The Bodies of Star Farm

by H R Jones

  “Thanks again,” Gretchen said, holding up the bills, then added, “Say, would you like to join us at dinner?”

  “It’s nice of you to ask, but I think you two need—more than need, deserve—to have an evening out on your own, to, you know, have some fun,” he said with a smile and a wink.

  Lieutenant Grutner saw the grins spread across both their faces, and heard Gretchen giggle.

  ~ * ~

  Over the next few days, wearing protective hazmat suits and plastic gloves, Lieutenant John Grutner, and Sheriff Stu Pines went over every inch of Rory Star’s water-soaked vehicle, personally. They hoped to find some evidence, not destroyed by all the water, and still viable enough to garner some sort of information.

  They’d finally finished going through the inside of the car, with a fine tooth comb and found very little. Even though they’d gone so far as to take out the interior door panels, pull up carpeting from the floor boards, and remove everything from the glove compartment. Every loose fiber, scrap of paper, stray hair, anything of note, was bagged, labeled and saved for further inspection, possible DNA, or prints. There was just one other place left which required their superior scrutiny…the trunk.

  At first glance there didn’t appear to be anything of importance to bother with.

  “Well, John, I’ll get the big ‘spot’ so we have some better light in here.”

  Pines was back in a moment, zeroing in on the bed of the trunk. There were bits of this and that, which they meticulously bagged and labeled. They found clumps of something resembling hair, but it was hard to tell, having been submerged in swamp water, matted together. It did appear, whatever it was, to be human. They bagged it as evidence, just in case. There really wouldn’t be any way to tell, for sure, without looking at most everything under a microscope. They were hopeful and excited they may have actually found evidence of human remains, and anxious to get it to the coroner for verification as to whether it was animal or human, but it would have to wait till they’d finished.

  They pulled up the carpeting from inside the trunk. Once the soggy mess was pulled out into the light, they could see what appeared to be blood stains. They found all sorts of tools, as well, and a leather pouch, all of which seemed to also have signs of blood.

  As Sheriff Pines dug into the pouch, he felt something. He wasn’t able to tell what it might be with the gloves on, so carefully, he withdrew it from the bag, and dangled his find in front of the lieutenant with his fingertips.

  “What do you make of this, John?” He held it out for his perusal.

  Grutner carefully took the object from the sheriff’s hand. He turned it over and noticed what appeared to be a snap on the bottom side. He looked up at Stu. With a nod from him, he opened it. His hand trembling so badly he was afraid he might drop it. Cautiously, he removed what appeared to be some sort of book. He could see it had sustained some substantial water damage to the outer cover, but the pouch seemed to have protected the contents fairly well, considering.

  Cautiously, he opened the leather bound book. The first few pages were difficult to make out. Ink had smeared and run from being submerged. It looked to be some weird sort of ledger. Anxious to have a better look at it, they took a break from their work, found a clean spot on a work bench and carefully began turning pages.

  By the fifth page, lines seemed to be forming into words. Some were still run together because of the damage, and couldn’t be made out. By the next page, they were able to decipher some of the writing.

  Their eyes met at the same time. They both knew instantly that they were looking at a very precisely laid out murder book.

  Forty-eight

  The first name they were able to read through the water stains: Caroline Frances Pissog, 20, with a notation next to her name: “Beautiful, beautiful Caroline, she threatened to tell, and tried to run from me. I had to stop her. Well, she isn’t running any more. She’s at the farm now, in the beautiful meadow where she loved to ride. She even said it was so beautiful she’d like to be buried there when her time came. Well, it did, and, I honored her wishes, didn’t I?”

  He’d written much more about her physical attributes, and how he’d killed her, all in graphic detail. John covered his mouth as if he were going to vomit. Stu had to turn away.

  “You knew this woman?”

  “Yes.” John choked back the bile rising in his throat. “I knew the story the family told of her wedding being called off. It seems she’d gone up to the family cabin in northern Wisconsin to have a little time to herself to prepare before the wedding. While there, her fiancé, Rory Star, phoned to tell her he didn’t want to go through with the wedding. All the family got was a phone call from Caroline saying she and her fiancé had decided to call off their nuptials. She’d explained, because the wedding was off, she’d decided to accept the overseas route the airline had offered her. No one in her family ever saw her again. Her parents got the impression she didn’t want to return home, to explain to one and all why she and Rory decided to cancel their wedding, and then have to face their well-meaning but nosy questions. To be forever reminded of the wedding that never happened was more than she could take. She explained to her family the overseas route she’d been offered would probably mean she’d take a flat in London, or Paris.”

  “No one ever questioned the story?”

  “No, not from what I understand. She kept in touch with family for a few months, then, no one ever heard from her again, at least not regularly. I understand there was the odd Christmas card, but that was that. Seeing the dates here, my guess is Rory forced her to write those letters to her family, then killed her. He must have traveled overseas himself, to make sure the letters were mailed from England, France or wherever. Unless, unless…he had an accomplice…unless, or stayed there himself for a time…humm.”

  Next there was an entry for Nell. John explained to Stu what had happened to her. How she’d dated Rory for a several weeks until he began demanding more from her sexually.

  “She was a lovely young woman, inexperienced, naïve and sweet. She wasn’t that kind of girl, if you know what I mean. One night he came to her apartment unannounced, and took her virginity.”

  “Didn’t they prosecute him, John?”

  “No, Nell didn’t want to go through the trauma of testifying in court. Besides, he’d long gone. No one knew where he was.

  “Not long before the attack, Nell met a professor at the community college in Buckton where she took night classes. He loved her beyond measure, and she him. They were so very happy. Then a couple of months before their wedding, she found out she was pregnant.”

  “With this professor’s child?”

  “No. It was Rory’s child.” He heard Stu gasp. “But, even though she’d found out shortly before the wedding, she was carrying another man’s child, the professor didn’t care; he still wanted to go through with the wedding. He loved her so very much. Because of the circumstances of her pregnancy, she made the decision to give the child up for adoption as soon as it was born, even though Peter was more than willing to raise the child as his own. No one knew of her pregnancy but family.

  “Before the child was born, Rory learned Nell had married. He’d been away. Maybe that could be when he was overseas. He attacked her and sexually assaulted her again in her car during a blizzard upon her return home from night class at the college. He wanted her to bear his child. What he didn’t know, ironically, was that she was already carrying his baby. After the second attack, she was so wounded, broken and mentally bruised, she set herself on fire in the hope she’d miscarry, and, I always suspected, wanting to end her life.”

  Stu shook his head. He was beside himself after reading the graphic details. He was more than glad this creep was dead. If he’d been Nell’s husband, he would have strangled the bastard with his bare hands. “So what happened to this young woman and her husband?”

  “She eventually recovered from her burns, but she’s never been the same Nell everyone knew and lov
ed. She and Peter moved away from Buckton and have only allowed a very few, select and trusted friends to come into their lives. They are very happy, from what I hear, and have three children of their own. They’re totally devoted to one another.”

  “What about the bastard child?”

  “It was a private adoption. No one knows anything about the child, and if they do, they’re not talking.”

  “So, you don’t know if it was a boy or girl, or where the child might be living? Nothing?”

  “Right,” the lieutenant responded. “You know, maybe it’s a good thing. The child will never have to know why he or she was adopted, nor know about the monster who sired him.”

  “I guess you’re right, John. It is probably for the best no one knows.”

  On the next page, they came across another name, Geneva Edge. It was not a name John recognized. There was a notation next to her name: “Now, she too lies here to rest, along with all the very best.” Again, there were graphic details describing her last hours.

  “That’s cryptic. So, do you think it means she’s on the farm as well?”

  “Oh, yes, I think so, Stu. They were still recovering remains when I left.”

  “So, how many do you think we’re talking about, ball park?”

  “Well, Caroline we now know from this ‘book’ is there, and I’m quite sure it was Margo we recently recovered. The others may be those whose names may be entered in here,” he said holding up the horrific tome. “Then, there were others who we now know are buried elsewhere: Ronnie in Nevada, who was run down by a mysterious, black vehicle. Her sister, Libbie, who’d pretended to be a man in order to hide from this monster. She’s buried in New Mexico. How many more are there? Who knows? Maybe we’ll find out after we finish going through this book of horrors, or we may never know the extent of his depravity.”

  “This guy had crime scenes all over the place. He sounds like another Bundy. I’m not sure they ever did get a final count on how many bodies he’d left scattered across the U.S.”

  “Let’s get that cup of coffee we were talking about, Stu. I think we both need a break, and something to wash the bad taste out of our mouths. It will give the book a chance to dry out a little more too. This is pretty heavy stuff we’re dealing with here.”

  Forty-nine

  The two lawmen had needed the break. They returned to their task of trying to determine the identity of any of the other women listed in the murder book. Other than the two women John told Stu about, and Geneva Edge, whom he did not know, there were two other names he was unfamiliar with.

  “These two here,” he said, pointing out the names of Mary B. Joyce and LuLu Green, “are names, I believe, once associated with my community. As I recall, the story was they’d left town for ‘greener pastures.’ Well, I guess they found those pastures on Star Farm. I never heard if anyone heard from them, or knew where they’d gone. At least not to my knowledge. The whispers around town, of course, were they were in ‘the family way,’ as they used to say, and didn’t want to bring shame to their families. Well, they seem to have found a permanent residence now, at Star Farm. Man, I’m going to have to either take this book with me, or ask your office secretary if you and she don’t mind, to make copies of each page that is viable. I’ll be happy to foot the bill.”

  “Hell no, John, you don’t have to do that. I’m glad we were able to assist you in nailing this guy. The world is certainly a better place without him. I’ll make copies for us so you can have the original journal.”

  “Well, thank you, thank you so much and thank your staff as well, for their help in finally bringing Rory Star down. You know, I would have preferred to see him stand trial in front of a group of his peers, with the judge pronouncing he’d be spending the rest of his life in prison, because I still have questions which will forever go unanswered.”

  “You mean you wouldn’t want him to fry?”

  “We don’t have the death penalty in Wisconsin. But I can almost guarantee, if he’d been incarcerated in Wisconsin, Rory Star would not have lived very long,” he said with a knowing wink and a nod. “There is a certain ‘honor among thieves,’ if you will. Especially if it involves innocents.”

  “Well, you know, he would have been facing charges here in Florida as well, and we do have the death penalty. So either way he’d have been taken care of. Now what do you want us to do with his remains, John?”

  “You really want me to tell you?” Stu nodded, “I’d like to see him burn on earth, never mind in hell. So after we get all the information and DNA we can use from his body, I say cremate the bastard.”

  “I take it there isn’t any next of kin?”

  “Not so far as I know. His dad passed quite a while back, and he had no siblings or other family I ever heard of. I just hope his father was never aware of the monster lurking inside his only child.” He paused, scratching his head, and turned to Stu. “You know, this brings up another question: if, as we suspect, he was making regular trips all across the U.S. and perhaps, overseas, through the years, training and trading horses, you don’t suppose there are even more unnamed, unidentified young women who’ve disappeared, who now lie in similar unmarked graves, with families never knowing the fate of their loved one?”

  “John, from what you’ve told me, I suspect there are. Perhaps, as you go through this ledger, you may eventually find the answer to the questions you seek. In which case, you will need to contact the proper local authorities to let them know what you’ve got. You’ll need to check if they’ve had any cases like these and if so, did they keep any foreign DNA from the victims. They might be able to bring closure for some of the cases they have pending as well. It looks like you have a lot of work ahead of you, John. Let me know if I can be of any assistance, at any time. Oh, and by the way, I think you better contact Interpol as well, after what you’ve told me about those letters coming from overseas. Unless he did have an accomplice…”

  “You’ve got a point. I will contact them and send copies of Mr. Star’s photo to other jurisdictions. It’s not much, but I thank you for all you’ve done for me and Gretchen. We’ve all been living with this nightmare for far too long. I’m finding it hard to believe it’s finally, hopefully, over. Now I’ll need to go through this,” he held up the ledger, “and look for other names of victims who might’ve been from the Buckton area, and who now may be one of the many ‘guests’ at Star Farm.”

  Fifty

  A few weeks after Lieutenant Grutner returned to Buckton, he received a call from Sheriff Pines.

  “John, Stu Pines here in sunny Florida. Hear you have a bit of sun and warm weather yourselves. I’m calling to let you know we finally have the results on Leaha’s autopsy.”

  “What did they find, Stu?”

  “Well, one thing we do know, we can’t actually put Leaha’s death on Rory Star/Ricky Sands.”

  “Huh? Are you kidding me?”

  “Well, I wish I were. The thing is, she died from a vaginal embolism.” He heard a deep sigh. “They believe it was brought on due to sex. It is one of those freaky things, John. I sure had never heard of it before. She most likely was not aware of the condition, or if she was, poo-pooed it like so many young people these days do when it comes to matters of the heart and sex. So, yes, he caused her death, but indirectly. He didn’t deliberately kill her.” There was a long silence at the other end. “John…”

  “Yeah…just trying to wrap my head around it. So, in other words, it wouldn’t have mattered who she had sex with…this could still have happened to her?”

  “Right. It’s a kick in the head, I know. I guess the good news is she never knew the depravities of this man she had fallen for. So, for that at least, I am grateful.”

  “You’re right, Stu. She never realized the person she’d allowed into her life was a monster. She died only knowing love, hopefully. I want to thank you and your fellow officers, techs, and coroner’s people for their diligence and help through all this. And, a special thanks to y
ou for all you did. I am hoping you have the opportunity to visit Wisconsin sometime in the future and let me show you some of the beauty we so admire here in our state.”

  “You know, John, I just may take you up on that offer. My wife has some relatives up your way…can’t remember if it was Wisconsin or Minnesota, maybe it was Iowa.”

  “Just let me know. You would be welcome to stay here with us. We have plenty of room now the kids are gone.”

  The two talked a while longer before both, reluctantly, ended their conversation. They really were so much alike, with the same goals, interests and dedication to their careers. They knew their friendship was a lasting one.

  Epilogue

  Several months later, Lieutenant Grutner sat at his desk reading faxes which had come pouring in from law enforcement agencies all across the United States, as well as several European countries.

  Putting down the papers, he buzzed Gretchen to come in. When she entered, he said, “Well, we were right, our man Rory was one busy boy,” he said. Holding up a stack of papers, he continued. “These reports are from all over, and attest to at least twenty other persons associated with Rory Star who’ve vanished or lost their lives.”

  “Do you suppose our former colleague, Lyle, had a hand in assisting Mr. Star?” she asked.

  “I doubt he had a clue what Rory really was up to. He was never the brightest bulb on the string. Nah, he was nothing more than a mole. Otherwise, Rory couldn’t have gotten away with some of the things he did without Lyle’s eyes and ears in our department. Besides, if Rory thought he was going to blab, he would have done away with him too, don’t you think?”