He had had a reflexive moment.
“I’m sorry Mr. Grayson.” Andrew finally said, looking back at the wall. Now, his look was fixed in Parker Atkinson’s toothless face and what a blast he must be having in hell.
There were a lot of things that didn’t make sense, now.
“It’s okay.” The shrink’s arrogant voice replied “I’ll reschedule for the day after tomorrow. You come, and I’ll gladly help you. Take care.”
Andrew hadn’t heard his last sentence since, by then, he had already moved the phone away from his ear.
What Andrew didn’t know, yet, is that things would speed up within the next forty-eight hours. The chess’s round had begun the night before. The day that Ava Cox appeared, Parker Atkinson became ashes in the crematorium, taking the secret with him.
He got up from the chair and headed directly to the window with his arm extended. His fingers grabbed the blind strap and gently pulled it down. That morning’s sun shone like a polished door.
Andrew felt that from time to time, though it was the first it occurred, so many doubts seemed to asphyxiate him. Doubts about Ava’s appearance. He felt that it wouldn’t end there and, even though he only knew she was found dead and that Parker wasn’t the murderer, he choked with a ball of thick saliva. It was as if all of a sudden, the air he breathed became lead particles and he was choking little by little. He would soon understand why he felt those weird mixed sensations for the first time.
Again, his phone started crooning an atrocious tune that indicated that someone, on the other side of the phone, wanted to talk to him.
Without even taking a look at the screen, he took the phone to his ear, like trying to hear from a shell, except this time he didn’t hear the waves, but a rough voice.
“I have something to tell you,” Landon said.
“Me too,” Andrew said.
The clock marked quarter past nine.
46
There was no sound. There was no sun. There were only five women in silence. With her eyes wide open and her lips with wrinkles. Their entwined hands and their faces with makeup. It was a very big room with seven beds. There was a doorless closet that showed, under the half-light, the warm colors of the spring dresses that were in there. There was also underwear, but it was old, and they didn’t use it because rats had chewed it and they had a fetid smell. There, on top of that pile of undergarment, something had died, and it had been consumed by the ravenous worms.
Their hearts were still beating.
In four years, none of the most beautiful seven women in the world had stayed away from each other. They couldn’t do it either.
There were five left now and their only choice was to start praying more seriously this time. Something they hadn’t dedicated much time, lately.
Praying to that God that we never see.
47
“How did you know about the vehicle?” Landon asked with his eyes wide open as if they could see through the phone.
“I have some contacts and they informed me about it last night. It’s been pure coincidence. A South Beach patrol saw the vehicle with its door open and it caught their attention. Besides, it was parked, or abandoned in this case, in one the forbidden beaches, mayor’s orders. I think they waited for about twenty minutes before leaving the car to check what was going on. At first, they thought they would find an indecent couple but there was no one there. On the copilot’s seat, or at least that’s what they told me, there were the car’s papers and a person’s ID. It was Ava Cox. You know, I have a friend who, incidentally, works there and he called me. That’s all.”
Andrew took a deep breath, softly whistling after spitting his boring speech. He was surprised by how well he could lie.
On the other side of the line, there was the silence that got interrupted by the precinct’s background noise.
Finally, Landon’s hoarse and anxious voice came back to life.
“I wanted to let you know that the killer appears to be still alive.” Landon started drooling and stopped for a bit. “This morning, a young unruly girl came to the precinct. She was almost naked and full of blood. She stated that she had been attacked. She said from the very beginning that it was a hefty tall man who was also carrying a woman, probably dead, on his right shoulder. She also stated that he attacked her after leaving the other woman on the floor. She described how she heard the creak of that woman’s skull as it broke when it hit a stone. Apparently, at least that’s what she told us, she came driving from Lake Park Beach...”
“Ah! Amazing.” Andrew said with a deep voice. “That lake is only 3.1 miles away from old Tom’s lake.”
“Lake Hill.” Landon corrected him.
“Fine, but they’re both close. The murderer is among us. Very close it seems.” When he said these words, Andrew was surprised by the almost inexistent amount of visions he had had that morning. Even though it had just started, and he had already seen a face but nothing else.
It was weird to him that he hadn’t seen the hysterical girl yelling in the middle of the precinct.
Or the man with the woman on his shoulders.
“We believe we have to open another file,” Landon said a bit calmer, now. His voice had shown a bit of undeniable anxiety. “Can you come to the precinct? We have to work together.” Landon admitted, and Andrew smiled to the sun that shone like a fried egg high up in the sky as if it were an XVIII century painting.
“Of course. I’ll be there in ten minutes.” Andrew said as he looked at three birds flying by. He thought that spring was very beautiful, though open wounds weren’t. Even though he had to sew them up, something inside him told him he had little time to save it from the infection. A good metaphor for the clock ticking and five lives depending on him.
He heard a whistle produced by the smile before hanging up.
Landon had succumbed to detective Andrew’s mastery. A very old fox.
48
As the sun slid down the painted wall like a ball, they were still alone and, as usual, silent. There were two of them missing and Madelyne was getting a tan with her eyes closed and her makeup about to melt by the heat.
She was waiting for the good men, with all her senses shut while the sicko had gone out like every morning to run his errands.
There was no cabin there, no, there wasn’t any.
It was an indomitable lake.
49
Andrew’s Ford Mondeo stopped in front of the precinct perpendicularly to the patrols. The engine’s roar ended with a final bang and the engine coughed roughly convulsing in an unsettling way. The air’s fragrance, a mixture of spruce and ash tree, had been replaced by the car’s carbon monoxide. There was a bluish cloud in the sky. Andrew didn’t notice it, but it was what the exhaust had spat out. He slammed the door making a metallic sound and walked towards the precinct’s entrance, dragging his trench coat’s tail and tapping his new shoes.
Landon was getting ready to go out with his men when he heard a familiar voice behind him. The door was barely open, and it let him hear a conversation about obligation and health standards.
A puff of nicotine condensed in the air was the first thing that Andrew swallowed before complaining.
“These cigarettes are gross. Isn’t it forbidden to smoke in here?”
Tens of inquiring eyes looked at him and, at the same time, a cigarette was hanging from some dry lips, expelling a grayish smoke that got mixed with the air as if climbing through a chimney’s hole until it completely vanished.
Kevin was standing in front of his desk like a hotel receptionist. His face was wrinkled as if trying to take a dump. The only thing he was showing, though, was an expectation grimace.
“Are you always complaining Andrew?” Landon asked while he was supporting his weight on his office’s doorpost. Behind him, there was a tiny silhouette sitting on the chair. His face was covered by the shiny sunglasses and a toothpick between his teeth. His had a fake smile and when Andrew saw him he thought of him as the perfect idiot in
charge. However, if he wanted to move forward with the investigation, he had to deal with him. It wasn’t an appropriate time for smiles. The tiny silhouette, motionless, seemed to the one of a delicate woman.
Andrew went over the entire precinct in three seconds, as if ice skating. His bald head shone with the fluorescent lamp’s light and caught the attention of several eyes. The precinct’s noise was a constant murmur, like a pride of purring lions.
“Not really, only when the first thing I breathe as I enter a place is a thick cloud of nicotine that you can almost touch with your fingers,” Andrew explained in front of Landon. Kevin had turned his head like a greasy gear.
“I want you to meet a witness. The woman who could probably help us with this case. The girl who came in hysterical first thing in the morning.” Landon was now serious, and his eyes closed behind his dark glasses. Andrew didn’t see that, though, since the crystals were shining like silver.
Behind him, the silhouette moved as if uncomfortable.
“Is that her?” Andrew pointed with his sullenest aspect.
Landon moved over, this time with no smile on his face.
“We have to go to the crime scene, Andrew. I’m sorry but we don’t have enough time. In fact, I was just leaving...”
“I’m staying here for a while!” Andrew interrupted. “I’ll take her later to the crime scene.”
The silhouette turned around and her blonde hair moved back showing a bloody face but with jade-green eyes capable of breaking any spell. Her lips were pressed, and her eyes were sad. Andrew rose an eyebrow.
“Fine, you can come in,” Landon said not complying with the protocol of action. In Castle Lake Hill nothing was properly done. Landon came through the door and, this time, without his jacket, headed towards Kevin. Andrew looked at him with disrespect.
He turned and looked for the first time at those beautiful green eyes. The girl was still twisted on the chair. She was sitting in an uncomfortable position. A bloody hand was on the chair’s backrest. Her angelic face showed both awe and fear.
Andrew quietly entered Landon’s office showing his bulky belly and his huge head. He skirted the table as if he wasn’t looking at her and sat on the sheriff’s chair. The seat was warm to the touch and it came up to his mind that that fucker might have farted several times. He thought it was both disgusting and funny. The chair creaked, and the girl had turned to look at him. She was still silent, with her eyes wide open checking his every move.
In the distance, Landon could be heard calling his guys, one by one. Kevin, Jacob, Luke, Henry, and Owen, for a change. Later, their noisy steps could be heard until they were gone. They sounded like inconsistent steps, like those of wild horses in a distant hill. Even then, Landon’s complaint could be heard along with a noise that seemed like a gob of spit.
“I’m detective Andrew and I’m following the lead of the murderer of the seven missing women.” He introduced himself with a hoarse, nearly pained voice.
After this, the girl blinked and remained for a while in silence.
Time seemed to never go by.
She looked lost.
“I’m sorry, I’m scared.” The girl finally said almost whispering. Andrew realized her hands were shaking.
“You don’t have to be sorry. In any case, that bastard who tried to kill you should be, ‘cause we’re going to get him.” Andrew showed his darkest side and wished he had punched the table. It wouldn’t have been heard anyway given the huge amount of papers on it. He also had time to think, a few milliseconds: Why the fuck has Landon left me in his office?
The girl bent her head over showing her blonde hair died in blood. Andrew looked at it and thought of it as some paintings on a wall, superficial. There were no wounds in her head.
“A strong man was carrying a woman on his shoulder. She wasn’t moving. Her arms were hanging still. When he saw me, he let her fall to the ground and I heard a weird noise, weird...”
“Yes, the sheriff mentioned something about it.” Andrew interrupted with a softer voice now, even though it still was hoarse and deep. “He hasn’t given me many details, but I know a little bit about it. I want you to please tell me as many details as you can about this guy.”
Andrew extended his tiny hand with a white handkerchief.
The girl who had slightly risen her head saw him and extended her hand as if trying to point at something. However, her red fingers entwined with the handkerchief.
“Thanks,” she said.
“Haven’t they taken you to the hospital yet?”
She shook her head in an attempt to say no.
“Not yet, sir.”
“Stupid good-for-nothing. You give them a bucket and they think it’s to pee inside.”
The girl had the false sensation of starting to laugh, but she didn’t.
“They have taken my statement.” said while she was cleaning her face with the handkerchief which had now gathered all the dry blood of her face.
“Don’t worry, I’ll be a lot faster. Have they asked for your name?”
“How do you know they haven’t?
“Because I know them.”
She shrugged her shoulders.
“I’ve never been through anything like this and I don’t know what...”
“Don’t worry. From now on I’ll be the one looking after you.” The deep voice, warmer now, had interrupted her, with no bad intention. It had just been a reflective act, as an impulse.
“Thank you again.”
“You don’t have to thank me so much, Ms. It’s my job. What was your name again?”
She hadn’t said a word, not then and not now.
“Clarice.” She replied, still shaking from head to toes. She was cold. There was an absurd cold in a sticky and dense environment due to the heat. “Clarice Norton.”
Andrew looked at her with a frown just to impress her.
“Okay. Clarice. You’re not from around here, are you? Are you a foreigner by any chance?”
“Exactly.”
Andrew understood, and his eyebrows went back to their place like one of Jim Henson’s puppets.
“May I know where you’re from Clarice?”
“From Boston.”
“Nice city.” Andrew had said his compliment.
Her mouth twisted and showed a grimace similar to a twisted smile. Now, with her face almost clean, she looked even prettier. Her eyes were green, which caught Andrew’s attention. He didn’t know why but the color of her eyes tied him up to something. None of what he had already seen, so, he supposed it was a matter of taste. He never got married but that didn’t mean that he hadn’t met any woman.
“Thank you.”
Andrew was starting to get tired of so many “thank yous” that morning, but he could hide it perfectly. He moved towards Landon’s comfy chair that creaked right after he sat his huge ass. He made a grimace with his lips.
“I’ll tell you what we’re going to do, Clarice.” He pointed at her with his chubby finger and added “Even though you should be checked by a doctor, I don’t see any serious injuries. They’re rather superficial. All the blood you have on your clothes is outrageous, I know, but we have to go back to the crime scene and you will let me know as much as you remember. Would you do that for me?”
Suddenly, Andrew realized that his question was stupid. Did she even know him? Oh, no, no way. So? Would you that for me? That can be expected from a mother asking her son or the other way around. But not him. Who was Andrew to make these kinds of questions?
She didn’t seem to hear this question. Her knees were together and her hands on them with her fingers playing with the handkerchief which was now red.
“I’m scared. He could be there, hidden.” Her eyes were as if trying to get out of their sockets. Her heartbeat was increasing as if it were in a car race. Andrew almost felt those heartbeats. He spread out in his chair and his huge ass made it creak again
“Unless he’s an idiot, he will no longer be there.” H
e could have taken the woman you mention or maybe he left her in the same place where he dropped her. The Sheriff is ahead of us and I don’t like arriving late for meetings.” Andrew remembered both Grayson and the image of the second woman. Even though it was dim, he could see her with her eyes closed.
The murmur in the precinct passed through the office’s glass door and the smell of nicotine was not so annoying now since the murmur had taken the first place when it came to catching everyone’s attention. Clarice smelled great, a mixture of nature, perfume and something sweet, just like blood.
“Okay. I’ll do whatever you tell me, Sir...”
“Detective Andrew.”
She nodded instinctively. Her eyes were no longer wet, though they were swollen.
“Nice to meet you.”
“Are you coming with me?”
Andrew got up from the chair making a noise similar to a tree falling down in the middle of a street. His back was sweating copiously. The girl slightly separated her legs.
A few seconds later, they were both going out through the huge door and the sun hit them as if lightning had struck them.
50
The three police cars, with their stupid blue and red lights on in the middle of the day, stopped by the soil esplanade like heavy tanks spitting out blue smoke to the sky. Mother Nature was there to gather all that carbon monoxide garbage and turn it into oxygen. The water shone like a thousand diamonds spread on a white sheet. The birds were not singing now. Landon opened the door and his sunglasses looked up to the sky without a logical reason. He didn’t see any blackbird moving from one side to the other with its open wings drawing a line. It was as if time had stopped and the birds were under the water’s brightness, maybe even in a deep dream after swallowing a considerable amount of water.
The vehicles’ engines were shutting down one by one, creating a silence that made them think that the noise in the city was far away from them since the only thing they could breathe was the serenity that the metropolis had already lost. It was a lot better than being asleep. The only sound that could be heard was one coming from the doors’ hinges as they opened.
It was pure monotony: the heavy boots were stepping on the gravel and creating tiny clouds of dust with its heels; just like the exhaust pipe releases smoke and it wraps the air until it disappears becoming thousands of invisible particles. The light was shining on their bony faces. The Sheriff’s glasses were shining, and the doors were grinding as they opened and closed. At that point, the murmur became annoying.
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