9: [mur-der] PART TWO

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"What the fu—?! Shhit that hurt!" Blake doubles over, kneeling in the grass. Thanks to her father, Carmine inherited superhuman strength which she now used to lift her brother by the waist and slam him down into the grass.

Carmine smirks. Then she lets out a loud, blood curdling scream. She grabs the wrist of the woman and then touches the corpse's neck, pretending to feel for a pulse. "HELP!! SOMEBODY! HELP US!" 

Then in a desperate whisper, Carmine hisses, "Blake, join in. When the cops come say you were attacked by a strong man wearing dark clothing. Just keep it vague. Say your head hurts and you don't remember much. It happened all so fast. I'll take care of the rest."

"Are you sure this will work?" 

"It has to work. We don't have any other options. If we run away, they will find our hair samples, fingerprints, saliva, everything on this body. We'll look guilty as hell." Carmine takes out her phone and dials 911. "Evergrove Park. Quick! Someone attacked us and this other girl, she's hurt really bad. There's blood everywhere. Help us! Help! Please hurry!" 

"You've always played a convincing victim," Blake smiles.

"It's not over yet."

Several minutes later, a police car, ambulance and fire truck pull into the cul-de-sac, sirens blaring. 

Two heavyset police officers lumber towards us, their handheld flashlights flailing. "Are you okay? What happened here?" 

This is going to be a piece of cake. Carmine starts bawling like a frightened child. Crying on demand has always been one of her most well rehearsed talents. She runs toward one of the officers and hugs him for dear life, making sure to squish her ample breasts against his chest.

She wipes her blood-stained hands all over his uniform while sobbing out her story. "A man came out of nowhere and attacked us. It was h-horrible! My brother was just coming home from school and I met up with him and- and we were walking in the park, and then suddenly th-this guy comes out of nowhere and bumps into my b-brother. The man was covered in blood and when Blake tried to stop him and ask if he was alright, he beat him up and ran away!"

The obese man pats Carmine's hair and hugs her tighter. "It's going to be alright. Take your time. Tell us what happened next." 

The paramedics start swarming around the dead girl like uniformed ants, checking for signs of life. They quickly determine that she is dead and cover her entire body with a white sheet. 

One of the other paramedics puts a blanket over Blake and shines a flashlight in his eyes, checking for pupil dilation. He asks Blake to lift up his shirt and assesses his body for bruises and broken bones.

"We were shocked by what happened and I was checking Blake to see if he was alright when I heard groaning a few feet away. When we got closer to the bench here, we saw her. I called the police and then we tried to help her, but she stopped breathing a few seconds later." Carmine gently pulls away from the police officer's embrace and wipes her face with her arm.

The officer whips out his pen and notebook. "Did you notice anything particular about the attacker? Height, weight, race, tattoos...anything will help." 

"It's just so dark. He was just a big blurry shadow really. He wore dark clothes. Was maybe six feet tall. Caucasian." 

"How do you feel? Were you hurt in any way?"

Carmine gives the cop a weak, heart melting smile. "I'm fine, physically. Just in shock, that's all. I- It's just...I've never seen so much blood before. I feel sick."

"Come, let's get you and your brother to the hospital."

"Actually, if you don't mind, I think we're fine. Our house is just down the street. I think we'd both like to go home to our parents and sleep in our own bed tonight. Besides, I'm certain my Father won't want to pay for an unnecessary hospital visit." Carmine walks over to Blake and puts her arms around him.

Before the police officer can say more, he is swallowed by a crowd of reporters. Vultures, gathered for a news media feast.

Carmine walks up to the other officer. "My name Carmine Redoza. And this is my brother Blake," Carmine says, standing up. "Our address is 2912 Totem Drive. Feel free to ask us any follow up questions if you need to. If it's alright with you, I'd like to take my brother home now. We could really use some rest."

"Yes. Good. Alright Miss Carmine. Rest well. If you remember anything at anytime, don't hesitate to notify us." The officer tips his hat at Carmine before turning to the barrage of microphones behind him.

As Carmine nears the Redoza residence she turns around to Blake, gripping his shoulders tightly. "I'm sorry I hit you. But I hope you learned your lesson tonight. When we go inside, let me do all the talking. And if the cops come by and want to talk to you, just stick to the story. It was dark. You didn't see anything and your memory is foggy." 

"Thanks Carmine. You're always covering my ass." Blake rubs his bruised nose. "I learned my lesson, that's for sure. Don't mess with Carmine Redoza."

Carmine chuckles. "Yeah, you don't want to get on my bad side. I can kick your butt any day." 

Carmine walks into the foyer and down the hall into the living room. "Mother? Father?" 

Red peels her eyes away from the television screen. "You're home early. I'm guessing prom was not as fun as you-" Red's jaw drops when she sees Blake. "What the hell happened to you?"

"I was on my way home from prom because Billy decided to ditch me last minute for a blonde....Anyway, I met up with Blake and we were walking through Evergrove Park when this man bumped into him. He was covered in blood and we thought he was hurt so we asked if he was okay. He ended up punching Blake and running off. Later, we found this...this dead woman nearby. Looks like he murdered her and then tried to escape but we got in his way." Carmine tugs at the hem of her t-shirt. If she got caught lying...

"Blake?" Mason asks, "Is this true?" 

"Yeah," Blake nods. "We were just at the wrong place, wrong time."

"Go clean yourself up, son." 

Blake nods again and scampers upstairs.

Carmine is about to follow after him when Mason stops her. "What REALLY happened Carmine?"

Carmine bites her lips. "What do you mean? I just-" 

"If you met up with Blake after prom, why aren't you wearing your dress?"

Shit. Nothing gets past him. "I threw that stupid thing away and changed into my gym clothes at school. Blake and I walked home from school." This story is getting more and more complicated...

"School is closed by now," Red points out. "What did I teach you about lying? Carmine, I expect this from Blake, but you too? I am very disappointed in you." 

Carmine scratches the back of her neck and then rubs her temple. It's been such a long day. Why can't they let it go? She took care of it didn't she? "Blake found the dead girl on his way home. He called me. I didn't want to bother you so I slipped home through the window, got changed and then went to go help him call the cops. He was scared you might be angry."

"Why would we be angry? It isn't as if he murdered her." Mason's words are laden with unspoken accusations. 

"He didn't kill her. I swear. He was just scared. I helped him. That's all."

Red's expression is grave. "You are well aware of the repercussions if police start investigating our activities." 

"Yes mother. I know. Trust me, I handled the situation. There won't be any trouble." 

"Okay. We believe you. Get some rest, Carmine." Mason turns his head back towards the television and is once more engrossed in his program.

Carmine lets out a small sigh as she tiptoes upstairs. Close call tonight. Hopefully the cops believed her story. 

***Do you think Carmine's solution to Blake's problem is clever enough and believable? Don't forget to leave a star if you love reading this book as much as I do writing it. If you haven't done so already, check out the official Facebook page for this novel: www.facebook.com/cutthroatcarmine and follow it for updates and teasers. Also, I am always on Twitter and I would love to hear your thoughts about developments in this story using #cutthroatcarmine. If you're a fan, spread the word and tell your friends. Help others discover my vampire thriller! Help me win a 2015 Watty!

Next chapter...we see the return of a familiar face. Update on Friday! - See you then! <3 Chesmok***


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