Anticipation

by Terri Breneman

  “I guess we’ll know more when the reports are in,” Vicky said.

  “I can nose around a little at the station. See who was first on scene. Maybe someone will tell me something.” Toni yawned. Boggs looked at Vicky and nodded ever so slightly.

  “Why don’t you try to get a little sleep,” Boggs suggested. “I think that’s enough brainstorming for one night. We can do more tomorrow. One of us will take the first shift and keep things under control down here.”

  Toni started to protest but realized that all the adrenaline had taken a toll on her. She started to gather the remaining plates from the coffee table.

  “I’ll take care of all this, Toni,” Vicky offered. “I’m still pretty 159

  wide awake, so I’ll take the first shift.” She glanced at her watch. “I can watch reruns of I Love Lucy.” Boggs looked at her watch also. “Come and get me at five.

  Three hours should be enough for me. Come on, Toni, let’s get you in bed,” she said with a wink.

  Toni grinned slightly. It seemed like all of the sudden she was more tired than she had been in her entire life. She headed up the stairs with Mr. Rupert by her side and Boggs close behind.

  Toni grabbed a T-shirt from her closet and went in the bathroom. Mr. Rupert followed her. Boggs sat down in the small overstuffed chair in the corner of the room. She moved it slightly so that she would have a clear view of the hall. When Toni came out of the bathroom, Boggs was in the chair with her feet propped up.

  Her gun was still resting in her shoulder holster.

  “Do you plan on sleeping like that,” Toni asked.

  “Yes, in fact I do,” Boggs said. “I think I’ll be very comfy, thank you.”

  Toni shook her head. “There’s more than enough room for you in my bed.”

  Boggs smiled. “Well, now there’s an offer. No, seriously . . . I’d doze in this chair. If I got in your bed I don’t think I’d want to be sleeping. And anyway, if I actually did go to sleep, I’d probably sleep too hard and it would be tough to wake up quickly if needed.”

  Toni didn’t even put up a fight. She nodded and crawled into bed. She pulled the covers up and tossed Boggs the extra pillow.

  “Here you go. Oh, there’s an extra throw blanket on the floor there.”

  Boggs thanked her and arranged the pillow and blanket on the chair. Her feet were propped up on the desk chair. Toni could hear her settle in and she felt safe. Smiling, she closed her eyes and tried to get a little sleep.

  160

  CHAPTER 16

  Standing outside a small cabin about 50 miles south of Fairfield, the man looked up to the sky. The moon gave enough light for him to complete this task without a flashlight. He had taken his jacket off and rolled up his sleeves. He was covered in sweat, but it was something he had to do. He was almost finished. He’d been at this nearly three hours.

  He surveyed the area. It looked good. The woodpile was just as it had been before he began. Just a few more and no one would ever guess what lay underneath.

  He placed the last few logs on the top of the pile. He reviewed every step in his mind, making certain he had done everything correctly. First, he had moved the logs, one by one, to another pile about 15 feet away. He was careful about putting the logs in a leafy area. He didn’t want anyone to notice that the pile had been moved. Then he’d retrieved a shovel from inside the cabin. Even though this was not his cabin, he knew there would be a shovel 161

  inside and there was. Digging was the hardest task. It wasn’t just the backbreaking job of shoveling dirt, it was the purpose of the digging. This was not a task that he enjoyed, but he knew it must be done. It was a part of the big plan. He was even sorry that it had to come to this, but he’d always known it would. As he had continued to dig, he took comfort in knowing it was all for the greater good.

  The hole he dug was not as deep as he would have liked, but he had hit rock. Barely four feet deep and only about three feet wide and six feet long, it was big enough, though. He had climbed out and dusted himself off, pleased with his effort.

  Satisfied, he rested for a moment, leaning against a tree. “I knew you would like it up here. It’s very pretty. You can see the lake there, just past those trees,” he said. “Yes, this is a good place for you. You’ve done a really good job, Dexie. I’ll finish here. We both knew I’d be the one who would have to finish—it’s my destiny, you know? Just like we always talked about. I won’t forget all you’ve done. You rest easy now, okay?”

  Earlier that night he had asked Dexter to stand on the canvas so he could show him how he was able to kill the women so easily.

  Dexter never even questioned the request. Just as he hadn’t questioned him when he told him what to say to the police. Or to leave the holding cell when another man’s name was called. Dexter had never questioned him. Dexie trusted him completely. The sight of the knife didn’t even bother him.

  Slicing Dexter’s throat caused no emotional reaction in the man and that surprised him. He thought he might feel a little sad, but it was just another task. Only the thought of the burial made him a little uneasy. He himself didn’t like confined spaces.

  He took a deep breath and continued working. The heavy canvas served as a shroud for Dexter. He pulled the edges inward and then carried the body to the hole. With absolutely no cere-mony, he dropped Dexter in. He then retrieved the shovel and replaced the dirt. After packing the dirt as best he could, he began the task of replacing the woodpile.

  162

  With every log back in place, he stepped back to admire his work. Perfect. No one would ever know. He picked up the shovel and went back inside the cabin. He laughed to himself. The owners had secured their cabin with only the one small lock on the door. Its resistance was less than the average bathroom door. Even a child could get inside. He laughed again at how stupid most people were. He looked around the inside of the cabin, making sure he hadn’t disturbed anything. Of course he hadn’t. He relocked the front door on his way out. He would be home before the sun broke the horizon. Before anyone noticed he was gone too long. Everyone was working on the case. He was no exception.

  While driving back toward the city, he worked on the next step of the grand plan. He had berated himself earlier that night when he learned about that police bitch who found a possible connection between Judge Haley and Anne Mulhoney. After thinking about it for a while, however, he decided it would only confuse the police and that made him happy. Even his mistakes were brilliant. He hummed a nondescript tune all the way back home.

  163

  CHAPTER 17

  Boggs was dozing in the chair when the whisper of her name brought her wide awake. Her hand automatically went to her gun as she scanned the room. All her life the whisper of her name would bring her out of a dead sleep, although she could sleep soundly through thunderstorms, telephones and loud music. She exhaled a sigh of relief when she saw Vicky standing in the hall, motioning to a cup of coffee in her hand. Boggs nodded and joined her in the hallway.

  “I just made a fresh pot,” Vicky whispered. “I think it would be okay if we let her sleep alone for a few minutes. Come on downstairs.”

  Boggs agreed. She took a quick look back at Toni, who was sleeping soundly. Mr. Rupert blinked at her. She waved to Mr.

  Rupert and then tiptoed down the stairs. “How was your night?”

  “Just spiffy. Thank you for asking. I watched a little late-night TV. Nothing too exciting. Although I did watch an infomercial 164

  about these fabulous cooking pans that also chop, dice and puree.

  You can fix an entire gourmet meal in just a fraction of the time. I almost ordered a set.”

  Boggs laughed. Vicky never cooked.

  “Anyway, I called Sarge and asked who was on ‘Toni’ duty today. I found out it’s Patty Green, and she was the first on scene at Judge Haley’s. Guess she wants the overtime. She should be here in a couple hours, so I’m going to hang around until then so we can pick her brain. Oh, and I voluntee
red both of us for bodyguard duty, too. For the next few days I have midnights and you have evenings. While she’s at work the sergeant isn’t going to have anybody assigned.”

  “Good. I think she’d be more comfortable with people she knows,” Boggs said. “And Patty’s really nice.”

  “Oh, you are so correct. Gee, I bet you never even considered that you want to spend every second with her.” Vicky laughed. “So fill me in. When did you figure out you liked each other?”

  “Well, it didn’t really come out like that. When you went to get the bags last night she told me she overheard us at Sam’s.” Vicky grimaced. “Sorry. I was probably talking too loud.”

  “No. It turned out great. We had a small ‘moment’ before we drove over here. If this Crown shit hadn’t been going down—well, you know.” She remembered Toni’s kiss. “Anyway, as soon as all this is over . . .”

  Vicky was grinning. “What the hell were you doing sleeping in that chair?”

  “I was doing my job,” Boggs said, feigning indignation. “And with you within earshot? No way. Anyway, she was sound asleep in two minutes.” She poured herself a cup of coffee and went to the fridge for some milk. “Jeez. There’s still enough food in here to feed an army. Were you PMSing when you went to the store last night, or what?”

  “Very funny. No, I just thought it would be nice to have some food for last night and today. I figured this thing might take a few days.”

  165

  Boggs sipped her coffee. “Yeah, you’re right. That was pretty smart of you. I guess that’s why you make the big bucks.”

  “Well, I wouldn’t go that far, but I’ve done the witness protection thing before. Some of the people are so keyed up and nervous they want to eat all the time. I found it easier to have a huge variety in the fridge instead of going out for food every half-hour. So, how do you think Toni is holding up?”

  Boggs shrugged. “I guess she’s doing pretty good, considering.

  I don’t think she really believes he’s after her. I think she’s pretty well convinced herself he’s only after very powerful women.” Vicky agreed. “I think the deal with the maintenance guy kinda threw her for a loop, but she doesn’t really believe she’s in danger.

  That’s going to be the hard part, because she’s likely to take more chances and not even realize that she’s left herself open.” The two women continued to sip their coffee, lost in their own thoughts. After a few minutes, Toni appeared with Mr. Rupert.

  “Good morning. Any coffee left?”

  Boggs poured her a cup while Toni fed Mr. Rupert his breakfast. The women sat on the couch while Mr. Rupert inhaled his food.

  “You know something?” Toni said. “I realize we were throwing a lot of ideas out last night, but I’ve got a strange feeling about this whole thing. I know it’s supposed to be an open-and-shut case, but something doesn’t feel right.”

  Vicky nodded. “I know what you mean. The more we talked last night, the more it didn’t add up. It wasn’t anything in particular, just a gut feeling. Almost like the murders were too perfect.

  Does that make any sense?”

  “You know,” Toni said, “I remember looking at the crime scene photos and thinking, these photos are good, almost too good.

  Perfect to show a jury.”

  They looked at one other.

  “You mean you think the murders were staged?” Vicky asked.

  Toni shook her head. “No, not exactly. Just that the photos were too perfect. The lighting, the angle, everything. The way the body was lying. It’s just plain strange.” 166

  Boggs hadn’t considered that before. “Maybe it’s also because all the photos were taken by the same team . . . and they’re the best.” She thought about this. Usually photos were pretty crappy.

  Only the major cases got the number one unit.

  “You’re right,” Toni said. “There could be tons of great crime photos, but the majority of the cases plead and never go to trial. I guess none of us spends too much time looking at photos when we know we aren’t going to use them.” She got up and took the coffee mugs into the kitchen for a refill. She came out of the kitchen shaking her head.

  “What?” Vicky asked.

  “It’s like you said. Everything is too perfect. Or maybe it’s just because we’re pissed off that we had the guy and we let him go. I mean, he gets into the homes of these women, who are by no means stupid. He’s able to kill them and leave no evidence behind.

  Then, we catch the guy and he makes a full confession on videotape, waiving his Miranda rights. On some fluke he walks right out of jail and disappears. A week later he waltzes into the judge’s home and kills her. Either this guy is a total genius or he’s the luck-iest son of a bitch on earth.”

  “No shit,” Vicky said. “And one of my questions is, how did Crown know to answer to the other guy’s name in the holding cell?

  Where was that other guy?”

  “He had passed out,” answered Toni. “He’s a regular down in the drunk tank. Comes in almost every weekend, kinda like Otis from the Andy Griffith show. But how did Crown know that? And by Monday morning, wouldn’t you think that Otis the drunk would be sober enough? He wouldn’t still be passed out, would he?”

  Boggs shook her head. “He should’ve been fine, especially if this is a regular occurrence for the guy. Does anyone know if they checked him out? Maybe he was paid to do this or something.”

  “Hey, that’s a thought,” Toni said. “In the meeting that morning in Anne’s office, the jail guy said they were going to check on him, medically. He was taken to the clinic, I guess. Maybe Crown did pay him off. You know, offer him a few bottles extra if he didn’t 167

  get up when his name was called. But don’t you think that’s a pretty risky plan? This is the same guy who’s been able to get into all these homes without detection. I wouldn’t put my money on a drunk for an escape plan.”

  Boggs agreed. “I think Crown is a lot more clever than that. I’d put my money on drugging the guy. That way he’d know for sure the guy wouldn’t wake up.”

  “But how would Crown get ahold of drugs in the jail?” Toni asked.

  Boggs and Vicky both laughed.

  “The guys in there can get almost anything they want,” Vicky said. “It’s amazing. Every once in a while they’ll crack down, but it always goes back to the way it was. I guess someone shells out a lot of money and that’s hard for some of the guards to resist.”

  “Well, that’s another mission for a later date,” Toni announced.

  “So, it’s possible that Crown drugged Otis so he could just walk out. He’d have to make sure that no one would recognize him. By some coincidence that day, the desk sergeant wasn’t the one who let everyone out. It was a couple of rookies who’d never seen Crown. At least that was the info I got from that meeting. Again we have another coincidence.”

  Vicky put her two cents in. “Hey, maybe it is a conspiracy, you know? Maybe someone wanted Crown to get out so he’d kill more women. Maybe it was someone in law enforcement who didn’t mind seeing women getting killed.”

  Boggs had been jotting down some notes on the pad of paper from last night. “I don’t think the conspiracy plot is very likely, but I’m writing it down. It would take a lot of planning and coopera-tion. I’d think by now someone would have talked, but who knows? I can think of a few of the good old boys who would love nothing more than to get rid of the women in law enforcement, but I don’t know if they’d stoop to killing.”

  “I guess that’s a little too drastic,” Vicky said. “But at this point, I think any idea we come up with is worth thinking about. I’m with you guys, this whole thing stinks.”

  168

  “And since we don’t know anything for sure, just our own hunches, I suggest we keep our little list to ourselves,” Boggs said.

  Toni and Vicky agreed.

  “I’m pretty sure that if someone else is involved in this, it almost has to be a man,” Toni continued. “I m
ean, it seems clear that this person does not care for women. Or at least women in powerful positions.”

  Boggs smirked. “It’s got to be another man. And frankly, in my opinion, at this point everyone has become a suspect—”

  “Absolutely,” Vicky interrupted. “In fact, I was thinking about Toni’s idea—a copycat guy. He was the best friend of the cop, so he knew the inside scoop. Only in this case, maybe the best friend is a cop. That would mean that there’s a really good chance that one of us knows the other guy.”

  “If we continue with this theory,” Boggs said, “we’d better trust only us until or unless we can rule someone out.”

  “That makes sense to me,” Vicky said. “Toni, I forgot to tell you. Patty Green’s coming over later. I know her and she’s a good cop. Although I don’t suggest we tell her what we’re thinking, I don’t think we’ll have any problems there.” Toni took a deep breath. “This doesn’t seem real.” Vicky continued, “I’m on midnights, so I’ll show up around eleven or so every night. Maybe earlier, then we can brainstorm a little. During the day, at least while you’re at work, you’ll be on your own. I don’t think you’ll be in any danger inside Metro. But to be on the safe side, keep to yourself, okay?” Boggs laid out the rest of the plan.

  “Sounds good to me,” Toni said. “Let’s have breakfast.” As Toni went to the kitchen to fix some food, Boggs wondered if she would indeed be safe inside Metro.

  The man stepped out of the shower and toweled off. He’d been home less than 30 minutes. He’d decided to shower and start his day as he would any other Sunday. He would dress and go out for 169

  a big cup of latte and pick up his usual Sunday papers, the New York Times and Fairfield Daily. He knew that if he willed his mind to do something, it would obey. All he had to do was to tell himself that he had just gotten up from a restful night of sleep. He would then be able to make it another 15 hours or so before going to bed.