Art of Monsters

[Ron]

Season 1, Episode 1: Wrong

It was a quiet, chilly morning. The kind where anything sounded more ideal than out of bed. While his wife, Paige, was already downstairs, Tom was barely sitting up. Dull gray light filtered in from the various windows in his large room, and there was a satisfying cross breeze that was both a comfortable and cold temperature for him.

Tom swung his legs over the bed and immediately checked his FishPhone. 37 new emails, none of them spam, each from individual people. He exhaled and cranked his neck around, preparing for another busy day as the election neared. Paige was always supportive, and he was damned lucky to have her... his previous, first wife hadn't been as understanding and cooperative.

As Tom got dressed, he wasn't really thinking. Everything melded together to form one panoramic blur, in which his brain entirely checked out, leaving his body to think on its own. After his shower, after brushing his teeth, and after putting on nice clothes that gave off the impression of wealth yet also said, "Hey, I'm an average Joe", Tom prodded downstairs.

Paige was in the kitchen, whipping up eggs and bacon for her husband. Slender with striking blonde hair, Paige was 42 and looked far from it. As Tom kissed her good morning, he continuously checked the oven clock to ensure his punctuality.

"Do you have time to eat?" Paige asked flatly.

"Uh...," Tom said, looking at the clock again even though he'd just seen the time a few seconds ago, "sure."

Tom sat down and pulled out his FishPhone. A few moments later, eggs were slapped down on a plate in front of him, with Paige saying a very blunt, "Here."

It had been this way for the past few years, ever since Tom had gotten into politics. Their marriage wasn't hanging by a thread, but it was as though the only thing holding them together was the fact that they were legally husband and wife. They didn't hate each other, but they no longer loved each other. Tom was sure she was referring to him now as a 'roommate' to her friends rather than her 'husband.' He was lucky she hadn't left; she took care of so much he didn't have time for.

Tom ate quickly and pecked her on the cheek once more before slipping out the door. He needed to get to work to reply to those now-38 emails awaiting him.

~~~

Mariah felt scared... cornered. This was all wrong, she wasn't supposed to be here. What she was being accused of, she had no clue.

The door opened and a young female fish walked in. She carried an envelope and gently set it on the metal table. When she sat down, it felt like the room got cooler.

"Hello, Ms Burke," she said. "I'm Hannah." The woman extended a hand.

Mariah cautiously took it. The shake seemed to last an eternity.

"I suppose you know why you are here?"

Mariah formed the words instantly. "No, I have no idea why I'm here. This is all... this is all crazy."

Hannah smiled and reached for the envelope. Out of it, she pulled four large photographs.

"Now, Mariah...," she said slowly, "I want you to take a good look at all four of these pictures, alright?"

Mariah nodded curtly.

Hannah nodded back at her and slid out the four photos. Mariah felt a knot form in her throat when she saw them.

~~~

Tom entered the campaign building. His name "Tom Riley For Mayor" was plastered everywhere. It was a small, two-story building, packed to rim with staff. In order to get in, he'd needed to be escorted by security because of the dense crowd outside the building.

Redlands was a medium-sized city, but it was so packed together, it gave off the feel of a very intimate town. Tom and his competitor, Kendrick Beckett, were both neck-and-neck in the polls, and he needed an edge to push him just in front of Beckett.

He had no idea what he'd do, which is why he had a hundred people working for him. Redlands was in the biggest financial crisis it had ever seen, which is why this election was so damned important. Not only would Tom make Paige proud, he could finally become the successful millionaire he'd always dreamed of being. Escaping the middle-class was his goal, even if he sold it to the people as, "I genuinely would like to help you out."

~~~

Quinn Frost was an author, and not a very good one. Her single book, "The Waiter's Weight" had sold very well, peaking at #3 on the charts, but received horrible reviews, some saying it was fact that she was a part of the Illuminati.

Frost had almost given up writing commercially, until journalism caught her eye. She now was Editor-in-Chief of The Daily Jewel, the #1 newspaper/gossip magazine in Redlands. What came with that was the status of local celebrity and a whopping paycheck, thanks to the staggering amount of revenue that the Jewel generated.

Frost sat in The Coffee Star, the best damned coffee shop in town, on her laptop, writing up more juicy details regarding Julie Sanders's recent pregnancy, and how Michael Sanders wasn't the father. The Jewel was one of the elements that contributed to the small-town feel of Redlands; Quinn Frost reported on just about anything.

Frost was about to leave when something caught her attention. A man in the back, in all black, was twiddling his thumb. He was agitated, perspiring. He's on heroin, she thought. Damn, I should be a detective.

Something about this man intrigued her. She sat down at her table again and opened up her laptop. As soon as she did, the man shot up, and then hesitated before sitting back down. That was when Frost noticed the bulge in his pocket. A gun? A bag of heroin? His phone? She kept calm; it was safe in the Coffee Star, there were around twenty other people in there, and the smell of latte helped her keep calm.

Still... would it hurt her to leave? As soon as this thought entered her head, the main jumped up, panting, and pulled out a handgun. He didn't scream anything, he just held the gun, his hands white.

He walked towards the counter; now people noticed him, and screams broke out. One fish turned on his heels and tried to leave; the man shot him point blank in the head. Blood exploded outward and the man landed on the floor with a thick thud. There was silence; the shock of what had just happened stunned the audience.

"If anyone would like to leave," the man said, and Frost noted how soft... and creepy his voice was... as soft as a teddy bear, as cunning as a bear, "please do so now and face the death Mr. David Moore just faced. Now, Quinn Frost, please stand up and walk your laptop over to Jared Stone. Mr. Stone is the gentleman standing right below me."

Quinn Frost was now frozen.

~~~~~

[Ron]

 

 

Season 1, Episode 2: Takeover

 

Paige Riley stood at the sink, washing her hands. Her husband and candidate for mayor of Redlands, Tom Riley, had just left to the campaign headquarters. Their marriage of 16 years didn't resemble anything close to a marriage anymore; she made him meals and he ate them. He came home late and went straight to bed and left early again in the morning. She was tired of it; her spouse made zero effort to try and communicate with her. Paige wanted him to lose; Kendrick Beckett, Tom's competing candidate, needed to win or she would be forced into 4 more years of politics. 

 

She picked up the phone. 

 

~~~~

 

Mariah cleared her throat before answering. 

 

"Well... there's not much to say, right?" said Mariah. 

 

Hannah Ford furrowed her brow. "Clarify, please."

 

"It's obvious I did not do that." 

 

The photos depicted a homicide scene in which two corpses were placed in erotic positions. 

 

"Your fingerprints were at the scene, Mariah---" 

 

"Well maybe that's because I know who did it," Mariah blurted out, rocking back and forth. 

 

Hannah paused and looked at Mariah. "If you know who did it, Mariah, please---" 

 

A knock on the door interrupted them. 

 

"Come in," Hannah called without taking her eyes off of Mariah. A man in a black suit entered and took a seat next to Mariah, announcing himself as her lawyer. 

 

"I don't have a lawyer," Mariah replied defensively. 

 

"No, but you're entitled to one," he said with a smile. "Now, I---" 

 

"Well what if I don't want one?" said Mariah. "I didn't commit that... that... thing... and I don't need a lawyer to prove that." 

 

Dennis Coffman, the lawyer, chuckled awkwardly. "The evidence against you, Mariah..." 

 

"If she does not want a lawyer, please leave, Mr. Coffman," Hannah said immediately. "I'm in the middle of questioning." 

 

~~~

 

Tom Riley sat in a meeting with his top advisors as they went over key new advertising measures. His goal was to drive Kendrick Beckett into the ground, and he would stop at nothing to achieve that goal. 

 

He declared it lunchtime at 12:04 PM and made his way back to his desk off in the corner of the campaign headquarters. 

 

"Mr. Riley?" 

 

Tom looked up and saw a tall brunette woman. Her name tag read "Jessica." 

 

"Yes?" he smiled. 

 

"I had an idea for your campaign, and I was wondering if I could share it with you..." 

 

~~~

 

Quinn Frost handed her laptop to Jarrod Stone.

 

"Now please get on the ground and place your hands over your head," he said. The man turned and started talking to the entire store. "My name is Hector Varos. I am an... experimentalist. I am an academic, I am a physician, but I am mostly a citizen... and I feel our nation is... to use a common phrase... fucked up. It is now that I make a statement... all of you will die within the next hour. I apologize, but it is the only way change will emerge.

 

I have studied all of you. I know where you all come from. Quinn Frost here is the Editor In Chief at The Daily Jewel. How many of you knew that? Please raise your hand." 

 

Two trembling hands went up, and two bullets instantly entered their skulls. Muffled screams echoed around the shop. 

 

"This will be quite the story, eh, Ms Frost?" 

 

Quinn covered her head. 

 

"Look at me when I am talking to you, Ms Frost," he said. 

 

Quinn defiantly looked up at him. "Don't you dare tell me what to do. You do not own me." 

 

Hector smiled a toothy grin. "Who has the gun, Ms Frost?" 

 

Quinn smiled too. "The pen is mightier than the sword." 

 

Hector frowned. "But what does that matter when you too are---" 

 

A blur of metal came out of nowhere and stabbed into Hector's neck. His gun dropped as both hands instinctively went to the location of pain. Quinn had pulled a pen from her pocket and forced it into his neck. She snatched his gun, and turned to face him as he was staggering towards the door, a trail of blood leaking behind him. She fired a shot at his torso and his body sagged down to the floor. 

 

~~~

 

Hannah continued with Mariah after Dennis Coffman, the lawyer, exited the room. 

 

"Who killed these two women, Mariah? You'll be helping us lock away a bad person if you tell me," Hannah said. 

 

"I can't," she said. "I can't. I can't. It's... no." 

"Mariah, please," said Hannah. "Do you see what they did here? If you can't tell me, then I have no other choice than to pursue our best other lead, and that's you. Who killed them? Why were your fingerprints at the scene?"

 

Mariah began to cry and put her hands in her arms. "If he finds out, I'm dead too." 

 

"No, Mariah," Hannah said firmly. "We can provide you with the highest protection. Nobody will lay a finger on you. Who killed these two girls and did that to them? Please." 

 

Mariah looked up and wiped the tears from her eyes. She sniffed and looked down as she uttered, "Kendrick Beckett." 

 

~~~

 

Dennis Coffman exited the interrogation room just as his phone rang. 

 

"Hello?" he said. 

 

"Hello, Dennis," Paige Riley's voice said. 

 

~~~

 

Quinn collapsed on the floor. Thin streaks of blood lined her clothes where she'd been splattered. She stood up and set the gun down before walking over. The Coffee Star was in a heavy silence; everyone gawked at the reporter. Jarrod Stone handed her her laptop and she went outside and sat on the curb and documented what had just happened. 

 

~~~

 

Tom Riley stared in awe at Jessica Morales. The woman before him and just exposed the key to winning the election. 

[dragiiin123]

wheres spongebob

 

JK

[Ron]

Season 1, Episode 3: National Anthem 

 

 

Dennis Coffman smiled. 

 

“Hello, Paige,” he said. “Do you have information?” 

 

On the other of the line, Paige faltered. Several thoughts coursed through her mind. 

 

“Paige?” Coffman asked. 

 

“I’m still here,” she said. “I do have information... regarding my husband.” Paige stared emotionlessly out the window as the words rolled off her tongue. 

 

~~~

 

Quinn Frost looked at what she had written. It was by no means quality prose, but was anything in a newspaper truly? She shut her laptop lid. Several quick response teams had arrived, and everyone else was just now turning up. Quinn was gestured over by a uniform. 

 

~~~

 

Hannah was shocked. She cleared her throat and furrowed her brow. All rationality exploded in her mind. 

 

“I’m sorry, did you say Kendrick Beckett?” Hannah asked. 

 

Mariah looked up at her, tears caking her cheeks. She grunted. “Well, it’s out there... no going back now.” 

 

Mariah paused and looked down absentmindedly at the table. It was the look of someone who knew they had just sealed their own fate. 

 

“Kendrick Beckett,” she said, maintaing her transfixed gaze on the table. “That’s who... who killed those girls.” 

 

“Kendrick Beckett as in the mayoral candidate, correct?” Hannah said, getting a pen ready. 

 

Mariah nodded.

 

“Why would he do that, Mariah?” said Hannah. 

 

Mariah sighed loudly. 

 

“Because they got in his way. And now I’m doing the exact same thing.” 

 

~~~~

 

Jessica Morales, 25 years old, had just uncovered the largest scandal in the history of Redlands. After taking him to a back room in the campaign headquarters, his mind had been blown. Comparing the 1995 through 2011 fiscal budgets revealed a considerable loss of funds each year, as well as city-wide programs that lost revenue, yet remained on the budget. 

 

Morales then dug into the city’s payroll from 1995 through 2011; city clerk Kendrick Beckett was behind the extortion. He had spearheaded several of the programs that funded his own businesses and robbed the city, and Morales suspected the random shortcomings were the result of robberies he had committed along with occupying Mayor Reynolds. 

 

Not only did this win Tom Riley the election by getting Kendrick Beckett arrested, it would help him fix the city itself because he now knew what had gotten it in its financial situation in the first place. 

 

“How did nobody else notice this?” Riley asked in awe. 

 

“It’s not exactly public information,” Jessica winked. “It’s all confidential, for whatever reason; almost every other city has the transparency to release budgets, payrolls, et cetera. Not Redlands. We now know why.” 

 

“This is amazing, Jessica, thank you,” Riley said. “I’ll be sure---” 

 

Riley’s phone began to ring. 

 

~~~

 

Kent Rogers adjusted his tie in the mirror. 

 

“Hailey?” 

 

Hailey Rogers, his wife, entered the room. 

 

“Can you adjust this for me?” he asked. “Or does it look alright?” 

 

Hailey took one look at her husband before saying, “Just change your entire outfit, babe.” 

 

He snorted. “Hell no, I paid a fortune for this tux.”

 

“Nobody asked you to, though,” she said as she slung her purse over her shoulder. 

 

“C’mon, we need to get going.” 

 

“Fine, fine,” Kent said. 

 

Hailey slipped a gun into his purse and adjusted her wig. She leaned into the mirror as she put in colored contacts. 

 

Kent packed himself as they entered their garage. 

 

~~~

 

City Hall was bustling. Mayer George Reynolds was about to give his final speech at the Honorary Board Picnic, a special event that took place every four years just before the outgoing mayor finished his term. There had been an unusual turnout of people, possibly fueled by the nasty mudslinging transpiring between Tom Riley and Kendrick Beckett. The Redlands population was now more engaged than ever. 

 

George stared out of the window at the gathering audience. There had to be a good 2,000 to 3,000 people in the audience. It was packed. He exhaled, turned to his desk, and grabbed a file. 

 

~~~

 

Dennis Coffman listened intently to Paige Riley. Dennis worked for Kendrick Beckett; he had been sent to defend Mariah Burke so that she would not say anything to the police. Unfortunately, that had not panned out as the bitch refused his services. However, what Tom Riley’s wife was now telling him made up for that. 

 

~~~

 

“Hello?” Tom Riley answered. 

 

Jessica eyed him as he listened to the person on the other line. 

 

Tom glanced at his watch. “Yeah, alright. In like 5 minutes?” 

 

He hung up. “That was... uh...” His train of thought halted. 

 

He looked up at her. “That was my entourage. We’re leaving to Mayor Reynold’s goodbye speech in a few minutes.” 

 

Jessica chuckled. “You’re going?” 

 

“It’s customary for candidates to,” he said. “After what you’ve showed me today, though,  I’d rather be working on getting him behind bars.” 

 

Riley was suddenly very interested in his job. Jessica had changed the entire game; he knew what he was going to do now. 

 

He straightened his suit and exited the room. 

 

~~~

 

Quinn Frost was sure this was going to be the story of the day. She’d just weaseled her way into the detective’s head. They were going to share information with her whether they liked it or not. 

~~~

 

Tom and Paige Riley were seated next to each other in the first row of the audience. Kendrick Beckett sat alone on the opposing side. 

 

Kent Rogers positioned themselves on the rooftop of a building across from city hall, preparing his sniper. 

 

Hailey Rogers sat on the stage as one of the honorary board members, a gun concealed in her purse. 

 

Mariah Burke and Hannah Ford went back and forth as Mariah revealed more and more about Kendrick’s operation. 

 

Dennis Coffman arrived at Kendrick Beckett’s campaign headquarters. He made his way to the back where he retrieved one of two rare, identical files in existence. 

 

Quinn Frost sat down with Detective Harry Green as he explained the scale of what had happened in The Coffee Star. 

 

Mayor George Reynolds readied himself on the side. He walked onto the stage and stood by the podium. There was a tremendous roar of applause. Kent peered into his scope and steadied it on his skull. 

 

“Would all please rise for our national anthem.”

[Ron]

Season 1, Episode 4: Activate My Heart

 

Julie Sanders sat on the dais adjacent to Hailey Rogers; the two did not know each other, but they were similar with many ways. Julie was a gorgeous 35-year old board member and superintendent of Redlands Unified School District. Hailey was a beautiful 33-year old woman who worked as Mayor George Reynold’s public services overseer. 

 

“Would all please rise for our national anthem.” 

 

Everyone stood up; George Reynolds had walked onto the stage right next to the podium. Laura Pacheco stood directly in front of the podium, and started to sing the national anthem. 

 

“Oh say, can you se---” 

 

Three loud cracks in rapid succession echoed around the park. Screams erupted as several members of the audience dove down for cover.

 

George Reynold’s torso did a hiccup and his eyes narrowed. His entire body twisted and he slammed against the podium, blood streaming from three distinct entrance holes on his chest. Laura Pacheco was in shock as she backed away, her hand over her mouth. Instincts then kicked in and she hid behind the podium. 

 

As all hell broke loose, Julie Sanders could focus on nothing more than getting herself to the mayor’s body. His eyes were closed, and she feared he was already dead. 

 

I need this man alive, she thought. Fears crowded her mind at the possibility of him dying. 

 

Hailey arose calmly and walked towards the stairs leading off the stage. She’d been expecting it. She prayed her husband had escaped without any trouble. 

 

~~~

 

Dennis Coffman had his feet up on his desk as he thumbed through a certain file. He smiled as he read. Too good to be true. 

 

~~~

 

Mariah Burke had been released. She was free. As she exited the precinct, she stared in horror at the wave of people running from City Hall across the street. 

~~~

 

Tom and Paige Riley were already in their car heading back to the campaign headquarters. A police escort led in front of them. 

 

“Who was that?” Paige said calmly. Her eyes were concerned, yet her tone said she was unfazed. 

 

“I have no clue, Paige,” Tom said. He was buried in his phone. 

 

Paige stared at him with a steel stare before looking back out the window at the passing city. 

 

“If he dies, who takes his position?” 

 

“I have no clue, Paige,” repeated Tom, blandly. 

 

Anger boiled in Paige towards her husband. She exhaled softly and looked back out the window. It’s not worth it. 

 

~~~

 

Kendrick Beckett was back in his limousine, parked in the lot behind City Hall. He sat idly, awaiting his driver’s return. 

 

His phone buzzing broke the silence. 

 

“Beckett,” he answered coolly. 

 

“It’s Coffman,” Dennis answered. “Riley’s wife ended up spilling to me.” 

 

“What about Burke?” Beckett replied. 

 

There was a short pause on the other line. “I don’t know, sir. She denied me; I’m assuming she let it slip.” 

 

Beckett clenched his fist. “What is her location?” 

 

Another short pause. “I left the precinct, sir.” 

 

Beckett lit up. “Why would you do that?” 

 

“Because of what Paige told me, sir,” said Dennis. “I went back to the offices to look in the file.” 

 

“For what, exactly?” fumed Beckett. “What could possibly be more important than keeping Mariah’s mouth shut?” 

 

“You’d be surprised, sir,” said Dennis. “I sure as hell was.” 

 

~~~

 

Michael Sanders, Julie Sanders’ husband, comforted his wife. She had blood on her hands; the mayor was dead. She had failed to prevent his death. He would be coming for her. 

 

~~~

 

As soon as they arrived at the campaign offices, Riley went straight to his office to make a call. 

 

“Are you going to call Julie?” Paige called. 

 

Riley stopped. 

 

“You don’t speak to me that way, Paige,” Riley said, growing red with anger. 

 

He continued to his office and quietly shut the door. He pulled out his iPhone and dialed Julie Sanders’ number. 

 

It rang. And rang. Just as her voicemail began playing, her live voice crackled through. 

 

“Hello Riley,” she said. 

 

“I’m assuming George is dead.” 

 

“Yes,” said Julie without any hesitation. “He is dead.” 

 

“You are aware of what I now have to do, correct?” said Riley coldly. 

 

“No,” said Julie. New braveness entered her veins. “Here is what’s going to happen... that agreement you had with George? That is now our agreement. And if you do not comply, I will come forward and expose you for the fraud that you are. I’m done being bullied around by you, Tom.” 

 

There was silence on Tom’s end. 

 

“Fine,” he finally replied, defeat peppered in his voice. There was a click and he was gone. 

 

Julie had no information on Tom; she had bluffed and it had unbelievably worked. 

 

~~~

 

Hannah Ford had new information regarding Kendrick Beckett; now all she needed was solid proof to back it up. The man was quite possibly the most corrupt politician in the history of the United States; everything she had just heard proved that in her mind. 

 

~~~

 

Quinn Frost and Harry Green sat in his office as Harry went over the case. 

 

“This was planned, Quinn,” Harry began. “Related incidents have occurred multiple times in Redlands and neighboring cities over the past 5 months, and we don’t believe it’s going to stop. They’ve all been sent from the same organization.” 

 

“What organization?” Quinn said, pulling out a notepad. 

 

Harry glared at the notepad. “I thought we said this was off the record?” 

 

Quinn grunted, rolled her eyes, and put it away. 

 

Harry slapped a picture onto the desk. It was Tom Riley. 

 

“This man,” he said, “is killing people for no reason. You were the target of this particular hit.” 

 

“Why am I being targeted? And why kill the other people?” Quinn was confused. 

 

“To throw us off the scent. If it were just you, it would be fairly obvious to us that these killings are organized hit. Several other local officials were killed in the other incidents, along with a good ten other individuals, at the very least. They’re disguised as random shootings. We believe you were a target because you’re a well-known figure with a profound influence on public opinion. We understand you’ve written some scathing articles on Mr. Riley’s career that could’ve been potentially damaging to his reputation.” 

 

~~~

 

Hailey Rogers entered City Hall and made her way to George Reynolds’s office. She entered with her key and examined the desk closely. She squatted and blew hair out of her face. She felt around the underside of the desk before popping open a compartment. She pulled out a file.