An Affair To Dismember

Holly sat on the bed, facing the window.  In the background sirens sounded as the police arrived at the suburban residence.

As the police stormed the room, gasps of shock were heard as the grisly scene played out before them. 

Blood lined the walls, splattered in various patterns, indicating to the naked eye that there was more than one victim.

The fact that there were numerous heads lining the bed that Holly sat on, also indicated to more than one victim. 

“What the hell?”

Holly looked up at the officer.  Holding up her wrists she had a look of defeat in her eyes.  “Cuff me,” she said.

*    *    *    *    *

Holly wasn’t a violent person.  She wouldn’t hurt a fly.  Keeping to herself most of the time, she was a shy girl with a heart of gold. 

In her senior year in high school, a transfer student by the name of Adam Hooper took a liking to her.  It started innocently enough.  He leant across his desk and asked to borrow a pen.  The following day, he appeared by her locker, the pen in hand.  “Here,” he said simply, handing it to her.  Holly looked a little perplexed and told him that he could keep it.  Adam just smiled before reminding her that he borrowed it.  He turned and walked off, swinging his backpack over his shoulder.

Two weeks later, Adam sat with her in the cafeteria.  “What are you reading?” he asked, opening the brown paper bag that contained his lunch.  Holly swallowed the Monday mystery meat and showed him the cover.

“Lord of the Flies,” Adam read, pulling out a lettuce, cheese and ham sandwich.  “That’s pretty heavy stuff.”

Holly nodded, unsure of what to say.  Never had someone engaged her in conversation at lunch before, let alone anyone as gorgeous as Adam.

She stared at him.  His shaggy dark brown hair hung over his forehead.  His eyes were so dark they were almost black.  He was tanned, toned and just a picture of perfection in Holly’s eyes.

“So, do you have a name?” he asked, taking a large bite of his sandwich.

“Holly.  Holly Franklin.”

“I’m Adam Hooper,” he replied, shaking her hand.

Holly smiled, feeling the electric pulses shoot through her hand as their skin touched.

“Why are you sitting with me?” she asked.

Adam smiled.  “It was either sit here and engage a pretty girl, or join the meatheads on the other side of the caf and a milk chugging contest.  Really, it was a no brainer.”

Holly smiled shyly, her cheeks turning red.  She turned her head slightly so that he wouldn’t see how embarrassed she was by his charming words.

Adam smirked, chewing slowly.  He did think Holly was cute.  Her mousey brown hair hung limply and her large glasses hid her violet eyes.  Her skin was pale and she wasn’t exactly the cheerleader type, but still, there was something enchanting about her.

Over the next couple of weeks, Adam and Holly spent a lot of time together.  From study dates and hanging out after school to seeing a couple of movies.  For the first time in her life, Holly was beginning to come out of her shell.

Adam made her feel free and he didn’t care if she acted goofy or that she had a collection of butterflies or the fact that her bedroom was literally filled with pink frills.  He liked her for her.

Then one night, after catching a late movie, it happened.  Adam kissed her on the doorstep to her house.  Holly felt herself sigh as his lips pressed against hers, her arms wrapping around his neck as her body fell against his. 

It was her first kiss.  And it couldn’t have been more perfect.  It was as though it had been scripted.

The following week the school principal made an announcement that there would be a winter dance.  Holly had never attended a school dance before but when Adam asked if she would go, Holly said yes before he had completely finished his sentence.

With a spring in her step, Holly and Adam walked over to the dance committee table.  Holly pulled out some cash and handed it to the peppy cheerleader, Elle.  “Two tickets please,” she asked, meekly.  Regardless of how Adam made her feel, she was still intimidated by the popular kids.

“Sorry, we don’t sell to losers,” Elle said, dismissing Holly with a wave of her hand.

She turned to Adam, disappointment crossing her face and she shrugged.  She didn’t feel like getting into a screaming match with the popular crowd.  She was already an outcast.  She didn’t want her high school life to be completely miserable filled with daily ridicule.

Adam took her money and walked over to the table.  “Are you deaf?  We don’t sell to losers,” Elle said, smiling sweetly at him while her group of friends giggled.

Adam smiled back.  “I heard it, but you see, I think the real problem is you don’t know how to count change.  Let me make it easy.  Here’s the money.”  He dropped the cash on the table.  His hand snaked over to the tickets.  “And I’m taking the tickets.  Have a nice day.”

Elle was left speechless as Adam wrapped his arm around Holly and walked off.

“I can’t believe you did that,” she said gleefully.  Adam grinned, squeezing her tight. 

“Their faces were priceless,” he said with a chuckle as they walked through the school halls together. 

As they approached Holly’s locker, Adam turned all serious.  “How much do they pick on you?” he asked.  Holly shrugged.  “A few times a day.  They just call me ‘loser’ and once Elle’s boyfriend, Derek, tripped me into the mud outside the school library.”

Adam frowned.  “I know a way of getting even with them,” he said, his voice hushed.  Holly glanced over her shoulder.  His eyes were cold and his face had a sudden hardness to it.

“What are you talking about?” she asked, pulling her history book out of her locker.

“Come to my place tonight at midnight and you’ll see what I mean.”

Holly opened her mouth to say something but Adam walked off, running his hand through his hair.

That night, Holly said good night to her parents and went up to her room.  She lay awake, the covers hiding her jeans and t-shirt.  She listened as her parents made their way to bed then carefully she threw the covers off and climbed out her window.

She had never done anything like this before.  Standing on the roof of her house, she began to question whether or not she really wanted to shimmy down the drain pipe.  Her curiosity got the better of her as she began to think about Adam and what he had said.  Maybe he was planning a Carrie like stunt at the dance when Elle was crowned Snow Queen.  Maybe he was going to change the ballots so someone else was named Snow Queen instead. 

As the thoughts of revenge filled her head, Holly found herself climbing down off her roof.  Her footing slipped and she fell only a couple of feet before landing on the plush lawn that her father was so proud of.

Brushing the grass off her clothes, Holly jogged down the street.  Adam’s place was only a couple of blocks from her house, in a quiet suburban street.  She had been there a couple of times as Adam wanted to introduce her to his parents, but they were never around when she was there. 

Adam was standing out the front of his house, a cigarette in hand.  He smiled when he saw her.  “Was wondering if you were going to come,” he said, his voice echoing down the quiet street. 

Holly gave him a weak smile.  “I had to wait for my parents to go to sleep,” she said.  “They sure do like to stay up late.”

Adam grinned, dropping the smoke to the ground and stomping it out.  “Ahh no matter.  You’re here now which means I can show you what I meant by getting even.”  He grabbed hold of her hand and pulled her inside his house.

It was dark inside and Holly’s eyes were having a hard time adjusting to the lack of light. 

Despite the exterior, the house was in shambles on the inside.  Outdated carpet greeted Holly and the couch looked like someone from her neighborhood had thrown it out.  The floor lamp was old wood that had rotted and the TV looked like it had stepped out of the 1960’s.

“Nice place,” she said, with a tight smile. 

“It’s not much, but it’s home,” Adam replied, leading her to the stairs.  They creaked loudly under their weight as they ascended the stairs.

Adam led her over the landing to the last room.  He opened the door, flipped on the light and Holly gasped.

Lying in the middle of the room was Elle and her friends.  Each of them was bound at the ankles, their wrists secured behind their backs.  They were gagged with simple pieces of cloth and Holly couldn’t help but notice the pleading looks in their eyes as their muffled cries echoed in her ears.

“What?  What have you done?” she demanded, turning to Adam.

Adam grinned.  “It’s called getting even.  They made your life a living hell, Holly.  Now it’s time to return the favor.”

Holly stared in horror at the scene around her.  She couldn’t image what was going through Adam’s head.  All she knew was that she had to get out of there as fast as she could.

Turning to run, Holly was blocked by Adam.

“Move, Adam,” she said, her voice shaking almost as much as her hands.  “I want to go home.”  Adam grinned.  “But don’t you want to get even?” he asked, his hand running through his hair.

Holly shook her head.  “I thought we would pull a stunt from Carrie and cover Elle in blood at the school dance.  I didn’t think you’d kidnap her and her friends.”

Adam’s smile changed from a cocky school boy grin to something more sinister.  “Now that would have been interesting,” he said, moving away from the door and over to Elle.  Reaching down, he grabbed a fistful of her long blonde hair and yanked her up into a sitting position.  “What do you think, bitch?  Did that sound like a good idea?  Covering you in blood at the school dance?”

Elle shook her head, sobbing.  She was trying to plead with him to let her go, but her begging was muffled by the cloth gag.

Holly, terrified of what Adam might do, inched her way towards the door, her outstretched hand wrapping around the knob.  She turned the handle but the door didn’t open.  She pulled then pushed.  Nothing happened.  She let out a frustrated wail as she pounded on the door.

Adam chuckled, holding up a set of keys.

“If you want out, Holly, then you got to help,” he said, letting go of Elle’s hair, letting her head drop to the floor with a thud.

Holly began to shake, tears forming in her eyes.  She felt one slide down her cheek as Adam moved towards Elle’s boyfriend, Greg McLean.  With one swift movement, he sliced Greg’s neck, sending a spray of blood across the room, covering Elle and her friends.

Holly screamed and began pounding on the door in hopes of waking Adam’s parents.  Elle and her two friends sobbed as Greg’s eyes rolled back, taking his final breath. 

Holding the knife, Adam turned his attention to the girls on the floor.  He held Greg’s head by his hair before he began hacking away at the neck, in an attempt to cut Greg’s head clean off his body.

Terrified by the scene, Holly ran past Adam, trying to get to the window.  As though he had anticipated her move, he stuck his foot out and tripped her.  Holly screamed, her hands flying out in front of her as she fell to the floor, her head hitting the bedside table.  She groaned, her eyes flickering open. 

A triumphant cry caused her to sit up, rubbing her head.  When she turned around, she could feel a lump rise in her throat when she saw Adam holding Greg’s head with one hand while his body was slumped on the floor.

“Adam, stop,” she croaked.  Her head hurt and she could feel a headache coming on.

“Why?” he asked, tossing Greg’s head onto the bed and moving over to one of Elle’s friends. 

“Why?  Why?”  Holly couldn’t believe her ears.  Did he not understand that he couldn’t just simply kill people?  “Because you can’t kill people Adam.  It’s wrong.”

Adam grabbed Elle’s friend, coping a feel of one of her breasts.  “Oh, I don’t know about that,” he said, his hand roaming freely over her body.  “Would you prefer me to torture and scar them for life?”

“No!”  Holly was surprised at how forceful her words were.  “I want you to let them go.”

Adam seemed to ponder Holly’s request. 

“No,” he said, slicing the girl’s throat with his hunting knife.

Holly’s shoulders shook as she cried.  Adam butchered Elle’s two friends, their bodies unrecognizable, and just like Greg before them, he cut their heads off, tossing them onto the bed.

His attention turned to Elle who was still bound and gagged on the floor.  Her eyes were wide, her cheeks tear stained. 

Adam smiled down at her.  “Holly,” he commanded.  “Come here.”

When Holly didn’t move, Adam grabbed her by her hair, dragging her over to where Elle was.  “Seeing as she is your main tormenter, I think you should do the honors.”

Holly shook her head and began sobbing loudly when Adam pushed the hunting knife into her hand. 

Elle looked up at her, pleading with her eyes.  Holly shook her head, sobbing loudly.

“It’s easy,” Adam said, holding her hand so that it was grasping the knife.  “Just hold it like so, then you press it up against the flesh.”

Holly stared at him, unable to understand what had gotten into him.  He was such a sweet guy when they first met.  Now he was a monster.  A monster whose actions were usually reserved for the movie screen.

Her hand curled around the hunting knife.  She felt the handle.  It was warm from where he had been holding it. 

“That’s a girl,” he said as he felt her squeeze the handle of the knife.  “Now all you need is to slice and dice.”  He grabbed a fist full of Elle’s hair, holding her tight.

Holly looked into Elle’s eyes.  The poor, defenseless cheerleader pleaded with her, her eyes begging to be spared the same fate that had befallen her friends.

Holding the knife out in front of her, Holly glanced down at the shiny blade.  It was caked in blood of Adam’s victims.

She glanced up at Adam, a horrifying smile etched on her face.  “Hold her tight,” she commanded, her violet eyes twinkling.  Adam obliged, holding Elle so she was sitting up, her head pulled back so that her neck was exposed.

Letting out a war cry, Holly swung the knife.  She smiled in satisfaction has blood spurted from the open wound and as Elle dropped to the floor.

Wiggling around, Elle tried to get away.

Holly smiled sadistically as Adam held his throat, blood covering his hands.

“W-w-why?” he asked, dropping to his knees.

Holly grinned.  “I told you that you couldn’t just kill people, Adam,” she said calmly.  "Plus, you were a lousy boyfriend.  Although I do appreciate you doing all this for me."

Adam’s eyes grew wide as she wielded the knife again, stabbing him numerous times in the neck and upper torso.  When she was done, she was coated in his blood.

It was only when she heard Elle’s garbled words that Holly came out of her trance-like state. 

She reached down, removing the gag from Elle’s mouth.  “Oh thank you,” she cried, gulping down large quantities of air.

Holly watched as Elle wiggled her fingers.  “Please, untie me,” she said.  “Then we’ll get out of here.”

“No.”

Elle’s eyes widened as Holly stood over her.  “Adam was right about one thing,” she said, her smile turning evil.  “I do want my revenge.”

Elle opened her mouth and screamed as, with one swift motion, Holly decapitated her.

*     *    *    *    *   

As the patrol officer lead Holly away in handcuffs, her smile returned. 

“They won’t pick on me now,” she told him as he bundled her into the back of his car.  “I’m finally free.”