Killer Scents

by Adelle Laudan

  While waiting for the team, Randy battled a plethora of emotions: anger, fear, frustration. What was I thinking dropping her off alone? I should have at least checked out the house. Now she’s gone.... Flashes of the victims went off in his mind like firecrackers, their mouths sewn shut, eyes bulging.

  Becca, I’m so sorry. Hang in there, girl. I’ll find you. If that bastard harms one hair on your head, he’ll wish he’d never been born.

  Giddy with excitement, he doubled over in a fit of giggles. To think only a few feet away Ms. Hoity-toity Detective sat unconscious and he had her all to himself. Luckily for him the element of surprise and strength of chloroform worked in his favor. She didn’t even see him coming when she was on her way out of the house.

  Several minutes passed before he was able to get back to painstakingly peeling the thin layers of dark skin from his face. Even if someone saw him leave with her over his shoulder, they’d describe a black man.

  Once satisfied no trace of his disguise remained, he patted his face dry and opened the drawer in front of him. He smiled and gently fingered the syringe. He had all the props in place but no specific plan in mind. One thing he did know for certain—he’d savor every moment of their time together. There was no need to rush. Randy had no idea what happened to his precious partner.

  Giddiness rose up in him once again, and he tilted his head back and laughed.

  His blood-curdling laughter chilled Becca to the very core. It wasn’t easy to keep her eyes closed, but the longer he thought her unconscious, the better. The possibilities of his intentions grew fear within her that spread like wildfire.

  Becca didn’t hear him moving around anymore, but the sound of his breathing kept her silent. Do I dare look? If he thinks I’m still out of it, am I relatively safe?

  She remembered reaching for her helmet and stepping out of the house. There’d been a smell, right? He’d pressed a cloth over her mouth and nose. The chloroform still lingered at the back of her throat.

  A chair scraped against something really hard, maybe concrete. His steps grew closer until his warm breath caressed her face. She didn’t flinch, keeping her breaths even and steady.

  “It’s time for you to wake up, my dear Becca. I have so many things planned for your time together.”

  Oh God, please don’t touch me.

  In spite of her plea, his fingers traced her jaw line, forcing her to shudder and open her eyes.

  A plethora of emotions rushed to the surface as she looked into his familiar eyes.

  How could you?

  The moon hung big and bright in a star-filled sky, illuminating the country roads they travelled. Chief drove the SUV. A convoy of police cars and trucks followed close behind.

  It’s a good thing he knew what they were looking for or they probably wouldn’t have noticed the tidy bungalow, nestled in between the fields of flowers. Lace curtains muted the light from within.

  Randy’s heart hammered as they surrounded the house and moved toward the front door, weapons drawn. Chief Thomson knocked hard on the door.

  “Jeffery Davies, this is the police.”

  Randy couldn’t wait another second and kicked the door as hard as he could to bust it wide open. It took all of five minutes to determine Jeffery wasn’t there. The tidy room with antique furniture certainly wasn’t the kind of place he imagined a ruthless killer lived.

  “I want half of you to search the fields on foot, just in case he saw us coming and ran. The rest of us are going to drive over to the main house. We’ll reconvene there.” Chief was headed to his vehicle before he finished the last sentence.

  With lights flashing, Randy drove one of the cruisers the short distance to the homestead. News of their presence seemed to have stirred the main house. Each window glowed with light. Randy pulled up out front to find Professor Davies on the porch looking none too happy.

  “What the hell is going on now? Do you have any idea what time it is?” The veins on his neck bulged.

  This was the first time Randy had seen him angry. “Do you know where Jeffery is?”

  “My son? What does he have to do with anything?”

  “Becca is missing, and we think your son knows where she is.”

  The professor frowned. “You can’t be serious. My son couldn’t possibly be involved.”

  “I’m sorry, sir, but we really don’t have time to argue the point. Every minute that passes brings Becca closer to suffering the same demise as the other victims.”

  “His house is about a...”

  “No, we just came from there. He’s not home.”

  The professor stroked his jaw. “Sometimes he spends the night in the bunkhouse.”

  Chief barked orders, and the team raced toward the workers’ quarters.

  “I don’t understand any of this.”

  Randy paused. “I’m sure this is hard on you, Professor. We’ll keep you informed.”

  “Do you think my son could harm her?”

  “If we’re right, yes. He could definitely hurt Becca.”

  “Wait a minute. You aren’t suggesting he’s this Florist...a serial killer?”

  Randy needed to join the others. “I really have to go. I’ll be back when we have something tangible or better.”

  The men were in position by the time he arrived. Chief looked less than impressed by the delay he’d caused, but nodded for him to go ahead. Without giving the men inside any warning, Randy kicked in the door.

  “Police! Everyone up and stand at the end of your bunks, hands where we can see them.”

  Randy’s jaw dropped. Jeffery climbed down from the loft, half dressed, followed closely by Jacob, who was also without shoes or shirt. The two obviously shared the same bed.

  “Jeffery Davies?”

  The man stood still, wide-eyed. “Yes, I’m Jeffery Davies. What’s going on?”

  Disheartened, Randy replied, “We’re going to need you to get dressed, both you and Jacob. We’d like to have a talk with you.”

  It’s not him. Jeffery doesn’t have Becca, and it is highly improbable he’s The Florist.

  “What do we do now?” Randy approached the chief.

  “I guess we get together with Jeffery and his father. Let’s pray they can lead us to Becca.”

  Randy opted to walk back to try and curb his mounting frustration. The mere thought of what could be happening to Becca at this precise moment made him physically ill.

  Becca, where are you?

  Chapter Twenty One

  She’d battled demons and conquered many fears in her forty years, but at this precise moment she freely admitted to being scared shitless. There has to be a way out. If he uses that needle, God only knows what he’ll do to me.

  The more Becca struggled, the deeper the tape burned into her flesh. If only I could bend my elbows.

  The sheen of perspiration worked in her favor, helping the tape work its way up her arm. Her eyes filled and she blinked rapidly to clear her vision.

  Please stay away just a little longer. If I can get my wrists to my mouth, I might be able to chew through the tape.

  She frantically wiggled from side to side in hopes of moving the tape further. Her gaze never wavered from the panel Danny had disappeared behind. The harder she worked, the more she sweated. The mounting tension made the threat of being sick, very real.

  Finally, the tape slid over her elbow. Despite her pain, she moved quickly, bringing her wrists up to start gnawing through the bloodied tape.

  All too soon, the creak of the panel forced her to stop and lie perfectly still. Becca prayed he didn’t notice anything amiss. She swallowed her rising frustration. If only he’d stayed away a little longer.

  Worry lines sprouted between Danny’s eyes as he crossed the distance between them.

  Please, please, please, don’t figure out what I’ve been up to.

  He now stood at her side and looked down on her. Suspicion darkened his eyes as his fingertips skimmed her lips and came away bloodied.
>
  Becca held her breath, forcing a calm exterior.

  “You bit your lip?” His words were slurred like he’d been drinking drunk. Danny let go of her hair and pulled at the tape wound around her wrists.

  She whimpered.

  “Aw, does that hurt?” He yanked at it harder, the tape digging deeper and deeper into her skin.

  “You sick bastard.” With every ounce of strength left in her, Becca clasped her hands and brought up her fist, connecting with his nose. Blood spurted over her and the floor.

  Danny howled, grabbing his nose and hopping about like he was in a tribal dance. Becca prayed for mercy. Her plan to knock him out failed.

  He squeezed the bridge of his swelling nose and glared at her. “You know, for a hotshot detective, you’re not very smart. Rule number one: never piss off the guy holding the needle.”

  Randy stepped on the gas and blazed a trail out of Danny’s driveway.

  Jeffery grabbed the dashboard. “Take it easy, man. How was I supposed to know he rented out his house?”

  He smacked the steering wheel. “I’m not pissed off at you, Jeffery. I’m just plain ol’ pissed off. God only knows what he’s doing to her right now.” Pictures of the seven victims played over and over in his mind.

  During the discussion between Jeffery, Jacob, and the professor, they listed previous workers who might have the kind of knowledge needed to pull something of this magnitude off undetected. Once Danny’s name was mentioned everything fell into place, and before long they agreed they’d uncovered the identity of The Florist. “I still can’t wrap my head around it being a cop. Never in a million years would any of us have suspected Danny.”

  “If it’s any consolation, Danny’s a real smooth talker. I’m not surprised he never drew any suspicion.”

  “So, the two of you were close at one time?”

  Jeffery settled in his seat. “I couldn’t talk about this in front of my father last night. Danny was my first lover. We were best friends, and when his mother passed away, he came to live with us. Soon after, he seduced me.”

  “Are you saying it wasn’t consensual?”

  He waved a hand. “No, no, nothing like that. Danny was the first man to love me in that way. Before then you could say I was a little confused about my sexuality.”

  “Is that the reason behind you and your father’s estrangement?”

  “Not entirely. You see, Danny and my mother became very close, and he took on the role of her protector. As you can well imagine, we were all devastated by her sudden death, but Danny took grief to a whole new level. He wouldn’t accept that she simply died of a heart attack. Everybody was suspect, and someone was going to pay for her death. It became his mission in life to find out whom.

  “My mother helped us keep our relationship from my father. Shortly after her death, he found out and went ballistic. He told Danny to move out, even banned him from the property. I also left the house that night, but continued to work and live on the acreage.”

  Jeffery shrugged indifference. “Dear old dad actually did me a favor. I wanted to end it with Danny, but didn’t know how. A few months later, I hooked up with Jacob, and here we are now.”

  Randy listened to Jeffery’s story half-heartedly. While it was all interesting and gave him a better understanding of Danny, it brought them no closer to finding Becca. He hit the steering wheel again. “We’re missing something and I can’t for the life of me figure out what it is.” Smoke came up from under the car as he hit the brakes and peeled down the professor’s driveway.

  His heart sank as the scene unfolded before them. The officers lingered outside the buildings, making it crystal clear their search had turned up nothing. His tires bit into the gravel with the truck’s sudden stop.

  “The dogs. Why haven’t they been called in? Mark, go find the chief and bring him back here. I don’t have the authority to request them.”

  After thirty excruciating minutes, the K9 units arrived with two beautiful Belgian Malinois on board. Each dog had been outfitted with ballistic vests for their protection. Given Danny’s state of mind and the fact he’d already poisoned and killed a dog, he wouldn’t think twice about shooting them.

  With ears pointed upwards, one canine sniffed Becca’s sweater and the other Danny’s vest. Their police partners knelt beside them and uttered their command of search and find.

  The dogs put their black snouts to the ground and ran off in the same direction. Their partners followed close behind until both animals jumped into a thicket of trees and bramble, obscuring the back of a sorting building.

  Randy’s heart pumped so hard he heard blood rushing in his ears. He’d asked Jacob earlier what was behind that particular structure and the guy assured him not even their brawny utility trucks could get through the mass of overgrown weeds and foliage there.

  We can’t get to it from the front, but maybe we can go through the back.

  “Jacob, can you show us around to the other side of this brush? Isn’t it possible he got in that way?”

  The foreman shrugged and slid in behind the wheel of his Mule. “I guess it’s possible, but I can’t see how he did it without anybody noticing.”

  The trainers tried to bring the dogs back to no avail. Once the two animals started to bark incessantly, he turned to the chief. “They’ve definitely found something.”

  “Can’t you just command them to come back?” the chief asked.

  “They are trained to stay with their find. I doubt they’ll come.” He cupped the side of his mouth and called out. “Baron! Regan! Home!”

  “We’re wasting time.” Randy waved the chief over. “If anyone gets in this way, let us know immediately. I want a team to follow us as well.”

  Jacob drove down the lane to the main road. He travelled a short distance before turning onto a rough path through the middle of a field. He pointed to where the tree line began.

  “Right about here is where they went in from the other side.”

  “Can’t we get closer than this?” Randy’s lack of patience reached a new high.

  “Not without ruining the flowers.”

  “I don’t care if we have to plow them all under. It’s probable Danny came this way, so take us there now.” Randy struggled to rein in his anger.

  “Let’s calm down a minute. You’re not doing her any good making decisions half-cocked.” Chief raised his brows.”Sit down and take a deep breath.”

  Randy glanced at the other passengers and eased back in his seat, feeling very much the scolded child. “I’m sorry, but for all we know that whack job is over there sewing Becca’s mouth shut right now.”

  Chief squeezed his arm before addressing Jacob. “Keep going until you feel we are directly across from the building, and then drive a straight line across the field. I think Becca’s life is more important than a few rows of posies.”

  Jacob nodded and slipped back behind the wheel. He didn’t go much further before turning. He came to a stop after crushing only a dozen or so of the vibrant yellow blooms. He frowned and hopped down, parting the tall stems.

  “Look at this.” He moved to one side to show them tracks already carved between the rows.”

  Randy jumped out of the truck and dropped to one knee. “These two fat ones look like they came from a truck.” His fingers slid down the grooves of the third track, “Shit! A motorcycle.”

  Chief was already on the radio relaying their discovery. Not long after, the field swarmed with men, making their way through the field. The building sat hidden behind a cluster of lilac trees. It had a double door to accommodate a motorcycle, and cement pad where only an oil stain remained.

  A couple of men in welding masks ground the locks. Armed special task force officers stood at each door and signalled, weapons drawn. The doors flew open with a bang, and silence permeated the space as Randy took it all in. Danny’s big black motorcycle sat in the center of the room.

  He saw no sign of Danny or Becca aside from the remnants of blo
odied tape. The pool of blood under a leather masseuse table was still warm to the touch.

  “Fuck! While we were chasing those fucking dogs, Danny took Becca out of here. Where the hell did he take her now?”

  Chapter Twenty-two

  Becca forced her eyes closed while Danny paced back and forth in front of the sofa where she lay. Keeping up the ruse of being unconscious bought her a little time to come up with an escape plan. She tried to decipher Danny’s gibberish as his sanity unravelled with each passing moment.

  She held her breath, feeling the couch dip under his weight, his hot breath on her face almost her undoing. Danny snapped his fingers in front of her face, and she prayed none of her muscles twitched. Her stomach churned with the musky scent of his aftershave tickling her nose, the threat of her puking imminent.

  “I’ll be right back, darlin’, and then we’ll get started.” His footsteps faded across the wooden floor, followed by the opening and closing of a door.

  Please God, show me a way out of this nightmare.

  She dared open her eyes a sliver to glance about the room, careful not to change her position. All she could see out the windows were trees. She concluded they were in a cabin of sorts. Given the worn furniture and photos that littered the room, someone lived here.

  The only hope she had of making it out of this situation alive was to outsmart him. Overpowering definitely wasn’t happening. Sure, she gave him a nosebleed, but he recovered in seconds and had the presence of mind to put a chloroform soaked cloth to her face.

  She was pretty sure the cops were hot on Danny’s trail. What other reason could there be for leaving the setup where he had everything at his disposal? Becca committed the room’s layout to her memory. She had no choice but to try and get away soon, before he had a chance to use the drug.

  Danny had her at a huge disadvantage. He knew where they were; she didn’t even know if there was a back door. It would be stupid to risk running off blindly. No, she needed to be patient and stick to her plan, and with a little luck, save her own life.