"And Then There Were Less"
by JVM-SP150
Police surrounded the Black estate on all sides. What was once a small, private property off the coast of California was now part of a major murder investigation. Detective and eye witness Kenny J. McCormick presided over the investigation. Coroners had taken and were examining the corpses already. many eye witnesses were left to pack their things as they prepared to be sent home. It was a grim day for South Park, CO, and therefore the world.
"Detective McCormick." came the voice of a police officer - a youngster with curly red hair and glasses. He had a nasaly voice, "I think I hear a voice from down this hallway." he nodded in the direction.
"Go check it out, Dougie." Kenny said quickly, "I'm busy over here inspecting the crime scene for Miss Stevens." Kenny had resorted to more formal speak as long as he was performing his duty as an office of the law. Dougie nodded and sighed, hearing the voices more and approaching a door and knocking,
"Hello? Is someone in there?" Dougie asked, putting his face close to the door in hopes of hearing a reply. He knew there were a few people still running around the mansion and unaccounted for.
"Gah! Who are you? Is it the killer? Don't hurt me, man! I'm alone! There's no kids in here at all! Just leave me alone! Please! I won't tell anyone you were here! Jesus!" The voice was panicky and scared, and Dougie swore it was familiar.
"No, this is a police officer... the killer is in police custody, it's Clyde Donovan." Dougie explained, speaking a bit loudly so he could hear through the door.
"CLYDE DID IT! AUGH! HOW DID I KNOW THIS ISN'T A TRICK!" came the voice, and Dougie remembered now - it was Tweek, the owner of the coffee shop and that kid who beat him to be the fourth friend of the boys back in the fourth grade.
"Oh right, Tweek... uhhh..." Dougie pulled out a slip of paper and squinted to read off it in the dimmed hallways, remembering Kenny told him it was important to say to Tweek should he come across him, "Hammertime?" He heard a latch, and the door opened.
"Jesus I thought you guys'd never come! Watching kids is way too much pressure, ngh..." Tweek tore bits of blonde hair out, "Ack, here they are..." the kids gathered around his feet in surprise, all looking quite tired. Either they'd just woken up or they had gotten no sleep.
"Awwh, did the adventure end without us?" Jake asked sadly, looking down, wishing he could go on an awesome adventure just like his dad always used to as a kid. But no, Jake had such a boring, normal, average life.
"Are our parents okay?" asked Amanda curiously, walking up next to her good friends Rachel and Alan. Alan looked particularly tired, holding a notebook with a pencil behind his ear. Rachel had a sociology book she'd borrowed from her aunt under her arm.
"Oh, your parent's fine. But your godmother's dead." Dougie reported, Amanda looking a bit hurt. Her little brother Shane walked up and pat her on the back quietly, hoping to comfort his older sister - they did not hate quite the same sibling bond as their father and aunt but it was strong nonetheless. "I also have to inform someone named Patrick his mother is dead."
"M-mom?" Patrick said, eyes wide, before shaking his head, "Uhh... world domination." he mumbled again quickly, hoping to cover up the slight bit of emotion he'd shown for once. Rachel and Jake looked at each other knowingly, as if something had happened only the two siblings were aware of, then shrugged it off.
"All right kids, you and Mr. Tweak follow me, we have to get back out front." Dougie instructed, leading them out of the bedroom.
xXx
Kevin Stoley had his suitcase out on his bed as he went toward the dresser and picked up a Star Wars notebook open to several pages of written paper. He tossed it into the suitcase and went to the bed and began folding clothes, with a heavy look on his face. His wife was in another room talking to her friend when suddenly Kevin heard foosteps. He spun around, "Oh... hey Kyle."
"Hey Kevin. Look, I just wanted to see if you were okay. I know you were really close with the Donovans - didn't you and Bebe work together?" Kyle asked curiously, with symapthy for Kevin - he could only imagine how hard it must be for him. He'd seen Wendy crying her eyes out over Bebe already. He was pretty worried.
"Oh, I'll get past it." Kevin smiled slightly, confident in his abilities to let it slide, but the smile quickly faltered as memories flooded back, "It's just weird to think you can know someone for so long and not know what they're fully capable of..."
"I understand. And if you ever need anyone to talk to, I'm here." Kyle explained with a smile, hoping to be supportive. He didn't know Kevin super well, he had always been kind of unpopular, but that was no excuse to be a dick, and God knew he probably needed help right now.
"Thanks Kyle, that means a lot. And hey, you know, maybe I could make it in journalism and sell the story. I mean I already have a good rough draft for an article, it's quite a few pages long..." Kevin explained, nodding toward his bag, the notebook still visible. Kyle raised an eyebrow,
"Oh, that's good but... a few pages? When did you work on it?" Kyle asked curiously, taking out the notebook and opening it to take a look at the article, "You knew what was going to happen..." Kyle surmised looking up to see Kevin's arm extended, holding a large pistol pointed directly toward Kyle, "You're the killer!"
"Brilliant deduction. You shouldn't have come to say hi to me, Kyle. You'd have lived longer." Kevin adopted an uncharacteristic sly grin, staring directly at Kyle with confidence and hate-filled eyes. Kyle wasn't sure whether this had been a trap or merely an accident.
"B-but why?" Kyle said in disbelief, knowing he couldn't move. If Kevin had killed close friends in such a short time span, he would have no trouble killing someone he barely knew such as Kyle. He put his arms up as Kevin smirked.
"Why? Oh, that's easy. Token Black had to die. Remeber what my dear wife mentioned before? The bastard was after me. Token's always been popular - he was the cutest kid in class on the uncorrupted list if you remember correctly. And of course, my wife has always been quite the looker with the other boys. Obviously we both know the tales of High School with Lola and Heidi fighting for Token - but the truth is Token didn't care about Lola, and at the time, not Heidi either. Do you know who Token Black really cared about? Of course you don't." Kevin shook his head before adding, "I've given you too much credit, Broflovski."
Kevin continued, "The truth is Token's top girl was Rebecca Tucker. That's why he wanted to split us apart - he'd take her away to one of his mansions, maybe get custody of Alan and blind her with his fucking money. That's all it was ever about. Impressing her... so he planted the first seeds - he offered me a deal covering an exclusive story about a starlet having an affair. I was suspicious of it but I didn't quite expect it to be about Red. I wasn't exactly heartbroken - I knew the truth. Token tried to add mistrust by telling Red I was having an affair. That's when she filed for divorce. You have no idea what kind of stab in the back that was."
Kyle opened his mouth to speak, "I-" he was shut up as Kevin jabbed the gun into Kyle's stomach. Kyle wasn't going anywhere, and he sure wasn't being allowed to speak out of turn. Kevin glared toward Kyle,
"Shut up, I'm not finished talking, Broflovski! I knew Token was after her, he'd always been after her. I still remember so fondly the Bay of Pigs Memorial Dance... he asked her. I was devastated... and of course the asshole made out with your wife anyway... bah. Regardless, after the filing we worked out our differences with some help from Alan. But I couldn't forgive Token. Oh no. That bastard was going to pay for nearly ruining my life, not to mention nearly destroying my life's career. That was... about three years ago, now that I think about it." Kevin smirked.
"H-how?" Kyle stared in disbelief, shocked that shy, quiet Kevin was in fact, a cold-blooded killer. It seemed impossible to believe. He had seen plenty of transformations over the years - Kenny into a superhero, Cartman into the big leagues of assholes. But this one took him most by surprise.
"Three years ago I ran into my old friend Heidi Turner - we experimented in High School... biology class. I promised her I could get her with Token, to teach her the way into her heart - she'd always had a thing for him you know - if she made him drop the story, admit to Red he made it up and to set up this little dinner party. Poor thing she didn't suspect anything. So it went. Every week for years I called her, playing innocent, just helping out an old friend... and I turned her from a heartless bitch into a sweet girl. Everything that has transpired has done so according to my design."
"Oh my God, you... you bastard..." Kyle said, eyes wide as he looked down at the floor. This wasn't happening. Kevin was not the killer. There was no gun to Kyle's stomach. He didn't feel like he was going to vomit his own intestines. It was all some kind of dream. No, not a dream. This was a nightmare. This was the stuff nightmares were made of.
"The original plot was simple: set a timed handgun to kill Token, then drop off the weapon in Clyde's room - Token dies, Clyde gets blamed, end of the story. But then Fosse got in the way. I had to improvise. The blackout was a perfect oppurtunity to take out Token again - but Kenny was a threat - he was asking too many questions, knew just how to find things. When Dogpoo was on the shitter I went to find him - Millie and Nancy ran into me with a knife. It was a shame... but they had to die. I left them to plant the knife in Clyde's room but I realized the fingerprints had to be disposed of - then Kenny caught me talking to Heidi and found out it was me. A real nice, selfless guy - but again, he had to die. I tossed the weapon to Heidi and she ran just as I expected. I ran off with Bill, Jason and Dogpoo and separated myself so I could find her. They found her first but I took care of her before she told them the truth."
"...really!" Kyle turned his head to the side, eyes wide, and still in shock. He narrowed his earthly eyes, glaring viciously at the man before him, a man who now held Kyle's life in his hands, "You're a monster..."
"I'm not done." Kevin sneered with a vicious look, his smirk quickly returning, "Clyde was unaccounted for - all too easy - and I chose to forgo sneakin into his room. When you all got stuck arguing I slipped away and killed Bebe to prevent her from calling help. After that, the puzzle pieces just fell into place..." Kevin said, his voice carrying a sound that mixed pity and an almost inhuman, spine-chilling... pleasure. As if he was enjoying the feeling of power.
"I have to go..." Kyle began but Kevin jabbed the weapon at him again. Kevin refused to let Kyle go anywhere - it was clear Kevin's intention. Kyle felt a lump develop in his throat as the barrel of the weapon was pushed into his stomach - he could feel it up against him. Kyle bit his lip. Kevin smiled deviously,
"Oh, but Kyle, I was enjoying our little chat." Kevin's head turned slightly, "I say we finish it... out back." he explained. There was suddenly a noise as they looked to see the door open, and a wave of relief hit Kyle as his wife intered the room, now in her normal clothing - a low green blouse and tan pants. Unfortunately for him, Kevin was close enough to Kyle's back the gun wasn't visible to Rebecca.
"There you are Kyle!" Rebecca said cautiously, her hands clasped together - though she'd grown out of the habit, when she was truly nervous or a matter of great importance was at hand, she tended to fall back to her childhood self. "I-I have to tell you something..." Kyle turned, his back now to the weapon.
"Oh, hi Rebecca. Me and Kyle were just getting re-acquainted..." Kevin explained with that devious smirk, but his eyes were on Kyle as he held the gun firm to Kyle's back, "We were just going to get some fresh air."
"Yeah Rebecca, everything's fine, absolutely no attempted murder's going on here." Kyle explained nervously, hoping his wife would get the hint. Rebecca was a smart, intelligent girl - surely she could deduce by such an unorthodox sentence structure something bizzare was going on...
"Oh, in that case, I'll make it quick. Kyle..." Nope. Apparently Kyle made such a claim frequently enough Rebecca didn't see it as out-of-the-ordinary. Rebecca bit her lip, "I'm pregnant." she announced quietly. Kyle jumped,
"What!" he said quickly, astonished at this revelation. There had been a lot of twists and turns these past few days but this was the biggest surprise Kyle had to endure. The killer's identity, the gruesome murders? Minor mysteries to this, the pinnacle of his shock.
"Yeah... I've known for a while I just... haven't known how to tell you. I wasn't even going to keep it at first. I didn't used to want kids but... now that I have one I think I do." she smiled, "I know you always wanted kids even though you always said you hated them - I think you'll be great f-father, Kyle." she explained, "I better go finish packing while you two visit."
"No, it's fine, stay here as long as you like!" Kyle said desperately, hoping he could use his wife to keep his brains from being blown out. Rebecca looked away, shrugging, her hands separate - the tension was gone.
"No, I'll go pack. You two boys have fun." Rebecca said. Kyle let out a small moan of regret as she left. Kevin held the weapon tight to Kyle's back as they walked out the room unnoticed, carefully moving past people, Kevin directing him so nobody noticed the weapon - not that many remained inside the mansion. They moved through the entrance hall to a back door. Kevin opened it and walked Kyle outside silently. Behind the mansion was cool grass, the breeze ruffling both men's hair as they stood near a tall cliff. Kyle turned, his brown eyes staring with intense fear into Kevin's abbysmal brown ones.
"How can you fucking live with yourself, Stoley? You've destroyed families and spilled the blood of innocent people. Tell me how you fucking live with yourself!" Kyle asked desperately as Kevin walked him to the end of the cliff, weapon to Kyle's back. Kevin's eyes narrowed, a maniacal laugh escaping, his raven hair swaying in the wind,
"The knowledge my family will be safe from these people is enough. The sweet taste of revenge is just an added flavor." Kevin said, his voice grim, his eyes showing off no pity or remorse for his actions. Kyle turned, the gun against his chest again as he faced him. Kyle hoped the small bit of humanity within Kevin would prevent him from shooting Kyle if he could see his face at least - he'd heard in World War II, the Germans found it more difficult to kill Jewish people if they faced each other.
"You're insane." was all Kyle could muster now, feeling defeated. This was the end for him. His wife would go on without him. His son would grow up with no idea who his father was. With a mother who'd almost certainly be seen as or treated like a whore, eager for his acceptance as she was of all. Just like Cartman. His son might end up just like Cartman. Kyle purged that idea, hoping that was not his last thought.
"Any last words, Broflovski?" Kevin asked, growing impatient, his finger waiting to pull the trigger already. This was becoming a waste of time, but he wished to hear his victim's last words. It was more akin to good manners than any kind of remorse.
"Look Kevin, you can let me go, I promise I won't tell anybody." Kyle bargained, eyes at Kevin with a hope for trust, pity, something in his eyes. But Kevin's eyes were nothing - one could look in and see nothing but darkness and apathy now. Perhaps it was all the murders he had orchestrated - a single crime of passion turned into a string of violence. Perhaps in the end he had lost his humanity. Perhaps it had been lost ages before.
Kevin's eyes narrowed again, his devious smirk widening as he straighted his arm, pistol pointed directly toward Kyle now, "That's right - you won't. Goodbye Kyle."
BANG!
Kyle's eyes closed for a long, long moment, opening them slowly to glimpse his mortal wounds - there were none. No entrance wound or stains. Death had not chosen him. He looked forward and saw Kevin, his eyes wide and glassy. He fell to his knees, the pistol falling from his hand and off into the ocean. He choked up a small amount of blood, his eyes looking up to Kyle as if to ask for help, but then they closed. He tried to grab Kyle's legs, but his grip failed as he slumped forward and fell to his death - it was only then Kyle glimpsed a wound on Kevin's back.
Kyle looked around toward the mansion. Nothing. Not a sign of any life. No open windows. Just nothing. He had no idea the identity of his savior. As the breeze moved over the grass and rustled with the trees, as several long moments passed, Kyle sighed. His savior was not coming forward. "Whoever did that... thank you." Kyle said loudly as he walked back up towards the mansion.
Countless feet above the mansion on the highest roof, past an iron-bar fence sat a large figure, holding a sniper rifle. The rifle shined in the sun as the gunman held on to it, checking the scope. His target was taken caren of. He smirked with triumph. This was his moment.
"If anybody's gonna take that Jew out, it's gonna be me." said Eric Cartman.
xXx
"Hello? Is anyone gonna let us out?" came a feminine voice from deep within the mansion.
"Kevin... crowbar?"
The End
