half.

  The sky is filling with dark clouds and thunder rumbles in the distance.

  The wind kicks up as Brooke looks over her sister’s shoulder at the money.

  “Nice,” she says. “I’m eating steak tonight! And maybe every night for the rest of the week.”

  Avery pockets the money. “You know half of this is mine.”

  “And with my half I can still get myself a nice steak and pay off my tab at Clark’s for the next three days,” Brooke follows her sister into the car.

  “It lasts longer if you don’t eat out all the time,” Avery says.

  “If I don’t eat out, I don’t eat at all,” Brooke says. “You’ve tasted my cooking. Do you know anyone who can make a grilled cheese sandwich that tastes like it was cooked in a sewer?”

  “Your cooking skills are truly an abomination,” Avery agrees.

  Besides,” Brooke pulls her hair back into a ponytail, “after we pick up the dead couple, we’ll be rolling in twice that.” She inhales deeply through her nose. “Can you smell that? It’s the smell of fine eating. The good life. It’s the life I was born for.”

  “Maybe you should look into dating older rich men,” Avery suggests. “Instead of, you know, bartenders and sleazebags, then?”

  Brooke sighs. “Don’t think I haven’t given it some serious thought.”

  twenty-four

  Thunder roars and lightning rakes across the sky.

  Avery pulls into the parking lot as a fat drop of rain hits the window. It slowly streaks down, but it’s a loner raindrop.

  Brooke peeks out the window. “This looks nasty.”

  “No kidding,” Avery replies. “You want to try to wait it out?”

  Brooke shakes her head. “No way. When this storm hits it’s going to hit hard and I do not want to be stuck in a car with you for the duration. I want to be curled up in bed with my favorite bartender. Let’s go.”

  Terraman Park is a popular picnic area located almost in the center of town, encompassing about two square miles. It’s a cluster of thick woodland, providing great shade cover for families. Right in the middle is a series of caves that stretched out under the city.

  The caves are a constant source of controversy for the city. Although they’re barricaded and there are warning signs posted all over the park, at least one or two children would get themselves lost in the caves every year. It’s a massive manhunt each time and, for the most part, the kids are found safe and sound. Unfortunately, there were a few that weren’t found so the caves were deemed a safety hazard. Strangely, it hasn’t stopped the place from being a popular picnic locale.

  Avery and Brooke make their way down to the picnic area. A strong gust of wind whips through, tossing Avery’s hair around wildly. She runs her fingers through it, pulling it back into a ponytail.

  Avery checks the little map Annie printed off for her.

  “Well?” Brooke asks.

  “I’m thinking,” Avery says, looking around the park. “You know, it all looks a lot different when you’re standing in the middle of it.”

  Brooke stands next to her sister. The park is predictably empty. A few fat drops of rain strike her head. “I’m getting wet here and when I get wet, my hair gets wet and when my hair gets wet my hair gets frizzy and when my hair gets frizzy-”r />
  Avery cuts her off. “I get the picture. Do you know your east from your west?”

  Brooke stares at her. “What are you five years old?” She snatches the paper from her sister. “Northeast corner of the park.”

  Avery looks around. “Yeah and where’s that?”

  Brooke just shakes her head. “Follow me.”

  The wind’s picking up as they cross the park. Avery can make out the general shape of the caves through the trees. The clouds in the sky are getting progressively darker, but the rain hasn’t really started yet.

  Brooke climbs over a rock and points to a payphone ten feet from them. “There.”

  “And this is the northeast corner?” Avery asks.

  “How were you not born with a sense of direction?” Brooke asks her.

  “Enjoy this moment,” Avery says, pulling out the spectral analysis device. “It’ll be a long time before you have another one.”

  She flicks on the device and the green light comes on immediately.

  “Okay,” Avery says. “We’ve got a winner.”

  And then there’s the sound of a gun cocking behind them.

  The sisters slowly turn around to find Ben Mason pointing a large gun at them.

  twenty-five

  It starts to rain.

  “Ben,” Avery starts.

  “Don’t,” he stops her.

  It takes only seconds for all them of to get completely soaked.

  The gun isn’t big, but it’s still a gun so the girls don’t make any sudden moves.

  It’s only been a day since they’ve last seen him, but Ben Mason looks like he’s aged about ten years. There are dark circles beneath his eyes and the way the rain plasters his hair against his head, his face appears long and drawn out. He’s dressed in slacks and a dark button down shirt that’s getting darker the more wet it gets. Ben’s left eye twitches every few seconds.

  Avery and Brooke glance at each other. The message is clear: this man is on the edge and it wouldn’t take much to push him over.

  “Did you get a phone call, Ben?” Avery asks, raising her voice over the sound of the pounding rain.

  “Don’t talk,” Ben snaps at her. “Don’t say a damn thing.” The gun in his hand shaking. “This isn’t my fault.”

  “Nobody said it was,” Avery replies.

  Ben tries to wipe away the rain in his eyes. He doesn’t say anything.

  “What do you think is going to happen here, Benny?” Brooke asks, taking a careful step forward.

  “Brooke,” Avery mutters.

  “Your brother’s dead,” Brooke continues. “It’s a little late to do anything else.”

  “That woman,” Ben spits. “This is all her fault.”

  “As a woman I kind of take offense at the fairer sex getting blamed for everything,” Brooke replies.

  “Then maybe you should stop screwing around,” Ben growls at her. “Brian had responsibilities.”

  “Maybe he didn’t want those responsibilities,” Avery says.

  “It doesn’t matter,” Ben replies.

  Brooke takes another step forward.

  “I didn’t tell you to move!” Ben yells and shoots the ground next to Brooke.

  The sisters flinch at the sound of the gun. It booms like thunder.

  “I’m not fooling around here!” Ben shouts at them.

  “Nobody said you were,” Avery says, grabbing her sister and pulling her back. “But Brooke’s right. What’s your plan? Your brother’s already dead.”

  Ben’s eyes are unfocused for a moment, staring at nothing. “I don’t…” he stumbles. “I just need to talk to him.”

  “You talked to him already,” Avery says. “He called you when he called Ralph, didn’t he?”

  Ben doesn’t answer.

  “What did he say to you Ben?” Avery asks.

  Ben flick’s his gaze to Avery. “He yelled at me. He said that I wouldn’t be able to hurt him or Cindy ever again.”

  Lightning arcs across the sky and is quickly followed by a burst of thunder that causes them all to flinch again.

  “Did you hurt them, Ben?” Avery asks. Her clothes are plastered against her body thanks to the rain, sticking to her like a second skin.

  Ben loses his focus again. “I did what I had to do for our family.”

  “That’s pretty damning,” Brooke mutters.

  “Stop helping,” Avery hisses at her.

  “This is not what our father wanted,” Ben growls. “He left us the family business and it was our responsibility to take care of it.”

  “There were three of you,” Avery says. “There was no reason why Brian couldn’t follow his own dreams.”

  “NO!” Ben shouts as thunder rakes the sky. “He doesn’t get that! That’s not what our father wanted!”

  “You can’t expect people to live their lives according to a dead man, Ben,” Avery says.

  “The hell I can’t,” Ben says.

  “What are you going to do?” Avery asks. She points to the cave. “Your brother and his wife are in there. They’re already dead, Ben. So what are you going to do?”

  “Stop asking me that!” Ben shouts. “Shut up! Just shut up!” He waves the gun around. “It’s not my fault! I didn’t kill them!”

  Thunder booms, shaking the air around them.

  Ben’s eyes roll back in his head and he falls to ground, to reveal Thane Grym standing behind him. Thane’s got a heavy wooden tapping stick in his hands. He’s dressed in a hooded poncho, protecting him from the downpour.

  “What are you doing here?” Avery asks. She crouches next to Ben to check his pulse.

  Thane looks at the unconscious Ben and then back to Avery. “Watching your backside of course.”

  Avery looks up at him. “That’s wildly insulting.”

  Brooke smiles at Thane. “I’m grateful.”

  “You’re welcome,” Thane says smiling.

  Avery finds a pulse. Satisfied, she grabs the gun and gets back to her feet. She pokes Thane in the chest and momentarily loses her furor when she feels the hard muscle beneath. Avery shakes her head, trying to clear her thoughts. “What are you doing here?” she asks again.

  Thane frowns. “I thought we covered this already.”

  “How long have you been following us?” Avery asks him with a glare.

  Thane holds up his hands. “Okay. Calm down. I haven’t been following you.”

  “Then how did you know we would be here?” she snaps.

  “You know,” Thane says, “when I ran this plan through my head you were a lot more grateful and a lot less argumentative.”

  “I did just have a gun in my face,” Avery replies. “I think I’m allowed to be a little testy.”

  Thane sighs. “Russell mentioned that you guys have been a little slow the last few days turning in your bounties.”

  “Told you so,” Brooke says.

  “Shut up,” Avery says over her shoulder.

  “Okay,” Thane says. “Let’s just calm down. I’m not checking up on you, despite what I told Russell. I’m just looking after you.”

  “Is there a difference?” Avery asks, folding her arms. She’s overcompensating with her attitude. The rain is actually making Thane look even more rugged which she didn’t think was possible.

  “Yeah, one has me reporting back to Russell that you’ve been slacking,” Thane says. “The other just has me knocking out creeps that are holding you at gunpoint.”

  Avery looks at him as lightning fills the sky.

  “I suppose I should say thank you,” she says.

  “It’d be nice,” Thane agrees.

  “Well, put it on your Christmas list,” she says, handing him the gun. “You’re not getting any of this bounty.”

  “I wasn’t asking for it,” Thane replies.

  “Wow,” Brooke says. “And people say I’m rude.”

  “Hey,” Avery snaps. “I’ve been stuck out here in the rain at gunpoint for, like, the last fifteen minutes. I think
I’m allowed to be a little grumpy.” She closes her eyes and takes a deep breath. Avery opens her eyes and looks at Thane. “Sorry.”

  “Apology accepted.” Thane smiles. He picks up Ben Mason, hoisting him over his shoulder. “You can pay me back with a morning coffee sometime.”

  Avery thinks she might be blushing a bit as Thane starts walking towards the parking lot.

  “In case you were wondering,” Brooke says to her sister. “That was totally hot.”

  twenty-six

  Inside the cave the pounding rain is slightly muted.

  The sisters find Brian and Cindy Mason sitting on a large rock, holding each other’s hands. They stare at the Graves sisters like a deer stares at headlights. Everything about them is glowing brightly.

  They look to be in their mid-thirties. Cindy’s dressed in a cute sundress and her hair’s pulled up with a bow. Brian has a harder look about him. His hair is flat on his head and his body looks uncomfortable in a sweater vest and slacks. They’re a couple dressed for Sunday service, not a couple dressed for death.

  “Hey there,” Brooke says with a wave. “Please don’t run.”

  Brooke’s voice seems to snap Brian back to attention. He blinks and looks at Brooke with a puzzled expression.

  “What?”

  “Never mind my sister,” Avery says stepping forward. “My name is Avery. This is Brooke. Are you Brian and Cindy Mason?”

  They slowly nod.

  “Good,” Avery kneels down in front of them. She speaks softly. “We’ve been looking for you for the last two days. Do you know what happened?”

  Brian and Cindy look at each other. Cindy nods and Brian addresses Avery.

  “My family,” he starts. “They’re not like most families,” Brian pauses. “My father was involved with some bad stuff and when he died, he passed it down to my brothers and I. But when I met Cindy,” he looks at her and smiles, “I fell in love,” he looks at Avery and the smile drops. “I told my brothers I wanted out and neither of them accepted it. They told me if I chose Cindy over them, they’d make our lives Hell. We tried to make it work for as long as we could, but living in constant fear, we couldn’t take it anymore. Do you understand? We loved each other so much. We figured it was better to be in love and dead, than to be alive and in constant fear.”