The decomposed and unrecognisable body of Bobby's former dealer friend was discovered by police when a neighbour reported a horrible stench coming from the house. Johnny was a drug dealer from the age of fourteen with no family living in the country. No one thought to look for him, and three years later, all that was left of him had to be scooped up. Detective Dean was put on the case and already had his suspicions. He knew that Bobby and Baby had escaped the Brookesend Institution three years ago, around the same time Johnny was said to be murdered. They would have been looking for somewhere to go and what better place than with someone that doesn't want to be seen because of his criminal activity. It was only a theory, but Dean wasn't going to rule it out commpletely. He walked into his office and scanned over the paper work on his desk. Something caught his eye and he froze. He ruffled through the sheets and picked up a file. Martin Palmer's file. He was found dead in his house from gunshot wounds to head, abdomen and knees. Dean slammed the file down on his desk, grabbed his coat and raced to his car.
"I can't fucking believe this. How come I wasn't made aware of Mr Palmer's death sooner. I probably could have confirmed my theory already," he cursed.
Now Detective Dean was convinced that Bobby and Baby were at least responsible for Martin Palmer's death. He knew a lot about their troubled pasts and how Mr Palmer played his role. He thought maybe this was revenge for what they were put through. It was because of what he knew about the young adults why he wanted to work on his theory alone. He made his way to the Brookesend Institution and requested the files on Bobby and Baby to study at home. If they were trying to get revenge for what happened to them, then maybe Martin wasn't the only victim on their list.
***
The apartment Bobby arranged to get fixed up and made habitable was close to his mothers place of work, thirty miles away. It was deep in the forest and had been abandoned for the longest time. It was the perfect place for them to retreat to after they finished their mission. Fall off the face of the earth and start again, feeling happy. The apartment wasn't going to be ready by the time they got to Bobby's mother but Bobby had arranged for their last nights on the go to be spent in a nice hotel, right by the chicken shop they would be targetting.
"I want to wait for the best opportunity to get her. I'm don't plan to make it quick like I did for Marshall. I want to know why she did what she did before she gets to the gates of hell,"said Bobby.
"Are you sure you want to drag that up? Look at how you felt when Marshall was saying all those things to you. Maybe we should just get it over and done with," suggested Baby.
"I understand what you're saying but it's different. I mean a mother is meant to be maternal and compassionate to a child. They should feel the need to protect their child. Why didn't she protect me Baby?"
Baby had no reply. She kissed Bobby lovingly and started the car. She believed the only way she could make her man feel better was to take out the woman that turned him bitter. She focused on the road and drove into the sunrise.
***
Detective Dean was called to the home of Stanley Marshall to find his slumped body in his wheelchair with his throat slit. Even though no one else had made the connection of Palmer and Marshall's death with Bobby and Baby, Dean knew that this was no coincidence and his theory had been confirmed. Now all he had to do was get to them before anyone else did.
"So, do we have any ideas about what happened here?" Dean asked the team.
"Well, the incident took place in the bedroom over in the far right corner. It looks like he may have known his attacker because he has no defensive wounds. He was sitting in a casual position facing the bed, as if he was talking to someone. That's all I can say at the moment," replied the blood spatter analyst.
"Okay, so is there any chance this was a robbery? The door has been kicked off so the point of entry is pretty clear," said Dean. He knew it wasn't a robbery but he wanted to divert attention from the real motive.
"We can't really say until we've examined the scene further but so far it's looking that way with all the mess. The intruder may have asked him where he keeps his money and valuables," replied the officer.
Detective Dean was happy that there were no suspects yet, but he knew it wouldn't be long before Bobby and Baby's name cropped up. He believed that he could pinpoint their next move but they were ten steps ahead of him. They've had a long time to think about what they want to do and now it's just to implement their plan. Dean didn't want to see harm come to them, but he couldn't let this go and turn a blind eye until they were caught. He wanted to track them down as soon as possible.
***
Bobby and Baby had checked into their hotel room and studied his mother's workplace from the balcony. They had to be close so they could move quickly.
"Our apartment should be finished by the time we're finished with her. So, we can have a break before we finish off what we started," said Bobby as he unpacked his things.
"Well I don't mind staying here for a while. This is the nicest room we've been in. Look at the curtains," smiled Baby.
"Baby pay attention!" shouted Bobby.
"You don't have to fucking shout, I'm right here,"
"Then listen! We're going to watch the place for a few days. See what time she comes in and when she leaves out, then you'll go in as a customer. You will make an order, leave, then go back in and tell her that someone has asked for her outside and you recognised the name by her tag. Hopefully she will take the bait and I'll be waiting for her. I'll handle it from there," explained Bobby.
"Do you really think she'll believe it?"
"I don't know but plan b is to wait until she leaves and grab her then, but I feel that's a lot more risky because others will be leaving with her," sighed Bobby.
"Alright, I got it. So what do we do until we make our move?" asked Baby.
"I hadn't really thought about it you know. I guess we can chill out but still keep our heads down. We don't know if Palmer and Marshall have been connected to us yet. Once this is over we're gonna fall off the grid for good," smiled Bobby.
***
After going over the files of Bobby and Baby thoroughly, in some sense, Detective Dean didn't blame them for what they were doing. They were beaten, molested, and then, according to their personal diaries and notes, were being abused at the Brookesend Institution. A place once praised for their contribution to the community. It was all coming together slowly. Their spree wasn't random but very much focused. Maybe Johnny just got caught up in the trouble somehow. They wanted to get justice for themselves, but Dean was a committed law enforcer and he knew he had to act regardless of his personal feelings and opinions.
"Okay, so if I wanted to hurt all the people who hurt me and I've already killed Palmer and Marshall, where would I strike next?" he asked himself aloud.
He flicked through Baby's file again and was reminded that her mother had committed suicide due to the abuse she and Baby were going through, but Bobby's mother was still alive. Madge Marshall was still living in the same house she'd lived in for the last twenty-five years.She worked in a chicken shop not to far away from home and was a heavy smoker and drinker. Maybe she was the couples next target, but it was only a hunch and Dean couldn't afford for it to be a wrong one. He made the decision to keep pursuing them alone, and when the rest of the force caught up with what he knew, he would contribute from there.
"If Madge Marshall is the next person on their list, then I need to get to her first," Dean sighed uncertainly.
He packed a small suitcase and planned his long journey to find Mrs Marshall. Things had to be kept off the record so his resources were limited. If he could get to her before Bobby and Baby did, hopefully he would talk them out of leaving more blood shed behind them.
***
It was time for Baby to do her part in the plan to take down Madge Marshall. She entered the chicken shop as a curious customer. As she approached the counter she caught glimpse of Madge serving someone beside her and swiftly switched lines. Face-to-face with the woman that damaged Bobby, Baby was enraged by her husky voice and dirty appearance but stayed composed. She wasn't even worthy a being a mother to a child she thought. She placed her order as nicely as possible and left the shop. Bobby was now waiting outside and Baby re-entered the shop.
"Excuse me, Madge? I just left the shop and someone told me to tell you they're waiting for you outside. I don't know if he's a friend or something but he said to let you know," Baby said with her best smile.
She turned and walked to the when she saw Madge go to grab her coat. She had done well. Bobby knew the signal and prepared himself. Madge had come out the front door and stopped to light a cigarette before walking around the corner to a dead end alleyway.
"Randall if that's you stop fucking with me. Not all of us can afford to not work and harass people all day," she cursed surrounded in a cloud of smoke.
Bobby jumped out from behind a skip and hit her over the head, knocking her out. He dragged her to the car where Baby helped him put her in the boot.
"Now that felt good," shouted Bobby as they sped off.
"My hearts racing. What are we going to do with her?" asked Baby.
"Well, you see that stop I made to fill up the car before we got here? I stole the gun from behind the counter when the keeper wasn't looking. I got skills Baby, I got skills," he laughed.
"Why risk stealing a gun when we already have one?"
"To confuse the police and give us more time. Palmer was shot with the gun we already have. If we shoot this bitch with the same gun they could make the link even quicker. That's what we need to avoid,"
Baby understood and didn't want to question him anymore. She wanted to enjoy his happiness with him. She could already see it budding in his eyes. It wasn't long before they arrived to a heavy forest area and Madge was kicking the boot with all the strength she had.
"Shut the fuck up!" shouted Baby when she opened the boot.
Madge quickly became silent and submissive. She looked terrified. Bobby dragged her out of the boot and threw her to the ground before Baby tied her up.
"Why are you doing this to me? I don't owe anyone any money, I swear," Madge cried.
"I said shut up and I know you heard me," repeated Baby.
Madge then got a good look at Bobby's face and was stunned. "Bobby? Is that you?" she said softly.
Bobby sharply turned towards her and grabbed her face.
"Don't say my name. You have no fucking right to say my name. Now, you're going to die tonight. Take it in and believe it, but first, I think I deserve to know a few things and you're going to tell me," said Bobby.
"I'm sorry for everything that happened. You know what my life was like back then but now I'm so much better. I went to rehab for my alcohol addiction. I'm a changed woman trying to get by,"
"Why did you let Stanley do those things to me whilst you stood by and watched? How could you watch that and feel no emotion whatsoever?" asked Bobby, ignoring her pleads.
"Your father was an angry man. If he didn't get his own way everyone else around him had to be miserable. When he wanted to have his way with you I tried to stop him and he would just beat me. I was no match for him Bobby," Madge explained.
"You're a liar! I remember you doing nothing at all. You stood in the doorway of the bedroom with your cigarette, watching him, encouraging him. Do you think I turned into this monster, according to Stanley, for no reason? My hate for you both is why I'm standing right here tonight,"
"Bobby I am so sorry. I thought about you every day; wishing you would come back home," she cried.
"Why didn't you come and get me from the instituition then? Since you had changed so much why didn't you save me from that hell hole? The things they did to me in there was no different from what you and Stanley did. Playing with my head and beating with me at every chance they got. Even now all you can do is lie. I thought telling you that you're gonna die either way would have motivated you to be honest but clearly not. Baby, come over here," shouted Bobby.
Baby walked over to Madge and shot her twice in the back without saying a word. She and Bobby then brought the body to a near by bridge and threw her into the icy waters below. Bobby let out a huge sigh of relief before he grabbed Baby and kissed her passionately.
"When you said killing her would bring me some closure, at first I didn't believe you. I thought the evil was rooted too deep inside me, but now she's gone, I don't feel weighed down by darkness anymore. I feel free," said Bobbby as they walked back to the car.
"That's how you're meant to feel. We've been trapped for too longand now we're making up for lost time. Where do we go from here?" asked Baby.
"I say we go back to the hotel and have a night of love. We can think about what to do the next morning. I love you Baby," smiled Bobby.
"I love you more sweet cheeks,"