by Robin Mahle
“Put it on speaker,” Marshall said.
“Rio Dell Police Department, how may I help you?”
“Good morning. My name is Katie Reid. I’m returning Chief Wilson’s call.”
“Oh, yes, Miss Reid. I’ll put you straight through.”
They waited impatiently, even though the chief picked up in less than ten seconds.
“Miss Reid, this is Chief Wilson. Thank you for calling me back.”
“Of course. Your message sounded urgent. I’ve got you on speaker and I’m here with Detective Marshall Avery. What can I do for you?”
“Katie, if you don’t mind, I’d like to speak with you in private, please.”
“If it’s all the same to you, Chief, I’d like Detective Avery to be involved. He’s helped me a great deal with my situation.”
“Fair enough. We received an anonymous letter yesterday with your name on it. It was addressed to our station, but was sent to your attention. First of all, I would like to apologize in that I’d much rather discuss this with you in person, but I understand that would be difficult. It seems as though the local media caught wind of our discussions and my discussions with the Humboldt County DA’s office regarding reopening the investigation. As a result, the Times-Standard ran an article in the local news section about the cold case and the impact it had on the community. You were not directly named, but the article stated that a victim might have information that could lead to the reopening of the file. That article would have been posted online as well as in print, there for anyone to see. I was not informed of the article, nor was the DA. The journalist cited an anonymous source.”
She looked to Marshall. He appeared just as shocked as she was. “Well, considering I escaped, it sure as hell wouldn’t be hard to find out my name. They only have to look at the old papers,” Katie replied. Her knees were growing weak and she had to sit down fast. A corner of Marshall’s desk would have to suffice.
“Not necessarily. When you were found, it was only reported that you had no recollection of what had happened. No one knew of any possible connection with the other missing children or that we were profiling the likes of a serial killer. However, because of this media attention, it has brought about a more concerning matter and the one to which I called so urgently. Katie, the letter was from him.”
Terror swept through her as she, once again, looked to Marshall for help.
“Wait a minute. Are you sure about that, Chief?” Marshall asked.
“I’m quite sure, detective. Not only did I spend years hunting this man down, studying his profile, but in the letter, he mentions details that only those of us who worked on the case would know about. And he asked about Katie by name.”
“Oh my God.”
“It’s all right, Kate,” Marshall said, “Chief, what did he say about her and was there any indication he has knowledge of Kate’s whereabouts?”
“He asked how his ‘little Katie’ was doing. Apart from that, there was no further mention of her. He’s taunting us, detective, challenging us to find his other victims, to find him.”
“Other victims?” Marshall asked.
“Yes. Although it was never concluded that the three other missing children on the north coast were tied to Katie’s case, we always suspected it as you and I discussed. I can only assume he is referring to those children.”
“But there could be more?”
“I suppose so, yes, detective. There could be more. Serial killers don’t stay quiet for long. It’s entirely possible there have been other victims in more recent years. It’s possible he never stopped.”
“So, what now, Chief?” Marshall asked.
“We don’t have any more to go on except for this letter. The DA wants us to keep it quiet, but to follow up on any evidence that might have been left on the envelope. Not that I expect he would have left any. He’s evaded capture for this long; my guess is that he has an understanding of new technology. Other than that, we need to wait and see if he contacts us again, or you, for that matter, Katie.”
“Do you think he will try to contact me?”
“Right now, there’s no indication of that. He wouldn’t know where you live. But, Detective Avery, I suggest you help Miss Reid stay vigilant and keep me informed of any new information you might receive. I don’t see any reason for you to panic, Katie. We will stay on top of this, making sure you’re protected. That being said, I believe this is directed more at me than at you.”
“I’m just the only one who survived.” Katie disagreed with the chief. She believed her former abductor was after her. She was the one who had been digging around, insisting the case be re-opened.
“Thank you, Chief. Please keep us informed if you get anything more and we’ll do the same on our end,” Marshall said.
“Thank you, and Katie, I won’t let anything happen to you, not again.”
The line disconnected and Marshall turned off the speaker. “We need to think about setting up patrols around your home.”
“Wait, wait. Look, I know you want to watch out for me, but how are you going to explain a request for patrol? We have no case here and the chief wants us to keep it quiet until they have more information.”
Marshall didn’t like the feeling of being helpless any more than she did, but they had nothing to go on.
“We don’t know who we’re looking for.” Katie stared off into the distance, realizing she was sounding more like Marshall every day. “What’s that saying? Be careful what you wish for?” she began. “For the past several months, I’ve wanted nothing more than to find out who this son of a bitch was; this man who had destroyed so many lives. And now . . . now that I know he’s really still out there, I’m terrified. I guess this whole time I thought maybe he was already dead.”
Marshall hoisted up from his chair. “You know what? There’s something we haven’t tried yet.” He started to pace the room, seemingly processing his latest idea. “I don’t know if the chief has considered this or not.”
“What is it?” Her anticipation was palpable.
“He said something that struck me. He said serial killers don’t stay quiet for long. He’s right about that. When I asked if there could be other victims, I originally considered other victims from the time frame of your case, but we tried that already, looking for a connection to the other twenty-year-old cases. But what if he never stopped? How many kidnappings are similar to yours, Kate? How many kids along the north coast, Oregon, Washington, anywhere along the Pacific Northwest, have been abducted over the past fifteen, twenty years? What if we can connect some of them? Any of them? Some may still be unsolved and there could be enough similarities that might link them to yours.”
“Don’t you think that possibility would have been explored already? My dad mentioned that the last time the chief contacted them was when a similar case in Portland turned up. It was a year or so after I came home.”
“Not necessarily. The cases could have spread out over several years in several different jurisdictions. Unless there were striking similarities, a link might have been overlooked. And without the cooperation from your parents or the parents of the other missing children, the chief wouldn’t have had much to go on. But that was before new forensics data become available. We started down this path before, but I was so wrapped up in the Thompson case that I overlooked current cases. Not to mention the fact that up until now, there was no indication the man was even alive.” Marshall continued to pace the room.
Katie was becoming dizzy by his frantic movement.
“Look, I’m not saying any of the guys in charge of these cases weren’t diligent. I know how hard they work. I’m just saying that unless there was information in CODIS that would trigger a connection, it was probably never considered to span decades. You’re the only evidence that this guy ever existed, Kate, except for the letter we have now. And now that you remember at least some details, I believe we have something.”
“So where do we start?” she asked.<
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Marshall finally sat back down. “We start by searching missing persons’ records. We profile children, around the ages of 5 to 8, since we believe this was his target age range, and we broaden our search to include not just northern California, but all the way up the coast. It’s hard to say if he would have been in these areas, but the Portland connection is a good place to start. I’ll need to contact my friend at the Eureka PD. I can poke around a little without giving away the farm.”
Katie started to think about her parents, how this would affect them. She hadn’t thought to involve them any further. Was it possible he would find them? “Oh my God. What about my parents? Do you think he knows where they live? What if they’re not safe?”
Marshall walked around his desk, sitting on the edge in front of Katie. “One thing I think the chief was right about was the fact that we shouldn’t panic. He believes that the letter was an attempt to get at him, not you, and not your parents. Now, I’m not entirely convinced of that. I think this psycho is playing games with us right now. However, as far as your parents are concerned, I think I’d like to get the chief to step up patrols around the area. I don’t believe it’s likely he would go after them. He likes kids, remember? But I think we ought to err on the side of caution. When I read your file, it was obvious that Chief Wilson fought long and hard in trying to find him. I know what that feels like; not to catch them in the end. The chief doesn’t want you to overreact or draw any further media attention. This guy’s looking for attention, wanting to stroke his ego. I don’t know why it’s taken him so long, but he’s probably been monitoring the internet for some time, waiting. And finding that article was probably what pushed him over the fence. If he is looking to get caught, you’d better believe I’ll be the one to do it.”
He got back on his feet and looked at Katie. She saw his determination and drew strength from it. For so long, she’d been feeling like she had no control over her life. Ever since the nightmares started, her entire world began unraveling. Anger grew not only toward Spencer because he couldn’t understand her need for answers, but toward her parents for covering up her abduction for so many years. Not Marshall; he knew. They were very much alike in ways that were only now becoming apparent. It was as if he brought her out of this place she’d been hiding. She was afraid, but her will was growing stronger.
“I know this is a lot for you to take in. Why don’t you go home? You’re supposed to be out sick today anyway. I can get started on the search and fill you in as I get more details.”
“No. I want to stay. This is what I’m supposed to do. I see that, now. It’s taken me a long time finally to see who I am. I won’t shrink away from it any longer. This is about me now.”
It was getting late in the day and Detective Avery had pulled several files that fit the criteria. There was nothing that stood out; nothing that would indicate any similarities with Katie’s case, except one.
“That’s her.” Katie pointed at the screen.
“Who?”
“This girl. I remember seeing her on the news and thinking how similar we looked. Her long brown hair, stick straight, a little on the gangly side, those big, bucktooth front teeth. She reminded me of what I looked like when I was a kid. I remembered thinking how sad it was that she was missing and how many times I had gone around on my bike in my neighborhood without a care, not even considering the evil that was in this world. That was when I started having the nightmares. For a long time, it hadn’t even occurred to me that she was the catalyst. Spencer was studying for his bar exam; we had a lot going on and I thought I was just stressed out. God, that seems so long ago, but it wasn’t.”
“If this is too much, Kate . . .” Marshall said.
“No, it isn’t. My point was that she looked very much like me. Do you think that could be something?”
“I don’t know. We need to see the file. This one happened up in McCloud. Certainly the vicinity we’re looking at. It’ll take me a day or two to make contact and get the case file. I’ll have to come up with some reasonable explanation. I think that’s enough for today, anyway.”
“I agree with you on that one. I’m feeling a little burned out.” Katie stretched her arms, letting out a small yawn.
“If it’s all right with you, I ‘d like to just follow you home tonight and check out your place, just to be on the safe side.”
“That’s not necessary, Marshall.”
“Just humor an old man, okay?”
“Old?” Katie started laughing. “You don’t look a day over forty-five.” She knew very well how old he was, only thirty-seven, but she took pleasure out of giving him grief about it.
“Hey, thanks for the ego boost.” Marshall led her out of the station, which was still bustling for 7 o’clock on a Tuesday night. San Diego was a big city with big problems and Katie knew hers was only one of many.
Upon arrival at Katie’s apartment, Marshall followed her upstairs. “Let me go in first, okay?”
“Really, you don’t have to do this. Weren’t you the one who told me not to worry?”
“Yeah, well. I’d rather be safe than sorry if it’s all the same to you.”
“See? It’s still locked.” After Katie unlocked the door, he pushed it open.
He held a hand up to quiet her and walked in. The summer sun was only just beginning to set as the season got into full swing, and her apartment was filled with its dusky light when they arrived.
“All right, you can come in. Everything seems to be in order.”
“Thank you. Do you want to stay for some dinner?”
“No. I’ve got a lot to catch up on. We’re handing over the rest of the files to the DA on the Thompson case. I’m going to head back to the station and wrap that up.”
“I’m sorry for taking you away from your real job. You don’t have to do this, you know. I can coordinate with Chief Wilson.”
“I want to help, Kate. If we get enough solid evidence to reopen this thing, the captain will be happy to take the credit anyway.” Marshall started to leave. “You’ll be okay?”
“I’ll be fine. Goodnight, Marshall, thank you.”
“Goodnight. I’ll talk to you tomorrow.”
Marshall was walking out the door when Spencer appeared on the landing in front of him.
“Spencer?” His unexpected presence startled Katie.
Marshall glanced at her, appearing confused, but waited for reassurance that it was still okay to leave.
“Hi, Katie.”
There was no reason for the awkwardness that followed, but it was there, nonetheless, and everyone seemed affected. Katie felt as though she was staring at two different chapters in her life. Before the dreams and after.
“Kate, you okay?” Marshall asked.
“Yeah, of course. I’ll talk to you later.”
Marshall continued on his way, extending a polite nod to Spencer.
“Did I interrupt something?”
“No. What are you doing here?” They hadn’t spoken since last Saturday night and he’d already cleared out his things. She was angry with herself, more than anything, but was projecting it onto him.
“Can I come in?”
Katie stepped aside and let him in.
“I heard they charged the guy who killed Isabelle Thompson and I just wanted to make sure you were okay. Is that why Detective Avery was here?”
A loaded question, if there ever was one. Katie was surprised he still believed there was something going on between the two of them. “No. Why are you here?” she asked again, trying unsuccessfully not to sound defensive.
“I left a few of my law books in the office and I wanted to pick them up, if that’s all right.”
“Sure, yeah, feel free.” She sat down at the dining table as Spencer collected his books. Feeling awkward and hurt, she didn’t really know what to say and only watched him walk around the apartment as if he was a stranger.
He placed the books on the table and sat down next to her, taking hold
of her hand. “I miss you, Katie.”
“I miss you too.” The sincerity in those words was very real.
“How have the dreams been over the past few days? I mean, I figured you’d be under a lot of stress with everything that’s been going on.”
“I haven’t been losing too much sleep, thankfully, but I appreciate you asking.” That probably didn’t come out right, judging by the look on his face. “Where are you staying?” Changing the topic would allow her to avoid having to tell him about the letter, the existence of which she wasn’t sure whether or not to reveal to him, but it hung heavy in her mind.
“With Kevin. I’ll probably start looking for a place soon, maybe after the firm removes my temporary status. I’m sure he doesn’t want me hanging around too long. And after the team won this last case, it’s looking pretty good that I’ll get my permanent salary and benefits.”
“I’m sure you won’t have any problems there. You’re very good at what you do.”
“Thanks. Of course, I thought I’d be looking for a house with you, not another apartment.” Spencer gripped her hand more firmly. “Please Katie, can we just get back to where we were?”
“I don’t think I can be who you want me to be anymore. Too much has happened.” She still vacillated about the letter. It would only serve to prove his point that she should have just let it go. Now there was the possibility that she could be in real danger.
“It isn’t too late. We can still move on,” he pleaded.
“That’s the problem, Spencer. You want me to move on and I can’t. I’m a different person. How can I not be? I know you want to protect me and that’s why you want me to let it go, but I can’t and I won’t. Especially after what happened to Isabelle. I saw the look in that monster’s eyes. He took pleasure in her pain. I can’t let him get away with that.”
Spencer sat back in the chair and dropped his shoulders. “I’m afraid something will happen to you, Katie.”
“Something already has. That’s what you refuse to see.”
He cast his eyes away from her.
