Exposed

by C. M. Sutter

  She writhed and pulled at the ropes.

  “Don’t waste your energy. You aren’t going anywhere.” Max unzipped the purse and dumped its contents on the floor in front of him. A cell phone, wallet, makeup case, a small notepad, and several pens fell out. A plastic container of mints, lip balm, and an emery board were inside the zipped inner pocket.

  Max popped two mints into his mouth and sucked on them while he browsed through her wallet. He nearly choked on the mints when the name on her driver’s license caught his eye. He looked at her closely and remembered the newspaper article he’d read online. The age was right, and she was from North Bend! She had to be the younger judge’s wife. “Theresa Gardino, huh? Sounds Italian.” He kept his identity and excitement to himself. Max checked for money and found sixty-seven dollars in cash. “This will come in handy, and you won’t be needing it, anyway.”

  She squirmed and moaned even harder.

  “Zip it!” He continued where he’d left off and pulled out her credit cards and library card. With them fanned out, Max noticed one in particular had a photo of her on it. He pulled it from the bunch. “Holy shit, Theresa, you didn’t tell me you were a doctor. I finally found somebody with an occupation that might come in handy.”

  Max’s phone rang just as he guzzled the last of his beer. He picked up and listened to the automated voice asking if he would accept a collect call from WSPF.

  “Yes.”

  A short pause and a click later, Max heard Darryl on the other end. “What’s the number?”

  “Fourteen.”

  The phone clicked off.

  Max’s attention went back to Theresa Gardino. He snapped open another can of beer and sat on the floor next to her head. He stroked her long dark hair, then grabbed a handful and yanked it. She screeched through the ball gag. Tears rolled down the sides of her face and pooled in her ears.

  “What do you think I should do with you, Dr. Gardino, and why were you sitting in that bar alone late last night? Don’t you know it’s dangerous for women to go to bars without a strong man along to keep you safe? You were quite the social butterfly, but look what you got yourself into. You intrigued me so much I had to know more, and then you passed me on the sidewalk.” Max laughed. “You had no idea you were about to get cracked in the head.” He grinned and flicked his tongue as he knelt over her, just inches from her face.

  With a quick jerk upward, Theresa head butted Max. Blood ran from his nose to his upper lip where it pooled. He laughed and wiped the blood with the back of his hand.

  “Guess I should have seen that coming.” He balled up his fist and punched her in the right eye.

  She groaned in agony.

  Max stood and walked over to her left arm, stretched straight out and secured by a double-knotted rope under a closed door. “Hmmm—the wedding ring explains everything. You and hubby have a fight last night?”

  Max opened the cooler and pulled out a green apple. He bit into it with a loud crunch. “Hungry?”

  She nodded.

  “Okay, don’t do anything stupid. We’re very secluded out here, so nobody will hear you yell for help, except me. You don’t want to make me angry, do you?”

  Theresa shook her head. Max released the ball gag, and she let out a long moan as she relaxed her cramped jaw. “Water, please.”

  “You want water?”

  “Please.”

  “After you tell me what I want to know. Why are you in Green River Falls?”

  “We have a vacation home north of town near the river. We’re here for a week.”

  “Who’s we?”

  “Me and my family. Please let me go.”

  Max reached back, and with a violent swing, slapped her hard enough to split her lip. “You’re only supposed to answer my questions. I don’t want to hear anything else. Got it?”

  She groaned again and licked her bloody lip.

  “I asked you if you got it?”

  “Yes.”

  “What does your husband do?”

  “He’s a judge.”

  A deep barrel laugh echoed in the room. Max imagined Darryl’s expression when he told him who he was sharing the cabin with. Max cracked open another beer and thought about his options. “I can see it now. Your smug judge husband will be expecting a ransom call. Of course, the cops will try to trace it, but they won’t have any luck—I’m not stupid. Your old man will beg me to release you and return you safely back to him. See, Theresa, people like you think money is the answer to life’s problems. I don’t want millions of dollars.”

  “Then what do you want?”

  Max shot her a threatening look. “Revenge is what he wants. Justice is twenty years overdue.”

  “He?”

  “Don’t make me slap you again.”

  She lay still and whimpered quietly.

  Max scrolled through Theresa’s cell phone. “What’s your old man’s name?”

  “My husband’s?”

  “No shit, Theresa. Don’t play stupid with me because I’m not amused. Yes, your husband’s.”

  “Antonio.”

  “See, that wasn’t so hard. Here we go—Antonio.” He smirked. “It’s the first one on your contact list.”

  Max sat on the couch and tapped the call icon next to Antonio’s name.

  “What are you doing?”

  “Calling the hubby. What do you think I’m doing?”

  “I’m sure he’s contacted the police by now.”

  “That’s nice. Now shut the hell up.”

  A man picked up on the third ring.

  “Hey, Antonio, this is Theresa’s killer. Just calling to say how much we’re enjoying each other’s company—for now.”

  Theresa began screaming. Max rose and kicked her in the stomach.

  “Anyway, Theresa says goodbye. She hopes you have a nice life without her.” Max hit the red end call button and threw the phone on the couch. “Want some water?”

  Theresa went silent.

  “Suit yourself. Anyway, I was just kidding when I was talking to Antonio—I’m not going to kill you unless you give me good reason. I might need your skills sooner or later, who knows?”

  Chapter 26

  “I think we’re getting close. Plainview should be the next right,” I said as I guided Jack to Amy Patterson’s house.

  My cell phone rang just as Jack turned.

  I looked at the caller ID. “It’s the station. Hello, Jade here.”

  “Jade, it’s Jan. I have two families that want to come in to give their DNA sample. Can you get back here by five o’clock?”

  “Doubt it. We’re almost to the house of the other young woman that was found in the woods. Call Clayton and Billings. Clark said they were all going to head back, anyway. The forms for the families to fill out and the DNA test kits are in the conference room. Everything is self-explanatory.”

  “Got it. I’ll let them know.”

  “Thanks, Jan.” I clicked off just as Jack slowed in front of a two-story contemporary home in a country subdivision.

  “Is this it?” I craned my neck to see the house number then double-checked the address on the sheet. “The address is 3861 Plainview.”

  “Yeah, this is the right house.” Jack sighed. “Let’s go deliver the bad news.”

  “Hang on, I’m getting a text from Clayton.” I read the message silently while Jack waited. “Okay, he said they’ll take care of the DNA samples and that the dogs are working another scene. The handler will bring them back out in the morning and go over everything again.”

  “Yeah, unfortunately that’s a hundred-acre parcel. Max could have buried those other two women anywhere. Shall we?”

  “Yeah, let’s get this over with.”

  Jack parked in the driveway next to a late-model Ford sedan. We exited the cruiser and walked up the wide flagstone sidewalk that was flanked by rows of early blooming flowers. The large porch looked welcoming with two wicker rockers and a small glass table nestled between them. A plant s
tand holding a potted Boston fern sat in a shaded corner. I rang the doorbell. An extremely young looking woman, who I assumed to be the mother, answered the door and opened it widely.

  I smiled. “Ma’am, we’re detectives from the sheriff’s department. You must be Nancy?”

  “Yes, please come in. My husband, Mark, is in the kitchen. Let’s have a seat in there.”

  We followed Nancy through the stone-floored foyer, past a short hallway, and into the kitchen. Her husband stood, introduced himself, and shook our hands. I was surprised to see how young Mark looked too.

  “Mr. and Mrs. Patterson, we have reason to believe we’ve found Amy.”

  “Meaning she’s dead? She’d be with you if she was alive.” Tears welled up in Nancy’s eyes.

  We waited as Mark comforted his wife.

  “We’re very sorry for your loss.” I looked from one to the other. “What we’re going to need is DNA samples from both of you to confirm Amy’s identity.”

  Mark spoke up. “That’s impossible.”

  Jack frowned. “Sir?”

  “Amy is adopted. She was almost ten when we finally brought her home. She was originally from Poland.”

  I nodded. Now I understood why they seemed too young to have a twenty-two-year-old daughter. “I’ll need something of Amy’s to confirm a DNA match.”

  “We can get you her dental records.”

  The conversation I had with Lena popped back into my mind. “How about something I can take with me now like her hairbrush and toothbrush?”

  Mark nodded, and Nancy stood. “Excuse me. I’ll get those items.”

  “Thank you, ma’am.”

  Nancy returned a few minutes later with a plastic grocery bag in hand. “I put them in the same bag. I hope that’s okay.”

  “It’s fine, thank you.” Jack and I got up to leave.

  “Detectives?”

  “Yes, ma’am.”

  “How did Amy die?”

  I stared at the floor and tried to think of the most sensitive words to use. “Mrs. Patterson, I don’t—”

  “Please, Sergeant Monroe. You can sugarcoat it to a degree if you need to.”

  “Amy was assaulted with some type of knife. That’s what killed her.”

  Mark and Nancy gripped each other and sobbed. I reached out and held Nancy’s hand. “You have my word, we’ll find the man that did this.”

  “Thank you, detectives.” Mark took the cards we handed him.

  Jack and I shook their hands and extended our apologies again. “We’ll show ourselves out.”

  “That was tough,” I said and let out a sigh as I took my place in the passenger seat. “Don’t you think it’s weird that no calls have come in from the news segment? There haven’t been any hits on the BOLO, either.”

  “It’s what snakes do, Jade.”

  “Yeah, what’s that?” I turned to Jack.

  “They hunker down out of sight until it’s time to strike. They catch people off guard—it’s when they’re the deadliest.”

  “We have to come up with something to say to Darryl. Do you have any idea how long it’s going to take to extract DNA from the bones and match it to the samples people bring in? We may only get a handful of volunteers. It was twenty years ago, for Pete’s sake. I think we need to make a trip to Boscobel.”

  We pulled into the station and went inside. Clayton was escorting a couple to the door, and Billings was placing the paperwork and DNA sample in an evidence bag to take downstairs. The samples would be stored until we had enough DNA from bones to start testing for matches.

  “How many people have come in?”

  “Four families,” Billings said. “Not bad for day one, but this may have to be ongoing for a while.”

  Clark exited his office and grabbed a roller chair to sit on. “How did it go at the Patterson house?”

  “About as bad as you’d expect.” I poured myself a cup of stale coffee and slurped it down.

  “Did they give you a DNA sample?”

  “They aren’t her biological parents. Nancy, the adoptive mom, gave me Amy’s hairbrush and toothbrush. I already took them downstairs to forensics.”

  Clark rolled his neck, and it crackled. “Okay, here’s the latest. The mayor called about thirty minutes ago. He said we have a week to get our work done at the farm or the megastore is pulling up stakes.”

  “What about the other two possible victims? There’s a lot of ground to cover, boss.”

  “I know, Jade. That’s why we’re getting more dogs. I made a call to Milwaukee County Sheriff’s Department after talking to the mayor. They’re loaning us nine canine units. They’ll be at the site at eight tomorrow morning. I want everyone to go home and get some sleep. We’re heading to the farm at seven thirty sharp.”

  I glanced down at the list of unfinished business on my desk. “Crap.”

  “What’s wrong?” Jack asked.

  “Judge Gardino was supposed to let the Clerk of Courts know when he was scheduling a pretrial hearing for our punk car thieves. They were going to call me today and tell me when it’s supposed to go on the docket.” I looked at the clock. “The courthouse offices are closed—guess I’ll call them tomorrow.” I pulled out my cell phone and set a reminder for myself.

  “I thought he was on vacation,” Billings said.

  “Great. Nobody told me about it.” I grabbed my purse, sweater, and gun, then crossed the bull pen to the door. “Good night, guys.”

  “Night, Jade.”

  Just as I climbed into my car, Amber texted me. I turned the key in the ignition and read her message.

  Pot roast will be done in fifteen minutes, and Dad said he’s calling at eight.

  I texted her back. Yum—see you in a few.

  I pulled out of the parking lot, made a quick detour to Pit-Stop, filled up my car, and bought a four-pack of Scottish Ale.

  At home, we had a delicious meal of pot roast, carrots, potatoes, and gravy, compliments of my amazing sister. She must have gotten her cooking skills from Mom since I knew I was seriously lacking in that department. I felt overly stuffed and deliriously tired after dinner. With the kitchen clean and the plates stacked in the dishwasher, I waited on the couch for my dad’s phone call.

  “Wake me up when Dad calls. I’m going to rest my eyes for a few minutes.”

  “Sure, no problem. Do you mind if I watch the news? I’ll keep the volume down.”

  “Go ahead. It’s okay.”

  The voice of the news anchor faded as I felt myself drifting off.

  “This is Angela Miles reporting live with breaking news from Jackson County. Well-known circuit court judge of Washburn County—”

  Amber paused the TV. “Jade, wake up. Watch this.” Amber shook my knee. “Wake up.”

  “What?”

  “Pay attention. This is important.”

  I rolled over to face the TV and rubbed my eyes. Amber clicked the play button.

  “Antonio Gardino, a longtime resident of North Bend, reported earlier today that his wife of twelve years, Theresa Gardino, has been kidnapped. She was last seen around two a.m. this morning at the bar behind me, The Last Stop. The family owns a vacation home on the banks of the river in Green River Falls.”

  “What!” I sat straight up on the couch, now fully awake.

  Angela Miles went on to say, “Local police located Mrs. Gardino’s white Mercedes sedan parked a few blocks from the bar, but there have been no sightings of the woman. Theresa Gardino is a thirty-seven-year-old mother of two and a well-respected doctor at St. Joseph’s Community Hospital south of North Bend. According to Judge Gardino, a call came in at four thirty this afternoon from his wife’s cell phone. The caller, a male, didn’t identify himself but said he was Mrs. Gardino’s killer. The call ended before it could be traced. Contact the Green River Falls Police Department at the number seen at the bottom of the screen if you have any information about Theresa Gardino’s whereabouts. Stay tuned for more as information comes in on this dis
turbing situation.”

  “Holy crap, I need a drink.”

  Amber jumped off the couch. “Stay put, Jade. What do you want—wine or beer?”

  “Wine, please. I don’t know what to do. The family lives here, but the crime has been committed in another county. It’s no wonder the judge didn’t update the Clerk of Courts today.”

  Amber handed me a glass of wine as I picked up my phone. “What are you doing?”

  “I have to call Jack and run this past him in case he didn’t see the broadcast. I need his opinion. We may or may not be heading to Green River Falls tomorrow.”

  Amber’s phone rang as I talked to Jack. “It’s Daddy. What do you want me to do?”

  “Hang on a second, Jack. This call is on you, sis. If Dad has information about the surgery and when he thinks he’ll be here, write everything down. Apologize for me.” I got up and walked down the hall to my bedroom. I sat at the small desk facing the window and pulled out a notepad and pen in case I needed it. “What should we do?”

  “We’ll ask Clark about it first thing in the morning and see what he suggests. I’m sure Green River Falls PD has interviewed half the town already. If I were them, I would have talked to everyone at that bar too.”

  “Why do you think she was alone at that time of night, Jack?”

  “Good question. I’m sure they’ve interviewed the judge and asked him the same thing. It makes me wonder if there was trouble in paradise.”

  Chapter 27

  Threatening rain clouds loomed. My wipers were set at intermittent, but I still had to turn them manually every minute or two. It sprinkled, then it didn’t, then it did. I checked the time as I passed the bank—7:22 a.m. I made sure to wear all-terrain shoes every day this week since I never knew what I’d be doing. I kept a pair of low heels on the floor of my car just in case I needed to look presentable.

  Jack, Clayton, Billings and I arrived at the sheriff’s department at the same time and parked side by side. We exited our cars and walked to the entrance together.