April 2, 2022
Dearest Lou,
I miss you so very much. Seeing you on Saturday only made me love you more. Did you get the $300 I put into your account before I left? To think that you are locked in that teeny tiny cell all alone keeps me up all night. My only solace is knowing I can visit you every weekend, even if it takes me 8 hours to drive to see you. I have enclosed the photo you requested of me and my daughter, Betsy. Have they accepted your request for a retrial? I know you are innocent of killing those girls. My Lou would never hurt anyone. I long to feel your arms around me. One day we will be living in my trailer on the beach, overlooking the stars, just you, me, my 4 kids, and 3 cats. One big happy family. Please write back soon. I have enclosed a lock of hair for you.
Love,
Cindy
***
April 3, 2022
Dearest Cindy,
I miss you even more. I remember the first time I looked into your eyes; I felt my entire world shift. Seeing you Saturday made me love you more than you could possibly know. I dream of you day and night. I dream of cooking you and your children dinner. Thank you for the photo of you and Betsy. I have it hung on my wall next to my bed where I can see it every night before I go to bed. Could you bring her to visit with you the next time you come??? I would love to see her too. She is a mirror image of you, only younger. I can’t wait to live with you on the beach. We will be married and live long lives together. I will get a great job and you will never have to work again. You can go to the beach every day, and I will take care of the kids and do all the chores. I’ll hold you every night as we stare at the stars. I will be out soon. They say my retrial should be granted any day. Everyone knows I didn’t kill those girls. I would never hurt anyone. Not even a fly. Yes, I did receive the money. It will be the first amount of money I have gotten in years. I will finally be able to buy some food other than the slop they try to feed us. When you come next week, could you send $300 more?
Love,
Lou
***
April 4, 2022
Dearest Louie,
How is my smoochie poochie woochie? You looked so hot on Sunday, even in your prison clothes. I wanted to rip your jumpsuit off and pounce on you- if only the guards let us touch. I put in two pictures of me. One in a bikini and one in my high school graduation dress. When you get out, where should we get married? I want a big wedding. 200 people at least. Should we do a destination wedding? Maybe a rustic barn? How many kids do you want? I want at least 3. Maybe 4. You will make a great father one day. Did you speak with your lawyer about having the execution overturned? Someone is going to rot in hell for putting you in there. I can’t sleep at night knowing a murderer of young girls is still on the loose. I need you here to protect me.
Yours Forever and Always,
Tammy
P.S. I deposited $250 in your account before I left. I stole it from my father’s drawer. Did you get it?
***
April 5, 2022
Dearest Tammy,
Your smoochie poochie is missing his woochie poochie terribly. I remember the first time I looked into your eyes; I felt my entire world shift. You smelled like heaven on Sunday. So good, I could eat you. Thank you for the photos. I have them hung on my wall next to my bed where I can see you every night before I go to bed. Let’s have 300 people at our wedding. No 400 people. We could get married at a rustic barn ON a beach. Wherever my baby wants. I would love to have children with you. 3, 4, 5, 6, 7. The more the merrier. If they look like you, they will be blessed. We will be married and live long lives together. I will get a great job and you will never have to work again. My lawyer says it should be easy to overturn it. Everyone knows I am innocent. I should be out soon and will hold you tight every night until that murderer is found. I’ll even hunt for him myself and as soon as I find him, I will kill him so you will never have to feel unsafe again.
Yours Forever and Always,
Louie
P.S. I did get the money-thank you so very much as I have not had any money in that account in years. I will finally be able to buy some food other than the slop they try to feed us. Could you try to send in $200 more? Maybe try your mom’s purse?
***
April 6, 2022
Dear Lou,
You don’t know me, but my name is Carol. I saw your trial all over the news and couldn’t help but notice how handsome you were. Your puppy dog eyes, and big smile couldn’t possibly be the face of a killer. I want to let you know that I am single and very beautiful- I have enclosed a photo of me in this letter. I would love to have a correspondence with you if that is something you would be interested in. I don’t normally do things like this, but just felt a connection towards you like we were meant to be in touch.
Sincerely,
Rebecca
***
April 7, 2022
Dear Rebecca,
Looking at your picture, I see you are the most beautiful woman I have ever had the pleasure of looking at. The first time I looked into your eyes in the photo, I felt my entire world shift. I have it hung on my wall next to my bed where I can see it every night before I go to bed. I feel like this was meant to be also. I am so lonely here. No one writes. No one visits. Would you want to visit me? I would love to see you. Where do you live? I should be out soon. Everyone knows I am innocent. It’s only a matter of time before the court grants me a release. When I get out, we can go on a proper date. Where would you like me to take you? I will get a great job and you will never have to work again. Would you be able to send in any money towards my account since I have not had anything in there for years? This would allow me to buy food other than the slop they try to feed us. Any amount would be much appreciated.
Sincerely,
Lou
***
April 8, 2022
Dear Loubear,
I am so sorry I couldn’t see you this weekend. My kid’s dad was supposed to come get her for the weekend, but his beatass didn’t show up and then my mom wouldn’t take her. I was so sad thinking of you all weekend waiting for me, and you had no visitors. I put in this photo of me. Sorry it's not great, my kid took it. But it’s the best I could do for you. I wish I had a photo of you. I cut out all the magazine clippings and have them hung in my room. Just the photos of you of course. Not the lies about you. My seven-year-old, Destiny, is already calling you her step daddy. How about that? Would you like her to visit next time if I can’t get anyone to watch her? I deposited $100 into your account. I’m sorry it’s not more, but we are so strapped for money. Are you doing ok?
Love You More,
Crystal
***
April 9, 2022
Dear Crystalbear,
I missed you this weekend. I was so lonely. I remember the first time I looked into your eyes; I felt my entire world shift. Thank you for the photo. I have it hung on my wall next to my bed where I can see you every night before I go to bed. I would love for Destiny to visit. Can you send a photo of her too with your next letter? I wish you had a photo of me too, but I will be out soon enough, and you will have the real thing. We will be married and live long lives together. I will get a great job and you will never have to work again. Thank you for the money, any little bit helps. It will be the first money I have gotten in years. I will finally be able to buy some food other than the slop they try to feed us. Next week, can you try to send in some more money? $50? Even $20 would help. Whatever you have.
Love You More,
Loubear
***
April 10, 2022
Lou Lou,
I saw on the news that your execution was moved to Monday?!? I thought you were getting it overturned. I am trying to book a flight to come visit you, but they are so expensive, I don’t know how I will afford it. I sent in $200 to your account last week which was the last of my savings since I have been depositing $200 a week since I met you. Did you get it? I need to see you before Monday-I am in a panic. You haven’t called in a week. Please write back soon. I have enclosed another photo of me and my niece like you requested. I love that you want to get to know my family. Please write or call back as soon as you can. I am so terribly worried about you.
Your Soulmate,
Tiffany
***
April 11, 2022
Tiff Tiff,
Don’t believe what you read. I will be out soon – I won’t be executed. They can’t execute an innocent man. I remember the first time I looked into your eyes; I felt my entire world shift. Thank you for the photos. I have them hung on my wall next to my bed where I can see you every night before I go to bed. Thank you for the money, any little bit helps. I will finally be able to buy some food other than the slop they try to feed us. I would rather you send the money and not visit me since I will be out so soon. Could you spare $100 more? Even $50 would help. Where would you like me to take you on vacation when I get out? Paris? Italy? Bora Bora? You start planning sometime before Christmas. We will be married and live long lives together. I will get a great job and you will never have to work again.
Your Soulmate,
Lou Lou
Breaking News: April 13, 2022-- Convicted serial killer Louis Alfred Monkford, who was sent to prison in 2001 and denied responsibility for dozens of murders of young girls across the country, was executed Monday in Texas.
Monkford, 49, declined to make final remarks before his death, then took a few breaths, closed his eyes, and began to snore as the lethal-injection drugs took effect, The Lexington Press reported. He soon stopped moving and was pronounced dead 11 minutes later at 5:17 p.m. CT.
You must sign up or log in to submit a comment.
62 comments
I really enjoyed reading your story, Kathleen! Beautifully written and a great take on the the topic. Looking forward to more of your stories
Reply
Thanks so much Sonia!
Reply
I like reading the epistolary style generally and this was particularly fun when you played with the concept of the "form" love letter. You dropped in some really fun, occasionally revealing gems ("You smelled like heaven on Sunday. So good, I could eat you.").
Reply
Thanks LM!
Reply
Really interesting subject matter and very well written. I've always been fascinated by relationships started whilst one is in prison.
Reply
Thanks HJ!
Reply
Despite the circumstances, funny story. It would be an interesting novel or novella at some point. And the twists if all the women show up once he's exonerated, if he is. Best of luck in the competition.
Reply
Thanks Larry!
Reply
This story was really interesting and fit the prompt well. One thing, which I'm not sure if it is intentional or not, is that in Rebecca's letter, she first calls herself Carol. Otherwise, a really good story and it was neat to see how, depending on the woman, he would change the sort of nickname he used... it was also super creepy how he asked for pictures of their young children, contributing to the idea that he really was a killer. Keep writing! :)
Reply
Thanks for pointing that out- I always miss my mistakes!
Reply
We all do, no worries!
Reply
Certainly questionable morals lol! Very enjoyable!
Reply
Thanks Kendra!
Reply
Stands up to clap. This is a victory.
Reply
Thanks so much Tommy!
Reply
Sidebar: did your news feed catch the guy that was in solitary confinement for 46 years? Turns out he was innocent the whole time. He taught people to read and write in prison when he wasn't in solitary confinement. He finally gets released... Meets the woman that has loved him for years by letters etc... And then he dies of cancer in like 11 months. (It gave me a new perspective about the entirety of loving a prisoner ).
Reply
Wow--such a sad story! I am anti-death penalty personally-I think rotting in prison is punishment enough, and it is scary that there are people who are locked up and innocent. One of my favorite movies is called, The Life of David Gale--I highly recommend if you haven't seen it!
Reply
When I read this story, I felt my entire world shift :) It's funny, and sad. Funny for the letters, sad for the women that fall for them. And unsettling too – the interest in their daughters coupled with what he's accused of indicates a total lack of remorse. Perhaps he knew he wasn't ever getting out, so he doubled down on the grift. His letters remind me of any kind of marketing correspondence, or even the various scam letters going around. It looks like he's doing pretty well financially, maybe even better than most jobs. Considering ...
Reply
Thank you for finding that Michal-I corrected it:) Yes, He has plenty of time to keep track of his women-that's probably all he does all day!:)
Reply
Congratulations on the shortlist!
Reply
Cool approach to this prompt Kathleen. You revealed a master manipulator. I enjoyed this! Thanks, -Ron
Reply
Thanks Ron!
Reply