by C. M. Sutter
Detective Andrews answered for everyone. “Absolutely, and as a matter of fact, other than a dog-barking nuisance call, we haven’t gone to either neighborhood in over a year.”
J.T. brought up Daniel Cummings, Sarah’s husband. “His death wasn’t at all suspicious?”
“Not according to the police report at the scene of the accident. He was hit by a drunk driver. Wrong place at the right time, nothing more,” Hardy said.
“His parents were interviewed last night, correct?” I asked.
Officer Jones responded. “Yes, by me. Their son’s death was an untimely and unfortunate accident, and to the best of their knowledge, neither Daniel nor Sarah had enemies. They got along well with the neighbors and each other. They said Sarah was devastated when Daniel died.”
“Life insurance policies?” J.T. asked.
Hardy spoke up. “Yes, we checked that out, and no new policies were issued recently for either of them. They both had standard life insurance—nothing overly substantial.”
“And neither of them were involved in affairs?”
“Not to our knowledge, Jade.” Hardy jerked his chin at Lyles. “How thoroughly was Sarah’s house gone through this morning?”
Don shrugged. “Maybe not thoroughly enough, boss.”
“Get Forensics on the phone and see if they have a reason to go back inside. If not, I want Dixon, Jones, and whoever isn’t busy right now to head over there. I want that house gone through from top to bottom. Look for a connection to the Kings or anything that looks wonky, whether it was from Sarah or her husband. Agents, what do you suggest next?”
“Let J.T. and me have a crack at those people listed on the whiteboard.”
Chapter 13
He slammed the door of the rented cottage so hard it almost shattered the two window panes built into the top panel. The cat bolted for the bedroom. Ed paced back and forth through the living room with his fists jammed into his pockets.
“I can’t believe that stupid bitch. I have every right to see my kids. Who the hell does she think she is, anyway? Just her voice sets me off. It’s like fingernails on a chalkboard. Who died and made her boss?” Ed thought about the words he’d just spewed and snickered. “Oh yeah, three people died, but there’s more to come. I’ll ruin her life one way or another.”
With all his ranting, Ed had forgotten about the woman tied up in the corner. He grabbed the remote and clicked on the TV. Their eyes met for a second, then she quickly looked down.
“Ha! I forgot about you. I guess you aren’t very important, are you?” Ed turned off the television and crossed the room. He pulled over a small stool and placed it within a few feet of her. He took a seat and stared into her eyes. “What’s your name again?”
“Jackie.”
“Oh yeah, and why is your house for sale, Jackie?”
“No particular reason. I’m hoping to make some money on it, that’s all. If this is about money, I can give you everything I have if you’ll just let me go.”
Ed stood and paced again. “Your abduction has nothing to do with money. It’s about righting wrongs. I haven’t decided how you’ll come into play.”
“But why me?” Tears streamed down her cheeks.
“Why you? Because I felt like it, that’s why. I have personal reasons too, but you have to admit you were an easy target and stupid like most women. I’ve been watching you for a few days, and you aren’t the most cautious person. Who takes groceries into their house and doesn’t close the front door between trips to the car?”
“I don’t know, everyone?”
Ed slapped her across the face. “Wrong answer, idiot, and now look where you are. You’re tied up in some pissed-off psycho’s cottage in the middle of nowhere. You’re as stupid as my ex-wife. You even look like her.” Ed fixated on her hair and began stroking it.
Jackie winced as tears streamed down her cheeks. “What are you going to do with me? I’m sure my friends are wondering where I’m at. They’ve probably called the police.”
“Don’t worry. I’ve covered my tracks. Nobody is going to find you unless I want them to.”
“But we took my car. Your vehicle must be somewhere near my house.”
Ed chuckled as he walked to the refrigerator and cracked open a beer. He guzzled half the bottle without taking a breath then wiped his mouth and approached Jackie again. He leaned in, only inches from her face. “Are you a criminologist?”
“No.”
“Then shut the hell up. I’ve already said I know what I’m doing.” Ed dropped down on the sofa and turned on the TV again. With the remote in hand, he channel surfed until he came to the four o’clock local news. Seven commercials in a row wasted five precious minutes of his time. Ed wanted to hear the latest. He got up, grabbed another beer, and placed it on the coffee table. Finally, the news and the anchorman returned to the screen.
“Aah, here we go. What do you have to tell us today, Mr. Newsman?”
The anchorman sitting at the news desk shuffled papers and began. “Breaking news of a double homicide has just reached our station.”
Ed leaned forward, his elbows on his knees, and his eyes filled with interest. “Tell it like it is, newsman.”
“Information just released from our news team on the street tells us police had Greenhaven Street at Wilson and all the way to Normandy Avenue blocked off last night from what appears to be a double homicide. A retired couple, their names not yet released to the public, was found brutally murdered inside their home on Greenhaven Street. Violent crime is unheard of in that quiet, unassuming neighborhood, and the locals are on edge. Captain Kip Hardy of the Central Police Station downtown has agreed to set up a tip line. Please call the 800 number at the bottom of the screen if you have any information regarding this or the homicide on Prentice Street that occurred earlier in the week. Omaha wants to know, can this be the work of the same perpetrator, and do we have a serial killer roaming our city? Stay tuned as more information comes in.”
Ed slapped his knee. “That was a damn good broadcast if I do say so myself.” He jerked his head at the sound coming from the corner of the room. “What’s going on over there? Are you bawling?”
“Was that broadcast about you?” Jackie’s eyes gave away her fear, and her body visibly shook.
Ed laughed. “Don’t you worry your pretty little head about it. As long as I’m not pissed off, you’ll be fine. I haven’t decided what to do with you yet.”
Chapter 14
“So who do you want, Gary Gibson or Liz Manthis?”
“Are they both here?” J.T. asked.
“Yeah. According to Don, Manthis is in box one, and Gibson’s in box three.” I bit into my turkey club and jammed a handful of salty chips into my mouth. J.T. and I had a spare ten minutes to grab our supper of vending machine food. It was already after six.
“Take your time eating, Jade, or you’ll be complaining of indigestion in an hour. Those people are on our time, not vice versa. They can sit and stew for a while.”
I leaned back in the cafeteria-style chair and took a deep breath. “You’re right. It would be nice to enjoy my food now and then, even if it is a vending machine sandwich.” I gulped my iced tea and took another bite.
J.T. stared at his beef stew suspiciously. He gave it a few stirs with his spoon, held the can under his nose, and sniffed.
“What the hell are you doing?” I chuckled.
“Just checking.”
“For?”
“Whatever could go wrong, but I guess it’s safe. It doesn’t smell rotten.”
“You’re a weirdo, Harper.”
“Maybe, but I’m a healthy weirdo.”
I gave J.T. a smile. I was glad he was healthy, and so far, he seemed happy to be back in the field.
J.T. chowed down his beef stew and wiped his mouth. “I’ll take the girl, and you can have the guy. Opposites attract, you know.”
“Like I said, you’re a—”
“Yeah, yeah, I know. Com
e on. Let’s see what they have to say.”
We parted ways at box one. “Have fun with Liz. Put on the charm, and maybe she’ll tell you more about the disagreements she had with Sarah than what she told Lyles and Franklin.”
J.T. smirked. “Jealous?”
“Not on your life. I get Gary Gibson, and it’s his first interview. No sloppy seconds here, partner.” I winked then continued on to box number three. “Talk to you later.”
I watched Mr. Gibson for five minutes through the one-way glass in the observation room. He sat and fidgeted, then stood, circled the table, and sat again.
I wonder why you’re so nervous, Mr. Gibson. Let’s find out.
With two short raps on the door, I entered the room and introduced myself to Gary Gibson, the listing agent for the King house. I stuck out my hand and shook his. It was wet and limp. I tried to hide my disgust. “Mr. Gibson, do you know why you’re here?”
“No, not really, but I imagine it has something to do with Mr. and Mrs. King.”
“So you know about their murders?”
Gary’s left eye began to twitch. “It was on TV, ma’am.”
I stared at him. His eye twitch was distracting. “It was on TV, but their names weren’t mentioned in that news segment.”
“They showed a quick shot of the house. I’m the listing broker, so I recognized it immediately, and they are an elderly couple.”
“Okay, anyway, I’m not here to bust your chops, but I do want you to tell me everything you can about them.”
“Agent Monroe, I didn’t know them personally. I only put their house up for sale.”
“I understand.” I stood and rounded the table. “Would you like a water?” Gary had begun to perspire profusely.
“Yes, I’d appreciate that.”
“Okay, I’ll be right back.” I needed to get to the bottom of things. Logically, Gary had no reason to be that nervous. I stepped out of the room and called Hardy.
“Captain Hardy here.”
“Hey, Cap, it’s Jade. I don’t know the guys in your tech department, so I’m calling you.”
“What do you need?”
“I’m interviewing Gary Gibson, and he’s unusually nervous. I want to know if he has a police record. Can you help me out with that?”
“Sure thing. I’ll call you back in five.”
I walked the hallway to the cafeteria and dropped all my change into the vending machine. With two bottles of water in hand, I returned to interrogation room number three. “Here you go.” I took my seat and cracked the top off my bottle. Gary did the same and guzzled half of it without stopping to breathe. “Is something wrong?”
“No.” He wiped his forehead with the back of his hand.
My cell vibrated in my pocket, and I pulled it out. Cap was calling me back. “Excuse me for a second.” I stepped into the hallway and answered the call. “What do you have, Cap?”
“Would you believe twenty unpaid parking tickets? It adds up to a couple hundred bucks in fines, but that’s it.”
I chuckled. “Damn, that guy needs a sedative. Okay, thanks.” I returned to the room and took my seat. “Shall we begin?”
“What do you want to know?”
“Everything from the first minute you spoke to either of them.”
Gary went over the details as I wrote. “I had an initial meeting with them to view the house and take notes. After I toured the home last week, I told them I’d get the comps together, set a sales price, then they could sign the contract. As soon as the photographer took the pictures, the house would be listed and a sign would go in the yard. The property went on the market only yesterday.”
I cut Gary loose thirty minutes later but not before I reminded him to pay his parking tickets. He seemed relieved to be leaving and promised to send in a payment the next day. I walked him out then took a seat in the lobby and reviewed his comments again. He didn’t have anything to say that would help the case. According to what Gary remembered, Mr. and Mrs. King wanted to downsize, possibly to a condo, and live closer to their daughter and her family in St. Louis. That was as much personal information as he got out of them. Most of their appointment was spent going over the sales procedure.
I saw J.T. heading my way with Liz Manthis. He thanked her and showed her out.
“How’d it go with Liz?” I grinned.
He plopped down next to me. “That was a bust. She gave me the same story she gave Lyles and Franklin. She and Sarah had been coworkers for five years. They didn’t click, just a personality thing it sounded like. Liz seems to be a hothead and spouted off about not getting enough overtime on several occasions. Sounds like the library favored Sarah.”
“Maybe because she was a calmer employee?”
J.T. nodded. “Probably. What are we missing, Jade? There doesn’t seem to be any connection between the victims. The only thing found was Chad Nolan’s name written on a piece of newspaper at the King’s house.”
“Oh yeah”—I cocked my head—“let’s go find the evidence room and have a look at that newspaper.”
Chapter 15
Ed became agitated again as he thought of his ex-wife. His hatred for her consumed him.
She’s not getting away with this.
He stepped outside and dialed the number from his prepaid phone and waited as it rang on her end. His cell, placed on the railing, was set on speakerphone. She picked up on the fourth ring.
“Hello.”
“You can’t withhold my kids from me!” Ed stomped back and forth on the cottage’s rickety porch as he shouted.
“I most certainly can. Ask the judge who granted me full custody. Did you somehow forget that you’ve been diagnosed with severe depression and off-the-charts anxiety? The kids are afraid of you, Ed, and I don’t blame them. Your personality can turn on a dime. Why do you think we’re divorced?”
“Because you’re a cheating bitch!”
“Wrong. It’s because you can’t be trusted to take your medication, and you’re unstable. You don’t even live around here anymore, and as far as I know, you can’t hold down a J-O-B. If you did, you’d be paying child support. You’re obviously off the grid and have no money. How could you even afford a plane ticket? Please, just leave me the hell alone.”
“You’re the last person who needs—” The phone went dead as Ed was about to unleash his verbal wrath on the woman he had been married to for seven years. He swung the door open and pulled out the knife from its sheath as he stomped across the room toward the restrained woman. Jackie’s screams bounced off the paneled walls as she wrenched at the ropes around her wrists and ankles. Ed’s eyes—filled with craziness—told her what was to come. He pulled back the knife and plunged it into her throat. Gurgles sounded from her body, and blood bubbled out of the wound as he continued to attack until she stopped breathing.
Chapter 16
“Well, now we know Chad Nolan’s theory was wrong.” With my hands gloved, I carefully placed the newspaper on the small table just outside the evidence room. “Take a couple pictures of this side, then I’ll flip it over. There isn’t an ad for Scenic View Realty anywhere on either side.”
“Got it. Go ahead and turn it to the back side.”
I did, and J.T. snapped several more pictures. He leaned in closely to the crossword puzzle and the name written in the margins of the paper. He took two pictures of that as well. “I think we have what we need.”
I placed the paper back in the evidence bag and gave it to the officer at the counter. “Thanks.” I wrote down the time and signed my name. “Ready?”
“Yeah. Chad Nolan needs to be pulled in. At this point, he’s our only person of interest. We also need the records from each real estate company that showed the King’s house.”
“I think the detectives have that information already. A lot of people are going to be interviewed before these cases are cracked. Has anyone contacted the daughter in St. Louis?”
“Not sure. Let’s ask.”
J.T. and I went back to the third floor and met up with the officers in the conference room.
Hardy looked up when we entered. “Anything?”
I smirked. “Chad needs to be brought in again. There’s nothing on that newspaper that would give Mrs. King any reason to know his name.”
Hardy turned to Detective Andrews. “Do we have the forensic photos of the King house yet?”
“They said they’d be finished cataloging them in an hour, boss. Then they’re ours to go through.”
“Do you remember how the family room was set up?”
“Sure. We’re assuming it was Mrs. King’s recliner where the newspaper was found. A pair of women’s reading glasses sat on the side table, and a soap opera magazine was beside the newspaper. According to the crime scene and where the bodies were located, Mrs. King had just entered the kitchen from the family room. We believe it was Mr. King who let the perp in the door.”
I spoke up. “What about a cell phone or a house phone?”
“There was a house phone on its base next to her recliner,” Andrews said.
“Did anyone check incoming calls?” J.T. asked.
“Yes, Forensics did.” Andrews pulled out his notepad and flipped the pages then frowned. “I don’t have the information from the phone written down, but Tony Myers took pictures of the call log.”
Hardy cocked his head. “We need to see everything right away. They can finish cataloging the photos later. Go find Stan and tell him we need those pictures sent to my email now, then stop by my office and grab my laptop.”
“You got it, sir.” Andrews rose and left the room.
Hardy’s cell phone buzzed on the table. He picked it up and looked at the screen. “It’s the ME.” He clicked Talk and set the phone down. “Joe, I have you on speakerphone, and we have a full conference room. What are your findings?”
“Good evening, everyone. I’ll begin with Sarah Cummings. I’d place her death on Monday, October second, in the early afternoon, likely before two o’clock. Her stomach contents hadn’t been digested yet, meaning she had eaten an hour or so before her death. From what I can tell, the stomach contained salad, which leads me to think that was her lunch. I found seventeen stab wounds in all, with eleven of them located at her neck area. Once again, and generally speaking, murder by knife is a very personal way to kill someone. The perp is face-to-face with their victim. Her face wasn’t covered, which indicates there was no remorse involved. There’s a killer out there who is very pissed off at somebody. Strangely enough, the Kings were also murdered by knife, and the sizes of the wounds tell me it was the same weapon used in Sarah’s death. Mr. and Mrs. King had recently finished dinner, and from their body temperature, we know they had died less than an hour before we arrived. Mr. King had four stab wounds to the abdomen and chest, and Mrs. King had six stab wounds, five to the throat and one to the chest. They both had Taser burns. Mr. King had burns on his back, which leads me to the conclusion that his was a blitz attack, and Mrs. King had burns to the chest, a head-on attack.”