No Fear

by Nolon King

  “The killer called you.”

  “Yes.”

  “Did you bring the phone?”

  “The sheriff has it. He took me off the case. Why?”

  “I was hoping to get something to help you find the man. But I need to touch it.”

  “You see anything else?”

  “He has another girl now, doesn’t he? A woman?”

  “Her name’s Cami Rivera. Do you know where they are?”

  Jasper shook his head. “No, I had a flash, but …” He paused and looked to his right. “Okay, I’ll ask her.”

  Talking to his daughter?

  “Jordyn wants me to hold your hand. She’s going to hold both of ours. Thinks maybe it’ll help.”

  Mal felt weird, like she was playing into Jasper’s delusions, but then she reminded herself of all he’d witnessed so far. Hadn’t she seen enough to set her skepticism aside, to humor him for a moment if it might help her?

  “Okay.” She took another sip of Coke, wishing it had a healthy splash of Jack.

  He placed his hands palms up on the table.

  “What do I do? Hold ’em or—”

  “Just lay your palms on top of mine,” he said.

  Mal did, flashing back to the last time she’d seen him, in the hospital after Oliver Kozack had nearly killed him. She’d gone to visit and urged him not to confess. Asked him if he thought she’d ever be happy again.

  He’d predicted she would be, and that she’d have another daughter. An older one, maybe adopted. But he also predicted someone worse than Dodd would come for her.

  Six months had passed and she still hadn’t adopted. Meanwhile, she’d become even more closed off from potential suitors. Like Tim Brentwood.

  She found herself thinking back over their relationship as their hands touched. Jasper had started off as a voice on a phone warning Mal her daughter was in danger. Then he’d become the man who saved her — not once, but twice. Her and Jessi both.

  But Jasper was also a serial killing vigilante. For a while, she tried to find and arrest him.

  Mal was glad she didn’t. Because this man had always tried to help her, from saving her life to putting a winning lottery ticket in her house.

  There was a kinship she’d tried to deny for a while. One she felt in Mexico, and a little when she found herself on a similar path — hunting down bad guys, same as him.

  He’d been a cop before this. Something else they had in common. They’d each sought justice both within and outside the law. Either of them could easily end up behind bars for what they’d done. But Jasper got caught and confessed to his crimes.

  “So, what now? Am I supposed to feel something? You expect to see something else?”

  “We wait. You can keep talking. Maybe it’ll bring something up.”

  She looked around, sensing other guards, prisoners, and visitors eyeing them, probably all wondering what the hell they were doing.

  “So, how’s prison life?”

  “Well, let’s see. The days are boring and the nights are long. A gang put a hit on me, which means I might not be around much longer. So, all good.”

  “Your lawyer can arrange a transfer.”

  “I’ll figure something out. I always do.” His hands jerked beneath hers.

  “What is it?”

  “The man I warned you about when you came to visit. He’s the one who killed that girl.”

  “You said he was coming for me — how?”

  Jasper closed his eyes. “We can’t see that. Not yet.”

  “Well, you also said I’d have a daughter, so …” Mal rubbed her stomach. “Nothing on that front yet.”

  Jasper kept his eyes closed, focusing. “She’s in your life now.”

  “Who?”

  “I don’t know. But she’s in trouble.”

  “From the same man?”

  “No. Different. Something to do with a baby or …”

  “Katie?”

  “Yes, Katie. She needs you. She’s in trouble, and she’s afraid to tell you how much. But … first …” His face tightened. “I see them.”

  “Who?”

  “The man and the girl.”

  “What does he look like?”

  “Big. Very big. Wearing a mask. And …” Jasper’s face looked troubled.

  “What is it?” Mal asked.

  “He’s not alone in what he’s doing.”

  “There’s two of them?”

  “That doesn’t feel right … wait a second … I see him … I see where he is.”

  Mal’s pulse raced as she waited for Jasper to give her something to find this man and save Cami.

  “There’s an abandoned motel, been like that for a while. Near the county line, by a gas station.”

  An image flashed through her head, a place Mal had passed a thousand times, if not more. “Is the gas station a Shell, just off I-95?”

  “Yes. And you need to hurry. She’s in bad shape.”

  “Is there anything else?”

  Jasper withdrew his hands. “I don’t think he means to kill her yet. He’s coming back. But … you might be too late.”

  Mal got to her feet. “Thank you.”

  Jasper stood as well, waiting for the guard to escort him away. But Mal hugged him first, despite the officer’s objection.

  She called Mike on her way to the parking lot and gave him Cami’s location.

  “How’d you get it?”

  “I’ll tell you later. Just call it in and say it was an anonymous tip. Leave me out of it. Also, call EMS. She’s in bad shape.”

  “What aren’t you telling me, Mal?”

  “Just call it in. I’ll see you there.”

  Mal raced down I-95 toward the county line to the crumbling motel. Six deputy vehicles were already there, along with an ambulance.

  People milled about in front of the motel. Whatever happened was already done.

  Mike and Skippy were talking to two EMT workers when she pulled up. The ambulance van doors were open. A body bag inside.

  They were too late, unless it was the killer.

  “What happened?” Mal asked, looking past them and into the back of the ambulance.

  “Aren’t you on suspension?” Skippy glanced at her sideways. “What are you doing here?”

  “Relax.” Mike raised a hand to Skippy before heading toward her car. “Walk with me.”

  Mal followed.

  “We got here and she was already dead,” Mike said.

  “And the unsub?”

  “Nowhere to be found.”

  “Goddamnit. How’d she die?”

  “Looks like an overdose. Probably heroin. Tried to revive her, but … yeah.”

  “Any insignias or anything?”

  “No.”

  “Mutilation?”

  “No. Find anything in there?”

  “Still working the scene.” Mike turned to face her. “You wanna tell me where you got this tip? The killer call you again?”

  “No.”

  “Tell me.” Mike was sharp, clearly annoyed Mal was involving herself in the case when she was supposed to be serving her suspension.

  “Jasper Parish called, asking me to visit him in prison.”

  “Seriously?” Mike rolled his eyes.

  “He got it right.”

  Mike sighed. “Don’t suppose he gave you anything useful?”

  “Said he was a big guy and wearing a mask.”

  “Well, that narrows it down.”

  “He also said something else.”

  “What?”

  “I went to visit him in the hospital after his arrest. He warned me then that someone else would come after me, someone worse than Dodd. Today, he said this is that guy.”

  “How is he a threat to you? And why?”

  “Maybe he’s targeting me because Dodd did.” She shrugged. “A copycat, even if his methods or victims aren’t the same.”

  “And you think he’s coming after you?”

  “I’m hopin
g he does.”

  “Wait a second … Jasper said he didn’t mean to kill her yet. He was coming back.” Mal looked back at all the sheriff deputy vehicles and the ambulance. “We need to get everyone out of here.”

  “What?”

  “He’s coming back. If he sees that we’ve been here, we’ll lose him for good.”

  Mike shook his head. “We can’t leave while we’re working the scene.”

  “The evidence isn’t going anywhere. Trust me. Shut this down. Use it as bait.”

  Mike got on his radio and commanded everybody to wrap it up.

  “What are we doing?” Skippy asked, appearing out of nowhere and clearly irritated.

  Mike explained that they had reason to believe the killer would be back soon. Skippy stared at him before turning to Mal. “He’s already killed her. Why would he come back?”

  “But the scene isn’t staged,” she explained. “No carvings. Nothing to indicate he killed her, that this wasn’t an OD. I don’t think he knows she’s dead.”

  “Or she died and he got the fuck out because it ruined his ritual,” Skippy argued.

  Mal looked at Mike, hoping he had her back.

  “We move out and wait for him to return,” he said without flinching.

  Chapter 29 - Howard Loomis

  His day kept yawning into forever.

  Howard had an install on a house he could barely gain entry to because the owner was the worst hoarder he’d ever seen. Then he had to troubleshoot a department store malfunction where everything that could go wrong did. No break or escape until after six.

  He hoped Cami was still tied up like he left her.

  Howard entered the details into the computer, closed out the job, then started his drive to the old motel. But first, he really needed something to eat.

  He stopped at a Sloppy’s, seemed only fitting, and ordered his same meal from the day he spotted Cami with her friend. Maybe he’d bring her a True American to eat before killing her.

  After parking in the lot, he went into the back of his van, sat on the floor, then turned on the laptop he used to monitor people.

  “You’re wasting time, Howard,” said Mister K from the speakers, sounding broken and distorted even though the computer was fine. “It has been twenty-four hours.”

  “I need to eat.” Howard dug into the bag, fished out a wad of salty, hot fries, then shoved them into his mouth.

  “You could stand to skip a meal or two.”

  “What are we going to do to her?” Howard asked.

  “Why? Do you like this one? Have you gone soft, now that you’ve touched her? Are you giving up on our mission now that we’re so close?”

  “No. I’m not soft. I’m still committed.”

  “Good.”

  “What are we going to do?”

  “This will be one to remember. We shall flay her, putting our symbols only on her face, our message to the others that The End is almost here.”

  “And what will happen at The End?”

  “You’ve always been so impatient,” Mister K whispered. “What is it, Howard? Do you not trust me?”

  “Yes, I trust you. I … I’m just curious about what’s next. I’ve always wanted to know.”

  “Yes, you are a very … curious human. You should cherish patience as much as you enjoy sating your curiosity.”

  “Can you blame me? I’ve been waiting to be something more than what everybody else said I was for all my life now. You see how people look at me.”

  “Yes, but they don’t see what I see — the intelligence, the power, the righteousness that so many weaker beasts lack. Your mother is wrong about you, Howard. You are so much more than these fools can ever see. But they will see, soon enough. Stay the course. Help me deliver these messages, then all will be revealed.”

  Howard felt better, even something approaching joyous. He just needed to hear the occasional affirmation that what they were doing was the proper path indeed.

  “I’m sorry.” He was foolish for his doubts. Mister K had already done so much for him, revealed so many truths others had hidden away. He showed Howard how to situate himself into a position of knowledge, working at a place with unfettered access into so many homes. Now he knew the secrets of people who didn’t even know he existed.

  He thought about that scandal with the sex ring from six months ago, blowing up and ruining so many lives, sending all those rich and powerful into hiding. Howard didn’t have that kind of dirt, but he knew who was cheating on who, had seen secret meetings between politicians outside of the Sunshine law, and witnessed enough crimes to blackmail some important folks, if he were so inclined.

  But for Howard, the power came in just knowing and keeping the secrets. As others had discovered all too often, history wasn’t always kind to those who knew that which was designed to stay hidden. People hated those who unearthed their ugliest parts. And erased them whenever possible.

  So, Howard did as Mister K advised and kept everything to himself.

  He tuned into the camera feed he’d set up across from the motel and scrubbed through the day’s events, just to make sure Cami hadn’t escaped.

  He bit into his first burger, moving through the footage at 72X speed.

  Movement caught his eye, several swallows in. Not just movement, but sheriff’s vehicles appearing on-screen. Howard froze, a bite of True American in his mouth, blood turning cold.

  “No, no, no.” He spit out the burger and slowed the fast forward to normal speed, then to rewind.

  “What the hell did you do?” asked Mister K, his voice boiling over the speakers.

  “How?” Howard said to himself. “How did they find her?”

  He rewound the footage, searching for some wayward person on foot or in a car who might have stumbled upon the motel. But he saw nothing, not even a sign that Cami had gotten loose all by herself.

  The sheriff’s deputies arrived out of nowhere, approaching the building with their weapons drawn. Who had tipped them off?

  “Who did you tell?” Mister K asked.

  “Nobody,” Howard whined, confused. He returned to the footage, searching for clues. Watched as they carried Cami from the motel in a bodybag.

  “You ruined my grand plan!” Mister K snarled.

  “I’m sorry,” Howard cried, still so confused, scrolling until he saw a familiar face appear onscreen. The detective, Mallory Black.

  “She knew,” Mister K said.

  “What? How?”

  “I don’t know, but she did this.”

  He stared at the screen, then at the pretty detective who had ruined his plan. Howard had followed her story ever since her daughter was abducted. He’d actually felt bad for her.

  But, the more that came out about her on the blogs and news, the more certain he became she was a wicked woman. Mallory Black’s child was taken because she was a wretched sinner. Her daughter paid the price for her being a drunken whore.

  It was a shame, children should never have to suffer for the sins of their parents. Howard had nothing but disgust for Mallory Black now. And somehow, she’d soiled all of their plans.

  “That whore has to pay,” growled Mister K.

  “But how?”

  “We find a way to break her. But first, we’ll make up for this loss and find someone else. Someone who can really make them hurt.”

  Chapter 30 - Jasper Parish

  Jasper stopped reading in his bunk when he heard a commotion in the pod below.

  He went to his open cell door then looked down over the balcony to the tables. A brawl had erupted between D’Andre and one of the Latinos. The fight would spread like a virus in moments.

  D’Andre was trying to get in with 904 Mafia.

  The COs moved in as D’Andre egged them on, screaming, “Fuck you, pig!”

  But then he got the beat down. D’Andre laughed like a maniac as they shoved his face into the ground.

  The alarm buzzed for a lockdown.

  Jasper returned to his b
unk and sat with his back against the wall, pretending to read while staying alert in case anyone decided to use the commotion as fuel to attack him.

  “Back in your cells,” guards shouted as they broke up the fighting with relatively little resistance, judging from the riotous symphony.

  Jurko walked by Jasper’s cell, looked inside, then kept walking, checking the next one. The buzzer went off again a few minutes later, and the cells all slid shut in unison.

  Jasper resumed his reading.

  Jordyn sat at the end of the bunk, listening to her music, humming something vaguely familiar and surprisingly sad. She hadn’t spoken since telling him the deputies had found the girl but were too late.

  Neither had Jasper.

  The other inmates were pissed about lockdown and talking shit to one another from their cells. More mouthfuls from the guards on duty, baiting them. Whoever started the fight would be answering to whomever was king of their group. They’d get a hard bruising, be forced to surrender an even higher tax on their canteen funds for a while.

  Jordyn stopped singing, pulled out her earbuds, and lowered her hoodie. She had that look in her eye, the one that suggested a memory but was really her trying to fine tune an oncoming vision.

  “What is it?” Jasper asked.

  She held a finger to let him know he needed to wait, then she leapt off the bed, landed in a crouch on the floor. Her eyes burned with intensity as she looked around the cell.

  Jordyn was spooking the shit out of him. It was even stranger since he wasn’t feeling so much as a hint of whatever she was sensing.

  She scrambled on all fours toward the toilet. Jasper was sure she was about to puke, but she leaned forward, straining to look behind it. Then she looked back at him and motioned him toward her with the same finger she’d used to silence him before.

  Jasper stood over her, trying to see what had gripped her attention. Then he saw it — a tiny metal disc attached to the back of the toilet. He reached down, pulled it out, and raised it to eye level, slowly inspecting the thing.

  “Is that a bug?”

  He nodded, mouthing the words, They’re listening.

  “How long have they been listening?” Jordyn asked.

  The longer he contemplated his answer, the clearer Jasper’s conversations with Hernandez formed in his head.