#ft. linden reed

[nicocastillo]

closed starter for @linden-reed where: the hospital

·✥·

This was... hard. He stopped, and leaned against the wall outside the door out of sight, collecting himself. If Linden could telepathically pick up anything, it didn't matter, he barely understood what he was thinking, himself. The whole extended family—and he didn't know how he fit into that, right now—felt like a hostile place for him to be. But that wasn't what was giving him pause.

It was shoes kicked off and trees climbed in long summer days and scraped knees from failed dares. Teenage bravado and the slights and words they tried to shrug off. A shared knowledge that if anyone touched the people they cared about... something. They'd do something. Shitty first jobs, frustration with the world. Passed joints and accidental lighter burns and cheap liquor stinging against split lips. The feeling of losing something, or being lost.

I left you. I let you get hurt. How do I make it okay? Are you okay?

But when he went in, what he said, scrubbing a hand over his face, was as light as he could manage. "Hey. I, uh, found this, the other day, think it's actually yours." He pulled out a scratched and lovingly battered mp3 player. Attached were a pair of earbuds that would probably outlive them both given the amount of electrical tape that had been applied to the wires. "I figured you might be low on entertainment. Don't get too excited, but there's a whole forty tracks on there, and they're all classics."

[thelatekayejames]

≽·≼

Kui pulled a face and blew lightly on their mug of tea to cool it, shaking their head slowly. "It'd take more than cheese and an anecdote for me to sprint downhill, fresh or otherwise." They squinted at the man, critically. "Is your life really so dull that you'd resort to chasing dairy products?" Amusement quirked their lips, though they kept it mostly hidden so as not to seem like they were fully laughing at him. "Magic's real, you know. It's okay to dream a little bigger."

@lunarcovestarters open location

"You know that thing in England where people chase the cheese down a hill? I really want to do it because I like cheese and you get to keep the cheese, plus I'm competitive, and I like to have odd anecdotes to share - and I think hurtling down a hill at some cheese would definitely give me something to talk about for a good couple of weeks. But do you think you get a fresh wheel of cheese as the prize or do you get the one you actually chased - and wouldn't it tumbling down a massive hill, I don't know, impact the structural integrity of the cheese?" Linden asked, not letting his companion get a single word in to his stream of consciousness rambling.

[moonglowmagic]

Where: The Hospital (Linden's room)

With: @linden-reed

“He’s such a fucking dick. I mean who votes their brother in law in to die?” Poppy asked as she continued to ramble angrily about Nic, while pacing back and forth at the end of Linden’s bed. Raking a hand through her messy blonde hair that hadn’t been brushed since this mess started. “I mean you could have died. They were trying to do a sacrifice for fucks sake.” Sure, she was the one also performing the sacrifice, but she had been under possession. “I mean what if Altan hadn’t snapped me out of the spell, or if you hadn’t got out of the dreamscape, or if the Cataylist hadn’t died? I mean there’s so many variables here that could have gone wrong.” Continuing to pace before she walked over to his bedside and pushed the cup of vampire blood to him. “Drink more. You’re not drinking enough as is.” She was half tempted to put the vampire blood in a bottle of alcohol so Linden would drink it faster. 

[thekillerblogofkillers]

Kenneth McDuff (1946-1998)

Kenneth McDuff, also known as the Broomstick Killer, was an American serial killer who was convicted of murdering 3 strangers in 1966. He received 3 death sentences that were reduced to life imprisonment. He was paroled in 1989 but was given a new death sentence and was executed for a murder committed after his release. He is suspected to have been responsible for many other murders.

Kenneth Allen McDuff was born at 201 Linden Street in Rosebud, Central Texas, on March 21, 1946. He was the fifth of sixth children born to John and Addie McDuff. John McDuff ran a successful concrete business during the Texas construction boom in the 1960s. McDuff was said to be coddled by his mother, nicknamed the ‘pistol packing momma’ because she once threatened a school bus driver with a gun after he had kicked her older son Lonnie off the bus. Kenneth ended up with the reputation of a bully that picked only on the weak kids after losing a fight he had picked with an athletic, popular boy. As a result he dropped out of school and began to work for his father’s business, doing manual labour. He later bragged in interviews that the older women loved the way he mowed their laws, making others jealous. McDuff was convicted of a string of burglaries and imprisoned.

McDuff’s criminal record began 2 years before his 1st conviction for murder. At the age of 18 McDuff was convicted of 12 counts of burglary and attempted burglary in 3 Texas counties. He was sentenced to 12 four-year prison terms to be served concurrently but he made parole less than a year later. McDuff did another brief stint in prison after becoming involved in a fight. Despite the fact that he had not been convicted of any murders at the time, Roy Dale Green, McDuff’s accomplice in the 1966 triple homicide, said that McDuff had openly bragged about raping and killing 2 women.

On August 6, 1966, McDuff and Green (whom he had met through a mutual friend around a month earlier) spent the day pouring concrete for McDuff’s father. When they were done for the day they began driving round (McDuff said he was looking for a girl.) At around 10pm, Robert Brand, 17, his girlfriend Edna Louise Sullivan, 16, and Brand’s 15-year-old cousin Mark Dunman were standing next to their parked car on a baseball field in Everman, Texas. While they were driving around, McDuff noticed Sullivan and parked 150 yards away from the trio. He threatened them with his .38 Colt revolver and ordered them into the trunk of their car. With Green following in McDuff’s car, he drove the victims’ Ford along the highway and into a field, where he ordered Sullivan to get out of the trunk and told Green to put her into the trunk of his Dodge Coronet. According to Green’s statement, McDuff said he would have to “knock ‘em off” and proceeded to fire 6 shots into the trunk of the Ford as Dunman and Brand were pleading for their lives. McDuff then told Green to wipe the fingerprints off the car. After driving to a second location, McDuff and Green (Green allegedly under duress) raped Sullivan. After raping her repeatedly, McDuff asked Green for something to strangle her with and Green have him his belt. In the end, though, McDuff chose to use a 3 ft long piece of broomstick from his car to choke Sullivan. After she was dead, McDuff and Green dumped her body in a patch of bushes. They bought Coca-Cola from a gas station in Hillsboro before driving to Green’s house to spend the night. The next day McDuff buried his revolver next to Green’s garage and their mutual friend Richard Boyd allowed McDuff to wash his car at his house. The next day, Green confessed Boyd’s parents, who told Green’s mother, who convinced Green to turn himself in. McDuff received 3 death sentences and was scheduled to die in Texas’s electric chair and Green was released after 11 years. McDuff’s death sentences were commuted to a life sentence and he hired a lawyer who gathered a wealth of evidence suggesting that Green was the real killer. Some members of the parole board were swayed by the dossier. During a 1-on-1 interview with a board member McDuff offered him a bribe to secure his release. He was given a 2-year sentence for the bribe attempt. It was meaningless, however, as board members thought McDuff was still able to “contribute to society” and granted him parole. He was released in 1989.

McDuff was one of 20 former death row inmates and 127 murderers to be paroled, and after his release he began working at a gas station making $4 an hour while taking a class at Texas State Technical College. It is believed that within 3 days of his release, McDuff killed 31-year-old Sarafia Parker. Her body was discovered on October 14, 1989 in Temple. McDuff was not charged with his crime, but was soon returned to prison on a parole violation for making death threats to a youth in Rosebud. Addie McDuff paid $1,500 plus another $700 for expenses to 2 Huntsville attorneys in return for their “evaluation” of her son’s prospects of parole. On December 18, 1990, McDuff was released from prison again. In October 1991 he picked up a prostitute/drug addict named Brenda Thompson in Waco. He tied her up and then stopped his truck 50 ft from a police checkpoint. When a police officer walked toward the vehicle, Thompson repeatedly kicked the windshield of McDuff’s truck, cracking it. McDuff accelerated quickly and drove at the officers. According to a statement the officers gave later, 3 of them had to jump out of the way of the truck. The officers chased McDuff, but he escaped by turning off his lights and travelling the wrong way down a 1-way street. He parked his truck in a wooded area near Route 84 and tortured Thompson to death. Her body was not discovered for 7 years.

Five days after the murder of Brenda Thompson, McDuff and 17-year-old prostitute Regenia DeAnne Moore were seen having an argument at a motel in Waco. Shortly after the 2 drove in McDuff’s pickup truck to a remote area near Texas State Highway 6. McDuff tied Moore’s arms and legs with stockings before killing her. She, too, had been missing for 7 years before her body was discovered. McDuff is also thought to have killed Cynthia Renee Gonzalez, 23, whose body was found in a creek bed near County Road 313 in a heavily wooded area near I-35, 6 days after she was reported missing. McDuff and Alva Hank Worley, an accomplice, murdered Colleen Reed from Louisiana on December 29, 1991. McDuff and Worley drove to a car wash and kidnapped Reed in full view of eyewitnesses before driving away. Worley admitted in a later interview that he had raped and tortured Reed with cigarettes, but claimed not to have participated in her murder.

McDuff’s next victim was Valencia Joshua, a prostitute, who was last seen alive knocking on McDuff’s door. He strangled her on February 24, 1992 and her body was discovered just under a month later at a golf course. Next came Melissa Northrup, a 22-year-old store clerk from a Waco Quik-pak, who was pregnant when she disappeared from the store. The kidnapper took $250 from the cash register. McDuff was a suspect as he was seen in the vicinity at the time of Northrup’s disappearance. Before the body was found, a college friend of McDuff’s told police officers that McDuff had tried to persuade him to help rob the store. Northup’s body was found by fishermen almost 2 months after the murder.

A problem for investigators was that McDuff’s post-release victims were spread out all across Texas, covering multiple jurisdictions, and making a coordinated investigation almost impossible. The police did learn that McDuff was selling drugs and had an illegal firearm, both of which are federal offences, so on March 6, 1992, a local State Attorney issued an arrest warrant. In April of the same year, Bell County investigators brought Worley in for questioning on the basis that he was a known associate of McDuff. Worley admitted his part in the kidnapping of Reed and was held in a Travis County jail while police continued the manhunt for McDuff. In the meantime, McDuff had moved to Kansas City, Missouri, where he was working as a garbage collector under the alias Richard Fowler. On May 1, 1992, a co-worker of his named Gary Smithee watched America’s Most Wanted & noticed how similar Kenneth McDuff was to his new colleague. After talking to another co-worker about the situation, Smithee called the Kansas City Police Department, which ran Fowler’s name and discovered he had been arrested (and subsequently fingerprinted) for soliciting prostitutes. A comparison of the prints taken from Fowler and those taken from McDuff proved they were one and the same man. On May 4, 1992, a surveillance team of 6 officers arrested McDuff as he drove to a landfill.

Kenneth McDuff was indicted on 1 count of capital murder for Northrup’s killing in McLennan County, Texas on June 26, 1992 and was found guilty. In Texas, the jury decides whether or not an individual convicted of murder is sentenced to life imprisonment or given the death penalty. Journalist Gary Cartwright wrote: “If there has ever been a good argument for the death penalty, it’s Kenneth McDuff.” On February 18, 1993, the jury opted to sentence him to death. After a number of delays while appeals were heard, the Western District Court denied habeas corpus relief and rescheduled the execution for November 17, 1998. McDuff is buried in the Captain Joe Byrd Cemetery, also known as “Peckerwood Hill,” in Huntsville, Texas. Prisoners buried there are the ones whose families chose not to claim their remains. His headstone contains only his date of execution and his death row number. His final meal was a hamburger fashioned to resemble his request of a steak.

[moonglowmagic]

Where: The Hospital

With: @linden-reed

After visiting her sister and Dilan she walked aimlessly around the hospital. Peeking and listening in to rooms to see who was in them that she might know. When she walked by the last room in the hall she saw a familiar face. “So this is where they’ve been hiding you.” Safiye said as she walked into Linden’s room, leaning against the door frame as she crossed one foot over the other. “How you feeling? You know after almost dying? I would say I can’t relate, but I was also stuck in the circle of death.” Crossing her arms over her chest as she winched at the pain. “Guess we are some of the least liked people in town.”

[moonglowmagic]

Who: @linden-reed

Where: The Emerald Hotel

"Kiss my friends? Oh I've kissed them plenty." Poppy joked as she kneeled down in front of Linden. "Just not like that." She remarked under her breath. "So are you okay?" Moving so she was sitting next to him and she rested her head on his shoulder. "This has been an absolute fuckery of a night." She said aloud, she couldn't get the night out of her head. "When you can walk again we can go to Starlight and drink. We probably shouldn't stay here anyways." The room was filled with bad energy at this point and it just caused more memories to reply. "Also," Lifting her head up as she punched him in the arm roughly. "You ever do shit like you did tonight again and I will murder you."

[moonglowmagic]

Who: @linden-reed

Where: Starlight Bar

"Toss me that roller." Poppy requested while she used the spatula to pop open the can of paint. "I know this place needed a fresh coat of paint, but this wasn't how I imagined it getting one." Poppy complained. While she was glad the bar only had minor injuries and Royce had made it out, she still couldn't shake the feeling that someone had attempted to harm her yet again. Wasn't her dying enough already? Tucking her hair behind her ear as she got lost in her thoughts for a moment only to look up and remember who was in the room with her. "Sorry, I know you can hear everything." She apologized. "I don't mean to have you hear everything." It was annoying be surrounded by so many telepaths all the time. "At least you're in the same boat as Royce and Jasmine." She tried to joke. "So want to make some drinks for us and we can get drunk and paint this place?"

[moonglowmagic]

Who: @linden-reed

Where: Eclipse

Safiye hd heard the news that Linden was back in town, but she hadn’t believed it until she actually saw him; which happened tonight. Noticing the familiar blonde at the bar, she removed herself from her dance partner and made her way over towards him. Leaning against the bar next to him before she reached over and took his drink. “Figured you’d be back.” While people always left Linden had more than one reason to turn back up in town once more. Taking a sip from his drink before she put it back down in front of him like it had never left. Moving the hair out of her face as she turned to look at him. “So should I even ask how you are? Or has everyone in town already asked for me?”

[moonglowmagic]

Who: @linden-reed Where: The werewolf bbq

Safiye grabbed two drinks off the table and walked over to the brunette who had his back to her. "Care for a drink?" Offering the drink to him as she took the seat directly next to him. "Congratulations on the overall win." Even though she was still slightly salty about the capture the flag win when it should have been the fae, humans, and vampires to lose, however the witches, unaffiliated, and werewolves had pulled off the win. "So does this mean I have to listen to you drone on and on about how your so much better than us?" She asked teasingly.

[moonglowmagic]

Safiye walked up to Linden’s door with a gift bag in hand, while she’d got him a couple books his main gift was what she had under her trench coat. Letting her heels hit the brick below her feet as she knocked on his door to signal that she was there. Rather than wait for him to get to the door she opened it and walked in. “Happy Birthday.” She sang cheerfully, walking over to him as she presented the gift bag to him. “Figured you’d want an actual present too.” Giving a smirk as she toyed with the belt on her coat. “So do you want to open your gift? Or should we have cake and some wine first?” She asked giving a laugh as she gestured towards the kitchen. 

[moonglowmagic]

Where: Her House

Who: @linden-reed

Safiye heard the door to her apartment open and she instantly was on high alert. Given the fact she was still injured though she could barely move, she reached over to her phone ready to call for help. Just as she was about to call out for Meena’s help she saw a familiar head of blonde hair peek around doorframe. “Linden?” She called out as she attempted to pull herself up into a sitting position and instantly regretted it. Putting a hand to her side where she’d been staked. “Fuck.” She cursed out. “What are you doing here?” She questioned aloud to him. “I mean I told you I was fine.” She had lied majorly, but still she hadn’t wanted him to see her like this. 

[moonglowmagic]

Who: @linden-reed Where: The Daily Drip

Despite making it through the first test with Meena successfully Safiye was still nervous about drinking coffee with blood in it in front of people. So when Leyla put the coffee down in front of her she just stared at it for a long moment, wondering if she would tear the whole place apart after having one sip. Tapping her fingers on the side of the cup aimlessly, she looked up at Linden. "I asked for light blood." She promised. Figuring he had probably heard most of the thoughts in her head anyways. "I'm not sure I'm going to drink it." She stated after a long moment. "I've been working with Meena, but I don't know this feels risky." She explained, letting her eyes dart around to people in the full coffee shop. "Here just take it." Pushing it over to him for him to take away from her. "I'll just drink some of yours or get a blood free one when Leyla comes back around."

[moonglowmagic]

Who: @linden-reed

Where: Starlight after closing

"Today could have been busier." She announced as she shut off the open light and locked the door. Knowing that the bar was going through a slow period because of her actions. Taking the money out of her apron and the tip jar and she held it out to her brother. "These were because of you anyways." She informed him, knowing that none of it had been because of her. "So what did you want to talk about by the way?" She asked as she pulled her hair up into a ponytail and secured it with the elastic on her wrist. "If it's about Elif or Christmas or being inflicted you can save the lecture."

[moonglowmagic]

@linden-reed

Where: Poppy's apartment

Sitting in bed crying her eyes out after finally having a moment alone, when the door to her apartment opened. Knowing there was only a few people who had a key gave her some relief that it wasn't a random, but she couldn't let them see her like this. Hurrying up as she wiped her eyes before the door opened and she saw Linden. Despite her best efforts she knew he could read her thoughts and she broke again. Letting the tears start to fall again and she didn't bother to hide it. "I shouldn't have came back." She whimper out. "I did this to Briar and the coven." Looking over at him with a helpless expression. "I should have just stayed dead."

[moonglowmagic]

Who: @linden-reed

Where: Anywhere at the Ren Faire

“My dear Linden.” Alyssa greeted as she walked over to her only son. Stopping short of giving him a hug when she noticed gold body paint and leaves strung about on him. “Sweetie I know you love a costume and being on theme as much as I do, but even I think this is slightly excessive.” Giving a disapproving look as she put both hands on her hips. “Is this you trying to show off for that werewolf girl I’ve heard you hang around town with? Please tell me it isn’t so.” She’d made sure to take care of the wolf and keep her preoccupied for the moment, figuring it was the least she could do she had her sons full attention. “I mean how many times do I have to tell you and Po…” She had started to say but stopped short at her oldest daughters name, the daughter she refused to acknowledge. Maybe if Poppy hadn’t rebelled against everything Alyssa was things would have been different but now? Her supreme might as well be a stranger instead of her daughter. “Witches only. We have a certain status to uphold.” Straightening out her corset. “You wouldn’t want to tarnish the family image now would you Linny?”

[moonglowmagic]

Happy Birthday Linden,

As always I wanted to remind you that I'm the oldest sibling and the favorite sister. (Insert a laugh here) In a more serious note you are the sunshine to my moon so enjoy the sunflowers there Apollo. Also I know mom has a thing with charming jewelry but this bracelet and compass come fully uncharmed. The bracelet is a replacement is for our necklaces since we both know we'll never wear them again, but I wanted you to have something to remind you of the best sister in the world-- along with the tattoo we'll be getting together. Lastly the compass is for all of your journey's going to take, so that you never forget home which is where I'm stuck forever or at least until I'm tired of this whole supreme gig. Along with the compass I wanted to make sure that you had somewhere to log your thoughts and travels.

Love you always, Poppy

@linden-reed