by Apryl Baker
At the very edge of the perimeter, closer to the woods lining the field, I see it. Black droplets on the ground. If I hadn’t been looking for it, I would have missed it. They’re tiny, like ink stains. I squat to get a better look. Touching before forensics has a chance to collect the evidence is a no-no. I won’t tamper with evidence. I lean down and take a big whiff, and the smell of rotten eggs assaults my nose. Sulphur.
“Did you find something?” Dad calls from where he’s practically falling over the tape. I shake my head and suppress a laugh. He looks like some crazed fan at a concert trying to get the musicians’ attention by leaning so far over the line, they’ll fall at any second.
“Yup, I did.” I send James a text, as well as Detective Grady, who’s in charge of the case at CMPD. Then I snap a picture of the droplets with my phone. That done, I stand and scan the area again, but there’s nothing left to find.
My phone rings, startling me. James Malone’s name flashes at me, and I answer it, shooting a glance at my dad. “Hello?”
“Dan. We found Kayla.”
“Where?”
“At her school. One of the other kids found her sitting on the swing.”
“Sitting? Is she…”
“No,” James cuts me off. “She was posed. Sorry, I should have phrased it better. She’s a mess. Worst one yet. The medical examiner is here along with CMPD forensics, and my team collecting evidence. I thought you might like to come over and see the crime scene for yourself while it’s fresh.”
My gut twists. This is going to hit Mattie hard. She liked that little girl. A lot. And for Mattie, that’s saying something. She doesn’t like most people.
“Yeah, sure, I know where it is. Dad’s with me, though. Is that okay?”
“It’s fine as long as he stays out of the way. See you when you get here.”
The call is disconnected, and I shove the phone in my pocket. The man never says goodbye. It’s different. My parents always say goodbye to me before they hang up. Granted, I had hung up on him earlier, but hanging up on people seems normal for James.
“Dad, you up for one more side trip?”
“What’s wrong?”
“They found the little girl who was taken from Mattie’s neighborhood.”
Dad turns grim. He’s a parent. I’m thinking every parent in the Charlotte-Mecklenburg area tonight is going to be paranoid and paralyzed with fear. The body’s been found, which means the next victim will go missing within twenty-four hours if they haven’t already been taken.
***
Kayla’s school is swarming with black and whites when we get there. I have to flash my badge to get through. Dad’s eyes are everywhere, drinking it all in. He’s never seen this side before. Sure, he’s seen crime scene photos. He’s a defense attorney, after all, but to see it up close and personal while it’s happening? He’s like a kid in a candy store.
“Just stay close, Dad.” When we park and get out, I wind my way through the crowd that’s swarming the police tape. Officer Chris Jenkins is standing guard at the entrance. I know him from the Academy. He was also at Kayla’s the day she was abducted.
“Dan.” Chris nods to me when I finally reach him. “You see the press? Vultures.”
I glance over at the area where all the news vans are parked. Reporters and cameramen are prepping to go live. This is not something Mrs. Rawlins needs to see on the evening news. Chris got it right when he called them vultures. Picking away at the dead, digging at people’s hurt.
“Agent Malone asked me to come look at the body.” When Chris’s eyes flicker to Dad, I introduce him. “This is my dad, Counselor Earl Richards. He’s with me today.”
“I don’t know.” Chris hesitates. “We’re not supposed to let anyone but the police behind this line.”
“I’m still having some head trouble man. I’m not supposed to go anywhere alone. Dad’s here in case I pass out or something. He won’t get in the way and he won’t touch anything. You have my word.”
His face scrunches up in indecision.
“If there’s any heat, I’ll take it.”
After a long moment, he nods and steps aside. For a minute there, I thought I might to have to call James to get us in. Well, Dad, anyway. “Thanks, man.”
“Dan.” Chris’s tone stops me more than anything, and when I turn around, his face is grave. “It’s bad. Worst one yet. I hope you haven’t eaten.”
Now I regret the sandwich I ate. I give him a nod of thanks, and together, Dad and I navigate through the sea of people. The crime scene itself is relatively clear of people, but then I see Sergeant Carver bent over something next to one of the swing sets. He’s put the extra uniforms to good use too. There is a wall of blue around the crime scene. Even if the reporters wanted to get a shot of the body, they couldn’t. The men lined up surrounding the area prevents it.
I spot Caleb and head in his direction, careful to keep my eyes averted from the swing sets. I’ll look at the body, but for now, I want to get as much information as I can before I do.
“Caleb.”
My brother looks up at the sound of my voice and waves. His eyes flicker to Dad, but he doesn’t make any comment. Caleb is a carbon copy of his father, and in turn, me. There is no denying we’re brothers. We look too much alike. Mattie told me he reminded her of me before she knew we were brothers.
“Hey, Dan.” His deep voice is quiet, the somberness of it relaying how bad the situation is. “Dad said you were coming. You’re sure you’re up to this?”
“I’m fine. CT scans are clear.”
“I know. I was there when the doctor told you. That’s not what I meant. You and Eli haven’t gotten much rest in a couple days. How’s Mattie, by the way?”
Huh. So Eli hadn’t told Caleb or James about her heritage? In a way, that’s a good thing. We need her help to solve this, and I don’t want anyone second guessing her because of something she has no control over.
“She’s awake, but that’s about all that’s changed. She had another seizure last night.”
“After everything that kid’s been through, she doesn’t deserve this.” Caleb lets out a heavy sigh. “Now this? She knew the little girl, didn’t she?”
“Yeah. Her next door neighbor’s granddaughter. So, what do we know?”
Caleb glances towards the swings then quickly looks away. “Not much. CSU is processing the scene right now. Once they’re done, we can get in for a better look.”
“James said the body was posed?”
Caleb’s face darkens. “She was tied to the swing so she wouldn’t fall off. She looks like she’s sitting there, ready to push off. Her lips are gone, so they drew a huge smile on her cheeks with a red marker. Rigor has come and gone, so she’s been dead for at least a day. We’ll know more once they get her back to the morgue.”
“How long ago did they find her?”
“About two, two and half hours.” Caleb checks his watch. “The school said she wasn’t there any earlier. They’ve had several classes out here all morning, and it was the last class of the day who found her.”
“Witnesses?”
He shakes his head. “No. We’ve got people canvasing the area, but it seems he just magically appeared, had enough time to pose and tie her up, then magically disappeared."
“How long between classes coming out for recess?” Dad asks, tilting his head.
“Thirty minutes or so, why?”
“That’s plenty of time to do it.”
When he looks doubtful, Dad laughs. “I’m a defense attorney, Caleb. It’s my job to figure out what’s possible, and then debunk it. Trust me when I say thirty minutes is more than enough time to do this and slink away.”
“Earl’s right.” We all jump at the sound of James Malone’s voice. He’s standing not more than a few feet behind us. How he’d snuck up on all three of us, I don’t know. He’s as stealthy as Mom’s cat. I hate that animal. She loves to startle me then stare me down.
“Carver’s wra
pping up now. He says we can go in any time. It’s gruesome.” He looks at Dad when he says this. “You might want to stay here.”
Dad hesitates. I know he’s torn between wanting to see a real live crime scene and thinking about the nightmares it’ll give him. Some things you just can’t unsee.
“You should probably stay put, Dad. We don’t want a defense attorney having any ammunition to get evidence thrown out on a technicality, and a civilian on scene could do it.”
“You’re right, of course. We don’t want this monster getting off because the defense might claim I touched something or tainted evidence.”
None of us remark on the evident relief in his voice. Instead, we go over to where Carver is talking to one of his techs. I’m taking forensic science classes at North Carolina University. Carver is the reason I decided to go that route. I don’t know a better cop, even if he only looks at the physical evidence. Nothing gets past him. He has an eye for detail, much like Mattie does.
“Agent Malone.” Carver nods toward us as he closes his notebook. “The scene is all yours.”
“Did you find any of the black substance I asked about?” James takes out his own notebook, ready to make notes. Caleb and I both pull out our phones. I’m assuming he’s going to record the conversation as well as take notes. It’s what I’m doing.
“Yes, we did. Over by the east gate that backs up to the neighborhood. Just a few drops, though. Strangest thing I’ve ever seen. Smells like sulphur. Not a common substance, especially in this area. We’ve run a few tests on the original sample from the girl’s bear, but so far, we’re getting inconsistent results.”
I’m not surprised. It’s from a demon. I doubt there’s a substance like it on this plane.
“Preliminary?” James turns his head, looking directly at Kayla perched on the swing. He’s no longer talking to Carver. He’s speaking to the medical examiner for the county.
Angela Moore is in her late thirties, pretty with dark blonde hair and green eyes. She’s all business, though. Hard to talk to and always direct and to the point.
“At this point, I can’t directly point to a cause of death. She has so many wounds, and any one of them could have been the fatal one. I’ll know more once I get her on the table. I’d like to get her off the swing and in transit as soon as possible.”
“We’ll be quick.”
When James moves, I get my first real look at Kayla Rawlins. She’s seven, blonde hair, and big, beautiful blue eyes. That’s what she looked like the day she was taken. This little girl barely resembles her. Her face is broken, bloody, and bruised. One of her eyes has been gouged out, the other staring blankly at us. There are deep gashes along her arms and legs, like someone raked a knife up and down them in a precise pattern. Heavy bruises dominate her skin. One hand is missing, the other has missing fingers. Her feet…I look away for a moment. Her feet are barely attached to her legs, only a thin strand of ligament holding each in place. Her white skirt is more of a reddish brown color, blood stains covering it. Her princess t-shirt is pristine against all the other marks on her body. It’s clean, freshly laundered, I think.
James squats down and uses his pencil to lift the shirt, and we all hear his gasp. Her stomach is a torn, bloody mess. Parts of her organs are sticking out through several wounds.
How is the shirt so clean? My mind focuses on that instead of the gory mess in front of me. She hasn’t been dead that long. There should still be some fluids present.
“CSU needs to run an analysis on her shirt. Someone took the time to wash it.” I squat next to James, forcing myself to look at the maze of wounds on her chest and abdomen.
“Policy is to bag each item separately then hand them over to the senior forensics investigator on the case.” Dr. Moore’s brisk voice interrupts me. “Procedure will be followed.”
“Yes, Dr. Moore, procedure will be followed,” Sergeant Carver assures her. “I think Officer Richards was more or less making a note of it.”
She nods then bounces up off the ground. “Please be efficient, Agent Malone. I need to get started on the autopsy with all due haste.” And with that, she picks up her bag and walks away.
James scowls at her retreating back. Our medical examiner takes some getting used to, but she’s wicked smart. I wouldn’t want to be on her bad side.
“Carver, send everything over to the FBI lab once you’ve processed it.” James turns his attention back to the body, dismissing the sergeant. Carver frowns, but otherwise says nothing. Not a lot you can say when the FBI hijacks your case and the captain orders you to defer to them. He packs up his things then goes over to where his crew is processing the east gate, leaving us alone.
“It’s odd that a demon would take the time to wash her shirt.” Caleb keeps his distance. He’s not police or FBI. He just graduated college and James wants him to join the Bureau, but I don’t think that’s what Caleb wants to do. He would have joined the first class after graduation, but he hasn’t. There have been two since May. I know. I checked, thinking about it myself. Before I knew about James Malone and his affinity with the Bureau.
“That’s because a demon didn’t do it.” I use my penlight to pull her shirt down around her neckline. There are a few more droplets of the black goo there. The small spot on her otherwise pristine shirt had caught my eye. “He’s using a human to torture the souls to the point he can feed.”
“How could you possibly know that?” James leans closer, inspecting the drops I’d just uncovered.
“I saw it.” I explain to James about my new ability and how I’d used it to touch Kayla’s bear and “see” what had happened to her in those last minutes before she was taken. “I’m hoping Caleb may be able to come up with a tattoo or something to help me focus it and make sure I don’t see random stuff every single time I touch someone or something.”
“I’ll research it,” he promises then brings the conversation back around to Deleriel. “Demons have been known to use host bodies while on this plane, but usually because they don’t have the juice to hold a corporeal version of themselves. I would think Deleriel has enough power to be himself. I’ve seen him.”
“Yeah, but you’re not thinking about all the little demons he’s created. They need to feed too. He’s not just taking kids here in Charlotte. I guarantee if we do a nationwide search, you’ll find the rate of missing kids has spiked over the last two months. He’s corralling his children food, while he’s using someone here to collect his food.” It’s a theory, but one I’ve thought a lot about and am almost one hundred percent sure I’m right.
“That does make sense.” James nods slowly. “He could go find his own monsters food, and when this soul is ready, he could siphon some of his energy back into the host and feed if he were busy elsewhere. It’s the only way he could be in two places at once. And it does make sense. Locklier!”
A young woman, maybe twenty, twenty-five rushes over to us. Her dark red hair is restricted in a severe bun, and her brown eyes are sharp, bright with eagerness. A new recruit, maybe? She seems overeager.
“Sir?”
“Locklier, this is Officer Daniel Richards. He’s just given us a clue we didn’t know we had. Deleriel is using a human to do his work here in Charlotte while he’s out rounding up food for his army of child monsters. Do a nationwide search, concentrating on the states closest to us, for a spike in missing children. Within the hour, Locklier.”
“Yes, sir.” She nods then rushes off in much same fashion as she arrived.
“She new?”
James laughs. “You would think so, but no. She just has a lot of pent-up energy and is always rushing around like a whirlwind. Dan, do you think you could give us a description of the man Deleriel is using?”
“I only saw him for a minute, and he was blurred with Deleriel’s image, but I can try. I do need to get back to the hospital, and if Mattie isn’t up for doing the drawing, I’ll call CMPD’s sketch artist.”
“No, don’t do that. It’ll br
ing up too many questions about how you got your information. I’ll have our resident artists come to the hospital and do the sketch. It’s best to keep all this to ourselves. The less CMPD knows, the better.”
I hadn’t thought about that. I don’t want anyone I work with knowing what I can do, especially since I’m having a hard enough time accepting it myself.
“Dan, if you were to touch the body now, do you think you’d get anything?”
James’s question snaps my head back around to stare at him. “What?”
“Dad, there’s all kinds of people here. Trust me, it’s not something normal people will understand.” Caleb says exactly what I wanted to, but was too shocked to utter. James wants me to touch a dead body? Doesn’t he realize what I could see? The torture…no. Some things even I won’t do.
“No, James, I won’t do that for the same reason I told my dad to stay back. Some things you can’t unsee.”
“Even if it means helping us to capture the person who did this?”
“Dad, don’t. He’s not ready for any of this. He wasn’t raised like we were.”
James purses his lips, his eyes narrowed. “Think about it, Dan. I can get you access to the body when you’re ready.”
I stand up and back away. “I really need to get going. If you can have copies of everything brought to Mattie’s room, I’d appreciate it. Talk to you then, Caleb.”
Without another word, I walk as fast as I can away from James Malone and his request. I’m not ready for any of this, and I won’t be pushed into it.
I’m a cop, yes, but I also have a sense of self-preservation, and seeing what was done to Kayla would haunt me to my dying day. I won’t do that to myself.
I’ll focus on what I do best, and that’s at looking at the evidence, putting the clues together, then tracking down the bad guys based on good old-fashioned police work.
