Confession
Page 13
“That’s the way it goes sometimes,” said Homer then he walked away.
Carl nodded in agreement with Homer’s comment then he returned to some case files he was reviewing.
March arrived and Jimmy made another pass by Melissa house. It took four attempts on week for him to see Melissa out on her front porch with her daughter.
“She’s getting big,” thought Jimmy while he eyed the baby girl. Part of him wanted to keep that baby girl but he knew he would be run out of town on a rail.
Jimmy drove off down the dirt road and silently prayed he could get Betty pregnant and they would have a daughter.
The 4th of July arrived and Homer drove down from Atlanta to spend the weekend with his parents.
While he was in town, he was invited over to Jimmy’s home for a few beers.
Jimmy brought two cans of cold Black Label beers into the living room where Homer waited on the couch.
“So, Homer, how are things going with the FBI in Atlanta?” he asked while he handed Homer a can of beer.
“Still the same,” said Homer while he opened up his can of Black Label beer.
Jimmy opened up his can of beer and was itching for some more information. “Nothing going on here in Boldger or with the Military Police duty with the Army Reserves. My weekend drills are quiet and actually quite boring,” said Jimmy then he took a drink of beer.
“It’s actually been boring for me,” said Homer then he took a drink of beer.
Jimmy couldn’t wait. “I recalled during Christmas you mentioned about some arrogant agent on a murder case in the northern part of the state. Any new developments on that case that I can learn from? You know, from an Army MP standpoint.”
“Oh yeah, from what I learned from a fellow agent, that Robert Fillert doesn’t have a fucking lead. He’s going nowhere with that case. Nowhere,” said Homer.
Jimmy smiled knowing he was still in the clear. He and Homer did some more chatting while they drank their Black Label beer.
More months flew by and it was October 1963.
FBI Agent Robert was no way close to identifying Annette’s killer.
Jimmy still had boring weekend drills down at Fort Benning. He hoped to see another dead body but all he had to deal with was drunken soldiers who partied too hard on Saturday night at the local bars in Columbus. He did have the opportunity to whack on soldier across his head after he got rude and cussed at Jimmy. Jimmy enjoyed that moment.
Jimmy was behind his desk at the office. He drank some coffee and smoked a Lucky Strike cigarette while he read the latest edition of his True Detective magazine. Seeing the black and white photos of dead girls brought back his fond sick memories of that night with Annette.
After he sat back down at his desk from pouring his second cup of coffee, his desk phone rang. “Sheriff Nalla,” he answered the call.
“It’s me Ricky,” he said from the phone.
“Hey little brother.”
“Ready for our fishing trip next week?”
“You bet,” replied Jimmy then he opened up his middle drawer and removed a road map.
“Okay, I’ll meet you there with a new car.”
“Sounds great.”
There was a few seconds of silence. “I can’t wait to hear about your drive over to the lake.”
“If I don’t make it to the lake on that Saturday, rush back home. As something might have gone wrong and I don’t want anybody coming after you.”
“Okay big brother. But I know you’re too crafty for the FBI,” said Ricky then he hung up his end of the call.
Jimmy opened up the road map and it was for the State of Mississippi. Jimmy grabbed his pack of Lucky Strikes, removed and lit a cigarette while he studied the map for a place to pick up his next victim.
After four minutes of looking the State of Mississippi Jimmy found where he wanted to make his next mark. He smiled and thought this would be the perfect spot. It was a spot he heard from some of the young Army soldiers down at Fort Benning.
He folded up the map and shoved it back in his desk drawer.
He propped up his boots on his desk and couldn’t wait for his next fishing trip.
It was now time for his trip.
It was Friday morning and Betty had packed some clothes in a small suitcase for Jimmy in their bedroom. Jimmy had earlier that morning packed his trunk with the necessary camping and fishing gear.
Jimmy entered the bedroom after finishing the egg and bacon breakfast she made for him.
“I still don’t understand why you can’t drive with Ricky,” she asked while she closed the suitcase.
Jimmy glared at her. “Listen, I have some secret military police business I have to attend to every year. So it’s none of your business,” he said and looked like he wanted to slap his wife.
Betty knew she touch that sensitive ground again and decided not to press him for anymore questions.
Jimmy grabbed the handle of his suitcase and gave Betty a quick kiss on the lips.
He walked out of the bedroom.
Betty stayed behind and started to wonder why Jimmy was acting so strange suddenly with his fishing trips with Ricky. But she knew she better shrug it off as saying anything about that to Jimmy could set off his temper.
She left the bedroom and headed to the kitchen to make a cup of tea.
Jimmy got in his Galaxie and drove off down his street. He turned on the radio and Johnny Cash’s Ring of Fire song started to play on the radio.
“I fell into a burning ring of fire,” he sang along with Johnny Cash on the radio.
He whistled along with the song while he drove through the streets and headed to the southern part of town.
Jimmy drove his Galaxie south through Alabama.
He first stopped off at a Hardware Store and bought some new leather gloves.
After the Hardware Store, he drove through Mobile and found a nice diner. He stopped for dinner.
When it got dark, Jimmy filled up his car then drove out of Mobile.
He headed west into Mississippi.
Later that night, Jimmy drove to Biloxi and headed to the west side of Keesler Air Force Base.
He found the part of Biloxi that had bars and knew he could find what he wanted.
Jimmy up and down the streets until they were void of any witnesses.
That time finally arrived and he spotted a lone hooker waiting by a street corner. Her name was Rhonda.
“How dare they charge for sex,” Jimmy would often tell Ricky during some of their chats.
She paced the corner alone, as her other coworkers already found customers. She wore a tight black Montgomery Wards sleeveless scoop neck dress with straight skirt. She thought she might be done for the night and started to walk away from the corner to head home. But then the sound of the squeal of brakes caught her attention.
Jimmy pulled his Ford over to the curb and stopped. He glanced around and the streets were still empty with potential witnesses. So he leaned over and rolled down the passenger window.
“Hey baby, you look extremely lonely. Want some company for a little while tonight? A small party between the two of us,” Jimmy called out his opened passenger door window.
She strutted over and leaned in his window with a smile knowing she would earn some more money tonight. “Yeah honey, I would love a little party with you.” She had a huge smile when she saw Jimmy’s cash in his hand.
She opened the door got inside his car.
Jimmy handed her the cash and she immediately shoved it in her small purse.
He drove his car away down the street.
“So sugar, where can we go to have our little party?”
“I know the perfect place. It’ll be nice and romantic,” Jimmy replied with a smirk.
Rhonda slid over next to Jimmy to start their date.
He drove for another five minutes and headed out of town. Soon nothing but quiet and dark woods filled their view while he drove down the lonely two-lane road.
“I have a farm house north of town, where it’s nice and quiet,” he responded.
She kept an eye on his tattoo as it started to bug her. “What’s with that tattoo?”
“Oh it’s just my little memory of the girls I had a party with. Her name was Annette. When I’m done with our party, I’m going to have an R tattoo in your honor,” he said with an evil smirk.
Rhonda’s gut started to sour telling her this was not a good idea. “You know something, I’m getting a splitting headache. I really don’t feel like partying, so I better get back to town. Here’s your money back,” she said then handed back his cash.
“You say you have a headache?”
Rhonda nodded and rubbed her forehead to make it believable.
“Okay,” he said then he discreetly slipped on a pair of new leather gloves he bought in Mobile.
“What’s with the leather gloves?” Rhonda asked and started to get scared.
“No finger prints,” Jimmy replied then he quickly grabbed the back her head before she had time to react. “I’ll give you a headache,” he yelled out while he slammed her forehead into the dashboard. “Never refuse to party with me!” he screamed at her while he repeatedly slammed her forehead into the dashboard. Her body went limp when she passed out. He let go of the back of her head and left her slump against the passenger door.
Five minutes later, Jimmy whistled while he drove down a two-lane road. He looked forward to having fun with this hooker.
He finally spotted a dirt road off to his left. He pulled into the road and drove down it for another fifty feet. He positioned his car so the headlights illuminated a tree.
He leaned over and immediately removed her shoes and dress. He tossed them on the floorboard. He removed her bra and slid her panties down her legs and tossed them on the floorboard. She was naked in his car. He looked her over and the sight of a naked hooker didn’t excite him. He was disgusted by the thought of her screwing numerous men day after day.
He quickly got out of his car and rushed over to the trunk. He opened up his trunk and removed his camera on the tripod. He rushed over and set up the camera by the front grill of his Galaxie.
He rushed back to the trunk and removed the rope and baseball bat that he bought three months ago in Boldger. He rushed over and dropped them at the base of the tree.
He rushed back to the passenger door and opened it up. He reached inside and pulled naked Rhonda out and carried her back to the tree.
After a few minutes, she was securely tied to the tree.
He looked at her naked body.
She stirred and opened her eyes. She looked around in a daze and did not know where she was or what she was doing. Then it dawned on her. She was naked and tied to a tree out in the middle of the woods.
“Help!” she screamed when she saw Jimmy standing four feet from her with a baseball in his hand.
Jimmy quickly took a swing and whacked her crotch with the bat.
“Ahhhh!” Rhonda screamed in pain.
“You should never make men pay for sex,” he yelled at her then swung the bat again and gave her crotch another whack.
“Ahhhh!” Rhonda screamed in pain.
“Why are you doing this?” Rhonda sobbed out in extreme pain.
“Why am I doing this? Well, I’m doing this because I enjoy it. Now, shut up!” he replied then took a hard swing and whacked her in the throat.
She gasped for air through her injured throat. He took another hard swing and whacked her right jaw. Teeth and blood flew out of her mouth. She tried to scream out but nothing emitted since her vocal cords were smashed.
He swung and whacked her left side of her jaw and more teeth and blood flew out. The pain was so intense that she was on the verge of passing out.
He stepped back a foot and swung the back and whacked her right temple. She passed out from the pain. He then swung and whacked her left temple. Her body slumped downward on the tree. He dropped the bat and grabbed her head. He twisted her neck until he heard a snap. Her head slumped forward.
Jimmy walked back to the trunk of the car with a spring in his step.
He removed the axle grease and rushed back over to Rhonda. He smeared grease on her tummy to resemble the number “2.” He looked around the dirt and picked up all of her teeth he could find. He shoved them in his pocket.
He walked over to his camera and snapped a picture. He walked his tripod over to a couple of different areas and snapped some pictures of Rhonda.
He set the timer and rushed over Rhonda. The camera snapped a picture and Jimmy looked like a proud hunter who bagged a prize deer.
He rushed over to the camera and grabbed it.
He rushed the camera and tripod to the rear of the car and dropped it in the trunk along with the grease. He removed his gloves and dropped them in the trunk and slammed it shut.
He rushed over and got behind the drivers wheel. He backed down the dirt road. When he got to the side of the two-lane hard paved road he stopped.
He got outside of his car and repeated the process of covering his tracks with a tree branch and leaves.
He got back inside his Ford and drove off down the road.
When he was thirty miles from the crime scene, he threw out Rhonda’s shoes and empty purse on a lonely country road.
The next day, he drove away and met up with Ricky at Artabatian Lake outside Pierce, Mississippi.
Ricky pulled up in a brand new shiny white with white interior 1964 Ford Galaxie. He installed a trailer hitch and towed his fishing boat behind.
“Whew! She sure is pretty,” Jimmy said while he walked around and admired his new car. Ricky handed him the keys.
Jimmy went over and unlocked the trunk of his new Galaxie. He rushed over and opened the trunk of his old Galaxie. He gathered all the items inside and walked over to his new Ford and dumped them inside his new trunk.
Ricky curiously walked. “Did you do it again?” he asked while he peeked inside.
“Oh yeah little brother, I had so much fun last year and since I got away with it, I decided to do it again. You know, make it an annual event every October,” Jimmy said with a satisfied smile.
“I like the sound of that,” Ricky said while he looked at Rhonda’s dress. Then his eyes widened with an idea. “Can I watch the next time?”
Jimmy thought about his offer. “I don’t see why not.”
Ricky looked excited about going on one of his brother’s killing trips.
Jimmy removed his camera then closed the trunk of his new car.
Fifteen minutes later, they were in the water to start their next week of fishing and camping. Jimmy filled Ricky in on all the details with his time with Rhonda.
The weather was a little cloudy while they spent the week fishing and camping. They caught enough bass for dinner plus Ricky brought enough beer from home.
When it was time to head home, Jimmy hid all of Rhonda’s clothes inside his tent when he packed it in the trunk of his new car.
“Again little brother, we’ll keep this a secret until the day we die,” Jimmy said while he closed the trunk.
“Until we die,” Ricky said then they locked pinkies to seal their promise.
Jimmy drove off in his new 64 Ford while Ricky drove off in the 63 Ford.
On the way back to Boldger, Alabama, Jimmy stopped off in another tattoo parlor in another town in Mississippi. He had to add to the tattoo he got last year.
Jimmy pulled into his driveway in his new 1964 Ford Galaxie. He tooted the horn and turned off the engine. He got out and stood by the front fender.
A few seconds later, Betty came out of the house and saw their new car. “She sure is pretty,” Betty said while she walked around and admired the shiny Ford.
She saw the “R” that was added next to the “A” under his skul
l tattoo on his right bicep. She rolled her eyes and knew better than to ask questions. So instead, she sat down behind the steering wheel and took a whiff of that new car smell.
Jimmy opened the rear door and removed his suitcase. “I’m starving. Go make my dinner while I unload my stuff. I’m also going to develop the pictures from my trip with Ricky, so I don’t want to be disturbed.”
Betty nodded in agreement while she got out of the car. He handed her his suitcase.
She walked back to the front door.
Jimmy waited until Betty went inside their house. When the coast was clear, he rushed over and opened up his garage door.
He rushed back to the rear of his car and unlocked his trunk. He removed the tent and camping supplies.
He rushed them inside the garage.
He rushed back to the car and removed his camera and tripod. He rushed back into his garage.
He turned on the garage light then closed the door.
He grabbed his step ladder and placed it under the attic access panel. He rushed up the ladder and removed the access panel.
He went up into the attic and grabbed his wooden chest.
He rushed down the ladder with the chest in hand.
He set it on the floor and unlocked it. He reached inside the chest and removed the jar. He opened it up then reached in his pocket and dropped Rhonda’s teeth into the jar. He secured the lid and placed it inside the chest.
He rushed over to the tent and unfolded it. Inside were Rhonda’s dress, panties, and his baseball bat with the bloody tip. He grabbed he dress, panties, and dropped them inside the chest.
He grabbed his bat and rushed over to his work bench. He grabbed his power saw and plugged it in the outlet. He secured the bat and proceeded to cut in up into numerous pieces.
Inside the house, Betty heated a pot of water for spaghetti and heard the power saw from the garage. She rolled her eyes and was not about to ask questions.
Inside his garage, Jimmy dropped the bloody tip into the chest. He dropped the sawed off pieces of the bat into the trash along with his leather gloves.