Dirty Laundry

It’s not like it is in the movies. Blood is brighter than it looks on the television; it’s slick and pungent and has the smell like that of a truck full of copper pennies. All this is beside the point but it goes through my mind as I lie on the cool linoleum bleeding to death. One minute I’m shopping for my girlfriend’s birthday present in a local lingerie store and the next I’m face down in a pool of my own blood. I know that pretty panties and a garter belt seem like selfish gifts but that’s what Jenna likes. 1

Anyways, I’m combing the isles looking for something bright and colorful which is what she loves but I’m not seeing anything that catches my eye. I’m getting pretty frustrated when all of a sudden I see a cobalt blue corset with a matching garter belt. She’ll love it, I decide as my hand reaches to search for her size. As I flip through the racks, I hear screaming. Not the usual “I found the sale of the century and it’s in my size” scream, but a blood curdling, hair stands up on your neck scream. Before I can turn around to see what‘s going on, the corset I’m holding suddenly has red streaks all over it. What the--- before I even finish the thought I feel a tearing sensation in my shoulder. I look down and my left shoulder is pouring blood. Meaty chunks are sticking out at disgusting angles and I’m a little grossed out to tell you the truth. Usually I love movies or shows that have lots of gore but in person it’s pretty nasty. 2

I don’t even turn around to see what’s going on or who’s shooting, I just dive face down and pray to God that it all ends soon. 3

I still hear screams and shots coming from every direction and lift my head a few inches to see a large woman in a brightly colored dress on my right lunging forward as she’s shot in the back of head. She hits the ground and blood begins to pool around her. The lady who was running behind her doesn’t stop to see if injured woman is ok but rather jumps on top of her, slips a little in the blood and runs out the door that’s only a few feet away. So close and yet so far away I think as I contemplate my chances of freedom. Stay here and play dead or make a run for it? Since I don’t even know where the shooter is I decide to stay put and try to look as dead as possible. I look at the door that’s only a few feet away from and see that it has chunks of something stuck to it. As I look closer I realize it’s brain matter. Ok, this is NOTHING like the movies. I really think I’m going to throw up my lunch I just ate before coming here when the shots suddenly stop. The screams have decreased in number since some people have managed to escape and the others are seriously injured or dead. I try to stay as still as possible but it’s hard to control my breathing against the pain. Just stay calm, I tell myself and everything will be ok. With any luck this is all over now and the shooter has left.4

“I know you’re alive.”5

Someone is jabbing their foot in my side. Crap. Guess my ploy didn’t work after all. I slowly roll over and look at a young girl who’s holding a small handgun. She smiles down at me looking almost innocent. She’s young, maybe twenty-two or so and dressed in that casual style of torn jeans and a ratty t-shirt that only a girl her age can get away with wearing and still look good. 6

“Sorry about the shoulder,” she says as she looks at me impishly. “ I was after the bitch behind the counter but she ducked and I guess I got a few other people instead.” She says all of this with the air of someone who accidentally stepped on someone’s foot. 7

“My name’s Jane. What’s yours?”8

“Tom.”9

Normally, I think I might have literally pissed myself but this young girl seems so completely sweet and non-threatening that I’m actually not even scared. I almost wish I was more scared because maybe then my shoulder wouldn’t hurt to freakin’ bad. The blood has stopped flowing and is rather slowly seeping out now. I’m no doctor but I assume this is a good sign.10

“Oh my gosh! You’re bleeding pretty bad there, does it hurt real bad?”11

My first instinct is to fire back some smart ass reply that would no doubt tempt her to shoot me again but instead I tell her, “Not too bad. Just stings.”12

This is a complete lie. It hurts like hell and it’s taking all I have not to cry or pass out. She looks down at me with a smile and says, “Liar. You look white as a ghost and you’re shaking. I think I have some pain pills with me.”13

She reaches into her pocket and pulls out two small, white pills and hands them both to me. I pop them into my mouth and swallow them dry. For a mass murderer she seems pretty nice. For the first time she stops paying attention to me and looks around the store to survey the damage. 14

“Anyone moves and I won’t hesitate to shoot you in the head,” she orders everyone who’s still alive. She says it in that calm voice which really creeps me out because I have no doubt she’ll do follow through with her threat.15

I look around also and see everyone else who’s injured; I see two thin, girls one who looks ok and the other who’s passed out and bleeding from the leg. I can see her chest moving up and down so it looks like she’ll be ok. Actually, all of the people in the store are women except for me. Since Jane’s been chatting it up with me I assume my being male is a good thing. About ten feet away from the young girls is an older lady, probably in her forties and she’s holding her head in her hands and sobbing loudly. She looks unharmed, just really freaked out. Near the cash register is a young girl, pretty, with shiny dark hair and has one of those perfect figures you know all the other girls envy. She works here; I think her name is Jenny or Jennifer. She appears to have been shot in her right arm and her left calf. She’s not crying or moving and I think she’s dead until I see her blink. In shock I suppose. 16

Jane looks around with a serene look on her face until her eyes reach Jenny or Jennifer and then she looks like a whole different person. She has this look of hatred unlike that of any other person I’ve ever seen before; it’s pure rage. I’m assuming Jenny or Jennifer is “the bitch behind the counter.” This can’t be good.17

“That whore slept with my fiancé.” Jane’s calm look has dissolved into a mask of anger and she’s actually shaking with rage. 18

I look closer at the “whore” and see her name tag reads Jenny. She has this frightened, deer in the headlights look and seems scared as she should probably be. 19

Jane walks slowly and deliberately over to the counter area where Jenny is sitting against the wall. As she gets closer Jenny looks terrified and tries to get up but only manages to get on her feet for a few seconds before she falls down from the wound in her leg. She begins to make this whimpering sound kind of like what my childhood dog, Sammy, sounded like after having a run in with a porcupine and had his nose stabbed with numerous quills. 20

“Don’t move, bitch. You know what you did and I told you what would happen if I ever caught you with Mark.”21

“Jane! Nothing happened between Mark and me, I swear! We broke up a long time ago and I haven’t seen him in years. I promise I would never do anything like that, I swear it!”22

Jane scratches the gun against her head in a questioning way and gives Jenny a cold look. “Gee, so I guess those X-rated texts he sent to someone named Jen weren’t to you, huh? And those panties I found that weren’t mine don’t belong to you either I guess.” Jane says all of this in a mocking voice; you can tell she’s already made up her mind that Jenny’s guilty.23

“No! I promise you I haven’t done anything!”24

Now Jenny really begins begging for her life. She pleads with Jane not to do this, to let her live. Jane reaches the spot where Jenny is sitting and stands above her with that creepy calm look on her face.25

“Fine. Just admit your wrongdoings and tell me you did it; tell me you messed around with Mark. I’ll let you and everyone else go,” Jane says gesturing to the rest of the people. 26

Who cares if she’s guilty or innocent. I’m just praying she’ll admit to it so we can all go home. I just want to see my girlfriend.27

“I didn’t do anything! Please believe----”28

A shot rips through Jenny’s temple before she even finishes the sentence. I hear a scream from someone and then everything goes silent.29

Jane looks down impassively at the now dead girl and then turns quickly and walks back towards me. Oh shit.30

“So I guess you think I’m some sort of monster, huh?” She directs this question at me in that eerily calm voice.31

Be honest and risk getting shot or lie and make her mad? I opt for semi honesty.32

“Well, to be honest it seems a little harsh. What if she was innocent?”33

“She wasn’t. She was Mark’s ex-girlfriend and he cheated on her with me. I had no idea he was with anyone and when I found out and confronted him he swore up and down that he was already planning on leaving her before he met me. She went crazy when she found out about us and swore she would get him back and pay me back for what I did. Does that sound like innocent to you?” 34

She doesn’t sound angry as she tells me all of this, but remains calm and continues to stand above me with a blank look on her face.35

“Ok, admittedly, it doesn’t sound too good for her but you said your boyfriend’s messages were to someone named Jen. It didn’t have her full name so maybe it was to someone else. And she probably said that out of anger.” I know I’m not doing myself any favors here by playing the devil’s advocate but I’m getting mad at her self righteous attitude. Who gave her the right to play God and decide who dies?36

“You’re right it did just say Jen but that’s what he always called her and I know for a fact she never got over their breakup.” 37

I’m literally shaking with anger. She’s killed how many people over some stupid guy and she’s just standing there like nothing has happened.38

“So what about Mark? What was his punishment? Why shouldn’t he receive some of the blame of what supposedly happened? What does this girl owe you? She’s not the one who was going out with you, he is. You think you can come in here and shoot some poor girl who may or may not have slept with your fiancé who also cheated on her to be with you? Who are you to play the spurned lover vigilante? You‘re acting like a crazy chick out of a Lifetime movie.” 39

I can’t control the rage in my voice. I stop talking and realize just how stupid I’m being. I shouldn’t show her my anger, it’ll only put a reason in her twisted head to kill me too. I look around at the other survivors and see that they look terrified for me. The young girl who was passed out earlier is now awake and I notice a slight shake of her head as if to tell me to stop what I’m doing and to shut the hell up. I look up at Jane to see her reaction to everything I’ve said, waiting to feel a bullet but she just stands there with the same serene expression on her face completely unfazed. She’s a complete psycho, I realize.40

“I knew what I was doing before I walked in here, Tom. It sucks that you people were here. Wrong place, wrong time.” She says all of this but there’s no emotion in her voice, nothing that even hints that she’s really sorry for anything. She sees now that she doesn’t have me on her side like she thought she did. I don’t condone her actions and I never will even if Jenny was the other woman. She gives me a different look, one I don’t particularly like.41

“I like you, Tom. You seem like a really nice guy and I wish we could’ve met under different circumstances. And maybe you don’t agree with my actions but I know you would want to do the same thing if you were in my place. You probably wouldn’t follow through with it but you would want to kill too. You’re just not the type who has it in you to do something like I have, guess it‘s just in my genetic makeup. And by the way, Mark‘s dead. I shot him before I got here.”42

I try to keep my voice as level as possible and tell her, “You’re right; I probably would think about it but I would never carry out something like this. This is wrong and I think deep down you know this.”43

By now everyone else is staring at us, looking worried that what I’m saying might push this crazy girl even further over the edge.44

Jane doesn’t say anything for awhile, she just stands there and looks around at all the women in the store and rests her gaze on Jenny’s corpse. Finally, she turns around and stares at me. 45

“I knew what I was doing when I walked in here, Tom. I knew how this was going to begin and I had it planned how it was going to end it,” she says in a quiet voice as she raises the gun.46

Oh shit. She’s going to kill me. I raise my legs and tuck my head between them and throw my arms over myself as if that would help protect me from a bullet. 47

BANG!48

The shot rings out and I tense instinctively and wait for the pain. The pain doesn’t come. I slowly raise my head up and see Jane a few feet away from me laying on the floor in a pool of blood. I’m in shock as a stand up stare at her body. The women who are able to move get up and run as fast as they can to the door. I don’t run out automatically, but rather just stand there in disbelief over everything that’s just happened. What a day. I came in for a gift for my girlfriend and wind up getting shot. Talk about luck. I then feel bad even thinking that because some of the women in the store weren’t so lucky. They were dead.49

I hear the sound of ambulances coming and walk out of the store slowly and see paramedics already on the scene. I pass out as soon as they put me on a stretcher.50

-------------------------51

I wake up in the hospital surrounded by tubes and machines. A nurse is standing over me and for a second I think I’m back in the store and it’s Jane. The nurse sees the fear in my eyes and pats my hand reassuringly. “You’re ok, love. You tore a few muscles and ligaments and will have to take it slow for awhile, but the doc says you’ll be fine.” She has kind eyes; her nametag says her name is Mary.52

I breathe a sigh of relief and rest against the pillows. Normally I hate hospitals but anywhere is better than being in the store. My shoulder is killing me. Mary must have noticed me wincing because she grabs a vial out of the cabinet and tell me I’ll feel better in a second. She injects something into my IV line and everything fades away within seconds.53

I wake up what seems like days later and I see Jenna standing over me. She has tears in her eyes and I’m touched that she looks so worried. I try to smile at her but still feel so drugged I can barely keep my eyes open.54

“Oh, baby, I’m so sorry this happened. I can’t even imagine what you went through. Mark told me that his crazy fiancé tried to kill him and then apparently went to that store on a shooting spree. Who knows what was going through her mind. He‘s in the room down the hall, the doctors say he‘s stable now but it was touch and go for awhile.”55

Tried to kill? Jane made it sound like she had finished the job before coming to the store to take out Jenny. I don’t see her killing herself if she thought there was a chance her adulterous man was still alive. And how does Jenna know him?56

“Wait a minute. Babe, how do you know Mark?”57

Jenna stands up and begins fluffing my pillows and touching things around the room nervously. “You know, I told you about him awhile back. He was in my study group for that photo class I took last semester. We’ve kept in touch since then. His fianc&#;s name was Jane. Did she say anything at all to you or anyone else there?”58

She says all of this while keeping busy and never looking me in the eye. Everything suddenly falls into place and I grow angry but try not to show it. 59

“Oh, that’s right. I remember you mentioning him. You guys studied quite a bit together if I remember correctly. No, she didn’t say anything worth listening to; mostly it was a lot of rambling and then she shot herself. Maybe you should go check on Mark and see how he’s doing. Tell him I’m sorry this happened. Does he have any idea why Jane did this?”60

She looks away and begins to fidget. “No, he said she’d always been somewhat mentally imbalanced and had a tendency to imagine things that had never happened. Apparently, she was always accusing him of cheating on him with ex-girlfriends; I hate to speak bad of someone who’s dead but from what he said she was pretty crazy. He’s really torn up about everything. He really did love her.”61

Yeah, I bet.62

“I love you, babe. I’ll go check on him and bring you back something to eat.”63

She pecks me on the cheek and walks out the door.64

I lay back against the pillows and try to digest everything that’s happened. I feel strangely calm and in control despite having come to the realization that my girlfriend of three years has been two timing me. I think about Jane how she might be wrong about a few things. I think I might just have it in me after all.65