by Miller, Tim
“Eddie!” Margie called from the bedroom, startling him out of his trance.
“What?”
“Don’t forget to take the trash out!”
“I already took it out!” He said.
“That’s what you said last time, and you forgot to do it. The can is already full!”
“I took it out already!”
“If you forget this time, I’ll beat your ass.”
He stood and walked to the bedroom.
“Do you have to say shit like that? Threatening to beat me up?” He asked her from the doorway. She was lying in bed watching TV.
“What are you gonna do about it? Hell, I know I could kick your ass. You’re just a pathetic excuse for a man. You got a tiny dick too.”
He shook his head and walked away. She wasn’t like this when they first met or got married. He wasn’t sure what exactly had happened to her. Gradually, over the years, she got angrier and angrier, with that anger the nastiness came out. All of it directed at him. Sometimes the kids, but she usually flipped out on him, and usually over nothing.
While Eddie knew he hadn’t been the perfect husband over the years, she was just as much to blame for not getting what she wanted out of life. She always wanted him to get a better job, but he had been happy working in IT. He was good at it, and the pay wasn’t great, but good enough. That was until his job got outsourced to India. He hadn’t found a job since.
She was an administrative assistant, but her attitude had gotten her fired one too many times. Now she worked at a convenience store. He’d looked for other work, but with twelve years working in IT, he wasn’t qualified for much else. So here they were. Money was tight, but they managed. It still drove her crazy that she had to work while he stayed at home though he had work of his own to do now.
“I don’t know why you’re walking away!” She was still yelling. “You know it’s true!”
He did his best to ignore her as he rewound the newscast on the DVR to watch his story again. As he watched, in the background he saw something. He saw someone actually. He paused the TV and moved in for a closer look. Was that a detective? There was a beautiful Latina walking around the crime scene. She had a badge around her neck.
“And who are you?” He whispered while watching the screen. Moving closer, he studied her face. Taking out his phone, he dialed the police department. They had an automated system, after listening to a string of recordings, he finally reached a person.
“SAPD, Sgt. Carter speaking,” the voice on the other end said.
“Umm, yes. About that body they found by the underpass the other day. The one that was all messed up. I uh, I might have some information about that.”
“Ok,” the man said, unimpressed.
“Yes. Um, who is the detective working on that case?”
“One moment sir.” The officer placed him on hold for several minutes. No hold music played though. Just a string of don’t drink and drive public service announcements. Finally the officer came back on. “Sir? That would be Detective Julie Castillo. So any information you have should be directed to her. Would you like her voicemail?”
“Uh, no. I’ll just call during the day. Thank you.” He said and hung up.
He reached next to the couch and grabbed his computer bag and pulled out his laptop. This is one area his IT experience will come in handy. He had some homework to do tonight.
Chapter 8
Eddie sat in the van, looking out the back window. Being Texas, most cars came with tinted windows to withstand the heat. Since Julie Castillo lived in an apartment complex, it made it even easier to blend in. It had only taken him an hour or so to locate her address and even her cell phone number. In this digital age, things weren’t as secure as people liked to think they were. Computer guys like him knew how to protect themselves. But the average person was much more vulnerable than they realized.
He could see the apartment door from his vantage point. It was apartment 202, he figured Julie was at work, but wanted to be here when she got home. This was different from his usual plan, but it would be worth it. The other night was his first time doing the ritual with the kids, they’d watched before, but never went all out with him. And he’d never dumped a body before. But he liked to make things interesting.
Another car pulled up and parked across from him. He didn’t pay it any attention, until he saw the pretty blond woman walking up and go into apartment 202. That’s interesting. Roommate? He watched for a while longer, but his curiosity got the best of him. Fortunately he was wearing one of his old, button-up work shirts. He always wore that when out scouting, in case he gets questioned. He can just say he’s there working on a cable line or something. He grabbed his tablet and headed up to the apartment.
He knew apartment complexes usually all had cable internet, since it was cheaper, and it would only be with one company. Taking a deep breath, he knocked on the door. After a moment, the blonde answered. She was slightly taller than he, with her hair draped over her shoulders.
“Hello!” He said, trying to sound friendly. “I’m with the cable company. We’ve been having some signal problems with the internet. So I just need to check something really quick. It will just take like five minutes.”
“Umm, ok? What is your name? They never said anything about any problems, and its working fine.”
“My name is Tom. And yeah, we got a few calls from the complex, and I was in the area, so just checking a few.”
“Well, ok I guess.” She said, stepping by and letting him in. He brushed past her, looking around, taking mental notes of the living room. The most important things he saw were the pictures hanging up. There were several, they looked like vacation pictures. It was the blonde and Julie together, with their arms around each other. In another they were kissing. So they were girlfriends, even better.
He walked toward the TV where the router was hooked up. Standing there for a few minutes, he pretended to type some things on the tablet. Finally he looked up.
“Ok, all done, we’re good. Thank you for your time. I’m very sorry.” He said.
“Oh, it’s fine. Thank you!” She said as he stepped out. Once he was back in the van, he sat for a few minutes trying to think of how to proceed. The plan was for him to take Julie Castillo and use her for the ritual. But now, Julie has a girlfriend. That changes things. He can make it even more interesting. He sat there for several more hours. Julie came home around 6 p.m. At around 8 p.m. her girlfriend left. She had a nametag on her shirt, so he figured she was at work. Around that same time, his phone started ringing. It was Margie. He silenced the phone, and she started bombarding him with text messages. Finally, he turned the phone off. A little after midnight, the blonde returned and went into the apartment.
That gave him some idea of the routine though with Julie being a detective, she could get called out at any time. He started the van, and pulled out and headed back home. If there were somewhere else for him to go, he’d have gone. No doubt Margie was going to flip out on him when he got home and he was not looking forward to that at all. He also thought of where he was going to explain he was. Maybe this time, he just won’t tell her anything. She’ll scream even more, but she never stops, so he may as well have some fun with it.
As he pulled into the garage, he stopped the car, and thought of a plan. The idea he had wasn’t perfect, but it should work unless someone sees them. If they’re quick enough, that won’t happen. Either way, he smiled as the thoughts poured through his head. In the next few days, he would be The Mask again, and he’d finally be himself.
Chapter 9
Sarah and Julie sat on the couch Friday night watching TV. Julie had been unusually quiet. The case she was working on was incredibly disturbing. She’d told Sarah some of the details that hadn’t been in the media. Sarah shuddered at the thought. Julie had no leads on it though and it was clearly bothering her. They would normally go out for drinks or even hit a club. Tonight, Julie barely spoke. About an hour ago, Sarah
’s work called, asking if she could come help work the bar. Julie told her to go ahead.
So they watched TV together, until Sarah got ready for work.
“You sure you want me to go in Jules?” Sarah asked. “I can stay home, it’s no big deal.”
“Yeah, it’s fine.” Julie said without looking away from the TV. Sarah finished getting her things and walked out the door. She hated working at night, but that’s when she got the best tips. It was warm and muggy out as she walked down the steps to her car. She walked in between the cars until she reached hers. Standing there was a boy wearing one of those white Anonymous masks.
She hated those masks, they were really creepy looking. But this was just a little boy. He was wearing a hoodie and gloves. Sarah looked around over the cars. It was almost 10 at night; the kid couldn’t be wandering around like this by himself. She looked around, saw no one else. The boy just stood there looking at her.
“What are you doing kid? Halloween isn’t for a few months.” She said. “You playing some kind of joke?” The boy just stood there looking at her. She wasn’t going to bite, and had to get to work anyway. She opened the car door and tossed her purse onto the seat. Before she could step inside of the car, a hand grabbed her ankle. She looked down and saw a gloved hand around her foot, then a second hand grabbed ahold. She tried to shake it off, and finally pulled free.
“What the hell?” As she turned to the side, the boy was now standing right next to her, but was holding a long rod. It was a cattle prod. Before she could scream, the boy pressed it into her side, sending a sharp jolt through her body. Her legs buckled as she landed face first into the pavement.
The Mask sat in the van, watching from a distance. If anything went wrong, he would intervene, but he didn’t think so. They were ready. Once the blonde, whose name he now knows to be Sarah, fell to the ground, he drove the van up right behind her car. As he pulled up, his daughter climbed out from underneath the car and grabbed Sarah’s arms.
The Mask jumped out of the van, slid the side door open and pulled Sarah inside. The kids both jumped in as he slid the door shut, got in the driver’s seat and drove away. As he drove, both kids began duct taping Sarah though they wouldn’t be doing the ritual tonight. He had something special set up.
It was a twenty minute drive to the farm. The place had belonged to his father. Margie didn’t even know about it. He’d been using it for his rituals for a few years. He was glad he’d kept it quiet. He didn’t want Margie wanting to sell it or use it for something stupid. This place was sacred.
He parked the van behind the main house, next to the old barn. The barn wasn’t too big and he’d reinforced the walls and re-did the inside. Once they were there, he got out, and dragged Sarah inside. She was starting to wake up, as he reached the cage. The cage was a new addition. He’d been working on it for a while, but had slacked off. This past week he got it finished. It was made from chain link, but reinforced with some pipe. It was pretty strong, strong enough for his purposes.
Once she was in the cage, he cut the tape off her and locked the door with a pad lock. The cage was about four feet high and four feet long. So big enough she would fit and can move some, but small enough to keep her uncomfortable. She finally awoke, as the three of them sat and watched her. As she came to, she ran her hands through her hair as she sat up. Looking around she saw all their faces, or their masks anyway. Instantly she screamed.
“Who are you? What is going on?”
The three of them just looked at her. The Mask loved this. The power he held over them. This one would be the most exciting yet. Julie would be the one for the ritual. Sarah was just the bait. Not that he wouldn’t have fun with Sarah, there would be plenty of fun for them all. But Julie Castillo is the true prize.
“Let me go, please! My friend is a cop! She’ll find me. If you let me go now, I promise not to say anything.” She pleaded.
Breaking his own rule, he decided to speak.
“I know she’s a cop Sarah,” The Mask said. “Her name is Detective Julie Castillo. Her phone number is 210-599-8811. I’m going to call her in just a moment. And yes, she will find you. That’s the whole idea. You’re going to bring her here.”
Chapter 10
Julie had dozed off on the couch. She had no idea how long she had fallen asleep, but when she woke up, Sarah had already left for work. It was almost 2 a.m. so Sarah would be getting off pretty soon. She opened the door and stepped out onto the catwalk. The night air was cool, but muggy. Julie stretched out. She could hear music coming from some of the other apartments. Not unusual for a Friday night.
Looking across the parking lot, she saw Sarah’s car. It was parked in the same spot it had been earlier. So where was Sarah? She ran to the stairwell, and down to Sarah’s car. She felt the hood, and the engine was cold, so she hadn’t gotten back anytime recently. The driver’s door was unlocked, and Sarah’s purse sat in the passenger seat. In that moment, Julie felt the life drain out of her.
She thought back to the strip club, the missing girl, Carla and her corpse they found under the highway. Her knees began to tremble as her breathing quickened. She ran back to the apartment, trying to catch her breath. As she got inside, her phone started to ring. It was a private number. Maybe it was Sarah. Maybe someone from work picked her up. Maybe she was just fine.
“Hello?” She said.
“Hello Detective,” A man’s voice said on the other end though it had obviously been distorted. “By now you’ve probably figured out your precious Sarah is missing.”
So much for her maybes; her worst possible nightmare was happening and there was nothing she could do about it.
“Who is this? Where is she?”
“Who I am isn’t important. Sarah is just fine, for now. Whether or not she stays that way is entirely up to you.”
“You better let her go! If you hurt her, I will find you! I will—“
“Detective, you’re not helping. I need you to listen closely. First I want you to know she is unharmed.” The voice said. She heard what sounded like footsteps then screaming.
“Jules! Don’t listen to him! He wants to kill us both! Jules!” She heard Sarah screaming. At least she knew she was still alive.
“Now, you know she’s alive, so I need you to follow these instructions exactly.”
Julie stood with the phone to her ear, trying to hold back tears. She tried to keep herself composed, taking some deep breaths.
“Julie?” He said. “I need to know you’re listening. Sarah’s life depends on it.”
“Ok,” she sighed. “I’m listening.”
“There is an abandoned gas station a few miles south of the city. You need to be there…alone in one hour. If anyone comes with you, or follows you, if you tell anyone else, there will be consequences. Do you understand?”
“Yes. I understand.” She said.
“Good. Once you are there. You will be given your next instructions. This part is very important. When you get these instructions, you must follow them to the letter. Do not ask any questions, do not hesitate. It will not be good for either of you if you do. Do you understand?”
“Yes. I understand.”
“Last thing…do not bring any weapons with you. No guns, pepper spray, or whatever else you cops might use. If I discover any weapons, there will be consequences.”
“Ok,” she said, her voice now shaking. “I understand.”
“Good. I wouldn’t waste any time if I were you.” He said and hung up.
Once the call was disconnected, she began shaking and crying. She had to save her. Sarah was the love of her life. She’d been in several relationships, but none as long as with Sarah. No one got her the way Sarah did. Now she might be gone, and it was because of her, it had to be. Was this the same guy who killed Carla? It had to be. The only thing she could think to do was call Ben. As she ran to her car, she dialed his number. He finally answered after three tries.
“Ben! It’s Julie.”
&nbs
p; “Julie? What the fuck? It’s like 3 a.m.”
“He’s got Sarah!” she said.
“Who?”
“Sarah, my g—um, roommate.”
“I didn’t know you had a roommate and who has her?”
She explained everything to him over the phone. She was worried if this guy had her phone number and knew where she lived, could he be listening to her calls too? Did she just doom Sarah by calling Ben?
“Ok, I’ll head that way. I’ll stay out of the way so I won’t be seen. You do what you need to do, ok?”
“Ok, I’m so scared, Ben.”
“I’m sure you are. If this is the guy who did that work we found the other day, we have our work cut out.”
“You think we should call the captain? Bring him on this?”
“I wouldn’t risk it. If we spook the guy, Sarah will be dead, and he’s in the wind.”
“Right.”
“Take some breaths, and get there safe, and be careful. I’ll keep an eye out.”
“Ok, thanks Ben.”
She hung up and started the car, driving into the unknown.
Chapter 11
Ben hung up the phone and got dressed. He still wasn’t fully awake as he pulled on his jeans, shirt and grabbed his gun. He’d never heard Julie sound so frantic. She was usually very in control. On the phone, she sounded like anything but in control. He doubted it was their supposed killer that had taken her roommate.
He got in his car and headed to the gas station she had told him about. It was several miles south of the city. There were hardly any cars out at all. There was an old junkyard further down. He pulled in there and shut the car off. From there, he wasn’t visible from the road, but had a decent view of the gas station. There was an empty field behind the gas station covered in tall grass.