Diabolic Fiction

Rear Window Ethics

Ralph was so tired of all the hullabaloo. After that business with the wife-killer and then the photographer across the way who was pushed out of his rear-window, all he wanted was some peace and quiet.
But then the piano started up. Every evening. That damned piano.
And the newlywed couple...banging away at each other morning, noon and night, not to mention putting a healthy dent in his bedroom wall.
"Shut-up!"
They didn't hear him.
Ralph paced up and down his hallway...from the kitchen to the bedroom and back.
"Bastards. All of them. Nosy sons-a-bitches."
He looked out his window and saw the tell-tale flash of his neighbor's binoculars.
"Didn't that fucker learn anything?"
He leaned out his window and shouted up to the second floor.
"Jeffrey! You shithead! Stop watching me!"
He could see the dark form of the photographer roll back into a shadow. The man named Jeffrey was now confined to a wheelchair...both legs had been broken after he poked his nose into a neighbor's business.
"Killing his wife is a man's business! Keep out of mine! I'll finish the job!"
Ralph closed the window and drew the curtains. He did the same all about his house and then turned on all the lights. He knew that from Jeffrey's point of view, he could see Ralph's shadow very clearly.
"Ok, Jeffrey. You want a show? You got one."
Ralph went to a closet and pulled out a department store mannequin. It was nude and missing a hand, but Ralph figured it wouldn't matter.
He took it to the living room and stood right in front of the curtained window. He then began to argue with the mannequin. He shouted and flung his arms about. He smacked the dummy's face and then lunged for it, grabbing its neck and strangling the defenseless mannequin.
He let it slip to the floor and then went to the kitchen. He returned to the livingroom with a large saw.

About ten minutes later, police broke through his front door and witnessed Ralph cutting the arms off his mannequin.
"Can I help you officer?"
The three cops looked at each other and rolled their eyes.
"Where'd you get the dummy?"
"Well, officer, I work for Bristol's Department Store on 45th, downtown. I'm also a sculptor and figured I could use some parts for my work."
"Sorry to bother you sir."
Ralph smiled. "Who called you here?"
"We got an anonymous tip. Someone said you were cutting up a woman."
"Really? Oh boy. The things people think they see."
"Right. Well, sorry to have broken in like that. We had to check it though."
"Sure, officer. No problem. Just close the door on the way out."
The three officers departed.
Ralph went to his closet and pulled out three more mannequins. He set a policeman's cap on each head and rolled them to the livingroom. He then took his saw and began hacking away at them.

"This is the 45th Precinct, Sgt. O'Leary speaking."
After a moment, O'Leary set the phone down and turned to an officer.
"Some guy says you, Williams and Donnelley are being hacked to bits inside an apartment."
"Really? Too bad for us, eh?"
O'Leary hung-up the phone and returned to his knitting.