Melanie's Awakening

by Michael Cross

  After a few more applications of the taser, Sinclair seemed to be showing less signs of struggle – he just moaned and his body became limp and passive, his body dangling above the ground as if floating in mid-air on its own. I applied another shock but it seemed the only result was an involuntary convulsion. I looked at him and asked, “Do you have any idea of what your future is?” He did not respond so I shocked him on his cheekbone, “Well? Answer me when I am talking to you!” Nicole was laughing and asked if she could take over for a second. She slapped him and asked, “Don’t you realize it is impolite to refuse to answer a girl from her country? Oh wait, I’m sorry, she is American…well, it’s impolite here as well!” She took the taser and zapped him again. Then she looked up at me and asked “Now?” and I nodded in the affirmative. She then put the taser to his chest and shocked him in a continuous manner. At first he struggled, but then it seemed that only his body was reacting. I asked her to stop a moment so I could check his pulse. It appeared he was still alive, but his eyelids were twitching and his eyeballs began to slowly roll up behind his head. Nicole asked, “Now what?” and I said, “We can let him hang around for a while before we get everything ready for the final act.”

  We took out the chicken wire and unrolled it. Then I put the car into neutral and let it slide back, which lowered Sinclair to the ground. It only took a few moments to untie the ropes and pull him over to the wire. We then rolled him up and took out some wire coat hangers and created a flexible cage. I took the locks out of his flesh and used them to make sure the cage was secure. Nicole stood up and commented, “He looks like some sort of giant burrito now!” I smiled and began to spread out the plastic in the trunk. I asked, “Okay Nicole, when I say go you lift the legs and I will lift the upper body.” In unison we elevated him and hurled him into the trunk, spread him into a foetal position, and then closed the top. Afterwards we carefully made our way to the little waterfall, washed the blood off our bodies and got dressed once we returned to the car.. We looked at each other and Nicole commented, “We did it!” I cautioned her, “Yeah, but now we have to finish the job – then we can celebrate.”

  Just as Nicole, Daniel, Mark and myself had done years ago, we looked around to make sure we left nothing behind except the small puddles of blood by the tree. We then hopped into the car and began the journey to the place on the Columbia River we had thrown our previous victim back in high school; the bully who I had practiced my archery skills on. When we arrived the sky was starting to show that color of every early dawn. We opened the trunk and tightly wrapped the plastic around the body so we would not get blood on our clothes. As we went about lifting him out of the trunk, careful not to scratch the paint of my car in the process, we found it was not an easy task since his body was limp. However, we finally managed to lift him up and hurl him to the ground. We figured he must be dead since he made no sound or movement even after he made impact face first into the ground. I quickly removed two of the locks and we filled the cage with some heavy rocks Nicole brought over, as well as a flashlight, just as we had done with the bully to make sure the body was secure in the depths of the river. The problem was that once I put the locks back on we could barely lift him off the ground! Nicole was starting to get nervous that we would not be able to propel him into the water, which also worried me; Mark and Daniel had thrown the previous body off the cliff with ease, but we were not as strong as they had been.

  We had no choice though. We mustered all our strength and adrenaline, picked him up and flung him over the steep vertical cliff. When we rushed forward to make certain we were successful we were met with the ultimate horror! The body spun down the cliff and, just before hitting the water, wound up lodged against a small bush. Nicole freaked out and screamed, “Now what?” She was shaking and began to pace back and forth. I grabbed her and looked her in the face and demanded, “Don’t panic, just get the rope out of the car, okay?” As she complied I looked down the cliff at the bundle which was slightly illuminated by the flashlight. I saw no other alternative but to make my way down the cliff with the rope around my chest and dislodge him. When Nicole returned I took her by the shoulders and explained the plan and assured her I would be alright. She seemed nervous, but she did not argue as I instructed her to hold her end of the rope while I secured the other end around my waist. I was somewhat scared too, but there was no other way.

  The sky was becoming slightly brighter so there was no time to lose. We were off the main road, but close enough to hear the occasional car pass in the distance. We had to get the job done fast. I looked down at the water – it was a sea of blackness, rushing though this area where the river narrowed to maybe only a few hundred yards wide. I imagined how immense, how deep it was, as well as the fact that if I fell in my chances of survival were virtually zero, no mater how good a swimmer I was. As Nicole held tight to my lifeline I took a deep breath and made my way down, searching for the crevices in the rocks with my feet. I knew one tiny mistake could end everything right there. I had never been so close to my own death as then. I could feel the adrenaline rush through my body though. It was at once exhilarating and terrifying to make my way down the damp, jagged cliff to reach Bernie. My mind felt an intense alertness I had never experienced before!

  When I was almost to Bernie’s bundle I stepped on a large loose rock, which broke off the hillside and began to topple down towards the river. I frantically for a new foothold as I grasped a tiny fir tree with my right hand. I regained my footing once my foot discovered a more stable outcropping, but I looked down and saw the rock plunge into the murky depths below me. What caused me to panic a bit was that the water was so swift that the splash did took place much further down the river! Only then could I see how fast the current was, and the cool mist rising off the water, coupled with the loud splashing of waves against the river bank was far from inviting. Still, the thought of dying there filled me with both fear and excitement! My state of alertness and strength would serve me well as I quickly descended to meet with Bernie.

  The thing that absolutely surprised me was that he was still alive! It was as if I had a modern-day Rasputin on my hands. The flashlight in the cage was shining directly on his face. His eyes were opened and I thought I could catch some groaning sounds even despite the loud rushing of the water. I yelled out to him, “Don’t worry, I will have you off these rocks in no time!” I made sure to get a good position and then I tried to pry him lose with my arms, but no success as the weight of the rocks was making it too difficult. I finally took the ultimate risk. I stood on top of him, grabbed the limbs of some brush protruding from the hillside and used my legs to push him over the bush. I could feel movement as the body gave way and flew out into the water. Yet I again lost my footing, with only the fragile vegetation to cling onto. The sound of the swoosh of his body plunging into the depths, combined with the pulling of the rope, gave me just enough mental and physical strength to propel me back to an outcropping of rocks!

  I could feel my heart pumping so rapidly that I could hear it was skipping beats. I could also start to feel stinging on my skin as I rushed to climb back to Nicole and solid, flat, ground. Once there Nicole ran up to me, crying and totally freaked out. She was saying something to the effect of, “Melanie! I was so scared!” She was still acting hysterical even as I grabbed her and raised my voice, “Look Nicole, I am fine! And there is no longer a body to worry about.” It felt as if she was hyperventilating even though I was the one who could have died. I kept repeating, “I’m okay, I’m okay.” Finally, whether it was motivated by my brush with death or my relief at being back to safety, I held her tightly for a moment. Yet just as I detected she was about to kiss me, I pushed her against the car and began to kiss her with an aggression I had never felt before! She did not resist. It seemed she gave herself to me as a reward, or appreciation for not abandoning her in the depths of the river. The events of the evening meant nothing in those moments as I took full advantage of her and she, in return, allowed me t
he pleasure of escape from life, if only for a few minutes while we lay on the soft cold ground. As the sun peaked over the surrounding bare hills I sat up and commented, “What an evening!”

  We sat there in the middle of all our scattered clothing and watched the sunrise. It was somewhat chilly but it did not matter. Nicole hugged me and then giggled as she said, “Melanie, if this is what I can expect at the end of a killing then promise me we can go on a murderous rampage together!” I responded, “Now come on, we have to be careful when we do this, we can’t zero in on deserving targets every night.” She suddenly said something quite shocking, “You know, it’s not like we have to limit ourselves…I mean, have you ever thought about, well, you know.” I was not sure what she had in mind so I asked her to clarify. She looked around and said, “Have you ever thought about experimenting with someone who isn’t exactly evil, but isn’t exactly good either? You know, like a prostitute maybe?”

  I was both repulsed by the idea of taking the life of someone just for prostitution but also curious as to how she was thinking. I asked her to keep talking. She held my hands and continued like an excited schoolgirl describing some forbidden pleasure, “Okay, look at it this way, no prostitute would be afraid to get in a car with us. It would be so easy compared to going after dangerous guys.” I joked, “That’s true. Women would be weaker and easier to kill.” Nicole replied, “Exactly!” I continued escalating the conversation, “But Nicole, what would we do with the girl – like what would you suggest as a typical kill?” Nicole just would not stop, “Okay, I mean we would not have to torture her or anything. We could all have some fun together and then at the end, well…” She gave me an impish look before I replied, “Kill her?” She seemed embarrassed but she nodded and said “Well, yes, I suppose that would be part of the plan.” I asked, “How?” She smiled and rolled her eyes, “I don’t know; nothing mean or anything. We could just give her some poison or something and eventually she passes out and soon she’d be gone.”

  I laughed and then stood up, “Okay Nicole, let’s just get dressed for now and let’s make sure we haven’t missed anything.” She sprang up with a big smile on her face, perhaps thinking I was getting into the idea she had suggested. However, I dropped the subject repeated, “We should check everywhere to make sure we leave absolutely no sign of people being here at all.” As I was getting my clothes on Nicole suddenly let out a little scream which startled me! I asked, “What’s wrong?” She replied, “Melanie, you got blood on my new shirt!” I apologized sarcastically since I had been the one getting all scratched up dislodging Bernie and allowing him to cool off in the river. She said it was probably okay, she could soak it when we were home.

  Just before we left I looked over the river and realized the body of the man we had met only eight hours ago would never be seen again. It felt odd that he was probably already being consumed by eels or sturgeon. As the dawn became more spectacular Nicole came over, held me from behind and told me she loved me. We stood there a few minutes more admiring the scenery before getting in the car and driving off. We parked a few miles down the road, removed the tape to reveal the correct license plate numbers, and began our return trip to Portland. I had to ask Nicole, “Were you serious about what you said back there, about killing some prostitute?” She replied, “Oh, I don’t know, it’s maybe just a fantasy but it might be fun to consider!” There was silence as I drove around some curves and then she just blurted out, “You know, I have an idea for the next time we are out cleaning up society. I am tired right now but I will tell you soon.” I said I would like to hear her idea after we had a good sleep. As we travelled down the highway I was wondering if she was serious about killing an innocent person, or just playing around with a dark fantasy.

  When we got home Nicole insisted I get out of my clothes so she could mend the scratches on my body. For someone who seemed to be toying with the idea of setting some record for female serial killers she was remarkably gentle, almost motherly, when caring for the wounds on my thighs and chest. I remarked, “You would make a good nurse, and a good mother.” She sighed and said, “I actually have considered the nurse part but if you bring up kids one more time I may have to hurt you.” She then laughed and said she was joking – probably.

  Chapter 9

  When I woke up the next morning I could smell sausage cooking in the kitchen. I guess she heard me enter the bathroom since, after I opened the door, she was in the hallway. She held out her arms and said, “Hello darling” as she held out her arms and gave me a tight hug. She was only wearing an apron. She spun around, and asked, “Do you like my outfit? It was the closest thing to a French maid style I could find.” I said I liked it very much but she would need hairier legs for the French effect. She laughed and replied, “Just go down to breakfast immediately!”

  While we were eating Nicole asked, “How would you like us to be able to be free to do anything we wanted for the rest of our lives?” I said that sounded like real fun and then she asked, “Well, if we had kids around how could I run around like this?” I responded, “Hey, you have to make a few sacrifices here and there but I think it would be worth it, and why couldn’t a person find ways to have fun and still have some little ones around?” Nicole replied, “Whatever” and started clearing the table. She said we should get rid of all the evidence in the car. She also asked if we could go shopping in the evening so she could replace her shirt. I agreed and suggested we move some of the things in the garage so we could park the car and clean in complete privacy. She asked if I could get that started while she finished cleaning the kitchen and straightened up the bedroom. I agreed and asked if she intended to go around in her outfit all day to which she responded she might, if I was lucky.

  As I went out and started organizing the garage I wondered if I was going to wind up with the “male” jobs in this relationship. Were gender roles just a natural thing that occurred in all couples? It would certainly be an interesting topic of research – I could use both Sara and Nicole as my case studies.

  I soon was able to drive the car into the garage and close the door. Nicole came out with a large bucket filled with chlorine. She took the apron off and tossed it aside. I laughed and she just brushed her hair aside and said, “Later my dear.” Together we proceeded to take out the blood-stained plastic out of the trunk and role it into a ball before shoving it into the bucket. The garage soon smelled like a swimming pool. After vacuuming the car we took the plastic out of the bucket and rinsed it off with more chemicals in the sink before sending all the liquids down the drain. We thoroughly cleaned the car several times to make sure nothing, not even a speck of Bernie’s DNA, remained.

  When we were almost finished cleaning I asked Nicole, “You said you had an idea last night – what was it?” Nicole answered, “You remember the movie we saw in high school, the one with the cop who pretended to be a helpless pedestrian so he could lure would-be attackers so he could shoot them instead?” I nodded. She then asked, “How long do you think a girl in a park in a bad section of town would last before someone came after her?” I did not think it would take long. Nicole explained her idea, “Why not set up an ambush in some area like he was in? One of us could be the bait while the other hid in the bushes. Once some guy decided to do something we both would have our guns and could finish the job – and not have to dispose of the body!” It appeared that Nicole was developing a taste for blood, yet even though I could have died earlier that day, I felt a certain excitement for the idea. I asked, “Sounds like a plan! Can we develop it later?”

  Once the car was totally clean we took out the bag in the vacuum and mixed the dust in a coffee container with chlorine. We then flushed the dust and hairs down the toilet, along with the liquid contents from the bucket. Nicole rolled the plastic up, shoved it in a shopping bag and commented, “We can throw this away in a garbage bin later, along with the vacuum bag. And this will be the end of Bernie Sinclair!”

  I reached over to Nicole but she just teased
me again, “Can we go shopping first?” It was cliché but maybe now I understood what guys felt when a woman would lead them on and then decided to do something else instead.

  After Nicole was done in the shower I jumped in. While she was putting makeup on she started in on the children issue. She asked, “Have you wondered what would happen if you gave birth to a deformed child?” I yelled back, “Hey, the one thing my parents gave me was healthy genes and you are healthy too – I mean, have you even had a cavity in your life?” Nicole responded, “I have not even been in a dentist’s office before. Yet my dad did have diabetes, and then you always have the genes from the father to worry about.” I yelled back, “Your brothers did not develop diabetes and you once said your dad did not get it until he stopped being active and just sat around eating. Besides, if you choose the father carefully you certainly minimize the chance of getting any problems in your children.” Nicole asked, “Good thing you are with me, there aren’t many guys who would appreciate your asking for a pedigree chart on the first date.” That hit me sort of hard as the water ran down my back. That was basically what Sara had said while in San Francisco. Were my ideas on eugenics really an advanced form of denial of my sexuality? Again, I dismissed the idea as insane.

  The evening at the mall brought the issues I was grappling with to the forefront again. While we were in a clothing store Nicole noticed some party attire and pulled me over as she browsed. Soon she held a glittery dress in front of her and asked how I liked it – I thought it looked nice. I picked up one of a different color and walked to the mirror so I could check what it would look like on me. Nicole shook her head, “No, that is so not you. You are more a nature girl. Here, follow me.” She led me to the young men’s section and pulled out some jeans and a then back to the women’s section and selected a jeans jacket. “There, that would look so cool on you this fall! Of course, the jeans go good any time of year.”