Greene County Killer

by Ann Mullen

  “Yes, they are.” I looked around. “I don’t see the cat anywhere. Sometimes he hides when we have visitors.”

  “About the fire in Ruckersville,” Cole continued. “The guy poured gasoline around the foundation of the house and up on the porch. The he doused the shed and both cars in the driveway. The place went up in flames instantly. We think the folks inside were asleep and by the time they tried to escape it was too late. The fire department found both bodies on the floor in the hallway. We’re waiting for an autopsy to determine the cause of death.”

  I poured a cup of coffee for Cole, walked over to where he was sitting, and put the cup down in front of him.

  “Thanks, Jesse,” he said. “Where’s your mother?”

  “She went home to check on things. She needed a break. She’ll be back any minute.”

  “She spends most her time here, doesn’t she?”

  “Yes, she loves being around the kids.”

  Cole and I have a history together, but we both have put that behind us. We’re on friendly terms and our relationship is no longer one of romance and lust.

  “How is your mother?” I asked Cole. “I heard that you were called away from the hospital last night.”

  “Oh, you know Mom,” he replied and then looked around the room. “She’s always got something going on.” He didn’t elaborate.

  I looked out of the kitchen window and saw the snow coming down.

  “It’s snowing again,” I said to anyone who might be listening.

  “It’s that time of year,” Cole said. He looked around at everyone who, up until now, had very little to say. “What’s going on here? There’s too much small talk and not enough questions being bantered about.”

  “We really haven’t had a chance to discuss the details of what’s happened,” Billy said. “We just got back from Mom and Dad’s house, Lu Ann showed up, and now you’re here. What do you want to talk about?”

  “Do you have any thoughts on who might have set the fire?” Cole asked. “Lu Ann, what’s your take on the matter? You’re the profiler. If Jonathan called you in on this, he had a good reason. These guys usually do their own work, but now they’ve got you here. What’s up?”

  “I have very little experience with arsonists,” Jonathan said. “I figured I needed outside help. I want my brother’s killer caught, and I’m not going to leave it in the hands of the Charlottesville Police Department, the Albemarle Police Department, or the Albemarle County Sheriff’s Office. I want results now—not six months from now.”

  “The CPD, APD, and the Albemarle County Sheriff’s Office are competent, and I’m sure they’re going to catch the guy who did this,” Cole said, taking up for the force. “We’ve worked hand-in-hand with them and I can tell you that they’re a good group of officers. They work their butts off solving crimes and putting the bad guys away. Each county works together and they’re relentless.”

  “The truth is,” Lu Ann added. “Jonathan wanted my help on this, and he also wanted to ask me to marry him, so here I am.”

  Cole smiled at Jonathan. “Well, what was her answer?”

  “What do you think? You know she can’t resist my charm.”

  “It’s getting deep in here,” I said, looking over at Lu Ann. “Men—I swear. What will we do with them? Their heads are so big.”

  “We’re getting married after we find the guy who set the fire that caused Daniel’s death,” Lu Ann said. “That’s priority one. Everything else can wait. We’ll invite you to the wedding.”

  “You can bet I won’t miss this event for the world,” Cole said. “I can’t believe that you reeled him in.”

  “He’s not a fish,” Lu Ann said, laughing. “He’s a catch, I agree, but I didn’t lure him in.”

  “All right, that’s enough!” Cole demanded. “What are you all hiding?”

  “Where do we start?” Billy asked. “What do you want to know?”

  “Don’t think that our Sheriff’s Office hasn’t talked extensively with the CPD. Because of our relationship, Sheriff Hudson and Captain Waverly agreed that I should come over here and find out what you wouldn’t let Jesse tell the captain last night. He knows you’re under a lot of stress and the pain from losing your brother must be unbearable, but if she knows something, we need to know what it is.”

  Everyone looked at me.

  “Tell him about the guy in the garage,” Billy said. He looked back over at Cole. “I wouldn’t let her say anything last night because we were tired and dealing with the loss of Daniel. I had just been released from the hospital and didn’t want to spend three hours at the precinct.” He coughed to prove a point.

  “But if you have information that could help this case, wouldn’t it be to your benefit to pass it along as soon as possible?”

  “Yes, it would,” Billy replied. “But my brother is dead. The killer isn’t going anywhere and a few hours wouldn’t make much difference. We’ll spend the rest of our days hunting down this guy if we have to, but right now, this family is hurting.”

  “I realize that, Billy. I’m sorry if I seem heartless, but we need to know what you know if we’re going to catch this guy. You know how critical time is. It could make all the difference in the world as to whether or not we catch this guy.”

  “Wait a minute,” I said. “This has been hard on all of us. You’ll have to forgive us for being a little out of it.”

  “You guys are never out of it. If anything, you’re right on top of everything—no matter what.”

  “We’ve never lost a brother before,” Jonathan angrily added. “Our brother is dead, so give us a break!”

  “I’m trying to help, but if you tie my hands, I’m not much use to you.”

  “Stop it!” I said. “Let’s work together on this and maybe we can put the culprit behind bars before the next millennium.” I looked over at Lu Ann. “I think it might help if we got your input. You’re the professional here. Tell us your take on the guy and I’ll tell you what I know, which I can assure you isn’t much. It might just be a prank.”

  “What do you mean?” Cole asked. “What happened?”

  “I want to hear from Lu Ann before I say anything.”

  “Okay. I can go along with that. Lu Ann…”

  “I talked with Captain Waverly and the Fire Marshall. I also talked with the firemen and the policemen on the scene. I did a physical examination of the crime scene, and I took pictures.”

  “What’s your initial assessment?”

  “The person who did this was not knowledgeable in explosives. He set a fire that could’ve easily killed him. This was personal—very personal. This is someone Jonathan knows or has come in contact with professionally—maybe someone who Jonathan’s hunted down and brought in, and now the guy wants payback. Or it could’ve been a relative of someone who has been hunted down by Jonathan. Either way, this was of a personal nature done by someone with limited knowledge of fires. I think it was done on the spur of the moment. The guy found an open window of opportunity and used it.”

  “And I don’t think the guy who burned down Jonathan’s house had any idea of the destruction it was going to cause,” I added. “He didn’t mean for Daniel to die. It was an accident. He just wanted to burn Jonathan’s house down to make him pay for something. I don’t know what that something is, but now that someone has died, he has nothing to lose. He said something about making everyone pay. I got the impression he wasn’t going to quit until he got satisfaction.”

  “You sound as if you’ve met the man,” Cole said, astonished. “Have you?” He looked around at everyone as if he had just accidentally stumbled across a rattlesnake in the woodpile. “What’s the deal here?”

  “Jesse had an encounter with a man in the hospital parking lot that lay claim to the fire, or at least insinuated that he had set it as part of his plan for revenge. He claimed that he never meant to harm anyone. I guess he wanted to burn Jonathan’s house down hoping to make him suffer financially.”

&nb
sp; “And I don’t think it’s a man, unless he’s a mighty small man with a squeaky voice,” I said. “I think it’s a young person—possibly a teenager with a grievance against Jonathan and some others he thinks have done him an injustice. I don’t think he knew what he was doing when he torched Jonathan’s house. I’m sure he didn’t plan to set off such a big explosion. He reeked of smoke. He seemed nervous. Wouldn’t you be freaked if you found out that your actions had killed someone by accident? I’d be frantic. What started out as a simple payback turned into murder, and now it’s too late to say you’re sorry. Torching a house is a lot different than killing someone.”

  “Can you identify the man… ah… kid?” Lu Ann asked me. She looked at Cole. “It makes sense to me. From what I’ve concluded, I think it could’ve been done by a young person. An adult would’ve used a more sophisticated method.”

  “The kid was my height and was close to my weight. He was dressed in black and had a ski mask pulled down over his head. All I could see were his eyes, nose, and mouth.”

  “That’s not much to go on, but it’s a start.” Cole said. He stood up and started pacing the floor. “I can’t believe you’ve held this back from the police. Do you have any idea what this could mean for you? You could go to jail.”

  “How many times have you said that to me?”

  “That’s because you’re always getting into something.”

  “No, I won’t go to jail,” I said. “You can make this work out to our advantage, or I’ll swear that I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

  Cole was stunned by my cockiness, and I think everyone else in the room was, too. Nobody said anything for a moment.

  “Just tell the sheriff that Jesse thought the guy was a wacko, and that she didn’t believe him when he confessed to setting the fire,” Lu Ann added.

  “That’s not going to work. Sheriff Hudson knows me better than that,” I said. “He knows I’m not some silly woman who could be fooled so easily. I’m smart, and I know when someone’s trying to pull my leg. That statement will go over like a lead balloon. You’ll insult his intelligence if you try to pull that one over on him.”

  “I’ll figure out something,” Cole said. “Is there anything else you can think of? You haven’t left out any other details, have you?”

  “He set the fire and now he’s lurking around. How else would he know that Daniel died? He confronted me in the parking garage and then went to Ruckersville and set another fire. He has to be stopped.”

  “The fires could be connected, but is this kid the one who set both fires?” Cole said. “He could have an accomplice.”

  “That’s true,” Jonathan agreed. “Both fires were set in the same manner. They both used gasoline, a rookie’s means. Could we be dealing with kids? Gang members?”

  “I don’t think so,” I said. “This kid didn’t seem like a gang member.”

  “How can you tell?” Lu Ann Asked. “Have you had any dealings with gang members? Let me tell you one thing—they’re ruthless.”

  “No, I haven’t,” I replied. “I do know that gang members have no conscience. They attack without provocation and then stand back and laugh at their deeds. You’re right; they enjoy inflicting pain on others. This guy was sorry that Daniel died. I really don’t think he meant for anyone to get hurt. He said he wanted Jonathan to suffer, but not like this.”

  “Could you pick out this guy in a line up?”

  “I doubt it. I didn’t get to see his face.”

  “Would you give it a try if I arranged a line up?”

  “Sure, I’ll do what I can, but I think it’s a waste of time. I can’t do it right now. I have to wait for Mom to come back so she can watch the kids.”

  Lu Ann started to say something, but stopped when she looked at me. Women have a way of reading each other, too… just like men do. I knew she was going to offer to watch the children, but she could tell from the look on my face that I was using my mother as an excuse.

  “Okay,” Cole said. “I’ll head on back to Stanardsville and have a talk with Sheriff Hudson. If he agrees, we’ll make arrangements for you to do this in Charlottesville at the precinct. How’s that?”

  “I just hope you’re not wasting your time and mine.”

  “You’ll probably be hearing from Captain Waverly shortly.”

  “I’m not going anywhere.”

  Cole turned and headed for the door. He stopped, looked back at us and said, “Again, I’m real sorry about Daniel. We’ll catch the person who did this. I promise.”

  A minute later, he was gone.

  The four of us sat back down at the kitchen table and had a frank talk about the possibility that a young kid had pulled off this horrible crime. Billy and Jonathan wanted revenge for Daniel’s death and no matter what I said, they were determined to have it. They were certain that someone from Jonathan’s past was the one responsible, not a young kid.

  However you looked at it—the outcome wasn’t going to be pretty.

  Chapter 10

  The snow was steadily coming down, leaving a clean, fresh blanket on the ground. It looked as if we were in for another one of our famous mountain blizzards. After spending the last three winters here, I’ve come to realize that this was par for the course. We were destined to have at least one heavy snowfall at some point in time.

  Jonathan and Lu Ann had left to go over to his place and sift through the ashes before the snow got too deep, while Billy and I waited for Mom to return. We were in the nursery on diaper duty, having a discussion about his visit to the crime scene.

  “I wanted to go with you when you went back,” I said.

  “I’m sorry. It was a last minute decision. We decided to go over and have a look around before we went up to Mom’s house.”

  “What did it feel like being there again?”

  “Strange,” Billy said. “I can still see Daniel falling through the floor. It was awful. One minute he was there and the next he was gone. Jonathan said he broke his neck when he fell. It was just one of those weird moments that life throws at you.”

  “I know what that’s like. When we moved to Stanardsville, I was so happy. I met Cole and my life started to change. I was no longer lonely. Then I came home one day and my dad was dead. How can you be so happy and then so sad all at one time? It’s not fair.”

  “This, I cannot explain.”

  “Then we found each other.” I leaned toward Billy and kissed him on the cheek as I finished putting a clean outfit on Maisy. “Now I have a wonderful husband, two beautiful kids, and a mother who loves to stay with me almost as much as I love having her here. Daniel’s death will be hard to deal with, but we’ll get through it. We’ll find the person who did this.”

  “I worry about Greg. He was very close to his father.”

  “It’ll be hard, but he’ll make it through. They say kids are resilient. They bounce back quickly. I’m not so sure about that, but however you look at it, we’ll be here for him. I’m just glad he has a girlfriend.”

  “Yes, having a girlfriend will help. He’ll have someone to comfort him. I think he’s in love.”

  “I think you’re right.”

  “There’s nothing like having someone to love.”

  “I agree,” I said, grinning. “Is he going to stay at his father’s house?”

  “Yes,” Billy replied. “When Jonathan and I arrived at Mom and Dad’s, he was there. They were discussing the future.”

  “I bet that was difficult.”

  “Very much so, but Greg is strong. He is a Blackhawk. He will carry on. He will make his own way now.”

  “He’s certainly old enough to live by himself. He’s eighteen—that’s legal age.”

  “The chief said Daniel left a will, and it states that Greg gets the house and the car dealership. The rest of his assets will be divided equally among his other children.”

  “I guess the ex-wives don’t get anything.” I chuckled a little. “At least, by law they’re not entitl
ed to anything unless it’s in the will. Isn’t that right?”

  “Daniel loved his women. They will all share in his fortune.”

  “I’m impressed,” I said, surprised. “Usually when a marriage ends, so does the civility.”

  “Their marriages might have ended, but not their relationships.”

  “That’s a good thing. I’m sure it made it much easier on the children.”

  “Daniel never claimed to be anything but what he was—a man who loved women. He wanted to make them happy, but the problem was that they couldn’t handle his inability to stay committed. He remained devoted to all three of his wives.”

  “They must’ve really loved him.”

  “Oh, they did. All of them. But sometimes that’s not enough. They moved on, but continued to respect him for his devotion to his children. In a divorce that’s what matters the most—the children.”

  “You are such a smart man.”

  “Yes, I am,” Billy smiled at me and then changed the subject. “If you want to satisfy your curiosity, why don’t you run on over to Jonathan’s place—I guess that’s what we’ll have to call it until he builds a new house.”

  “For him and Lu Ann.”

  “Ah, you’re not making fun of her name anymore.”

  “No, it would be disrespectful.”

  “Now that you’ve gotten to know her and you like her.”

  “Yes.”

  We headed back to the kitchen, the one place where we seem to spend most of our time now that we have small children, and continued our discussion.

  “Were you serious about my going over to Jonathan’s?”

  “Sure. I know you have something burning in you. You need to go feed that hunger.”

  I had to laugh. “You think I’m burning, huh?”

  “I think you might come up with something, stumble onto a clue.”

  “I just have to see the place for myself. I might find something others have missed. You never know.”

  “You’re the one who always throws something into the ring, and it’s usually worth paying attention to.”