The Second Coming

by J. Fritschi

  There was a moment of silence. “I don’t know that information,” Father John admitted.

  “No you don’t, do you? All you have are a bunch of unbelievable stories about your dreams. Do me a favor and don’t contact me until you have something concrete that will be of some use to me.”

  chapter 61

  “NOW WHAT DO we do?” Big Pete asked as Mike sat demoralized at his desk.

  “I guess we go down to the crime scene and see if there is any evidence.”

  “You realize what this means?” Big Pete asked with a dazed expression. “We have no idea who the killer is, but he knows who we are.”

  And then Mike realized with sickening horror as the blood rushed from his head that he had done it again. He had put another woman in danger.

  “What is it?” Big Pete asked noticing the pasty look of his face.

  “What if the Sterling Killer saw Kate with me?” he asked regretfully. “What if he’s stalking her?”

  “Oh shit, you’re right,” Big Pete replied in disbelief. “Maybe we should have Axe tail her in case he tries to attack her?”

  “I can’t use her as bait,” Mike replied.

  “You’re not using her as bait,” Big Pete pointed out. “You are providing her protection. If the Sterling Killer happens to make a mistake, Axe will be there to catch him.”

  “I don’t want to put her in harm’s way any more than I already have.”

  “I don’t think you have much of a choice.”

  A look of distress clouded Mike’s face as he contemplated what to do. He had to tell her that she could be in danger and having Axe tail her was the safe thing to do, but it didn’t seem like enough. He would feel a lot better if he was with her as well.

  “Call Axe and have him follow her,” Mike told Big Pete reluctantly. “I’ll call Kate and let her know what’s going on.”

  “Got it,” Big Pete said obediently as he returned to his desk.

  Mike picked up his cell phone and located her name in his contacts and called her number.

  Her phone rang once. How did he fail to realize the danger he was putting her in?

  It rang again. She was probably never going to want to see him again and he wouldn’t blame her.

  It rang a third time. He hoped she was alright.

  Her voicemail answered. Oh fuck. What if he was too late? He could feel his heart pounding in his chest and he tried to remain calm.

  He was getting ready to leave her a message when he felt his phone vibrate. As he pulled the phone away from his ear, he glanced at the caller ID and much to his relief, saw that it was Kate.

  “Hi there,” Mike answered in a friendly tone.

  “Did you call me because you miss me?” Kate asked teasingly.

  “Where are you?”

  “I’m at work. Is everything alright?”

  “There’s been another murder.”

  Kate gasped. “I’m sorry to hear that. Are you alright?”

  “I’m fine, but I wanted to call and tell you.”

  “Tell me what?” she asked with instinctive concern.

  “If it turns out the victim was murdered last night, then Father John has an alibi,” he explained cautiously. “He was under surveillance and was home all night.”

  “Oh?” Kate remarked. “What does that mean?”

  “I don’t want to alarm you, but if Father John is not the Sterling Killer, then we don’t know who the killer is, but he knows who we are,” he explained cautiously.

  Kate fell uncomfortably silent. “Do you think I’m in danger?” she asked anxiously.

  “Probably not, but just to be on the safe side I’m going to have an undercover vehicle meet you at your office and then tail you wherever you go.”

  “Jesus Christ. What should I do?”

  “This is going to sound contrived, but wait for officer Axelrode at your office and he’ll follow you back to your house. Pack an overnight bag and you can come stay the night in my guest room.”

  “I can’t just come and live with you until they catch the killer. Who knows how long that will take?”

  “It will just be for tonight. This way I can watch you and Axe can watch us. It will be perfectly innocent. No strings attached.”

  Kate sighed. “I know I put up a brave front,” she told Mike timidly. “But I’m scared.”

  “I know,” Mike reassured her. “It’s going to be alright.”

  “You promise you won’t let anything happen to me?”

  “I promise,” Mike said as Denise’s face flashed in his mind.

  chapter 62

  IT WAS A long, exhausting day at the crime scene and they were unable to discover any clues or evidence. It was just like all of the other crime scenes. The Crime Scene Unit confirmed that there were signs of forced penetration, but no seminal fluids, hairs or fibers. The only clues the killer left behind were the sterling silver knife and the symbol smeared on the wall in the victim’s blood. The coroner confirmed the time of death between approximately 3:30 or 4:00 am that morning. Mike left the crime scene drained and defeated, but then remembered that Kate was staying the night at his house and got his second wind.

  Standing at the counter of his kitchen wearing an apron with The Rolling Stones’ tongue logo in the middle of his chest, Mike prepped the food for dinner as he bobbed his head to the soulful arrangements of Otis Redding and sipped on a beer. When he glanced at the clock on the oven it was 5:34. What was taking her so long? Where the hell was she? Maybe he should call her and make sure everything was alright.

  Mike was reaching into the front pocket of his apron for his cell phone when the doorbell rang. He grabbed a towel and dried his hands as he took a deep breath and then exhaled slowly. Don’t fuck this up. He opened the front door.

  Kate stood on the brick front porch in high heels, tight fitting charcoal business slacks and a snug black sweater with flared sleeves. She was holding the handle of a rolling carryon suitcase like a displaced business traveler. She looked up at him with her innocent eyes, inviting smile and Mike was speechless.

  “Do you know how nerve racking it is to have someone stalking you?” She eased past him and stood in the foyer. “Even with a police escort you feel like someone has you in their line of vision.”

  Mike shut the door. “This is all my fault. I’m sorry I did this to you.”

  Kate took a step towards Mike all the while gazing into his eyes. “I wouldn’t normally do this, but I don’t know where else to go.”

  “You’re safe here for now. I’ll figure out a better arrangement for you tomorrow.”

  “Hold me,” Kate pleaded timidly as she leaned into his chest.

  Mike wrapped his arms around her soft body and held her firmly. She smelled so damn sweet. “I’m sorry to put you through all of this,” he said softly.

  “It’s alright,” she assured him as she pulled away. “I’m used to dealing with crazy people. It’s an occupational hazard. It’s how I became interested in criminal psychology in the first place.”

  “Really. How so?”

  “You remember the boy who I almost drowned with?”

  “The one you told Father John about?”

  Kate nodded her head and Mike led her into the living room where they sat across from each other on the L shaped leather couch. “He was never the same after that. He became a religious fanatic and was convinced that we were saved by divine intervention. Everyone thought it was because he had brain damage.”

  There was that ‘divine intervention’ term again. Mike had never heard it so many times in his life.

  “Every time I would see him he would try to convince me that there was a reason God saved us. I felt bad for him because everyone made fun of him until one day he abducted me at knife point in the high school parking lot.”

  Mike sat on the edge of the couch with his mouth agape. Holy fuck. “What did you do?”

  “He made me drive him to the La Jolla Country Club because he thought it would rem
ind me of what happened,” Kate said with a reflective gaze. “We sat in the hot sun of the parking lot as he preached to me that since God had saved us, we should dedicate our life to God. He said that I was a sinner and that if I didn’t see the error of my ways it was his duty to kill me.”

  “Holy shit.”

  “I told him that he was right and that I had been avoiding it because I didn’t know what I was supposed to do and I was afraid I would let God down. I asked him to help me; that I was too weak to do it on my own.”

  “Good strategy; earn his trust. What did he say?”

  “He held the knife to my throat and told me not to be condescending. I could feel the tip of the blade piercing my skin.”

  Mike couldn’t believe it. It was almost like the Sterling Killer.

  “I told him that God didn’t save us so that he could kill me and that God might have saved him so that he could protect me.” Kate had a distant look in her eyes. “He pulled the knife away from my neck and broke down crying. He admitted that he didn’t know why God saved us and that he didn’t know what he was supposed to do. He was hoping that I would tell him. I felt so sorry for him. I assured him that we would know when the time came.”

  Mike shook his head astonished. “Did he just let you go?”

  “No. One of the members was an off duty cop and saw him holding the knife to my neck. He was waiting for a safe opportunity to rescue me when he saw Jimmy breakdown. He opened the passenger door and threw Jimmy to the ground with a gun to his head and handcuffed him. I got out of the car as a couple of police cars and an ambulance arrived. As they were walking Jimmy to the back of the police car he yelled to me to be careful not to let anything happen to me before I fulfilled my destiny.”

  “What happened to him?”

  “They put him in a mental institute. The pressure of not knowing why God saved him and what he was supposed to do was too much for him. That was when I became interested in psychology. I was fascinated that although we both had the same experience, our minds processed it totally different. I wanted to know why.”

  “What happened to Jimmy? Where is he now?”

  “I don’t know,” Kate said apprehensively. “I lost track of him when I went to college.”

  “Don’t you worry that he’ll come after you again?” Mike asked amazed.

  “I don’t think he’s a threat to me. He thinks there is a reason we were saved and that it is our destiny to meet again.”

  “What’s Jimmy’s last name,” Mike asked with a protective glare.

  “Why? What are you going to do?”

  “I just want to find out where he is and what he’s doing.”

  Kate smiled and her cheeks went flush. “You don’t have to do that.”

  “Nonsense. It’s what I do.”

  Mike made a mental note of his name and reminded himself to follow up on him in the morning. It was probably nothing, but he was curious what had become of him. He wasn’t about to take any chances on anything happening to Kate.

  chapter 63

  AFTER MIKE GAVE Kate a brief tour of his house and she had changed into tight pink Juicy Couture velour sweatpants and a revealing black t-shirt, she and Mike sat in the living room sipping on champagne and chatting like high school sweethearts. The champagne was having its desired effect. They were talking about high school flings when Kate suddenly asked, “Did you ever call Professor Schaefer?”

  “I was going to this morning, but then Father John called and Big Pete showed me the picture of his family standing in front of the Oakland Children’s Orphanage and then the body was found…”

  “I’m sorry. I forgot you had such a busy day.”

  “I’m going to call him first thing in the morning. What makes you so sure he will know what the symbol means?”

  “He was my religious studies professor my freshman year at Harvard. He’s also a world renowned Coptic linguist who specializes in religious texts like the Nag Hammadi codices and the Dead Sea Scrolls.”

  Mike could tell by the gleam in her eyes that he was more than that. “That’s pretty impressive,” Mike said with a twinge of jealousy swimming in his belly.

  Kate could tell by Mike’s discouraged tone that he was skeptical of their relationship and figured she might as well tell him. “We had an affair,” she admitted seductively.

  “It’s none of my business,” Mike told her as he raised his hands defensively.

  Kate tilted her head with an examining glare. “At first I was infatuated with him because he was an Ivy League professor. I used to make up questions so I could go see him during his office hours. I could tell he was attracted to me. It made me feel special,” she said with a reflective gaze. “He asked me if I wanted to see some of the ancient writings he had worked on and invited me to his house. He was single and I was naïve. It was terribly exciting. We would drink wine, smoke pot and have intellectual conversations about things I never knew about and the sex was exhilarating.”

  Mike felt an uncomfortable arousal warming over him.

  “After a while I could tell he was falling in love with me and I didn’t want a serious relationship. I was just having fun.”

  The more Kate talked, the more Mike found himself not wanting to be attracted to her, but the more attracted he became. She was a professional at playing mind games.

  “What did you do?” Mike asked coolly.

  “I thanked him for everything he did for me and told him I would always cherish our time together.”

  “That sounds like a load of bullshit. Did he buy it?”

  Kate looked at Mike with a disappointed frown. “Thanks a lot. I was trying to let him down easy.”

  “What did he say?” Mike’s face was covered with anticipation.

  Kate hesitated. “He asked me to make love to him one more time.”

  Mike raised an eyebrow understandably. “That’s pathetic.”

  “You’re jealous!”

  “I’m not jealous. I just wish I was your professor.”

  “You’re turned on.” Kate realized as she set her champagne flute down, straddled his lap and looked him the eyes. “Do you have any weed?”

  “You are manipulative.”

  “If by manipulative you mean I get what I want then yes, I am,” she said teasingly as she leaned down and kissed him gently on the lips. “If I get what I want, you’ll get what you want.”

  Who was Mike to argue? He excused himself and headed back to his bedroom all the while planning how he was going to retrieve his humidor that he dumped in the trash the night before without her seeing him.

  He slipped out the French doors of his bedroom and cut across the back patio under the shadows of the trees. Once on the side yard, he lifted the lid of the garbage can, looked around to make sure no one was watching him and then leaned in and grabbed the laminated box from on top of the steamy trash. He shook his head with a shameful grimace. He knew he would be back to get it when he dumped it. What would Kate think of him if she saw him scrounging through the garbage? He was going to grab his father’s gun as well, but he couldn’t see it and was under a time crunch.

  Carefully, he lowered the lid of the garbage and backtracked through the French doors and into his bathroom where he retrieved a hand towel from the linen closet and wiped the shmegma from the humidor. Mike opened the lid and inspected the contents which had been shuffled. He retrieved a pinner joint and a lighter and returned to the living room where Kate waited sitting yoga style on the couch.

  “What took you so long?” She asked eagerly.

  “I needed to use the facilities,” Mike replied politely as he sat down next to her.

  Kate smiled. “Sorry I asked.”

  Mike placed the joint in his mouth and held the steady glowing flame precariously at the tip of the joint without letting it touch the end so that the heat from the flame spontaneously ignited the rolling paper. Mike inhaled gently, careful not to unnecessarily torch the weed. He glanced over at Kate to find her watching
with anticipation and as he smiled with an approving raise of his eyebrows, he handed her the joint.

  Their fingers touched lightly and exchanged the joint effortlessly. Kate held the joint between her forefinger and thumb not allowing it to touch her supple lips as she inhaled gracefully. As the smoke expanded in his lungs Mike felt the wave of contentment rush to his head. He exhaled slowly, allowing the cannabis to begin working its magic and as he watched Kate hold her breath, he could see the wave of serenity spread across her relaxed face as he nodded his head rhythmically with the guitar strumming in the background. They passed the joint back and forth silently enjoying the music until there was nothing left but a tiny roach, which Mike got up and threw in the fire place.

  As he turned around, Kate was moving towards him like a morning sunrise with a look of desire in her hypnotizing eyes. Mike stood aroused as she approached him enticingly and stood before him holding his gaze knowingly. Slowly he reached his arms around her and pulled her even closer. She turned her head and pressed it against his chest as she held him around his waist and began to sway to the music. Mike followed her lead as he closed his eyes and let the music guide them.

  When the song was over Kate lifted her head and looked him in the eyes with an appreciative smile.

  “Play that song again,” she pleaded innocently.

  “You liked that,” he responded agreeably.

  “That is my new favorite song,” she admitted tenderly. “I want to dance to it with you all night.”

  She didn’t have to ask twice. Mike would have reached into the stereo and pulled the Smashing Pumpkins into his living room for her if he could have. Mike played the song again as they passionately moved in rhythm together until the song ended.

  “That is our song. Don’t you ever dance with anyone else to our song.”

  Mike shook his head like there wasn’t a question in his mind. “Any time I hear that song, I will think of you.”

  “Will you start a fire? I want to make love to you to our song.”