Paddy looked shocked. “Mercedes, please don’t do this. We’re not holding you, but would prefer you stay with us.”
“I think, under the circumstances, it’s not in my best interest to stay here. I can be more help to this investigation on my own.”
Paddy held up his hand. “I’m really sorry you feel that way.”
She leaned on the table. “If the situation were reversed, how do you think you would feel? You’re considering me a killer. That hurts—and it would hurt you too.”
Before she turned to leave, Mike noticed her tears. She bounded for the door and left, closing the door behind her.
Paddy had braced himself for the door to slam behind her. However, she closed it softly.
They just sat there, staring at each other.
Chapter 71
Colleen must have thought she was invisible. Mercedes came out of the conference room and, without a word, put on her coat and left. She stood and looked at herself in her mirror and then looked down at her outfit. The phone rang, making her jump.
“Good morning, task force office. How can I help you?”
“Colleen, I’m glad you answered the phone. This is Lisa. Is Scott there?”
“No. Scott left a few minutes ago. Can I help you or give him a message?”
There was a pause on the phone. “Maybe this shouldn’t wait. I meant to tell him something . . . and, well, I guess I just forgot. He was in such a hurry. Is Mike available?”
“Sure. He’s in the conference room with Paddy, but I think they’re done. Let me check. Please hold.”
She knocked on the door and opened it. She stuck her head in the door. “Mike, I’m sorry to bother you, but Lisa Anderson is on the phone, and she wants to talk to you. It’s about something she forgot to mention to Scott, and she thinks it’s important.”
“Excuse me, Paddy.”
He followed Colleen to her desk. “Hi Lisa, this is Mike.”
“Mike, I’m sorry I forgot to mention this to Scott. I think it might be important.”
“Lisa, let me pick this up in the other room.” He put the phone on hold and went to his desk. “Go ahead, Lisa.”
She spoke quickly. “Jeremy’s roommate, Neil, told his girlfriend that someone in his National Guard unit, a woman, was asking questions about JJ a couple of weeks before he was kidnapped. He thinks there could be a connection.”
She continued. “He didn’t think much of it, until he learned about Jeremy’s kidnapping. Now Jeremy’s cousin JJ—Jason—has been kidnapped. He thinks differently about it now.”
“Lisa, I’m very glad you didn’t wait to tell us about this. I think there could be a definite connection, and we’re going to follow up with Neil. Is there anything else?”
She was slow to respond. “I would like to see more of Scott. He is spending all his time on the task force. I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have said anything.”
“Its okay, Lisa. Scott is being a big help to us. He’s out right now checking on a couple of additional properties. I’ll let him know you called. Thanks again.”
Chapter 72
Mike went back in the conference room and found Paddy sitting right where he left him. “Paddy, we might have a break in the case.” He watched Paddy seem to come alive.
“Lisa’s call was about Jeremy’s roommate, Neil Collins. The shortened version is a woman in his National Guard unit was asking some questions about Jeremy several weeks before he was kidnapped.”
Paddy smiled. “Sounds like a very interesting piece of information.” He looked back at the board.
Mike continued. “She was referring to him as ‘JJ.’ Neil didn’t think anything of it until he learned about Jeremy’s ordeal with the women. With Jason being kidnapped he thinks the woman might have something to do with it.”
Paddy nodded. “The combat boots and Sunday afternoon arrival would make the pieces fit together, especially releasing Jeremy, realizing he was not the right guy.”
“Paddy, I think we need to talk to Neil on the phone to save some time. Hopefully, we will be able to reach him without too much difficulty.”
“Let’s do it.” Paddy stood to go with Mike. “Let’s use my office for this, Mike. We may need to make some additional calls.”
“I need to get my notebook for some information. I’ll be right with you.” Mike quickly went in the desk room and grabbed what he needed. He took the stairs two at a time.
Colleen saw him fly by. She thought to herself, I think the red outfit would have been better today.
Mike gave Paddy Neil’s number at his dorm. Paddy dialed the number quickly. “Yes, I would like to speak with Neil Collins. Would you please get him for me? This is important.”
A few minutes went by. “Hello, this is Neil.”
“Neil, this is Patrick O’Brien with the Torso Task Force. I would like to talk to you about a person at your guard unit who was asking questions about your roommate Jeremy—JJ—to be more specific.”
“You know, Mr. O’Brien, it could have been nothing.”
“It’s Paddy, by the way. We think it could be a significant piece of information, actually. We understand it was a woman asking questions, and she referred to him as ‘JJ’? Is that correct?”
“That’s right. I told her he was my roommate. She asked if he was black.”
Mike gave a signal to Paddy that he wanted to ask something. “Neil, this is Detective Mike Miller. What unit do you belong to? Do you remember if you had a weekend drill the weekend of November seventh and eighth?”
“I belong to Headquarters’ Company, 101st Engineers. Our unit meets at the Medford armory. We do have drills the first full weekend of the month.”
Paddy asked him the next question. “What’s this woman’s name?”
“Sergeant Daniels, and I believe her first name is Carole.”
“Are you also an NCO?”
“Yes, I am.”
“Do you happen to have an emergency call list?”
“I do, but it’s only for those in my squad, the lieutenant, and captain.”
“Would you happen to have your captain’s number, or the armory number handy?”
“We wouldn’t be ‘ready’ soldiers if we were without it. Are you ready?”
“Go ahead.” Mike wrote the number down and confirmed it with Neil. “Is there anything else you can think of?”
“Yeah, be careful with Daniels. She knows her stuff, and she’s really into the military thing. She loves to dish it out to the males in our outfit. She’s maybe a little too gung ho.”
“Neil, you’ve been a big help. We’re going to talk with her in person. Thanks again. Just don’t tell her you talked with me.”
They hung up. Mike felt good about this possible lead. “Let’s make the next phone call. We need to get her address. I would like to get it from their guard office, rather than the phone book.”
Paddy dialed the number Neil gave him. The phone was answered on the first ring.
“Headquarters 101st Engineers, Sergeant Major McCue speaking. How can I help you?”
“Sergeant Major, this is Paddy O’Brien calling from the AG’s Torso Task Force. We need your help.”
“Yes, sir. How can I be of service?”
“Thank you. In the process of our investigation a Sergeant Daniel’s name was given to us. She might be an investigative lead, and we need to talk with her ASAP. Can you provide her home address and phone number?”
“I appreciate your situation, Mr. O’Brien, but I can’t provide that information without authorization from my commander. He’s due back here shortly, and I can tell him about your call and need.”
Mike could read Paddy’s mind about calling the AG to put some pressure on them. Calling the AG at this point wouldn’t do anyone much good.
“That’s fine, I understand. Time is of the essence, however. Here’s my number.”
It was still early afternoon, and they had some time to wait for the return call.
Mike o
ffered, “Based on what Neil says about Daniels, she might be a good fit.”
Paddy didn’t have a chance to answer. The phone rang and quickly Colleen announced it was Captain Longo returning his call.
Paddy asked, “I’m sure the Sergeant Major explained what we were looking for?”
A deep voice responded. “He certainly did. I’m calling you with Sergeant Daniels’s home address and phone number.” He gave it to Paddy. “If we can assist in any manner, please don’t hesitate to call us. This communication is strictly confidential.”
Chapter 73
Paddy and Mike updated the team on what had been learned about Daniels. Paul Brosque immediately left to call the Boston Police to establish support for their planned confrontation with Daniels. Paul returned to the conference room a few minutes later.
Paddy commented, “Carole Daniels may have nothing to do with these murders. We must keep that in mind, but right now, she is a significant lead. If she is involved, the likelihood she will admit anything is far fetched. However, we need to check this out this afternoon. Paul, do you have an update?”
“Daniels lives in the Bunker Hill area of Charlestown. The police are going to send a detective by her apartment to see if anyone can verify she’s there. We should have some input within the hour. They are also going to suggest the best way to approach her apartment and to secure the area.”
“Thanks, Paul. She could be armed; we need to prepare ourselves for a potential confrontation. If she is involved, she would have nothing to lose.”
Mike offered, “One thought is to have the super of the building tell her he needs to check out something in her apartment. When she opens the door, we will confront her.”
Paddy responded, “We can evaluate our options when we know more. We should stay here until we receive the surveillance input.”
John Dunbar, one of the other detectives, asked, “Paddy, while we’re waiting, there’s a rumor going around that Mercedes might be involved. Can you share anything with us?”
“We did question her about where she was all weekend and about some missing property listings. She left upset because we addressed these issues with her. All we have is speculation.”
“However, we did have to ask her about these things. She did not provide any answers to our questions. I don’t think she will return today, but if she does please let Mike or I know,” Paddy answered.
Mike studied the blackboard additions.
“Mercedes has been a help.” Paddy pointed to the board. “I hoped she would have given us some answers, but she took offense at our considering her a suspect. I can appreciate her position, but we have a job to do.”
Mike added, “Speaking of help, Scott is still out checking two properties. He doesn’t know we confronted Mercedes. We need to explain to him what happened with our one-sided discussion.”
* * *
Mike was always concerned about Paul’s driving. Now they were speeding to Charlestown to join the police. Mike thought about the update he received.
Daniels is indeed in her apartment currently. The superintendent indicated many people are still at work and many of the neighbors wouldn’t return until after 4:00 p.m. The super was also prepared to knock on her door, indicating he wanted to check out one of her reported maintenance issues.
Mike questioned Paul. “Do you think if she’s involved she could be the women’s contact with the Calumet gang?”
Paul quickly responded. “Someone I know in the guard told me, ‘If I ever want something—it could be obtained, but I better be ready to pay for it when it’s delivered.’ I think she would have access to those sources, either directly or indirectly.”
Paul turned into the lot at the Bunker Hill Precinct, which was a small, four-story brick building. When they entered through the gate, they realized the parking area dwarfed the building. A man in a suit waved to them. Patrol cars were already lined up waiting for them.
They huddled around Detective Froton, who placed a small map on the hood of Mike’s car and outlined the plan.
He described the apartment building where Daniels’ apartment was located and how they would enter through the superintendent’s apartment. His apartment had access to the back alley, where they would park their car. The other cruisers would be stationed at the end of the block.
Mike and Paul were invited to join them in Froton’s unmarked car. As they were leaving, Mike’s attention was diverted to the old church clock chiming 3:00 p.m. The nice sound of the bells was immediately replaced by the crackling radio dispatch announcing their departure to 273 Monument Ave.
Chapter 74
She now realized how tired she was from the weekend activity.
They really made Jason pay for all of the gang rapes. He finally confessed to so many, they lost count. When Carole’s rage was spent, there was a significant change in her demeanor. She noticed how Carole’s body relaxed when his body parts were placed in the trophy area yesterday. She had to admit his trophy had added color to the other three victims.
The phone startled her.
“Hello.”
“Hi Red. This is Carole. Listen, I only have a couple of minutes. I just heard on the police scanner they are coming to my apartment building. I assume they are coming for me, but I can’t be sure. I am going to try to make it out of here, but I don’t think I’ll have time.”
She responded, “Thanks for calling, but you have to get yourself out now.”
Carole was quick to respond “Look, the only evidence they could possibly have are the ‘trophies’ at the warehouse. You need to go to there and dump them. I have no idea how they determined I was involved, but we can’t take the chance.”
“Thanks, I’ll leave right away.”
“Don’t forget to take the photographs with you when you leave. I’m going to try to reach Jean and Sandra now, but they’re most likely still at work. At least the four of us completed our quest to make the four of them pay for what they did.”
“Do you know what you’re going to do when they arrive?”
“Not entirely, but you might not see me again. Somehow, I thought we could just complete our mission, and no one would be the wiser. We should never have let that other guy go. I just couldn’t bring myself to kill someone who didn’t do anything. I have to make those other two calls. See you around ‘Red.’”
She was trying to deal with her emotion and didn’t immediately respond. The next thing she heard was the dial tone. She hung up the phone. The constant sound reminded her of the flat lining on a heart monitor. Carole would not be arrested; she knew she was saying good-bye.
* * *
She started her car and the big V8 engine rocked the car. Her heart was beating fast, much faster than when they were avenging the rapes. Tears were running down her face.
Did she want to go to the warehouse or just give herself up? She questioned whether she could take her own life. The answer was clear to her as she headed toward the warehouse.
The sound of a siren caused her to look at her speedometer, and she needed to slow down or run the risk of being stopped. Her fancy car caused enough attention as it was.
She passed bridge overpasses; the bridge abutments drew her attention. She had to consciously steer to keep the car from ending things. The thoughts of Carole were now superseded by the task to dump the trophies.
Her thoughts went to Bob Sullivan. He had made her a woman. Why did he ruin things by having his friends treat her so poorly?
She realized it wasn’t so much the rape, but how Bob had laughed at her afterward. He had used her. However, his biggest mistake was threatening her sister. That was something she couldn’t ignore. Her fantasies always involved him. She intended to take another picture of him before she dumped his remains in the ocean.
Chapter 75
I checked out the first property. It was another waste of time. The building was set up with the same design as the earlier one, but it was still much too close to other buildings to
be conducive for weekend murders. That left the other listing, and I hoped it would not be a waste of time. I wished Mercedes was with me for company.
I pulled the map of Boston Harbor to double check the location of this next property and I saw something I should have noticed earlier. The property was located out on Long Island. It’s about as far as you can get out of Boston and still be considered in the Boston area. A bridge provides access to the island from Squantum.
The property was on the northern part of the island, possibly at the far end. I couldn’t tell by looking at the address, but the way the map looked, it was the only place the road actually touched the ocean.
The property was far enough from other buildings so it did not draw attention. I figured this had to be it. If not, then we’d be back at square one.
I checked the time and it was almost 4:00 p.m. I still had enough time to check this property out and do the things I needed to do to be on time for dinner with Lisa.
I needed to check the map Mercedes had given me to see where the turn was for Squantum. I thought about pulling over, but that would have slowed me down. I continued driving, studying the map, which smelled of gardenia. I determined where I needed to turn.
I hoped the session with Mercedes went okay. I thought she might even be able to meet me at this next property. I thought about it and realized I hadn’t left any note regarding the addresses. I wrote the addresses down on a scratch pad and took the sheet with me.
I realized I couldn’t do anything about it. I put my headlights on to compensate for the early darkness. The clouds were hanging low nearing the waterfront. The map noted the Long Island Bridge, and I could see it ahead.
The bridge length and height would have given Jeremy the sensation he reported. I told myself I’d have to remember to turn my lights off when I get nearer the building. Looking out at the island, it didn’t give the impression any buildings of the sort described in the listing would be located here. Just the type of location the women needed—off the beaten path.
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