Twisted Soul – Installment 1

Twisted Soul

By

D.M. KURTZ

Installment 1:

Finally

December 2^nd, 2016

… He could hardly believe how well his plan had worked. So many months… No, years. So many years of tediously laying the groundwork for the demise of his first victim. Waiting… it was the waiting that had been the hardest to bear, knowing all the while that that scumbag Randy was residing peacefully in an institution instead of rotting in a cold grave. Now, finally, it was time. On the very anniversary of that travesty of justice the victims would rest in peace, and their families would have their deserved restitution.

“I want you to say it.” A wisp of vapor came from Jess’s mouth when his scratchy voice filled the barely-lit room, and he scowled as he looked upon the tightly bound, soon to be dead man who rocked back and forth in the fetal position at his feet. “Admit it,” Jess demanded. He cleared his throat to remove the slight tremble in his speech as he shifted the weighty camcorder that was propped up on his shoulder. With his free hand he withdrew a stack of pictures from his interior coat pocket and threw them on the ground near Randy’s face. He then bent down and proceeded to spread the images out until all eight were easily visible.

“I know the truth,” Jess declared icily. He bounced on his heels slightly as he bent his knees. “You aren’t crazy, Randy. At least not like they wanted us all to believe. These were children… just kids. THEY WERE INNOCENT!” The crumpled man flinched at Jess’s voice as he practically roared those final few words. The camcorder rose and fell slightly: a subtle indication of his highly charged emotional state. His heavy breath was caught clearly by the microphone near his cheek. Jess sniffled and wiped his nose with the back of one gloved hand before he cleared his throat again and stood tall.

“Tommy, Jessica, Stacie, Troy, Deborah, Stevie, Crystal… Ashton,” Jess could barely keep his voice steady as he rattled off the names. “Gender, age… None of that mattered to your sick mind, did it?” He heaved a grieved sigh and took a step back. The camcorder bounced as he paced for a few moments before he returned his attention to the prisoner.

“It must be eating you alive,” he remarked. “Everyone knows you as just another nut-job. A sad man with too many loose screws to be able to control himself.” At this Randy stopped rocking: the first sign that he had heard anything that had been said.

Jess smirked. “You’re going to die tonight,” he declared solemnly. “The nation should have followed God’s commandments and executed you years ago. I am going to rectify that injustice. But,” Jess sneered as he moved closer and bent down. “I’m going to help you,” he said. “See, you have a choice to make. Die, and be remembered only as the pitiful, broken and damaged man who just couldn’t help himself, or… drop the charade, and die knowing that you will go down in history with the full credit you deserve for what you’ve done.” With a quick stroke he reached out and clenched the jaw of his captive tightly in a vice-like grip.

“Look at me,” he hissed. For a few moments his victim’s glazed eyes simply bounced back and forth erratically but, finally, they slowed. Randy glanced down at the pictures for a moment before he turned a black, soulless gaze to meet Jess’s own heated stare.

“You like those?” Jess asked with a slow, disgusted nod. His left eye twitched when the lips of the murderous retch suddenly split into a wide grin.

“I liked Jessica the most,” Randy’s soft voice, thick with a Western accent, was barely audible, yet the disturbed tone caused Jess to blink and release his grip. He swallowed hard, and his now free hand clenched as he struggled to contain the rage boiling up in his soul.

“I waited… so patiently until the time was right,” Randy continued. “She was with me the longest… I spent more time with her than any of the others. Such soft skin… She” – CRACK! His speech was cut short when Jess’s iron-like fist connected with Randy’s jaw. The man grunted from the impact as his chin bounced off of the cold stone floor.

“Shut up,” Jess declared as he shook his bruised hand lightly, but Randy chuckled.

“Should I apologize?” he asked derisively. His blood-soaked jaw popped as he rolled it eerily. “This is what you wanted: for me to admit that I liked it. Ohh, and I enjoyed it all. The waiting, the planning, OH the anticipation of it all! I cherished every second, every sweet, serene moment of pene” – BANG! The sound of the Sig Sauer echoed through the small room; Randy’s head snapped to the side from the impact of the projectile when it connected with the bridge of his nose. Jess’s outstretched arm trembled slightly, and smoke rose from the heated barrel of his swiftly drawn and discharged weapon. The vigilante slowly took in a deep breath before he lowered his hand and watched as the blood of his victim quickly pooled beneath the corpse.

Finally, for the first time since he’d watched the insanity plea that had granted indemnity from the death penalty and subsequently had kept Randy out of prison, Jess experienced a sensation that had long eluded him… Peace.

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Copyright © 2018 D.M. Kurtz

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