Psycho Billionaire: A Dark Romance

by Kashmira Kamat

  There were black trash bags at the far corner of the room. Vince walked towards it and opened the bags with a pocket knife. There were more decomposed bodies; some with faces so disfigured that it was beyond recognition like Jasper had stabbed their faces multiple times in what appeared to be pure hatred.

  I passed other bodies, two women and a man. At the end of the line, I thought I saw a shadow of someone I knew. The figure was so familiar, I rushed forward to have a look, and my hand flew to my mouth. The curly red hair was framing a heart-shaped face. Her green eyes that were so radiant and full of life stared forward lifelessly, her mouth partly open.

  Kathy.

  I didn’t miss how her lips were smeared in an ugly shade of lipstick as if it hadn’t been applied by her, but by someone else. A small parchment of paper was taped on her head. I pulled it out to read.

  It said ‘A very bad influence on my wife.’

  Kathy’s body wasn’t old and rotting like the few others, so that meant Jasper had killed her recently. She hadn’t responded to my texts, not because she didn’t want to. It was because she’d been dead all along.

  A male body was right beside Kathy, but unlike Kathy’s, this body was decaying. Maggots crawled out from his open mouth and traveled to the empty eye-socket. There was another note stuck on his head in Jasper’s beautiful cursive handwriting that I’d once envied.

  Womanizer and rapist. Swindle’s wealth from married, rich women. Scumbag.

  “Nasty son of a bitch,” Vince said.

  Chapter Thirty-Four

  Vince pulled me away from the sight. Even though he was strong and hadn’t been repulsive so far, his hand on my arm was slightly shaking. It had to be a shock for him as much as it was for me. Jasper was a pure psychopath.

  “Notice how Jasper takes good care of his punctuation,” I pointed out to Vince before an erupting sob gave way to a giggle until I was laughing in the dead silence. Vince threw me a quick look filled with concern and maybe some pity for the wife of a serial killer.

  Yes, I was losing my goddamn mind.

  Vince cupped my face and forced me to make eye contact as I laughed hysterically. “Kiara, snap out of it!”

  And then the laughs stopped, beginning to give way to fresh tears. I sobbed. “It’s funny, isn’t it? Jasper’s been killing people all these years, and I hadn’t a clue. If I had just walked into the barn and checked…” I rubbed my temples. “So many people wouldn’t have died.”

  Vince’s eyes darted towards the staircase and back to me. “Kiara, you have to tell me who these bodies belong to, alright?”

  “Okay,” I agreed.

  When we walked out of the barn, I threw up my dinner. I was silent on our way back inside the mansion. Vince broke the silence when he asked me to identify some of the bodies.

  “Kathy and Michael. Kathy was my friend, and Michael was the man who accompanied her boyfriend during lunch one weekend. He was a pushy man, and tried to offer his services…” I trailed off, but Vince encouraged me to go on. “He offered his services if I was lonely and needed someone when Jasper wasn’t in town. When I came home, it appeared that the car keys were bugged by audio surveillance and all our conversations during that lunch were recorded.” I closed my eyes as I remembered how calm Jasper had been through everything and then how he’d disappeared that night saying he had pending work.

  They were all lies. His pending work involved capturing people he had grudges against and then killing them. We made endless love on nights, and then instead of lying with me in bed, he’d scrambled off into his office, making excuses. Every time, Jasper had looked me in the eye and lied to my face.

  “I’m so scared for Tyler. Dear god, what am I going to do?!”

  “Listen to me very carefully. I will not let him hurt you or Tyler. It’s my promise. And I’m going to take down Jasper even if it costs my life,” Vincent said with such conviction that I believed him. “He will not walk out of this. He’s my brother, but he’s also a monster.” I saw Vince opened and closed his palm, and for the first time, I saw his eyes become moist.

  “I will report this to the police,” Vince assured me. “Jasper’s not back yet, but he may soon. We can’t wait much longer and risk him getting rid of the bodies. I captured enough evidence in my phone, so I’m going to report this to the police. Until then, I want you to run upstairs, pack your stuff, and wake Tyler up. We are leaving.”

  Vince’s expression had turned hard. He was a man determined to take care of the situation, even if his own brother had committed a grave sin. He produced a pistol from his waistband and handed it over to me. “Do you know how to use guns?”

  I shook my head. Vince gave me a short demonstration of the 9mm pistol. “It’s loaded. Use it if you have to, Kiara.”

  I took the pistol from him. “What if Jasper uses his influence to get away.He will ruin us.”

  “He won’t, because if everything fails, I will not hesitate to put a bullet in his head myself.”

  ***

  We had to move quickly before Jasper came back home. I quickly changed into a pair of jeans and threw on a basic t-shirt, and then I opened a duffle bag and stuffed whatever clothes I could find along with some cash. Then I went into Tyler’s room and woke him up. He whined like any other kid who was disturbed into waking up at the odd hours of pre-dawn.

  “Mommy, where are we going?” he asked me while he rubbed his eyes.

  “Honey…”

  And then I heard the sound of shuffling and footsteps. My heart began beating faster. “Tyler, sweetheart, go and hide under the bed. Do not come out until I tell you to. If I don’t come back in ten minutes, call nine-one-one.”

  I saw Tyler’s expressions turn wary, his sleep seemingly lost, “What’s happening, Mommy?”

  I kissed the top of his head. “You know how to do this, Tyler. You’re a strong boy, and I love you.”

  Understanding dawned on him. It was like Tyler knew it was going to come down to this. He was stronger than most four year old. He picked up the phone and crawled beneath the bed. I closed the bedroom door, gun raised in my hand. I walked into the passage. The lights went out all of a sudden. I raised the gun and kept walking.

  I used my phone torch to see where I was going, and started descending the stairs. It happened too fast. Before I could feel the presence behind me, I felt something knock against my head.

  I vaguely realized that my body was carried in a pair of strong arms, and I couldn’t find my voice to scream or ask for help. I mumbled, “Tyler…”

  “Hush, my love. You’re going to be fine.”

  The voice was sweet like a melody. It was Jasper.

  Chapter Thirty-Five

  My throat felt dry like I’d been living in a desert without a drop of water in my system. My head seemed like it weighed tons. My arms hurt, and I realized I could no longer move them.

  What was happening to me?

  My eyelids felt heavy, but I managed to open them slowly to find myself in a dark room. And then it all came back to me. Flashes of me telling Tyler to hide under the bed, and then walking out into the darkened hallways of the mansion only to be struck on the head into an unconscious state.

  How long had I been out?

  I looked around myself. I had no doubt about where I was. I was tied to a wooden chair in the basement of the barn. The stench of the rotting bodies was proof enough. The sound of the low moaning Opera could be heard in the background, which was one of Jasper’s favorite Opera tracks.

  My breathing intensified. I tried to free my arms but the rope was cutting into my skin. I sobbed. “Why are you doing this?”

  Jasper appeared in the room wearing a crisp white shirt, the top buttons undone and the sleeves rolled up to reveal his strong arms. His blue eyes that I’d once thought were intoxicating now seemed dangerous and predatory as they were dead on the target. Me. His dark hair had been set perfectly. He smiled at me. “You’ve seen a lot of things that I would have otherwise liked t
o keep as a secret all my life, but you had to go ahead and become a fucking Nancy Drew, and look where it got you.”

  “Let me and Tyler go. We won’t go to the police. I promise.”

  “Of course you won’t because I won’t let you. I hope you enjoy the finale, precious, because I have a lot of things planned out for you.”

  “Tyler needs me. I won’t tell a soul about this! You have my word.”

  Jasper was smiling; the same smile that I’d once thought was sexy. Now I knew it was downright evil. “How many times had I warned you about not meddling into my business?” He walked around a wide wooden table and picked up a long knife. “You were supposed to be a docile wife who obeyed every order of her husband; cooking for him, looking after him, and warming his bed. You did that for four years, and I’m grateful for that, Kiara. I liked you. I really fucking did. Out of all these skanks…” he indicated with his blade towards the lying bodies. “I loved you the most. I never felt even an ounce of affection when I cut them open, but you, precious, you’re going to be the hardest one yet.”

  I knew then that I was going to die. I wouldn’t see Tyler, nor his graduation or what he would grow up to be. What if he learned from Jasper and became a killer?

  “I tried to tell myself you were like any other woman, but you continued to surprise me and convinced me otherwise. I’ve not met a raving beauty like you, Kiara.” His predatory gaze moved from bottom to top. His honesty would have made me blush in other situations, but right now, all I was thinking of was keeping the conversation going, so I wouldn’t be another body in a trash bag.

  I needed to thread carefully. He continued, “You’re so fucking gorgeous, and the first time I saw you, I knew I had to have you. You ruined me for everyone else, and once I had a taste of you, you became my addiction, far greater than any drug had ever been.”

  Vincent could be here at any time. I had to buy myself sometime. Keep Jasper engaged in a conversation.

  “Well, if you admired me so much, why did you hit me that one time?”

  “I lost control,” he admitted. “I want to tell you something since we are at it. This is as honest as I can get in the four years of our marriage. Some nights, I wanted to worship your body, but some nights I had this very strong urge to kill you. And not just kill; I felt like preserving your beautiful body, but I didn’t. Instead I killed other women.”

  My eyes were stinging with tears that wanted to bubble up. “How…how many people have you killed after we married?”

  “Around two dozen, give or take. But don’t you worry, I never fucked these women. You needn’t worry about me cheating. I just killed them. I was always a faithful husband,” he said as if that made up for the fact that he was a serial killer. He continued, “Do you remember that piece of shit who tried to rape you in the alley behind the restaurant you worked at? I took care of him too; made him suffer a slow excruciating death. A perfect revenge for putting his filthy hands on you. I cut his body parts while he was still alive, and it was fun listening to him beg and apologize, knowing nothing would save him. Although I admit, he was reduced down to a fucking mess that took me ages to clean up.”

  I closed my eyes for a moment, trying to process that information and the horrors of what he was capable of. Bile rose in my throat.

  “Margret? What did you do to her?”

  “For fucks sake, she’s my mother. Before we started dating, Margret found out what I was doing and asked me to stop. I refused and I said that if she told anyone at all, she’d end up becoming one of those bodies. I gave her a choice, and she chose to pack and leave.”

  “I eradicate the people who fail me, but sometimes it’s just a hobby I like to purge from time to time. Other people enjoy painting, or swimming and such, but I love to see how the light flickers out from one’s body when I cut them open. Sometimes I just sit there for hours, read a book or something and watch as they die a slow excruciating death. It’s real fun, Kiara. I wish at times that you were like me, so we’d enjoy the same things in life.”

  I’d known Jasper was crazy to an extent—that psychotic tendencies limited to manipulation and getting what he wanted from anyone in any given circumstances—but I never thought he was a lunatic; a mad man who killed for the pleasure of it. It was much like his favorite sport, Polo.

  Now he was showing his true face. The mask had slipped off finally for good.

  He picked up a cleaver. “However, I do have a plan to rectify that particular predicament.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “As I said, Kiara, you’re family. My wife. I vowed to support you in sickness and in health. We promised till death do us part, and I won’t break those vows because you decided to show a little disobedience. I figured that some things could be taught.”

  That said, Jasper cut the rope that tied my wrists together, followed with the ones on my ankles. I stood up from the chair with shaky legs. “What do you want me to do?” I trembled, frightened of what he was going to ask me.

  He pulled the string of a light bulb to reveal a man seated at the corner of the room. His arms and legs were bound the same way mine had been. A black cloth covered his face, like a prisoner ready for his execution.

  “Are you ready for the big reveal?” Jasper asked.

  I waited as Jasper’s hand reached for the black cloth and yanked it off.

  I froze when I realized who it was.

  The man was Sean Reeves.

  My father.

  Chapter Thirty-Six

  “Daddy?”

  Dad opened his eyes and stared at me in horror. “Kiara? Sweetheart, my baby. Please help me!”

  Even now, I could see clearly how he didn’t care for me. He just wanted to be out of the ropes. I was appalled that he was even alive. I remembered how I thought I’d accidentally killed him. I turned to Jasper. “All these years, you knew he was alive, and yet you let me live with the guilt from killing him.”

  “Darling, I’m really sorry I kept that from you,” Jasper said. “You see, soon after you hit him, he collapsed on the floor, and your mother called me when you were on the run. She was quite hysterical. I told her to calm down and took this sorry excuse of a father to the hospital because she begged me to,” Jasper grinned. “It’s a shame she adores her husband more than her own daughter. I promised your mother I’d take good care of you, and I think you’re quite aware of how the story goes from there.”

  “This is all a game for you, isn’t it? Toying with everyone’s lives, killing innocent people?!” I shrieked.

  “I beg your pardon? Did you say ‘innocent people’?” Jasper laughed. “My dear, Kiara, the people I killed were less than innocent. If anything, they were vermin meant to be non-existent on this planet. And, since I’m a good man, I’m doing society a favor by eradicating the waste.”

  I felt so sick. I wanted this to end, but how? What was Vincent still doing?”

  “Now...” Jasper clapped his hands together. “…we can’t waste any more time. I’m going to explain to you the rules of this new game.”

  “What game?”

  “We’re family. We stick together. I want you to do something for me.”

  “And then you would let me and my father go?” I asked.

  Jasper gave a nod.

  “Name it,” I said in desperation. I didn’t want to be one of the dead bodies in this barn with a memo stuck on my head. “You just have to ask.”

  Jasper appeared pleased. “That’s my girl.”

  He walked to the table and brought a cleaver to me. I took it from him. “What…what do you want me to do with this?”

  “Kill Sean Reeves,” he commanded. “For real this time.”

  My hands shook as I held the cleaver tightly in my hands. “I can’t do that. He’s my father!”

  “Baby, I’m your family now. You’re married, and your first obligation goes to your husband. This man’s merely a sperm donor. Remember how your mother and you worked your asses to give this pimp som
e money? Remember how he hit your mother when he was drunk?And you want to tell me you still have fatherly affections for him?”

  “Ask me anything. Anything at all. I’ll do anything you want, but please don’t ask me to kill him.”

  “That’s the only way, Kiara. You and I are very similar. My parents never gave a damn, so I made sure their brakes failed when they went on a business trip. You kill Sean Reeves, right now, Kiara and I’ll accept that you’d do anything for me. Think of this as an initiation. You and I together, husband and wife. We will make a fantastic team. And eventually, Tyler will learn. One nice happy family.”

  “I can’t kill him!”

  “Kiara, honey, I love you. Please don’t!” Dad begged.

  “Do it now,” Jasper ordered.

  “Please…”

  “I said kill him!” Jasper bellowed.

  I walked to where Dad was seated, raised the cleaver over my head and swung it towards Jasper. It sliced his cheek and a drop of blood smudged the wooden floor. He touched his cheek and saw the blood on it. “I knew this was going to be difficult since you were never the obeying type. It’s a good thing I have a lot of fucking patience.”

  I made a run for the stairs leading towards the upper level of the barn and began climbing fast, skipping steps. The door was open and I almost reached the top when a pair of strong arms caught me tightly and dragged me down.

  I screamed and tried to kick Jasper, but he was so much stronger. He was all muscle, and I was nothing compared to his strength. He could break my neck in one swift motion of his hand. “My precious little fighter. I can’t bring myself to kill you no matter how disobedient you are,” he whispered, dragging me through the floor. My nails had come off and were bleeding. I tried to kick him but he dodged the blow.

  Far away, I heard the faint sounds of the sirens. The police.