Hello All:
Jen's Butcher Radio... What would be Jen's Butcher Radio... I know! It's a radio station that also has a sister television station. Together they broadcast the last day alive of a woman named Jen who will be savagely butchered to death by her killer.
And so I bring you a new short story, Jen's Butcher Radio.
It was Friday morning around quarter to seven as Jen lay in bed in a partial state of dreaming while listening to the annoying clock radio alarm. It was time to wake up; but as often done, she did so slowly.
Normally the radio was tuned to news talk radio. But someone had apparently moved the dial to another station. A chorus jingle briefly sounded before the morning radio show continued, "Jen's Butcher radio... What a radio... WOW!" The voice of a male DJ announced to the world, "And it looks like maybe Jen is beginning to show some signs of stirring awake for the day. The clock radio alarm has gone off and—so ironic—it’s tuned to this station. As you know—we've been announcing all morning—that today is the day that Jen will be brutally murdered. This radio station as well as its sister TV station and numerous other media sources are currently owned and operated by Jen's butcher. And by butcher, we don't mean the person who supplies meat! This is the sort of butcher who cuts and stabs a victim to death."
By now, Jen was certainly awake. Was she dreaming only seconds ago? Startled, she quickly sat up in bed and turned the radio up just to verify that she was hearing things correctly.
"And she's up!" the morning news anchor on the sister TV station, Jen’s Butcher TV, announced to the world.
Two doors down from Jen, neighbors Dave and Patricia watched TV from their kitchen while eating their morning bowls of Kashi cereal. The TV was tuned to the all new station, Jen's Butcher TV. Everyone watching it could see Jen sitting up in bed and rubbing her eyes in confusion while listening to the all new radio station.
"Ha ha!" the news anchor on Jen's Butcher TV laughed. "As you can see, she can now hear what's being said on our sister radio station, Jen's Butcher Radio. She's probably in disbelief at what's being heard. Yes, Jen's Butcher Media is definitely a freaky production. It's why so many people are tuned in. Never before has a killer disclosed to the world that he is going to murder by first creating radio and television stations that will broadcast the act of violence. Yes, Jen's Butcher Media is owned by the very man who will savagely slice and stab poor Jen to death."
"Yeah, that's certainly Jen down the street." commented Jen's neighbor, Patricia, to her husband before shoveling another spoon of cereal in her mouth.
"Oh, yeah! Look at that!" excitedly chimed in Dave. "And check out her sexy sleepwear!"
Patricia playfully slapped her husband in the arm. "You're not supposed to be looking at that!"
"But it's on TV." pointed David. Then he said, "I wonder if her husband, Marty, is watching all of this."
"Or maybe hearing it on the radio?" suggested Patricia.
"We're going to switch over to a commercial break really quick so that we can all watch the exciting moment of when Jen takes a shower. We don't want to miss that!
“Tonight on Jen's Butcher TV!" began the commercial. "See the moment the whole world has been waiting for! See the final moments of terror of when Jen is brutally murdered." The video for the commercial was nothing more than a large butcher knife being hand sharpened over a butcher block. "Her killer promises the murder to be a bloody mess. He promises plenty of screaming and multiple stab wounds..."
In the mean time, Jen quickly turned off the clock radio and hopped out of bed. She telephoned her husband, Marty, who was most likely driving to work.
"Hello?" Marty answered.
"Marty? Are you playing some kind of joke?" asked Jen.
"What are you talking about?" Marty asked while merging onto the highway.
"The clock radio." answered Jen. "It was tuned to some station about me."
"Oh, you mean Jen's Butcher Radio?" asked Marty. "Yeah, I found that this morning in my car. There’s also a TV station to go along with it. I've been listening to Jen’s Butcher Radio most of the ride into work. It's interesting."
"But Marty, it's about me." argued Jen.
"Oh, it's probably just someone out there playing a joke or doing some kind of sociology experiment." speculated Marty. "Look on the bright side of things. You are now the star of your own reality TV and radio station."
Jen sighed, "Yeah, I guess that's one way to look at."
"Well, I need to put the phone down. I'm about to enter a construction zone." informed Marty. "And I guess people are getting excited because you are about to take a shower."
"Oh jeez!" exclaimed Jen.
"We're back from our commercial break as Jen is about to take her morning shower." announced the news anchor on Jen's Butcher TV. "Now it should be mentioned that during the commercial break, Jen telephoned her husband to ask if he is playing a joke. She's probably still in disbelief that a media network has been created to broadcast her last day alive. Probably had to see if her husband was playing a joke. No, Jen, this is all very real."
The world watched as Jen entered the bathroom and closed the door behind her.
"Ha ha!" laughed the morning news anchor. "She actually thinks she needs to close the door for privacy! Sorry, Jen, but the world can still see everything. But maybe we don't want to see all of that... We'll move the cameras to check out the surroundings of Jen's bathroom while she does her morning business."
As narrated by the news anchor, the camera momentarily looked away from Jen so that she could sit down on the toilet and do her morning business in private. This gave the news anchor some moments to comment on Jen's bathroom. "As you can see, the bathroom would be the perfect place for Jen to be murdered. And we never know if her killer might surprise all of us and choose to do it this morning. Jen's husband is driving to work, and her kids are at school. People who commit murders prefer their victims to be alone. And Jen's all alone; the perfect scenario to be murdered."
The camera moved its attention back towards Jen once the sound of the toilet flushing could be heard. "She's glancing in the mirror at herself." commented the news anchor. "We all do that, right? And oh wow! Check out what she's got under that night shirt! Jen definitely has a nice pair of natural-shaped breasts, not to mention some beautiful nipples. That's right! Take it off, baby!"
Now fully naked, Jen turned on the water to the shower and adjusted the temperature. When satisfied that it was warm enough, she stepped inside.
"What a beautiful lady!" exclaimed the male news anchor.
"I know..." added the female co-anchor. "It's a shame that she's going to be murdered sometime today. I'm actually wishing that someone would act as the hero in all of this and save Jen."
"Now you bring up a good point." said the male news anchor. "Experts are saying that the audience is split between viewers who are eager to see some blood and guts—see Jen get savagely murdered—while the other group wishes that Jen will live to see another day."
"Well I'm one of those who hope that Jen gets saved." answered the female news anchor. "For now, let's just enjoy Jen in her private moment of taking her morning shower."
***
Forty-five minutes later, Jen drove to work with her car radio tuned to the new station, Jen's Butcher Radio. She was still in disbelief of the grand scheme that was unfolding, and the fact that the whole world could see and follow everything she did. Who was behind all of this? And why was this person doing such a thing?
"And Jen's driving to work right now." announced the male DJ. "I'm sure plenty of people are wondering if she has the radio tuned to the station that is dedicated to her."
"Yes, and we are getting some tweets and instant messages from listeners of this station." said the female DJ. "Many people are wondering if Jen is aware that this will be her last day at work. Some people are even asking why Jen would bother reporting to work on her last day alive."
"That's a good point." agreed the male DJ. "But you know, it's probably a good thing that she's going to work. You see, we don't know—exactly—when and where Jen is going to get murdered. The commercials say that tonight will be the grand finale. But a criminal mind just might go so far as to take the world by surprise and murder Jen at her place of work."
"So it's a good thing that she's going to work?" asked the female DJ.
"Absolutely!" affirmed the male DJ. "We want her to go about her normal, everyday life."
"You want her to get murdered, don't you???" accused the female DJ.
The male DJ laughed, "I can neither confirm nor deny those allegations!"
"Oh jeez!" exclaimed the female DJ. "Jen, if you are out there, I hope you know who is on your side."
"Let's get to some news." announced the male DJ. "The top story right now as far as murdering Jen is concerned: police have stepped up their investigation on the alleged murder that is about to take place of the suburban mother and housewife, Jen. They need to know who is behind the scheme, and are offering $100,000 to anyone who can lead to the arrest of this person. Now as you know, Jen's Butcher Media is owned and operated by her killer. But Jen's Butcher Media is currently under a trust company, so the identity of this person is obscured from the general public. There are state and federal laws which make it difficult for the police to get around this obstacle..."
"Oh come on!" interrupted the female DJ. "You mean they can't get a court order to obtain the necessary information and bust this guy?"
"Easy!" urged the male DJ. "This radio station is about Jen's murder. It's why we have a job. And to your point: it gets down to that split of viewers and listeners of Jen's Butcher Media who are hooked. Some people are eager to see Jen get murdered. Other people are hoping that someone steps in to save her. I suppose the police don't want to ruin a good show."
The female DJ suddenly announced, "And she's pulling into her place of work!"
"Oh, good!" exclaimed the male DJ. “Let's hurry up and switch over to a commercial break so we can follow her into work. We don't want to miss anything."
The chorus jingle briefly sounded before airing a commercial, "Jen's Butcher Radio... What a radio... Wow!"
Inside of Jen's office, coworkers sat in a conference room and stared at a large video conference screen that had Jen's Butcher TV on it. They watched as she pulled into the parking garage.
"A parking garage!" exclaimed the male news anchor. "Now these places are dangerous to victims of murder. A parking garage offers plenty of isolation for a murderer to do his business."
"That's right!" agreed the female news anchor. "Jen better be careful. She better not park next to another car. All it would take would be for her killer to step out of a nearby car and stab the butcher knife from behind. It would be all over for poor Jen."
"But do you really think that the killer would do it in the parking garage?" asked the male news anchor.
"Well, just like everywhere else, crews for Jens Butcher TV did install cameras in the parking garage of her work." pointed the female news anchor. "And it's as good as a place as any."
While the whole world watched, Jen cautiously exited her vehicle and walked through the lonely parking garage with the sound of her high heel shoes echoing. She was definitely spooked, and looked at every parked car before passing it. Then she reached the long hallway which lead to the side entrance to the building. Her heart raced as she anticipated someone jumping out on her.
"Look how careful she's being in that hallway." commented the male news anchor on Jen's Butcher TV. "This is evidence that Jen is aware of her planned murder."
"Well how can she not?" pointed the female news anchor. "The whole scheme is on radio and TV."
Once in the main lobby of the office building, Jen could hear that Jen's Butcher Radio was being broadcasted through the PA speakers. "And it looks like Jen didn't get murdered in the long, scary hallway. The suspense is killing us all."
"I know!" agreed the female DJ. "I really thought that was going to be the moment.”
There were three people—a business woman and two business men—standing at the elevator, waiting for the car to arrive. They immediately recognized Jen.
"Oh, you're Jen!" exclaimed the business woman. "You're the one on TV and radio."
Jen smiled and nodded. "Yes... I suppose I'm a celebrity now."
The car to the elevator arrived and the door opened. Jen and the other three people entered. And of course, Jen's Butcher Radio continued to play from the PA speaker within the elevator.
"And right Jen is to say that she is now a celebrity!" commented the male DJ.
"I suppose the elevator would be a good place to be murdered." suggested the female DJ on Jen's Butcher Radio.
"Her murderer could actually be one of those three people riding with her." further suggested the male DJ.
"I bet all of this makes you feel paranoid." said the business woman to Jen while smiling.
"Oh, yes!" answered Jen. "I've been watching my back all morning. I'm actually terrified to know what's around every corner."
"I bet!" answered the business woman. "Well you take care. And I'm rooting for you." The elevator car stopped and the door opened. The three other passengers exited which left Jen alone in the elevator car.
"I suppose it's possible for Jen's killer to suddenly jump out of the hatch in the ceiling and stab her to death while she rides the elevator up." suggested the male DJ of Jen's Butcher Radio over the PA speaker.
"Oh my gosh!" exclaimed Jen. "I can't take this anymore."
The elevator car finally reached Jen's office floor. Filled with anxiety and very paranoid, she cautiously walked the hallway to her office suite.
"Well there she is!" exclaimed the manager's secretary, Beverly, upon jumping out of her seat. She rushed over to Jen and gave her a hug. "So you're a star, now. I've been listening to your radio station all morning long."
"That's great." answered Jen. "So who are you rooting for?"
"Oh, well of course I'm hoping that they catch this guy who's after you." reassured Beverly. "I think it's awful that someone would go so far as to create a television and radio network just to broadcast your murder."
"Good morning Jen!" greeted the office manager. "We've got a short notice meeting in the conference room. Hurry on in and we can get started."
Nervously, Jen followed her boss into the conference room. Everyone continued to stare at the large video conference screen that had the morning news anchors of Jen's Butcher TV on it.
"She's here!" announced one of Jen's coworkers.
"Excellent!" exclaimed the news anchor. "Have her take a seat so we can get started."
Jen sighed and reluctantly sat down at the conference table.
"So, Jen, by now I'm sure you know that this station is dedicated to—and there's no way to soften this—your murder. What are your thoughts on that?" asked the news anchor.
Jen shrugged her shoulders and shook her head, "I'm still shocked and at a loss of what to say. I mean it's a horrible thing, but everyone seems to be really into it. And am I really interviewing on TV at this moment?"
"Yes you are." answered the news anchor. "Now, let me ask; when did you first learn about Jen's Butcher Media?"
"When I woke up this morning." answered Jen. Jen's Butcher Radio came in through my clock radio."
"Ah, I see." said the news anchor. "Really the station has only been in existence since about 2:30 this morning, Eastern time. So you didn't miss much while you were sleeping. But already we're #1, nationwide, in ratings! What do you think of that?"
"I'm wondering if I'll be able to split some of the money that Jen's Butcher Media network is making. I am the star, after all." reminded Jen.
"Jen, would you happen to know who your killer is?" asked the female news anchor. "Any leads?"
"No, I haven't any idea." answered Jen.
"Because if you know who your killer is, you might be able to turn this person into the police for that $100,000 reward." suggested the female news anchor while laughing.
"We're going to allow some viewers to call in and ask you some questions. Are you okay with that?" asked the male news anchor.
"Sure... why not..." answered Jen.
For nearly three hours, Jen spoke to curious people around the nation who wanted to know what it felt like to be the star victim of a televised murder. There were plenty of discussions about when the murder would actually take place, and if the killer would really use a large butcher knife as promised. Maybe she would be strangled with an extension cord and thrown into a tub full of acid a few people suggested. But these people were always reminded that the killer promised the murder to be a bloody, gruesome mess. A knife would be the only way to fulfill this.
After the exhausting three hours of being interviewed on live TV and radio, Jen's manager and coworkers had a surprise for her. "Well, Jen..." began the manager. "It looks like this will be our last meal with you. Being the case, we are treating you to a catered-in lunch: Italian beef, sausage, chicken and potato wedges. And we even have a cake specially made for you." It was a large, multi-layered butter cream cake with strawberry filling. The cake said the words, "Good Bye Jen!" A decorative plastic butcher knife stabbed right into the middle. Surrounding the "knife wound" was red-colored butter cream frosting to represent the bloody gruesome mess that the killer promised.
"Want to lick the knife?" offered the manager upon pulling the decorative butcher knife out of the cake. "It has blood all over it."
"Now that would be a twist." excitedly commented the afternoon news anchor of Jen's Butcher TV. “Maybe the killer is Jen's boss. Maybe when she licks the knife, he's going pull out a real butcher knife and stab her. Maybe it'll get all over the cake."
"But don't you think the cake is red enough?" asked the afternoon co-anchor while laughing.
***
Later that night, Jen sat at the kitchen table with her family and ate dinner. She was so tired of hearing about Jen's Butcher Media, and ordered that not one thing be mentioned about it for the remainder of the evening.
"One thing I find interesting:" began the evening news anchor of Jen's Butcher TV as the world watched the family eat dinner. "The husband doesn't seem too worried about his wife getting murdered. I wonder if that's because he's actually the killer."
"It's a possibility." answered the co-anchor. "But this whole scheme has been so surreal that maybe he doesn't believe it."
"I'm sure a lot of people are having difficulty understanding the fact that Jen's Butcher Media means business." answered the first news anchor. "But her killer is not playing games. This is not a joke. He will kill her by the end of today and have the gruesome scene broadcasted for the world to see."
An hour later, as Jen's husband and children sat in the family room and watched TV; Jen briefly entered and announced, "I'm going upstairs to take a nice, hot bath. It's been a long day."
"Okay, Honey." acknowledged Jen's husband, Marty. "You definitely deserve it my little celebrity wife." Once out of sight, Marty changed the channel to Jen's Butcher TV.
"Is that Mommy?" asked six-year old Kristy.
"Yes it is." affirmed Father. "Mommy has her own TV and radio station, now."
"Cool!" exclaimed nine-year-old Paul.
"Oh, kids, cover your eyes for a minute.” ordered Father. “I don't want you looking at your mother, naked, on TV."
Both kids did as ordered while Jen untied and removed her bathrobe. The warm water in the tub continued to fill as Jen stepped in. Oh, but so naughty of nine-year-old Paul; he spread open his finger just a crack to see his mother naked!
"Okay, she's in the tub, now." announced Father to Paul and Kristy. You can uncover your eyes.
"Now this might be an ideal moment when Jen's killer finally does as promised." announced one of the evening news anchors on Jen's Butcher TV. "Bathtubs are one of the least places where a woman wants to be stabbed." he further explained. "She's naked, wet and vulnerable. And she's... UH-OH! LOOK AT THAT! THERE’S THE KILLER! HE'S GOT HER!"
On TV, Jen let out a bloodcurdling scream from the bathtub as her killer jumped in with large butcher knife. The blade stabbed through her naked breasts and chest. Blood gushed out as Jen desperately fought for her life.
"AND HE JUST KEEPS STABBING HER AND STABBING HER! THIS GUY'S A MANIAC! SHE'S FIGHTING FOR HER LIFE AND TRYING TO USE HER ARMS, BUT HE JUST SLICES THEM OPEN WITH THAT LARGE BUTCHER KNIFE...!!!! OH MY GOSH!!! WHAT A GRUESOME, BLOODY MESS!!! HE DEFINITELY DELIVERED AS PROMISED!!!!”
Downstairs, Jen's husband and children watched her murder on TV.
"Is that man hurting Mommy?" asked Kristy.
"He's murdering her." answered Father.
"Will she be alright? asked Kristy.
"It doesn't look like it." answered Father. "But don't worry; it's only TV."
After a minute or so, Jen's killer hopped out of the bathtub. By now the water was dark red as Jen’s lifeless body floated with a frozen, horrified expression on her face.
And that was the exciting grand finale to Jen's Butcher TV.
The End!
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