Crypto Murders: This is Crazy

Bao sat across from Meredith.

“What’s he going to do with us? What is that smell?”

“He’s going to kill us. It’s formaldehyde. It’s to preserve the other corpses.”

Meredith screamed.

“You probably shouldn’t have done that,” Bao said wistfully.

“Uh-oh. Someone’s not acquainted with the rules,” he said, coming towards the cell.

“Bao, would you please read the rules to Meredith?”

“No screaming, spitting, biting, or fighting.” Bao said this without spirit and initiative.

“That’s right,” he said. “And we’re going to abide by these rules to the letter aren’t we?”

“Yes,” Bao said. Meredith sobbed. Bao nudged her.

“Yes!” She shrieked.

He tapped the bars of the huge cage. It was a rhythmic way of doing it, almost like playing drums. He looked at the shackles holding the women to the ground.

“We can remove those when we behave ourselves.”

Meredith had stopped crying and turned catatonic. She slumped into a corner and started mumbling to herself when he left.

“We’re not going to know each other that long but we can make small talk.”

“I hate small talk.”

“I do, too. But what else are we going to do?”

Meredith turned to face Bao.

“What’d you trade?”

“Zipcoin.”

“I did, too,” Bao said.

“It doesn’t matter much now, but how much did you make?”

“I pulled twenty seven thousand a month on a good month.”

“ I did, too…in a day.”

“What?!”

“Yeah. First day. Call it a fluke. But I kept it rolling from there. I started six months ago and have nearly seven hundred and fifty in the bank. Like that makes a difference now.”

“He's not interested in money. He’s got plenty. Hence the food and the dresses.”

“I was just dating goddamnit. I thought he was cute. We had good conversations. And the personal jet! that just blew me over. I just became prepared to be someone's fiancé. Now….”

“I was like that, as well. It felt like an escape from the rat race. He prepared me exquisite meals. Then I saw the bodies. I knew I was going to be in trouble from that point up to now.”

My folks are back in Singapore. They would have no idea where I am if I were home.”

“My parents are from China. They live in the states but I haven’t seen them in years.”

“Not even for holidays?”

Bao shook her head. “It’s crazy to say this but I feel safer here than when I was in China. There is at least a chance for us to be rescued from this trap. I couldn’t do that twice from China.”

Meredith cracked a smile. It was a broken, twisted grin as the two of them bonded over their predicament.

“Who the hell is he anyway? He’s totally different from his profile page.”

“I don’t know. I don’t even think he’s rich. I think he’s a bum who killed the businessman who owns this house and just started picking off vulnerable yellow women. I think he was some disgruntled street urchin and got canned. He took his revenge on him and his wife. The cars and the clothes are just material excesses stolen by the envious.

“Times were good, too,” Meredith said.

“I guess they were if you were making in a day what I made in a month. That’s crazy.”

“This is crazy. He must’ve trained as a mortician or something because I don’t smell anything but the embalming fluid. Goddamn shame what happened to those women.” She stopped. “Let’s make a pact right now…we’re going to get out of this alive.”

Meredith and Bao pinkie swore.

“Ladies, I hope you’re hungry! I’ve prepared steak tartare. I do hope you enjoy it. I made it with my own special seasonings.”

They looked at each other like what the hell were the “special” seasonings.