Of Truth and Lies: Hollingsworth Copycat Killer (Virgil McLendon Thrillers Book 5)

by catt dahman

  Both men heard a funny noise and scratching. A faint cry was muffled. Although he hated to ruin a crime scene, not that they were doing much good, Reb Kirby pulled Tracie Anne’s body to the side. She had been propped up against a cabinet.

  “Would you look at that?” Reb reached into the cabinet, finding it was a clothes hamper full of sheets. A chubby little girl lay in the center, safe and unharmed, but becoming fussy from a wet diaper and being in the dark alone. Tracie Anne hid the baby before she was killed and died protecting her.

  “We’ll make sure she’s known as a real hero. Tracie Anne saved you, didn’t she, little one? Gail. I think that’s her name Gail or Gala.”

  Still wary, the sheriff walked outside, meeting a frantic Jane Bennet who clasped her daughter close. “She’s fine, Jane. Tracie Anne was killed, but she died protecting your baby girl.”

  “Dead? What? How?”

  “We don’t know, Jane, but we need to get whomever I have left over here to gather evidence, and we’ll let Tracie Anne’s family know. Dreading that. But your kids are fine, and there is a nut we have running around in town. Is there somewhere you can stay?”

  “She can stay with me!” Ida Ferguson announced, “I love her kids, and there’s room enough.”

  “Are we in danger?” Jane Bennet asked.

  “I don’t think so. The one who did this thinks he killed the only real witness, and thanks to Mrs. Ferguson, the entire event was interrupted.

  “If he wants to come in my house, he can meet my late husband’s big Colt. Don’t think I can’t shoot.”

  “This is a little strange, but don’t take any chances even with law officers. Other than me, Virgil, Tina, and Harold Tackett, no one comes in your home, okay? No one but the ones I listed. Hell, not even Tackett yet. I’d rather be safe.”

  “Sheriff, Ned keeps talking about bad boots. Does that make sense to you?”

  “Yeah, Jane, it does. Just let him talk and listen and praise him for hiding so well. Remember only three of us are to be trusted right now until I get this thing wrapped up.”

  “Are you close? Is this almost over?”

  Virgil nodded, “It’s very close to being over. Mrs. Bennet, Ned is one smart boy and brave. He’s really helped us out a lot. You keep telling him how smart he is. And Mrs. Ferguson, I have full faith you can protect the Bennets. Thanks for calling this in.”

  Ida Ferguson looked sad and said, “I hate it for Tracie Anne and her family. She was a good girl. I taught her mama in grade school. I taught Janie, too.” She hugged Jane Bennet.

  “Come over to the car, please,” Reb Kirby asked Tina and Virgil. “What is going on and tell me about the boots.”

  “Hollingsworth wrote back and forth to the son of a bitch, David Gaither, that I dealt with in my first case. He coached him, and that was why my crime scenes were convoluted. Hollingsworth also reminded me that I looked for outsiders instead of a suspect within my home town. He was giving me a clue and playing with me. The thing was I finally, with a lot of help, caught Gaither. Hollingsworth feels I bested him.”

  “Gotcha.”

  “I asked Tina why here? Why this town? Someone wrote to him who is a fan. From here. It was perfect. He came here and coached his acolyte, and they have reenacted his crimes with a little of the Gaither case thrown in to poke at me. Ned identified the boots as being like ours. It also is someone who can go visit with Hollingsworth, seemingly about the case. At the crime scenes, we found boot prints. People trust a deputy.”

  “You’re saying one of my deputies is killing people?”

  “I think so. Starla Stoker was the key. She was too hazy on details, and it bothered me. I thought she killed her children, but the organization and control bothered me. A first-time killer would never have the organization for that crime scene. I questioned Starla and found out that one of your deputies went by the Stoker house the night of the murder.”

  “What the hell?” Reb Kirby grunted, “why?”

  “The Stokers’ dog vanished, remember? They filed a report and suggested someone stole the dog or harmed it. I’m sure it was killed. But it was a perfect excuse for your deputies to go by and check in with the Stokers, and they happened to take some of that good iced coffee from Stacey’s with them like people in a small town will carry dessert to neighbors when they visit. People always show up places with treats.”

  Tina sighed, “It was drugged?”

  “Exactly. I want to have Starla’s tox report redone and have some specific things looked for, but I’m fairly sure she will show some type of heavy sedative that affects memory. Her husband may show as it well, but I don’t think his blood was drawn that night.”

  “My deputies? Virgil, that’s personal. I don’t know….”

  “When Hollingsworth was bantering with us, he poked at Tina about being a deputy and asking if she ever felt unfulfilled and ignored. He asked about how she felt about her secondary role. We both took it as his probing and trying to get at a tender spot.”

  “And?”

  “He said, ‘Ah, lovely, Deputy Rant always there when required, always prepared for the clean-up detail, semper fidelis. You work hard and get praise like a puppy seeking a pat on the head, but has anyone ever asked your theory? No? A shame. I wonder if you have ideas that could help in a case, but as of yet, you only do the sweat work.’”

  “I thought he was looking for my weakness,” Tina said.

  “He was sharing a clue. He was saying that a deputy here felt that way. I can’t be positive which one, but I have it narrowed down and suspect which one it is.

  He was interrupted.

  “Sheriff, we have a 10-33 at headquarters. I need your 10-84. Over.”

  “Roger that, Tackett. 10-77, two minutes. 10-0. On the way. Over.”

  Kirby left rubber on the road as he punched the accelerator. The idea of an entire town becoming a crime scene and one of his people being the perp was chilling. It hurt Kirby’s heart, but he trusted Virgil’s theories. “I hope you know who is doing this. What the hell is going on at headquarters?”

  “Something bad. This side case of a B and E and Tracie Anne was a red herring, something to keep us busy while the killer set the rest of the plan in motion.”

  Kirby asked if he could call Deputy Gunn, and Virgil nodded. “Good. Gunn, I am 10-76 to headquarters. At the Bennet house, we need a 10-79.” He was asking for the coroner to be called for Tracie Anne. I also need for you to notify the family. Over.”

  “10-4, Sheriff. On it. Over,” Gunn said.

  “What am I facing, Virgil?”

  “Good news is that it’s almost over. Hollingsworth is dying, and with the master going, someone will have to take his place as the expert…the one who knows all and is the one to learn from. Think of it as a play, and now it’s all written out and being acted upon. It’s just like the other cases and will end it all.”

  “What’s the bad news?”

  “Body count is going to go up, and Tina and I are in the roles of the couple who were both killed. We’re the final victims.”

  Chapter Thirteen: Face to Face

  “How did you figure it out?”

  “It’s all that made sense. Hollingsworth was telling us in his own, snobbish manner. He is way too self-pleased to ever reveal anything normally. Maybe he had other reasons, but he was telling us all along. Maybe his student got too big….”

  Virgil cut himself off as they pulled up outside the Sheriff’s headquarters where two dozen people gathered and medical teams waited impatiently as they stood around, puzzled. Deputy Gunn tried to maintain control and was relieved to see back up.

  “Gunn?”

  “We have a mess, Sheriff. Tackett is trying to do ten things, and I can’t keep people calm; Turnbow and Staggs are both 10-7 and won’t respond. I am losing it.” He wiped at his face, stressed out and worried.

  “Calm down. You’re doing fine. How is our visitor?”

  “Oh, Sheriff, you don’t wanna know. It’s
bad.”

  “Hollingsworth? Is he…?” Virgil asked.

  “He’s alive, Sheriff McLendon. And them agents…dead as dirt. I already called, and we’re getting help, but it’s a crime wave. Here. What are we gonna do the next few hours?”

  Reb Kirby looked at Virgil and asked, “Well, you’ve been here before, so to speak. How do we best proceed?”

  Virgil ran over possibilities in his head. He knew the end game, but for now, there was only the present. He had been in this position before with bodies stacking up and no way to catch the killer. No, the killer was a few steps ahead. They had to deal with each part.

  “We have what we came for at the pond. Let it go for now because it’s important but not the focus. Tracie Marie needs to be handled, but we’re past that as well. That was to keep us out of the way and busy so our suspect could work. We’re being pulled along a designated trail that benefits our suspect only.”

  Kirby nodded.

  “Let’s see what we have. Wait,” Virgil said. “Hey! Yeah, settle down now. Sheriff Kirby will give a statement soon, but right now, all of you need to help us by being calm and doing what you can to be helpful for us.”

  “We heard some more kids were killed,” a man yelled.

  “Who’s stalking our kids, and what are you doing about it?”

  “This is cause we got a freak killer in our jail.”

  Kirby held up a hand, “Now Sheriff McLendon is here to help us, and he just said, ‘I’ll give a statement soon.’ Since when are we a town that acts this way? This isn’t the way we behave. You know what went on down to the pond, and we’re getting ready to make an arrest.” He found the words coming easier as everyone listened. “There was another incident tonight, but I saw a little kid, no more than five or six, and he was brave, actually helped our investigation by telling what he saw, and we saw a teen girl fight a killer to save a baby. That’s two kids who are braver than you’re acting.”

  Virgil gave Kirby a nod.

  “We don’t fall apart, but we work together. Now go home, lock your doors, and be vigilant. I know, Tom Moody, that you have a wife and kids; you ought to be home protecting them, instead of raising hell with Deputy Gunn.”

  The man stared at the ground, nodding.

  Kirby went on, “Sarah Jane Purdue, I know you can tote a rifle with the best of them, but you also have a teen at home, so you get on home, lock your doors, and act right. The rest of you, go home, and sit tight or get deputized, and help with the problem, and that means taking orders from me without question, as well as Tackett, Gunn, Sheriff McLendon, and Deputy Rant. Now make a choice. I am working to get the killer off the street, but you are keeping me from doing my job.” He almost yelled the last words.

  Several people recoiled.

  At the edges, figures left the crowd, following orders. A few people shouted encouragement and headed out by foot or in cars. A handful stepped up and offered help. Only a few stayed in a group to complain quietly.

  “If anyone causes trouble, cuff him, and stick him in a cell. We can fit three or four in a cell if we need to,” Kirby glared.

  Deputy Gunn visibly relaxed.

  Virgil went into the headquarters with his snap off his holster, but he didn’t pull his gun, knowing Deputy Gunn had secured the premises. The desks were a mess with files and papers scattered all over them; books were swept to the floor. Remains of food were toppled over, and blood-covered foot prints were everywhere. Virgil wasn’t worried about protecting evidence; it would be sorted later. A crime scene could be processed later, but unfortunately, they were still in the throes of the action.

  The door to the cell block was covered with blood. Inside, one of the agents was slumped to the side, a tall paper cup of iced coffee next to him, empty. Virgil regretted never taking time to get to know the man. He gently tried for a pulse, but the agent was dead as reported, his stomach and chest a mass of stab wounds.

  “How?” Tina asked and shook her head, “drugged, wasn’t he?”

  “I think so,” Virgil replied as he stepped over the body, noting the man’s gun was pulled but unfired. He had realized too late what he was up against. He didn’t have a chance when drugged and unable to fight back. “Drugging them would have sufficed. There was no need to gut them.”

  “Unless you want to make a statement. All about the blood and shock, saying, ‘Look, I can best an FBI agent’.”

  “Pretty shallow to turn to this to be the top criminal,” Virgil muttered. The other agents were stretched out, their throats slashed deeply. “They never knew what was happening. I bet they were out cold. This was cowardly.”

  “It’s sick.” Tina looked at Starla Stoker who was huddled in a ball in the back of her cell, wrapped in a thin blanket, “Hang on, Mrs. Stoker; we’ll get you to the hospital. You’re safe.”

  The woman looked at Tina and hardly seemed to hear as she wept and shivered.

  “Can you tell me who did this, Starla? It’s very important.”

  “Tina.” Virgil motioned her over.

  Virgil pointed into Hollingsworth’s cell who stared blankly and said, “I was supposed to die. He left me. I wasn’t worth killing.”

  “You are to me, Doctor.”

  “I told you. You had all the information.”

  “Well, speaking plainly might have helped. Maybe I’m not very smart, at least not like you are, so I suppose I get a three as a score, but let’s be honest, you orchestrated all this and talked in riddles. I was disadvantaged with a team against me. You wanna tell me which one it is?”

  Hollingsworth looked at Virgil, his eyes taking on a new light, “What? Sheriff McLendon, please tell me you are not so bad at this that you don’t know?”

  “I guess I am. I know how this will end and am ready for that, but I don’t know for sure which one I am going to face.”

  Doctor Walter Hollingsworth laughed, “Oh, my. And I was left alive because I am so poor a criminologist and criminal? I must disagree. At least, I am beyond your abilities, it seems.”

  “It does seem so. I’m sure that given time to reflect, I’d have the answer, but I’ve been kept so busy I haven’t had the luxury of sitting down and thinking on this puzzle clearly. I don’t think it’s fair to deduct points when not given a chance to ponder.”

  “Agreed. I guess I can’t score you, yet. But I also won’t tell you the answer.”

  Tina added, “Starla is too upset to answer questions.” She went out and allowed the medical team to come get Starla who asked them to call her husband and sister for her. “Don’t cuff her or restrain. She’s released, right, Sheriff Kirby?”

  “Yes, she is not a suspect at all. Take good care of her, please.”

  One of the men paused as he opened a stretcher. “You guys are keeping us swamped. Is this close to being over?”

  “Be glad you’re only getting the injured ones. The ME is having to get the rest, and we have to deal with all of them. Just be glad you can help them.” Virgil felt irritated. His patience was about over. All he needed was one name or the chance to sit down and come up with the name. He knew that in the back of his mind, he knew exactly who the killer was.

  Kirby gathered Deputies Gunn and Tackett. “The FBI boys will be here as soon as they can. Agent Mason Lord will be heading up the team. They will want to see the crime scenes, and we have plenty, don’t we? They’ll berate Hollingsworth a while and get nowhere, and then they’ll want to question Keri Staggs and Dion and Starla. Those may or may not be helpful.”

  “Yes, Sir,” Gunn said.

  “Cooperate. Make them happy. Lord is a good guy. Now, this is going to sound strange, but do not allow anyone in here. That means the other deputies as well.”

  “Staggs and Turnbow?”

  “As of now, they are on administrative leave, pending an investigation.”

  “Yes, Sir,” Gunn glanced at Tackett and looked confused, but he followed orders. He didn’t know what was going on, but at least he and Harold Tackett were s
till trusted, and that gave him a little moral boost. He was loyal to Sheriff Kirby, loved his work, and was dedicated to law enforcement.

  “They won’t come in. Got it. What else should we do?” Tackett asked; he was nervous about the new orders. “Ummm, besides that, Gunn and I are okay with you?”

  Kirby patted his deputy, “Deputy Tackett, I know you and Deputy Gunn are excellent officers. I fully trust you with the FBI fellows. Don’t take no guff off them, and remember you serve this town, not them, but listen to Special Agent Lord. I assure you he is a good guy and dependable. I’d like you both to get a short list of all that has gone on: scenes and victims.”

  “Yes, Sir.”

  “And do me a favor?”

  “Yes, Sir, Sheriff McLendon?”

  “I will be out of contact a while as will Deputy Rant. Let Mason Lord know that Hollingsworth gave up enough information that I can see the case to the finish now and know how it ends, kind of. I hope I do. Let him know it will be over in a few hours, and Tina and I will walk the case to the very end. We’ll get the guilty party, one way or the other.”

  “Yes, Sir.”

  Tina checked her gun again and asked Kirby for a flak jacket for her and Virgil. The jackets were hot and scratchy, but she felt a little better wearing one. She noticed that Virgil was giving a message to Lord that he could give in person, unless things went south. It was the first time she had seen Virgil this worried.

  “Virgil, I may not be strong or brilliant, but I will follow your orders and do my damndest to help. I hope I am not too bad of a choice as your back up.”

  Virgil gave Tina a strange look, “Tina?” He had never doubted her abilities. “I’m going to screw this up and walk back there and blow Hollingsworth away.”

  Tackett and Gunn looked alarm.

  “Now, Virgil…” Kirby could feel his friend slipping to the edge, “you have a job to do, and you know it. Tina and I are following your lead because frankly, I have no clue about any of this. You’ve been the one to lead me and figure it all out. I didn’t know one of my own people was out killing kids….” he said as he sighed.