“At least you doin’ it as a job. She’s just doin’ it outta hatred.”
“It’s money for her too. But, I guess . . . well.” Joe felt roused by a bit of shame himself. He wasn’t exactly proud of taking part in this, but he needed the money. He always needed the money. He didn’t like working steady jobs. To him, only suckers did that. Life was meant to be lived freely.
“Ain’t females so disgustin‘?” Robbie went on. “They do some of the most coldhearted stuff. ‘Course, the little ten-year-old wench Ava’s havin’ killed, would’ve probably just grown up to be a pain in the ass too. So it’s probably best she get taken out now.”
“You gonna ever get over this dislike you have of women?”
“Dislike? I hate the things. The world would be better off with just men.”
“Can’t agree with you there. You ought to go back to trying women again. Sooner or later you’d learn just how much fun they can be.”
Robbie looked away resentfully. This time, he was the one feeling a touch of shame. “I ain’t gonna try one of them ever again.” He was very indignant.
Joe saw in Robbie’s face a hatred he had seen many times over the years. He also knew it had grown from Robbie’s inadequacy with women in bed. Joe guessed that the hatred would always be there. What a shame, he figured.
“Anyway,” he then said, “you better get on in the bedroom. Ava will be here anytime.”
“Whatever you say.”
Robbie got up. He reached out his hand, and Joe shook it.
“Don’t let that damn woman con ya, Joe. Make sure you get a good deal from her.”
“Don’t worry. We’ve already talked about the plan. If I didn’t like where it was headed, I wouldn’t be going this far.”
Robbie headed for the bedroom. “Damn women,” he mumbled. “Ain’t none of ‘em worth a lick.”
Joe just watched as Robbie went on into the bedroom and closed the door. That boy needed help, he thought. He needed serious help.
When Joe opened the door, Ava had turned out to be a little later than what they had planned. She had heatedly mentioned that there had been complications at the church that had slowed her up. But she had arrived now, ready and roaring to go. She walked to the couch and sat down, as Joe closed the door.
“I really am sorry I’m late,” Ava said. “But when you have idiots working for you, you run into problems.”
“Not to worry. You’re here now.” Joe paced to the couch and sat down beside her. “So, you got everything all worked out?”
“Sure do. But first things first. Here’s how we work out the money. Susy’s Trust Fund is worth one hundred thousand dollars," she lied. True amounts could cost her money. "Ten thousand of that will be yours, once I get my hands on the money. It might take a few weeks after her death to work out the details.”
Joe looked to the bedroom, which was closed.
“You’re absolutely sure about this, Ava? You want the child dead, and then I’ll get paid?”
“Of course. I thought that was all understood. I’m not having any second thoughts. Are you?”
“No. I just want to be sure.”
“Don’t wimp out on me now. I’m getting too excited. I can almost feel that money in my hands.”
“My share is gonna help me a good deal too. So, how about my upfront money? When do I get it?”
“I have some personal savings that I keep. It’s all in cash. Nobody knows about it but me, and Jimmy. It’s all I have – two thousand dollars.”
Joe could live with two thousand. But he knew Ava. He was sure she had a lot more. “When does it touch my hands?” he asked.
“Saturday. The day you’re going to kill the little brat.”
“Saturday? Two days, huh?”
“The sooner, the better. Is it too quick for you?”
“No. I guess not, though it is a little quicker than I thought.”
“You know me, Joe. When I decide to do something, I do it.”
“You are a quick one.”
“No need to waste time. Now here’s the final plan. I’m going to arrange for everybody to be out of the house Saturday night by eight o’clock. We won’t be back until probably after midnight.”
“If everybody’s out of the house, how am I gonna kill her?”
“Not her, doa-doa. Susy’s got a Senior Citizens’ Helper club meeting that night. She and her girlfriends at the Girls’ Club go out on some Sundays delivering food and other stuff to old folks.”
“So when’s this meeting over?”
“Susy should be getting back home by ten-thirty. I’ll make it clear to her to be back by no later than eleven. A lady from the club will be dropping her off.”
“There’s not any danger of the lady coming in the house, is it?”
“She usually doesn’t, so I doubt it. But if she does, you can hide in the utility room beside the kitchen. There’s plenty of space behind the washer and dryer.”
“What if that don’t work? What if they still see me?”
“Joe, no murder scheme is without risks. You are getting paid for this. Besides, that’s probably something you won’t have to worry about.”
“But I’m thinking, what if something does go wrong, and I’m caught? What do I do then?”
“You’re busted for burglary.”
“So I go to jail? What about you?”
“I don’t know you. What do you expect? I’m trying to make this plan as foolproof as possible. I’m sure it’ll work, as long as you don’t screw up.”
“I won’t. I just want to be sure your plan is what you say it is.”
“Well shut up and let me finish telling you about it. Now, this murder has got to look like Susy surprising a burglar. I’m going to leave one of my purses on the kitchen table. There’ll be money in it. You take the money out and empty the purse out on the floor. You also pull out some kitchen drawers. Make it look like you were going through things.”
“How am I supposed to get in the house?”
“I’m going to leave the door coming from the carport to the kitchen unlocked. It’ll be Susy’s mistake. Before I leave that night, I’ll have her do something in the carport. She won’t forget to lock the door back; little Miss Perfect never makes mistakes. So after she’s gone, I’ll find a way to unlock it myself. But I’ll do it without anybody suspecting a thing.”
“So once I’m in the house, I hide in the utility room?”
“That’s only for an emergency. You can probably hide right there in the kitchen. Susy usually goes upstairs to put her things up whenever she comes home. That’ll give you time to sneak into the family room and be waiting for her, when she comes back down. Or if she goes straight to the kitchen, you can take her out right in there.”
“You haven’t changed things around much in your house, have you?”
“Nope. It’s still the same house you’ve visited at times.” Ava put on a somewhat sexy leer. “I’m sure you’ll find your way around with no problem.”
“So what’s your plan for me to get to your place? You still want me to take the bus?”
“Yeah. You take the bus to Fourth and Main. You get off and walk the couple blocks to my house. While you’re walking, with your bag of clothes of course, keep your head down. My neighborhood’s not well-lit at night, so it shouldn’t be easy for anybody to notice your face.”
“When are you gonna get me that fake wig and beard?”
“Let Robbie get it. He can go into a costume shop in L.A. and get one easily. I’ll leave the money.”
“I don’t want Robbie involved in this. He don’t know a thing about it.”
“And he still doesn’t have to. Make up some kind of lie and get him to buy it. It shouldn’t be any trouble.”
“Maybe I ought to just get it.”
“No. I don’t want the possibility of your face being traced to a disguise. If somehow, somebody notices a bearded man in the neighborhood the night of the murder, it could be a problem.�
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“I don’t want Robbie’s face being traced to anything, either.”
“It doesn’t have to be Robbie. Get anybody. Bribe a stranger on the street even. But if you do that, wear a baseball cap and sunglasses, so your face can’t be easily described by the person.”
“Who pays the bribe?”
“I’ll give you twenty bucks or something. That ought to be enough. Just get the disguise, Joe, alright. And get it by Saturday night.”
“Okay. I’ll take care of it. So then, what happens after I kill the kid? I’m still supposed to steal Henry’s truck?”
“That’s right. I’ll leave the keys on a cabinet in the kitchen. You take the truck out to Canton Cemetery. Nobody uses that deserted place anymore. You abandon the truck. You get out of your probable very bloody clothes and burn them, along with the disguise. You put on your new clothes, and walk the few blocks to the bus stop. You catch the bus back to your place.”
“You know, I was thinking. We can avoid me having to get bloody altogether. I think it’d be better if I just strangled the kid. It’ll be much easier that –”
“No!” Ava was very adamant. “I want her stabbed. I want her stabbed repeatedly.”
Joe was completely bowled-over. “But why? As long as the kid is dead, it shouldn’t matter.”
“Look, Joe, I’m paying you for this. I have a right to get it done my way. I want that little bitch butchered.”
For a second, Joe couldn’t say anything. He watched the cold-blooded woman, almost as if she wasn’t human.
“ . . . You really hate this kid, don’t you? It’s not enough she dies, but does it miserably.”
“You just do it the way I want. I want her ripped to shreds. You’ll have plenty of time to clean up.”
“Blood can lead to mess, Ava. Mess causes mistakes. Mistakes get you caught.”
“I want her to suffer. Look, if you be careful, there shouldn’t be any mistakes. You’re a very careful person, Joe. I know you’ll handle things.”
“Well, I’ll do it your way, but I think you’re being unnecessarily cruel, not to mention lacking efficiency.”
“We’ll be efficient enough. And as for the cruelness, neither one of us can expect any invitations to Heaven come judgment day, at least not after Saturday.”
“You’re one cold brute, Ava. You really are.”
“But a brute who knows how to get what she wants. So, what do you think of the plan?”
“It sounds fine to me. I’ll think on it some more to make sure I’m safe from getting caught.”
“If you have any ideas for changes, let me know by tomorrow afternoon. If I agree, I’ll need a decent amount of time to make those changes.”
“You’ve got everything all figured out, don’t you? You think everything’s gonna go like clockwork.”
“You’re damn right. But we’ll keep going over it, just to make sure there isn’t even the slightest of holes.”
“With you, I doubt there’ll be any holes.”
“You’re probably right. And I just have a feeling – everything’s going to work out just fine. I can feel it in my bones.”
Suddenly, a burst of rejuvenation swept over Ava’s face. Joe saw a slight smile also appear. She moved in close to him and put her arms around him.
“All this talk of murder and money is so adventurous, don’t you think? It’s getting me fired up. I’m getting so hot.”
She tried to move in for a kiss, but Joe pulled back. He knew where their kissing always ended up leading.
“What’s wrong?” Ava asked.
Joe quickly glanced at the bedroom door.
“Uh, nothing. It’s just that unlike you, murder don’t get me all steamed up. Actually, it’s rather depressing.”
“That’s okay. Give me a few minutes. I’ll have you feeling just like me. Come on, let’s hit the bedroom.”
“No. Definitely not, Ava. I’m just not in the mood.”
“Ahh, you’re no fun. You’ve been acting a little different ever since I brought this whole thing up.”
“Well, we are talking about killing a ten-year-old child.”
“We’re also talking about getting our hands on a lot of money. Just focus on that part. Anyway, I’ll be glad when this is all over, so you can go back to being your normal hot self.”
Ava still forced a long, steamy kiss on him. Afterwards, she just hugged him tight and rested her chin on his shoulder.
Joe was well aware of what he had agreed to do, and he knew that it made him an extremely evil person. Still, he did have a little conscience about things. This woman who held him, she was a monster. He knew that now beyond any doubt. He looked to the bedroom door again, where Robbie was busy filming away. He was so glad that he had thought to have that film as backup. Ava Edwards could not be trusted. Never get into any kind of agreement with this woman without having your ass covered, he thought. She was a sadist.
Chapter Twelve
Susy didn’t know just what quite to make of things. For two weeks now, Ava had been a completely different person. And Susy was almost in shock. When she had told Tori about it, she too had nearly gone into shock. Susy had even begun to get nervous about things, because she was afraid she might do something which would cause all of this good treatment to end. She sort of walked on pins and needles as a result.
She sat on the floor in the family room, Ava beside her. They ate milk and cookies and enjoyed television. Susy couldn’t help but notice every now and then, Jimmy sitting over on the couch pouting. It seemed his mother had turned on him; Susy had overheard him tell his only friend at school those words just the other day. He was completely baffled by it, and he didn’t like it one bit. Ava had told him he had to finish his homework like Susy had done before he could partake in the cookies and milk.
Susy saw her father come downstairs. Henry immediately smiled hugely, when he saw Ava and Susy sitting on the floor together.
“Ah, how are my two girls doing?” he asked jovially.
“Just fine,” Ava returned. She dipped a cookie into a glass of milk. “This girl is so smart. She finished her homework in no time. And she got everything right too. I know good math when I see it.”
“That’s my girl,” said Henry, beaming down at his daughter.
Susy returned a smile, though it was awkward. As much as she had craved this kind of treatment from Ava, she didn’t know if she would ever get used to it.
“Susy, sweetheart,” said Ava, “I think I’ll take you out shopping tomorrow. Would you like that?”
“Uh . . . Sure.”
“It’s been so long since we’ve done that. Or have we ever done it?”
“Naw. I don’t think so.”
“Well tomorrow, that’s going to change. You deserve a reward for being such a smart, good little girl. You’re such a precious child.”
It was just unreal. Susy felt that she had to be dreaming. What had come over this lady? She looked at Jimmy again. He was red with anger. He looked as though he wanted to tear her throat out.
Susy then saw her father walk on past she and Ava, headed for the kitchen. He had such a look of pride on his face.
“It’s time for Andy Griffith,” Ava said. “I just love those old shows, don’t you, Honey?”
Susy nodded.
Ava reached over and threw her arm around Susy. She squeezed her tightly.
“I just don’t know what was wrong with me,” she stated emphatically. “But the Lord gave me a vision. From now on, you and I are going to be the best of friends.”
Susy just didn’t know. There was something about that squeeze. It was too tight. It felt smothering. She wanted to believe the best, but still, there seemed to be something strange there. But if it was indeed phony, then she guessed time would tell. Still, a thought tried to haunt her. Would time tell too late?
Joe lay on the bed in his tiny bedroom. He had his hands locked behind his head, his feet crossed. He stared up at the ceiling. He was in deep
thought. Everything was a “Go.” He had thought Ava’s plans through completely, and he could see no flaws. It was probably as good as it could ever be. He still wasn’t crazy about the idea of stabbing the poor child, but that was what Ava wanted. What Ava wanted, Ava got.
A lot of things ran through Joe’s head. He had been to prison before; he didn’t like the idea of having to go back. Of course, he had no intention of doing so, but he was well aware that the risk was there. He knew, however, that if he went down, then Ava would go with him. He glanced over at the telephone table beside the bed. On it, sat the videotape that Robbie had filmed. It had come out perfect. There was enough evidence on that tape to convict Ava a thousand times over. Robbie would be over later to get the tape. Joe tended to throw things away. He figured that probably wouldn’t be the case for something this important, but why take chances? Robbie was excellent at keeping things safe.
He returned his stare back to the ceiling. What an animal he had become, he thought. There he was, psyching himself up to murder a young child in no more than twenty-four hours. How he had fallen in life. He had once shown such great potential. He had been a star athlete in high school. He had excelled in football and basketball. The Ohio States and Alabama's of the college football world had tried to recruit him. Joe’s parents had been so proud of him. He was going to be the first Riley to attend college. However, things hadn’t quite worked out that way.
Joe had had one major problem his entire life, he shamefully considered. From the time he could remember being alive, he had been one lazy scoundrel. If something didn’t come to him naturally, then it most likely would not come. He wasn’t real big on working at things. He had been a terrible student in high school. As a result, no scholarship offers were made to him. He didn’t even graduate from high school. His life since then had been nothing but odd jobs – when he worked. It had also been jail. He preferred to get something the easy way if he could. He considered crime as being easier.
Taking that kind of attitude in life had of course not left him with much, and it continually put him in need of money. Therefore, when an opportunity like the one with Ava came along, he wasn’t about to turn it down. It did have a great deal of risk, but even he had to acknowledge that sometimes in life, you simply had to take some serious chances. He had not chosen the best venue in which to do it, but as far as he was concerned, money was money. You earned it the way you had to earn it.
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