The Morose Murder, A Kira Barnaby Novel

A Normal Friday

It was supposed to be just an ordinary night for Jason. He was just going to his best friends house to check up on her and stay for their usual dinner/movie night. He was a few hours early because it had been three days since he last saw Kira, and honestly, that made him worried. Kira Barnaby was very easily bored and a bored Kira could wreck a lot of havoc. Jason pulled up to Kira's house at the end of the street. About ten years ago, hers was the only house on the whole street, now, there were about ten other houses spread out along the street. Kira's, however, was still very isolated from her neighbors. Jason wished that the reason for that was just because she still owned the extra property around her house. But, alas, it was only half the reason. The other half was because all of her neighbors were terrified of her. Now, it wasn't that Kira was mean or anything, although she could be downright psychotic and venomous when the mood took her. No, it was just that Kira was....different. Jason had just made it out of his car and was in the home stretch to the door to Kira's house, well maybe mansion straight out of "Psycho" was more appropriate, when he heard a very familiar voice.

"Mister Sutherland!" 

Jason winced. It was Mrs. Smith, Kira's closest neighbor and the nosiest old hag Jason had ever had the displeasure of meeting. Ignoring his first instinct to run and hide, he put on one of his most winning smiles and turned to meet his fate.

"Mrs Smith, beautiful day today, isn't it?" 

His charm didn't seem to be working since Mrs Smith's eyes narrowed into a scowl.

"Mr. Sutherland, you must get a handle on that woman! I heard gunshots this morning!" 

Gunshots? not again. Jason thought to himself. on the outside, Jason just laughed.

"Gunshots? No, no. Those weren't gunshots,Mrs. Smith. It was.. um.. a nail gun! Yes, she's renovating one of the guest rooms and she was using a nail gun. Not a real gun. That would be absurd. heh heh." 

"A nail gun, you say?" She regarded him with a suspicious look. "Well I've never heard a nail gun sound like that before. Mr. Sutherland, if this kind of behaviour continues I will call the authorities! She will be put in a mental institution where she belongs!" 

"Mrs. Smith, I assure you, it's nothing. No reason to get the police involved. Just some renovations. Have a nice day." 

Quickly, Jason walked away and up to Kira's front door. If there was anything that made Jason angry, it was when someone insulted his best friend. Sure, she was strange but it wasn't her fault. She was still a great person... once you got used to her.

Jason quickly knocked on the door. He heard a muffled curse and a bit of shuffling, then the door opened to reveal Kira. with a butchers knife in her hand. Wait, what?

"Hi Jason, you're early. Oh well, come on in." and with that, Kira was gone again. Jason eyed her warily as he walked through the door. As he shut the door behind him he watched his eccentric best friend as she started crawling on all fours with the knife in hand, seeming to be looking for something, her beach blonde  ponytail resting in between her shoulder blades.Even when she was crawling like a drunk, she was graceful. Jason put it down to her rather athletic build. If he didn't know any better he might've said she was a personal trainer. But he did know better, so he knew she was one of the laziest people on the face of the earth. Which brings him back to the fact she was still on they floor and they had traveled all the way from the front hall to the lounge.

"Kira," 

At the sound of her name Kira popped up so she was still kneeling on the floor, but she was looking at Jason now, her unnervingly bright blue eyes looking the picture of innocence which completely contrasted the butcher knife still clutched in her hand.