by Allen Gates
“Slow down, Rob, you’re pushing way too fast and you’re scaring me.”
149
LON WAS HAPPY to be away from the office and the stress of the case. When he arrived home he found his wife and son eager for his company. They sat around after dinner and discussed preparation for an upcoming vacation and together the three suggested places they all would enjoy. Lon looked admiringly at his family and listened as Tad told of his sport and school events. He looked at both of them and said, “It is so good to be home with you two.”
Ally, after saying goodnight to Tad, removed her clothes and donned a thin night gown. She had a strong desire for her husband and the thought of her intentions had her tingling as she went down the stairs and into the kitchen. Opening a bottle of wine and placing it on a tray along with two glasses she headed for the den. The hallway light behind her displayed more of her body than she realized and as Lon looked at her he knew. He decided it was time to reopen the game she had started between them not long ago.
“Wow, you really look beautiful. Wait a minute I remember you. You are the babe who babysat me that time my wife was out of town. You lured me with your very sexy body into the upstairs bedroom.”
“Yes, and as I recall you were a very willing participant. I do not recall your wife’s name mentioned at any time that night.”
Wine was poured, glasses clinked, as she sat on the couch next to him. Her robe parted showing a large portion of her thighs. He let his hand touch just above her knee and moved up slowly. When he looked up he saw the love in her eyes and quoted Shakespeare’s famous words, “a glass of wine and thee, my lady” is all this humble policeman will need.
Setting his glass down, he stood and walked to the wall and turned the dial dimming the room slightly. He removed his shirt slowly dropping it to the floor and then undoing his belt. Slowly lowering the zipper he let his slacks slide and stepped out of them.
“No more games, I want my wife.”
He walked to her and took her glass of wine and sat it on the table beside his. Taking her hands in his he pulled her to her feet and kissed her tenderly and then urgently. She molded herself to his body and said his name. He released her and slid the robe off her shoulders and took a step back to view her as she stood proudly before him.
“Ally you are still so beautiful to me.”
“He brought her back into his embrace and kissed her face, her hair and her shoulder. Then looking into her eyes said, “I’m so thankful you’re my wife and I want more than anything to make love to you now.”
150
HE QUICKLY STEPPED out of the car and walked to the rear and opened the trunk. He had sensed her fear, but also sensed her awareness and knew she was trying to anticipate his next move. The night air and the temporary separation from her helped him get his evil side under control before reaching in and pulling out a neatly folded blanket.
Smiling and trying to avoid anything that might frighten her further he walked toward the woman and slipped his arm around her waist hoping to calm her increasing uneasiness at being there.
Take it slow with her and you’ll be fine, he heard his inner self say. She is starting to be suspicious of our location.
“I thought we could sit on the blanket and enjoy the stars and the sound of the ocean while we get to know each other. It’s a perfect night and I want to hear all about your life.”
His meaningful words seemed to have a calming effect and eased her uncertainty as they walked down the incline to the shoreline. It was not steep, but she felt uneasy and stopped and told him she preferred not trying it because of the darkness.
“Why don’t we just sit up on top and enjoy the view of the sky and listen to the sound of the ocean from there, she suggested?”
“That’s fine, Sherry.”
They walked back up to the crest and he began spreading the blanket. Kneeling down he reached for her hand and gently helped her to sit next to him. Her skirt slid up to her thigh. He looked away immediately to prevent an unwanted reaction to the exposed part of her.
Will this be different, he asked himself. Can I control it to allow time for talk and most important plan for future times together?
He put his arm around her shoulder and they sat that way talking and laughing. The time spent programming his mind for control over the evil one when he touched forbidden skin he felt confident was working.
He was feeling anxious, but felt he had the ability to maintain control and curtail his actions as long as the strong urge was not smothering him.
“Rob, I hope we can use this night as a stepping stone for the start of something more between us.”
He looked in her eyes and leaned over to kiss her. Her arms went around him willingly and he gently lay back on the blanket keeping contact with her as she followed his lead. He could feel the dreaded stirrings beginning to flare up inside.
He wanted to continue in this perfect moment wanting to finally fulfill his long time repressed desires, but could he continue to repress the evil inside him? Immediately he knew the demon was becoming stronger and overcoming his will to save her.
Her kiss was passionate and responsive and he wanted to believe he could maintain control this time, but the urge emanated itself and he knew he was unable to suppress the rising evil inside him.
He felt her desire for him and she was accepting his hands willingly, but as he unbuttoned her blouse his rage became stronger than ever before and he knew he was no longer in control. His hands were no longer his but were following the commands of the evil one inside him.
Her willing acceptance of him caused him to become weak and filled with a feeling of love for her. He did not want what he knew was going to happen, so he tenderly turned her on her side facing away from him to avoid her eyes. Her head was lying in the crook of his arm as he rolled against her and placed his hand on her exposed breast. He sighed loudly at the sensation that rocked his body as he touched her soft, warm breast. He heard the voice in his head say, “it’s time,” and he responded leaving his one hand on her breast and placed the other over her mouth and nose tightly.
She struggled against his hold for a breath of air which caused him to become more determined and caused the inflamed desire inside him to rise to a point that made him scream her name out loudly. He rolled over her lower body to suppress her thrashing legs. She reached behind her wildly trying to hit his face, while the other hand removed the pepper spray from her pocket and she began spraying wildly. She was not accurate with the first blast and only partially blinded one of his eyes and the vapor worked itself into her own face. Her eyes were on fire and then with a final twist of her head to grasp for air, she slumped into his arms beneath him.
He sat her up between his legs and pulled her tightly against him and held her breasts and cried. It was moments before he opened his eyes and looked at her.
“Thank you, Sherry,” he said as he held her and rocked. After a few moments he placed her on her back and removed her clothes then lay down beside her.
151
“DR. WEARING THERE is a phone call for you on line one.”
“Thanks, male or female?”
“Male.”
Her heart raced as she paused before speaking fearing it might be her ex-husband.
“Hello, Dr. Wearing here.”
“Dr. Wearing this is Leo Trent. I have some good news for you. We picked up your ex-husband sitting in the drive of your new home. We brought him in and offered him two choices. He could pack up and leave the state and we would not report him for breaking the out-of-state court order, or he could stay and we could hold him until the court sends officers to take him back for trial. He chose the first option and has left California. You shouldn’t be bothered by him again.”
“That is the best news I could have hoped for. I have been so nervous since you warned me he was here in Santa Barbara. Thank you for everything Officer Trent.”
“Listen, this may be a bit presumptuous, but, would you consider having a dri
nk with me after we both get off work? I’m on day duty and I would enjoy getting to know you. If the answer is yes, I would only have one request that you drop the officer Trent stuff?”
“Well, I guess that would be okay. Where should I meet you?”
“Why, don’t I pick you up at your place, around five thirty?”
“That sounds fine.”
“It’s a date then. See you at five thirty.”
The phone went dead. She thought, “Hmmm, Leo Trent; that’s interesting.”
152
LON AND ANNE arrived at the station at the same time and walked in the office together. They were immediately confronted by the chief frantically waving his arms at them from his office window. Lon made a wisecrack about his clown act and looking stupid which Anne pretended not to hear and preferred to leave it at that.
“Listen guys, a couple of coin hunters have found another female body out on the coast pretty much the same location as the last girl. The call just came in from the officer already on the scene and he is doing his best to keep the scene secure. I want you two high tailing it out there.”
Anne looked at Lon and sensed his anger at the news of another victim and though it was quiet she heard him cursing the man responsible as he stomped out of the office. She looked at the chief perplexed that Lon had left while the chief was still talking and the chief just shrugged his shoulders and continued his directives to her.
“Something is wrong with this picture, Chief.”
“Don’t worry about it detective, I understand him. In the meantime console him and the two of you get to work while I do my best to keep the press away from you for an hour or so. This is not going to sit well with the biggies uptown Anne and let’s not forget the general public’s cries for closure in this case.
“Both want an end to this mess and they want this guy stopped. So, we had better come up with something; and I mean now. He paused and looked at Lon who came back into the office then at Anne who seemed to be listening, but he wasn’t sure she wasn’t more concerned about her partner.
“You two see what you can find out and pray this maniac has finally made a mistake to help us catch him. Oh, yeah, the medical examiner’s office has been notified and is on the way to meet you as we speak.”
“We’re on it chief,” Anne said trying to hide the emotional reaction to Lon’s behavior still lingering in her mind.
“I don’t need to tell you guys to go over this one carefully, he’s getting braver and we need a catch. Head north out of town and then swing over to the coast on either of the main roads. You’ll be just short of the scene and remember, be thorough.”
Lon took the “be thorough” remark by the chief as a personal chastisement and remained pensive as they drove to the coast. Anne periodically looked over at him waiting for his usual jovial side to emerge. But she knew he was deeply concerned at their failure and the chief’s remark had hit home with him personally. And now they were on the way to view the body of another innocent woman.
153
HE LOOKED AT the clothes lying on his bed. They brought back the images of his struggle with and his failure to control the urge that had taken over his mind and body. Holding Sherry, the rage was stronger than all the other times put together. He despised himself for what he had done. But the gratification he had experienced would override his hatred of any future evil acts. He accepted the realization that his needs were growing stronger and fulfillment was swift and more satisfying with each encounter.
The hunger was satiated for now, but the longing for the one he has watched, the one he has chosen to love, would soon be raging and would need to be fulfilled. He wanted more than anything for some act of fate to prevent him from making it happen, but the other side of him needed this final fulfillment and would override the regret he might experience after the act took place.
“It will happen, I cannot prevent it,” he said to himself in the mirror.
154
THE DETECTIVES RECOGNIZED Leo standing guard alongside the road as they approached the location of the new victim. He greeted them first with a wave as they parked.
“Leo, this is getting to be a habit meeting you at roadside murder scenes.”
“They put me on day patrol this week and this has been my regular beat for some time. I’m not sure why this guy decided to use this section of the coast as his dumping ground. Follow me; I’ll show you the body.”
“I taped off the area as best I could to create a safe barrier. The two guy’s that found her are down along the shore continuing their hunt for treasure. I told them not to leave until they talked to you guys.”
“Good work. Listen Leo, I need you to go back up to the road after we finish talking and keep everyone away but the ME while we examine the scene. That means the press.”
They were not prepared for what they found. The young woman’s body had been left lying on her back and totally void of clothing. While Lon knelt down to examine the body, Anne checked around the general area looking for anything that might be a clue left by the killer.
Anne crouched down next to Lon. The hands had been placed one on top of the other on her abdomen. Her eyes were closed and there were dried tears mixed with mascara streaked down the sides of her face. There was bruising around the neck and one shoulder.
“I figure she was killed sometime before midnight. I have a feeling, partner, and you know my gut feelings are usually right. And they are telling me there is something here to finally put this guy away.”
Anne confirmed his observation and suggested they have Leo call for help surveying the area around the crime scene. She remained at the scene when Lon made his way down the bank to find the two men on the beach. As he approached them he saw one of them kneeling and digging for something in the sand. The other saw him coming and removed his ear phones and yelled for the other to come over.
“Finding anything?
“Yea, a dead body,” the one said.
It turned out there really wasn’t much for the men to tell him, so he took their names and numbers and headed back up the slope.
“What do you think happened, Anne?”
“I noticed the grass is matted down around where she is laying. It would suggest a blanket had been spread on the ground. I think she knew him and they were here romantically. There was a struggle of some sorts based on the markings on her neck and shoulder and the sign of bruising or trauma on her left breast. He apparently squeezed very hard as he was suffocating her or he held her very tightly immediately after she stopped breathing.”
Before Lon could agree or add to her theory they were interrupted by a female voice identifying herself as the asst. medical examiner. She walked passed them to the body, slipped on a pair of latex gloves, and knelt down to begin her examination. She lifted one arm, felt the fingers and estimated the death to have been twelve to fourteen hours ago. Rolling her over, she examined the back and buttocks area. There was a scratch on the small of her back just above the buttocks.
“Looks like a buckle may have caused that mark. Based on the solid red prints on the left breast I believe this animal was highly charged as he fondled her breast.”
“What is your best guess on how he did it, Lon asked?”
“Here, let me demonstrate. Turn around and bend your knees to represent her height.” She placed her left hand under his left arm and grabbed his left breast and reached over his right shoulder and placed her hand over his mouth and nose pulling him back against her securely.
“Now picturing a startled and frightened woman, how would you fight me?”
He struggled to free her right hand from his face and then attempted to reach her hair all of which she was able to avoid while continuing to curtail his breathing.
Letting him go, she said, “That is my theory and an average built individual would have no trouble controlling a female victim in this grasp. Keep in mind that this is just my take on it.”
“It’s a pretty sound theory, and wit
h her reaching for his face we may get lucky.” “If she was able to scratch him his DNA may show up on her hands and under her nails. A big buckle like yours would make a scratch like that detective. And finally to further demonize the beast that did this, the bruising on her one breast appears to be post traumatic. He fondled her for a long time after she had expired.”
There was a pause as Lon and Anne stared at the body taking in everything she had just revealed.
“I know your department is busy Doc, but can you do a rush job on this autopsy? We need to stop this guy and if there is some DNA under her nails or on her body it may finally ID him and allow us the ammunition to nail him. Something tells me he may have gone too far on this one. Hopefully, you will find something for us.”
“I understand and yes, I’ll give it priority attention when I get back to the lab. We need to put an end to this animal.”
“Okay’ then, we’re, going to head to the office and get to work on our end.”
Leo was standing with two uniform policemen by the highway and the medical van was driving in as they walked up to them.
“We need you to give us a call later Leo, so we can get your take on this mess.”
They both spoke openly about their fears for possible additional victims and how they were unable to protect them with a lack of clues to go on. As they drove a lapse of silence grew between them until Lon looked over at Anne and asked, “Where does he find a girl like this that agrees to go with him to a secluded area like that in the dangerous times we are living here in this city?”
Anne did not have a good answer for his question, but added, “Someone must realize by now she did not come home last night, or she didn’t show up for work today. With that realization, I would think we should have a missing person’s report waiting for us at the station.”
Anne listened for his response. Receiving none, she asked the question that had been on her mind since viewing the body. “Do you think he raped her?”
