Elegant Black

by M. L. Bullock

  I flipped open the folder quickly and pulled the pictures out. “This is Maggie Travis. This is Amber Freidmiller. This is Sarah Jackson. Did Reynolds tell you about any of these women? There are more, but I don’t have pictures of them all. You know what they have in common?”

  Loomis rose from his chair; obviously, this meeting was about to come to an end. I continued hurriedly, “I can tell you what they have in common. Not skin tone, not hair color, not eye color. Not body types, not education, not anything except they all attended or had family members who attended a Black Knights concert.” I leaned back in my chair with a satisfied expression on my face. I thought for sure this guy would get it. Why was I the only one who got it? My hopes were quickly dashed.

  He shook his head, the dark curls around his forehead bouncing slightly. “Mr. Coleman, I appreciate your time and your willingness to help, but I think you need to go back to your newsroom and let the professionals work these cases.”

  “I can’t believe this. I give you a story so big that it would automatically put you in line for detective and you want to push me out the door? I’m telling you the truth! Something is going on at these concerts, something involving blood loss or sacrifice or God only knows what.”

  “Sir, that is enough. I really think you should leave.”

  I stared at the guy like he had two heads. “There’s no way Wallace killed these girls. He doesn’t even fit the profile and you know that. I thought you guys were all about profiling these psychos.”

  “Goodbye, Mr. Coleman.” The officer walked out of the tiny room and slammed the door behind him. I was infuriated, but I wasn’t ready to give up. People were dying. This was really happening. Swearing quietly, I grabbed my folder, stuffed it back in my briefcase and hotfooted it out of the police station. The rain began to fall, just sprinkles at first, but by the looks of the sky it was going to become a downpour. I raced across the street to McGinty’s Deli and claimed a table near the window. The police might not be interested in the information I had, but I could guarantee Levi Wallace would be.

  I could wait. But if I had any hope of saving the next girl, I didn’t have long.

  Chapter Twelve—Levi

  One of the officers offered to give me a ride home, but after spending all day with those guys, I wasn’t really in the mood to hang out with more cops. It sickened me to know that anyone could believe I’d killed my sister or harmed Lisa in any way. My mind turned over that weird experience with the Creep on the bus, him staring at my mother from the street, someone (surely him, right?) breaking into Deb’s room. Why weren’t they after him? Even as I pondered that, I knew what they believed—that the Creep was a figment of my imagination, evidence of some kind of psychosis. In fact, Reynolds encouraged me to see a shrink; they’d even provide one for free. Yeah, right. That guy wanted to do nothing more than put a noose around my neck. Meantime, Lisa was out there somewhere! The cops had taken Naomi home hours ago, and no doubt she had no problem leaving me behind. She probably believed that I murdered Debbie. God, I wanted to die. A kind of darkness fell on me, the kind that probed at my mind, that encouraged me to give up, but I couldn’t. Not yet. Twenty blocks to my house? It was well past dark, probably eight or nine o’clock, but I looked forward to the walk. I had so much to think about and all of it horrible.

  Debbie! I let you down, little sister. I wish it had been me.

  “Debbie!”

  I paused on the sidewalk, but nothing stirred and no one was out except a garbage truck that rolled by and left a smelly trail in its wake. Who could be calling for Debbie? I mean, I knew there were hundreds of people named Debbie in the tristate area, but just when I thought about her, just when I spoke to her…Who was that? I turned around awkwardly but still couldn’t see anyone. Not a single soul. Which was also weird. I kept walking. The one person who depended on me, the one person who needed me. I let her down, and now she was dead. I would never forget the image of my sister’s pale face, her body lying perfectly still on the gurney.

  Those few seconds, waiting for the sheet to move, I believed I would see her breathing, the rise and fall of her chest; that maybe she would get up and say, “Ha ha, Levi! Gotcha!” It felt wrong to leave the police station without her. I would have to talk to Naomi about the arrangements; I couldn’t do this by myself. I’d been so immersed in my thoughts that I didn’t immediately notice the car that rolled along beside me slowly. Clearly this guy wasn’t a good detective; after trailing me for half a block, he sailed past me and sloppily slung the vehicle into an empty parking spot and cut its lights off. The guy who got out of the car was undoubtedly not a cop. He wore a rumpled pale blue suit and a goofy hat.

  “You’re a fast walker! Levi Wallace?”

  “Who’s asking?” I asked defensively.

  The guy with the goofy hat flashed an equally goofy smile. “I am. My name is Charles Coleman. I work for the Tristate Free Press. I’d like to talk to you, if I may.”

  “If you’re hoping to get a confession out of me, you’re wasting your time. I didn’t hurt my sister or Lisa. If you want to do something constructive, tell those damn cops to look for her. That’s what I plan to do!”

  Up until I said it, I hadn’t realized exactly what I was going to do. Now I knew—I was going to find Lisa. Come hell or high water, with or without anyone’s help. I lost Debbie, and I couldn’t lose Lisa too. As long as she wasn’t lying on a gurney in that morgue, there was a chance. Yes! There was a chance! I felt my heart racing at the thought of grabbing the Creep by the neck and strangling him to death. Could I do that? Could I really kill someone? Hell yeah. At least I thought I could. For her I could.

  “I’m not looking for a confession, Levi. I know you didn’t kill your sister or anyone else. Those bozos at the Eugene Springs PD are amateurs. They aren’t equipped to deal with any of this.”

  Debbie…

  I heard that voice again, not with my ears this time but with my head. How was that possible? I glanced around nervously.

  Coleman didn’t miss a beat. He kept talking excitedly, “As a matter of fact, I have information that I think you will find helpful in your search for Lisa. If that’s really what you want to do. You should know, it’s not going to be easy. She’s in real danger, I’m afraid. Could we go somewhere and talk?”

  This was the first person who hadn’t treated me like a criminal. That was refreshing, but I really wanted to check on Naomi. It was entirely possible that the Creep posed a threat to her too. “I need to get home and check on my mother.”

  “I’ll be glad to give you a ride. Listen, Levi, I’m not some lunatic. I really am a reporter, and I really do want to help you. There’s a common thread that you don’t know about, but you should.”

  Suddenly, the idea of catching a ride sounded great. That freaky voice calling for Debbie had my hackles up, and I was bone-tired. Not that I’d be able to sleep, not without closing my eyes and seeing my sister dead on that cold silver tray. Walking twenty blocks was going to take forever.

  “Fine, but just a ride. I’ve got to get home.”

  “Great.” The guy shook my hand like we made some sort of deal, and I got in the car. I rolled up the passenger window and stared out the dirty glass at the streets that flew by me.

  “I’m sorry about your sister, Levi. I’m sure she was a lovely young lady.”

  “Thanks,” I said, wishing I didn’t have to talk to this guy at all. But while I was here, I might as well learn something. “You said something about having some information for me?”

  “Okay, well, I’ll get right to it. Pardon me if I seem tactless, but you don’t have a lot of time to find Miss Dance. I’ve been following a series of murders that stretch along the coast. Horrific deaths involving blood loss and, in some cases, torture.”

  What was he telling me? “Are you saying a serial killer murdered my sister? That he tortured her?”

  “In a way, you see, and this is where I tend to lose people. I have found five deaths
with similar MOs as your sister’s. Blood loss, puncture wounds in the neck. Contusions on the wrists, like they were bound…”

  “Stop the car.” My head reeled and my stomach flipped.

  “I’m sorry to tell you this. I would have thought the police would have mentioned it, but I guess not. Please, I have more to tell you.”

  “Pull over or I’m going to puke in your car.”

  Quick as lightning, Coleman pulled the car to the curb between two vehicles, and I opened the door and staggered out. Just as promised, I vomited, narrowly missing his car and making quite a mess in the street.

  “Hey, man! Take your drunk ass home!” a man called from the window above the sidewalk I’d just decorated with puke.

  Coleman waited, but I wasn’t sure I wanted to get back in. You’ve got to, Levi. You have to know.

  I got back in the car feeling better but still kinda sick. He handed me a napkin, and I wiped my face with it. God, that was disgusting.

  “Sorry. I told you I was tactless. Skipping the details, then…there are other victims, Levi. They don’t all look the same, they aren’t all A students like Debbie was, but they were all young and…” I waited as he adjusted his rearview mirror. “I was afraid of that. Someone is following us.”

  “Who would follow us? The cops?”

  “Maybe. I don’t know. Tell me, were Lisa and Debbie fans of the Black Knights?”

  I looked at him then, surprised. “Why are you asking?”

  “Because that’s the common thread. Every one of those girls went to a Black Knights concert or knew someone who did. A close relative, too, not a friend of a friend. Were they fans?”

  “We all were—I mean, are—but I had the tickets. I won them from the radio station. Only I didn’t get to go. I had to work, so I gave Lisa her ticket, and I’m pretty sure my coworker stole mine. I couldn’t get in.”

  “Interesting,” he said as he pulled the car over and stared at his side mirror. “Hand me that camera. It’s on the back seat.”

  I reached back and grabbed the heavy camera. Coleman gripped it and hopped out of the car with the clunky black thing. Sure enough, we’d been followed, but it didn’t look like a cop car. That car was too black, too sporty to belong to a cop. Coleman’s camera clicked, and the bulb flashed as the black car raced past dangerously close to us.

  “Who the hell was that?” I asked as my heart pounded and pulse raced.

  “Somebody who doesn’t like the fact that I’m talking to you, but I think I got a picture. Let’s hope it turns out. Anyway, I’d like to talk to you more.” He dug in his pocket and handed me a business card as he put the camera on the back seat again. “Call me tomorrow. I’ll meet you wherever you like. For now, I think I should take you home.”

  “Yeah, okay.” Although I was intrigued, I didn’t argue with him. My vomiting spell had left me weak, and sickness threatened to hit me again. “It’s just a few streets over.”

  As promised, Coleman took me home and drove off without waiting for me to get inside. What did I expect? I wasn’t some helpless teenage girl. I could manage to get inside by myself. I didn’t see any black cars on my street, and the Creep wasn’t hanging around. Mrs. Sherman poked her head out briefly and then slammed it when she saw me. I raced up the steps and went inside.

  Naomi was waiting for me at the kitchen table, and she wasn’t alone. Jackie Dean was with her, and he guiltily withdrew his hand when he heard the door slam. What the hell was going on with those two? Don’t think about it, dude. You can’t get sick again today.

  “Levi! Thank God!” Naomi ran to me, sobbed on my shoulder and held me close for a few seconds. I tried not to respond, not to soften to her, but this was an exceptional day. “I tried calling but they said you had gone but I didn’t know where but at least you’re here now. Are you okay?”

  “What about Dad? Have you talked to him?” I glanced at Jackie, whom I hadn’t yet acknowledged.

  “Of course I have tried, but he’s not answering. I don’t expect much from him.”

  Jackie cleared his throat. “I better get going. I’m sorry about Debbie, Levi. She was a sweet girl. If either one of you need me, call me.” He slid his denim jacket on and showed himself out.

  Naomi called to him, “Thanks, Jackson.”

  “So, what the hell is going on with you two?”

  “Levi, really. Do you want to fight with me right now? We have to talk about Debbie.”

  “I’m done talking for today. I’m talked out, Naomi.”

  “Mom, it’s Mom. Remember? We only have each other now. Please, Levi. Don’t shut me out anymore. If you do, I don’t think I can do this.”

  I eyed the bottle of pills on the counter. “Sure you can. Just do like you normally do. Pop a magic pill, Naomi. It will make this all go away.” I don’t know why I said it, I guess because I was hurting and mad and confused, but it was a dick move. I could see the hurt in her eyes, and it made me feel good to know that I inflicted it. I was both ashamed and empowered by it. “Just don’t take too many.”

  Her dark blond hair shivered around her face as she cried, but I didn’t offer her any hugs. I didn’t offer her anything at all.

  I went upstairs to pass out.

  Chapter Thirteen—Levi

  I had the dream again.

  A bright spotlight shone on me, and I had to hold up my hand to shield my eyes for a few seconds. Just beyond the light there were many people. I could hear them whispering excitedly. Only I wasn’t alone on the stage. A girl stood beside me, tall and slender. She had tanned skin and held a silver microphone in her hand. The light was so bright that I could see details like her glittery polished fingernails, the silver hoops in her ears and the mole on her chest that peeked out above her halter top. She whimpered and glanced at me with frightened eyes.

  “What am I doing here?” she asked me, but I had no answer for her. I felt the weight of a guitar strap on my neck, and I had a guitar in my hand. My guitar, Lizzie. I shifted it, thinking I would drop it and run, but the crowd beyond began to clap. Thunderous applause rolled over me, like a living ocean of love. Unseen musicians began to play behind us. I knew this song! This was Black Bird, one of the Black Knights’ greatest hits and until recently my favorite BK tune.

  I suddenly felt hot, and a force I did not understand pressed against my body. I knew what the force wanted, it wanted me to play. And I did. In real life this wasn’t my strongest song, I always mucked up the beginning riff, always hurried the chords, but tonight was different. I nailed the opening and the girl beside me began to sing, her eyes still wide and frightened. I guessed that she too was under the control of the invisible force that demanded our performance. As the stranger beside me sang the haunting lyrics, I nailed note after note. This song was exactly five minutes long—I knew that because I’d played it and practiced it so many times—but the five minutes felt like an eternity. While the girl sang, tears streamed down her face. I wanted with all my heart to help her, but I couldn’t do anything except play Lizzie like my own life depended on it. Maybe it did.

  The cheering crowd offered a seemingly endless supply of jubilation. We stood for ten minutes, fifteen minutes, who knew how long under that white light when I spotted a man walking toward us. With the white light behind him, it was difficult to see his face until he got very close. And when I could see him, I could barely believe it. This was Jax Staff, from the band Urgent. Jax Staff was in my dream! He smiled down at both of us and clapped as he looked at the girl and then at me. He had blond hair, wild blond hair that feathered around his face. He was muscular and strangely attractive. I shrugged that thought away. I wasn’t the kind of guy that found other guys attractive. What was wrong with me? I clutched the guitar like it was a life preserver.

  “Welcome, Levi and Vanessa, welcome to the Frenzy!”

  The invisible crowd cheered as Jax strutted between us and encouraged them to show their appreciation for our unwilling concert. “Such talent,” he said as he t
ook my hand in his and raised it above my head. His grip felt icy cold and made me shiver. Thankfully, he released me quickly. “Such beauty,” he said to Vanessa.

  “And that is your choice, ladies and gentlemen. What will it be tonight? Talent or beauty? Such a tough decision, isn’t it?” The crowd roared again, but then voices rang out. Raspy, awful voices. Some frightening voices screamed, “Talent!” while others cried, “Beauty, give us Beauty!”

  “Beauty it is, and good choice. Tonight’s talent is a Sustainer. It would be a shame to sacrifice such a valuable creature. Now, Vanessa, it appears you are the winner. Any words to share? Anyone you want to thank? It’s always good to remember the little people.”

  Vanessa’s dark eyes were full of tears as she shook her head. Jax took her microphone and held her hand as he led her to the end of the stage. I supposed it was the end of the stage. I couldn’t see beyond the white light, but I knew that horrible things were there. Horrible things with awful voices.

  No! I shouted in my mind, but no words would come out. I could do nothing for her.

  “Now, my lovelies, gather yourselves together. Yes, come closer. You’re oh so hungry for Beauty, aren’t you?” At this point, Vanessa began to scream. Her legs kicked, but Jax had her by the back of her hair now. He laughed at the sight and glanced back at me as I watched in horror. I still couldn’t move. Whatever invisible force held me earlier still had an evil grip on me.

  “No! Help me!” she screamed as the gathering moved toward the edge of the stage. I still couldn’t see them, but their terrible eyes glittered in the light, like several hundred animals were caught in a spotlight. Then with a savage push, Jax shoved her into the horde and the girl’s feet disappeared in a sea of limbs. An orchestra began to play ominous music behind me, but it wasn’t enough to cover up those awful strangled sounds, the moaning and groaning of a hundred animals as they ripped Vanessa apart.

  And I woke screaming. But only for the briefest of seconds.