The Zodiac Killer

by WL Knightly

  “I’ve got to be going, mama. I’ll come back to see you soon.”

  “Okay.”

  Carla came into the room, and his mother’s eyes lit up. “I had a handsome visitor.”

  “I see that. Very handsome indeed, Ms. Linda. Would you like to come down and watch the kids perform today?” There was a school bus outside, and he’d passed a line of kids on the way in.

  “I’m going to go, Carla,” Darek said.

  “Okay, Detective. Stop by the front desk and sign that paper for me, if you will.”

  As he left the room, he heard his mother’s voice. “Did you say, detective? My son is a detective.”

  He smiled but didn’t bother turning around. It didn’t mean that she’d recognize him, and he needed to get back to the office and see about that warrant.

  He called Lizzy as soon as he stepped out into the parking lot, and he headed for the car while he waited for her to answer.

  “Hey, partner. How’s your mother?” Her voice was so full of concern that if she’d been there, he’d have hugged her.

  “She’s okay. Just a scratch. She was a real chatterbox, but I finally got away. Did you get the warrant?”

  “Yes, and we’re headed there now. I’ll text you the address if you want to meet us.”

  He was impressed that she’d worked so fast, but he didn’t want to ask her how she’d done it.

  “Wow, okay.” He didn’t know what else to say. “I’ll see you there.”

  On the way, his mind drifted to the evidence, and no matter how many times he played it in his head over and over, the feeling that he was being set up wouldn’t go away.

  He really didn’t want to have to go and see the doctor, knowing the last suggestion he’d made, but he might have to go to get some peace of mind.

  He went across town and met up with Lizzy and Max. By the time he arrived, they’d already gone inside the house without him.

  Max came out of the house and walked up to Darek when he stepped out of the car. “We just went in, but it looks like he’s still not home.”

  “Let’s get inside. Maybe we can find a clue to where he went.” He led the way, and Max followed. Lizzy wasn’t anywhere to be found. He started upstairs and heard her barking commands.

  “Careful what you touch, guys. I’ll be down in the kitchen.” She breezed past him.

  “Hey, you sure work fast.” He followed her down to the kitchen, and Max followed in their wake.

  “Yeah, it was dumb luck. Chief was on the phone with the judge when I got inside the office. There’s nothing upstairs. The guy is a total neat freak. I’m hoping the kitchen can tell us when he was home last. Maybe there’s something in the trash.” She walked over to the island counter and looked around, but Darek found the trash can under the sink.

  “It’s here.” He pulled it out, and she walked over to take a peek.

  Darek could smell the rotting food before she had one of the other men take the lid off. Everyone held their breath, and Max tucked his nose into his shirt.

  “That’s disgusting. It’s rotten vegetable peelings. Find out when the trash service comes. He’s obviously missed a garbage day, or two.” Lizzy cringed and then stepped away and went to the fridge. She opened the door and took out some containers. “Mold.”

  The guy hadn’t been home for some time, and if he took off right after the murder with his order book, then the timeline would work out. Everything was falling into place, but in Darek’s gut, something seemed off.

  “It’s all too neat.” He had mumbled under his breath, but Lizzy lifted her head and shrugged.

  “What do you mean? The house? The guy was probably obsessive-compulsive or something. I’m surprised he didn’t take out the trash before he fled.”

  “No, I mean everything. It’s all laid out too neatly.”

  “So, the guy is a lousy murderer. That’s just going to make him easier to catch.” Lizzy leaned against the kitchen counter and folded her arms. “Tell me what’s on your mind.”

  “The guy keeps his house clean, his shop was neat, but he leaves this horribly messy murder that points directly at him. His own workers haven’t even been to his house, which means he’s a private person.”

  “Unless they’re lying. They could have been afraid of losing their job.” She let loose a deep breath. “It’s like the trash, Darek. He was in too big of a hurry to care about his trash because he was in too big a hurry to get the hell out of town.”

  “But why take the time to carve her up? Why not just gather your shit and go? Not to mention, she was drugged. Drugged not only to knock her out, but to make her bleed. I don’t think this guy is going to ruin everything he had for this girl. There’s something missing. It’s all too neat of a fucking package. You can believe it or stick to your own theories, but that’s mine.”

  “Everything points to him, though. We’re taught to listen to the evidence. How can I throw out everything that’s pointing directly to this man?”

  Darek knew all too well that sometimes, things aren’t what they seem. After he’d left the girl there in the clearing, a homeless man who had been camping out near the diner had been accused of killing her. No one looked any deeper because everything lined up perfectly to say that the man had done it.

  “You’re the one who told me to look deeper on that first day, saying that it’s not going to be wrapped up in a tight little bow, remember?”

  “Yeah, but that was before we had any evidence. This is now, and we have a shit-ton of evidence pointing to this monster. Take it as a gift. This case will be solved, and you’ll most likely get your promotion.” She shrugged and walked out of the room, leaving him in there alone with Max.

  Max was standing in the middle of the room with his hands on his hips, staring at his shoes. He looked up and met Darek’s eyes. “Don’t blow this, man.”

  15

  Darek

  When they left Victor’s house, Darek felt like Lizzy had taken the case and run with it. She wasn’t exploring his theories or even interested in hearing them. He had her all wrong. She wasn’t the person who wanted to look at every angle; she wanted to please her boss and nothing more.

  No wonder she’d survived and pushed her way to the top. She wasn’t on her knees, like some thought, but bent over, kissing Sam Reed’s ass. He couldn’t help but be bitter, especially since she was right about one thing. He should take it as a gift. Solving this case would better his chances of coming on board, and so would getting along with the teacher’s pet.

  He was back at the station, thinking about the lost security footage, when Lizzy walked up to him.

  “Sorry about back there,” she said. “I didn’t mean to start without you, and I know what it’s like to have a gut feeling that no one else feels.”

  He stared at his shoes and rattled the change in his pocket. “It’s cool. The evidence doesn’t lie, right?”

  “Right. So, how about you and I go check out that Bakes place and talk through everything over dinner? If we hurry, we can beat the senior’s crowd, and maybe you’ll see your friend.”

  Darek stood up a bit taller. “My friend?” He shrugged.

  Lizzy turned, and the two of them headed toward the parking lot. “Yeah, at Bakes; the Tad guy?”

  “Right, he’s not really a friend, but what the hell. I could use something to eat, and Megan is going to yoga tonight.”

  Lizzy’s lips parted into a wide smile. “Yoga, huh? She must be really fit.”

  “She’s a beauty queen. She was raised in the pageant circuit, so her looks really matter to her. More than most other things.” Including himself, he’d wanted to say.

  “We can take my car,” he said as she started in the opposite direction. He felt like he should drive, even though this wasn’t a date and only an extension of work.

  “Oh, sure.” She gave him a warm smile and followed him.

  Once they were buckled up, he glanced over and noticed her long legs, which were toned and st
rong, yet still sleek and sexy. She had a stronger build than Megan, who was softer.

  “So, you don’t do yoga I take it?” he asked.

  “No, I do, actually. It helps with my kickboxing. I do some sparring and light weight training.”

  “Nice,” he said. “I work out three times a week usually, but I haven’t been in a couple of weeks.”

  “I don’t get much time, either. Maybe we could work out together. I might even get you to glove up with me.” She balled her fist and held it against his lower jaw. “I’d punch you right there.”

  He glanced over and smiled as she gave him a wink.

  “Oh, would you? That’s not fair, you know? I could never hit a woman. Not even if she was holding me down and working me over. I’d just let it happen.” It was the truth, too. He’d only hurt one girl, and it was the weakest moment of his life.

  They talked more about working out, and he was glad he and Lizzy were getting along. The girl could be his friend and turn into the sister he never had in no time, much like Max was a best friend and brother figure.

  They got to Bakes, and after a rough time parking, they went inside to see Tad standing in the front, greeting guests.

  He walked over and greeted Lizzy first and then Darek. “Hello Ms. McNamara.” He turned to Darek. “Detective.”

  “We’d like a table; somewhere we can talk without scaring away the other patrons.” Darek raked his hand through his hair and straightened his tie.

  Tad grinned, and Darek could tell by the set of his jaw that he’d rather the two pigs in front of him eat somewhere else. “Right this way.”

  Lizzy followed. “Thank you.”

  Once they were seated and had ordered, they sipped their drinks and made small talk.

  “So how long have you been married?” Lizzy asked.

  “A year. We went from zero to sixty fast, but you’d think we’ve been married for forty years. Have you ever been married?”

  “Yeah, I’m divorced. I married a med student. He had one year left before he became a doctor, but it didn’t work out, so I left. We weren’t that compatible.”

  Darek noticed the casual way she spoke about it, as if it had meant nothing to her at all. “Most women dream of marrying a doctor.”

  “Yeah, well I’m sure it’s quite a fairy tale until you’re in the middle of it. He was a nice guy, but we wanted different things in life. I felt like it was better to let him go before we both grew bitter or wound up hurt.”

  “Bitterness sucks,” Darek said. “I feel it seeping into my own marriage. Sometimes, I think Megan doesn’t know what she wants. One minute, she wants a baby. The next, I need to get my promotion before we can even try. Then some friend of hers tells her about a phone app, and suddenly, I’m on a schedule. Like I need that shit.”

  Lizzy chuckled softly. “Sorry. I don’t mean to laugh; I just can’t imagine having to deal with the phone app thing.”

  “Yeah. Well, the case saved me from that little experiment. She’s afraid she’s going to end up like that movie where Brad Pitt’s wife’s head is in the box.”

  “Gwyneth Paltrow? ‘What’s in the box,’ right?” Lizzy threw her head back and laughed, and soon, they were laughing together. “Please tell me she’s blonde.”

  “She is.” Darek felt the heavy burden of stress leave his body, the weight lifting off of his shoulders.

  “I’m sorry, I don’t mean to laugh at your wife. I’m sure she’s lovely.”

  “She’s something. It’s actually helping with the stress to talk about it. This case has me in a funk, and with her and my mother, it all piles up.” He met her eyes, which were sparkling with the light above their heads. She seemed to have it all together. “How do you do it? Cope, I mean?”

  “I have very little in my life to stress about,” she said. “No family, no marriage, not even a relationship.”

  He sat back in his chair. “I can’t believe that. A gorgeous woman like you, I figured you were fighting off every single man in the department.”

  Her laughter sent chills in all the right places, which was very, very wrong.

  “No, it’s just me,” she said. “I’ve had a few men try to woo me, but I keep my head in my work, and then I have my hobbies, which hopefully will lead to us sparring. I think you need a kick in the pants.”

  “Oh yeah? Trust me, that’s the one thing I’m getting at home.” He turned up his drink. “She brought up the ‘D’ word the other day. It was like a punch in the nuts at the time, but the more I think about it…” He shrugged and left the idea hanging in the air.

  Lizzy sipped her own drink and then lifted her shoulder in a casual way. “Maybe things would be better, and maybe they wouldn’t. It wouldn’t necessarily solve all of your problems.”

  “It might help them, though. I don’t know.” He wanted to change the subject, but she was so easy to talk to, he couldn’t help it.

  Their first round of food came to the table, and Lizzy dipped her fork into the salad in front of her. He tried to focus on his own appetizer, but he watched how she ate the bite of cucumber. Even the way she ate was sexy. And then she asked him a question that he wasn’t expecting. “What’s the first thing you’d do if you were divorced?”

  He didn’t even have to think about that one. “Find someone to kiss.”

  Her eyes widened, and she wiped her lips with her napkin as she swallowed her next bite. “To kiss?”

  He looked at her soft, plump lips and imagined his own against them. What the hell was he thinking? He took a deep breath and pushed the idea away. “Yeah, my wife doesn’t kiss.”

  “Damn, I’ve never heard of that from a wife. Usually, you’d get that from a prostitute, right?” She gave a little laugh.

  “From what I hear, but I’ve never been with a prostitute personally.” He closed his eyes and laughed, not believing where the conversation had led.

  “No kissing, really?”

  “None. She doesn’t like it. And it’s not just me. She claims she barely ever kissed any of her old boyfriends. She’s okay with anything else, but no lip locking. I barely got her to agree to kiss at our wedding.”

  “What? That’s messed up. That’s the saddest thing I’ve ever heard.” She gave another laugh and then gave him an apologetic look. “I’m sorry.”

  “No, it really is.”

  Lizzy’s face was bright red with laughter, and her eyes sparkled even more as tears formed in the corners of her eyes. “Maybe you should create an app for that?”

  “Very funny. I just might.” He settled down a bit, and the laughter died. “Don’t you miss the companionship part at least?” It was hard for him to believe anyone would like to be alone all the time.

  “No.” Suddenly, her smile faded, and he saw her lip quiver a bit as emotion filled her eyes.

  “I’m sorry,” he said. “I didn’t mean to upset you.”

  “No, it’s okay. It’s not my husband. It’s just, I was with someone before him who I loved very much. I miss his company.”

  “Oh, you had a bad break up?”

  “No, he’s gone. He was much older than me. Like a father.” She gave a little half-hearted smile and then continued to eat her salad.

  “I guess I should be thankful for what I have.” He was thankful that he had Lizzy’s friendship, and that they were getting along. He would focus on the sisterly part of their relationship, and he hoped it would help him stop his wild imagination. He needed to hold onto Megan for all he was worth. Even if the idea of losing her to a divorce didn’t hurt his heart the way he thought it would.

  “What we have is a case to discuss,” Lizzy said. “As I said, I know what it’s like to have gut feelings, to know when something just isn’t right. I’ll keep that in mind as we move forward. The truth is, with this guy missing, we have no idea what’s going on, and as much as I want to think the evidence is pointing to him, he could have just been in the room. I know that.”

  “What if he’s dead?” Darek d
idn’t even want to think about that, but they needed to face the possibility.

  “I doubt it. I know anything is possible, Darek, but all signs point to him running off, and until I get a better reason to think otherwise, I’m going to believe that. So, can we at least agree to do that?”

  “Sure. I like it better when we’re getting along, anyway.” He took another sip of his drink, and she smiled.

  “I like that better, too.”

  16

  Lizzy

  Having dinner with Darek had been a nice way to round out what had been an underwhelming day. With the entire department now focused on finding Victor Barnes, she had her work cut out for her. She drove home and thought hard about the case, but her mind kept drifting back to Darek and his sad story.

  She had considered offering him a kiss and throwing the poor bastard a bone, but she knew better than to fall for him. He was a gorgeous man, tall and built, but not overly bulky. Just the right amount of firm muscle beneath the flesh. He had strong arms, powerful shoulders, and the nicest ass she’d seen on a man in ages. He was the perfect accessory to his beauty queen wife, and what a fucking waste that was.

  She doubted the woman would ever truly appreciate him or value him, but it wasn’t her problem. She had bigger issues, and this case was a top priority.

  She made it out of the city and to her apartment complex in record time. It wasn’t a palace, but it was in a nice area. The building was newer and had great security at the front gate. She had taken an upstairs unit, which was fine for her. Climbing the stairs every day would keep her limber. She unlocked her door and went inside, carefully checking to see if anything wasn’t the way she’d left it. A single lady living alone couldn’t be too careful, and she knew all too well the kind of monsters there were lurking about. She dealt with those animals on a daily basis, but better at work and not at home.