by J. E. Taylor
“No. I’m seeing the murders through his eyes, or some manifestation of his psyche.”
Jim cocked his head to the side like a cocker spaniel. “His?”
“I guess I’m assuming it’s a man just by the extent of the damage. I don’t see a human hand with a weapon, I see a manifestation of a claw. But based on the news reports it sounds like a single sharp object and not something an actual claw would produce. I’m also assuming the weapon is a bowed blade of some sort based on the arc of the strikes and the damage left behind,” she said.
Jim stared at her, silent.
“The only time I saw the killer leave the lipstick mark was the victim in the park,” she added after the silence filled the room.
Jim’s eyes narrowed. “Who knows about this?”
His tone and demeanor struck a chord and she hesitated before answering. “No one,” she said, leaving the conversation with Randy off the record.
Jim chewed on his lower lip. “Keep it that way,” he said and stood up. “Otherwise, you’ll be the prime suspect in the case.”
Carolyn hadn’t considered that and the stupidity of her lack of insight struck her silent for a moment. On the heels of that, the late night nine-one-one call came to mind. “I, uh, I called the police about the murder in the park,” she said. “But I hung up after I realized how ludicrous it sounded.”
Jim pointed a stiff finger in her direction. “If the press get’s wind of this it will be the end of your career.” He crossed to the door and paused. “Do you have an alibi?” he asked over his shoulder, but wouldn’t turn to look at her.
“You don’t think I had anything to do with the murders, do you?” The question came out as a gasp.
“Do you have an alibi?” He turned toward her this time, meeting her shocked gaze.
“I was at home or here.” She answered.
“Did anyone see you at the time of death?”
Carolyn thought about the timings of the murders and she nodded but didn’t expand as she silently shuffled through the facts.
Jim nodded and walked out of her office.
Carolyn picked apart each memory and circumstances lining them up against where she was; compiling the case against her like Jim would do. Her alibis were concrete enough to create reasonable doubt if she was ever hauled in.
Even so, the conversation rattled her and she picked up the phone, dialing the familiar number.
“Hello?” His groggy voice answered.
“Randy?”
“You okay?” Randy asked more coherently.
“Not entirely,” Carolyn said. “I had another nightmare last night and made the mistake of telling Jim about the visions.” She stared at the closed office door before swiveling her chair toward the windows. “He said this could end my career.”
“Bullshit Carolyn,” Randy began, “you’re the only one on staff who has a perfect record.”
“He said if the press got wind of this I could end up being the prime suspect.”
Randy laughed.
“He was serious Randy, and he was pissed.”
“Give me a half hour and I’ll meet you at Starbucks on the corner of Broadway and Fulton and we can talk over a coffee, okay?”
“Okay,” she said and a second later, the dial tone invaded her ear. She hung up and swiveled back to her computer, wiping the thoughts out of her mind, focusing on answering her outstanding emails for the moment. After twenty minutes, she locked the computer and headed out into the warm sunshine.
She took a seat in the deserted corner near the window where she could people watch and the din of thoughts wasn’t so overwhelming. When Randy approached, she sighed. He really was a handsome man, especially in the finely tailored suit he was wearing today. Randy sent a nod in her direction when he walked through the door, heading directly to the counter and ordering coffee for both of them. With drinks in hand, he crossed to the table, setting her latte in front of her. The scent of vanilla and hazelnut drifted from his cup and he placed a gentle kiss on her cheek before taking the chair on the opposite side of the table.
“Feeling a little better?”
Carolyn shrugged, glancing into his grey eyes, questioning yet again, why she hadn’t agreed to move in with him.
“C’mon, your favorite latte with your favorite man?” He spread his hands out and offered her a grin.
She couldn’t resist that smile and bit the inside of her lip, thwarting the smile that wanted to sneak onto her lips. She tilted her head and rolled her eyes instead.
“I’m not your favorite man?” Randy asked, dejected, his eyes resembling that of a puppy, begging for a morsel of food.
“This isn’t my favorite latte.” She allowed the smile to surface.
His slow easy grin was infectious. The smile faded as he watched the folks scurrying on the street outside. “I’m sorry I left the way I did last night.” He glanced sideways at her. “I was exhausted and that didn’t help.”
Carolyn took a sip of her hot drink and nodded. “I don’t know why you put up with me sometimes,” she replied with a sigh.
“You know why.”
“I still don’t have an answer.”
Randy nodded. He twirled the cup slowly in the holder without speaking, his expression somber and distant. “Tell me about the dream.” He switched the subject before it crawled under his skin and festered.
“This time the girl saw him coming and tried to mace him but he cut off her hand before slitting her throat.”
Randy let a quick breath out of his nose and glanced at Carolyn. “Where?”
Carolyn shrugged. “In some alley where a locked fence cut off her path.”
“What time?”
“Around four.”
Randy studied his hands again. “And what exactly did Jim say?”
“He said, and I quote, that if anyone found out about this it could mean the end of my career.” She locked eyes with Randy. “He also asked if I had an alibi.”
Randy raised his eyebrows. “What for?”
“Think about it, Randy. I’ve got in depth knowledge of the crimes. If the cops find out, I could end up as their number one suspect.”
Randy considered the information and took another swig of the coffee. “Still, that’s ludicrous.”
“Yeah, well, he has a point. I have inside knowledge of each of the crime scenes down to what the women were wearing and exactly how each of them died. I suspect the killer must be wearing something to protect his clothing, otherwise it would be fairly obvious to the casual observer that he was covered in blood.” She sighed. “The only killing so far during the day was the second one, the woman in her garage and for all we know, he could have gone inside and showered before leaving. All the others were at night.”
Randy sighed. “Do you know why he’s killing?”
Carolyn shook her head. “And I don’t have any forewarning. It happens at the moment I’m watching.” She took a sip of her latte and set the cup down. “And he does have a specific profile that he’s targeting.”
Randy nodded. “They all look like you.”
Carolyn shot her gaze from the window to Randy. “There are hundreds of women in this city who have dark hair and blue eyes,” she snapped.
Randy leaned forward. “But they all don’t have a striking resemblance to you,” he said and his gaze pierced her. “Move in with me so I can keep you safe.”
“Don’t be ridiculous,” she scoffed.
“I would hate to see anything happen to you.” He reached out and took both her hands. “Please Carolyn, move in with me.”
“Who’s to say anything will happen to me?”
“You fit the profile, Carolyn, and I haven’t had a good night’s sleep since I put that nugget together.”
“Is that why you asked me to move in with you?”
He pulled away, sitting back in the chair and folding his arms. His cheeks flushed and she couldn’t tell if he was reacting to her accusation or if he was truly angry.<
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“Do you love me, Carolyn?”
She sighed and reached for him, but he scooted the chair out of reach. “I can’t see my life without you in it,” she said, pulling her hand back and giving him more than she ever had emotionally.
Randy matched her sigh. “Then I’ll stay at your place until they catch the killer.”
Carolyn blinked and stammered, “I’m not sure…”
“You’re not sure of what?” His gaze overpowered her with its intensity.
“I’m not sure I want you there all the time,” she admitted.
His face went crimson. “Carolyn Hastings, you are infuriating,” he growled, finding his feet and leaving her at the table alone. He didn’t cast a backwards glance, stepping out of the restaurant and crossing the street, disappearing into the ever thickening morning rush.
Carolyn sat with her latte watching the spot he disappeared, reflecting on the sudden emptiness in the middle of her abdomen. She glanced around the restaurant before collecting her things and heading back to the office and catching an empty elevator.
A hand caught between the closing doors, causing them to retract. Trent stepped into the elevator with her, his lecherous smile sending wrinkles through his cheeks. He snapped his eyes away from her chest to the elevator lights.
“Morning,” he said, keeping his eyes ahead of him.
“Morning, Trent,” Carolyn answered, painfully aware of his attempt to keep his eyes averted from her breasts.
“Are you ready for today?” Trent asked, looking in her direction. His eyes wandered before he snapped them back to her face.
“Ready for?” Carolyn asked with a shrug, hoping he would clue her in either verbally or with his disturbing thought process.
“The presentation to the mayor’s crime council?”
Carolyn nodded. “Yes, I am,” she said, even though she didn’t have the foggiest idea of what her report would consist of beyond the conviction of Angel’s father. The rest of her caseload consisted of low profile cases that would result in plea bargains. Hardly something to quantify to the board; however, it was a dog and pony show that aired on the local public access station so she needed to deliver a report. Otherwise, it would leave them at the mercy of the chairman who had no grasp of how the legal system worked and used the television coverage to rake both the District Attorney and Chief of Police over the coals.
“With a serial killer on the loose, they might not have time for a case review today,” she said and even she heard the measure of relief in her voice. Trent shrugged and the elevators opened, ending the conversation.
Jim stood staring out the window in her office. “Are you ready for the inquisition?” he asked from his vantage point.
“I’m ready. Are you?”
Jim was always ready, but today he hesitated with a tenseness she had never seen before. He took a deep breath and nodded.
“You’re still upset about this morning?” Carolyn crossed to her desk, skirting by him and sliding into her seat.
He turned toward her, leveling an icy gaze. “You realize that will be the topic of conversation today.”
“Yes.”
“And you know that the meeting is televised.”
“What are you driving at?”
“You are to stay quiet today even if there is something you can lend to the case. Understand?”
Carolyn pursed her lips, studying the pink hue of Jim’s cheeks. He’s still stewing. Her assessment drove hot anger through her and she leaned back crossing her arms in defiance. “Are you advising me as my lawyer? Because that certainly sounded like it.”
Jim Britt leaned over, grasping the arms of her chair and stared at her. “I’m advising you as the chief prosecutor for the state of New York. When they catch the son of a bitch, I will get the case. You are reasonable doubt,” he said, his voice carrying enough malice to keep her quiet. “And I don’t like that at all. It gives the defense a loophole if it ever finds its way to the public record. So you just keep your goddamn mouth shut,” he growled and stormed out of the room, slamming the door behind him.
Carolyn had never been on the receiving end of his infamous temper before. She had seen him rip apart seemingly solid witnesses and go toe to toe with some of the country’s most talented defense attorneys but she never dreamed she would be the subject of his venom. She slowly slumped in her chair, aware that she was now in his line of fire and it was a very uncomfortable place to be.
Chapter 15
The inquisition, as Jim liked to call it, was a zoo. The council fired question after question at the chief of police demanding answers.
“Hold on!” Jim yelled over the commotion.
The room quieted down at his uncharacteristic interruption.
“The police are doing their best to find this serial killer. What are you doing to keep the city safe?” Jim bellowed at the council.
Silence descended on the room, then the shift occurred and everyone swung their inquisitive gaze to the council.
Carolyn actually heard Chief Bromley’s relief. Beads of sweat clung to his forehead and he mopped it with a handkerchief. He let the council squirm for a moment before he cleared his throat. “We don’t have very many leads but the ones we have we are following up on.”
Jim shot a glance in Carolyn’s direction, his eyes flashing a clear warning before returning his attention to the front of the room and the ruffled council members.
Chief Bromley cleared his throat again. “We’ve also engaged the FBI’s Behavioral Analysis Unit to help us with this case,” he said, summing up the lack of information they had on the Scarlet Psychopath. “We need to issue a specific warning for women between the ages of twenty and thirty with dark hair. We think this is a wise avenue to take.”
The council erupted in unison. “We don’t want to create a panic in the city,” the chairman said. “Besides, they’ve had warning by way of the news.”
Chief Bromley bristled. “If we give a direct warning, it will limit the accessibility of the victims. If women between the ages of twenty and thirty with dark hair travel in groups, it will save lives.”
While the chief believed what he was saying, Carolyn was skeptical. Something was driving this killer and she didn’t think a buddy system would stop the animal.
Slow him down, maybe, but stop him, not a chance.
Chapter 16
Carolyn sat in her office leaning back in her chair with her eyes closed, mulling over all she had seen in her visions. Her skin began to crawl and she opened her eyes. Trent leaned on the doorjamb, staring at her. Carolyn mustered up a smile and a shrug. “Interesting council meeting.”
Trent nodded and stepped in the room. “I hope they catch that killer.” He slid into one of the chairs on the opposite side of the desk and seized the opportunity. “I think I should walk you to the subway tonight.”
“I’ll be fine.” The last thing she wanted was Trent escorting her somewhere in the dark. That was a recipe for disaster.
“You heard what the chief said.”
Forever relentless. “I’m staying with Randy tonight,” Carolyn said, embracing the lie.
“Is he picking you up here?”
“No. I’m meeting him for dinner at the Seaport.” Lie upon lie.
“I can walk with you if you’d like.”
Carolyn sighed. “Trent, I will be fine, but thank you for your concern.” She offered him a genuine smile. “Now if you wouldn’t mind, I have some catching up to do.”
Trent shuffled out of the office closing the door behind him and Carolyn slumped in the chair. That’s all she needed right now, Trent feeling like he had to be her knight in shining armor. “Shit.” The word hissed out of her lips and she reached for the phone.
“I’m sorry.” She spoke first, before he could get a lick in.
“Carolyn, are you holding out for a bigger commitment?” Randy’s voice was tentative and unsure as the question skated off his tongue.
Carolyn raised h
er eyebrows and leaned back in the chair. “Commitment is the last thing on my mind right now.” She heard the air suck in over the phone line along with his growing frustration. “I need to figure out why I’m having these visions,” she added.
Randy responded with silence, his mind shutting down like an iron gate.
“I need to,” she whispered.
His heavy sigh came through the line. “What do you need from me?”
“I need you to be there,” she said before she could analyze her inner reaction. The words rang true. She needed him and the admission stunned her.
“Will you at least stay with me tonight?”
“Yes, I’ll stay tonight.”
He chuckled, thinking he won a small concession. “I’ll pick you up in a couple of hours and we’ll grab a bite at the Seaport.”
Carolyn grinned. At least now her story to Trent was the truth.
Chapter 17
Randy strolled into her empty office at seven thirty. Her computer still hummed, but she was nowhere in sight, so he sat on the couch in the corner behind the door and waited.
The District Attorney didn’t see Randy when he stepped into her office; he stared at her empty seat and exhaled. Crossing to the desk, Jim picked up the picture of Carolyn and Randy taken over the summer, tracing her features with his index finger.
Randy’s eyes narrowed at the obvious affection in his profile. Is he the reason Carolyn won’t commit?
Jim set the picture down, and with a sigh, he turned and left the room.
Chapter 18
Carolyn entered her office at a little before eight, and nearly jumped out of her skin when the door closed behind her. She spun to find Randy glaring at her. “Jesus, Randy!”
“Are you screwing your boss?”
The accusation made her laugh. The thought of romantic entanglement with Jim Britt sent her into a giggling fit. “Jim? No. Why?”
Randy put his hands on his waist and waited until she stopped laughing. “You’re boss has a thing for you and if you can’t see it, you are blind.”