by T S Paul
“Fine. What is her name?”
~~~~
I was on my third box when the door opened. I glanced up and it wasn’t one of the swimmers from the pool. Calling them swimmers made be feel a bit better. Ever since I chased off the masher the others have been distancing themselves from me. I now sat completely alone at the rear of the room
“Is there a Catherine Moore in here?” The Agent at the door looked completely bored.
Everyone in the room looked around at each other. Catherine Moore? Who was that?
“I’m Catherine Moore.” I raised my arm and stood up. Every eye in the room focused upon me.
“Come along then. You have been reassigned.”
I picked my way through the ‘swimmers’ in the room. Being a Were I could hear them grumbling and griping under their breath as I passed.
“You’re a short one. Head toward the main room and hang a left. That is where we are meeting.” He held the door for a moment and then walked the opposite direction.
I followed the directions and knocked on the door as I entered the room. Four Agents sat around a table covered in piles of paperwork. Two white-boards and a clear case board surrounded the table. They too were covered with pictures and documents. This group was the lead on the Marietta slasher.
“Hello?” The seated Agents all looked over at me. “I was told by the other Agent to come in here?”
“Oh good. You must be the Probi assigned to us. I’ll have a ham and cheese on wheat. Don’t forget the chips I prefer baked not fried. Diet soda any kind is fine.” The other Agents all called over an order too. I stared at them for a moment and then left.
“We have a Probi? Why?”
“Orders from Washington. No choice Nixon already tried to get out of it.”
“She kind of small. We can always use a coffee runner.” The table all laughed.
I heard every bit of the conversation as I left. None of the Agents gave me money so I assumed that I was supposed to pay for this stuff. No going to happen. I walked back to the pool and grabbed some of the take out menus off the bulletin board outside.
The Agents were still sitting around the table when I walked back inside. Agent Nixon had joined them. They were all laughing about some joke. None of the documents had been opened or even moved.
I set the menus down on the table and grabbed one of the empty chairs.
“What are these for?” The female Agent who had ordered the ham sandwich stared at me.
“Order your own lunch. I’m an Agent not a delivery person.”
A couple of the other Agents giggled at my statement. Agent Nixon just glared at me. “You are what we say you are probi!”
“If you want me off your case tell your boss.” I smiled at his discomfort. “I’m staying.”
The chuckling Agents all stared and the laughter fell away. Nixon shook his head. “You know I can’t do that?”
“I do. Now do you people actually work or just sit here?”
“Hey! I resent that accusation! This case has us stumped as all. We know that the unsub is a family annihilator but we can’t get a handle of why or how he’s picking them.”
“Can I see the evidence?” I looked Nixon in the eye.
“Sure.” He pointed at the boards. The Unsub killed the Smith family in their home in the wee hours of the morning. Using what we assume is a razor he cut the screens on the second floors hallway window and crawled in. We didn’t find any trace of a ladder so we assume he is athletic. Using either a razor or dagger he killed the parents first. The husband bled out while he ‘played’ with the wife. Her throat was cut last. The children died in their sleep never waking to the violence happening in the next room. Their older son found them the next morning after school. He had been away at college.”
Nixon pointed at the second board. “The next case was three blocks away the following week. Similar entry technique was used. Razor to the window. This time he killed the children first. He may have been surprised or it was just opportunity. The parents weren’t asleep. They were tax accountants and had a new client. They were surprised in their home office and fought back. We found defensive wounds on the husband and on the wife. The coroner says the same weapon was used for both families. It looks like it might be a serial killer.”
“Have we notified the BAU?” I studied both boards.
“We have. They are tied up dealing with a mass murder in Alaska. A hunter or hunters went on a killing spree in a small town up there. This one is all ours.”
“OK. What is the common link beyond method?”
The Agents all looked at me. “Nothing we can find. The two families have nothing in common other than location.”
“Nothing at all?” I studied the pictures and notes. Each pile on the table corresponded to a point on the boards.
“Nothing. We have gone over these files numerous times.”
“Do you mind if I take a look?”
“We don’t have much choice. Go ahead.” He and the others stepped out of the room and went I assume to lunch. I dug into the records and files.
Several hours passed and I barely noticed that the others came back. The documentation was very organized and complete.
“See anything interesting?”
I looked up into the eyes of Agent Nixon. “Yes and no. The report mentions that outside a dog was killed in the backyard of the first family. Presumably by the Unsub as he climbed up the back of the house.”
“Yes. The dog was a big German Shepherd.”
“The problem I have is there is no food or water bowls out for the dog or even a place for it to sleep outside. Ask the neighbors, they didn’t have a dog. So where did it come from?”
“The second family is similar. A dead dog was found inside the house along with the family. Was an autopsy done on either of the animals?”
Agent Nixon dug into the pile of reports in front of him. “The bodies were sent to a local Vet but I don’t see a report here.” He looked over at the female Agent who had first spoken to me. “Ramirez? Did you follow up with that Vet about the dead dogs?”
She looked up and smiled at Agent Nixon. “I have his report here somewhere. Was there a question?”
“Yes. What killed the dogs?”
“They had obvious slash wounds. We assumed that was what killed them.”
I rolled my eyes. “Did you check or even read the report?”
“It’s right here somewhere.” She dug into the file in front of her. After a moment she looked up at us and blushed. “I guess I didn’t get it from the man. Let me give them a call.”
Agent Nixon frowned at her. “Go down there yourself and get the report. Take Jones with you. Don’t come back without the report.”
Agent Jones looked up from the sandwich he was cramming into his mouth. “Hmmph?”
“Go with Ramirez. Get moving!”
He looked back at me. “Good work. Did you find anything else?”
“Just some inconsistencies in the report about the weapon used. The slashes don’t look as though they were done with a razor. Have you had a Were sniff the crime scene?”
“There aren’t all that many Weres in the Bureau around here. Most take Western assignments. I can request one.”
“I’m an Alpha Were Cat Agent Nixon. I can do it. Are the scenes still undisturbed?”
“They are supposed to be. Tony? We haven’t released the scenes have we?”
The other male Agent looked up from his phone. “Did you need something?”
“Are the two crime scenes still secure?”
He opened up the file in front of him and read for a moment. “They are. The surviving family have requested access but have been denied it.”
“Good pass a message to the locals we are going to reinspect the crime scenes.”
“Didn’t we already inspect them?”
“Agent Moore hasn’t.” I sat up straighter when he called me Agent Moore.
I was still reading the forensic re
ports when Agents Ramirez and Jones returned with the Vet report. They handed it to Agent Nixon and there was a bit of muttered conversation. I’m not sure why they bothered.
~~~~~
“Here is the report Albert. Why did I have to go all the way down there? He could have just as easily faxed it to us.”
“Did you read it?”
“No. It was just two dead animals. We need to concentrate of the family deaths not a couple of animals.”
“Did the Vet say anything of note about the autopsies he did? Jones?”
“He said they died from wounds received. He asked about the other dog involved.”
“Did he not do an autopsy?”
“Umm, I told him not to. Just to do the exam. It was obvious they did as result of the unsub.” Ramirez patted her hair and was indifferent to her actions.
“Damn it! Jones what happened to the animals? Can we still order an autopsy?”
Jones looked surprised to be called upon again. “Uh, I think he said something about cremation. It’s in the report.” He pointed at the folder Nixon held.
“Do neither of you know the contents of this?”
Both Agents just stared. Nixon shook his head. “Get out of my sight the both of you. Now!” He looked over in my direction and shook his head.
“I think I now know why Washington wants you on a live case. I assume you heard all of that?”
“Weres hear a lot. Sorry. May I see the report?” I took the folder from him and read what little information it contained. According to the Vet both dogs tangled with a larger animal bigger than them. It tore out chunks of flesh and teeth marks were found on both dogs necks.
“It looks as though both dogs fought a larger animal. The bigger creature caught them by the neck and shook breaking the neck on each.”
“What is bigger than them?”
“A Were.”
“Let’s go check out the crime scenes then. Maybe you can tell us what we are really hunting.”
Chapter 2
The first crime scene was a ranch style house in a what appeared to be a higher middle class neighborhood. Yellow crime scene tape still surrounded the house standing out like a sore thumb among the carefully manicured yards. It was the weekend so many of the neighbors were watching as we pulled up in the driveway.
Agent Nixon climbed out of the SUV and motioned for me to follow him. We ducked under the tape and stepped up to the porch. The Agent waved to a dark colored sedan parked in front of the house.
Motioning with his chin he nodded toward the car. “It’s a local police undercover unit. They have a theory that the Unsub will return to the crime. Someone has been watching too much TV over there.”
“Why let them keep doing it?” I looked at the car. They stuck out in this neighborhood.
“They have been guarding both the house and the scene so why not? Their police chief won’t listen to reason.” The Agent climbed the steps and onto the porch. The door to the house was secured with a special police lock. Agent Nixon typed in a code and the lock released. The door opened at his touch.
“The Smith’s had four children. Greg Smith, the oldest, found them when he showed up as a surprise early in the morning. Local police units responded and found the parents and three children dead in their beds. Later inspection found a dog carcass in the backyard leading them to believe it was the point of entry. We weren’t called in until the second family was discovered.” The lower level of the house was pristine except for evidence markers and signs that fingerprint teams had been through the area. A large oak staircase led to the upper levels. Holiday decorations draped the finials with bows and flowers.
“Out units failed to find any strange of non-familial fingerprints in this area.” We climbed the stairs to the second level.
“The son apparently thought to surprise his parents and entered their bedroom to find them slaughtered like sheep.” We entered the first door on the left. A large king sized bed dominated the room. Blood was everywhere. I stopped just inside the doorway and took a deep breath through my nose.
His scent was everywhere in the room. I could smell both his excitement and his sexual arousal. He got off on killing these people. I carefully stepped around Agent Nixon and circled the bed. The Were stood here and watched them. He left pheromone trace everywhere.
I looked up to find my new boss looking at me. “He stood here and watched them for a time. He killed the man first and then the woman. He got off on it.”
“What sort of Were is he?”
“”He’s a Wolf. They are the most predominate of Weres. I can smell his anticipation and his arousal. The profile isn’t complete he’s a sexual predator. Where are the children's rooms?”
Agent Nixon led me down the hall past the bathroom. I didn’t need direction after that, the scent of blood was unmistakable. The door was slightly ajar and the carnal scent drifting out put my hackles on edge. I stepped inside and took a deep breathe.
“Well?”
I shook my head. “He killed the boys first. Their terror permeates the room.” I could see some signs of struggle complete with evidence tags. “They must have heard the death of their parents and were trying to escape. He killed them quickly so he could get the reaction he wanted from the girl. She was more terrified then the boys. He played with her.”
“You mean he …” The Agent looked shocked.
“No. He didn’t touch her physically. Have you ever watched a cat play with a mouse? He let her think she was getting away and them he killed her. This guy was very methodical he touched almost nothing. Only another Were would have know he was here. Did you have any Magickal Support check out the crime scene?”
Agent Nixon was studying the floor and looked up quickly. “MS? No. We only have one of those guys on the payroll around here and he wasn’t available. Do you think he would have helped?”
“Some Wizards can detect Weres. Or lat least that is what my roommate at the Academy told me. It is an acquired skill but they can do it, even the Russians.”
“Who was your roommate?”
“Agatha Blackmore. She’s the first Official Federal Witch the FBI has ever recruited. Magical Crimes has her out west at the moment.”
“I heard there was a Witch at Quantico, didn’t she try to burn down the school?” He looked at me funny.
“Not exactly. Let’s go out back, I need to check the yard. I’ll tell you on the way.” I looked at the room and shuddered. Those poor children didn’t have a fighting chance. Agent Nixon followed me down the stairs. As we walked I told him the crazy story.
“So wait a minute, a Director of the FBI was trying to kill her? Was he crazy?” Nixon had stopped and was staring at me.
“Maybe? They fired him for cause. If he was prosecuted over it is a mystery to me. The new Director of Quantico is very nice. She wasn’t too pissed at some of Agatha’s antics. Strange things just happen around her sometimes.”
He shook his head at me. “It sounds to me like we all better watch out. You’re trouble.” He was smiling so I guess he was kidding.
In back of the house was a nicely trimmed expansive backyard. A tall six-foot wooden fence ran the entire length or it. In the center was a small roped off area with evidence markers. Much of the scent was gone due to it being outside but it was there too.
“The Smiths didn’t have a dog, so whose is this? Did anyone canvas about a missing dog?”
Agent Nixon stared at the fence. “Not to my knowledge. We assumed it was theirs. The fence is pretty big to keep a dog in.”
“You should have checked with a K9 unit. German Shepherds can jump six to eight feet. If this one wanted over he could have gotten over.” I jumped up to the top of the fence and held on. Carefully I pulled myself up to a sitting position. From up here I could see two of the neighbors yards. The one to the rear was a giant truck garden with greenhouses and solar panels. I doubted they had animals. Dogs could tear up a garden. The house to my right had a similar yard complete w
ith dog house. I didn’t hear any barking. Most dogs go crazy when a Were is near, especially us Cats. I stood up on the top of the fence and peered overt he the left hand yard. It also had a dog house but I could faintly hear barking. Sensing Agent Nixons distress I stepped backwards off the fence and flipped into a standing position.
The Agent’s eyes were large as he gasped. “How did you just do that?”
“WereCat remember? We are very agile. The yard behind us doesn’t look to have animals but the ones on either side of us have dog houses. You’re the boss, which one first?”
