Page 4 of The Beast

I wait for the light to turn green before taking off into the night. The drive will give me some time to work through everything going on in my head. I can surely get a week of work if I tried hard enough. But I have a feeling this is the last Louisiana will see of me. Too many things have happened here for me to call it home anymore.

Chapter Three

New Arrival

Beast

Getting rid of a body isn’t as easy as they make it seem on TV. There are many factors that play a role in getting rid of the evidence. After driving for an hour, I find the spot close to what I’m looking for. It’s secluded, the earth is moist because of the stream a little bit down the hill, and I know it will have full sunlight throughout the day.

I sound like a damn gardener trying to pick out the right spot to plant roses but it’s just as complicated as getting your plants to grow.

The ground can’t be hard and packed because Bishop and I need to dig a ditch for the body and the moisture will speed up the decomposition along with the sunlight. The ideal would be to leave the body uncovered but we obviously can’t do that.

Throwing a shovel at Bishop I smirk. “Let’s get digging. The sooner this shit is done, the sooner we can get back to the compound.”

“I fucking hate digging,” Bishop complains. “Can’t we just burn him?”

“No. This is an insurance policy.” One I’m hoping I’ll never need.

We each start to work and try to get as much done as quickly as possible. I can feel my shoulder muscles start to burn after the first ten minutes, but I keep going. After digging three feet down, Bishop turns to me.

“I think this is deep enough.”

“We need between five and six feet to make sure the scavengers don’t smell the remains and dig it up.”

“Where the fuck did you learn all this shit?” He stares at me.

“College,” I reply with a shrug.

“Shut up!” he exclaimes with a look of shock. “You went to college?”

“Three years on a football scholarship before I blew out my knee,” I say while throwing another shovel of dirt over my shoulder. “I lost my scholarship and never finished my degree.”

“That’s a raw deal, man. Do you ever think of going back?”

“Not interested. I learned everything I need to know to make me the best criminal possible.” I laugh. “Now, get back to digging, asshole.”

It takes us a couple of minutes more but when the ditch is finished, I drag the body closer on a piece of clear tarp, leaving as little evidence as possible. Taking my hunting knife, I cut away all the clothes from the body and put them in a separate pile before rolling the man into the hole. I’m happy to see he has some extra fat around his belly. The fat will liquefy and speed up the process even more. Judging by his size and the spot we pick, he should be in active decay in about five or six weeks.

Bishop watches me as I do all these things, studying me but never saying a word.

After the man is in the hole, we shovel as much of the dirt back in as we can. I gather some dry wood and build a fire on the mound before getting us each a beer from the cooler I loaded into the back of my truck before we left.

“Why didn’t you get these out earlier?” Bishop asks after taking a massive draw from the green bottle.

“Because we needed to do this properly. And drinking beer while working has never ensured that shit got done right.”

Taking the man’s clothing and personal belongings, I wrap them in the plastic tarp before throwing them onto the fire. I watch as the flames consume the last of the evidence, adding more wood occasionally. I don’t want anything left over.

When I’m satisfied that everything has been destroyed, I put out the fire before getting back in my truck with Bishop and heading home.

****

Six hours and a shower later I find myself seated at the bar beside Bishop, sharing another beer.

“That was fucking insane,” he murmurs.

“Yes, but necessary,” I reply. I finished the beer and signaled my younger brother, Justice, to bring a new one.

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