Killer Girls

by Martin Barkawitz

  ‘Have you heard, we dealt with this bastard Berger?’

  ‘Yes, dad.’

  Can’t you say anything else but that? The question was on the tongue of the gangster boss, but he swallowed it. Not because of Jim’s feeling. But if he wanted to learn something from his son, he could not afford to dress him down too hard. In that case Jim would simply start to lie. Although Old Barns usually discovered the truth later, it would only waste precious time.

  ‘And --- what do you think?’

  ‘It seems right that you have revenged Adrian. An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth. That’s what it says in the bible.’

  The old man sighed.

  ‘Yes, but the bible makes no mention of the reason why your child’s nurse killed my men.’

  Jim started to mumble after his father had parted with that piece of information. Apparently Jim had been still too drunk to understand the significance. No wonder after his long drinking binge.

  It had been Old Barns who had negotiated with the kidnappers. That was better handled by the head of the family.

  ‘L-Lucia killed your men?’

  The question betrayed a lack of belief.

  ‘Take a look for yourself.’

  With these word, his father turned around the notebook to allow his son to watch the screen. The short video sequence was on auto repeat.

  Jim’s eyes widened.

  ‘That’s Lucia!’ He stammered for the lack of a better reaction.

  ‘Don’t you think I’ve got eyes in my head? Did you tell her to kill my men?’

  Old Barns had hardly uttered the question before he could answer it for himself. No, of course not.

  Jim was far too cowardly to act against the interests of his father. He lacked the balls for such an action. He would never give that order, let alone reach for a gun of his own.

  ‘No, dad --- I would never do that!’

  Jim’s voice trembled. He glanced longingly at the whiskey bottle on the sideboard. But he dared no beg for a drink.

  ‘I thought so.’ His father said a little calmer. ‘But you know this Lucia. After all, she is Adrian’s nurse. Is there anyone else who might have ordered her to kill my men?’

  ‘I don’t know, dad, --- where did she go with that other woman?’

  ‘I wish I knew that myself.’ Old Barns growled. ‘By the way, this woman was the friend, or maybe more, of the German kidnapper. I assume Lucia will try to beat it out of the bitch where Adrian might be hidden.’

  Jim startled and his eyes widened.

  ‘My son is alive?’

  ‘There is still a possibility,’ his father admitted. ‘Otherwise, there is no sense in beating the truth out of the German woman. Except for the sheer fun of it.’

  After a short pause, Jim spoke again.

  ‘You shouldn’t have had the kidnapper killed. Now we’ll never find out where my son is being held.’

  Old Barns knew himself that had been a mistake. But he would rather be damned than admit as much to Jim.

  ‘All we have to do is find the German cow. Then we’ll make her tell us which of her friends are holding my grandson.’

  ‘Yes, dad.’

  ‘If you say yes dad once more today, I’ll ram that whiskey bottle up your ass!’ Old Barns shouted at his son. ‘Tell me about Lucia instead. How did you arrive at the mad idea to hire that killer bitch as nursemaid for Adrian?’

  Jim hesitated. The old man was about to slap him when his son opened his mouth again.

  ‘I got to know Lucia after she stabbed my best friend and killed him.’

  It was an answer, his father could never even have thought about.

  ‘Sean? I thought that was the slit eyes. The only reason we never did anything about it was that he was not one of ours. That piece of shit killed your friend and instead of revenging him, you engaged her for looking after Adrian? Are you crazy? I’ve always known that you are a coward. But I never thought you’d do nothing after she killed your friend.’

  If this tirade offended Jim, he did not show it.

  ‘It wasn’t like you think – I did nothing because Sean tried to rape Valeria. If it hadn’t been for Lucia, the honor of our family would have been defiled. When I came home, I found him covered in blood and with his trousers down.’

  Old Barns nodded slowly. He had never liked Sean, never trusted him. Such a crime warranted death in his circle. And he doubted, Jim would have been man enough to do the deed himself, had he been at home and able to defend his wife. It seemed as if Lucia’s action had been a godsend.

  ‘Does that mean your wife knows this Lucia better than you?’

  ‘They were schoolmates, until Lucia was barred for some reason I don’t recall. They met again much later. She helped me get rid of Sean’s body. It was our bad luck that he was discovered before the fishes got him,’

  ‘You should have told me what happened,’ the old man growled.

  ‘I know you think I’m useless,’ Jim replied with disarming honesty. ’You would probably have made fun of me that I wasn’t able to defend my wife – although I wasn’t even there at the time when Sean tried to rape her.’

  Old Barns had to admit to himself that would probably have been his reaction.

  ‘Okay, so this Lucia proved she could and was prepared to kill for your wife. But who had the mad idea to engage her as Adrian’s nurse?’

  Jim suddenly smiled.

  ‘Oh, Lucia took a great interest in Valeria’s pregnancy. It was almost as if she too was expecting. The two of them became inseparable. And I always had the feeling, Valeria would be safe when Lucia was around. I knew she would defend my wife and the baby with her own life.’

  And be probably more successful than you, Old Barns told himself silently.

  ‘That I can understand, but why did you not take her with you on your trip to Europe?’

  Jim hesitated. The old man sensed that his son was hiding something important from him. He lifted a threatening hand. To avoid a blow, Jim began to speak again.

  ‘Lucia had no papers and is wanted by the police.’

  Old Barns put a hollow hand behind his ear as if he had not heard right.

  ‘Again, please. You allow my grandson to be looked after by a woman wanted by the cops? Don’t you realize that they are looking for any excuse to hang something on me?’

  ‘Lucia isn’t wanted in New York, only in New Jersey or Maryland. I think she killed some people there.’

  The old man felt his son really deserved some punishment for such a weak excuse. He guided his wheelchair towards him and struck him hard with a flat hand across the face. Jim did not even try to avoid the attack. He simply whimpered like a dog.

  ‘So she blew a few people away in the provinces!’ Old Barns’ voice dripped sarcasm. ‘How reassuring for me. So the cops will simply close their eyes to such trivial matters if they ever catch her? Or …’

  ‘I …’

  ‘And that was the reasons why you could not provide her with a false passport?’ The old man continued, spitting sarcasm. ‘Besides the cost of acquiring such a document – with the new face identification system, every airport passenger control officer would have heard the bells ring that a wanted multi-murderess was trying to leave the country.’

  Jim lowered his head in shame.

  ‘We weren’t going to stay long in Europe,’ he mumbled. ‘Valeria wanted to see Paris, London and Berlin. And we had taken Liam as our bodyguard with us.’

  ‘Liam was hosed down with lead by the kidnappers when they snatched Adrian. Never even managed to raise his gun.’ Old Barns reminded his son with a tone of glee. ‘And you weren’t man enough to talk Valeria out of her stupid ideas. I only heard about the trip when the plane was already on its way or I would have stopped the madcap idea in the bud.’

  Jim remained silent.

  Old Barns knew it was not the first time he had expressed his feelings, since the whole mess had come to light. He knew, it was against Jim’s nature to st
and up to Valeria’s determination. When he turned back to his son again, his voice was calmer.

  ‘Berger’s bit of fluff must know where Adrian is being held. And since Lucia has the German bitch in her claws at this moment, we have to get to her. You’ll have to put the squeeze on your wife. She has to tell us the places where Lucia would hide out with her prisoner. And I tell you, don’t come back here without the results we need. If you do, you leave me no choice but to take Valeria through the mill. I’m sure you wouldn’t like that at all.’

  Jim shook his head emphatically.

  Naked fear showed in his eyes.

  14

  Kea’s knees trembled.

  The constant nausea was still with her. But she feared to give way to it, lacked even the strength to retch. Quite apart from that her stomach yawned emptily. Just as well.

  She concentrated on her surroundings. One step at a time without slipping into the stinking brew beside the slithery stones.

  Mario’s torch was the only light to guide them. Slowly, Keas eyes became used to the surrounding channel that carried the waste of hundreds, perhaps even thousands of shops and apartments. The brightness of the torch blinded her, and she turned her head a little.

  She tried not to think where she was or what might happen.

  Her sorrow over Tom’s death was buried somewhere deep inside her.

  Even the fear of Lucia lurked only somewhere in the distance, since Mario’s sister had to be somewhere far away. If Kea had her way, she would never have to see her again.

  That thought restored a little of her confidence.

  Her concentration waning, she almost slipped.

  She cried out in fear and grabbed at Mario who moved immediately before her.

  He stopped and lowered the beam of the torch at the watery channel beside them, carrying the waste of New York.

  ‘Are you okay?’

  ‘Yes, but I almost slipped.’

  ‘Whatever you do, don‘t trip and fall or you catch the worst diseases you could think of. --- Not very far now, and we‘ll breathe fresh air. You‘ve done very well. I bet you imagined your first time in the States to be better than this.’

  ‘You would win hands down.’

  She tried not to think of Tom again. That was the last thing she needed right now. She had changed, she realized. Although only a short time ago, in the boot of the Chevy, she had sought of killing herself. It was difficult to understand her nihilistic intentions. Even now, in this hell, she was glad that she had never succeeded. Despite her hopelessness, she wanted to stay alive.

  Mario’s voice drifted into her thoughts.

  ‘Only a few more yards. Then we should reach a way out of here. We’re past the area the cops can cover.’

  ‘You seem to know your way around.’

  Kea suddenly felt the need to say something nice. Mario laughed softly.

  ‘Practice. I had to get away from the law more than once.’

  ‘I also fled.’ Kea admitted. ‘From my previous life, to start a new one – with Tom.’

  ‘There you are. You made it, even if your friend did not. Sorry, I didn’t mean to be cruel. We’ll talk about it some more once we’re safe, okay?’

  Kea failed to answer. Right now it seemed utopian to believe she would ever find peace and safety again. Would it be her fate to return to a normal, reliable existence, no longer to flee through stinking sewers and from psychopathic women? Thinking of Lucia again, fear tightened its fist around her neck. She only knew that somehow she had to avoid that meeting.

  Finally, Mario had reached a shaft with iron clamps that led upwards. If they could climb it, they might reach freedom, she hoped.

  ‘Hold tight to the iron bars, they’re slippery.’ Lucia’s brother explained. ‘Otherwise it shouldn’t be too difficult. I’ll be ahead of you to open the cover.’

  Without waiting, he started to climb. The light of his torch danced about, because he had stuffed it in the belt of his trousers. It looked strangely frightening when the light brushed his chest and face from below.

  The illumination lent something demonic to Mario. What if he should be even worse than his brutal sister?

  Kea had to admit to herself that it had been only a short time ago, that she had been blinded by Tom, Despite that realization, she still carried feelings for him. But if even only half was true of what she had heard about him, he had been a totally different man to what she had taken him for. A kidnapper and criminal.

  And Mario?

  Was is not natural that he tried to appear in Kea’s eyes in a better light than his sister had painted him?

  And what, if his sister had not exaggerated when she had called him a rapist?

  She would never know until the moment he fell on her with the worst intentions. And she could never allow that to happen. She had lived though one day of horrors and wouldn't want to become the victim of yet another one.

  While such thoughts filled her head, Mario had almost disappeared from view. How high might the shaft be? Ten yards? Twenty? Or still more?

  If she ran away now, she might gain a good lead. It would take some time for Mario to climb back down again. She would see him approach by the light of his torch while she could use the absolute darkness as her shield.

  But she had hardly considered the thought when she discarded it. Her plan would shatter due to her own cowardice. The thought of being alone in the darkness with the stench and rats caused her to tremble.

  Kea had no idea whether there were other ways to escape this hell. For the time being she was utterly dependent on Mario. Even if she had no liking for it.

  She listened to the sounds of heavy breathing from above, followed by scraping movements.

  Suddenly his voice came from above: ‘You should climb up now, Kea. As quickly as you can, before anyone notices our presence.’

  Almost mechanically she followed his words, gripped the iron handholds. It was easier than she had feared, as long as she did not look back. All the while she hoped some cop would discover Mario or herself, thereby coming unwittingly to her rescue.

  But what then? She might quite possibly be dragged before a court for aiding and abetting a crime. It was unlikely she would be able to prove her innocence. She could turn and twist as she liked. For the time being, she had to be grateful for Mario’s company.

  Despite her precarious position she felt an almost overwhelming relief when finally she climbed from the shaft. Mario had held out a helping hand. Now he twinkled mischievously.

  ‘We might have shaken off the cops, but we both stink to high heaven like all the pleasant smells of Cesspoolia. I suggest we clean up thoroughly before we take our next task in hand.’

  ‘And that is?’ She asked although the already seemed to know the answer.

  ‘I’m talking of our forthcoming reunion with my sister.’

  15

  ‘Agent Borges, could you come, please?’

  It was the voice of the CSI specialist who called for her. Borges and Jablonski were still in the deserted factory building in Red Hook. She followed the voice of her colleague who had searched a windowless room at the far end. Jablonski followed her like a faithful hound.

  The room seemed to have been lived in until some short while ago. Several large computer monitors and a high performance work station filled two tables close together. In the corner a wardrobe gaped open. An unmade bed as well as a bookshelf completed the furniture. Borges headed at once for the latter one.

  ‘Technical manuals, the I Ging, books by Nietzsche, Kant and Schopenhauer… whoever lived her had a most peculiar taste,’ she mumbled.

  ‘What’s the I Ging?’ Her colleague asked.

  ‘An old book of Chinese oracles. I bet, no female has ever lived here.’

  ‘And I would refuse to take the bet,’ the CSI specialist entered the conversation while he inspected the wardrobe. ‘Unless a woman has the habit of wearing boxer shorts and forgoes a bra or was a dyke.’

  Bo
rges pulled a moue.

  ‘You seem to be an even worse joker than Jablonski. --- I admit, this doesn’t really look like a love nest, more like the refuge of a mad intellectual.’

  ‘Hasn’t the Lezzi one of them in her family?’ Her service partner remembered. ‘Her brother or cousin, whatever he may be.’

  She nodded.

  ‘Her brother is called Mario, a criminal like she. The main difference is in the crimes committed. And that we believed Lucia Lezzi dead while her brother Mario is very much alive but in the loony bin.’

  Jablonski spread his arms.

  ‘Or perhaps no longer since he seemed to have lived here. Unless someone else took possession of this luxurious pad.’

  ‘That we shall know very soon.’

  Borges reached for her secure Smartphone. Soon enough she learned to which institution Mario Lezzi had been sent after his last conviction. It took not much longer to discover that his mental condition had miraculously improved in the psychiatric ward to which he had been committed.

  She cursed as she ended the conversation.

  ‘We can’t be certain that it was Mario Lezzi who lived here,’ her colleague tried to calm her.

  ‘Take a look at that.’ The CSI-man suggested. He presented the agents with a shoe box that held several driving licenses for Pennsylvania, Maryland, Texas and Oklahoma. Every one appeared to be a fake. In any case, they showed the same face of a young man.

  Borges nodded angrily.

  ‘That makes it certain. The mug shots are Mario Lezzi’s. Damn it, why did the eggheads let him off the leash again to plague mankind?’

  Jablonski sniggered,

  ‘Surely you don’t expect a serious answer to that question, or do you? The psycho docs wash their hands in innocence if one of their patients returns to carnage.’

  Borges glanced around the room.

  ‘Mario isn’t a killer, unlike his sister.’

  The heavy-set agent lifted his eyebrows.

  ‘That sounds as if you know him by more than reputation.’

  ‘Yes, I do … Have you ever heard of the de Jong investigation?’

  ’Sure. Wasn’t this de Jong a financial con-man, who took Wall Street for a ride in a big way? They say he transferred millions to the accounts of his fake firms in the Cayman Islands. If I remember right, he topped himself in prison.’