by Greg Enslen
“Well, Julie, this is impressive.” Mike Wallace gestured at the map and reports, and she noticed that there were more reports on his desk than she had brought in with her. “I had some of the other maps and reports brought up, and the investigative approach you’ve followed has been very thorough, and very professional.”
She nodded, nervous. Where was this going? “Yes, sir. I think that as crazy as it sounds, there might actually be something to all of this.”
He nodded at her solemnly, as if admitting something he didn’t really want to. “Yes, I think so too. I’ve decided to put a couple of investigators on this, to look into each case and review the original case reports for accuracy and connections to other cases. I’ve spoken to Chris Hanson and he’s willing to work with anyone else we bring in on this, so he can run the Cray and you can explain it to the others.”
Julie swallowed, her eyes going wide. He must be thinking there was something serious behind her report if he was assigning other more experienced agents to investigate it. Others would be looking at her reports and her maps, things she had produced over that past days when all of this had been simply an academic exercise. Things that she had produced when she was running on caffeine and adrenaline only, and times when she had simply been eliminating case after case because they did not fit the profile accurately.
Things were changing, and fast.
“Now, don’t worry. I’m not taking you out of this. Even if it turns out to be nothing, we’ll get more experience on the Cray. Do you have any input on where these investigators should begin?”
She thought about it for a second or two. “Yes, the original reports should be verified with the original investigators, if possible. Some of the data in these files might turn out to be erroneous, and therefore eliminate cases as part of the investigation,” she said, pausing for a moment before continuing. “And I think someone should go down to Liberty and interview some of the originals in the case.”
He looked up at her, surprised. He had read through to the highlighted Liberty cases, where Julie had mentioned several times that the Killer had come close to being caught by a smart and enterprising Sheriff up there. That was the only case where a sketch of the man had been produced, and somewhere in the file he had seen that the deputy involved in that police artist sketch was still alive and living in the small town. He had toyed with the idea of sending someone down there to interview her, too, especially after what he’d remembered what he’d read in his Daily Bulletin for yesterday morning, but that would have to wait. The investigators needed to start with the original Black Diamond Killer files from the Task Force, poring over them and making sure that they fit the patterns Julie had come up with. The Black Diamond cases were the most important.
He started to shake his head no and she cleared her throat. “Sir, if you don’t mind, I would like to be the one to go down to Liberty and interview one of the original deputies. Her name is Norma Jenkins, and their police force came closer to catching this guy, assuming he really exists, than anyone else.” There, it was out. Now, what would he say?
Mike Wallace thought about it. New recruit. She had been trained to take care of herself, but she was nowhere near ready to begin the actual investigation of this case. But then, if the report in the Bulletin had no connection, then all she was doing was a simple interview, right? And maybe a little investigative work, getting her out from behind that computer, maybe that was the perfect reward for putting all this together. The interview would turn up nothing, he was sure, but could it hurt? More information, no matter what the source, would only help them, and background information that might not be included in the written reports could always help.
He leaned forward and handed her Thursday’s Daily Bulletin, folded open to a photocopied article from Thursday’s USA Today. It read:
Girl found murdered in small town
Julie read through the short blurb quickly. It was only two lines long and pulled from the “Local” part of the paper, something Julie rarely read anyway. It said that a young woman had been killed in the little town of Liberty, Virginia on Sunday night and not found until Tuesday morning. The blurb also mentioned that investigators felt the murder was ritualistic in nature because some of the victims’ body parts were missing.
A chill raced up Julie’s spine. Liberty, Virginia? Missing parts?
She looked up at him.
Mike was nodding. “I know what you’re thinking, and I must say that the possibility is intriguing but VERY unlikely, wouldn’t you say?”
She nodded, agreeing. “What possible motivation could he have for returning after so many years?”
“My thoughts exactly,” Mike answered. “I don’t think we can send a case investigator down to question this woman directly, or officially, so if you want to go down over the weekend and talk to her, that’s fine. You’ll be on your own time, though. With the weather like it is, though, I doubt you’ll be able to get through.”
She stood, thanking him, slightly amused at his lack of understanding of her tenacity. “I’ll go down tonight or tomorrow and talk to her.”
He smiled, not at all surprised at her enthusiasm. He knew her history, and he had reviewed her case file again this morning. “Julie, this is JUST an interview, remember that. If you learn or see anything valuable, do not get involved, all right? You are not an experienced field agent or investigator, and you could easily get in over your head. You should not even take your firearm, except that it would be a violation because you are there on official business. Well, semi-official. Anyway, I’m not saying this to be mean, but if you find out anything that requires follow up, CALL IT IN and we’ll send up an experienced agent to investigate. Got it?” His voice was commanding, and very serious.
She nodded, understanding him completely. She had had the classes and could carry a weapon and her badge, but that didn’t make her an FBI agent, not yet. Someday she would get a chance to prove to herself and others that she could make the grade, but until that point came, she had to obey the stern words of her supervisor. “I understand, sir.”
He reached up and handed her a laminated card with two phone numbers on it. “Those are our Situation Desk numbers. Anything happens, or you learn anything, call it in. Those numbers are manned 24 hours a day, and the information is routed to the right people with top priority.”
She nodded and left his office, already thinking about what she would ask ex-deputy Norma Jenkins. But first she had to call and make sure the woman would be there, and she had to get herself down to Liberty in one piece - it was only 60 miles or so, but the roads were becoming hazardous fast. CNN had said that the major population centers from D.C. to Boston were madhouses as people tried to get out before the storm hit. Julie decided she would need to leave work early and leave her home in Fairfax this afternoon if she was going to make it in before the bad weather made it impossible to travel.
Jack was starting to like this little town, in a perverse way. It even reminded him of Salem, the town where he’d grown up, and the similarities did not end with the size of the town or the nature of its people.
Both towns reacted to deaths within their midst in much the same manner. First, there had been the shock - the Liberty Gazette on Wednesday morning had echoed the town’s surprise and disbelief at the gruesome murder of Lisa Stevens, the first such slaying in their quiet town in a long time. The paper that day was short on details but promised to follow up on Thursday with more information.
But on Thursday morning’s front page the story of the murder of Lisa Stevens was eclipsed by a lengthy account of the shocking deaths of Abe Foreman and Gloria Thatcher, two of the little town’s better-known citizens. The paper had not expected to have two huge stories on back-to-back days and planned to dedicate most of Thursday’s paper to a more in-depth account of Lisa Steven’s murder. Instead, the lengthy biography and interviews with Lisa’s family members and friends were pushed back to Friday’s edition to make room for short histories on th
e town’s other two victims. The paper elected to publish Gloria Thatcher’s name even though her only family member had not been officially contacted yet by the police.
Friday morning’s Gazette was less sensational, more businesslike. Three stories wrestled for room on the front page, the one new story and two older ones.
Lisa‘s homicide was discussed at length, confirming that she had been sexually assaulted both before and after death.
The two additional deaths were still being looked into, but inside sources said that the deaths were investigated as homicides, too, stretching the reserves of the Liberty Police Department.
The third story was an announcement by the Liberty Police Department that a Town Meeting would be held Saturday night in the gymnasium of the high school.
Jack read the paper with much interest. It wasn’t often that he got to read about himself - usually he was long gone before the news made it into the papers or onto the TV, if it ever did. He hadn’t read a story about one of his killings since he’d left Los Angeles. There, he’d been able to keep clippings of all of his killings, or at least those that were gruesome enough to make it into the paper.
He caught the small reference to David Beaumont. The cops hadn’t been able to find him yet and weren’t really supposed to give out Gloria’s name until he had been contacted, but in a small town like this, news traveled like a brush fire. People had found out that Abe Foreman was dead and that he had been found at a home in the “2700 block of Monroe Street”, and that another body had been discovered at the same location, an older female - it didn’t take a genius to put it all together. That and the fact that Gloria Thatcher’s house was surrounded by crime scene tape. The members of the press were not idiots, and they’d figured it out quickly, putting all the information they had straight into the paper.
Jack was more interested in the whereabouts of David Beaumont. Damn!!! He’d only missed the kid by one day - 24 hours that might’ve made the difference. Sheriff Beaumont was long dead and Jack had proved to himself that he could come back to this town and kill and not get caught - hell, the cops were running around like idiots, more frightened than the townspeople. They were even less competent than last time. Brown and his police force were defeated
the best one is dead
and Beaumont’s only relative in town was dead. She’d told Jack that the boy had left for Los Angeles, a piece of news that Jack had found terribly ironic. Maybe he’d run into the kid out there.
Gloria Thatcher had talked a lot in an attempt to convince Jack of her worth, and she’d mentioned the main reason David Beaumont had left - his father had been so famous, so much of a local hero for defeating the worst criminal in the history of Liberty (that part had brought a smile to Jack’s face even as he’d tied her arms and legs), the pressure of living under his father’s shadow had been too much for David to take.
Jack thought it was hilarious, and maddening. Beaumont was considered a hero, but David Beaumont, his son, hated the good Sheriff almost as much as Jack did. Who would’ve thought the two of them would have anything in common? The kid had bailed, evidently after hearing one too many stories about his famous dad. Jack could understand why. No one would want to live with that constant bombardment. But why couldn’t the kid have held out another day or two? A meeting would have been very interesting - they might even have had a few things to talk about before Jack snapped his neck.
break his leg first then shoot him
His eyes drifted back down to the paper as he lay naked on his Motel 6 room bed, and the story of the Town Meeting caught his eye. Sheriff Jes Brown, the current sheriff and, as far as Jack could tell from the tone of the paper not the most respected man in town, had called the meeting to get the town together and discuss how to deal with the ‘situation’ and to ‘calm the townspeople by telling them the truth’. It sounded more like he was running for office than trying to reassure the people of Liberty, Jack thought. The high school gym would have ample seating for everyone, and all of the town’s city council members, the mayor, and a member of the State Police recently assigned to help the LPD in their investigations would be attending.
His hatred over the years for Sheriff William T. Beaumont had translated to hatred of this miserable little town, a town that reminded him of Salem, Maine, where he had grown up and where his mother had been taken from him. This town was a pitiful collection of wimps and losers, and the only reason he hadn’t overrun it last time was because of Beaumont. And now, there was nothing standing in his way...
He’d killed the Sheriff. Now he was killing time, waiting for the kid to come back so he could off him too, but if he couldn’t kill all of the Beaumont’s, maybe he should go for the next best thing. Sheriff Beaumont had loved this town, had given his life to defend it. What if...what if Jack could make the whole town pay? The idea pleased him on a very visceral level.
another thirty or forty
His mind conjured up pictures of fire and destruction. Lots of dead people, people Beaumont had tried to save...
And Jack was getting antsy, tired of waiting for the kid to show up. Hadn’t he heard about his Aunt yet? The Urge was growing by the minute, and Jack knew better than anyone what that meant.
all of those people in one location
Anything could happen. The ideas that ran through his mind thrilled him in their audacity.
The events of the past few days weighed heavily on her mind, and the roiling pain in her stomach was still there, flaring hot pain that crippled her mind and clouded her thinking.
She’d called in sick this morning, something she almost never did. As a Liberty School District bus driver she accrued sick leave but rarely used it, and her supervisor had been surprised to hear from Norma by the 5:00am call-in deadline. Norma’s supervisor would drive the bus in her place today, and questioned her to make sure it was nothing serious. Things were serious, but it had nothing to do with Norma being sick today.
She’d stayed up until past midnight, reading the case file again and comparing it with the articles in the newspapers from the past couple of days. She’d fallen asleep without taking her medicine, and now her stomach was roiling and painful. She had tried to sleep after calling in and taking her medicine, but she couldn’t get back to sleep. She had gotten up to make a breakfast of dry toast and cream of wheat, her normal, boring morning meal. The paper lay ignored for now on her front driveway - she would read it soon enough. Norma sat at her table and flipped on the TV to watch the Today show, and the only story seemed to be the hurricane. It was still in North Carolina, moving very slowly north towards Virginia.
She tried to not think about the list she had made last night, a list she had drafted to get some of the speculation out of her head and down onto paper. The list described the similarities between the Jasper Fines’ case and the one going on right now in her little town. It had made her stomach feel a little better, and that combined with a double dose of antacid tablets this morning made her feel okay.
There were many similarities, and she had gone through and painstakingly listed them, working out all the possibilities on paper instead of in her head, where they hurt too much. The pain in her stomach had flared last night as she’d worked on the list, but after it was done, she was able to relax and forget some of the things that troubled her mind - and if not forget, at least she could put them out of her mind, for now.
In both cases, there were people murdered who were turning up with missing fingers. This of course could mean nothing, but the coincidence could not be ignored. In both cases, the victims had either been lured somewhere and killed or were killed inside, out of the public eye. In the case of Abe and Gloria, whose deaths’ Norma was sure were murders, they had been killed inside a large home and left for others to find days later. The killer would have to be strong to overpower Abe Foreman, so it was probably a man in his late 30’s or early 40’s, if he was to be old enough to be responsible for both cases strings of cases.
And f
inally, there were the strange circumstances surrounding the death of Lisa Stevens, things about the case that just didn’t sit right. The girl had been found with one hand propped up on her steering wheel and her index finger out, as if she were pointing at something, or someone. Her tongue had been removed and placed inside her left hand in her lap, an obvious and sickening reference to the fact that the victim would be ‘holding her tongue’, not able to tell who her assailant was. Her mouth and eyes had been rudely propped open, the mouth with a small stick and the eyes with toothpick-thin pieces of wood, as if the killer was trying to say that Lisa had seen something horrible, something that was so terrifying that she died pointing and looking at it. Obviously it was a message killing - there just had to be someone willing to listen to what the killer was trying to ‘say’ with his careful, deliberate staging of the crime scene.
But there were other things about the case, too, that might or might not have anything to do with it, and Norma was sure that the Liberty Police Department had probably missed some of the ‘coincidences’. Lisa Stevens worked at the same place as David Beaumont and his girlfriend Bethany. And she had been last seen alive at the Food Town out on 132, the same location where Beaumont had set up his trap so many years ago. Norma had seen Jasper Fines for the first time that night, up close and personal, and the visage of his face would be one she would never forget. But was the connection to David Beaumont or the Food Town only a coincidence, or was the killer trying to say something? It made sense that the guy would want to get to David Beaumont, but he was gone. And what could bring him back faster than the death of his only family?
Gloria Thatcher had been Sheriff Beaumont’s sister-in-law and David‘s Aunt, raising him after David’s mother had died in childbirth. Abe Foreman had been a friend of the Beaumont family and had been the executor of Beaumont’s will, seeing to the distribution of benefits and investment of the portfolio. Coincidence? If Jasper Fines was back with revenge in his mind, then it almost made sense that he would go after the only living relatives of Sheriff Beaumont.
