“Yeah, it’s the same guy,” I said as I slid the pictures back to her and stared at the table to try and keep the contents of my stomach from coming up in that room.
“Are you okay, Brandon? This kind of stuff never bothered you before.”
“Yeah well, it bothers me now, and it’s the same guy that killed Ron. I’m sure of it.”
“Why are you sure it’s the same guy?” She grabbed her pen and was ready to take notes.
“Like you said, I watched that guy pick up Ron with one hand and hold him in the air like Ron didn’t weigh an ounce. This guy doesn’t look it, but he’s incredibly strong. You need to be very careful, Lizzie, going after this guy. There’s something different about him. He not only possesses a level of strength that doesn’t seem humanly possible, but a level of brutality to match. I’ve never seen anyone as severe as him.”
“It’s Elizabeth, and please do not forget again. Am I correct in assuming that you believe he’s some kind of supernatural being now?” Her voice was laced with sarcasm.
“I’m not saying I believe what that nut job said about himself, but you have to admit there’s something off about a guy who can do that kind of stuff. Just look at those pictures, and what is left of Joey if you need any further proof.”
“It’s nothing I haven’t seen before. The guy is either high on something or he’s on steroids. You said he wore a full business suit, so there’s no way you could have seen just how muscular the guy is. However, I’ll tell you one thing that is odd about this case, and that is forensics hasn’t been able to find anything, not even a single fingerprint on the body.”
“They won’t find this guy’s fingerprints because he wears black leather gloves. Did forensics find anything on this guy at Ron’s house? What about the knife Ron stabbed the guy within his neck that rolled over like tin foil?”
“Forensics didn’t find anything, not even a single skin cell from the guy on that knife or in the entire house. All they found was yours and Ron’s DNA, but there were clear signs of a third party from the patterns of movement in the room.”
“I’m telling you this guy is obviously a professional killer and highly intelligent as well.”
“Why do you think he’s intelligent?” she asked.
“Because he’s smart enough not to leave any trace behind that could connect him to the scene of both crimes. I’ve never seen anyone that skilled before who doesn’t leave behind skin cells at the very least.”
“I agree the guy is good, but no one is perfect, and he will slip up eventually. You know even the best makes a mistake from time to time, and when he does, we’ll get him. Now, I’d like to change the subject for a moment.”
I hoped she wanted to talk about us, but something told me I wasn’t going to be that fortunate.
“Sure, go ahead.”
“If you didn’t kill Joey, then why did you go see him the day of his murder, and what did you two talk about?” she asked completely stone-faced.
“Let’s get all our cards on the table. Level with me here. Am I a suspect?”
“You’re a person of interest in this ongoing investigation, which leads me to my next question. Are you working with...? What was the guy’s name again? Oh yes, Wrath. Is Wrath helping you get revenge on the ones you blame all your troubles on? You have to admit, it’s pretty convenient, isn’t it?”
I knew that question was coming, but it still stung as she coldly said the words to me, like she had already made her mind up I was guilty. “No, I’m not working with Wrath, nor am I a killer. Come on, Elizabeth, you know me.”
“Well then, let me say it again for you, so maybe you will be able to see it from where I’m sitting and gain a new perspective. It seems pretty convenient to me that he is going after your enemies.”
“I told you Wrath said to me at Ron’s house that he had four other targets he was going after, but he didn’t tell me who they were. He didn’t even give me so much as the slightest hint of who the people could be.”
“Yes, I remember you saying that, so you figured out who he was targeting, and you didn’t think to tell the police. You seem surprised by how I’m reacting to this sort of deceptive behavior from you. Come on, Brandon, you know me.”
That last barb hurt a little. “It’s not like that. Wrath told me when he killed Ron that his other targets were Ron’s four closest associates.”
“That sounds like a hint to me.”
“Okay, I’ll give you that, but I hadn’t talked to Ron in years. I didn’t know who he hung around with anymore. I had a feeling it might be the Amaras since Ron was fond of them in the past.”
“You had a feeling. Sounds like a pretty accurate feeling if you ask me.”
“Yes, but after our last visit, I reviewed my old case files from Ron’s trial. Out of the nine names that came up who had suspected illegal dealings with Ron, only four of them were still alive. You remember that Ron kept his mouth shut and nothing happened to them.”
“Alright Brandon, given your history and skills as a detective, I’ll give you this one. Tell me, who are the people Wrath is targeting?”
“I figured they are Joey Abbate, Frankie, Enzo, and Skeeter Amara.”
“All the top brass of the Amara family who you have issue with,” she snapped back. “How stupid do you think I am?”
“It’s not like that.”
“Then why did you go see Joey?” she shot back as our exchange grew more heated by the second.
“I went and warned him because I didn’t want him to get killed like he did, because I wanted to see him go to jail for his crimes. Just like I want to see all the Amaras go to prison for what they have done!”
I was completely fired up, and I no longer cared what she thought about me. I loved Lizzie, and I always would, but I hated being thought of as nothing more than a criminal.
“How noble of you.” she said with a sly smile as she knew she was getting to me.
“That’s right because I want to see them all go to jail for not just ruining my life, but for all the other lives they ruined. Does that sound like the motive of a killer to you?”
“Yeah, because you had no part in screwing up your life, it was all someone else’s fault. It’s always the same old story with you, and it’s getting old.”
“That’s it, I’ve had enough. I’ve answered all of your questions, and you’re not charging me with a crime, so can I go now? I’m sure Scott has lunch waiting out there for you like the good little boy that he is.” I said the last line to cut her as deep as I could, and I couldn’t stop myself once I had decided to let it out.
She wrote something down on her note pad and smiled back at me. “Yeah, he probably does, and I’m sure you need to get back to finding someone’s cheating spouse, or whatever else you do to occupy your time. I’m surprised you haven’t been featured on one of those reality shows where they do that. You should put in for one, it would be a clear move up for you.” She got up and went to the door. “You’re free to go, but don’t leave town, I have a feeling we’ll be talking again soon.” She glanced at her phone. “Would you look at the time? I need to get across town for my appointment to look at wedding dresses. Have a good day, Brandon, and one more thing. If Wrath is really going after Ron’s old friends. How long do you think you have until he comes for you?”
She got the last word nearly every time and used the look of pride and victory on her face just to hurt me.
The line about the dress had pained me more than Wrath eventually coming to kill me. I knew I was a dead man walking, but I also saw for the first time how much Lizzie hated me. She was unable to keep it from registering on her face the entire time we talked. I figured there was nothing I could do to change that, and our relationship was as dead as Joey was. A part of me knew Scott was bad news, but she wouldn’t believe me even if I had concrete proof.
I picked up a burger and fries on my way home and ate it at my desk as I thought about my next move. I couldn’t go warn the
rest of the Amaras because I knew Lizzie had officers watching me, and the Amaras would kill me if they suspected for one moment that I killed Ron and Joey. As I finished the last bite of my burger, I realized I wasn’t alone in my office anymore. Wrath stood in his signature red suit directly across from me. He had gained access to my office without me knowing he was there, just like he did at Ron’s house. I decided to go for my gun, but Wrath spoke up and stopped me.
“Don’t do that, Brandon, you and I both know that’s not going to stop me. Besides, I’m not here to kill you. I just want to talk to you a moment.”
He was right about the gun being no help, so I placed my hands on the top of my desk where he could see them and hoped he wouldn’t escalate the situation.
“How did you get in here?”
“With ease,” he said with a joyous smile on his face.
“How long have you been here, Wrath?”
“I can get into any place I desire, when I desire, but don’t worry, I just got here. That burger you ate is going to take a lot of pushups and sit ups to burn off all those calories. You really should try and make better dietary choices, Brandon. Maybe next time order the grilled chicken sandwich, a salad, or something like that.”
“Is that why you’re here? To scold me about my dinner?”
“Oh no, I don’t care what you eat. It’s really no matter to me.” He stepped toward me.
“Are you really not here to kill me like you did Joey?”
“Nope, it’s not your time yet, and I did kill Joey, but you already knew that. He died because of his sins, which were many by the way.” Wrath took a seat across from me.
“You beat him to death with your bare hands.”
“I did.”
“That wasn’t necessary.”
“But it was because Joey liked to do that same thing to his victims. Are you beginning to see the pattern yet?”
“I see it, but why are you really here, Wrath?” Fear gripped me in my chair.
“I’m here because my boss told me to come and visit with you tonight.”
“Your boss is God, right. Because you are the living embodiment of his wrath on the earth.”
“That is correct, my friend.”
“You know how crazy that sounds don’t you?”
“Watch it,” he snapped back at me. “He sent me here tonight for me to tell you a little about myself to help you. There’s no need to bring insults into this, do you understand me?” He smiled.
“Okay, I understand, what does he want me to know,” I asked, getting more and more creeped out and fearful by the second.
“A little bit of history on my existence. My brothers and I were there on the day Sodom and Gomorrah were destroyed. We rained down fire and brimstone on the city, ensuring that it and all of its inhabitants were destroyed. We held them accountable for all of the wickedness they all had committed for years in that place. There was not one innocent in the entire city, not one, can you believe that?” He seemed completely enraptured with his own story as he stared off into space. I knew he believed every word he said, and the expression on his face looked as if he was actually reliving the events as he spoke them to me.
“I’m starting to believe it a little more and more every day. You’re saying you and your brothers destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah at God’s request? There’s more than one of you then?”
“Yes, it takes more than one Wrath Walker to destroy an entire city, and please do keep up, I hate repeating myself. However, I’m glad you’re starting to believe, because that belief will serve you well in the days to come. I’m also here to tell you that there is a way to stop me from killing you, and if you were listening close, I already told you how.”
“Okay, but why can’t you just stop killing those people, and turn them into the police? They deserve to go to jail for the things they’ve done. Death is too good and quick for them.” Everything Wrath laid out baffled me more.
“Because that’s not how it works, Brandon. You and I both know that many of those I go after would still thrive in prison and continue their evil and maniacal ways from their confinement. Now time is of the essence, and I need to be on my way.” Wrath stood and turned to leave.
“Wrath, please wait, how do I stop you from killing the others and myself?” I practically begged him to shoot straight with me. I needed an answer.
“Think back on what I just told you about my past, and you will discover the answer you seek. For your sake I really hope you figure it out before it’s too late, because truth be told, I like you Brandon. I’d really hate to have to kill you, but I will if you haven’t solved all of this by then. Good day.”
Wrath walked out my door and within seconds I found the courage to get out of my chair and run toward it. I pulled my gun and opened it, but Wrath was gone. There was no way he could have made it down the hall to the stairs in the few seconds after he walked out. I closed the door and went back to my desk and sat down. I didn’t really believe he was there when Sodom and Gomorrah were destroyed, but the answer to stop him was hidden somewhere in that story.
I needed to find my Bible.
Chapter Thirteen
Skeeter Amara
Private Meeting Room
“TO OUR FRIEND AND BROTHER, Joey Abbate, who will be avenged before this is all said and done. Nobody touches my family and gets away with it,” I said as we raised our glasses to our fallen brother. After I had received word that Joey died, I immediately called Frankie and Enzo into my secured private room for an emergency meeting to discuss who would take over his responsibilities. I also wanted to talk out how the one who killed Joey was going to die in order to avoid all unwanted attention.
“That was nice, Skeeter,” Frankie and Enzo said as they followed my lead of being silent for a moment over our friend.
“Hey Skeeter, what do you have in mind in regard to Joey?” Frankie asked after waiting several minutes out of respect before he spoke.
“First things first, Frankie, I want you and your guys to take all of the bets that Joey was taking for us until I find a permanent replacement for him. We can’t let our business suffer just because some jerk wants to try and be a tough guy and start a war with us.”
“You got it, boss. I’ll put my best guys on it. I’ll see to it things keep moving smoothly, “Frankie said.
“Good, and I don’t think I need to remind you what will happen if you or your crew screws it up. Whoever you put in Joey’s restaurant better be able to keep it running just as good if not better than Joey.” I got up and poured myself another shot of whisky at the bar and downed it as fast as I’d poured. A good portion of our business came from the gambling that went on at Joey’s restaurant, and I wasn’t about to let the people of the city place their bets someplace else. I straightened my blue silk tie and unbuttoned my suit jacket and took a seat at the table with Frankie and Enzo. I passed them the photos of Joey beaten to a bloody pulp at his restaurant that my source in the police department had sent to me. Frankie grimaced at first glance, but Enzo didn’t budge. He was used to seeing the dead since he was the best hit man I’d ever seen. The mold was broken when Enzo was made. He picked up the photo and studied it closely.
“Alright gentlemen, these photos are courtesy of our friend in the Black Castle police department, and they are of our brother, God rest his soul. As you can see here, the killer worked Joey over pretty well, but I’ll tell you this, and I mean it. We are going to do so much worse to whoever did this when we get our hands on them.”
“This sick monster is going to get it, boss. I can promise you that,” Frankie said all too eager to please me.
“I agree. It’s one thing for this guy to kill Ron, who was never officially a part of our thing here. Ron did a lot for us, but at the end of the day he wasn’t a part of our family. Joey wasn’t just a made guy, he was a captain, and our brother in arms, so there will be serious consequences for the one who killed him. There are rules to this thing we are in here. You don’t s
o much as raise your hand to a made guy if you’re not one without someone finding you dead face down in a ditch somewhere. An example must be made in this situation, so no one, not even another wise guy tries something like this again.”
“Do they know what the killer used to do this kind of punishment to Joey?” Enzo calmly asked the question as he continued to study the photographs. “It’s clear to me that whoever did this wanted Joey to suffer tremendously before he died by the various impact areas of blunt force trauma to the body.”
“How do you know that, Enzo?” I barked through clenched teeth.
“Because this killing looks to be personal to me. If it was just another run-of-the-mill hit job, the killer would have just shot Joey when he was out on the street somewhere and been done with it. They wouldn’t have gone to all the trouble of getting him in his restaurant and then tying him to a chair to do all of this. It appears to me that Joey was clearly worked over with a bat, a pipe, or some sort of blunt object, because I don’t even see a single puncture wound. Did your police friend find the murder weapon yet?” Enzo meticulously inspected the picture for the answer he sought.
“They police haven’t found a murder weapon, because they are saying there isn’t one.”
My answer broke Enzo’s concentration, and caused him to look away from the pictures for a moment as my answer rolled around in his mind. “What do you mean?”
“The police are saying that based off of the markings on Joey’s body that he was beaten to death by the guy’s bare hands. You know, Joey had that same kind of talent. The way he could work a guy over who refused to pay up was incredible. It was one of the reasons I had him doing what he was doing for us. I remember this one time when we were moving up in the ranks this guy always said he couldn’t pay up because he had a death in the family. When Joey got his hands on that guy, he beat him so bad the guy never talked right again after Joey punched him in the throat, but the guy always paid on time after that. People didn’t think Joey had it in him, but that little man had a meanness in his bones that enabled him to chop anyone down like they were nothing. It was like his fists were made of metal or something.”
The Wrath Walker (The Wrath Series Book 1) Page 12
