| Twisted Minds Copyright PAB, 2001 |
| Well, this isn't really my story to tell, but as the reporter who covered the "Romeo Murders," I still think I'm the best person to tell it. You see, a few summers back, Asheville had a notorious serial killer making headlines. We reporters dubbed him "Romeo" because he seemed to be looking for his perfect Juliette. He would kidnap a woman, keep her for weeks, and ask her lots of questions to find out if they were "meant to be." Obviously they caught him, but that's not the story I'm here to tell. You see, this is a romance story which happened at the same time and fed off this notorious killer's spree. Obviously it's not your average romance, but I'll let you make any judgements of your own. So let's start at the beginning... Robert was a lonesome man who came to love his neighbor, a famous psychologist named Nancy (who also had an office in the same building). Robert was very nervous about approaching her because he felt that he had nothing to offer her. Now you might be wondering why he loved her if they'd never even met...I guess I left that out, so let's go back a bit. Just a few months before, in March, the building's owner/manager had a big birthday party. Julie was a sweet little old lady who treated all her renters like her own grandkids, so everyone in the building came to celebrate her 80th birthday. At the party, Robert and Nancy met. They ended up sitting on the corner couch, talking all night long, basically ignoring everyone else. They had many things in common: they'd both graduated from Appalachian State, wanted three kids, were life-long Democrats, loved Jung's theories, and at some point had worked for animal rights. By the end of the night, Robert had become certain that not only were they meant to be together, but also that he would have to convince Nancy of this. You see, Robert had a bit of a self-esteem problem. He focused mainly on their differences...especially what he saw as his short-comings: she had a Doctorate while he merely had a Master's--ignoring that both dealt with psychology (hers in counseling, his in school psychology)--and she was a renowned psychologist while he was a high school guidance counselor. So after that night, Robert began to mull over how to win Nancy's heart, but made no attempt to see her again. In fact, he avoided any direct contact, trying instead to catch glimpses of her as she came and went. Then the "Romeo murders" began. You might not think that would help jump-start a romance, but this serial killer seemed to spark something in Robert. Of course, Nancy's involvement may have also helped Robert to make the connection. Nancy began to show up on the local news, answering questions about what type of person would commit these murders. She described someone obsessively focused on the perfect romance, someone with low self-esteem who would not openly admit his feelings without the assurance that he had all control over the situation, and someone who see his "Juliette" as an unrealistically perfet object. Other than the violent perfectionistic objectification of women, Robert saw himself in the description. Then an idea began to bubble up in Robert's mind. What if he feigned being Romeo, kidnapped Nancy, and slowly forged a connection between them? With his mind made up, Robert started reading and listening to everything he could about "Romeo." He knew that authenticity was key, else Nancy--now obviously an expert in the case--would quickly catch on. Once the research was done, he went out on a supply-buying spree. You see, Romeo had a specific pattern. He was known to knock them out with crushed-up Valium, wear a "Kermit" mask, tie up his victims with silk scarves, and stay with them for a few weeks in ever-changing abandoned locations. Now Robert didn't want to be arrested as "Romeo," so he took some precautions when buying the supplies: he wore glasses, a hat, and a fake beard; he also bought all his supplies in Knoxville with cash. Finally, he carefully chose an abandoned building close to the apartment building, thinking that would make taking Nancy there easier. Once he had his supplies, he started to carefully keep track of Nancy's comings and goings. Little did he know that Nancy had taken note of Robert's continued interest and already returned it, but she wanted to see--being the somewhat twisted psychologist she was--just how he was going to express it. One night early in July, Robert managed to borrow--well, steal--Julie's master key. He let himself into Nancy's apartment and spiked her orange juice--which he knew she drank everynight before going to bed--with crushed-up Valium. Then he made himself comfortable in the bottom of the linen closet--so "comfortable" might be an overstatement. Right on cue, about 11, Nancy came in and poured herself a glass of orange juice. She sat down in the living room to unwind and, before long, the Valium kicked in. Robert waited until almost midnight, pulled on his Kermit mask (just in case), then went out to check on her. Finding Nancy totally unconscious, he slipped his garment bag over her, took the Kermit mask off, and carried her down the stairs to his car. He easily got her into his trunk, then obsessively followed the traffic laws, making it without incident to the building he had chosen. Once there, he moved the dumpster blocking an old roll-type garage door, opened the door, drove his car in, pulled the dumpster back in place, and closed the door back from inside. He carefully removed the garment bag from the trunk and carried it to the second floor. There he put the Kermit mask back on, removed Nancy from the bag, placed her in a comfy rocking chair (he'd brought from his apartment), and tied her to it with the scarves. Then he sat down on a cot across from her with his back against the wall. He drifted off to sleep, dreaming of their life-to-be. The next morning, Robert woke up first. He pulled out a banana nut muffin, eating it by stuffing it up under the mask, as he watched Nancy sleep. Just as he finished, Nancy began to come to. After a few groggy moments, she seemed to snap wide awake. Her eyes darted around the room fearfully, finally landing on Robert. Robert approached her slowly, wordlessly offering her a muffin. Nancy stared into his eyes and her fear suddenly faded--though Robert didn't notice. Robert loosened one hand to let her eat, but watched her intently. When Nancy finished the muffin, Robert retightened her bonds, then began his Romeo act in earnest. |