No Stone Unturned

by C. J. Johnson

  “Hello?”

  “Back here.”

  Frankie looked at Mia and raised her eyebrow in question as they walked towards the sound of the voice.

  With a gravelly voice Tony asked, “What can I do you for?”

  Mia said, “We’re from the Sex Crimes Unit. We…”

  “You emailed me about the unsolved rape cases.”

  Mia nodded.

  “Do you think you could plot the list you gave us on a map?” Frankie asked.

  “How big you want it?”

  Frankie touched her chin and bit her lower lip. “Seriously? How about big enough to put on a wall for reference? With case numbers identifying the plots or at least a legend.”

  “Easy enough. Give me about thirty minutes and I’ll print something out and bring it up to you.”

  “Thank you.” Frankie looked at Mia as they walked out the door. “Quick Trip?”

  While she drove, Frankie filled Mia in on her dinner with Craven. “Keith seems to think Craven doesn’t just want to be friends.”

  “Duh.”

  “Hmpf. Oh my gosh, I forgot to tell you. While he was at my house he got a call from Fitz. Remember Katarina Schlovik? The girl that was found in the trunk of the car with those two dudes?”

  “Yeah, what about her?”

  “They got the results back from the forensic kit. Two male DNA profiles were identified. They uploaded them into CODIS and think they have at least one match.”

  “Maybe they’ll get lucky and the other profile will be in the system,” Mia said.

  “Hopefully.”

  The map from PIC was sitting on Mia’s chair when they got back from Quick Trip. She and Frankie spread the map out on the table and surveyed the results. They used sticky notes and added cases where victims had positively identified Sawyer. Then they pulled case files for the ones PIC plotted out. After two hours, they had identified ten possible cases to add to the ones they already knew about.

  “I wonder how many victims didn’t report?” mumbled Frankie.

  Before Mia could comment, Baker walked out of his office and said, “You all ready to call it a night?”

  The squad started to gather their things, but Frankie kept staring at the map.

  “Frankie?” Baker asked.

  “Huh? Oh, you guys go ahead. I’m going to finish plotting this out.”

  “Don’t stay too late.”

  “Mmhmm.”

  In the quiet of the squad room Frankie continued to label the map. She found an empty wall and, using thumbtacks, hung it up. Standing back, she looked at the labels and looked at what could be a pattern.

  All of the women were picked up in areas known for prostitution, but not all of the women were prostitutes. Most of the women were raped inside the car and discarded like rubbish in an alley. All of the alleys were within a half-mile radius. A couple of the women were taken to an apartment. The ages varied, but Ciara was by far the youngest. In fact, she was the only girl under eighteen identified. All of the women were abducted at night, except for Ciara.

  “What made her different?” Frankie asked aloud.

  Looking through the files, Frankie made notes on which ones to pull from the archives. She’d go through them over the weekend and see if she could find any more victims that could identify Sawyer. Frankie took one more look at the map then closed the file and headed home.

  Chapter 79

  “What are you doing after work? Want to grab a drink?” Jessica stood in the doorway of Derek’s office with her arms folded, making sure he would notice her ample breasts. It was Friday night and they were the last two in the office.

  Distracted he looked up and said, “I’m going to be awhile. I need to go over this case file again.”

  Licking her lips, she asked, “Want some help?”

  Derek hesitated.

  “Come on, let me help you go through this, then we can grab a drink.”

  “Alright, I could use some help, but no promises on a drink.”

  Jessica grabbed a report and a legal pad before slipping off her heels and plopping down in the chair across from his desk. “What case are you working on, anyway?”

  “An unsolved homicide.”

  With eyebrows raised she asked, “Unsolved? If it’s unsolved why do you have it?”

  “Detective Fitzmeyer brought the case file over. They apparently identified two DNA profiles in the forensic kit collected on the female. They are waiting for confirmation on one possible match and are hoping CODIS will give them the other. He wanted me to be up to speed on the case when they started to bring me search warrants to sign.”

  “What do you know so far?”

  “This girl,” Derek handed Jessica a photograph, “Katarina Schlovik was last seen leaving the Shady Lady on 12th Street. She was accompanied by these two men.” Derek handed Jessica two photographs. “The Shady Lady is underwritten by the Marzullo family. It is pretty commonly known that the Marzullo family is connected. The men she was seen leaving with are part of the Finnegan family – arch enemies of the Marzullo family. All three were found dead, in the trunk of a car, down in the west bottoms.”

  “Was she a dancer, prostitute or both?”

  “We know she was a dancer but have no evidence of her being a prostitute. Based on what I’ve seen so far, it doesn’t appear that much was left behind in the way of evidence.”

  Jessica looked at the photo of the woman on the slab at the morgue. An involuntary shiver ran down her spine. “Did you notice this?”

  “What?”

  “She has a rose tattoo on her wrist.”

  “Hmm. So?”

  “It’s kind of unique. Sex Crimes brought me a rape case not long ago where the girl had the same tattoo on her wrist. We’re waiting on DNA before we charge the case. She was a dancer too. I’ll have to pull the file to see if she worked at the Shady Lady or a different club.”

  “You thinking they might be connected?” Derek inquired.

  “The women might be. I don’t know about the cases.”

  Derek almost missed the text vibrating his phone.

  “We are working an in-custody from the day shift. Not sure what time I’ll be done.”

  Derek looked at Jessica then back at his phone.

  “Okay. Maybe tomorrow?”

  “K”

  Putting the phone back in his pocket he said, “I’m starving. Want to go grab a bite?”

  Jessica put the report she was reading on his desk and said, “Is it really almost 8? No wonder I’m so hungry.”

  Derek grabbed all of the reports and put them back in the file folder. Satisfied his desk was in order he asked, “What are you hungry for?”

  A chuckle escaped, “Mmmm first things first. I need food.”

  Derek followed Jessica into the elevator and when the doors closed he grabbed her and pressed her against the wall. His mouth found hers quickly as she lifted her leg to wrap around his waist. He ran his hand up her thigh, letting his fingertips brush against the back of her panties. A guttural moan escaped her lips. She ran her hands up his back as the elevator shuddered to a stop. Jessica stepped back, smoothed her skirt, and wiped the lipstick from Derek’s mouth.

  “How about we order in?” Jessica asked with a wink.

  “I’ll be right behind you.” He followed her to the parking lot, climbed into his car, and waited until Jessica pulled out.

  Derek followed her to her condo. They barely made it into the front door before their clothes were discarded. When they were finished they collapsed, satiated, onto her bed.

  After a few minutes Jessica asked, “Want me to order a pizza?”

  “Sure. Do you have any beer?”

  “In the fridge.” Jessica sat up in the bed, grabbed her phone, and called for dinner.

  Derek grabbed his shorts and walked out of the bedroom. He looked around the tiny condo as he made his way to the refrigerator and grabbed two cold bottles of beer. He blinked when the light came on.


  Jessica was standing in the doorway with his dress shirt wrapped around her body. She took the beer from his extended hand and swallowed a long drink. She walked back to the living room and flipped on the television. Derek followed, plopping down onto the sofa next to her.

  The pair chatted amiably about work over pizza and beer. After cleaning up Jessica said, “I think I need a shower.” Looking back at Derek she asked, “Want to join me?”

  Derek smiled and followed her to the bathroom.

  Sleep was elusive for Derek. He hadn’t intended to stay the night but didn’t think it would be right to leave now. With the sound muted he turned the television on, flipped channels, and watched Jessica’s chest rise and fall while she slept next to him. He looked at his cellphone. 2 AM and still no word from Frankie. Not that he was surprised. Depending on how complicated the case was it could still be hours before she left work.

  Jessica stirred when Derek twisted his body to get out of bed. She asked, “Where are you going?”

  “To get a drink.” He gently brushed her hair back from her eyes. “I’ll be back.”

  She closed her eyes and smiled.

  Chapter 80

  “I’m freaking exhausted,” yawned Frankie.

  With a half-laugh, half-yawn Mia said, “Me too. Stop that, it’s contagious! Are you going to Derek’s tonight?”

  “No. I didn’t know what time we’d be off so…”

  “Don’t you have a key? Go wake his butt up!” Mia winked at Frankie.

  “It’s 2 AM… you know what, you’re right. I’ll drive up and surprise him!” Frankie was still laughing when she got into her Jeep. She picked up her cellphone and thought about calling first but decided it would be more fun to surprise him. The sounds of Daughtry filled the car as she drove north.

  Frankie pulled into the driveway but something felt off. The back-porch light was on and Bear was sitting on the porch. There were no lights on in the house and Derek’s car was not in the driveway. She pulled out her phone and dialed his number. Two rings and the call went to voice mail. Frankie disconnected without leaving a message. She threw her phone onto the seat and backed out of the driveway.

  She was pulling into her driveway when a text came through from Derek.

  “Sorry I missed your call. You okay? Miss you. XO”

  Frankie looked at the message and debated on whether or not she should answer it. Once inside the house she grabbed a beer and started flipping channels on the television. She fell asleep without answering his message.

  The ringing of her cellphone awoke Frankie with a start. She was stiff from falling asleep in the chair. Rubbing her neck, she looked at the caller id and smiled. “Hey Craven, what’s up?”

  “Dang girl, did I wake you? It’s after 9 o’clock.”

  Frankie stretched her tired body and said, “Late night. Got a confession though, so it was worth it.”

  “Good job! Want to go for a run. Or maybe some breakfast?”

  “How about both? We can meet down by the river, then go to the City Café for pancakes?”

  “Thirty minutes?”

  “See you there!”

  After warming up, Frankie and Craven fell into a steady rhythm. They talked about work while they ran, but when they got seated at the café Craven said, “Enough small talk. You’re not yourself. What’s going on?”

  Frankie told Craven about going to Derek’s and calling him. “I still haven’t answered his text.”

  “You think he was with her?”

  “Yea, or some other woman.”

  “What are you going to do?”

  Frankie fumbled with the napkin she had placed in her lap while looking down at the table. She didn’t know what she was going to do. She didn’t feel like she had a right to do anything.

  “Frankie?”

  Looking up with tear-filled eyes she said, “I don’t know. I guess I’m going to have to confront him.”

  Craven reached across the table and put his hand over hers, “You deserve better Frankie.”

  Before Frankie could respond the waitress returned with their plates. “Thank you.” Frankie busied herself with putting syrup on her pancakes. “What did you find out about Schlovik?”

  “Nothing yet. They said it may be a few days before we get anything back in the CODIS search. I think Fitz gave the prosecutor the case file last week so he would be familiar with it when we started requesting warrants.”

  “Good idea. Know who the prosecutor is?”

  Craven shook his head as he chewed his food. “I didn’t ask.”

  Chapter 81

  Frankie was just getting into the shower when her phone rang. Looking at the caller ID she declined the call from Derek and sent a message saying she would call back. After showering and getting dressed she looked at the phone again. She was still angry and debating on whether or not to call back before work.

  Inside her Jeep she picked up the phone and stared at the screen. Just before backing out she hit the callback button. Derek answered on the second ring, “Hey babe.”

  With an icy tone Frankie answered, “Hey.”

  “I tried to call earlier. You still coming over tonight?”

  “Yeah, I was in the shower.” Almost as an afterthought Frankie added, “I came by last night.”

  Frankie’s statement was met with silence.

  Stuttering Derek said, “I…I...”

  “Look, we never said we wouldn’t see other people, but since you invited…”

  “You said you were working late.”

  “So, since I was working late you decided to find someone else’s bed to fill?”

  Once again, her statement was met with silence. After a few minutes Derek pleaded, “Will you please come up tonight.”

  Frankie didn’t immediately respond.

  “Frankie?” Derek said softly.

  “Let me see how the night goes.”

  “Okay.” Derek paused before saying, “And Frankie.”

  “Yeah?”

  “I really do miss you. Stay safe, okay?”

  With tears in her eyes, Frankie said, “I know. Me too. And I will.”

  Frankie sat in the parking lot next to police headquarters and rested her head against the steering wheel. She nearly jumped out of her skin when Mia tapped on her window.

  “You coming in?”

  Opening the door Frankie said, “You scared the shit out of me.”

  “Everything okay?”

  “Yeah. No. I don’t know. It’s Derek.”

  “I take it last night didn’t go well?”

  “It didn’t ‘go’ at all. He wasn’t home. When I called, he sent it to voicemail. He was at her place.”

  “Did he say that?”

  “No, but he wasn’t at home. So, if it wasn’t her it was some other girl.”

  “Does he know about the issues we’ve been having with Jessica?”

  Frankie shook her head. “We haven’t really talked. He’s been so distant since the shooting.” She lowered her gaze to the ground, “At first I thought it was in my head but now…”

  Mia put her hand on Frankie’s shoulder and softly asked, “Are you sure it’s all him?”

  Frankie looked up and said, “No.”

  “Talk to him Frankie. You always said you were friends first. Maybe this has ran its course or maybe it’s time to take it to the next level. Whatever it is, you have to talk about it.”

  “You’re right.” Brushing the tears from her cheeks, Frankie grabbed her bag from the ground and said, “Let’s get this night over with.”

  Chapter 82

  Frankie and Mia started pouring over the files from the unsolved cases they believed could be linked to Sawyer. One by one they reviewed patrol car dash cam videos and listened to 9-1-1 calls.

  A couple of hours had passed when Mia exclaimed, “Frankie you’ve got to see this!”

  Removing her earbuds, and pausing the call she was listening to, Frankie asked, “Is it bad?”

&nbs
p; “You’re going to have kittens. The victim in this case is Latasha Green”

  Mia restarted the dash cam video. Frankie watched the patrol car pull up to a young woman sitting on the curb. The male patrol officer walked over to Latasha and politely asked if she had called 9-1-1. A female officer sauntered over while Latasha was sharing her experience.

  Holding her face, Latasha said, “I was standing on the corner ofIndependence Avenue and Prospect trying to make a date so I could score some crack. This guy pulled up and asked me how much for head. I told him $20. He told me to get in and when he pulled away he got real…I don’t know…real weird. He started laughing and calling me a stupid whore. He pulled into an alley and told me to get into the backseat of the car. But, instead of me giving him head he pulled a gun on me. He yanked my pants off and stuck it in me.”

  The female officer barely let her finish before she asked, “What makes this rape? How do you figure this is rape and not just a non-pay?”

  “You can go now,” the male officer said. “I’ve got this.”

  “I just don’t see how this is a report. Sounds to me like a non-pay. Theft of services maybe, but not a rape.”

  The male officer moved in between the victim and female officer, “Like I said, you can go. I’ve got this.”

  Latasha started to cry and said, “She’s right. It’s my fault. I shouldn’t have been…”

  The male officer asked, “Did you consent to having sex with this man?”

  Latasha hung her head, but you could see her head shaking in dissent. “I told him to stop but he wouldn’t. Then I tried to open the door but it wouldn’t open. So, I just laid there. I gave up.”

  “Ma’am, that’s rape. Do you want to go to the hospital for an exam?”

  Latasha looked back up and meekly said, “I don’t have any money or insurance.”

  “You don’t have to have either. Can I give you a ride?”

  Latasha nodded.

  Mia stopped the video. “What do you think?”

  Frankie’s face was red and her forehead crinkled. “I think I want to throat

  punch that bitch. Was Sex Crimes even called? Was a detective assigned?”