Murders of the Zodiac Boxed Set

by Paris Morgan

  My body moved, but I couldn’t feel anything. It was like my insides had been gutted, and all the emotions had been taken out.

  “Leslie!” Adam called as we got closer.

  A flicker of something moved, and then I was running toward her. The EMS workers looked shocked when I threw myself at her.

  “Sir, you can’t do that.” One of them tried to push in between us.

  Adam arrived right behind me. “It’s okay, we’re FBI.” He pulled out his badge. “Is she injured?”

  “Her eardrums were ruptured from the blast, but they’ll heal. Other than that, she’s fine.”

  I couldn’t hear any of that because her presence was bringing back all those feelings I thought were missing.

  “Leslie!” I pulled her close and held on, glad that she was alive.

  “I saw him right before it exploded. He’s dead,” she sobbed against my chest.

  I pulled her back just enough so she could see me. “Who? Jerome?”

  She nodded.

  “I think he was the Zodiac Master. I’m pretty sure he was my brother.”

  “Why would he blow himself up?” she sniffed, not having heard me.

  There was no point in trying to answer her right now; she couldn’t hear me. I continued to hold her, knowing that if Jerome really was the Zodiac Master, it was going to take her a while to recover from the betrayal.

  While he might have been my brother by blood, there wasn’t anything tying him to me anymore. I wasn’t going to mourn the loss of a sick sadist. He’d been killing people for months, and we still didn’t know where baby Hope was.

  Leslie was clutching a disc in her hand. “What’s this?” I tapped it, and she just shrugged.

  “The neighbor gave it to me. She said Jerome gave it to her yesterday, which means he wasn’t kidnapped. He faked it so we wouldn’t know he was the ZM. That’s why he was able to get listening devices planted all over my house. He was close to us the whole time.”

  Adam approached then. “Can she leave?”

  “Yeah. We want to take her to be looked over, but she’s refusing,” the EMT informed him.

  “Let’s go back to FBI Headquarters and see if we can use this new information to find out where he has Hope.” I lifted her hand with the disc in it. “He left a message.”

  “Crap. I knew there was something about him I didn’t like.” Adam kicked at the side of the ambulance without hitting anything.

  “We need to regroup and get her out of here.” I helped Leslie to her feet. “She needs to process this.”

  “I’ve informed the locals and detectives in charge to call me if they find anything out of the ordinary. Thank goodness he didn’t use anything too big to blow himself up with. Otherwise, the whole neighborhood would have gone with him as well.” Adam shook his head at the destruction in front of us.

  “Even though we’ve known he was leading up to a large event, I had no idea he would take the coward’s way out,” I huffed as we made our way back to Adam’s vehicle.

  Leslie had stopped crying, but refused to let go of me. Not that I really blamed her for wanting to stay close. She’d suffered more than anyone else at the hands of my horrible family. Hopefully, she wouldn’t hold it against me. Nobody’s family was perfect.

  -------

  The conference room seemed so surreal as people bustled in and out, working to tie up all the loose ends. They just assumed now that Jerome was gone, it was over. If anything, we had days or weeks of work left to close the cases he’d left us with. There was still a baby missing, but it looked like everyone had forgotten about her in the excitement of Jerome taking his own life.

  Adam took the disc from Leslie and began to clear people out of the room. We didn’t want to watch his last words to us with so many people around. They would get to see it later. Whatever he was going to tell us wasn’t going to be pretty, and it wouldn’t do for the entire FBI to know what his last words were before we had time to process them.

  Ryan, holding onto a fragile Shea, made his way into the room, along with Flora, Mac, and Barbie.

  “Noah, will you close the door, please?” Adam stood at the front, ready to push play.

  I got up and closed the door, returning to my spot next to Leslie as she curled into my body with only the chair arm separating us.

  “Hello, zodiac team. It’s time for me to clear the air and explain a few things to you. I am the son of John Reed, and brother to Noah Preston.” Jerome paused to wave at everyone.

  “Anyway, instead of some speech from the villain, I’m going to give you some of the reasons for doing what I did. Not that I owe you anything for trying to capture or kill me for the past twelve months, but I’ll feel better about getting it out in the open.

  “At seventeen, I knew there was something different about me. I wasn’t normal compared to other teens. I wanted to know what the big fuss about sex was, and why all my friends were obsessed with it. No one wanted to go out with the school weirdo, so I took matters into my own hands. As you know, that didn’t go so well.

  “I got a girl from a neighboring town, but she wasn’t pleased when she found out what I really wanted from her. I had to keep her from moving or screaming out, so I tied things a little too tight. She suffocated, and then I had another problem on my hands: what to do with her body? After a couple of days, it was obvious that I was going to need to get rid of the evidence before my mother realized she was out in our barn. Two things happened that changed the course of my life. One, I saw Leslie in that park, and two, the girl’s spirit attached itself to me.”

  Jerome gave a short laugh of disbelief.

  “As if I wasn’t weird enough, I could now see and talk to dead people. It was crazy. That had been something that surprised me. I began to explore the world of psychic connections and what it all meant. That was when I realized something had happened with Leslie when I’d been burying that body.”

  He blushed a little, and I wanted to puke as I thought about him getting excited about five or six-year-old Leslie.

  “I didn’t see her as a sexual object. I already had a hard enough time trying to get things going with all of that, so get your minds out of the gutter,” he admonished.

  “That’s rich,” Ryan scoffed. “He’s murdered hundreds of people, and we’re the ones with our minds in the gutter.”

  “She looked up and made eye contact before fainting and hitting her head. I was appalled, and would have rushed to help her, but I had a dead body slung over my shoulder. I might have issues, but I wasn’t going to get caught that easily. I faded into the forest and took care of business. When I got home, I looked up the town paper to see if there was anything mentioned about the incident. I also called and said I was a concerned citizen and wanted to make sure that the little girl was okay. Remember, there weren’t all these crazy HIPAA rules back then that are in place now. I sent her a stuffed bear.” He held up a picture of the bear.

  “I remember that bear. He was my best friend for years. I even took him to college with me,” Leslie admitted quietly with a shudder.

  Adam paused the video. “Can you hear what he’s saying?”

  “Bits and pieces. My hearing is coming back a little bit now that things aren’t so noisy. I’m also trying to read his lips,” she informed him loudly.

  “Ah, got it. She’s still a little hard of hearing,” he chuckled. “At least we can laugh at something.”

  She gave him a thumbs up in response and he started the video again, turning the volume up as high as it would go.

  “So, Leslie has been a big part of my life. I’ve kept an eye on her over the years. I wasn’t too sure about her becoming a cop, but she’s done really well for herself. I knew I wanted to get her attention, and what better way than having to solve a series of murders on your first day as a detective?” He laughed as if it was the funniest thing he’d ever heard.

  “I couldn’t believe my luck when she went onto the dating site and added her profile. It w
as too good to be true.” A long sigh escaped his lips. “I really did love you. It was the one and only time I was ever able to engage with a woman that wasn’t an act. You are truly something special. While I’m not happy with Noah, or the fact that my brother stole you from me, I can be certain he’ll protect you in the same way I would have. At least we can keep you in the family.”

  Leslie groaned in disgust at his words. “It’s a good thing I like you,” she whispered in my ear.

  “It wasn’t really the plan to attract our dad’s attention, but I did like that you all profiled me in that manner. Honestly, I was just having fun playing with Leslie. I know you’re all upset that there were lives taken, but think about it for a minute. People die every day, and sometimes it’s not in the normal way. Sure, their families will miss them, but we all have to die at some point,” he said with a shrug.

  “I’m sure you’ve pegged me as some psychotic killer, but it was more fun to see what different people came up with in regards to the methods I suggested. I told them what to use and gave them a list that fit the profile I needed. They followed their instincts. All they needed was a push in the right direction.

  “Anyway, I got my list off the internet that listed what each Zodiac sign might use to murder people. It sounded like fun. Craigslist has a whole group of people who are up for doing no good. My secretary did most of the screening, and if they made it past her, then I interviewed them as well.”

  Adam paused the video again. “Shea, was one of the people helping take care of you a woman?”

  She nodded. “Yes. She was about mid-thirties. I could work with one of your sketch artists and see if they can draw up her picture.”

  “When was the last time you saw her?” I questioned. We hadn’t really had time to do a criminal interview with Shea about what had happened because the shit had started rolling downhill and just kept rolling.

  “Um…yesterday, or the day before. Why?” She seemed puzzled at the question.

  “Well, that means she might be alive and can help us put together the last pieces. Did she look like she was under duress?” Adam chimed in.

  “No. She was nice. I kept thinking, how could she work for a man like that, but she never hurt me.” Shea trembled in Ryan’s arms. “I asked where Hope was, but all she would say as she looked at the cameras was that she was safe.”

  “We’re going to find them. Don’t worry. Let’s see what Jerome has to say before we work on that. He might just tell us what we need to know since he’s confessing.” Adam started the video again.

  “Well, you did better than expected, because I truly had to work these past few months. I know I’ve broken your trust, Leslie, and I’m sorry. I don’t apologize easily or to anyone, so know that I feel remorse for making you doubt yourself and love. Never doubt that I loved you. I didn’t want you to leave me, and I couldn’t understand why you would want to give me up in exchange for dead bodies and a serial killer. I know now that it’s part of who you are. You can’t help that it’s built into your DNA to find the bad guy. That’s why I’m taking myself out of the equation.”

  He wiped at his eyes, as if he was crying. “I don’t want to spend years in court, and then prison, where I know I won’t be able to see you. Instead, I’m going to find another way to make sure you don’t forget me. Just make sure that my headstone reads: I lived and loved. I’ve set everything up so you don’t have to do anything except make sure I’m buried.

  “Well, I guess this is it. The final goodbye.” He waved to all of us before he started to end the recording.

  “Oh, and Shea, I don’t have your baby. I would never hurt her, but my secretary removed her before I could do anything about it. I don’t know where she is. Also, if you haven’t taken care of the last one of the three who were murdering people last month, it’s the news reporter, Jessica. I kind of slipped her in right under your noses.” He waved his finger in the peace sign and the screen went blank.

  “Noah, can you call Jessica and tell her we have vital information that needs to go out on the news about the baby? If she can come here, I’ll do the announcement. Then, call the other stations and let them know to be here as well. We’re going to arrest her on live TV so she can get the ratings that all reporters are looking for.” Adam grinned, enjoying the idea.

  “Shea, if you can work with a sketch artist, we can get it out on the news as well. We’re going to find baby Hope. She’s alive. We just have to ask the public to help us find her,” Adam announced, jumping into action.

  I stepped outside to call Jessica.

  “Hey, Jessica, we found out who the person behind the bombings is. Can you come up here for a statement?”

  “An exclusive?” she asked eagerly.

  “I hope so, unless the other stations are following you, but it’s urgent. We may be able to save that baby.”

  “Give me twenty minutes and the cameraman and I will be there,” she promised.

  “Perfect.” I hung up and turned to find Leslie standing there, watching me.

  “You’re pretty sexy when you’re taking control like that.” She grinned as she slid into my arms. “I know we’re meant to be together, but can you give me a few days to sort things out? I’m going to need a chance to put all this behind me before I can move on.” She looked up at me expectantly.

  “Sure. It’s a lot to take in. He threw us a few curveballs, didn’t he?” I held her, hoping she came back to me. “Will you stay until after we arrest Jessica?”

  “Oh, I’m not going anywhere until Hope is back in the arms of her parents. I just know I’m going to need time to heal. It’s been a long year, and I need to go somewhere safe.” She looked up, determined, and then winced. “I may have to go see the doctor about my ears as well.”

  “Whatever it takes. I’m not going to give up on us.”

  “Good. We need something to go right in our lives for a change.”

  Ryan emerged from the conference room, rubbing his eyes wearily.

  “She’s doing great. We’ll have a pretty good picture to put on the news. Adam’s getting the phone lines ready again.”

  We’d already had the phone lines going earlier when Shea and Hope had first disappeared. I just hoped we got much better intel this time around.

  Jessica appeared, followed by her cameraman wearing visitor badges.

  “Wow. You made really good time,” I praised. “Here, follow me into the briefing room.” I wasn’t about to let this killer out of my sight.

  It was all finally coming to an end.

  ------

  Chapter 11

  A Foster Home – Dallas

  When the news stations all began to play the press briefing, I hadn’t paid much attention, but they all ended with a plea, giving the description of a woman wanted for questioning regarding the whereabouts of a baby named Hope.

  The baby cooed in my arms as I watched the broadcast in horror. She looked just like my baby. I rewound the news segment and started at the beginning, watching as the story unfolded about my baby’s history.

  When the CPS worker had brought me this little bundle of joy, I thought we’d finally found a baby to fill the hole in my heart. She’d warned me that this baby had come with a note.

  “To whomever gets this little baby. Her name is Hope, and she needs a home for a short time because she’s in danger. No one can know about her until the serial killer is found. You’ll know when the time is right. I’m also leaving instructions with my lawyer to help the parents find this baby. But please, love her until she can be returned safely.”

  I’d hoped that it meant years down the road, not three weeks later. With a heavy heart, I took out my phone and dialed the caseworker.

  “Have you seen the news today?”

  “Yes, I was about to call you. Hope needs to go back to her family. Can you meet me at the FBI Headquarters in downtown Dallas?” she asked, hoping, I’m sure, that I didn’t cause any problems.

  Tears streamed down my fa
ce. “I’ll be there. She needs to be with her family. They’re missing her.”

  “Don’t worry, Kathy. We’ll find you a forever baby. Hope just isn’t that baby,” she reassured me.

  “I knew this was going to be difficult, but at least she’s safe.” I collected the things she’d been delivered with after I hung up the phone.

  “Don’t worry, precious girl. Your mommy and Daddy are going to be thrilled to see you.” I kissed her forehead and carried her to the bedroom for a quick diaper change before we left.

  Foster care could tear your heart out, but it was worth it when children could be reunited with their parents. I continued to repeat that to myself as I put her in the car to reunite her with her parents. I was made of stern stock. I’d survive this too.

  ------

  Ryan

  I looked up as a couple of women approached the front of the FBI building with a car seat.

  “Ryan, you don’t think that’s Hope, do you?” Shea asked with excitement as we headed to the parking garage.

  I’d finally convinced her that we should go to a nearby hotel and get some sleep. The phones had been ringing off the hook since the press conference, but none of the leads had panned out. Yet, I reminded myself.

  “Do you want to go see?” I knew it wouldn’t hurt for us to check it out, and maybe it would help her get some rest.

  This past few weeks had been the longest of my life, and I needed a moment to hold my woman. Even though my daughter was still missing, I’d received one of the two most important things in my life back.

  “Excuse me,” one of the ladies asked. “Can you tell us where to go about the missing baby?”

  Shea’s shriek of joy cut off anything I might have said as she scooped our baby out of the car seat.

  “Thank you for bringing her back to me.” Shea looked gratefully at the two women.

  “Honey, let’s go inside and let the others know she’s back. Then these lovely ladies can tell me where they’ve had her for the past few weeks.” I didn’t want to threaten them, but kidnapping was against the law.