Blood Games

by Richard Laymon

  Finley hung up. She took a deep breath, and let it out loudly. ‘That wasn’t so bad, was it?’ Abilene asked.

  ‘He was really friendly and cheerful.’

  ‘See? What’d I tell you? Can’t judge a guy by the kind of stories he writes.’

  ‘Geez, but “Mess Hall”? I figured he’d have to be some kind of sleezy creepoid. By the way, he said he’s read all your dad’s books and thinks he’s great.’

  ‘The man’s got taste.’

  ‘Anyway, he sounded pretty enthusiastic about the project. He gave the go-ahead, so you’d better get cracking. How long before you can come up with the script?’

  Finley had made the call on Monday. By Tuesday afternoon Abilene had finished the term paper for her Chaucer seminar and was ready to start on the script. That night, cast and crew ‘took a meeting’ in the student union.

  Finley had already scouted locations. She gave her ideas about how the story should be revised and who should play which characters. Vivian, being a theater major who had already played major roles in several campus productions, was offered the lead.

  ‘I think Abilene should play Jean,’ she said. ‘It opens with a love scene. Abilene and Harris would be perfect for that.’ Harris blushed.

  ‘But you’re the actor around here,’ Abilene pointed out. ‘You should have the main role.’

  ‘It’d be more fun to play one of the zombies anyway.’

  ‘Same here,’ Helen said. ‘I’ve always wanted to be a zombie.’

  Abilene laughed. ‘It’d be a big stretch after all those Halloweens as a ghost.’

  ‘I can handle it.’

  ‘So,’ Vivian said, ‘how about Abilene as the main gal?’

  ‘Fine with me,’ Finley said. ‘Hickok’s got that great, vulnerable look. Make a terrific victim.’

  ‘Oh thanks.’

  She and Harris agreed to take the roles of Jean and Paul, the lovers. Vivian, Cora and Helen would be the zombies.

  ‘And you’ll be The Reaper,’ Finley told Tony, a handsome, powerfully built young man who’d been going with Cora for the past few months.

  ‘Now hold it just a second,’ Cora said. ‘I’m not so sure I like the idea of my guy getting to mess around with Abilene.’

  ‘He doesn’t mess around with her,’ Finley pointed out, ‘he tortures her.’

  ‘He might just enjoy it too much,’ she said, giving Tony an amused scowl.

  Harris grinned at him. ‘Better not.’

  ‘What’ll she be wearing?’ Cora asked.

  ‘Not a whole lot.’

  ‘That’s what you think,’ Abilene said.

  ‘Well,’ Finley said, ‘we don’t need actual nudity, but it’s gotta look real, you know. This guy is a sex maniac, a psychopath. So…’

  ‘I’ll work it out in the script,’ Abilene told her.

  ‘Can you have it done by Friday?’

  ‘Sure. No problem.’

  ‘Great. Then we can go out on location first thing Saturday and get it done.’

  ‘Problem,’ Tony said. ‘I’ve got a track meet on Saturday. Sorry.’

  ‘What about the weekend after?’ Finley asked.

  ‘That’s getting awfully close to finals,’ Abilene said.

  Tony held up his hands. ‘Hey, look, I don’t want to screw things up for you gals. I’m no actor, anyway. Maybe you oughta find someone else for my part. That’d be fine with me. In fact, I’d prefer it. Honestly. Why don’t you just go ahead without me? Okay?’

  Looking concerned, Finley asked, ‘Are you sure? I mean, we’d really like you to be in it.’

  ‘Maybe you should find someone else. Really.’

  ‘I guess we could,’ Finley said.

  ‘There are some guys in the drama department,’ Vivian said. ‘I could ask around and…’

  ‘They’re such a bunch of weenies,’ Finley complained.

  ‘Not all of them. What about Jack Baxter?’

  ‘Baxter?’ Abilene asked. ‘The guy who played Stanley in Streetcar?’

  ‘He’s such a Neanderthal,’ Finley said. ‘What I had in mind was someone more… clean-cut, handsome. You know, a Ted Bundy type.’

  ‘I’m a Ted Bundy type?’ Tony asked. ‘Gee, thanks.’

  ‘I’m not particularly thrilled,’ Abilene said, ‘about the idea of playing victim for a guy like Baxter.’

  Vivian shrugged. ‘Oh, he’s not so bad. And I think he’d be awfully good in the role.’

  ‘Typecasting,’ Abilene said.

  ‘Well,’ Finley said, ‘why don’t you check with him, Viv? See if he’s interested. And if he’s available for this weekend.’

  ‘I don’t know about this,’ Abilene said as she walked with Harris into the secluded clearing near Shady Lane Bridge that Finley had chosen for the opening scene. She wondered if she sounded nervous enough. She certainly felt nervous. The idea of making out with Harris in front of her friends was bad enough, but Baxter had joined the troupe.

  ‘What don’t you know about?’ Harris asked. Stopping, he faced Abilene and took hold of both her hands.

  She glanced about. ‘It’s so… deserted around here.’

  Sure. Deserted. Finley with the video camera at her eye, taping, while Cora and Vivian and Helen watched from the shadows beneath a nearby tree and Harris fooled with the trick knife Vivian had borrowed from the prop room. At least he’s not staring at me, she thought.

  ‘It’s supposed to be deserted,’ Harris said. ‘That’s the whole idea.’

  ‘I know, but… Maybe we should go back to my apartment.’

  ‘So your damn roomy can listen through the wall and make noises?’

  Smiling slightly at that, Abilene said, ‘She won’t be there. She’s going to a matinee this afternoon. We’d have the place all to ourselves.’

  ‘I like it here.’ Harris pulled her gently into his arms. He nibbled the side of her neck. That hadn’t been in the script. It made her shiver and squirm. ‘So much nicer,’ he muttered, ‘than some stuffy old room.’

  ‘Somebody might come along.’

  ‘You worry too much.’ Nuzzling the side of her neck again, he untucked the back of her blouse and slipped his hands up beneath it.

  ‘No,’ she said, and gendy pushed him away. ‘I mean it. Not here.’

  Harris frowned. ‘What’s the matter with you?’

  ‘I don’t know. It’s just… I guess I’m worried about The Reaper.’

  ‘The Reaper? Oh, for Godsake. Everybody’s got Reaperitis. It’s broad daylight. Besides, he’s in Portland.'

  ‘That’s only a half-hour drive.’

  Harris sighed. ‘Shit. Okay. Forget it.’ With that, he whirled around and began to walk off in a huff. Finley sidestepped, keeping the camera on him.

  ‘No, wait!’ Finley swung the camera toward Abilene. ‘Don’t be this way. Please. I…’ Shaking her head, she hurried after him. She caught him by the shoulder. As he turned to face her, she flung her arms around him. She hugged him hard, kissed him.

  He seemed rigid at first, his mouth tight, as if holding onto his anger.

  You’re pretty good at this acting stuff, she thought.

  Then his lips parted. He wrapped his arms around her, caressed her back. Writhing slightly against her, he eased his tongue into her mouth. Abilene sucked it in deep. He rubbed her buttocks, and then his hands moved slowly upward beneath her blouse. They roamed her back with gentle caresses.

  For just a while, Abilene forgot about everyone else, forgot the camera and audience. There was only Harris. The familiar feel of him, the closeness and desire. But when his hands passed over the back strap of her bra rather than pausing to unfasten its catches, the illusion fell apart. Embarrassed, she felt her face go hot.

  Here we are, doing this in front of everyone. On tape, for Godsake. Total strangers will be seeing all this.

  Beneath the blouse, a fingertip prodded her shoulder.

  Harris, at least, still had his mind on business.

 
; Abilene concentrated, trying to remember what came next. Then she eased her mouth away from his and smiled up at him. ‘It’s pretty nice here, after all,’ she said.

  ‘I love you so much, Abilene.’

  ‘Cut cut cut,’ Finley said.

  Laughter and applause from the sidelines.

  ‘Woops,’ said Harris.

  Abilene gently slapped his chest. ‘Dope.’ She looked over her shoulder and mugged at her friends. Then she glanced at Baxter. No smile there. He was staring at her.

  ‘Okay, okay,’ Finley said. ‘Nothing a little editing won’t cure. We’ll take it up with a close on Harris. “I love you so much, Jean.” Got it?’

  ‘Hope so.’

  ‘You’re doing fine, both of you,’ Vivian told them.

  ‘Really into the scene,’ Cora said.

  ‘They’ve had so much practice,’ said Helen.

  ‘Hey, let’s have silence on the set. Ready? Action.’

  ‘I love you so much, Jean.’

  Abilene, gazing into his eyes, reached up and touched his cheeks. ‘And I love you,’ she said. Her fingertips wandered down his face, his jaw and neck. Slowly, she unbuttoned his shirt. She spread it open. While she caressed his bare chest, Harris undid the buttons of her blouse.

  It’s no big deal, she told herself as her face again burned with embarrassment.

  Harris spread her blouse wide, and she immediately pressed herself against him. It felt strange to have the stiff cups of the bra in the way, keeping her breasts from the warmth and smoothness of his chest. But this was show business, not the real thing.

  Show business, with Baxter probably leering at me.

  Abilene decided to get on with it. She kissed Harris’s neck, his chest, his belly. Kneeling on the carpet of leaves and twigs, she tugged open his belt buckle. She unbuttoned the waist of his jeans. As she slid the zipper down, Harris sank to his knees in front of her.

  He drew her close against him and their mouths joined as his hands moved feverishly up and down her back. Abilene felt a solid thickness against her belly.

  You are into this, she thought. Hope you don’t pop out of your skivvies.

  Breaking away from him, she lowered herself to the ground. She felt terribly exposed, lying there with her blouse open. As she raised her knees, her skirt slid down, baring her thighs.

  Damn!

  Then Harris was on top of her, shielding her body from the camera and the watching eyes.

  She wrapped her arms around him. She kissed him. She moaned as he squirmed, and sucked in a quick breath when he thrust as if entering her. He went motionless then, the same way he did when it was real and he wanted to do nothing for a few moments but savor the joining.

  She could feel him pressed against her, only their underwear in the way.

  He began to move up and down, going away and coming back, prodding her, rubbing her. She pushed up to meet his tlmists. She writhed and gasped.

  Let’s not get carried away!

  My God!

  Isn’t supposed to be…

  ‘Looks to me like fornication in the park.’ Baxter’s voice. Words from the script.

  Harris seemed to freeze on top of her. Then he twisted his head around. They both looked up at Baxter, who was standing near their feet, grinning down at them. One hand was out of sight behind his back.

  ‘Don’t you know it’s against the law?’ he asked. ‘Not to mention poor taste.’

  ‘We didn’t mean any harm,’ Harris said, sounding sheepish and scared.

  ‘What if some children had wandered by?’ Baxter asked.

  ‘I’m sorry,’ Abilene said. ‘We’ll leave.’

  She relaxed her hold on Harris. As he rose to his hands and knees, she gave her skirt a quick tug to cover her thighs. She was closing her blouse when Baxter grabbed Harris by the hair and yanked his head back.

  The look of pain that flashed through Harris’s eyes wasn’t fake.

  ‘Hey!’ she snapped. Not in the script.

  Baxter’s other arm swept around. The knife slashed Harris’s throat, its hollow blade squirting out a bright red stripe.

  ‘Great!’ Finley blurted. ‘Fantastic!’

  She lowered the camera. Baxter released Harris’s hair and stepped away. Harris, mbbing his scalp, gave the guy an annoyed glance. ‘You were a bit rough, don’t you think?’

  ‘Sorry about that, dude. Going for the realism.’

  ‘From now on,’ Abilene said, ‘take it easy. Are you okay?’ she asked Harris.

  He nodded. As he got to his feet, Vivian came over and gave him a towel. He thanked her, and wiped the red fluid from his throat and chest.

  ‘Now for the fun part,’ Helen said, approaching with a paper cup full of the stuff.

  Cora laughed. ‘I think they just finished the fun part.’

  ‘You’re right about that,’ Harris said. With a blush and a smile, he pulled his zipper up. He turned to Finley. ‘Are you sure it turned out all right? Maybe we need to do another take.’

  ‘Or several,’ Abilene added from the ground.

  ‘Hate to disappoint you,’ Finley said. ‘It was fabulous. Gonna look like you were really doing it.’

  Almost felt that way, too, Abilene thought.

  Smiling down at her, Vivian said, ‘You can always come back tonight and do a take without us.’

  From the look that came into Harris’s eyes, Abilene knew he liked the idea. So did she.

  ‘Okay,’ Finley said. ‘Time for some wet work.’

  Helen, the cup of stage blood in hand, knelt between Abilene’s legs and ducked low. Finley crouched behind her and aimed the camera at Abilene. The red light appeared.

  ‘Action.’

  Helen hurled the fake blood. It splashed warm against Abilene’s face.

  She was alone with Baxter. The blood felt like a sticky mask. Though it had dried somewhat during the hike back through the park, it still dribbled. It tickled her face and neck. It made her itch. She ached to rub it, but kept her hands away and reluctantly started to unbutton her blouse for the next scene.

  Baxter looked. She pulled the blouse shut.

  He didn’t say anything.

  Just as well. She was still angry about the rough way he’d treated Harris.

  They waited, watching the others walk toward the parking lot. A few cars had come along after their arrival earlier that morning, but none was parked very close to the one they intended to use for the upcoming scene. Shouldn’t be a problem.

  Finley stopped beside it. The rest of the group stepped back to stay clear of the shot. Camera to her face, Finley wandered about as if trying to find just the right angle. Then she called, ‘Let’s go for it!’

  ‘Just take it easy,’ Abilene told Baxter.

  ‘No sweat.’

  He ducked, shoved his shoulder into her belly and clamped an arm across the backs of her thighs. Below the hem of her skirt.

  This sucks so bad, she thought.

  The crap I do for you, Finley.

  As he lifted her, she bowed forward. The shoulder pushed into her. She dropped against his back. Turning toward the parking lot, he began to trot. The rough motions bounced her. She felt as if her breath were being punched out with each of his strides.

  She could see nothing but the back of his white T-shirt.

  She could feel the heat of his body through it.

  She wanted to brace herself up, at least enough to stop her breasts from pushing against him. But she was supposed to be limp. If she struggled, Finley might want to do the scene over again. So she let her arms hang and sway. She shut her eyes. She wished she’d never agreed to be part of all this.

  Would’ve been fine if Tony’d played The Reaper. But this jerk!

  He stopped abmptly and bent forward, throwing Abilene off his shoulder. She gasped as she fell. Her back slammed into a flat sheet of metal and she knew he had unloaded her onto the hood of Finley’s car.

  He could’ve been more gentle about it!

&n
bsp; But at least her head didn’t bang.

  She heard quick footfalls on the pavement, rushing away from her.

  Remembering the script, she opened her eyes. She saw the clear, pale sky. She raised her head. Her arms were outstretched across the hood, her blouse wide open, her legs hanging over the front of the car.

  She heard a door swing open.

  As she struggled to sit up, Baxter returned. He swung his fist down like a hammer.

  Shit!

  But he pulled the punch, surprising her. His hand smacked softly against her belly. She whooshed out her breath and bucked as if really hurt, then sagged on the hood, wheezing. Baxter gathered her arms in front of her waist. He snapped handcuffs around her wrists.

  Then he pulled a rag from his pocket and wiped her face. ‘All pretty again,’ he said, smiling down at her. The cloth rubbed her neck and collar bones and the top of her left breast. She didn’t like being touched by him, but it felt good to have the itchy fluid removed.

  Grabbing the front of her blouse, he dragged her off the hood. She was hardly able to stay on her feet as he rushed her alongside the car. He shoved her onto the passenger seat, picked up her legs and flung them in, then slammed the door.