Ch 16 Death Adjacent

Reverend James sat at his sloppy desk with his hand on the telephone and other pressed against his temple. His eyes opened as he began to speak.

“Listen, listen, it doesn’t matter if he’s dead or not as long as it gives us contact with the LadyKiller-“ He I interrupted by his wife walking into the office humbly caring the day’s mail. James stares at her oddly as she observes a strange yellow envelope.

“That’s weird. This envelope has no return address or postage” She said as she waved it back and forth checking it out. 

“Give it” he snatched it out of her hands and quickly tore the edge off and revealed glossy, high-quality photos of him and Regina naked and engaged in rapid intercourse on top of the same desk. He quickly shoved the photos back into the envelope without his wife seeing them. his eyes grew wide and his grip on the phone loosened and fell to the floor. 

“What is it?” She asked. James quickly picked up the phone and trembled as he did.

“It’s nothing, just a little project from the club that I asked the kids to drop by, that’s it” he spoke while keeping a firm grasp on the envelope.

“Well I’m going to Emily’s, were going to get the potluck ready. You’re coming right?” She said.

“Yeah, I’ll be there don’t worry”

As soon as she left and closed the door behind her, James hastened to rip open the envelope and scatter several of the photographs on the desk and a note dropped as well.  It read:

You bastard. Did you really think you could get away with what you did to me?

Feel free to burn these copies if you like, there’s more where that came from.

Reverend James clenched his fists and flared his nostrils. “Dammit!” ye yelled out. He held up the telephone to his ear. 

“That son of a bitch Ronald is alive and he knows… a lot more than he should. I can’t tell you how I know! He must know the police is looking for him and he’s trying to get out of it by blackmailing me that bastard!” he slammed the desk with his fist. 

Megan stood motionless inside a bedroom full of stuffed animals and heart pattern wallpaper. She held what looked like a large plastic gun with a disk at the end and was connect to the headphones she had on. She pointed the gun toward the reverend’s window and heard the conversation.

“Well apparently you didn’t hit him hard enough! Listen, it’s not unlikely that he has an accomplice. These pictures are recent, there’s someone else, someone else took these pictures… and it looks like they were taken from the neighbors”

Megan threw herself to the floor to avoid being seen. She breathed heavily and began to crawl out of the room, avoiding the gaze of the window.

The smoky air stifled Ronnie as Pedro lit a cigarette in the kitchen. He sat opposite to him smoking an entire pack of Malboro reds while digging into a plate of Adelita’s famed beef stew. Pedro glanced at Ronnie every time he took a spoonful to his mouth then swallowed and puffed at his cigarette. Ronnie was wearing his same musty clothes. He ached to take a shower. the bandage over his head covering the wound on the right side of his head circled round and covered the top of his right eye. He tilted his head upward and could see Pedro eating his stew and blowing out smoke. He was in his tank top that showed off his tattoos. Ronnie found himself growing with rage, he felt like flipping the table over.

Adelita served him a plate. The smoke of the stew masked the filthy scent of cigarettes. It had been at least a week and a half since he’d been hit, since he was found on the road, since he survived a fatal wound, since he touched him. He felt perverse as he kept staring at Pedro. His right side ached as he lifted his right hand to grab the spoon. He had always been eating with his left hand since his right hand twitches uncontrollably. He didn’t feel like going through that again. 

He raised his trembling hand to the spoon and hoisted it above the bowl. He scooped as if he was serving himself hard frozen ice cream. He them slowly raised the spoon upwards; he leaned forward and opened his mouth. Suddenly his elbows twitched and cringed causing him to spill the stew onto the table and dropped the spoon. 

“I’m sorry!” He yelled out trying to hold in his tears.

“It’s okay my child” Said Adelita in Spanish. She quickly grabbed a towel and started to clean the table. Pedro looked at him with and at the same time disgust. Ronnie detected his hostility and picked up the spoon again and dipped it into the bowl once again and shook it out of control once again. He retracted his shaking hand and grabbed the spoon with his left hand.

Shaken, he evaded Pedro’s gaze. It was too difficult to concentrate on the task at hand, there was so much brewing in his mind. So much to question, the severe blow to the head cut off his brief period of heartbreak and he was trying to go back. Trying to recover those feelings, he could have suffered a thousand blows to the head and none would hurt, none would seem as violent as the damage done his heart.

Jane adjusted her wig before passing through the large black gates that encompassed a large meridian home with a strange water fountain that resembled a naked native woman with a jug of water on her head. Jane adjusted her cowgirl costume. She wore last year’s costume due to the sudden presence of a Halloween party. Beside her was Iago wearing a zombie costume. 

“I’m glad you could come, my cousin will be very pleased to meet you” he said

“He has a very… nice home. What does he do for a living?” Said Jane

“He uh… owns a couple of properties in the west coast, mining, stuff like that”

They enter the house and immediately towering over them are crystal figures and decorations thumb-tacked on the high ceiling. The house had a 70’s nuvo chic aesthetic. Soft synth pop echoed through the entire place. Jane’s eyes concentrated on the decorations, in front of them was the backyard. The pool was infested with jocks and anorexic bikini mongers completely ignoring the custom of the Halloween costume. Jane noticed that not many people were wearing a costume. The large pool area seemed crowded and contrived.

Albert laid on his prisoner bed with nothing on but his jeans. He kept bouncing a tennis ball off the wall and back. The music bounced off the walls and writhed in him. 

The door unlocked and swung open revealing Chico with a count Dracula costume. He had the fangs the red cape, the came, and he even painted gray  sideburns. Fake blood smeared all over the corners of his mouth. Albert sat up.

“You look so… old” Said Albert

“Well I was going to let you out to come play at the party, but since you’re being rude-“

“I’ll pass but thanks” he kept bouncing the ball off the wall.

“why is it Albert? Why is it that you don’t like being here?”

“well, aside from being kept here against my will, I don’t particularly like to be a sex slave, especially when there’s always a woman involved” He stood up moving away from Chico. But he catches him and embraces menacingly, against his will. He wrapped his arms around his stomach. 

“Come on now, Albert you know you’re my favorite. But you know me. I can’t have sex with just one person. I’m not your little boyfriend, Albert, that you can have monogamous monkey sex with-“

“Well then how about you take me out of the equation” Said Albert. Chico started to kiss his neck from behind. 

“Why are you in such a hurry to go nowhere? You dropped out of school, dumped your boyfriend, no job, no obligations, nowhere to go. If you think about it I’m doing you a favor.” he continued to plague his neck. For a second he was lost for the feeling then came into reason.

“If you behave, I’ll let you out into the party” Said Chico. Albert thought about it.

“Come on it’ll be fun, you’ll have to stay by my side…. but oh and tell you what if you try to leave, I’ll cut your little boyfriend’s hand, what’s his name, Melvin.” Albert felt his tongue on his neck, his lick sending shivers throughout his body.

“Wear this” He gives Albert a matching vampire boy costume. Chico kisses him on the forehead and leaves the room as Albert stands motionless and terrified.

Chico steps down into the party scene. The pool to the left and the Dj to the right. He held in one arm Albert and in the other Rosa, both wearing vampire costumes. The area was abundant with topless men and bikini blondes running around dancing to the erotic music. Chico started to mingle with the guests. He would introduce Rosa but not Albert, and he would let go of Albert whenever he would start to get into a conversation. Albert stood idly by his side not being able to leave.

It wasn’t long before Albert caught sight of Jane’s cowgirl wig that seemed to stand out over all of the blondes at the party. He shuttered, almost wanting to run over to her. He motioned to Chico.

“I need to pee” He whispered into his ear. Chico glared at him.

“Make it quick… oh and Albert, don’t even think about it” Chico turned back around and proceeded his caveman chit chat. 

Albert positions himself in the view of Jane. As soon as she spots him he quickly nods his head toward the house as to say to meet him inside. 

Jane tumbles through the crowd nearly pushing some bimbos into the pool and follows Albert into the house and into the bathroom. 

“You bastard! I’ve been calling you for weeks! How dare you!” Albert silences her by embracing her. Jane was half deep in watery eyes.

“first off, I’m sorry. Second, we don’t have much time J I’m being kept here against my will, Third, what the Hell are you doing here?!”

“Iago invited me here”

‘Dammit Jane these aren’t the type of people you should be hanging around. These are drug dealers-“

“Drug dealers?! Oh my God. Is that why you came here in the first place? Huh? You getting high while I was sick worried?!”

“Listen Jane you have to get out of here before Chico figures out who you are.”

“What about you? You’re coming with me!”

“No. I can’t leave. Just get out of here and when you can bring the police. Aliright?”

“Alright” Albert nearly pushes her out of the bathroom.

“oh and Jane!”

“yeah?”

“Tell Melvin that I love him”. Jane nodded her head.