by Liz Bradford
“So, we know he was torturing them the entire time he had them,” Adam said as he wrote.
“Yep,” Becca said.
Adam also wrote down that cuts were present.
“So, what could have caused such injuries?” Jared asked.
“Doug and I had speculated that maybe it was tools,” Becca said.
Adam wrote “TOOLS.” He turned back to them. “What kind of tools?”
“I don’t know, maybe a hammer, and other things like that.”
Rick said, “That just seems weird.”
Adam huffed with amusement, “This whole thing is weird. It doesn’t make any sense. Seems like he’s throwing things at them rather than hitting them, right? But what? What do you throw? You could throw rocks.”
Before she had a chance to respond to Adam’s thought Becca’s phone rang. She reached for it and answered, “Detective Palmer.”
“It’s Henry. Come to the morgue. I’ve got something for you to see.”
“Be right—” the line went dead. She held her phone out from her ear and glowered at it.
“Must be Henry,” Rick said. “He never let’s someone say goodbye before he hangs up.”
“Yep, he’s got something.”
All four detectives hurried out the door. They were desperate for a new lead, and hopefully what Henry had was just that.
CHAPTER TEN
“What do you have for us, Henry?” Becca said as she swung open the door to the lab with the other detectives right behind her.
“Didn’t mean for you all to come down,” he said.
“Please tell us you have a break in the case.”
“Well, I may. Took extra time with this autopsy, hoping to find new information. And I did. The wounds are more extensive this time; some of the gashes were deeper.”
“So, you found something in them this time?” Becca jumped forward a little.
Henry’s brow furrowed as he barked at Becca. “Let me finish.” He walked over to his microscope. “The killer must not have realized how deep they were when he cleaned her, because deep inside three of the cuts I found debris. It took me a few days to analyze it, but I have established what the particles are now. One was a small particle of shale and another was sandstone and the final one was from a lava rock.”
“No way!” Adam said, “So I was right!? He is actually throwing rocks at them.”
“Would appear so,” Becca said. “Henry, that’s fantastic! We can work with this.”
“Rocks. Why rocks?” Rick asked.
“I’m not sure.” Jared said, “What could the motivation for that be? Seems like it would take a lot of anger, and that would suggest a crime of passion, and that typically indicates a personal connection. But the victims are not connected at all, so how would he know them all personally?”
Becca nodded. “I agree, you would expect that. But I’m not sure that’s what we are dealing with…” her voice trailed off as she pursed her lips trying to think of possibilities.
Adam chimed in, “Wasn’t the Old Testament punishment for adultery stoning?”
Becca jerked her head to look at Adam. He was the last person she expected to have come up with a Biblical reference. “It was. That could make sense. Think about it. Every single note has started with the same line, ‘I have paid for my sins.’ He’s punishing them. He’s stoning them.”
Rick asked, “But why not stone them to death?”
“I’m not sure, but I bet there is a reason. We’ll figure that piece out eventually. Thanks, Henry; this helps so much.”
“Yep,” Henry said in his usual curt tone.
Back in the squad room, the team added their new information to the board. Becca called Benson, the resident profiler, but he was in Raleigh, so he wasn’t able to join them today to work on further developing the profile but would be there tomorrow. They continued to toss around all sorts of possibilities, but before they had anything substantial the day had reached its end.
Becca and Jared silently gathered their things and headed for the door.
“You look tired, Jared,” Becca said as she grabbed his hand once they left the building.
“I am.”
“Go home and get some rest, but will you come over tomorrow and join Callie and me for dinner?”
“I’d love to.” He smiled at her and squeezed her hand.
Behind them they heard the door swing open. She let go of Jared’s hand. They both turned to see Jamison coming towards them. “Hey, Palmer. Got a minute?”
“Sure, what’s up?”
“See you later, Jared,” Adam said, dismissing Jared from the conversation.
Becca gave Jared quick glance with wide eyes and a slight shrug telling him she had no idea what it was about.
Jared said, “Okay, see you tomorrow, Adam. Bye, Becks.”
“Bye,” Becca said. She watched Jared for a moment as he walked away. Then turned to Adam, who looked at her with one eyebrow raised. “Y-eeee-s?” she said stretching out the sounds and letting her voice rise with the end of the word.
“How are you doing?”
“What do you mean?”
“You know what I mean, Rebecca. Jared.” He nodded in the direction that Jared drove off in. “He’s the past that you avoid talking about, isn’t he?”
“I don’t see how that’s any of your business.”
“Seriously?” Adam smiled. “We’ve been friends for a while now. I care about you, so it is my business. Plus, we all work together.”
She wasn’t going to get out of this. Her cheeks grew warm. She looked in Adam’s dark gray eyes, truly he was the little brother she never had. “Ok. Fine. I’m good. Real good. And yes, he is exactly what I’ve always avoided talking about. It’s good to have him around again.”
“Are you sure? I don’t know the story, but seems pretty bad if whatever happened between you sent you across the country.”
“I only came this far, because Amy was here.”
“But why just accept him back? He hurt you. Didn’t he betray you?”
“I don’t know if I’d say betrayed. He hurt me. But I forgive him.”
“Why would you do that? He doesn’t deserve it. No one who hurts someone that significantly should be forgiven.”
“But that’s what Christ did for us all.”
“Right.” Sarcasm dripped from his voice as he rolled his eyes. “I knew you would say that.”
“Adam? Is this really about Jared?”
“Whatever.” He threw his hands up and took a step back. “Forget I said anything, but I really do think you need to be careful. He seems like a nice enough guy, but I’m not sure I trust him, even if he is Caleb’s brother.”
“I will be careful. But you have to understand, God has really changed us both. I know you hate ‘churchy’ answers, but it’s true.”
“Aren’t you afraid that he’s going to say one thing and then do another?”
“Of course, that’s human nature. Being hypocritical is part of our DNA, it would seem. But we aren’t Christians because we’re perfect, and we don’t become like Christ overnight. We are believers because we know we suck on our own. We need Christ constantly working in our hearts. He’ll be working on us until He comes again.”
The door opened and out walked Rick. When he saw the seriousness of their expressions he asked, “Everything okay with you two?”
Becca didn’t answer. She just looked Adam deep in the eyes. There was something she couldn’t quite identify, was it sorrow? His Adam’s apple moved as he swallowed; he shook his head as if clearing the thoughts from his head and then said, “We’re good.”
The three detectives said good night and headed their own ways. As Becca drove home, her mind wandered from praying for Adam because of the sorrow she’d seen in his eyes to what he had said about Jared. She knew she was right to forgive him. But could she really trust him again yet? It seemed like she could. But should she? From what she could see in his life, which read like
an open book, God had changed his life completely. Yet, despite her certainty that God had changed Jared, an uneasiness settled into her. Her insecurities and self-doubt took hold leaving her with a twisted-up stomach, and she just felt off the rest of the evening.
Jared walked in the door of his brother’s townhouse exhausted and perplexed by the exchange with Adam. Chasing dead ends in this case had been driving him mad, but at least they finally had a break; he really hoped it would lead them to the killer before anyone else was taken. But what plagued his mind more was wondering what it was that Adam had wanted to talk to Becca about without him. And did he really have to be so rude about it? Becca was pretty tight with the other detectives, but she and Adam did seem to have a special connection.
After setting down his keys and taking his jacket and tie off he fixed himself a glass of water. As he chugged the water, Caleb came down the stairs and into the kitchen.
“Hey, Jared.”
“Hey.”
“Everything okay?”
Jared set his glass down in the sink then turned and leaned against the counter. “Yeah. But I’ve got a question. You know Adam Jamison pretty well, right?”
“Sure do. He’s a good friend. We’ve gotten fairly close over the last few years. What’s up?”
“He pulled Becca aside as we were leaving and all but told me to get lost. Any idea what that would be about?”
Caleb smiled. “You bet.”
Jared tipped his head to the side and waited for Caleb to fill him in.
He laughed. “You have nothing to worry about, if that’s what you’re thinking. Adam views Becca as his big sister; she reminds him a lot of his sister. He’s one of the people that tried to get Rebecca and me to start dating. My best guess is he wanted to talk to her about you.”
“Yeah?”
“Definitely.”
“Okay.”
Silence fell between them for a moment, then Caleb said, “The rest of your boxes were delivered this afternoon. I put them up in your room.”
“Excellent. Guess I know what I’m doing this evening, unpacking.”
“Want some help?”
“Sure.”
The guys went upstairs to Caleb’s spare room where Jared was staying. They started emptying the eight boxes of all Jared’s belongings that he had kept over the years. It was mostly books, a few more clothes that hadn’t fit in his suitcase, and some odds and ends. As Jared unpacked a box of books, Caleb opened another box.
“Seriously, Jared, what the heck is this box full of?” he asked as he pulled out a pink stuffed gorilla and then a lady’s blouse.
“No need to unpack that box. It’s a box mostly of Becca’s things that she left behind that I thought she might want if I ever found her.”
“You held on to a box of her things for all this time? No wonder you were never able to find another girlfriend.”
“Yeah…”
Caleb continued to search through the box.
“Seriously? Still a snoop, huh?”
Caleb ignored him. And then pulled a little jewelry box from the box and lifted the lid revealing a diamond ring. “Jared, had you planned on marrying her?”
Jared set the books that were in his hands down and sat on the edge of the bed. “Yes,” he said with a sigh, “I bought the ring just a few days before Carl died. Had a proposal all planned out, Carl was going to help me pull it off.” He hung his head.
“I’m sorry, man. She has no idea, does she?”
“Not a clue. We never seriously talked about getting married but had talked about how we wanted stay together forever, so it seemed logical.” Jared reached for the ring, and Caleb handed it to him.
“Maybe you will get to give it to her one day soon.”
“I hope so.” He opened the velvet box and stared at the simple diamond setting.
“Are things going well between you two?”
“Yeah, they are. We’ve been open with one another, and I feel like we are getting to know each other again quickly. But I don’t want to rush things; I mean just a week ago you two were dating.”
“Barely dating. You are exactly what was holding her back from moving forward with our relationship.”
“You sure you’re okay with all of this.”
“Yes, Jared. It is obvious that the two of you have something special. I’m happy for you both.”
“Thanks, Caleb.” Once again, his brother surprised him. Jared looked down at the ring in his hand and then took it over to the dresser and tucked it away in the top drawer. He did hope to give it to Becca someday.
The sun was just beginning to peak above the horizon and slay the dense morning fog as he walked to the greenhouse. The door creaked as he entered the building. It was time to present another treacherous woman with a gift. The fragrance of the flowers that filled the building made him smile, but his smile faded as he recalled why this woman deserved to die. His eyes scanned the array of flowers both in season and out of season, native and exotic. He needed just the right flowers for her. His extensive study of horticulture had included the fascinating history of the meaning that certain flowers and plants hold. It was a perfect way to explain to these harlots how they should have behaved.
His eyes fell on a beautiful array of asters. They represented patience. They would be for someone else. There, white tulips. They were exactly what Samantha needed. She should have shown forgiveness, but she hadn't. So, a bouquet of white tulips would be waiting for her on her doorstep when she arrived home from work today.
He picked up the pruning shears off the work bench and gathered a full bouquet. Their sweet fragrance filled his nostrils as he arranged them and tied them together. He almost hated what he had to do. But it needed to be done. These women did not deserve to go on living. By the end of the week Samantha would wish she had forgiven instead of walking away.
CHAPTER ELEVEN
On Wednesday, a heavy fog hung to the morning despite the sun’s attempt to subdue it. The fog wasn’t only in the air though. Becca’s mind was foggy as well as she walked into the station.
Her heart had remained unsettled all evening after talking to Adam. She had tried to distract herself by reading the majority of an American Girl doll book with Callie. But as she had watched Callie play after reading, her mind wandered. Could she really trust Jared with Callie? Yes, he was her father, but he had been so angry in the past. And it wasn’t Callie’s safety that worried her the most; it was her heart. Jared had just left. What if he did that again? This time he wouldn’t just hurt Becca, he would hurt Callie, too. The thoughts had continued to nag her all night. This morning she wished she had just called Jared and talked to him, but she had told him to rest, and he needed to do that. She had tried to sleep, but her sleep had been restless, and she had spent a good amount of time during the night awake reading her Bible and praying. Not just about Jared, but about this case, too. She felt like they had to be getting close. They needed the pieces to fall into place.
At her desk, she ditched her purse in the bottom drawer and headed to the conference room. As she entered the room she took a sip from her coffee, but it was all gone. Already? She looked at the paper cup with disdain and tossed it in the trash can. It was going to be a long day. She attempted to blink the fog out of her mind then looked up and saw Jared standing there talking to Adam. They were talking about her. She just knew. They both turned and looked at her and smiled. Her eyes locked with Jared’s and the fog that had plagued her mind dissipated.
“Mornin’, boys.”
“Hey.” They both said, in their own ways. Adam’s was like he was talking to one of the guys, whereas Jared’s was borderline suggestive.
Rick joined them, and they all settled around the conference table. Today it was time to focus on the unsub. Detective Roy Benson was going to join them. Benson had been a detective for twenty years and had a great deal of experience profiling. It was his gift. He was retiring soon, so Adam was learning all he could from the older man
in attempt at becoming the resident profiling expert. Benson had been working on another case recently, but they needed his insight, and he said he would be glad to help them out.
Benson walked in the room ready to get to work. “All right, guys, I brought coffee,” he said as he slid the tray of cups on the table; now Becca was really glad she had called him in. “Let’s talk about who this dirt bag is. Tell me everything you know, even if you know I already know. Even if it is something I told you already. Talking it through is the best way to collaborate.” The Laurence Fishburne look alike sat down at the head of the table, put his feet up on the table, and rubbed his freshly shaved head, ready to absorb all the information.
Becca didn’t know where to start. They had so much information, but it all seemed so disjointed. She glanced at the murder board as she spoke. “Well, we know he has a thing for flowers and their meanings. He’s trying to communicate to his victims that he believes they should have done something more to maintain their relationships with the father of their children. For instance, we know that Angela Milner’s marriage fell apart because she was discontent. The flowers the unsub sent her were pink carnations which represent gratitude, and her unique word was ‘Ingrate.’ With Crystal Atkins the flower was a white chrysanthemum that represents truth, and she and her child’s father broke up over a lie that Crystal told, and the word written on her abdomen was ‘liar.’ This pattern rings true with every victim. Michelle’s word was ‘cheater’ and the flower was violets that represents faithfulness. She cheated on her husband, and they got divorced. So that alone tells us a great deal about the guy we are looking for. He blames the women for the broken relationships, and he knows his flowers.”
“And has access to flowers, even flowers that are out of season,” Miller added.
“Ignore the flowers for a moment, other than their meanings, and speculate as to the why behind it. It could give us something to search for,” Benson said.
“Well,” Adam spoke, “somewhere in his life he has experienced a relationship that went sour, and he blames the woman. The kids are all about the same age, so that’s why we’ve figured it is a mommy-issue. Most likely his mom did something to ruin his relationship with his dad when he was around five years old, and this is his way of making his mother pay.”