Killer Women (7 page)

Barbara heard her loud and clear. Her heart sank. She did not know what to say. She was going to try and bluff it out but that would hardly work. She knew that once she spoke, her secret would be out. She just had to know who? Who would be so evil as to tell on her? She had to know? She could think of only one person who would stoop so low. It had to be her.

Vivienne Elliot thought Barbara was seeing her first husband and she did not like it one bit. True. She had long since re-married. But that did not matter. He was still her property and she did not want some tomboy like Barbara sniffing around him.

The irony was that Barbara did befriend him. She had tried to ‘connect’ with him because she was desperate to change her ways. She wanted to give a man – any man – one last chance to prove that they were not really all that bad. They couldn’t all be like that monster in the park all those years earlier or those uncaring boys who took it in turns to abuse her body. Surely they could not all be like that?

But now that potential boyfriend’s ex-wife had given Barbara all the evidence she needed. Men were just not worth it.

‘Don’t you ever set foot in this house again. If I
see you even talking to Jackie I’ll fucking kill you.’

Barbara was shattered. She turned around and walked back towards the street. She was dead inside. At last, she had found some real love and lust. Now that was gone. Destroyed by an evil woman who did not care.

But Barbara did not feel any resentment towards Jackie’s mother. She understood her reaction. It was perfectly reasonable. After all, she had just seduced her 16-year-old daughter.

No. It was Vivienne Elliot whom Barbara felt a rush of hatred for. That woman had just destroyed her love affair. The one thing that kept Barbara going now did not even exist. It was as if those hours of love-making were just a dream. They had not actually happened. She had wrecked the one period in Barbara’s life where there had been joy.

Barbara raged as she stormed her way back home to Heathway. The world around her was just a blur of distant images. The only world that now existed was inside her head. A throbbing repetitive pain. It seared through her mind, poisoning it with evil thoughts and deeds. She had to do something. She had to destroy her.

Barbara was sitting there in darkness when Karen Miller walked into the house less than half an hour later.

‘What’s up, cuz? You look like death.’

Barbara said nothing at first. Her mind was still firmly entrenched in horrendous thoughts.

‘Come on, Babs. Tell us what’s wrong?’

Karen was probably the only person in Barbara’s life who even bothered to listen to her. She had been living at the Millers’ house for most of her life because her own parents abandoned her. She called Barbara ‘cuz’ but in fact she was her niece. But they were more like sisters at times.

Barbara looked up at Karen and wondered. Perhaps this was a rare chance to pour out all her thoughts? It wasn’t often that she had that opportunity. It was after all one of her biggest problems in life. She just never had anyone to tell.

‘You don’t really want to know, Karen.’

‘Of course I do, cuz. Come on! Spill the beans.’

It was then that Barbara decided to change a habit of a lifetime.

‘Hello. Vivienne. This is Karen Miller. You couldn’t spare me a few minutes for a chat, could you?’

Barbara and her niece had hatched a plot to destroy Vivienne. This was stage one.

‘Great. I’ll see you round here in a while then.’

Karen beamed as she replaced the telephone receiver. On the sofa – that same sofa where Barbara had made hot passionate love to her girlfriend just a few hours earlier – they discussed
the next part of their scheme. By pure chance, Barbara’s parents were away for the day. They had all the time in the world to get even with Vivienne.  

Now Vivienne Elliot was not exactly a woman who oozed sex appeal. With her wire-rimmed specs and penchant for seventies-style clothes, she hardly made a sensual impression. But she must have had something going for her because she was never short of a man friend or two – or even three.

At 34 years of age and with four children by as many different men, Vivienne certainly knew how to live life to the full.  

Her appetite seemed to know no bounds. She had become a virtual legend in Dagenham. She loved to go down to the local pubs and clubs dressed up to the nines in her favourite
knee-hugging
, platform sole leather boots and a micro mini. Somehow, she would nearly always end up with a man in tow by the end of the evening.  

Then there were the daytime sex sessions at the tiny two-bedroom council house she lived in with the kids. She had a particular fondness for schoolboys. Neighbours would look on in wonderment as a stream of teenage lads poured into the house.  

Vivienne used to adore the art of seduction. Drawing these nervous, shaking young boys into
her bedroom by appearing in the front room dressed just in stockings and suspenders.

Then she would strip them and mother them before teaching them how to do it. Every now and again she would come across an experienced one – they were no good because she did not feel in full control. She hated it when they tried to dominate. Those boys would never be asked back.

She adored the really innocent ones. They were the lads she could mould and seduce. They would do anything she commanded. Sometimes, that might include tying them to the bed – just to ensure they did not escape.

Once, Vivienne bound a boy head and foot and then gagged him before going to the shops. As she bought the week’s shopping all she could think about was that young piece of meat back at the house.

By the time she got home she could not wait. She left the shopping in the car outside and burst into the bedroom. She did not care that he had virtually choked to death on that gag. She pulled it out of his mouth and sat on him without even bothering to untie the ropes.

But despite her flamboyance, Vivienne was still very possessive. She still liked to have her first husband under her control. She enjoyed allowing him to seduce her sometimes – even though they
had long since divorced. And she was not at all happy that Barbara Miller had come on the scene. However, she would no longer be a threat because Vivienne had just made sure that everyone – including Jackie’s mother – knew Barb was a lesbian. That would teach her.

As she walked around to see Karen Miller, she wondered if that was what the teenager wanted to talk to her about. Vivienne knew that Karen was probably Barbara’s only friend in the world.

‘Hello, Vivienne. It’s great to see you. Thanks for coming.’

Karen’s greeting was as cordial as a meeting of two best friends when Vivienne Elliot arrived around at the Miller household. As she stepped into the front room there was no hint of the horrors that were to follow.

‘Like a cuppa?’

The thought of a cup of tea was like music to Vivienne’s ears. She’d had a tough day getting the kids off to school. Doing the week’s shopping. Cleaning the house. Having sex with that cute 14-year-old boy who lived up the road.

‘I’d love a cup,’ said Vivienne. Little did she realise it would never actually materialise. Karen disappeared into the kitchen while Vivienne sat there on the sofa where a plan for her destruction had just been hatched.

Karen was excited. She had not hesitated when Barbara told her the plan. In fact, she thought Vivienne deserved everything she had coming to her. Karen had her suspicions that Vivienne had been sleeping with her last boyfriend. It was only logical for her and Barbara to decide to finish Vivienne off for good.

‘She’s here. Just stay in the garden. I’ll get her out.’ Karen was in the kitchen whispering so Vivienne would not hear. Barbara just stood there. Her glazed eyes said it all. She was shaking with anticipation. The end of Vivienne’s life was approaching.

‘Come out in the garden with me. I’ve got something to show you.’

Vivienne never stood a chance as she stepped into that tiny garden in Heathway, Dagenham. Karen was the first one to get a direct hit. She turned and swung a clenched fist right at Vivienne’s face. You could hear the crunch as her glasses twisted and fell to the ground.

Vivienne had not even seen Barbara standing behind her with a rolling pin when it crashed down on her head a split second later. The onslaught had begun. But there was a lot more to follow.

Her body slumped to the stone pavement after Barbara’s attack. The two women were surprised. They hadn’t expected her to be knocked
unconscious after just one hit with the rolling pin.

They stood there frozen for a moment. A look of disappointment came over Barbara’s face. She had been looking forward to smashing her skull over and over again. She wanted to see the agony contorting Vivienne’s face as she literally bashed it to bits.

Instead, her victim lay collapsed in a heap on the ground.

‘Come on. Let’s take her to the greenhouse.’

Barbara was now very much in command. This was her operation. She enjoyed the responsibility. It wasn’t often she got to do something useful.

Karen and her aunt did not feel the slightest bit of remorse as they dragged Vivienne’s
semiconscious
body across the grassy garden. Suddenly, the dog next door barked. Karen and Barbara stopped in their tracks. Vivienne’s limp body thumped to the ground. They waited there in complete silence fearing that the neighbour might appear in the garden next door. The fence between their homes was a mere four feet high. He might see them. That would be a disaster.

Barbara and Karen felt a bigger surge of fear run through their bodies at that moment than at any time during the evening. They felt no guilt about Vivienne But they did not want to get caught.

Nothing stirred next door. Even the dog did not
bark again. Their bloody escapade could continue undisturbed.

Barbara took the arms and pulled. Karen tried with difficulty to carry the legs but they kept dropping to the ground. As they neared the greenhouse, Barbara’s strength gave way as well and they dropped Vivienne with an almighty crash.

They both looked down at her now, delighted in the knowledge that she would never again threaten their happiness. Ecstatic by the thought that she would soon be dead.

Just then Barbara looked down at Vivienne’s bare thighs, exposed by that rough ride across the garden. For a second, she felt a twinge of lust building up inside herself. Maybe Vivienne could be used for one last moment of sexual satisfaction?

Barbara leant down and ran her hand up Vivienne’s cold leg. She stopped at mid-thigh and squeezed it. It felt quite nice. She let her hand slide further up. Vivienne’s semi-conscious eyes fluttered. Barbara’s touch had stirred her. But she did not try to stop it. Perhaps she thought she might be spared if she let Barbara carry on?

‘Bloody hell, Babs. Are you a sex maniac or what? Let’s just get her into the greenhouse for fuck’s sake.’

Karen was the more sensible of the two. In any case she wasn’t interested in other women. Never
had been. Never would. Yet she wasn’t shocked by Barbara’s brief attempt at a sexual assault. She knew all about Barbara’s perversions. She also knew what had caused them.

But she was well aware that this was no time for Barbara’s uncontrollable lust to take over. They had things to do.

Inside the greenhouse, they heaved Vivienne’s body on to a wooden chair. Then, once more, Barbara took control. First she tied Vivienne’s wrists together. Pulling the knot so tight she could feel her victim wince with pain. Then she got down on her knees and began wrapping the rope around Vivienne’s ankles. Barbara pulled rigidly on the rope to make sure it really was secure. But she was aware that Vivienne’s thighs were parting right in front of her very face. Despite tightly tying those ankles together, Vivienne was showing Barbara what was there. Her thighs were opening wider and wider now. Inviting Barbara to push her hand up there and probe.

Barbara’s breathing speeded up. She was having difficulty containing herself. She wanted to let her hand wander up there and explore the soft mound. Vivienne’s thighs were on a level with her face as Barbara crouched there on both knees. She looked into Vivienne’s eyes. They weren’t staring at her as you might expect. There was no fear in them. They
were saying, ‘Do it. Go on do it!’

Vivienne was fighting for her life the only way she knew how – by acquiescing. This might be her only chance for survival. She would do anything to save herself. She would have opened those thighs to the entire world if it gave her another few minutes longer to fight back.

Barbara was trying to contain herself now. She was trying to resist the urge for self-gratification because that is what it would have been. She was just a few inches away from the most sexual part of any woman’s body. It was there waiting for her to finger and more. Much more.

‘Fucking hell, Babs. Let’s just finish her off. Forget all that, you dirty cow.’

Vivienne had just lost her final battle to live.

Barbara and Karen began to construct a
makeshift
gallows before Vivienne’s very eyes. She was forced to watch as they made the method of her murder absolutely clear to her.

Barbara knotted the rope into a large noose and then threaded it through a long metal ladder that was fastened across the roof of the greenhouse. Vivienne struggled desperately. She rocked back and forth on the chair in a bid to fall over. She succeeded just as Barbara stood on another chair to test the effectiveness of their do-it-yourself gallows.

She jumped down and bundled Vivienne back upright. Karen then held her down by the shoulders to make sure it did not happen again. Barbara put her face right up against Vivienne’s and told her: ‘Your day has come.’

Then she forced the noose roughly over her head, scraping Vivienne’s ears in the process. This was worse than any public execution. There were no last rites. No final request. Not even a hood to hide the fear.

Vivienne felt the prickly rope digging into her neck gently at first. Then Barbara yanked hard and the older woman started to choke.