A poisoned life...

Maybe it was the attention she had always craved or maybe it was due to her mother never showing her the love she so desperately longed for that set her on this path of destruction. Thinking back she knew once upon a time she had a good soul, a kind heart but now the bitterness, hate and resentment flowed through every fiber of her being and Barbara found it impossible to be either positive or happy.

This holiday was meant to be the turning point, her turning point. Her road to redemption so to speak… Well this is what her therapist had suggested but instead of finding her way back to the positivity and light all Barbara felt drawn to and craved was darkness and hurt, a hurt and pain that would destroy many lives.

This month was their unexpected dream come true. The perfect way to end the summer and move forward with their lives. Even though the sad news of not being able to conceive a child weighed on their hearts Bruce and Violet made sure the love they shared would not extinguish. When Bruce looked at Violet all he saw was a ray of sunshine, his sunshine. A woman who had the strength and determination to stay happy and fulfilled even when Bruce himself felt like their whole world was crumbling around them. They may not be able to conceive a baby but they ‘still have each other’ were the words echoed to Bruce each time he wrapped his arms around Violet for a longing kiss. Yes we do, he thought to himself as they stood under the Eiffel Tower, we do have each other and as long as we have each other I promise to make you the happiest woman in the world but as Bruce kissed his wife he could never have imagined that in just nine month’s time he would be laying her to rest, the woman who would forever be known as the love of his life.

It was those four words that would haunt Bruce for the rest of his life and these exact same words that would consume Barbara’s soul daily as she sat in her 3x7 jail cell religiously recollecting the sadistic and narcissistic way’s she lured Bruce in with her false lies and pretenses.

Barbara proudly reminisced about how she stalked Bruce and Violet throughout Paris that summer just to learn Violet’s mannerism’s and body language. By the end of two weeks Barbara was not only dressing like Violet but was also talking exactly like Violet. Barbara laughed to herself when she thought of one particular evening when she came in direct contact with the couple at their favorite Parisian restaurant. Their hands touched as Bruce opened the door for his wife sending a jolt of electricity down Barbara’s arm.

There in that bistro Barbara sat one table behind the couple watching them as they enjoyed their wine while writing together in the little black notebook Bruce had given Violet as gift the previous day. Violet loved the fabric the black notebook was encased in and vowed to write an entry each day until every page was filled with love poems for her beloved husband. Love poems that would eventually be stolen from a hospital room and hidden in a safe for many years to come until fate miraculously intervened.

As their holiday came to a close Bruce made a vow to love and protect Violet even if they are never blessed with a baby, however little did he know that just four nights previous he and Violet’s love had conceived a baby. A beautiful baby whose eyes would sparkle just as her mother’s did before her life was abruptly taken by a deranged woman hell bent on stealing her life and husband.

Barbara’s obsession with Bruce at first seemed like a crush. She liked the way he looked and dressed but soon as most obsessions do it took off on a life on its own. Barbara would lay in bed at night dreaming her delusional obsessive thoughts of her and Bruce imagining they were in love and that it was them in actual fact who had enjoyed a beautiful romantic trip to Paris over the summer break. It was the mix of not taking her medication and the daily stalking on the streets of Manhattan that eventually had Barbara in a state of denial and psychosis.

Barbara had followed Bruce and Violet back to New York and was now living 1 block away from their Manhattan townhouse. Barbara would follow Bruce to work each day and watch him through his office window from across the road. Making sure she was never recognized Barbara always wore sunglasses and a scarf but it was one particular day during her daily routine of watching Violet that her head exploded and as she crossed the road she felt the urge to strangle Violet with her scarf. Barbara has seen Violets stomach the moment she turned the corner, Violet was pregnant and she was finally showing.

Now it all made sense to Barbara as to why Violet was leaving a doctor’s office on the same day each week at the same time. After rummaging through Bruce and Violets trash one evening while they slept Barbara noticed the vitamin and supplement boxes. She just put it down to Violet being healthy but now that she knew a baby was on the way Barbara felt the rage and anger build inside her.

For what was the happiest months in Violets life soon turned into the darkest time in Barbara’s life. As she sat alone she devised a plan to not only murder an innocent woman but to remove the baby’s existence altogether leaving Bruce alone and feeling helpless. It was this helplessness that Barbara prayed for as this is when she knew she would be able to convince Bruce to be with her. It was also however this destructive path that took Barbara to a point of no return and had a jury find her guilty of first-degree murder and sentenced her to life in prison without parole. Well that and the incriminating evidence of the little black notebook Barbara stole from Violet as she laid dying.

As the virus ravaged the citizens of New York Bruce did everything humanly possible to keep his wife and unborn baby safe. Bruce knew there would come a time when Violet could be admitted to the hospital to give birth but he would keep her safe as long as he could in the cocooned safe environment that was their home. Violet was after all carrying his miracle baby and he even though he had not yet met the little one he was already totally in love with her and could not wait to hold her.

Over the course of four months since seeing Violet pregnant Barbara had become an expert on making poisons, administering poisons and how to get away with killing someone with poison. Barbara had spent many sleepless nights reading all she possibly could about poisons, it was truly now an obsession for her, an obsession that she would carry out without any care or remorse. Not only did Barbara know exactly which poison to use but she also knew just how much to administer for Violet’s weight and what was the best way to poison Violet undetected. Barbara patted herself on the back for paying that guy $20,000 and even though it was unexpected when he received the money from Barbara he made sure to do what she asked and that was for her to know everything there was to know about poisoning a person and never getting caught.

Yes, all Barbara had to do now was sit back in the park each day, watch Bruce and Violet with binoculars through the windows of their brownstone and wait for Violet to be admitted to hospital to have her baby. Yes, not long now she thought when she realized one night it had been eight months since that first night she began her crazed stalking of Bruce and Violet in Paris.

It was only six days that Barbara had to wait. Poor Violet had been exposed to the virus and was taken into the hospital with all the tell-tale symptoms. She did not care about her own health, all Violet requested was for the baby to be born healthy and for Bruce to not be alone. Even in her last hours of life Violet was selfless. These were the last words Violet spoke just before she named her baby and took her last breath.

The nurse was so lovely, she held Violets hand as Violet gave birth and named her baby ‘Megan’. The nurse made sure DNR was written above Violets bed even though a DNR paper was never signed by Bruce. The nurse knew Bruce was unable to enter the room due to hospital’s virus restrictions and told Violet she would stay with her in her final moments so that she would not be alone. The nurse made sure to let Violet know her baby had the same beautiful eyes as its mother but subsequently told Violet she will never see them and as the nurse pulled out a syringe of poison from her pocket she slowly released the liquid into the IV drip causing Violets pulse to weaken, eventually becoming faint and stopping altogether.

The nurse bent down ever so gently whispering into Violets ear “my name is Barbara, I have watched you and your husband each and every day since Paris. You may have given him a baby but I will give him a life, a life you won’t live. Your baby will never know her father and he will never see his daughter. Your husband belongs to me now and he will soon look at me the way he always looks at you.

As the baby cried out for her mother Violet took her last breath, the look of horror could be seen in her eyes as they glazed over after she had passed. Barbara had executed her demonized plan perfectly exactly just as she had intended and once she had placed the baby into the NICU crib she wheeled the baby outside the hospital room and walked down the hall smiling towards the helpless man sitting and praying for the safety of his beloved wife and child.

As Barbara sat down next to Bruce offering him a shoulder to cry on and a hand to hold she secretly slipped Violets small black notebook into the pocket of the stolen hospital uniform she wore. Bruce sat and listened to this caring supportive nurse explain how his beautiful wife fought to live, how she held her baby before her last breath and how giving birth while carrying the virus was just too much for poor Violets body to handle. Bruce heard how his beautiful little baby girl opened her eyes and had the same beautiful eyes as her mother and it seemed symbolic both mother and baby took their last breath together and are in heaven together.

The one mistake Barbara made was telling Bruce that Violet named the baby ‘Megan’. This was the mistake that tripped Barbara up, as this was the one name that Bruce took with him as he spent his life unbeknownst to Barbara piecing together the sinister events of that fateful night to frame whoever killed his wife.

You see Bruce did not marry Barbara because he loved her, Bruce had noticed Barbara back in Paris. He was aware of Barbara’s infatuation and that night in the hospital he knew it was likely her who murdered Violet. He knew that to find his killer he had to convince Barbara he was in love with her and hoped one day she would become unhinged and unhinged Barbara finally did come the day she left her safe open and hidden at the back was Violets long lost diary.