by Toby Neal
It didn’t take her long on the computer to find his trail of destruction.
Chapter 24
Several hours later Lei hit print, put all the papers into a folder and called Stevens. The team had just finished a re-canvass of Haunani’s neighborhood and upon hearing what she had to tell him, he sent the other detectives on to Kelly’s neighborhood. Lei met him and Jeremy in the small conference room.
He’d brought her a fresh cup of inky coffee with chunks of melting powdered creamer in it and a red-striped swizzle stick. He set it down in front of her and leaned on an elbow. She wished he didn’t look so tasty; the pull toward him felt like a betrayal. She shouldn’t care about anything but the case. She pushed the folder over to him.
“You look like you need it.” He pushed the coffee toward her with an index finger in exchange. Jeremy’s eyes narrowed on her and Lei frowned back at him as Stevens opened the folder so both of them could scan the contents.
She blinked a few times, rubbed her eyes. Those old monitors weren’t exactly easy for reading. She stirred the swizzle stick until the white chunks disappeared. The coffee was surprisingly good, a warm smoky mouthful of delicious.
“I can’t believe no one has put these rapes together before. They’re all listed as unsolved, different detectives on them, and no notes about them being connected.” She sucked the end of the swizzle stick.
“Looks like we’re onto something here,” Stevens said, leafing through the printouts. “What did you use for search parameters?”
“I looked for kidnap rapes with use of drugs. There were a lot on Oahu that could have been him experimenting, getting his method down. Some girls drugged at parties, waking up in the bushes with no idea what happened. But I excluded date rapes and party situations. Just kept the ones where they were kidnapped, drugged, and held captive.”
Stevens spread the photos on the table. “So it starts on Oahu four years ago. Melanie Costa, age 22. Brunette, brown eyes, mixed race. Kidnapped off University of Hawaii campus, drugged and raped at a campsite, dumped back on campus after a day. Lisa Holtzman, blonde and blue-eyed, age 19. Hit on the head at Longs Drugs late at night, drugged and raped at a remote area out in the woods, dumped at the beach after two days. Keani Taong, black hair, brown eyes, age 20. Drugged at a party. Wakes up ‘somewhere in the jungle,’ is drugged and raped.” He looked up. “Doesn’t appear to be one physical type he’s into, except that these are all older than the Mohuli`i girls.”
“There’s a lot about the Mohuli`i case that’s a little different. Like, they were bound with T-shirt strips and he used handcuffs on these others, if it is the same perpetrator,” Jeremy ventured. Lei chewed the swizzle stick, realized what she was doing, and set it down.
“So then there are two here on the Big Island in the last few months,” Stevens went on. “Jesika Vierra, age 21, waitress in Kona. Tased on the way to her car. Wakes up at a remote campsite, drugged, raped. She reports he wore a black ski mask the one time she saw him. Found on the side of the road in Ocean View. He just tossed her there like a piece of trash.”
Lei’s coffee burned her throat as she sipped it. Jeremy stared at the photos, his face colorless.
“Cassie Kealoha, age 18, going to her job at the family’s restaurant. Tased, drugged, and raped somewhere in the fern forest, she thinks ‘outside of Hilo.’ She reports hazy memories of ‘being posed and photographed by a guy in a ski mask.’” He arranged the victim photos in chronological order. They stared at them, looking for patterns.
“I’ll tell you one thing,” Stevens said, “this guy is a serious deviant who may kill in the future. What I’m not sold on is that he did the Mohuli`i girls.”
“Maybe he has girlfriends as well,” Lei said. “Maybe he also likes young girls. Sees them as weak, easily influenced and used. He may drug them when he’s with them, I don’t know. Anyway, he groomed Haunani, never intended to rape her—that’s a side interest. One day she brings her friend Kelly to the campsite they’ve been using, and he gets carried away. Goes into his other mode, and he knows they can identify him and kills them to get rid of the problem.”
“Let me work another angle.” Stevens rolled his pen between his palms, his eyes on the ceiling. “I’m still liking Reynolds for it, and while he could be the rapist also, I’m betting he’s not.” He tipped his chair back reflectively. “So, he is already molesting Kelly. He becomes Haunani’s ‘sugar daddy’ and one day goes too far, getting both the girls together. He thinks they’ll finally blow the whistle and he drowns them.”
“I think it was Reynolds,” Jeremy said. “He’s fitting the profile for both the rapes and the girls.”
“The problem is, we’re not making it stick to Reynolds,” Lei said. “I think it’s got enough in common with the Campsite Rapist’s M.O. to be him.”
“I can’t see Reynolds as the Campsite Rapist because of his size,” Stevens said, tipping his pen to her in acknowledgement of the moniker. “But, don’t forget the photography angle.”
They looked at Cassie’s photo. Big dark eyes stared back at them from an oval face with creamy brown skin and full lips with a curl to them as if she were always smiling—a classically lovely Hawaiian girl.
“They’re all beautiful,” Lei whispered. “Maybe that’s the link.”
“Only Cassie reported the photography thing. That does link her to Reynolds, with his pictures of Kelly and that one of the girls together. Can you tell if they were missing any personal items? Often these sickos take trophies.”
They scanned the reports again for a while.
“No mention of it. He could have taken anything because they were all dumped naked, missing their jewelry.”
“Let’s assume he takes pictures of them,” Stevens said. “When Jesika Vierra saw him, he wore a black ski mask. She reported him as five-ten or five-eleven, lean build, athletic. That does not match Reynolds. He’s six-three and on the big side, as I said.”
“We could have a couple of predators operating,” Jeremy said.
“Not likely. Sex crimes like this are rare here in Hawaii. No, I think there’s one Campsite Rapist. He wears a ski mask to make sure the women don’t identify him. And then there’s Reynolds, who did the Mohuli`i girls.”
“Okay. We need more on him then.” Lei set her coffee down.
“And therein lies the rub.”
Lei reached over and picked up Cassie’s picture. “I’d like to interview her, see what she can remember about being photographed. She’s the only one who had anything to say about the photography angle, and that could be something linking her to Reynolds.”
“Good idea. Let’s interview all our Big Island victims, see if anything new pops. I’ll set it up.”
Jeremy put the materials back in the folder and handed it to Stevens, who tucked it under his arm as they stood.
“Good job,” he said. He seemed to be waiting for something, or reluctant to leave.
“How are the new guys working out?”
“Good. They’re getting up to speed pretty quick. In fact, Jeremy, I’d like you to work with them tomorrow while Texeira and I do the rape victim interviews.” Jeremy nodded, expressionless, as Stevens hooked up his jacket off the back of the chair. “I wish we had even more people working the case, but I’m glad Captain Brown sent them over. I’ll see you later.” He turned abruptly.
Lei watched their retreating backs, sighed, and went to find Pono out on patrol.
Much later, class was finally over. Lei packed up her books, sliding them into her bag. Ray Solomon handed her the last one. He’d come in late, sliding into the seat beside her with an unrepentant wink.
“Mary’s still not here,” he said, frowning.
“Yeah,” Lei said. What the hell. Maybe he knows something. “Mary’s officially missing. She disappeared Tuesday afternoon and no one’s seen her since. Got any ideas?”
Ray’s hazel eyes went wide.
“Holy shit. Not a frickin’ clue. I can’t believe a
police officer can just disappear like that.”
“Anyone can,” Lei said, biting off her words. “Mary’s a good cop but there are ways to disable even the best. We don’t know that there has been foul play, but her boyfriend insists something bad has happened to her and I believe him.”
“Wow,” Ray said, shaking his head. “She was so sassy, so full of life.”
“She’s not dead,” Lei said, hefting her book bag. “Don’t even think it.” She set off for her truck, striding fast. When she glanced back, Ray was staring after her.
She beeped open the truck and hopped in, throwing the book bag behind the seat and turning the key. The growl of the engine sounded like a welcome. She locked the doors, and then rested her head on the steering wheel for a moment.
She pulled her cell phone out and speed-dialed Mary’s number, only to hear it go to voicemail yet again. It must be turned off, or destroyed. The thought made her stomach clench. Maybe she’d just run away from Roland, taken a quick trip to the Mainland . . . but Lono would have found her by now. Lei put the truck in gear, pulling out of the lot onto the main road and deliberately turning her mind to the events of the day.
Snapping her out of the reverie, a black Toyota truck swerved into her lane, cutting her off as it accelerated. She was sure it was the same truck she had chased before. Adrenaline surged as she hit the gas, following its speeding trajectory.
The black truck careened down the two-lane highway. He’s not getting away from me this time, she thought, feeling a reckless grin bare her teeth. She shifted gears with a satisfying roar as she followed the truck out of town, tires holding around the turn that had nearly sent her old Honda off the road.
She veered around another car, its horn blaring in protest. The road opened up after that, a glimmering ribbon in the moonlight. The jungle flowed by, a trackless wilderness of dense black on either side of the highway.
Lei floored it. Her new vehicle answered with a surge of power that flung her back against the contoured seat. She was gaining and began pulling alongside, laying on the horn.
In answer the other truck pulled ahead, weaving to keep her behind. It cranked a left turn, gravel flying, onto a dirt side road, headlights bouncing crazily. Lei followed, frowning as they both had to slow down, bucking through potholes.
The black truck rained gravel and dirt on her shiny new hood as her high beams danced over the landscape.What the hell was she doing? Was this chase another bad move like letting Keiki off her leash? Self-doubt assailed her as Lei hit a particularly deep rut and banged her head on the roof as she levitated off the seat.
Still, it was the only lead she had . . .
The dirt road wound down into a steep canyon bisected by a stream. Water flowed across a low, rutted cement causeway. The black truck hit the stream, water arching up and raining down on Lei’s windshield, blinding her. As they hit the water her Toyota hydroplaned, fishtailing and spinning sideways. It stalled, facing upstream, one of the front tires dropping off the edge of the cement into deeper water.
“Fuck!” Lei screamed. She turned the key—her truck roared back to life and she put it in four-wheel drive, easing backward on the slippery causeway until all four tires were back on the surface. Then with a careful turn, she headed out of the stream and onto the dirt track. By the time she got to the top of the canyon, the black Toyota had disappeared without even a dust cloud to mark its trail.
Chapter 25
She pulled into her garage, snapping shut her phone from calling Stevens to let him know about the chase. Her vehicle dripped from the car wash, fortunately no worse for its first off road adventure. She returned Keiki’s happy cries of welcome with an ear rub through the fence and was unlocking the house when Stevens’ unmarked Bronco pulled up at the curb.
“Good thing I was already on my way over.” He strode to the porch. Lei switched on all the exterior lights. She really needed to replace that sensor light on the side of the house, she thought as Stevens followed her inside.
Reaction was setting in, and trembling in her hands had progressed to waves of shivering. She suddenly wondered what she’d have done if the black Toyota had pulled over and let her approach. She had her Glock, but no creds or handcuffs with her, not to mention any grounds for an arrest.
Maybe it was a good thing the chase had ended the way it had.
“I’m cold.” She went into her room, pulling the fluffy comforter off her bed and wrapping herself in it, collapsing on the couch. Stevens went to the fridge and pulled out two of the Heinekens, uncapped them and handed her one.
Lei took a long drink, burped, sighed. Stevens sat on the battered coffee table facing her, elbows on his knees, blue eyes intent.
“So you chased him,” he said. “Let’s start there.”
“I don’t know it was him, not really. I just had a feeling.” She took another sip of beer, scrunching the comforter tighter. “Anyway on my way home from class he came out of nowhere, that same black Toyota truck. I followed him out of town, tried to get him to pull over. He turned off on a cane road. My truck spun out on the causeway and I lost him. End of story.”
Stevens got up, went to where the futon was folded next to the couch, pushed the coffee table out of the way, laid it on the floor. The sheets were folded inside, and without a word he spread them, straightened them, banged his pillow into shape and lay down, his arms folded behind his head as he stared up at the ceiling.
“Someone’s driving a black Toyota truck that you’ve chased twice. And you have no idea if this is the guy, really.”
“Basically.”
It did sound ridiculous when put that way. “My gut tells me it’s him, though.” She yawned, going to the fridge. “If I weren’t so hungry I’d fall asleep.”
They ended up eating bowls of Cheerios at the kitchen table, and Lei said, “I gotta tell you something I keep forgetting to let you know. I’m going out with Tom on Saturday.”
“What? Are you kidding me?”
“He ran into me in the park, asked me out. I thought I might be able to get some information out of him.”
“There’s a lot we don’t know about this situation. I don’t think it’s safe to assume anything. This guy has the means and opportunity to be the stalker. He could have another pickup somewhere.”
“I thought I’d take a chance on it. You know, keep your friends close and your enemies closer.”
“Stupid idea—lotta people have died trying that one.”
“Maybe I just want to go out with him. He’s kinda hot.” She peeked up at him from under her lashes.
“I’ll show you hot.”
He reached over and hooked an arm around her neck, pulling her over. She squeaked in surprise as he kissed her, a thorough exploration that made yesterday’s kiss seem like kindergarten. Lei blinked when they finally came up for air, touching swollen lips with her fingers.
“Thought we weren’t supposed to do that.”
“You were trying to make me jealous, and it worked. Damn your womanly wiles.” He spanked her on the butt and gave her a gentle shove toward the doorway. “Off to bed with you before I get into even more trouble.”
* * *
Dawn was bleeding up into the sky as he hefted Mary up out of the bed of the pickup truck. He carried her over his shoulder across the damp grass of the deserted park, shadowed by tall ironwood trees and steep cliffs. The occasional car whizzed by on the bridge far overhead. Her cuffed hands, dangling limply, banged into the back of his thighs.
He walked to the edge of the rushing stream, where the exposed black bones of the earth jutted up, a jumble of lava rocks. He dropped Mary there, her head bouncing off the stones, her body a white-wrapped mummy. He leaned down, hearing a faint whistle of breath slip past her lips. She was still alive, but barely. That asthma was a bitch.
He’d had to Taser her last night, and then drug her for their activities. Couldn’t afford to keep her any longer.
The roiling brown water was only feet
away. He unwrapped her and threw the sheet far out into the stream. He arranged her long black hair over her body, scraped under her battered fingernails one more time with a toothpick to remove any remaining evidence, and took a last picture, taking care with the composition. He pinched her nipple with a gloved finger.
“Bye, Mary.”
He nudged her with his foot, and she slid off the rocks and rolled facedown into the stream with only a small splash. He put his camera on multi-frame and clicked off half a dozen shots as the current caught her and carried her out to sea, her hair a dark flag behind her.
She never once lifted her head for a breath.
Chapter 26
Lei pushed through the doors into the station. Her hair was still damp from her run and a few handfuls of CurlTamer, and there was a spring to her walk. Stevens had been gone when she got up, but she still felt a little bubble of happy when she thought of the coffee he’d started and the neatly folded bedding and futon.
Sam looked up from his crossword.
“Hey girl. You looking sassy.”
“Feeling sassy, thank you,” she said, as she gave his collar a tug. “How’s the crossword?”
“It’s a tough one this week. I’m thinking of switching to Sudoku.”
“I won’t be able to help you with that. Bad with numbers.” She pushed through the second set of doors to the bull pen, got her cup of inky coffee, and booted up her aging IBM. Pono eventually rolled in.
“Hey,” she said, looking up from the endless departmental E-mail. “You look tired.”
“Baby’s got something again,” he said, sneezing.
“Sounds like you do too,” she said. “I think I might have chased the stalker last night, and since you wanted me to keep you informed . . .”
“Fill me in,” he said, flopping into his rump-sprung office chair. She did.
“Man. You starting a whole new crime-fighting day when you get off work,” he said. “I getting tired just hearing about it.”