Close to Home
By Littlesilverstar
Teenage girl deals with her father's new girlfriend

Alexandra sat alone in her room, staring at the picture on the shelf.  
Herself, her mother, and her father, all smiling.  The way it should
be. But one of them had been taken away from her...

She had been thirteen years old when it happened.  She was in her
room, doing her math homework.  Her father was in his study, 
working on his computer.  Her mother had gone out on a quick trip
to the grocery store to pick up a few things...

Hours passed.  Her mother still hadn't returned.  Her father was just
about to call the police when there was a knock on the door.  She
remembered opening it, seeing the uniformed policeman standing
there.  She remembered her father coming up behind her.  Most of
all, she remembered the policeman giving them the terrible news.
Her mother was dead.  She had been shot in the head while waiting at
a stop sign, her purse and jewelry stolen.

"Alex?" came the voice of her best friend, Sophia, as she emerged
from the bathroom and walked into the bedroom.  The two girls looked
quite alike, both being of average height with slender but athletic
bodies, brown eyes, and long hair.  The only difference was that
Alexandra's hair was dark brown, while Sophia's was blonde.

"You all right, Alex?" asked Sophia, noticing her friend staring at the
picture.  She put a comforting hand on Alexandra's shoulder.

"I'll be fine.  Thanks," said Alexandra. "Well, I guess we'd better get
to that math homework," she continued.

"It never seems to end, does it?" said Sophia. "You're eighteen already
and I'm almost eighteen, and we're still dealing with this."

Two hours later, the girls were finally done with their homework.  The
sound of a car pulling into the driveway drifted into the room. "Sounds
like Dad's home," said Alexandra.

Sophia looked at her watch. "Is it that late already?" she said. "Damn,
I'm going to be late for dinner." She quickly gathered up her things.
"See you at school tomorrow," she called out as she hurried out of the
room.

Alexandra hurried down the stairs to greet her father. "Hey, Dad," she
called out as the front door opened.  She noticed the smile on her 
father's face. "Good day at work?" she asked.

"Hey, sweetie," said her father. "Yes, very good day at work.  We just
got a really big order."

"Cool," said Alexandra.  She turned to go back upstairs, but her father
called out to her. "Alex?" he said, his voice suddenly sounding nervous
rather than happy.

She turned around. "We'll be having a guest here for dinner tomorrow.
A friend from work.  A female friend," said her father.

Alexandra groaned. "Not another one of those gold-digging witches,"
she said. "Remember the last one and how she tried to..."

"I know, I know," he answered. "But this one is different.  She's..."

"Oh, that's what you always say," she sighed, throwing up her hands.

"Listen, Alex," he said, putting a hand on her shoulder. "I know how
hard it is for you to accept any new romantic interest of mine.  No one
can ever replace your mother and I want you to know that no one can
ever replace her for me, either.  But we have to move on with our lives.
I won't ask you to love this new woman, or even to like her.  I'm just
asking you to give her a chance."

"All right, I'll give her a chance," said Alexandra. "But if she turns out
to be a witch, you have to buy me something expensive."

"It's a deal," said her father, laughing.

The next day, Alexandra stopped at a jewelry store on her way home
from school. "Can I help you?" asked the man behind the counter.

"Yes.  I'm looking for a present for my friend's eighteenth birthday,"
she said. "Maybe a necklace."

"Well, we have some lovely ones over here," said the jeweler. 
Alexandra's eyes traveled over the necklaces in the glass case,
lingering on one with a silver dolphin...

A flashback surged through her mind.  Her mother giving her a quick
hug before she went out for groceries on that fateful night five years
ago.  The silver dolphin necklace around her mother's neck...

"Let me see that," she said.  She picked up the necklace and turned
it over.  Her mother's initials stared back at her, carved on the back of
the dolphin.  Her mouth dropped open in shock.

"Uh...are you okay, miss?" asked the jeweler.

Alexandra put her face back to normal. "Um...yes," she said. "Would
you happen to remember how you acquired this?"

"I think someone brought it in a few weeks ago," he answered. "It
must have been Carl who made the purchase.  Hey, Carl," he called
out.  A moment later, another man appeared from the back of the
store.

"You remember who brought this in?" asked the jeweler, holding up 
the necklace.

Carl looked at it. "Sure, I remember," he said. "It was a few weeks
ago.  Normally, my memory ain't so good, but the chick who brought
it in, she was a major hottie.  Hard to forget someone like that."

"So, what exactly did this major hottie look like?" asked Alexandra.

"She was about thirty-five, tall and athletic, with shoulder length 
blonde hair, blue eyes, and a nice tan," said Carl. "Why are you 
asking all these questions?"

Alexandra sidestepped the inquiry. "How much do you want for it?"
she asked.

"Normally, I'd ask fifteen," the jeweler spoke up. "But I'll sell it to you
for twelve."

"Deal," she said, taking out her wallet and handing over a ten and 
two ones.

"Um, not twelve dollars," said the jeweler, laughing. "Twelve hundred."
Alexandra pulled her hair in frustration.

"Listen, girlie," he said. "This dolphin has a real sapphire for its eye.
You can't expect to have something like that for cheap."

"You listen," she said. "Five years ago, my mother was murdered.
Whoever did it stole her purse, her watch, her wedding ring, and the
necklace she was wearing.  This necklace.  The one with her initials
on the back.  Now, it's ended up here."

"I'm sorry," said the jeweler. "I didn't know..."

"It's okay," said Alexandra. "There wasn't any way you could have
known." She turned to Carl. "The woman who brought it in.  Could
you make a positive identification on her?"

Carl shook his head. "I'm sorry," he said. "It was a while ago.  I just
remember the basic description.  I can't ID her positively."

Alexandra sighed. "My dad and the police will want to look at the
necklace," she said. "Just keep it safe here, I guess." After buying a 
necklace for Sophia's birthday, she raced home as fast as she could.
Her father's car was just pulling into the driveway when she arrived.
Excitedly, she told him the whole story about the necklace.

He looked at his watch. "The store will be closing soon, and we have
our dinner guest," he said. "But first thing tomorrow, I'll call the police
and we'll go over to the store." He put a hand on his daughter's
shoulder. "I know you're excited, but don't get your hopes up too
much.  You said the clerk couldn't get a positive ID on the woman,
and we don't even know if she's the one who actually committed the
murder."

"I know," said Alexandra. "But it's something, and for the past five
years all we've had is nothing."

"I hope that luck will be with us," said her father. "I hope we can
finally get some closure." He hugged his daughter tightly. "Well, we
still have our dinner guest, even at a time like this," he said.  She
rolled her eyes.

"I know how it is for you," he said. "But just think of it as a friend of
mine.  Think of it as the same as having Sophia over for dinner.  She's
eaten here lots of times."

"Dad," said Alexandra, "the difference is that Sophia isn't trying to 
get into your pants."

He laughed. "Come on," he said. "Let's go inside and get ready."

Twenty minutes later, the doorbell rang.  Alexandra watched as her
father went to answer it. 

"Laura, how good to see you!  Come in," came her father's voice from 
the hall.  A moment later, he entered the living room, followed by a
tall, athletic woman who looked about thirty-five years old.  She had
shoulder length blonde hair, blue eyes, and a nice tan.

Alexandra's mouth dropped open in shock.

"Laura, I'd like you to meet my daughter, Alexandra," said her father.

"So nice to meet you," said Laura in a very fake-sounding nice voice
while smiling a very fake-looking smile. "Your father's told me a lot
about you."

"Yes...ah...nice to meet you too," said Alexandra. "Uh...and my 
father's told me almost nothing about you," she continued, trying to
regain her composure and not doing a very good job of it.

"Well, I'm sure we're all hungry," said her father. "Dinner's waiting on
the table."

It was almost two hours later, after dinner and after a while spent 
sitting around and talking, that Laura finally left.  As soon as she 
was out the door, Alexandra grabbed her father's arm. "Dad, I need
to talk to you," she said. "This is, like, really, incredibly serious."

"What's wrong, honey?" he asked. "You seemed so jumpy and
jittery all evening."

"Remember the guy at the jewelry store who gave me a description
of the woman who brought in Mom's necklace?" she said. "Well, he
said she was a tall, athletic, blonde woman about thirty-five years
old, with blue eyes and a nice tan.  Sound like anyone you know?"

Her father stared at her. "You can't possibly think that Laura was
the one who...I mean, there must be thousands of women who fit
that description."

"Okay, I know it must sound crazy to you," she said. "But I just
have this gut feeling.  Besides, you have to admit it's a possibility."

"The odds of it being her are maybe one in a thousand," he said.
"Besides, I've known Laura for a long time.  We've worked together
for years."

"Years as in more than five years?" asked Alexandra. "Years as in
before Mom was killed?"

Her father frowned, thinking for several minutes. "Yes," he said
finally. "She first started working at the company about six months
before your mother was killed.  She did seem to take somewhat of
an interest in me..."

"I knew it!" said Alexandra.

"Don't jump to conclusions, Alex," he said. "It could all be a 
coincidence, and even if it isn't, we don't have any proof." Noticing
the look on his daughter's face, he continued, "I'll talk with the
police first thing tomorrow.  I promise."

"Dad," she said, "promise you won't go anywhere alone with her.
Make all your dates in public places.  If she killed Mom, she could
kill anybody."

"All right, I promise," said her father. "Although I seriously doubt
that Laura is a murderer."

"Oh, Dad?" said Alexandra. "Could you...uh...write me a note for 
school tomorrow? I'd like to do a little...uh...investigating on my 
own."

He smiled. "All right," he said. "I know this is important to you.
By the way, you did finish your math homework, right?"

"Hey," she grinned. "I didn't get a B+ average by not doing my
homework." She hugged her father tightly. "Thanks, Daddy," she
said.

Alexandra hurried upstairs and into her room.  She reached for
the phone and called Sophia, telling her all about what had 
happened.  Sophia succeeded in getting her parents to write her a
note excusing her from school the next day so she could help her
friend.

After finishing talking with Sophia, Alexandra lay down on her bed,
holding the family picture. "Don't worry, Mom," she whispered. "I'll
see that justice is done."

The next morning, Alexandra awoke early.  She quickly dressed,
washed her face, and brushed her long brown hair.  She then went
downstairs and quickly ate a bowl of cereal.  After that, she 
hurried outside.  Her father was still fast asleep.

She and Sophia had agreed to split up and cover the rounds of
jewelry stores and pawn shops in town, on the theory that if Laura,
or whoever it was, had sold the necklace, she may have also sold
the stolen watch and wedding ring.  Each girl had a description of

the items and of the woman, and a list of stores to cover.

By lunchtime, Alexandra had visited four jewelry stores and three
pawn shops, with no success.  As she was leaving her third pawn
shop, her cell phone rang.

"It's me," came Sophia's excited voice. "I think I've got something.
It's your mom's wedding ring.  Come over to Maxby's pawn shop on
3rd and Cherry."

Fifteen minutes later, Alexandra reached Maxby's and raced inside.
Sophia and the shop owner were standing by a ring on the counter.
Alexandra picked it up and examined it. "It's definitely Mom's," she
said, her voice starting to shake.

Sophia took her friend's hand. "Maxby's description of the woman
who brought it in matches the others," she said. "And he 
remembers her well enough to make a positive ID on her."

Alexandra smiled. "Thank you both," she said. "Have you called
the police yet?"

"No," said Sophia. "I thought you'd want to do it." Alexandra gave
her friend a pat on the back, then called her father.

"Hey, sweetie," came her father's voice. "I went with the police to
that jewelry store this morning.  They took a report, but they said
that's all they could do until they found someone who could
positively ID the woman.  They're going to send officers to make
the rounds of jewelry stores and pawn shops..."

"Dad, listen," she said. "Sophia and I...we already did that, and
we found Mom's wedding ring.  The clerk says he can positively
ID the woman who brought it in.  It sounds like the same one."

"Really? Wow...great work, honey," he said. "Here's what we'll do.
Laura's here at work right now.  I'll call the police and they can 
come and pick us up.  I'll call you back as soon as it's done." He
paused. "I'm glad we can finally get this thing with Laura over with.
I really don't think it's her.  I hope the clerk can confirm that."

"Dad, I know how you feel, but I think it is her," said Alexandra.
"Anyway, we'll know for sure soon enough.  Talk to you soon."

Ten minutes later, Alexandra's cell phone rang.  Her father's voice
came over the line.  He sounded disturbed.

"Alex, I called the police," he said. "Then I went to look for Laura.
She wasn't in her office.  I asked around, and the receptionist at the
front desk said that...well, she took off a few minutes ago in a big
hurry without telling anyone.  I don't know how she found out, but
she did it.  She really pulled the wool over my eyes.  I...I feel terrible.
I should have listened to you."

"Don't blame yourself, Dad," said Alexandra. "There wasn't any way
you could have known."

"The police are out looking for her now," he said. "They'll call us if
anything comes up.  I'll see you at home tonight, sweetie.  At least
now we're closer to catching the murderer."

"I'll see you soon, Dad," she said. "I love you." She hung up, a
concerned look on her face.  After thanking Maxby for his help, she
and Sophia went outside.  Alexandra told her friend all about what
had just transpired.

"If you need anything, I'm always here for you, Alex," said Sophia.

"Thanks," said Alexandra, hugging her friend tightly. "You've already
done so much.  You found the ring."

"Hey, what are friends for," said Sophia. "Do you want me to come
home with you?"

"Thanks, but I'll be all right," answered Alexandra. "I'll see you 
tomorrow.  Thanks again for everything."

After saying goodbye to her friend, Alexandra started for home.  She
took a shortcut through a narrow alley.  Suddenly, a large, ugly man
with dark hair and a black beard appeared in the alley in front of her,
blocking her path.  She turned around to run out the way she had 
came, but stopped short when she saw another large, ugly man 
blocking that end of the alley.  This one was bald and wearing a
black leather jacket.  The two men advanced on her.

"Oh, shit," she thought.

"What do you want? Let me pass!" she said.

Neither man said anything.  They simply continued advancing on her.
The bearded man took out a length of rope from his pocket.

Alexandra gulped nervously.  She was strong and athletic, having a
good background in softball, soccer, and cheerleading.  Her father 
had also taught her some self-defense moves.  Still, there was no
doubt that she was in a very heavy situation.

The bearded man was almost upon her now.  She kicked him in the
face, knocking him backwards.  Hearing the bald man coming up
behind her, she kicked out behind her, her foot impacting his gut.
He grunted and doubled over in pain.  She gave him a spin kick to
the head, knocking him to the ground.  She then turned her attention
back to the bearded man, who was coming at her with a very angry
look on his ugly face.

The bearded man swung a punch at her face.  She dodged it and
kneed him in the stomach.  As he let out a groan, she kneed him
again, in the groin this time.  That elicited a much louder groan from
the thug.  As he doubled over, she punched him in the jaw, then
headbutted him.  The bearded man was knocked backward into the
alley wall.  He slowly slid into a sitting position, dazed.

Suddenly, the bald man tackled her from behind, taking her to the
ground.  They began wrestling.  Alexandra struggled desperately to
get free, knowing that her opponent's weight advantage put her at a
serious disadvantage in this kind of fighting.  She smashed her elbow
into his face, stunning him long enough to break loose and get to her
feet.  As the bald man started getting up, she drove her knee into his
face.  Blood spurted from his nose as he was knocked back down.

Seeing the bearded man getting up, Alexandra sprang into action.
She performed a cartwheel, her feet impacting the bearded thug's
head one after the other.  He fell to the ground as she landed back
on her feet.  Not missing a beat, she whirled back to face the bald
man, who was down but not out.  She rectified the situation by firing
several powerful kicks to his head, knocking him out.

She turned back to the bearded man.  He had gotten to his feet and
was now advancing on her, holding a nasty-looking knife with an
eight-inch blade.

Scenes from various violent movies flashed through her mind.

Regaining her composure, she twisted her body out of the way as
her opponent swung the knife at her.  He drew back the knife to
swing again.  This time, she met the attack with a fast crescent
kick that knocked the weapon out of his hand.  Not allowing him
any time to launch a different attack, she immediately delivered
her best high kick to his head, knocking him to the ground.

Alexandra quickly bent over and picked up the knife.  She held it in
front of her, gripping it tightly.  She glanced around.  The bald man
was still unconscious.  The bearded man, shaking his head dizzily,
was climbing to his feet.

"Stay down," she said, waving the knife meaningfully.  He continued
getting up.  When he was on his feet, he began advancing towards
her.

"Don't come any closer," she warned him. "You'll regret it." He 
ignored her and continued advancing.  Suddenly, he charged towards
her.  Alexandra caught him as he reached her, plunging the knife into
his heart.

The bearded man clutched his chest and collapsed to the ground.
There was blood all over him.  She watched as he gurgled and died,
an awful feeling of queasiness coming over her.

A noise made her whirl around.  She saw that the bald man was
regaining consciousness.  Trying not to throw up, she extracted the
bloody knife from the dead man's body.  Holding it in her right hand,
she walked over to the bald man and knelt on the ground next to him.

"Listen very carefully," she said in her coldest voice, trying to imitate
the tough chicks she had seen in movies. "Look at your friend.  Look
at this knife.  He was stupid.  Don't be stupid like him." The bald man
looked at his dead friend and gulped nervously.

"Now, why did you attack me? Who sent you?" she asked.

"Uh...no one sent us.  We...uh...just wanted money," he answered 
in a tone that indicated he was lying.

"Wrong answer, asshole," she hissed.  She held the knife to his
genitals. "Now tell me the truth, or else I'll slice your balls up so bad
that people will call your friend the lucky one." Alexandra was not
used to this kind of tough talk and hoped that the bald man couldn't
detect the quavering in her voice.

"Okay, okay!" he said, whimpering. "Laura sent us.  She said she'd
give us each a thousand dollars and a brand new mountain bike if we 
kidnapped you and brought you to her.  She didn't say anything else.  
That's all I know, I swear."

"Laura, you bitch.  I knew it," muttered Alexandra under her breath.
To the bald man, she said, "Where were you supposed to meet her?"

"An abandoned warehouse by the railroad tracks," he answered.  He
held up a small slip of paper. "Here's the address," he said.

"Okay," said Alexandra, taking the slip of paper. "Now stay down,
keep quiet, and don't make any trouble." The bald man slumped down,
muttering, "I really wanted that mountain bike."

"Shut up," she growled, waving the knife.  The bald man shut up.
Alexandra took out her cell phone and called 911.  She told the police
to come to the alley immediately, as well as to send units to raid
Laura's hideout.  She then called her father.

"Some guys tried to kidnap me," she said. "Laura sent them.  There's
all this...oh...it was awful.  But I'm okay.  At least, I think I'll be."

"Oh, my God," her father said. "Are you sure you're okay? I'll be right
over there."

Over the next hour, Alexandra, her father, and the police tried to clear
up the situation.  The bald man was hauled off to jail.  The bearded
man's corpse was taken away by the coroner, with even some of the
police officers looking sick as they looked at the body.  A lieutenant
informed them that Laura's hideout had been raided, but she was
gone. "I guess she saw us coming and took off," said the lieutenant.
The police officers questioned Alexandra extensively about what had
happened, while her father comforted her.  Finally, they were done
and Alexandra and her father were allowed to go home, escorted by
two officers in case Laura tried something else.  The police had 
promised to provide round-the-clock protection for them until Laura
was caught.

It was 10:30 that night.  Two policemen were standing guard.  Alexandra 
was getting ready to go to bed.  She went to say good night to her 
father.

"Alex, listen," he said, putting his hands on her shoulders. "I want
you to know how proud I am of you, and how impressed I am by
what you did today.  A lot of grown men wouldn't have been able to
handle themselves as well as you did.  You're a real fighter."

She blushed. "Thanks, Daddy," she said. 

He smiled. "I promise that from now on, I'll ask your advice about any
new girlfriends," he said.

Alexandra laughed. "You don't have to do that," she said.  She 
paused, then continued, "Well, actually, it would be kind of nice if 
you did."

Her father laughed too. "Good night, sweetie," he said.

"Good night, Dad," she called back as she went to her room.

Several hours later, Alexandra woke suddenly and sat up straight in
her bed.  She had just had a nightmare, where Laura had swooped
in, murdered the policemen, her father, and her, and then started
dancing on their graves.

She glanced at the clock beside her bed.  It was 3:21 in the morning.
She walked into the hall and headed for the stairs, intending to get
herself a quick something to drink from the kitchen before going back
to bed.  Just as she reached the top of the stairs, a noise from 
downstairs made her freeze in her tracks.  Then the noise came 
again.

Someone was down there!

Alexandra hurried down the hall and into her father's room. "Dad, 
wake up!" she said, shaking him.  He groaned and rubbed his eyes.
"Whaaa...What is it?" he asked sleepily.

"I heard a noise downstairs," she said. "I think it might be Laura."

"The policemen...they...they should catch her, if it is her," he said, 
trying to remove the sleep from his voice. "But it won't hurt to be
prepared." He reached under the bed and took out a shotgun and a
box of shells.  He began loading the weapon. "The pistol's in the
drawer," he said.  Alexandra opened the drawer and took out the
pistol.  She quickly loaded it and chambered a round.

Pit-pat, pit-pat.  Someone was coming up the stairs.  Alexandra
and her father both pointed their weapons at the top of the stairwell.
The footsteps came closer.

"Mr. Zartman, it's me, Officer Pickett," came a loud whisper from
the stairwell.  Alexandra and her father lowered their weapons in
relief.  The officer appeared in the hall. "Something's come up," he
said. "We've got to get out of here right now." They moved to follow
the policeman.  He noticed the guns still in their hands. "You won't
need those," he said. "Officer Rogers and I can protect you."

"Just the same, we'd both feel better with these," said Mr. Zartman.
Alexandra nodded in agreement.  Officer Pickett shrugged. "All right
then," he whispered. "Just follow me and stay quiet."

They followed the policeman down the stairs and into the living room.
As they walked through the room, Alexandra happened to glance to
one side and noticed a large lump lying on the floor.  Taking a closer
look, she gasped when she saw that it was the dead body of Officer
Rogers.  He had a bullet hole in his forehead.

"Look!" she hissed. "Who did this?" Her father and Officer Pickett
both turned to look.

"I did!" came a sudden voice from the shadows.  The voice was
unmistakably none other than that of Laura. "Don't even think about
trying anything smart," Laura continued. "We've got you both
covered."

We?!

Alexandra and her father looked up and saw that Officer Pickett was
pointing his gun at them.

"Why, you traitor," snarled Alexandra.

Pickett smiled. "She's gonna give me a hundred grand and a brand
new speedboat," he said. "That's more than three years' salary. Not
to mention the boat.  I'd say that's worth betraying my partner and 
my protectees."

Laura stepped out from the shadows.  She was holding a pistol with
a silencer. "Never underestimate the power of human greed," she
smirked.  She pointed her pistol at Alexandra and her father. "Now
drop your weapons!" she ordered. "Do it right now!"

Alexandra and her father looked at each other, then slowly put their
guns on the ground.  While Laura covered them with her pistol, 
Officer Pickett kicked away the dropped weapons.

"Now cuff 'em," said Laura.  Pickett quickly handcuffed both of them.
When he was done, he asked, "Now what do we do?"

Laura's response was to point her gun right at Pickett. "Hey, what
the hell is this?" he asked.

She smirked. "Remember what I said about human greed?" she
said. "Well, I'm greedy too.  Now that I've used you to gain access to
the house and lure these two out of their bedrooms, I don't need you
anymore.  Why the hell should I pay you a hundred grand and buy
you a boat now? Your usefulness is over."

"No!" shouted Pickett, but his scream was cut short when Laura
fired a bullet straight through his heart.  Pickett slumped to the floor
near the handcuffed prisoners.  His dead eyes seemed to be saying, 
"I really wanted that boat."

Laura picked up Pickett's gun and casually tossed it across the 
room. "Well," she said, "now that everyone else is done for, I can
deal with you two." She turned to Mr. Zartman. "As soon as I got to
know you," she said, "I knew you'd make a good mark.  Rich, cute,
and very trusting.  Just like my first three marks.  Wine 'em, dine 'em,
marry 'em, get 'em to leave all their money to me, kill 'em, cash in,
change identity, repeat.  Only difference with you was, you were
already married.  After getting to know you better and realizing you
were too compassionate and morally good to ever leave that wife of
yours, I just bumped her off.  Stole her shit to make the motive look
like robbery.  Perfect setup." She snickered. "I think the cops are
still looking for an angry middle-aged white male with a fondness for
robbing women on that one," she laughed.

"You slimy witch," growled Mr. Zartman. "You'll never get away with
this."

"Oh, won't I?" she smirked.  She continued,"I'm taking great pleasure
in knowing that the last thing you two'll hear before you die is the 
whole story of how I outsmarted you dumb fucks.  So anyway, after
I took care of wifey, I figured as soon as you got over her, I could 
move in and do my thing.  But that fucking moral compassion thing
kicked in again.  Years passed and you were still pining away for her.
I bided my time and kept myself entertained by pulling other scams.
Then, finally, you were ready to date again.  I got right in, piece of
cake.  But then, I had to deal with you," said Laura, turning to
Alexandra.

"And I nailed you," hissed Alexandra.

"Wrong, girlie!" said Laura. "You did absolutely nothing of the sort.
When Daddy-boy and I started dating, I figured he'd be visiting my
house sometimes," she continued. "I couldn't take the chance that
he'd find wifey's jewelry, which I'd kept all those years.  So I sold the
items to three separate stores." Laura's eyes fixed Alexandra with a
piercing stare. "Don't think you outsmarted me," she said. "It was
pure coincidence that you happened to waltz into one of the stores
where I'd sold an item.  And don't think you ever had the drop on me.
I knew you were on to something from the very second I met you,
when you gave me that shocked stare." Laura had now begun pacing
back and forth across the room as she ranted.

"The next day, I slipped in early and planted a bug in your office," 
Laura addressed Mr. Zartman. "I heard every word of your talk with 
the cops.  I knew that the jewelry store guy couldn't ID me and I knew
that you didn't really suspect me.  I was thinking I could still salvage
this operation.  Then, later in the day, Miss Truant here calls and 
says she's found a positive ID.  I knew the jig was up and I took off.
But I wasn't going to let you get away with ruining my plan.  Not after
five years of waiting.  So I sent Beardy and Baldy to grab Truant-girl,
knowing you'd come running to rescue her and then I could kill you
both.  But when I heard those police sirens coming towards the
warehouse, I knew something had gone wrong." She tossed her hair.
"Those cops are such idiots with their sirens," she said. "Hey, look 
at us, we're coming to arrest you! Run! We're giving you plenty of
warning!" She snorted. "What a bunch of fucking morons.  I literally
heard them coming a mile away and I had plenty of time to get the
hell out of there."

Laura continued pacing. "So then, I decided to kill you at your house,"
she continued. "I admit, I was surprised when I saw that the cops
were actually providing protection.  But I handled that.  I made my 
little deal with Pickett, bumped off Rogers, and, well, you know the
rest.  And now, it's time for you to d-" 

She stopped short when she saw that Alexandra and her father were
gone.  Two pairs of opened handcuffs were lying on the floor.  Next to
the handcuffs were the handcuff keys that belonged to the late Officer
Pickett, whose corpse was still lying next to where Alexandra and 
her father had been a few moments ago.

"NOOOOOOO!" screamed Laura.  Gripping her pistol tightly, she 
stalked off, determined to hunt down these two people who had 
caused her so much trouble.

Alexandra and her father searched the dark room desperately for any
of the guns that had been thrown or kicked away.  Mr. Zartman was
reaching under a couch when he heard a soft noise behind him.  He
whirled, but it was too late.  Laura clonked him on the back of the
head with her gun, knocking him out. "You're going to die slowly," 
she hissed.

Suddenly, the gun was kicked out of Laura's hand, courtesy of
Alexandra. "No, you're the one who's going to die slowly, bitch," she
snarled. "Mom will rest a lot easier after I finish you."

The two women circled each other, fists raised. "So, it all comes 
down to this," said Laura. "After I'm done beating the shit out of you,
you little twit, I'm going to have a lot of fun deciding which one of you
I kill first and which one has to watch me brutally but slowly killing
their loved one."

Alexandra's eyes flashed with rage, but even they couldn't hide the
look of fear on her face. "You talk a lot better than you fight, you
cocksucking whore!" she snapped.  Even as she said those words,
Alexandra knew that her situation was bad.  Her opponent was taller
than her, just as muscular, and probably had a lot more experience
in fights.

She decided to take the initiative and attack first.  She fired a low 
kick at Laura, who dodged it.  She then swung her left fist at Laura,
who blocked the attack, but failed to block Alexandra's right fist,
which landed square on her opponent's jaw, knocking her backwards.
Pressing her advantage, Alexandra kicked Laura in the chest and
was launching another kick when Laura, in a lightning-fast move,
grabbed her outstretched ankle.  Without a second's hesitation, she
then tripped Alexandra to the floor.

Alexandra landed hard on her (firm) ass. "My turn, little girl," said
Laura as she advanced on her.  She fired a powerful kick into her
opponent's side.  Alexandra yelped and hoped that her rib wasn't
broken. "Pull yourself together, girl," she told herself.  She managed
to roll out of the way just in time to avoid another one of Laura's
powerful kicks.  She quickly got back to her feet.

Laura began swinging strong, fast punches.  Alexandra managed to
block or dodge most of them and land a few counterpunches of her
own.  After landing a good one right on Laura's nose, she fired 
another one, but Laura blocked it with her thick forearm.  Laura then
drove a knee into her opponent's stomach.  Alexandra, gasping for
breath, couldn't block the vicious set of punches that her opponent
fired into her face.

Laura smirked at Alexandra's bloody face.  Suddenly, her smirk
turned into a grimace of pain as Alexandra kneed her right in the
sweet spot. "That move still works on girls," she grinned as she
followed it up with a roundhouse kick to Laura's head.  Alexandra
looked at her dizzy opponent and performed a standing back
handspring, kicking her as she flipped.  The gymnastic kick
knocked Laura to the floor face down, while Alexandra landed 
perfectly on her feet.

Laura wasn't moving.  Alexandra advanced cautiously on her
opponent, ready to finish her off.  Suddenly, Laura pressed herself up
and fired a powerful back kick into Alexandra's midsection, followed
by another kick to her head.  As Alexandra stumbled dizzily, her
opponent leapt to her feet, grinning wickedly.  Laura grabbed 
Alexandra and threw her over her shoulder and right onto a wooden
table, just like in a cheesy Chuck Norris action movie.  The table, of
course, broke as she landed on it.  She let out a loud scream of pain
and tried to get up.

Laura performed a roundoff followed by two back handsprings.  Her
tumbling pass brought her right next to her opponent. "You're not the
only gymnast here, girlie," she snarled.  She then raised her right 
leg in a full vertical split.

Alexandra rolled out of the way just in time.  A "split" second later
(no pun intended), Laura's leg came smashing down on the spot 
where Alexandra's head had just been.  The impact of her kick 
shattered one of the pieces of the broken wooden table.

Alexandra leapt back to her feet.  Laura turned to face her.  The two
women circled each other.  It was just like it had been at the 
beginning of the fight, except that now, both women were bruised
and bloody.  Also, Alexandra was a lot more confident now.  She 
had taken some hard hits, but she had given as good as she got.

Laura swung a punch at her opponent, but Alexandra, taking 
advantage of her fast hands from softball, grabbed her arm before
the punch could land and savagely twisted it.  As Laura howled in
pain, Alexandra smashed her fist into her opponent's eye, then
headbutted her.  She followed that up with a powerful high kick that
slammed into Laura's jaw and knocked her to the floor.  

Laura, from her position on the ground, opened her eyes and smiled.
"What are you smiling about, bitch?" growled Alexandra.

"This," said Laura.  With that, she raised the gun she had just 
happened to find and aimed it right at her opponent's heart.  
Alexandra gulped. "At least I fought like a man, I mean like a woman,
before dying," she thought to herself.

Laura got back to her feet, keeping the gun trained on Alexandra.
"Let me tell you what you did wrong here, you arrogant little brat," 
she snarled. "A: You went into the wrong jewelry store.  B: You
interfered with my operation." She raised her arms in a dramatic
fashion. "And C: You had the arrogance to think that you could win
a fight against m- oof!"

As Laura raised her arms and the gun was no longer pointed directly
at her, Alexandra delivered a powerful kick into the side of her 
opponent's knee.  Laura fell down with a groan of pain, dropping the
gun.  Alexandra instantly leapt forward and wrapped her powerful
thighs around Laura's neck.  Without hesitating for a second, she
twisted her hips 180 degrees, snapping her opponent's neck.

"Now let me tell you what you did wrong, bitch," she said to the
corpse. "A: You murdered my mother.  B: You tried to kill my father
and me.  And C: You stopped to gloat before your opponent was
dead, instead of after!"

Alexandra paused. "Of course, this talk is kind of pointless when
she can't hear it," she said to herself. "But better pointless than 
dead."

"It wasn't pointless," came a familiar voice from behind her.  She
turned around and saw her father standing there. "Dad! Are you all
right?" she asked.

"I have a nasty lump on the back of my head, but I think I'll be okay,"
he said.  He gave her a tight hug. "I regained consciousness just in
time to see you give that witch what she had coming."

Alexandra smiled. "I'm so glad you're okay, Daddy," she said. "And
I'm so glad you were awake to see that witch die." Something
suddenly popped into her mind.

"Hey, Dad," she said. "Remember when you said you'd buy me
something expensive if your new girlfriend turned out to be a witch?"

Her father smiled. "Well, you've definitely earned something 
expensive.  What did you have in mind?"

"Well, when I was visiting those pawn shops, I saw some really nice
guns," she said.

"Expensive and practical.  Perfect," said her father.  He gave 
Alexandra another tight hug. "You're a real Amazon warrior," he said.
"Your mother would have been very proud of you."

THE END   

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