Help From My Friends

Part 4

 Kevin could see the television playing. It was the only light among the dark shadows of the house. He crept along the grass in the backyard. The cold dew seeped into his shoes and caused him to shiver.

He peeked into the living room. Scarlet sat on the couch with a bowl of popcorn on her lap. Her feet were on the coffee table and she had a blanket tucked around her shoulders.

Tightening his grip, the key tore into his flesh. He gritted his teeth together as he felt the sharp sting.

Stupid bitch, he thought. Never even asked for her key back.

"How are you going to do it?" Ethan's voice broke his concentration.

"I don't know yet," he said. "I can't use an axe again?"

"You don't want to get type-cast. The audience will always know what you are going to use," Alyssa said. "That's no fun."

"And once again, never use a gun," Ethan told him.

"Use this as a chance to do some research," Alyssa said.

"Research?" Kevin furrowed his eyebrows together.

"Yeah. Get creative. Kill her with something interesting. Something no killer has used."

Kevin nodded his head and hurried his way to the back door. He unlocked the door and slipped the key back into his pocket. The door creaked open, but the noise wasn't audible over the cackling of laughter on the television. He peered into the living room to see Scarlet giggling as she got up off of the couch.

His heart dropped into his stomach when he watched her walk toward the kitchen. If she saw him in their kitchen she was sure to start screaming. If she started screaming, it would alert the neighbours and they'd call the cops.

He dived behind the kitchen island. He listened as her footsteps entered the kitchen. He threw his hand over his mouth to stop himself from panting.

"Hello?" Scarlet called out.

Shit. Kevin cursed himself out.

"Is anybody there?" Scarlet asked the darkness.

"She's not the brightest." He looked up to see Alyssa sitting on the counter. She hooked her finger around the gold chain on her neck.

"No, this is good," Ethan said. "Think of the amount of jeopardy he is in. He could be caught any second. It's building tension."

"Whatever." She rolled her eyes. "Don't let us down, Kev. I told you I wanted to see something interesting."

Kevin nodded his head. Scarlet leaned forward over the marble surface. Kevin looked around the floor, but he didn't see anything. There was nothing he could use as a weapon.

Scarlet let out a deep breath, shook her head, and tightened the blanket around her shoulders. Kevin listened as her footsteps walked away from the kitchen. He peered over the counter to see her settle herself back onto the couch.

"Grab something and take her out," Alyssa told him. "Don't let this scene go on for too long."

She reached up and pulled down one of the frying pans dangling above the stove. She handed it over to Kevin. Ethan opened one of the drawers and the cutlery rattled. He threw a fork at Kevin and he shoved it in his pocket.

"She's coming," Alyssa said.

Kevin crouched back down behind the island. He made sure to not let the metal of the pan clang against the floor. Scarlet ran into the kitchen. Her face had grown pale and her eyes frantically scanned everything in the kitchen.

"Who's there?" she asked. Her voice cracked. "Brandon, if this is you it's not funny."

Kevin bit down on his tongue when he heard Brandon's name. Scarlet's long, sleepless nights caused her to feel lonely. While Kevin was sleeping upstairs, she was down on the couch talking to random strangers in chat rooms. That's how she met Brandon. They soon started meeting up at night and then she told Kevin that she wanted a divorce. Not only did she destroy his bank account, but she also ruined his heart.

Kevin sprang up from behind the island. He swung the frying pan and smacked her across the face. She yelped before falling down onto the ground. Kevin fished the fork out of his pocket before throwing his leg across her chest. Her arms were pinned against her body as Kevin toward over her.

The bright red mark on her pale skin was bleeding. Her breathing was shallow and her eyes were struggling to open. Kevin grabbed her face in his hands. He peeled open her eyes and made her look at him.

"Kevin," her soft voice said.

"How does it feel?" he asked. "Do you know how much it hurt when you left me? It felt so much worse than this. I'm going to make you suffer, Scarlet. You'll be begging for me to stop. It-"

"Don't monologue!" Alyssa said. "It's so long and unnecessary."

"Just stab her," Ethan said.

Kevin swung his arm down and forced the fork into her eye. Scarlet's back arched as she screamed. The handle of the fork stood out from her eye. A clear white fluid streaked with blood was running down her face.

"Don't let her scream," Alyssa said. "Someone will hear her. It'll cause a plot hole."

Kevin threw his hand over her mouth. She dug her teeth into his flesh. The pain exploded in his palm and ran up his arm. Scarlet threw her head from side to side as she tried to get Kevin off of her. Her hot breath tickled his hand while the sticky fluid seeped under his hand into her mouth.

Kevin pushed his hand harder against her mouth as he grabbed the fork and ripped it out. Scarlet's shrieking was muffled. Tears mixed with the rest of the liquids running down her face.

He scraped the fork along her neck. He watched as the blood beaded to the surface at four parallel lines. He stopped and then pressed the fork deep into her neck. Scarlet's body jerked underneath him. He ripped the fork out and a crimson spray covered his face. He wiped the back of his hand across his cheek. He let go of her mouth and watched the blood trickle out.

The stairs creaked under somebody's footsteps. Ethan poked his head out of the kitchen.

"Surprise," he said turning to face Kevin. His lips had curled into a smile. "Brandon's home."

Alyssa jumped off of the counter. She ripped the cup off of the blender and plugged it in. The four serrated blades were exposed.

"Shove his face into this," she told him.

"Scarlet, what's going on?" Brandon asked.

Brandon stalked into the room. He was running his fingers through his mess of blond hair as he yawned. Kevin grabbed his arm and twisted it behind his back. He yelped as he fell down onto one knee. He tried to shake Kevin off him, but he only twisted his arm tighter.

"Let me go!" Brandon shouted. "Who the fuck are you?"

He swung his free hand out behind him and punched Kevin. The pain burst in his ribs and ran to his spine. He grabbed Brandon's other hand and held them both behind his back.

Alyssa turned on the blender and smiled at him. The blades spun so fast that they blurred to become one. Kevin nodded his head and pushed Brandon's body forward. Brandon started to struggle even harder against his grip.

Brandon pulled one hand free and swung out to hit Kevin again. Kevin grabbed a fistfull of his hair and forced his face down onto the blades.

His screams were silenced as his lips were sliced off. He gripped Brandon's hair tighter as his head bounced up and down. His blood sprayed across the counter and chunks of flesh flew out. The blood splattered across the fridge and the collection of stainless steel appliances Kevin had been buying her for the past few Christmases. Kevin's laughter filled the kitchen.