by Rusty Kontos
have been a crisp fall day, it felt like hot, humid weather to the owner.
“Your name, sir?” The Sergeant asked.
“Pete Edwards. I am the owner of this place.” He answered as his voice cracked a little.
“What happened here? Who is the deceased?” He asked.
“I don’t really know. Candy Blake is the woman’s name. I was raking leaves when her friend came running up to me telling me that she found Candy dead.” Pete said with a shaken voice.
“Have you been inside?” the Sergeant asked.
“No sir, I called you guys and thought it would be best just to wait out here for you.” Pete explained.
“I better take a look. Maybe she isn’t dead.” the Sergeant said as he started to go inside. Three other deputies who had arrived on the scene with him followed him inside.
“Hey, Sarge, there’s a bunch of pickles in the sink. Why would that be?” He asked in wonder as he stared at the pile of pickles in the sink.
“How am I supposed to know, maybe she was canning. Now, let’s take a look at the body and see if we can piece together what happened, shall we?” the Sergeant said, starting to become impatient with the young deputy. They made their way through the tiny well-kept cabin to the bedroom.
The Sergeant’s stomach lurched as he stood in the bedroom doorway. His eyes widened at the bloody horror scene. He felt paralyzed for a moment. He forced himself to move closer to the blood-soaked bed with Candy’s mutilated body. The young deputy who was behind him turned around and ran outside to vomit. The other two deputies, who were more experienced, gagged a little, but forced themselves to keep control.
“My God, what kind of an animal could do something like this?” Parks said, with anger in his voice. “Davis, go back to your car and put in a call to Dr. Fuller. He needs to take a look at this.” Parks said, shaking his head in disbelief at what he was seeing.
“Yes, sir,” Deputy Davis answered, relieved just to be getting to the fresh air outside.
“Jameson, check out the bathroom. See if that butcher who did this left anything behind.” Parks ordered Deputy Jameson.
Jameson went into the bathroom. “Hey Sarge, take a look at this,” he called out to Sergeant Parks. Parks stood in the bathroom doorway. “Looks like he took a bath.” Jameson told Parks as he pointed to the tub full of water, a bloodstained towel, and a washcloth draped over the sink. He then noticed the blood-soaked towels in the corner on the floor, next to the toilet.
“Don’t touch a thing. Let’s just get the hell out of here until the doctor gets here. We’ll come back after the body is removed. Then I want prints of everything. I will go and talk to the woman that found her. You and the others check the grounds.” Parks said as he turned to leave the crime scene.
As they exited the cabin, they saw the young deputy leaning against a tree looking pale, sickly, and embarrassed. Sergeant Parks walked over to him, putting one hand on the young deputy’s shoulder.
“Don’t feel bad, son. It is hard the first time. It was all I could do not to follow you outside and lose my lunch too.”
“But you didn’t, sir,” the deputy replied with his head down, filled with shame.
“You know, I have been on the job for twenty years. I have seen dead bodies from car wrecks on the highways and accidental shootings from hunters. Never in all my years have I ever seen such a gruesome slaughter of a body like this one. I’m going to have nightmares for weeks,” the Sergeant
sighed.
“You, sir?” the Deputy asked, surprised at his admission.
“Yes, I’m just a guy just like you. I cannot tell you that you will never see anything like this again. I do not know. I hope you never do. Nevertheless, if you
do, just try to keep control of your feelings and put all of your focus into finding the person or persons responsible for the crime, and put that person away so they can’t ever do it again. Look, why don’t you go and assist Davis and Jameson and search for this mad man. He may have left something behind so we can find him.”
“I’ll get right on it. Thanks, Sarge,” the young deputy said trying to put a little smile on his face.
“Thanks for what?” He replied.
“You know, for trying to make me feel better.”
“Well, did it help?” Parks asked, giving him a friendly smile.
“Yes, it helped a lot,” the deputy replied.
“Good, now get to work. I want this son of a bitch. I want him before he does this again. I need to go up to the house and interview that poor woman that found her. Make sure you come and get me when the doctor gets here,” he told the young Deputy as he started walking toward the Edward’s house.
“Yes sir, I will let you know right away,” he replied.
Sergeant Parks walked up to the house where he found Lilly sobbing out of control. She was sitting on
the sofa next to Mrs. Edwards. Her head buried on Mrs. Edward’s shoulder as she was being held in her arms, stroking Lilly’s hair, trying to calm her down.
“Lilly dear, the police officer is here. He needs to talk to you, dear.” Mrs. Edwards quietly said.
Parks kneeled down on one knee in front of them. He softly asked, “Lilly, I need to talk to you. First, I want to tell you I am deeply sorry for your loss of your friend. I need to ask you a few questions. Please try to answer them if you can. These questions are very important. It may help us in finding out who could have done this terrible thing.”
Lilly sat upright, wiping her eyes, trying to hold back the tears as she spoke in a choked voice. “I, I, will t.t...try,” Lilly stammered.
“Do you know of anyone who would want to harm Miss Blake?” Parks asked.
“No, everyone liked Candy,” she answered as she
tried to control her sobs.
“That’s right Officer, Candy was a sweet, kind, caring person. She lived here for nearly six years and she never brought any men friends home,” Mrs. Edwards said before Parks could ask his next question.
“Have you noticed any strangers watching her? Or maybe someone overly interested in her lately?”
“Well, there was this one man. But I don’t think he could have done this,” Lilly said thoughtfully. “He wanted her to go dancing with him, but Candy turned
him down.”
“How did he take her turning him down?” Parks asked, showing a real interest in her answer.
“Like a real gentleman.”
“Did Miss Blake give the man her address?” Parks asked.
“No, she would never do that with someone she didn’t know.” Lilly said firmly.
“Well, maybe he was waiting in the parking lot and followed you home.”
“No, the man left at least thirty minutes before we got off work. The parking lot was empty except for the big moving truck,” she said remembering the night before. “We were alone on the highway. I never saw any other cars that night.” Lilly said in a confident voice.
Parks started to ask her another question when he was interrupted by a knock at the back door. It was the young deputy. He called to Parks through the screen door. “Sergeant Parks, sir, the Coroner is here.”
“Thank you, tell him I will be right there.” Parks called out to him as he turned back to Lilly. He added, “Look if you think of anything else, just let me know. You can call me at this number later today.” Parks said as he handed her a card with his name and number on it. He squeezed her hand gently and headed for the door.
As he approached cabin seven, he saw Deputy Davis leaning on the Coroner’s black hearse “The doc’s inside, Sarge. He said for you to go on in when you got here.”
“Thanks Davis.” Parks said as he went toward the porch.
“Do I have to go in with you, Sarge?” Davis asked, hoping he would say no.
“No, you stay out here and make sure no one tries to cross the perimeter.” Parks instructed him.
“Yes sir.” Davis said with a look of relief on his face.
&nb
sp; Parks entered the cabin. “Ah, you’re here,” the
Coroner said as he looked up from Candy’s body to see Parks standing in the doorway.
“Yep,” Parks answered with a squeamish look on his face. He watched the doctor with his hand feeling around inside Candy’s stomach.
“Grab a pair of gloves from my bag over there. I need a hand laying her flat on the bed,” the doctor instructed him. “This is the darndest thing I have ever seen. Her heart is gone,” he told Parks as he was slipping on the rubber gloves.
“Gone, you mean the killer cut out her heart?” He said with disgust.
“No, he cut her open and ripped the heart right out of her chest. The worst part is that she was still alive when he did it.” The Doctor said grimly as he looked at Parks. “What kind of mad man are we dealing with, Parks?”
“I don’t know.” Parks answered.
“You and your men didn’t find it anywhere, did you?” The Doc asked.
“No, I think we would know right away if we had.” Parks said in a low tone.
“Then the killer must have taken it with him as a souvenir...maybe,” the Doc said thoughtfully.
“Doc, if the killer took it he would have had to put it in something, wouldn’t he?” Parks asked.
“Yes, not unless he just slipped it in his pocket. Or worse, he may have had it for dinner,” the Doc joked.
“Doc, that’s not funny. That’s down right creepy.” Parks shuddered at the thought.
“Let’s get this done. Untie her hand, I’ll get this one.” Doc said as he began to untie her other hand.
“Hey, Doc, just how big would a container have to be?” Parks asked as he began to untie her hand.
“Oh, I don’t know...a small box or a can,” Doc answered.
“Or, maybe a pickle jar?” Parks asked.
“Yes, that would work. It has a wide opening. I never thought about one of those,” Doc said as he laid Candy’s arm next to her side. “How did you think of the pickle jar?” Doc asked.
“We found a pile of pickles in the sink.” Parks answered.
“That’s what he must have used, the jar,” he said adding, “let’s grab hold of her ankles and pull her toward the foot of the bed.” As they put Candy’s body in a flat position on the bed.
HE SAT ON HIS BED HUMMING a tune as he tied a rubber band at the end of the long lock of red hair. The room shook and the windows rattled as the L train passed by behind his hotel building, heading for the underground Clark Street Station. Carefully, he tied the lock of hair into a neat bow. He attached it to the top of the glass jar he held, with a name painted in red nail polish. It read, “Candy.” He held the jar up, admiring it as he stood up from the bed and went over to a shelf in his closet. He carefully placed the jar on the shelf, next to another jar with the name of “Sheila.” It had a bow made of red hair on top of it, too. He now had fifteen jars in his collection of human hearts and red hair. A large grin of delight was on his face as he relived his night with Candy. He broke out into a loud, horse-like laugh. He threw his head back and said out loud, “You were the best yet, Candy baby, oh yeah, but the next one might even out do you. She might be younger, and oh yeah, she will have a very tight pussy. Cutting her will be like cutting butter. HA, HA,” he chided with his crazy and insane horselaugh. “Just like butter. You girls behave now. I have to go back to work. I will bring you a new friend to play with real soon. I promise,” he said to the jars as he closed the closet door. He put on his suit coat, his overcoat and hat. He went out the door, walked down the hall, and took the elevator down to the main lobby of the Ohio Hotel where he stayed. He walked out the front door to the street. He looked the local prostitutes over as he went to the alley that led to a parking lot on Clark Street. He knew they were off limits to him. They belonged to his boss. Besides, there were no redheads in the mix. To him they were not clean enough for him. He liked women that didn’t drink or use heroin, better known as horse. They didn’t have sex with a hundred men a week, he thought to himself, with excitement for his next kill. This one was to be planned out in precise measure. He needed to have the right opportunity. The timing would have to be perfect. No matter how long he had to wait. This one was going to be very special to him. He got into his car and headed for Bedville.
CHAPTER THREE
Nickole kissed her mother on the cheek as she left for school. Sally met her at the back door. Sally’s mother was with her. “You girls better be on your way. You don’t want to be late for mass.” Sally’s mother told them as she went up the back porch steps.
“Yes, Ma’am, we are just waiting on my little brother, Pauly. Hurry up!” Nickole called out.
“I’m coming. You don’t have to yell,” Paul said as
he made his way by Sally’s mother.
“Mary, is your coffee hot? I made coffee cake last night,” Kate said as Mary held the back screen door
open for Sally’s mother.
“You bet. Cake sounds good. Come on in, Kate.”
“Nickole, you watch out for your little brother now!” Mary called out to the children as they mounted their bikes to leave.
“I will, Mama!” Nickole called back over her shoulder.
Mary waved good-bye, and then turned to go inside and join Kate. Mary took down two cups and saucers
from the cupboard. Kate cut the cake with a knife, putting large pieces on plates for the two of them.
“Did you hear the news this morning?” Kate asked.
“No, I had my hands full getting the kids ready for school. I forgot to turn on the radio.” Mary said as she filled their coffee cups.
“It was horrible..” Kate said as she took a bite of her cake.
“What was?” Mary asked.
“That poor waitress from the truck stop. They found her murdered in her bedroom. Someone cut out her heart,” Kate shuddered.
“Oh my, that is terrible! Who was she?” Mary asked.
“Her name was Candy Blake. Her parents live over on Elm Street.” Kate told her.
“That’s only three streets over from here.” Mary said.
“Yes, I know. They said she was killed some time after three a.m. on Saturday. They did not find her until late Saturday afternoon. I wonder who could have done such a horrible thing. It had to have been
a stranger.
Certainly it could have not been anyone from around here.” Mary said, reassuring herself.
“I’m positive it had to be someone from a big city. Things like that just don’t happen in a small town like ours.” Kate said as she took a sip of coffee from her cup.
“I hope you are right. I hate to think that it would be
someone from around here. Even though I haven’t seen any strangers in town, it still could have been someone just passing through.” Mary said.
“Oh my, I just remembered. I saw a stranger parked across the street. It was Friday night. I was going to bed, I went to close the drapes and I saw him just sitting there. He was smoking in the dark. My husband saw him, too. He came to the window and the guy in the car looked up and saw us at the window and drove off.” Kate said with a worried sound in her
voice.
“That might have been just a coincidence,” Mary said.
“Well, maybe. But just the same, I’m locking my doors at night from now on.” Kate said firmly.
“Well I do agree with you on keeping our doors locked at night.” Mary agreed with Kate.
NICKOLE STOOD BY HER bike in front of the school as she waited on Sally. Once again, she was late. Suddenly she heard Sally calling out to her, running down the steps. “Nickole, wait up!” Her hair tied in two ponytails that bounced with every step she ran down.
“What did you do this time?” Nickole asked, with her hands on her hips.
“Nothing! I was helping the Sister put up decorations.” Sally said with an innocent look on her freckled face.
“Yeah, sure you were. And I just turned into the Pope,” Nickole said snide
ly.
“It’s true, damn it!” Sally shouted.
“Well you are always in trouble with the Sister, so it is hard to believe you were just helping out.” Nickole teased.
“Well, I was.” Sally said with a pout on her face.
“You still planning to fix up the hide out?” Nickole
asked, trying to get Sally in a brighter mood.
“Well, I don’t know. It depends on whether I have a friend to help me.” Sally said as she continued to pout.
“Ah, come on Sally. I told you I would help. I am your friend. Your best friend, aren’t I?” Nickole asked questionably.
“Yeah, you are my best friend and forever. But no more cracks about me staying after school. Got it?” Sally said pointing her finger at Nickole.
“Okay, I promise. No more wise cracks.” Nickole said holding up her right hand to swear.
“Great, come over to my tree house when you are done with your chores. I got some great stuff to show you.” Sally said with excitement in her voice as they both peddled their bikes for home. This time the girls were unaware of the man in the black car watching their every move.
Nickole went over to Sally’s back yard after her chores, to the big oak with the playhouse resting on
the large limbs. Sally’s father had built it for her older brother when he was nine. He outgrew it and gave it to Sally. Now it was where Sally and Nickole
played house since they were eight. They were starting to outgrow it as well. They would camp out in the playhouse during the summer. They liked their new hideout in the park better.
Nickole climbed the wooden ladder to the tree house. Sally was already inside. “I was about to give up on you.” Sally said as Nickole came inside.
“I had to mop the kitchen floor.” Nickole answered.
“Wait until you see this! What do you think?” Sally grinned as she held up a skeleton.
“Wow, where did you get it?” Nickole asked surprised.
“I found him out behind the chemistry classroom at the high school,” Sally beamed.
