"Do you believe in God?"
"What?"
"I'm asking if you believe in God?"
"Wh...why?"
"It's just that I never thought about it before, you know asking God for forgiveness but..."
"Yeah, I know. Now it begs the question because of what we did, right?"
"Did you think it would feel like this, because I didn't. I'm not sure what I thought but this doesn't feel right, I mean I thought it would..."
"For fuck sake Erik, what did you expect, joy?"
"Maybe. A sense of euphoria, relief, a better understanding of life. I mean why else would we do this? It's not like it had to happen. We chose to do it. I thought tonight would be a new start for us."
"We were drunk."
"We were drunk, when we talked about it. We're not drunk now, nor were we when we did it."
"Well, we can't take it back, what happened, happened."
"That’s why I always said no."
"You may have said no, but you wanted to do it as much as I did, you said so."
“I wanted to be left alone, without him always pressuring me.”
“Don’t lie to yourself, it's too late for that. You were angry when I told you what he did to me.”
"What he did was wrong... What we did is wrong. ”
"Was it wrong or was this something that needed to happen?"
"I don’t know anymore. I should have left like I said I was going too, and you could have started a new life on your own."
"You know we could never have started a new life until we did this, he would have come after us. If we didn't....we may have always wondered and regretted not doing it."
"I think I'll regret this more."
"Don't blame yourself, I was the one who talked you into it, it was me who couldn't let it go."
“Do you feel any Guilt?”
“Guilt? No, I feel free. Nervous but free. Shit, I can’t stop shaking.”
“I thought it was just me. But our parents? Do you think they will know it was us?”
"If they question friends, maybe. We both expressed the desire a few times in the past. Plus, family members are always suspects. We were forced to do this."
"No-one made us. We're adults, we could have left, we just didn't have the guts. Now we are stuck with the consequences."
"I'll carry the burden. It was my idea."
"No, we did it together it was both of us. Maybe if we explain why. I mean if they knew what kind of person dad was, what he did to us, maybe people would understand.”
“Understand? We’re rich white males, who’s going feel sorry for us?”
“Christ, I don’t feel good, I...”
“Hold it together.”
"Okay, ok... what should we do now?"
"Wash up and get changed."
"And then what?"
"Then… act like we don’t know anything. ”In your mind…as far as your concerned this was a home invasion.”
"They're going to ask where we were."
"We will say we were at a movie."
“Which one?”
“Umm, Batman.”
“Movie tickets have time stamps.”
“Right. Let’s head to the festival in Santa Monica, lots of people there.”
“I don’t think I can lie. I mean if they ask I’m not sure...I’m...”
“Go clean yourself up first. You will feel better once your freshened up. In a few days, a couple of weeks at most this will blow over.”
"OK, sure, I’ll go…what should I do after we clean up?"
"Get rid of the shotguns.”
”And the bodies?”
”Leave them as they are. Remember, it was a break in gone bad.”
“We could say dad was involved with the mob.”
“No, let’s keep it simple. Unless they ask us for more details then yeah, maybe.”
“They don’t even look human anymore.”
“Multiple shotgun blasts will do that.”
“I knew it would be messy, but I wasn’t expecting the smell, not this soon. It reminds me of that butcher shop in St. Barts dad took us to, remember?
“Yeah.”
“She wouldn’t die… I kept shooting, but she kept moving, crawling away…. I think I had to reload…I don’t remember.”
“She was tough, but cold. Not once had she tried to stop him from abusing…”
“Shouldn’t the cops have been here by now? Someone must have heard the shots.”
“Your right. Let’s get to the festival. We can dump the guns on the way.”
“Okay.”
“Remember when we return, look shocked and surprised. We have to pretend we don’t know what happened.”
“What if the cops don’t show, we should be hearing sirens by now.”
“If that’s the case, I'll call 911."
"Lyle, I still feel like asking God for forgiveness."
“I think it’s too late for that Erik."
About the Creator
JBaz
I have enjoyed writing for most of my life, never professionally.
I wish to now share my stories with others, lets see where it goes.
Born and raised on the Canadian Prairies, I currently reside on the West Coast. I call both places home.
A Love Letter to Charlie
Dear Charlie, I don’t want to say goodbye to you but after you were flipped on your side by Mardi Gras revelers two weeks ago, the insurance company considers you totaled. Breaks my heart that one stupid prank ended our run. Note: my father-in-law is delighted by the news as he considers you a widow-maker and insists we find a safer vehicle for his future progeny. (Shoot, we’re not ready for kids… just got married a few months ago. Can’t we have a little time before the honeymoon ends?)
By Cathy Schieffelin4 days ago in Fiction
A Failed Artist, A Disillusioned Poet, An Underpaid Game Show Host
I took my son and niece to Gori, a small town in Georgia where Joseph Stalin was born. They talked me into visiting the Stalin's Museum, the largest in the post-Soviet space. I had resisted going there because I just can't stand the monster and know enough about him, or so I thought.
By Lana V Lynx6 days ago in FYI
Comments (13)
Nice to see you're still around, even if you are the competition.
I don't know what happened, but I think I probably learnt the skeleton from here.
I watched this documentary and knew exactly what was happening with the dialogue!! Very well done Jason!!
Very riveting read! I flew through it! The dialogue only was a compelling format for such a piece!
I have avoided watching those two deeply deranged freaks story on Netflix however I really appreciated to read your piece and find out at the end how it works with their heinous story. Good stuff!
It's a great talent to paint an entire story with just dialogue!
Just yesterday I heard of that Netflix movie but I know nothing about the case. You did a fantastic job using only dialogues! I'm looking forward to all your series, especially the Lesser Known one! You know how much I love that heheheheheh
I figured it was about the Menendez brothers after going to the movies reference. Seems like you are getting into the writing grove with all the plans, Jason. Good tailwinds!
I would like to think getting inside the head of someone who just took a life without justification would be especially challenging for any writer not already accustomed to the act based on personal experience of any stripe. Especially if it is anything like what the Menendez brothers did. But in this story, you managed to make me believe that you figured it out. The slow reveal made it all the more chilling and disturbing. Really fine writing, Jason!
That was fabulous, and the pic wrapped it up perfectly. Well done.
So much gold here within the narrow parameters you set yourself! Would make a great challenge.... I'm Jonesing.
I enjoy working with just dialog when the story calls for it. I think the reader becomes more invested in the story. The Menendez case was perfect to tie your story to. Well done, Jason.
That was awesome. So gripping and tense with just dialogue. Like it really gave the impression of wanting to know more but only being stuck with their testimony and what they were saying. The dialogue flowed realistically and sounded authentic. Brilliant work, Jason. Also, intrigued and excited for more work from you, I will need to get clued up on all those series! :)