“He was killed on the last business day.”
Suddenly, Gina was on her feet. “Omega!” All three women turned to her.
“That’s the answer! That’s the clue you’re looking for! Omega is the last letter of the Greek alphabet. He’s killing people on the last day of something.”
Connie looked at the date again. “The last day of the carnival, the last day Troy’s was open. Of course! For Elson’s scheme to work, he had to plan his attacks well in advance. He can’t afford random killing because it might not fit into the game.”
Delta’s heart picked up a beat. “Yes! So, Elson wasn’t cutting it close. He’s had everything prearranged.”
Connie ran over to the large plastic Coke bottle filled with change and dumped it on the floor. “And the most important arrangement he had to make was the time element. He had to know where and when he would strike in order for the game’s pieces to fall into place!” Scooping up handfuls of change, Connie turned to Gina and dumped them in front of her. “Honey, buy every newspaper published in the city. We’ll go through them and find everything that’s ending or going out of business.”
Delta reached over and squeezed Connie’s hand. The two women grinned hopefully at each other. “This is major clue number two. One more strike, and he’s out.”
“Let’s hope so, because we haven’t much time.”
As Gina grabbed the change and headed out the door, Delta peeked at her watch.
Not much time at all. In less than seven hours, he would hit the streets again, stalking some innocent individual who had done nothing wrong except fit into his psychopathic plan of revenge. In seven hours, he would brutally take the life of someone she was sworn to serve and protect.
In seven hours, she would come face to face with Elson Zuckerman.
Chapter 34
Jan scrutinized Delta before shaking her head. “Wait a minute. Could you run that by me once more?”
Delta nodded. “After we figured out the timing of the murders, we went through all the papers and cut out anything that had a final engagement or showing or sale or whatever. While Megan and Gina did that, Connie kept playing the game. All night, she had Dori pushing these boulders out of the road. But the only place she could push them was straight down the narrow path she was on. Connie figured that the boulders might be the equivalent to bowling balls.”
“So, of the three bowling alleys on our beat, you came up with Dino’s? How come? The only Dino I know of is the Flintstones’ pet dinosaur.”
Delta grinned. “Not this one. Megan did some excellent research that showed Deino, spelled D-e-i-n-o was one of the immortal Grey sisters, or Graeae. According to Greek legend, the Graeae were these three ugly sisters who had to share one eye and a tooth between them.”
“Rough life.”
“Do you want to hear this or not?”
“I’m all ears.”
“The Graeaes’ job was to protect the nymphs who guard this pair of winged sandals.”
“You mean the ones the F.T.D. Florist wears?”
Delta hit her forehead with the palm of her hand. “God, Jan, you and your kids watch too much T.V.”
“Well, are those the sandals or not?”
“Yes, they are.”
Jan shook her head. “Now that’s all well and good, but I don’t think old Dino named his bowling alley after some toothless witch.”
“Of course he didn’t. But Elson doesn’t care about the origin of the name. He’s been over every inch of our beat. He can turn practically anything into a Greek myth if it’s close enough. And he had to stretch for Dino’s because Deino is only occasionally mentioned by writers as the third sister. Megan cross-referenced everything she had until she came up with Deino spelled with an ‘E’.”
Jan nodded. “I guess if he didn’t care about the spelling of gryphon, he wouldn’t much care about the spelling of Dino’s.”
Delta nodded. “Exactly. He was also banking on us not being able to pull up the reference on a little-known mythological figure. Fortunately, Megan and her professor have made great strides together. He helped point us in the right direction.”
Jan sighed. “God, Del, what planning this must have taken.”
“Yep. We figure he’s been mapping this out and plotting for a few months.”
Jan nodded. “He’d have to have. It’s all so linked together.”
“And in doing so, he’s created a pattern in the killings that enables us to play along. Every twist and turn in the game has been intricately planned on the street beforehand. He has a routine that he has to follow in order for the game to parallel his actions.”
“And part of that routine is that he’ll strike again tonight?”
Delta nodded. “All of the pieces are finally fitting together.” As she rolled into the parking lot of the bowling alley, Delta pointed to the sign below the flashing blue Dino’s sign. “See Dino’s sign?”
Jan read it aloud. “Last night for co-ed leagues. So?”
“So, every time he’s murdered, it’s been someplace where it was the last day of something. It was the last day of the carnival, and the last open day of Troy’s pharmacy. We called Matt Ein at Omega’s and found out that the ax was stolen on the last day of sign-ups for a big game hunt in Africa. I don’t think this is a coincidence.”
Jan shook her head. “Hardly. But what about the chauffeur? How does he fit into this scenario?”
Delta leaned back in the seat. “That one was a little tougher for Elson. Mrs. Griffin’s statement said she was called by a man wanting to donate a large sum of money to the A.I.D.S. foundation, of which she’s the chairwoman. She saw this man, collected what later turned out to be a bogus check, and returned home. One minute later, the chauffeur was dead and she was left wondering why.”
“That makes two of us.”
“What Connie thinks is that Elson didn’t know where she lived, so he had to find a way to follow her. He must have scoped her out a long time ago. I’m telling you, Jan, he’s been in River Valley a long, long time and has really done his legwork. He found out where Mrs. Griffin lived and he killed her chauffeur just like that.”
“But how does that killing fit into the time scheme?”
Delta licked her lips before answering. “That one was almost so obvious, we missed it. The chauffeur bought it on the last day of the month.”
Jan whistled and shook her head. “Your brain cells must be on overload.”
“Way beyond. I’m exhausted. Everyone’s just about on empty at this point. If we don’t get a major break in this case soon, I don’t know how much longer we can continue at this pace.”
Jan glanced back up at the sign. “So, today’s the last day for the co-ed league and that fits into his pattern. Now, what is it he’s after?”
“Since Dino’s and her sisters’ job was to protect the winged shoes, Connie thinks bowling shoes fit into the game plan quite well.”
“Shoes? The man is going to murder tonight for a pair of shoes?”
Delta nodded sadly. “Pathetic, huh? The winged sandals were so Perseus could kill a gorgon. Dori pushed the boulder into the lair of one of the gorgons. One of the Gorgon sisters was named Medusa.”
Jan’s eyes lit up. “Medusa! Now I remember. My kids and I saw that Harry Hamlin movie a long time ago. What was it called? Clash of the Titans, I think. Medusa is that woman with snakes for hair.”
Delta smiled. “Yep. She had hair of snakes, tusks for teeth, claws, and wings, and was the only mortal gorgon.”
“She didn’t look like that in the movie. I mean, she was ugly and everything, but I don’t remember any wings.”
Delta simply shook her head. “We’re talking Greek mythology here, Jan, not Hollywood.”
“Oh, sorry. Go on. How did Dori finally kill Medusa?”
“The myth has it that looking at Medusa’s eyes turns people into stone. Perseus, the hero of the story, wore the Cap of Darkness to sneak up on her and kill her from behi
nd. Dori did the same and strangled Medusa with a golden rope we’d won earlier in the game.”
“Ah. Helen’s ribbon.”
“Exactly.”
“Then what?”
“That’s as far as Connie’s gotten. We killed the gorgon, but the winged shoes never appeared. We think we might have missed something along the way.”
Jan nodded and reached across to touch Delta’s hand. “How’s Connie holding up?”
“Barely hanging in there.”
“I can’t imagine what this must be doing to her. Day in and day out of playing some morbid computer game? It would drive me nuts.”
Delta nodded. “Maybe tonight will be the last of it.”
Jan eyed Delta suspiciously. “I don’t like the way you say that.”
Delta shrugged. “What can I say?”
“You plan on taking him out, don’t you? No, don’t answer. I don’t want to hear it if it’s true. You know how I feel about that, Del.”
Delta stared out the window. “He’s toying with the people I love most, he’s snapped a little girl’s neck, and he’s terrorizing people who are counting on us to keep them from harm. And what will the courts give him when we catch him? A free ride to the loony bin for a couple of years. He’s already beaten the system, and he knows it! They won’t send him to the chair, and he won’t get a life sentence like he deserves because his defense will be that he’s played so many of these games he can’t distinguish fantasy from reality. Remember the Dan White Twinkie defense? We’ll bust our humps to haul him in, and those idiot judges will send him to some fancy medical facility until Elson decides it’s safe to act sane again. Don’t tell me you can’t see that.”
“Of course I can see that. But that doesn’t make you his judge and jury.”
“No? You saw what he’s done to those people. You watched as they lifted Helen’s body onto the gurney. Suppose she was one of yours? Suppose they decided—”
“Stop. You can’t rationalize just blowing him away, Delta. You just said our job is to protect people. Well, hard as it may be to believe, that includes people like him. Our job is to catch him—alive, if possible— and let the justice system do their job. If he’s a threat, a real threat, then we take him out like we would anyone else who was threatening harm to someone. But don’t appoint yourself executioner out of some skewed sense of loyalty. That’s not your responsibility.”
“No, but it’s my duty.”
“You’re not a killer, Delta Stevens. I know what you’ve had to do in the past, but you’re not a murderer. If you go after him, you’re no different than he is.”
Delta shook her head. “I disagree. He’s a cold-blooded killer who’s after my best friend. If I get to him before he gets to us, you know I’ll take him down. My mind was made up long ago. Period. End of story.”
“I won’t be a part of an execution, Del.”
“I understand that. You can walk away if you need to, but I’m going to do what I think needs to be done.” Delta stared out the window and watched a group of teenagers walk into Dino’s. “I’m getting that feeling again.” Reaching for the mike, Delta was stopped by Jan’s firm grip.
“Del, I know how important it is for you to stop this bastard, but don’t do anything you won’t be able to live with afterwards.”
Delta nodded, not taking her eyes off the glass doors to the bowling alley. “Trust me, Jan. I won’t. Can we get a move on now? I’ve got some crazy feelings going on in my gut.” Pressing the button down on the mike, Delta told dispatch they were at Dino’s and to await a call for backup.
“Come on,” Delta said, getting out of the car. As they headed to the back entrance which led to an alley, Delta saw that a coke bottle had been used to prop open the door.
“I don’t like the look of this,” Delta whispered. Looking hard at the beam of light shining through the six-inch opening the bottle allowed, Delta’s interior alarm rang loudly.
He was in there.
“Want to split up?” Jan asked, reading Delta’s mind. “You take the front, I’ll stay here and let you run him out to me.”
Delta nodded. “We’ll make it look like a routine check, so we don’t scare everyone. Call for backup just in case.”
Jan nodded and did so. “And Del?”
“Yeah?”
“Be careful.”
Scooting around the corner, Delta thought of Miles. Weren’t those her last words to him?
Delta shuddered and pushed open the glass doors.
Chapter 35
Walking into the bowling alley, cigarette smoke immediately accosted Delta’s nose. Young and old alike had cigarettes hanging from their mouths, and it didn’t matter if they were bowling or playing video games.
Bells from the games filled the air and mingled with the crashing of bowling balls, creating an eerie cacophony. A thin blue haze of smoke hovered like storm clouds, as overweight bowlers puffed madly between frames. As her eyes moved like an eagle’s in search of prey, Delta felt him watching her. Like the haze of smoke, his dark presence loomed.
She was not foolish enough to think that her presence would make a difference to him. It probably turned him on. Maybe that’s what this was truly about; he was finally living the games he’d spent a lifetime playing.
Delta shrugged off the revulsion she felt just from thinking about him. Yes, he had planned very, very well for his revenge.
Scanning the small crowd of midnight bowlers, Delta did not see a man as small-framed as Elson. For this game to work for him, he had to follow through with duplicate actions or the computer aspect of the game would no longer matter. He had to complete the next level.
Pulling her radio out, Delta turned the volume up a notch. “Five-oh-nine, this is one-eight-two. What’s your twenty?”
Delta waited for a response. When it didn’t come, her heart pounded harder. “Five-oh-nine, this is one-eight-two, do you copy?”
Still no response.
“What in the hell?” Delta wondered if Jan might not have her radio turned on, and then remembered that Jan had called backup with it.
Delta swallowed back the anxiety rising within her. “Five-oh-nine, this is one-eight-two; can you read me, over?”
Nothing. The silent airwaves clutched Delta’s throat. Where was Jan, and why wasn’t she answering? Ducking into the slightly quieter video game section of the bowling alley, Delta caught her breath. One of her worst fears began clawing at her imagination. Not Jan. She had lost Miles because she hadn’t pulled the shotgun out fast enough, but the thought of losing Jan . . .
Before she could complete the thought, an unfamiliar voice broke through the airwaves.
“Call off the dogs, Stevens, or she dies.”
Delta glared at the radio in her hand. He had her. That mother-fucking bastard had her partner. If she could have reached through it and ripped his tongue from his mouth, she would have. Like a vice, his voice gripped her. In one panicky moment, Delta thought about screaming at him over the radio. She wanted to yell and swear and threaten to do all sorts of horrible things to him. Instead, she sucked in a deep breath and calmly ordered everyone off the frequency. She alerted all units that she had a potential hostage situation and for everyone to back off at this time.
Suddenly, Leonard’s voice came on. “Okay, Stevie, we get your message loud and clear. We do nothing until we get the signal from you.”
Raising the radio to her mouth, Delta again ordered everyone off the frequency, including all higher ranking officers.
Inhaling a painfully tight breath, Delta spoke again into the radio. “Let her go, Elson.” Delta’s voice was cold and hard. “We have this place surrounded. Give it up.”
Elson laughed into the radio on the other end. “And quit the game so soon? I think not. I’m having much-too-much fun.”
Delta held her radio too tightly: her fingernails were turning white. “What do you want, Elson?” Delta looked up as she heard the sound of a helicopter hovering overhead. I
t surprised her that Leonard had been able to get one in the air so quickly. Did he have her tailed?
“Elson? Are you still there?”
“Of course. I was just explaining to your partner that I’ll break her neck if she tries anything other than what I instruct. I suggest you do the same, unless you care to find her looking much like that poor child at the fair.”
“I’m listening.”
“There are three doors leading to the back room, where your lovely partner and I are located. One will open up right to me, and the other two do not. Choose the wrong one or fail to move quickly enough, and she dies. You have one minute to decide. Simple enough, I hope. One minute, Stevens. That’s all you’ve got.”
Delta wiped the sweat from her upper lip. The stifling smoke from the bowlers made her light-headed. “Elson?” Delta checked her watch.
“Forty-five seconds.”
“Elson, if you harm her, I’ll kill you. Is that simple enough?”
The radio sputtered. “You’re wasting precious time with your silly threats.”
Looking at the three doors, Delta felt her stomach turn.
If she did nothing, he would kill her and possibly escape before they could erect a solid net around the block to contain him. If she chose wrong, she was sentencing Jan to death. Again, he had the upper hand. Again, he was calling all the shots. And again, he held another life in the palm of his hand. As much as Delta hated every fiber in his body, she had to admit that he was good.
But she was better.
Delta’s mind raced through the story Megan had read to her about the gorgons. There were so many details; so many things to remember. Connie believed the winged sandals were Dori’s next prize. She needed those shoes.
Shoes.
Bowling shoes! Delta shuddered and ran the length of the bowling alley. Coming to the attendant standing at the bowling balls, Delta grabbed him.
“The shoes! Which door are the bowling shoes behind?”
“The one on the far right. Is there a problem?”
Wiping the sweat from her palm, Delta drew her sidearm and ignored cries coming from frightened bowlers who watched her run across five lanes and stop when she reached the door on the right. She carefully wrapped the fingers of her right hand around the knob and gently tried to turn it. It didn’t budge.
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