THE ZORRO TERRORS OF A HALLOWEEN STAND IN

A MASKING EXPERIENCE STORY

BY: RITA CHANTE

Author’s note: Halloween is a time of delight for most maskers. One of the themes in this copyrighted story explores the idea that when not managed carefully, even the most gifted of maskers becomes involved in a fantasy without controls.

Adriana, Adrian's, fraternal twin sister wanted to be in two places at the same time. One event was with her employer. It was the annual company Halloween party and a must attend for those employees who considered that they had a future at the firm. Adriana was aware that her boss, Mr. Grabber, had personal designs on her and for her. However, she wasn't aware of how intense his desire was. She just assumed that he thought of her as single career professional. From the hints that had been dropped around the office, it was clear to Adriana, that if she missed this activity it could alter her career choices for the rest of her life. The other obligation was her boy friend's thirtieth birthday/Halloween party. He had made it clear that he expected to be put ahead of her career, since he said that he had done this for her on several occasions. Emilio Lara, Adriana's boyfriend claimed to have had an alleged opportunity at a substantial promotion in his corporation, but it entailed a move to another region of the country. He had allegedly turned it down when Adriana told him that she wouldn't move away from where her family was located.

Adrian was between girl friends. While he enjoyed Halloween and was good at designing costumes and masks, he had complained to Adriana that it wasn't any fun to go to a party by himself. He had so enjoyed switching roles with his girl friend at the party where they had won first prize the previous year. Unfortunately, she had met the guy she was now engaged to on the trip they had won as that first-place prize. This was going to be his first Halloween alone in five or six years.

"Look, Adrian, you know the bind I am in, why don't mask as my stand in with my employer so I can attend my boyfriend's birthday party."

"I don't know, Sis. That could get complicated. Why don't I wear some female Halloween disguise with Emilio. I know him better than your boss and would be less likely to fowl-up or miss-step. Besides, you know I don't like Emilio all that much and it would be a trick on him and a treat for me," said Adrian.

"That would probably work at first glance, but remember, Emilio will most likely desire to get extremely intimate with his Halloween maiden, either during or after the party. He has been coming onto me pretty hot and heavy lately," declared Adriana.

"I hadn't thought of that," said Adrian. "That is all the more reason for you to stir clear of him, Sis."

"I'll pay for your costume and a date of your choice in the future, if you do this for me," bribed Adriana.

"This must be really important to you, Sis."

"It is," confirmed Adriana.

"Okay, then. I'll do it, but we will need to make casts of your body and face so I can become an exact duplicate, albeit, a little taller, of you. To help carry out the illusion, I want you to start wearing your six-inch platform ankle strap heels to work. That way, when I stand in for you, there won't be a variation in our perceived height."

"I can do that. I always wanted an excuse to wear those shoes to work," declared Adriana. "Mr. Grabber has an eye for tall women. They seem to advance faster in the corporation than the shorter ones."

"I'll start working on our costumes. "I think it is best that we be twins for the evening, just in case we have to make a last minute switch or something like it," suggested Adrian. When Adrian designed the costumes, he built every male fantasy into them he could think of. If he knew Emilio like he thought he did, his sister would be engaged or raped before the night was through. Not knowing the level of desire that Mr. Grabber had, Adrian was not aware of the possible trap he was constructing for himself and/or Adriana. The resulting costume design was a way over the top, PVC cat suited, booted and gloved maid. She had large nipple, "F" cup breasts; large red hair; and soft, round full buttocks. When Adriana tried on the costume on the thirtieth of October, she exclaimed, "I can't wear this for Emilio! I would be too embarrassed! I could never pull this off. It is a good thing you made us twins. We are going to have to switch places, Adrian."

"I thought you said that I couldn't be Emilio's girl friend, Adriana," asserted Adrian with surprise and apprehension. "We thought we already went through that. I gave in because I bought your arguments."

"Haven't you ever seen me change my mind before?"

"Yes, But from what you said, I would mess up."

"Well I have changed my mind about that. You have to this for me, Adrian. I can do the company bit dressed like this, but I couldn't do it in front of Emilio and my friends."

"No way, Adriana. I built our costumes based upon our current understanding. We had an agreement and you had better stick to it."

"I'll throw in an extra two hundred dollars on top of what I have already promised if you do this for me, Brother Dear."

"Let me get this straight. You are agreeing to pay for the costumes, a date of my choice and two-hundred dollars?"

"That is right, Brother, Dear. Two hundred in cash," confirmed Adriana through the large, red pouty lips of her mask.

"Okay, but I will need some major coaching. Just how far do you want me to go with, Emilio?"

"I don't know, Adrian. You be the judge," said Adriana. "Just make him happy and wanting more so he will come back to me."

Adrian had made his body suit so that he would look identical to his sister in her costume. When Adriana helped him zip up his costume and he became enclosed in her visage he had a whole series of incestual thoughts. Fortunately, Adrian had also made himself the anatomical duplicate of his sister. He could go all the way with Emilio if he had a mind to do that. In his version of his sister, Adrian felt whole. It was like they were both united in one being, with Adriana on the outside and Adrian on the inside. When he expressed this feeling to his sister, she said that next year they would both have to be him so that she could have the same experience. While still dressed as identical instead of fraternal twins, Adriana coached Adrian on all the things that would help him pass as her. By the time they dressed for their respective parties on the thirty-first of October, they were absolute mirror images. Their own mother couldn't have told them apart. Adriana hid in her bedroom closet while Emilio arrived and pick-up Adrian. She could tell by Emilio's comments and voice inflection being spoken through his Zorro mask, that he was wild with desire at Adrian's appearance. She cracked open the closet door just enough to catch a glimpse of Emilio as Zorro. He was beautiful. Her masked and corseted brother and her fiancee made a fabulous couple. Antonio Banderas and Carmen Zeta Jones would not even be able to hold a candle to them. The magnificent bulge in Emilio's tight, black leather pants stirred all the feminine desire in her body. Adriana wished she could have been a little bird to ride along with them to Emilio's, Zorro themed, Halloween/Birthday party. After they left the house, Adriana came out of her hiding place, gathered up her things and drove to Adele's apartment were a couple of the women from the company were meeting, so they could go together. Adele loved and admired Adriana's costume so much that she persuaded Adriana to trade out fits with her. Adele has going as a blonde, pigtailed milkmaid. Adriana was sure that she would more comfortable as the milkmaid and agreed to switch with Adele as long as they switched their real identities behind their masks as well. "By that you mean, I am to tell Mr. Grabber that I am Adriana?" questioned Adele."

"That is exactly what I want you to do," confirmed Adriana. "I want you to do that with Maria and Elaine as well when they get here."

"I can do that," stated Adele. "This is going to be even more fun than I imagined. I better warn you that Elaine has a thing for me, Adriana."

"Thanks for the warning, but the whole office knows that. I'll be careful not to mess you and her up," declared Adriana as the two women continued to exchange their costumes.

"That's not a problem. She is the only one that sees us as an item. I only have eyes for Mr. Grabber."

"Then I ought to warn you that he already has a thing for me," stated Adriana as she became the "milk maid".

"I didn't know. I wouldn't want to cut into your action, Adriana," said Adele in an insincere, catty manner.

"No problem, Adele. You can have him if you can get him."

"With this Maria Conchita costume, that is going to be cinch," said Adele as the door buzzer announced the arrival of Maria and Elaine. "I hear that he is planning to go to the party as Zorro."

Maria was dressed as a Nun and Elaine was cross-dressed as Wrangler Tex. The four women passed small talk in the apartment and made last minute adjustments to their masks and costumes. Adele held up her end and passed herself off as the disguised "Adriana". Once they arrived at the party, "Maria the Nun" asked whom she thought was "Adele" in the milkmaid costume, to accompany her into the woman's rest room. Once in there and after Maria had made sure that they were alone in the rest room, she said, "Adele you just have to trade costumes with me."

"Why would I want to do that?" asked Adriana as "Adele the milkmaid".

"Everybody knows that Elaine has the hots for you, but she doesn't even know that I am alive," declared "Maria the Nun".

"Are you saying that you have the hots for Elaine, Maria?" probed Adriana as "Adele the milkmaid."

"Yes, Adele, and in the worst way. You told me a couple of days ago that you didn't care if I made a try for Elaine, but I think I would have a better chance for her in your costume. It is a perfect match for Elaine's "Wrangler Tex costume and mask."

"Okay, Maria," said Adriana as "Adele the milk maid". "Let's step into a couple of adjacent stalls and switch costumes and masks. Don't forget, that when we do this that I will be Maria the Nun for the rest of the evening and you will be Adele the milkmaid."

"I promise all of the above. Don't worry I won't let you down. This maybe my only shot at showing Elaine what I can do for her."

"I wish you the very best of luck, Adele," said Adriana as she passed the milkmaid costume under the stall partition to Maria.

"You are a real friend, Maria," proclaimed Maria as she reciprocated by passing the nun costume and mask under the partition to Adriana, who was still Adele as far as Maria the milk maid was concerned.

As they completed their switch Adriana exhorted once again, "Don't forget the one, condition, of this switch, Adele."

"What's that?" asked Maria in her "Adele the milkmaid" costume.

"For the rest of the evening I am Maria and you are Adele," said Adriana again.

"Oh, I thought there was another condition," responded Maria as she stepped out of her stall as "Adele the milk maid". When the two masked and disguised women left the rest room they appeared as they went in, only they were totally switched. Elaine immediately hit on Maria as "Adele the milkmaid" when they got back to the table and Mr. Grabber had already asked Adele as "the voluptuous Adriana in her Maria Conchita costume" to dance. The "new Nun" thought that Grabber actually cut quite a striking figure as the Masked Zorro, not as good as Emilio, of course, but still exciting. To her surprise the beautiful "nun" was asked to dance by another one of the Zorros at the company party. Maybe the "new Nun" was going to have a good time after all. Of the three costumes she had worn that evening, this one was definitely the most comfortable. If Adrian had designed them a pair of these outfits instead of the "Maria Conchita" get-up, Adriana could have gone to Emilio's party and had fun. On the other hand, there had been so much costume switching, that not even the women she came with knew who she was. The feeling of total anonymity was exhilarating. She could do whatever she wanted to do at this party and know one would be the wiser.

************************

Meanwhile, Adrian as "Maria Conchita" and Emilio as "Zorro" were on their way to their respective Halloween/ Birthday party. About half way there, Emilio broke the silence in the car by saying, "You don't expect me to stay my normal restrained self tonight, do you?"

"What do jou mean by dat, Meester Zorro?" asked Adrian in his new teasing and tantalizing "Adriana" voice.

"You are such a tease, honey. I don't think I have ever felt as turned on by you as I do tonight. That costume has given your sweet personality a whole new twist."

You don't know how much of a twist, you pig, thought Adrian to himself. "Jou had better get a hold of yourself, Meester Zorro, if jou ever want to get to my treasure mound," teased Adrian some more from inside of the spectacular "Maria Conchita" costume and mask.

"You are unbelievable, Sweetie. You expect me to stay in control with that kind of tease around, Adriana?"

"Whose Adriana, Senor Zorro, Baybee?" Emilio as "Zorro" described Adrian's fraternal twin sister. "I got it honey. I know who jou are talking about, now." Without knowing about his sister's costume changes, Adrian continued, "Maybe eshe will be coming to de pardy as my boring little nun to chaperone me contigo."

"If you aren't Adriana, then who are you?" asked Emilio.

"Tonight, Meester Zorro, Honey, jou are out wit Maria Conchita and watever jou have the nerve to try, I will do my best to compliment. Entiendes Senor Zorro?"

"That's not like you at all my little Iron Shorts," observed Emilio as "Zorro".

"I just told jou dat jour liddle Miss Iron Eshorts isn't here tonight," said Adrian truthfully from behind his "Maria Conchita" mask.

"This is going to be one amazing birthday party, Maria Conchita," declared Emilio as "Zorro".

"Just how amazing es totally up to jour creativity, Senor Zorro, Honey. De esky es de limit," proclaimed Adrian as Maria Conchita. "Este noche jou are de master of our destiny."

"You better be telling me the truth, Maria Conchita. I have been waiting for this opportunity for months."

"Will jou estill respect me in de morning, Senor Zorro?"

"I promise to respect Adriana for the rest of her life," declared Emilio as Zorro.

"Jou are eso gud wit de words, Senor Zorro. But if jou are really gud to me, Miss Iron Eshorts may estay away for gud and only Maria Conchita will be by jour eside."

"Don't get me wrong, Maria, I love my Miss Iron Shorts."

"I know, pero eshe es not half de woman I am and jou will beg me to estay dis way before de night es through."

"That is one Hell of a proclamation and challenge, Maria," announced Emilio as "Zorro".

"Let's esee if jou are ups to it," said Adrian as he extended "Maria Conchita's" gloved hand between, "Zorro's" legs and pressed hard against the great sword of truth that was contained within his tight, black leather pants. "Oh Senor, I thinks to me dat jou are ups to it tonight, Meester Zorro, Honey," said Maria Conchita in her new-found Spanish accent.

"Oh wow. That accent is too much, Maria. All these months I have stayed pure for you because of your virginity, Adriana. You are the only woman that has held my respect. How about a quickie before the party?"

"I don't want to espoil de evening por jou, Meester Zorro, Baybee. Jou will have to git a liddle hotter por me I tink. I don't want just a liddle poke when I knows jou can give me de whole eslice."

"All right for you, Maria Conchita, but the longer we wait the bigger the slice I'll take," declared Emilo as he took out a large cigar, bit off the end, spit it out his window, struck a mactch on the dashboard and lit the stoggie.

"Oh, an jou are a poet too, querida," lied Adrian as "Maria Conchita". "How romantico jou are por mi. I just luv de smell of a man esmoking and esucking on a big fat juicy cigaro."

Adrian was pulling out all of the stops. He didn't like Emilio for his sister. He thought that he was a phony and a real wolf in sheep's clothing. The news stations and papers were full of a story about a Masked Zorro type that was terrorizing the Barrio. The problem was that his victims often didn't complain until later about the rape, because they secretly enjoyed the fantasy. Several of the victims had actually admitted to this in one of the news stories. According to one account several of the victims would never have reported the rape if the killings hadn't started. Adrian fantasized that Emilio was that murdering rapist and that this Halloween, he was going to expose and capture him to prevent his sister from making the mistake of her life. Even if Emilio wasn't the rapist, somehow Adrian in his "Maria Conchita" costume and mask felt he had to get Emilio to Adriana's company party so that she could see what a pig and phony Emilio was.

There were at least ten fully masked Zorros at Emilio's Halloween/Birthday party, including Emilio himself. There were another ten dressed in the "Zorro" theme. Zorro had always been an icon in the Barrio, but with the recent films, Ford commercials, and news stories, there was a revival of the legend going on. "Maria Conchita" found "herself" dancing to almost every dance, but "she" wasn't sure that the Zorros "she" was dancing with were always Emilio. They all wanted to try out their tango or cumbia on "her", since "she" was excellent at both of these dances. Exactly who "she" was dancing with wasn't important until police started buzzing around the area when a raped female was found in one of the rooms of the hotel where Emilio's Halloween/Birthday bash was being held. According to the rumors at the party, the rape had all the hallmarks of what was being dubbed in the press as the "Zorro Terrors", including a special silken drapery cord that was used to bind the victim's wrists. The party continued when the medical staff arrived and declared that the woman had been raped and gagged at least three hours before Emilio's party had started. A new spin in the series of rapes was the cigar burns found all up and down the inner thighs of the victim.

The Halloween bash went on with renewed vigor and reality until yet another murder/rape in the same style as the first rape was found on the top floor of the hotel, with a time near the beginning of Emilio's party. The nipples of this victim had been burned off with a cigar while she was still alive. Everyone dressed as Zorro was a suspect, but all including Emilio claimed to be at the party with ironclad alibis. While the investigation continued a call came over the police squawk boxes that another "Zorro" type rape had taken place at some corporate party across town. While everyone was relieved and the pressure seemed off for the moment, the police intervention had kind of knocked the steam out of Emilio's Halloween/ Birthday Party, while at the same time giving it a sense of real horror. The hotel management agreed to refund a portion of the deposit for the shortening of the event. None of the guests left with a sense of disappointment, especially when "Maria Conchita" suggested that there was an after party, party that those who still wanted to party, could probably crash. Thus, Adrian as "Maria Conchita" convinced Emilio and several of the other Zorro couples to caravan over to and crash Adriana's company Halloween Party.

On the way to the party, the radio stations were full of updates about the "Zorro terror". "I don't think it is one individual," suggested Emilio as "Zorro".

"What makes jou tink dat, Meester Zorro, Baybee?" asked Adrian while continuing to stay in his "Maria Conchita" persona.

"The killing and the rapes don't match, Maria. One of the cops said that the first victim at the hotel had claimed that the rape was done romantically and with such bravado and style, that she never felt in danger of losing her life. Then in the second case, the victim was mutilated, and tortured. I think the there is a rapist, Zorro and a murdering Zorro."

"Jou are basing dis teory en de esideways comment of a cop?"

"No. Look at the differences between the rape victims and the murdered ones."

"How are dey differente?" asked "Maria Conchita".

"All of the raped girls are supposed to have been ordinary, blonde, white girls of college age. The murdered women have been alleged ladies of the evening."

"Where did jou git dat informacion, querida?"

"It was just on the radio."

"I guess I wasn't listening too gud. I dun't hear dat like jou, but den jou are eso esmart, Zorro mio."

"That accent is driving me wild, Conchita."

"Jou just kep driving de caro por now. I makes jou wild luego, Zorro mio," continued Adrian with his "Maria Conchita" tease. He racked his brain trying to remember the recent news stories, but for the life of him, the detail that Emilio had just voiced weren't part of that body of evidence. Did Emilio really know something about the "Zorro terror"? Was he the rapist, the murderer, or both? Had he been in on some of the events and copycats had taken over the style? A female caller who claimed that Zorro had just raped her interrupted the news talk show. Emilio seemed quite agitated by this turn of events. As they neared the company Halloween party a second female caller stated that Zorro had just raped and assaulted her in yet another part of town. Again, Emilio seemed angered by this news. "What's a matter, Meester Zorro, Honey?" probed "Maria Conchita".

"It's getting so you can't tell, brag from fact or truth from fiction anymore. It's like women out there are begging to be raped and/or killed by these guys."

"Looking at jou, Meester, Zorro Babie, I can esee why, porque jou are one bery gud luuking dude. I am wetting en mis pantalones por jou."

"How do we know that the Zorro who is committing these crimes is as good as looking as I am?"

Adrian ignored Emilio's pompous attitude and said, "Maybe he es even bedder luuking dan jou, Meester Zorro." Emilio's masked eyes flashed away from the road and towards "Maria Conchita" and back to the road in front of the car. If looks could kill that one would have stopped Conchita's heart. Adrian felt the bite of cold steel run down the back of his neck. He sensed the horror of pure unadulterated hate. It was like Death itself had stepped upon his heart. Emilio had been pushed and teased as far as he could go. Had Adriana ever seen that look? If she had, what did she read into it? Adrian saw the Quoquie staring through Emilio's masked eyes. No more teasing until they were in a public place. When the caravan of party crashers arrived at the Company Halloween party, the place was surrounded by police who were positive they had the Zorro rapist and murderer trapped inside. The additional twenty Zorro couples showing up outside the party threw the whole scene into Pandemonium. The news of the alleged rapes from the radio talk shows had just reached police, and the rape victim at this alleged crime scene had managed to vanish among all the masked partygoers. Only the police and Emilio seemed to be taking the evening's events seriously. Several of the party crashing Zorros pretended to strangle their partners in mass if they weren't allowed to cross the police lines. They seemed to feel that the flashing red lights and sirens added to the Halloween festivities and heightened entertainment levels. If the real killer or rapist was among them, or part of the crowd already inside the party, there would be no way for the police to make that determination until and if someone else turned up dead, raped or both, for real.

*********************

Inside the auditorium where the party was under full swing, Adriana as the "Nun" was caught up in the euphoria. Everybody was acting like they were in a sequel to the "Scream" movie crossed with the "Blair Witch Project". The presence of the police and all their gear just seemed to heighten the mood instead of sobering it. She didn't even notice the crashing event by the twenty Zorro couples from Emilio's Halloween/Birthday party. The Fright Nite party that Mr. Grabber had envisioned was out of control. His entire staff seemed to have regressed into their fearless, early teens and whom he thought was Adriana as "Maria Conchita" appeared to be his. "She" was a shoo-in for the best female costume in the Halloween costume contest, if not the grand prizewinner along with himself as Zorro.

Then all of a sudden there was a couple at the party that was their mirror image (Emilio and Adrian). Where had they come from? Mr. Grabber's partner didn't seem to notice or care. Adrian as "Maria Conchita" wondered about this. Emilio was confused when he saw a Nun walk up to ask one of the "Maria Conchita's" to dance with her. On her way back from the rest room, seeing Emilio all by himself and not knowing that Mr. Grabber had taken the opportunity of her absence to make a couple of moves of his own, Adele as "Maria Conchita" approached Emilio and attached herself to him, thinking that he was Mr. Grabber. Meanwhile out on the dance floor, "Maria the Nun" (Adriana) was filling Adrian in on all of the moves and counter moves of the evening. Adrian as "Maria Conchita" told his sister to watch Emilio's moves if she wanted to confirm what he had been telling her these past several months. "He is as smooth as well refined oil Sis, but I saw a flash in his eyes that scared me to death on the way over here."

"I have seen it too, Adrian, but it has never been directed towards me." At that moment, Mr. Grabber in his Zorro costume returned to the main ballroom and seemed a bit out of breathe. He moved into the middle of the dance floor and cut in on the "Nun" who was dancing with "Maria Conchita".

As "Maria the Nun" left the dance floor for the bar, Mr. Grabber whispered in "Maria Conchita's" ear (Adrian), "If there are any questions from the police in a few minutes, I have been dancing with you all night."

"But who are you?" asked Adrian honestly as "Maria Conchita".

"You know damn well who I am and that promotion you wanted is yours if you do as I say."

"Okay, honey, just cool down. I'll play along for a while at least."

"You had better go all the way if you know what is good for you," threatened Mr. Grabber as the same flash that Emilio had thrown in the car passed from Mr. Grabber's eyes onto "Maria Conchita's" lovely face. Two Zorros with matching masked eye fire, thought Adrian inside his costume. They had to be related, but how? Emilio hadn't moved from his table because Adele as the other "Maria Conchita" was sitting in his lap. Adrian's new partner had to be the Mr. Grabber his sister was always talking about and had wanted him to stand in for her in the first place. But why did Mr. Grabber need an ironclad alibi all of a sudden and how did he manage the same look as Emilio?

After a stop at the bar, Adriana as "Maria the Nun" decide it was time for a bathroom break. Even a dried up old Nun has to go sometime. In the bathroom she heard a moaning coming from the last stall. "Maria the Nun" called out, "are you all right, in there?" The response to her call was some mumbling and some more moaning. With that "Maria the Nun" saw the "Milk maid's" shoes slide out from under the stall door with the unmistakable flow of fresh arterial blood following their track. The "Nun" let go of a blood-curdling scream that brought several other women in to the bathroom. A couple tried to open the door and a couple of others ran for the police. All the screaming and confusion heightened the joy of the partygoers once again. The "Nun" had found the corner of the counter to sit on and stare at the blood and the "Milk maid's" shoes. Her own feet had been in them just a couple of hours ago. If she hadn't traded costumes with Maria, maybe the blood flowing on the rest room's white tile floor would be hers.

When the police finally forced the stall door open the Nun was shocked once again as the milk maid's shoes were on Elaine and not Maria. How could that be? Elaine had been dressed as "Wrangler Tex". Had Elaine and Maria traded costumes and if so, where was Maria as "Wrangler Tex"? To everyone's surprise, Elaine was pronounced alive when the paramedics arrived, along with Mr. Grabber as "Zorro". Like some black comedy with heavenly chess pieces, this good news was countered by one of the male party guests bursting through the police lines and into the woman's rest room proclaiming that one of the Zorros had gone nuts in the men's head and was slashing everyone in sight with a razor. The Keystone Cops dashed off to the men's head to find what appeared to be blood splashed everywhere but no human occupants.

Adrian as "Maria Conchita" used this confusion to whisk Adriana as the "Nun" out of the women's rest room. Adrian believed that, somehow the perpetrator had to be Mr. Grabber. Why else would he need such an ironclad alibi. Adrian shared his concerns with his sister, along with the notion that the nut with the razor was Emilio. "Look Sis, there has been a murder, a couple rapes and an attempted murder, along with two alleged rapes that Emilio knows something about. Now there is this slashing bit in the rest room. He has been near everyone of them."

But, Adriana said that her money was on Maria for the mess in the woman's rest room, and that the nut with the razor couldn't be Emilio, because the other "Maria Conchita" was still sitting on his lap while he petted her heavily under his cape. "As for his proximity to all the crimes, Adrian, you have been just as near as he has. On top of that, remember brother, dear, he thinks he is petting me. Emilio doesn't know there has been a switch."

"What if he hasn't had that slut on his lap the whole time, Sis? Did you ever think about that?"

Mr. Grabber had returned from the rest room by this time in their conversation and was trying to get the judges to set up the costume contest during the next band break. Surprisingly, all the commotion had just fit in to the party like it had been planned. The only problem was that two of the four bathrooms were now declared police crime scenes. Adrian as "Maria the Nun" was still trying to find "Wrangler Tex" in the crowd when Mr. Grabber burst out from behind the band stand with his Zorro Gloves covered with blood. He ran up to "Maria Conchita" (Adrian) and all but dragged "her" along with the Nun back behind the stage. "I know this looks bad, but I didn't do this!" I swear I didn't!"

"Do what?" asked "Maria Conchita". Mr. Grabber used the index finger of his right blood-dripping glove to point to what appeared to be "Wrangler Tex" heaped under the stage in a pool of blood.

"I came back here to meet with the judges for the costume contest and instead I found this," confessed Mr. Grabber.

"Well it looks like we have found Maria," stated Adriana as "Maria the Nun."

"That's not Maria. It is some guy I don't even think works for the company," declared Mr. Grabber.

"How do you know that?" asked the "Nun".

"How do you think I got this blood all over me?"

"Okay, then who is going to report this crime?"

"I can't," said the "Nun". "I did the last one, I mean, I reported the last one," declared Adrian as "Maria Conchita".

"Well I can't do it. Look at me. I'm in a Zorro costume and my gloves are soaked with blood," proclaimed Mr. Grabber.

"I will go and report it." said Adrian as "Maria Conchita". You two find a corner where I can find you. Stay together and clean up your act if you can."

"Thank you Adriana, said Mr. Grabber to Adrian as "Maria Conchita". "That is two that I owe you. I won't forget you at promotion time."

On his way to get the Keystone Cops from one of the previous crime scenes, Adrian in his "Maria Conchita" costume took a spin around the ballroom looking for Emilio and the other "Maria Conchita". As he passed the telephone booth alcove, Adele as "Maria Conchita" stumbled right into her twin's path. "If that was a rape I want it again," Adele cried. "That Mr. Grabber has one whopping big sword in those tight leather pants. Have you seen him? Don't let him get away from me now."

"Are you telling me you were just raped in this phone booth?" asked Adrian as "Maria Conchita".

"It was an honor. If you found that man for me, I would kiss the ground he is standing on," proclaimed the disheveled Adele in Adriana's "Maria Conchita" costume.

"Fine, let's let the police find him. There is a body near death in the woman's rest room and a corpse in a pool of blood under the stage. If I hadn't come along maybe you would have been next."

"No way. He could have killed me any number of times not to mention that he was doing me while all that other stuff was probably happening. All he did was rape and run," observed Adele as "Maria Conchita".

"You are coming with me anyway," asserted Adrian from behind his "Maria Conchita" mask.

"I said, no way. I don't want to turn him in. I want another chance with him!" announced Adele.

Adrian left Adele still praising the prowess of her rapist and moved off towards the crime scene in the woman's rest room as several of the party's judges dashed in front of "her" to report to the police what they had found under the stage during their meeting to decide on and report out the costume contest finalists. Before "she" could make the rest room, the Keystone Cops were on the move once again, to the repeated joy and entertainment of the loaded and gassed revelers at the Company Halloween party.

Adrian found his sister the "Nun" and Mr. Grabber as a gloveless Zorro sitting quietly at a deserted table in the north corner of the huge ballroom. Everyone else was crowding around the stage to see what was going on. Just as Adrian was bringing them up to date on what had happened to Adele and her reaction to it, another woman ran in from the parking lot screaming, "RAPE, RAPE, RAPE!" at the top of her voice. The Keystone Cops just didn't know what to do. They didn't have enough troops at the site to take care of what appeared to be yet another capital crime.

Mr. Grabber told the "Nun" and "Maria Conchita" that he was leaving the party if he could. He stated that he had enough excitement for the evening and no longer cared whom one the costume contest. "Do you have a ride, girls?" asked Mr. Grabber."

"No," said Adrian as "Maria Conchita". "But, I believe Adriana (Adele) as the other Maria Conchita needs a ride. She is over by the phone booths and looking for you."

"I will go and check her out," said Mr Grabber as he moved off in the direction of the phone booths."

"This has been one crazy Halloween night, Sis. Do you want to go home?"

"I want to know what has happened to Emilio."

"Forget him, Adriana."

"I don't want to, Adrian. I still love him."

"He is a rapist, Sis!"

"You don't know that for sure, Brother, Dear. Adele could have been laid out by any number of Zorros tonight. She has been fantasizing about this party for weeks."

"How do you account for Elaine in the woman's bathroom and the citizen under the stage?"

"I think it was Maria."

"Both of them"

"Yes, she took out the citizen for his clothes so she could make her escape as one of the Zorros. What worries me is that she might still be around here looking for another victim."

"From what you told me about Maria, I wouldn't believe that she could step on a bug let alone be a serial murderess," commented Adrian as "Maria Conchita".

"Still waters run deep, Adrian. She was really hung up on Elaine. If Elaine rejected her for some reason, she might have gone over the edge."

"Well, I guess that is as good a theory as mine about Emilio. Maybe some of the raping has been Grabber as well. He gave me exactly the same look as Emilio."

"That makes sense, Adrian. They are cousins on their mother's side of the family."

"How do you know that?"

"Mr. Grabber was just telling me that when he was talking about the two Maria Conchitas and how they were both attracted to the same type of woman."

"Exactly how do you fit into that picture, Sis?" probed Adrian through his "Maria Conchita" mask.

"I have been trying to figure that out, Brother, Dear," responded Adriana as "Maria the Nun".

"Let's go home, Sis. All I know is that I don't want to be around anyone dressed as Zorro right now. For my money there are at least two of them out there with some serious grudges and sexual problems. As long as you pay for the costumes and masks, you can save your money for my date as well as the cash you promised me."

"I told you I would give you those things and you more than earned them Adrian."

"To tell you the truth, this has been one of the most interesting nights of my young life, Sis. Why don't you use the money instead to buy us a matching wardrobe so we can go to other parties as identical twins, Adriana?"

"You are too much, Brother dear. But if I do that I want you to go shopping for that wardrobe with me. After all, you have a better eye for fashion and design than I do."

"You really know how to flatter a girl, Sis," declared Adrian through his "Maria Conchita" costume and mask.

"I wonder what happened to Emilio?" asked "Maria the Nun" as they left the building and started to look for Adriana's car.

"I don't know and I hope we don't run into him."

"Are you still on his case?"

"I just know he is mixed up in all the crimes tonight and he is right up to his eyeballs in shit."

"That is not how a nice girl is supposed to talk, Maria Conchita."

"Who said I was a nice girl, Sister Maria?" questioned Adrian through his "Maria Conchita" face as the apparent two women walked casually into the parking structure where Adriana had left her car. The pair had no way of knowing that some of the concerns they were expressing in a jocular manner were about to result in the greatest personal terror of the evening. As they neared Adriana's vehicle a sword brandishing Zorro leaped out from between two parked cars in a manner that scared Adrian and Adriana out of twenty years of life between them.

"Get lost, Sister! I have no quarrel with the Holy Mother Church. I need to talk with my girl friend," hissed the sword wielding Zorro. Adriana didn't know what to do. She assumed that this Zorro was Emilio, but what if it wasn't? She didn't want to leave Adrian with some one who was emotionally out of sorts. Seeing the hesitation and the frozen behavior of the two women the Zorro lunged threateningly in their direction while swinging the sword in a meat axe fashion. "I told you to get lost, Sister!" Both "Maria Conchita" and "Maria the Nun" managed to dodge the slicing blade.

"Emilio, is the you?" asked Adrian as "Maria Conchita".

"Of course it is me you little whore. I expected you to be better than the rest. You have no idea how many women I had to rape just to keep my hands off of you and now I find you two timing me with a God Damn Lesbian Nun."

"These are only Halloween costumes, Emilio," insisted "Maria Conchita" as "she" dodged other one of Emilio's drunken lunges. "Put that sword away before you hurt yourself or someone else with it."

"Are you still here?" shouted Emilio in "Maria the Nun's" direction.

"I'm not leaving Conchita with you until you calm down."

"If you stay you will be getting whatever she gets," threatened Emilio as he took another aimless swipe with the sword and sparked it off of one of the garage's pillars. "I'm going to have to rape you just like all the other tarts and trollops."

With this the other "Maria Conchita" (Adele) and her Zorro escort (Mr. Grabber) stepped out the garage's shadows and into the scene out of a bad Disney cartoon. Seeing the other Zorro, Emilio called him out to defend the whores of the world. In self-defense, Mr. Grabber drew his sword and started to duel with Emilio, but the college fencing champion quickly dispatched his challenger. Once again Emilio turned his attention on the women. "This is going to be a real party, girls, now I have three of you to keep me happy." He pulled several lengths of rope out of a pocket in his cape. They matched the rope that had been used to bind the wrists of other "Zorro Rape" victims. Emilio threw the rope at "Maria the Nun" and told her to tie up the other two women, "Or get set to join the hero that is already laying dead on the concrete."

"You don't have to tie me up, Zorro, Honey," said Adele through her "Maria Conchita" costume. "You can do me anyway you want."

"Then you will be there first to taste the purity of my vengeance!" proclaimed Emilio as the mad, sex crazed "Zorro". "Not even my moralistic cousin is alive to cover for me now. The murderer is dead, only Zorro the Purifier remains!"

Yet another Zorro (Maria) stepped out of the darkness and sunk her already bloody sword deep into Emilio's chest. From the angle of the entry it looked like Emilio had run himself through out of frustrated desperation. "Go! Get away from here as fast as you can. You were the only woman to ever take care of me. I am glad I was able to protect you, now go!" yelled Maria from behind her Zorro Mask.

"Who are you?" asked Adriana from behind her "Nun" mask."

"Just call me Zorro for now. All will be clear by tomorrow."

"You helped us, let us help you," said "Maria Conchita" (Adrian).

"You have helped enough already," stated the newly arrived Zorro.

"Let us help you make your escape," suggested the other "Maria Conchita" (Adele).

"I deserve to die. I had to kill the love of my life tonight," lamented the Zorro who had saved them from Emilio's torture.

"What are you talking about?" probed Adrian as "Maria Conchita".

"I killed her in the bathroom after we swapped costumes and she rejected me as her lover," confessed the person masked as Zorro while picking up Emilio's blade.

"If it is Elaine you are talking about, she isn't dead," informed "Maria Conchita".

"You know that for a fact?"

"Yes they took her to the hospital," confirmed Adriana as "Maria the Nun".

"Let us get you out of here. We can straighten all of this out later," said Adele as the other "Maria Conchita".

"But what about the guy I just killed?" asked Maria as Zorro.

"What guy?" asked the "Nun". "Did you see a dead guy Conchita?"

"No I don't", responded both "Maria Conchitas".

"You mean the three of you can't see that guy with the sword stuck through him next to that other dead guy?"

"All I see is a very realistic Halloween decoration laying lifeless upon the ground," softly declared Adrian as "Maria Conchita". "What do you see, Sister Maria?"

"I agree that it is incredibly realistic. I guess the trick and treating is over for the year. Let's take Zorro and Maria Conchita home."

They all piled into Adriana's car. Adrian as one of the "Maria Conchitas" was the designated driver. "She" maneuvered the automobile to the structure's exit before the crowd from the dance started entering the garage and the scene of two dead Zorros. "Do you think that Grabber and Emilio were the murdering and raping Zorros?" asked Adele through "Maria Conchita" mask once they were away from the party site.

"I don't know." answered Adriana as the "Maria the Nun".

"I think we should take off our masks," said Maria as she reached for the back of her Zorro mask.

"Stop that!" ordered Adrian as the original "Maria Conchita". "Look, right now if I were asked if I knew positively who did what and to whom, I can say that I didn't know for sure because we are all masked. I am not even sure who all just got very dead. Therefore, let's keep our costumes on until we part company for the evening."

"That sounds like a plan," seconded "Maria the Nun". "In fact, I think we ought to get out of the car in places where we don't live just to blur the confusion further."

"But what if we need each other as alibis?" asked Maria as "Zorro".

"All I know is that I started the evening with three women and a man tonight, and from what I can see now, I am still with three women and a man," answered "Maria the Nun".

"That works for me," commented Adrian as one of the "Maria Conchitas".

"Me too," observed Adele as the other "Maria Conchita".

"Then that will be our story if we our questioned?" asked the "Zorro" in the back seat of the car.

"That's our story," confirmed "Maria the Nun". "I'm glad that Halloween only comes once a year."

"I wish it came once a week," commented Adrian from behind his masked as he stopped to let the Zorro out on the corner. Miles further down the road he let Adele as "Maria Conchita" off in front of an all night donut shop.

As Adrian got onto the freeway that would take Adriana to her apartment, she took off her "Maria the Nun" mask and asked, "Do you think the Zorro Terrors are over?"

"I hope so, Adriana, but I don't think I will feel comfortable around anyone in a Zorro costume for the rest of my life."

“All of a sudden I feel really tired from the night's excitement and terror. To be honest I feel really bad about both Emilio and Mr. Grabber," said Adriana.

"I don't, Adriana." declared Adrian while still in his "Maria Conchita" costume. I like to think that the just spirit of Zorro got its revenge by seeing that they met their end tonight. I think they were competing with each other in some nasty game of rape and murder. Each one was trying to top the other and lay the whole thing off on the image of Zorro. I bet that the Keystone Cops come up with a theory like that as well."

"Happy Halloween Maria Conchita. Did I tell you that it has been fun having a sister to share this adventure with?" asked Adriana.

"No, but I have enjoyed being your sister, Sis," stated Adrian through his mask. "Happy Halloween to you too. I can't wait to see what your plans are for next year. It is going to be hard to top this one." He then drove the "Nun" back to her apartment and went home for a good night's sleep in his "Maria Conchita" costume. After all it had been the perfect scary, masked Halloween full of terror, evil and mayhem that for the moment, seemed to have turned out for the best. Tomorrow Adrian would start looking for a guy that deserved his sister and a girlfriend for him that loved masking as much as Adriana did.